Nightfall
Chapter 36

Two Weeks Later

I lay still beside Greg as we hunted for the group. There was a pack of Reindark about ten feet from our position. They were like deer, but with a completely black shine to their coats, making them blend in this dark wasteland of a plain. We had left the forest bog for the open plains and here there were monsters of epic proportions. Something resembling a huge half lion half scorpion had been chewing on another animal, and had paid us no heed when we ran past it a week ago. I prayed it wasn’t hunting us.

Greg signaled me to take point, and I slid behind the pack soundlessly. It was part of my change. I could do things silently should I want to, like a ghost. It creeped the hell out of Greg and Donny, I’d even managed to scare Andy as a wolf. My eyes lasered in on the oldest buck. The one with a limp to him. I knew it was a him from the smell he gave off—another change within me. I pointed my finger at him and waited for the whistle. It came low-pitched. Approach with caution there was another hunter in the vicinity.

It was probably after the same Dark Reindeer we were too. We either got it now or moved to something else. I was starving for my daily blood intake—another change. I could only drink blood now. Once a day but I still needed it. Donny had fainted on that revelation, though he was doing far better with all of it. I guess moving us from the bog to the plains had something to do with this.

A high-pitched whistle sounded and I was out like a dark wrestling the big buck to the ground and digging my incisors into its fleshy neck. Rivolettes of blood leaked from my meal and I lapped it up holding my prey with the monster’s strength within me. I ripped out its throat and drank its blood watching it buck under me. When I’d finished Greg walked up with another buck shot dead and laid it before me.

“The hunter was possibly a Scorli. Here’s another,” he said grabbing the dead animal from me to begin skinning and gutting. I nodded and began to slurp the other deer, a young doe. She must not have gotten very far with her pack.. As soon as I finished, I stood dusting myself.

“You’re getting better at this,” said Greg from his spot as he cleaned the animal with the water he had brought. We needed a river though.

He inspected the buck. “Did you have to tear the throat out? Betsey loves that part!”

I shrugged. “Felt right at the time,” I muttered while hefting the buck. He took the doe and we walked towards the river bank.

My senses were far more acute than a human’s senses; I could hear the faintest sounds from several yards away, sounds that a human’s ears could never even notice even if they were inches away. The little pitter-patter that birds make as they hop along branches is quite soothing, but the crawling of caterpillars is most distracting. That said, the sound of skinning deer was soothing and oh-so-satisfying.

We sat at our usual camping site and I cleaned the blood off while he skinned both animals. The pelts could be used for the nights around here. Trust me, it gets cold at night around here; sometimes I wonder if it’s snowing or not.

I took my spare change of clothes while washing those that were soiled with blood. The brown marks wouldn’t come out, so I constantly changed into these when dining. Greg hummed, and I sat grabbing a few rocks and skipping them into the lake. The water was black as anything but cool to the touch. It was fed by mountain springs or so Greg believed. It was good enough to fish and bathe in, and Andy had barked being the first in the water. Wolf, she may be, but she was still Andy.

Greg signaled the buck and once more we were moving to our bigger campsite, where Donny was busy lazing around the fire reading some of Greg’s books. They were pretty old and falling to pieces. I wasn’t sure that having them that close to an open flame was good for them. Donny heard our footsteps. I remembered to make some noise as we entered the camp. His head swiveled to greet us and then, turned back to reading. He was petting Andromeda on the head softly. She was laying, her head in her paws, beside him.

Greg hung the deer on the spit to cook. “Did you eat?” he asked me in a tiny voice.

I smiled and nodded. “Yup. I’m full.” It was my usual answer and it destressed him. His shoulders weren’t so tense, and he relaxed his fingers around the book.

He leaned forward and the book fell too close to the flames. I zipped over and plucked the book from its almost early incendiary death, and read the title. Moby Dick. Maybe it did deserve a fiery death? It was a freaking boring book about a sailor hunting a whale. I hated it.

“How far along are you?” I asked, giving him back the blue book with the white whale on it. He took it gazing at me unsurely. I sighed, brushing my bangs back and stepping a few feet away at normal speed. My Houl-like tendencies still freaked him out. Beside him, Andromeda huffed and stood wagging her tail.

I smiled and petted her sides, squatting. “I’m back girl. Tonight, we feast; got us two large deer!.”

She barked in excitement and then looked at me quizzically. I knew what she wanted to ask.

“Yes, yes, I already ate some time ago.”

She let out a short bark, a sort of demanding sound.

“You know why I can’t take you,” I said, smoothing her forehead as she licked my face once and rubbed her head against mine. I sat next to her to watch the deer spin on the spit. I was gazing and thinking about our predicament. It had been two weeks and we were nowhere near the outpost.

At least I didn’t see it, and the one who could, was decked in fur! She wasn’t tall enough to spot the outpost or any sign and out here any scent tracks would have been lost. If only we had a tracker or a map with it delineated or something! The scent of blood caught my nose and a cold wet tongue was licking my hand.

I glanced at Andromeda who was busy licking my blood away. I pet her head and sighed. I missed my girl. I wanted to hold her again not a wolf. I looked down at my hand, squeezing it slightly and shaking it.

“Ok, girl thanks,” I said as she glanced at me and thumped her tail in agitation. She whined possibly knowing what I was thinking.

“Dinner’s ready!” cried Greg as he removed the deer from the fire. Had it been two hours already? I had been musing for that long. It seemed as if time was against me. I stood with Donny and helped Greg serve. A few hours later a strange feeling came over me. I glanced at the camp and noticed Andromeda was missing. I looked around but couldn’t find her. Where was she? A howl alerted me to her position.

“Something’s wrong!” I said growling as another howl ripped through the dark.

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