Ava
I struggle to breathe as I watch the wolf circle Billy’s body on the ground. He is still, motionless after that beast ripped the life from him.
A painful sickness erupts inside of me. The thought of Billy murdered by this beast hits me like a sledgehammer. My head spins as I try to make sense of it all.
What was Billy doing? What was he thinking, and what does this creature want from me?
I think about running, but there is no point in that. It would be on top of me before I could get into the car.
The sound of a crow cuts through the cold air, and like it, I wish I could launch myself into the sky and fly far away from here.
The wolf lingers, staring at the corpse as if examining it, then slowly turns its head towards me.
I stare at the wolf before me. This thing is huge, pitch black fur and bright green that bore into my soul. I grapple with myself to understand what the hell is going on. The only thing that tells me this is real is the fear, raw, slicing me like a razor blade.
"Wh-what the fuck?" I stutter.
Its breath is low and deep, forming clouds as it hits the ice-cold air.
"Stay back!" I scream, my hands balling into fists. I’m not going to let this thing chew me up. I’ll fight the fucker with every last breath.
The beast growls, its head tilts to the side, never taking its eyes off me. The scent of its damp black fur carries to me on the breeze between us, tickling something strange in my mind, something that manages to cut through my panicked haze even if only for a second.
I feel fear now more than ever. I know this thing will leap towards me at any second.
“No!” I yell at it, pushing my fists out before me. My breath quickens as I realize I only have one option now.
It’s now or never.
I gather all the courage and fight inside of me and throw myself toward the beast, closing my fights tight, ready for a fight. The beast doesn’t flinch as I land my first punch on its face.
The sting immediately shoots up my arm. It’s like punching concrete. But I don’t stop, I won’t stop.
Another, then another, my head lowered. I don’t want to see this thing's jaws as they clamp down on me.
“You killed Billy!” I scream, utilizing each word to fuel my fists as I land one after another.
Then, my punches begin to miss, hitting the air where its body used to be. Then I realize the beast is starting to shift right before me.
I grab at the thing as if trying to stop this hideous act from unraveling before me. My fingers twist in motion with their skin and bone as it shifts.
Its form writhes and contorts, muscles rippling beneath the dark fur until it somehow starts to transform. I hear the crack and click of bones; shock and horror etch themselves across my face as I watch the shifter’s transformation unfold.
The wolf's dark fur recedes, revealing tan skin, while its limbs contort and reshape into a human form.
"Get away from me!" I shout, landing blow after blow on his solid chest. My tears flow freely, blurring my vision, but I don't stop.
My emotions are a whirlwind, my mind a tangled mess of fear and confusion. As I continue to hammer the shifter’s chest, each hit is fueled by the anguish ripping through me. It’s as though every fear, every anxiety, every grievance I’ve had with my life, my mind, my accident– all of it begins to pour out of me in the presence of this shifter.
“Leave me alone,” I cry out.
But my strength begins to leave me. Whatever this thing is, it’s not fighting back, not attacking me. It waits as the energy drains from me.
“Ava,” I hear my name. I freeze. I wipe the tears from my eyes and look at the face of it.
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