The night air was thick with dread as Allen tore through the dense Blackwood forest, his breath ragged, his heartbeat a frantic drum against his ribs. The howls behind him sent pure terror searing through his veins. His legs burned with exhaustion, but he didn't dare stop. He couldn't.
"I should've listened to Selene."
The thought hammered through his mind as he dodged low-hanging branches, his pulse a deafening roar in his ears. He could see flashes of silver moonlight slicing through the trees, but with every desperate step forward, the monstrous snarls behind him only grew closer.
"Nelly's coming for me."
Images of his mother and his little sister flooded his mind. Their smiles, their warmth, their love. "I can't die here. I have to get back."
His foot snagged on a root, and he stumbled, crashing hard against the damp earth. A sharp pain shot up his arm, but he scrambled up, pushing past the agony. He could hear them—fast, relentless, closing in.
Through the chaos, a command rang out. A deep, guttural snarl—Cane's voice in wolf form. The thudding paws slowed. The chase hesitated.
But not Nelly.
Allen's eyes darted around, searching for a hiding spot. He dove behind a thick tree trunk, gasping for air. With trembling fingers, he pulled out his phone, unlocking it with a frantic swipe. His heart sank. No signal.
"No, no, no…"
He dialed Selene. Nothing. Naksu. Nothing. He bit his lip, willing the call to go through. Desperation clawed at him as he switched to voice notes.
"Selene, it's werewolves—werewolves! She's coming for m—"
A flash of claws. A searing pain across his chest. The phone slipped from his grasp, the message cutting off with a sickening squelch.
Allen's scream was lost in the wind as Nelly pounced, her claws raking through flesh, her fangs sinking into his throat. The scent of iron filled the air as she tore through him, the sound of bones snapping under her rage. Blood splattered across the forest floor, staining the fallen leaves in gruesome reds and blacks.
Cane's human voice ripped through the night. "Nelly, NO!"
He stumbled forward, his body shifting back to human form, horror plastered across his face. But it was too late.
Nelly's eyes widened, realization dawning on her as she took in Allen's mangled body. Panic flared in her gaze as she turned and fled into the darkness, her monstrous form vanishing into the depths of the forest. The rest of the pack hesitated only for a moment before following, their bodies snapping back into their beastly forms as they disappeared into the night.
Cane dropped to his knees beside Allen's ruined corpse, his hands trembling. "What have we done?"
---
The morning sun did little to lift the eerie silence that had settled over Blackwood. Naksu stood outside Allen's house, a growing pit of worry in her stomach. She had woken up to several missed calls from Allen, but when she tried calling back, there was no answer.
"Mrs. Ross," she called out as Allen's mother opened the door. "Is Allen home?"
The woman smiled kindly. "Oh, dear. He told me he was staying over at a friend's place last night."
Naksu's stomach twisted. That wasn't like Allen.
She turned on her heel, heart racing, and sprinted straight to Selene's house. "Selene!" she pounded on the door.
Selene opened it groggily, her hair a mess. "What—?"
Naksu's expression shut her up. "Check your phone."
Selene frowned, stepping back inside and grabbing it from her nightstand. Her breath hitched at the sight of the missed calls. Then she played the voice note.
"Selene, it's werewolves—werewolves! She's coming for m—"
The message ended in a horrible, gut-wrenching sound.
Selene's hands trembled as she stared at the screen, her throat tightening. "No…"
A knock on the door interrupted them. It was one of the estate's security officers.
"There's been a discovery in the forest," he said grimly. "A body."
Selene and Naksu didn't wait for details. They ran.
The sight that awaited them in the clearing was worse than any nightmare. Blood soaked the earth. Allen's body lay in a grotesque heap, his face barely recognizable, his limbs twisted at unnatural angles.
Selene let out a strangled cry, falling to her knees beside him. "No, no, no!"
Naksu turned away, covering her mouth as a sob broke free.
Tears streamed down Selene's face. The pain in her chest was unbearable, but beneath it, something else simmered—rage. Pure, burning rage.
Shaking, she pulled out her phone. The estate had recently installed security cameras due to the recent attacks. With trembling fingers, she scrolled through the footage.
And then she saw it.
Nelly. Blood-drenched. Merciless. Her fangs bared, her claws still dripping with Allen's life.
Selene's fingers clenched around the phone, her breathing shallow, her entire body trembling. The truth was undeniable. The monster who had done this wasn't just any werewolf.
It was Cane's sister.
A deep, guttural cry built in her chest, raw and full of agony. She threw her head back and wailed, her voice carrying over the clearing like a storm's roar.
The air crackled. A sudden vibration filled the space around her. Metal objects—watches, belt buckles, even the security officer's gun—shuddered violently. The streetlights flickered, their poles groaning under an unseen force.
Selene clutched her head, panting, eyes wide with shock. Something inside her had awakened.
And it was just the beginning.