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First Sample


I’m so tired. My eyelids are heavy; I can’t lift them, no matter how hard I try. Slowly, I start waking up. There’s cool grass on my cheek and a breeze ruffling my hair. I can hear a bird chirping somewhere in a nearby tree, and my labored breathing. Every breath is a fight. It’s getting easier, but I can barely feel the difference.

I don’t know how long I lay there, just breathing and slowly regaining my energy. Eventually, I force my eyes open. Everything’s blurry, a mix of browns and greens. So close now… I can smell the dirt now. It smells like blood and death and growing things. Such a strange combination, I think. There must have been a battle in this area a few years ago. I’m not so tired now. I think I could get to my knees if I tried.

It takes a few tries, but I make it to my feet. I’m swaying, but I feel stronger with every breath I take. My sight gets sharper, and I realize I’m in a forest. I wait a moment before taking a few steps. I’m wobbly and unbalanced and I can’t seem to feel anything. I look down at my hand and notice a cut there. I prod it a couple times with a claw-tipped finger. Numb… I didn’t know it made me numb. That’s nice. I c**k my head and prod the cut a few more times before walking on. I slip and stumble every few steps. I’m off-balance, and I don’t know why. I catch myself on a tree to catch my breath; I’m still exhausted; I feel like I just wanna stop, but something in me knows I can’t. I go on for a while, eventually stopping for a break on a mossy boulder. I hold up my hands and stare at them. They’re red and raw. Is it from the trees or something else? My regeneration still works. I didn’t think it would.

I feel strong enough to try a run, and I start to jog through the trees. I know my destination is close. I stumble over a tree root and see a cobbled road though the last few trees. I run a little faster and burst through the tree line. Just a few yards away, I see my children, all three of them. I go to them and hug my youngest tightly, kissing her on her temple. “I love you, Mija.”

I feel horribly sad for a moment. My daughter is crying into my shoulder. I can smell her tears, but I can’t feel them. I give her a squeeze before pulling her away. Tears are running down her face, and I wipe a few away. They don’t stop, and she retreats behind my oldest. He’s crying, and I realize I can’t remember the last time he cried. He’s holding my eldest daughter; she’s sobbing into his chest. Part of me can’t stand to see them cry, especially when I’m the cause.

I turn my head and spot the rest of my family. Kira seems to be holding herself together, but I can tell it’s only by a thread. Meki can’t meet my eyes, or maybe I can’t meet his. I cross my arms tightly, trying to hold in my own tears. I can’t show my weakness. I turn and my mate engulfs me in a hug. His scent fills my nose, and for a few moments, I feel like my old self. He smooths my hair down, his fingers ghosting around the tatters of my right ear. Despair fills me when I realize I can’t feel his touch. I pull away slowly, walking backwards. I feel like there’s still something I need to do. I keep backing away ‘til I’m out of sight; they stared at me with surprise the whole way.

I turn around and start running. I hadn’t noticed, but I was much stronger than I was before. In mid stride, I change. Instead of a mostly human woman with a few wolf features, a huge black wolf is barreling down the road. I felt an explosion of energy and a level of comfort in my fur that was missing in my usual skin. This form is so much more comfortable. I pick up speed, quickly reaching the river.

The water is red with blood and the bridge is out. I plunge into the water without a thought, coming out dry on the other side. My muzzle is somehow red with blood, and my fur feels sticky. I gotta find them. I don’t know who I’m looking for, but I just have to find them. They must be in the city. Why else would I come running this way? I stop in front of the southern gates and look up.

Everything is on fire. Smoke fills my nose and I snarl, blowing air out fast to get it out. It smells like no other smoke I knew; I can’t identify the smells. Even the fire isn’t like any other, burning with an unearthly glow. I don’t stare for long.

The structures around the gate collapse just after I make it past. I don’t look back, even as fires start going out around me. They must be magical, to just go out like that. I race through the streets, fires going out with every step. I suddenly stumble and fall, hitting the ground hard. Pain rips through me, which is surprising after all the numbness. Did it wear off?

I get up quickly enough and notice a woman staring at me. I approach her slowly, unsure of myself all of a sudden. Her face is streaked with tears, but her eyes are shining with relief that turns to fear as I get close and give her a good sniff. She’s one of mine, I realize. A citizen of my city, a member of my Pack. Why is she scared of me, when she was relieved not two minutes ago? What’s going on here?

I get up and walk backwards, keeping an eye on her. She’s screaming now, and my ears go flat at the noise. I try to point her towards the exit, but something dark and spiny flies onto my arm. I’m too startled to scream or howl. I growl and start ripping the little monster apart with my claws and teeth. Even though there’s blood everywhere, the demon is unharmed. I throw it off me and flee, trying not to think about how I just abandoned one of my own to a bloodthirsty monster.

Everything started to blur together as I run through the streets. I see more demons emerging out of the fires. Their skin is burned, but it heals quickly, almost like it never happened. I pass by fast; they’re not what I’m after. I don’t even know what I’m after. I stop in the southern market square; I’ve been going in circles. It’s quiet here; I can’t hear a thing besides some damned ringing. I walk to the center of the square where that unearthly fire is burning.

Boom!

There’s fire and light and pain everywhere. I’m on fire and rolling around in a building, trying to put myself out, but nothing’s working. I get up and run around, somehow ending up back in the square. The fire disappears, and I’m nightblinded from the brightness of it. Slowly, I can make out a form in the smoke.

My prey.

It’s her, the horrific being who cursed my family so many, many years ago. I smirk and growl; she’s injured; it’ll be easy to finish her off. I rush her fast and dig my teeth into her shoulder. She screams and we start to fight. Claws and fire and blood are everywhere. I feel a flash of pain where my tail’s supposed to be and I retaliate by trying to rip off a wing or two. We separate, and I can’t believe my eyes. She’s perfectly healed! All her wings are in place, there’s not a scratch or scorch mark on her body!

“Well well well, the hybrid wench. Come for another lesson in pain, dear?”

I stand up on my back legs and growl at her. Even if I can’t take her, I can’t show any fear. She turns away from me and starts terrorizing a group of refugees who’d taken a wrong turn. I’m tempted to sneak up on her, but if I couldn’t kill her when she was injured, I’d have no chance when she’s at full health. I snarl again and start running. Part of me is screaming in my head ‘Go back! Go back! You’re abandoning them!’ It takes all my willpower not to turn around.

I end up in a courtyard near the center of the city and suddenly, I’m calm. I don’t feel any guilt or sadness or even confusion. Only the part of me that’s screaming is unaffected. I want to be confused, but I can’t. The air around me starts to glow, and I’m back in my more human form. There’s no alien feeling this time. I start moving towards the royal compound, trying to ignore the heart-wrenching guilt I’m feeling. How could I leave them? Something isn’t right, that much I’m sure of out of all this.

I suddenly disappear in a flash of fire, and I’m up in one of the towers. My family, minus my children, is all around me. What’s going on? If they’d followed me, I would have noticed. I start saying something, but I’m not paying attention to the words. Something is not right. I would never leave my city to the demons, or condemn even one citizen to her fate. I’m turning to look out to the city; the conversation ended when I wasn’t looking. Suspicious, I turn my gaze to the moon above. It’s hazy through the smoke and clouds, but I can just make out its movement through the sky.

It’s going backwards. All this time, I’ve been going backwards? But, how? Why?

My city is under siege by our ancestral foes. I’d won, sacrificing my own life to save thousands of others. My death had been soft, just losing awareness. Why was I back at the beginning of my worst nightmare?

Little one, it is not your time yet. There is a way to keep your life and save your city. All you need do is find it.

As I look over my city again, I sigh; I can’t exactly attack my Goddess, after all. “I have all the time in the world, it seems. Best get started.”



Word count: 1777