Burnt Blood: The Werewolf Within

One

Slowly, I slid from my bed, a little groggy, heading to the bathroom. My skull was on fire (metaphorically, of course. Christ, can you imagine the literal), and I had a bad case of cotton mouth. A night of drinking with my good friends 'Jack' and 'Daniels' will do that. I'd barely touched my soles down when a weird sensation brushed against my feet. I shudder.

My eyes were bleary, as always, when I first woke, and the room seemed darker than usual. So, I couldn't see much looking down. Enough to get a start by a sudden shift of the floor beneath me as a layer of gritty soil grazed my toes. The alarm bells were ringing, something was off.

It's amazing how quickly someone wakes up after a little shock—in a lucid sense, anyway. I stood two feet from my bed and hadn't dared go any further.

The air had quickly turned cold. I'm talking freezer cold. I looked toward the windows to see if I'd left any open, but I couldn't see a thing. Not because my eyes hadn't adjusted. No, there was nothing there, nothing but darkness. A slight draft whips past my face. I gag at the acrid scent of burnt wood that hangs in the air. Each inhale tightens my throat—my arm hair bristles to attention, with ripples of goose pimples across my skin. I'm caught in two minds: move forward or head back to bed, only when I look over my shoulder, the bed is gone. (I know, sounds crazy, imagine how I feel)

Facing the font again, I noticed little details to help fill in some blanks about what was happening. The best I could, anyway. Faint outlines of pillars and corners pierce the darkness to stand out. That burning odour soured, blending with a sickly whiff of charred meat. Stretching from those pillars are crusty, flaky, painted walls with strange-looking symbols. I was in some basement, drowning in darkness, and my fear levels were rising quickly.

Everything is quiet, aside from the fierce thumping of my heart in my chest trying to bust out. Pounding hard enough to vibrate through my ears. Loud enough for me to hold my breath... I drag a foot forward, scuffing across the sharp, gritty soil and now stone pushing through. The biting cold persists, cutting through my bedwear. I'm on bloody edge; a dribble of panic sweat trickles down my cheek. Strange right? To be so cold and still sweating. My other foot slowly shuffles forward... Again, the gritty soil presses against my flesh.

When suddenly the silence is broken, 'clang, clang, clang', heavy metal slaps against stone flooring. It's in the distance. I pause again. Chains rattle wildly. Low at first, but gradually getting louder, slicing through the darkness, tempering my fear. The lack of light made it nearly impossible to see enough details, and each breath carried an ominous musk.

That stench of charred meat intensified, causing my stomach to flip and churn. It's nearby—an unmistakable aroma of death. I know the smell all too well. Yet, now I struggled to pinpoint exactly where. Tentatively, I shuffled forward, my feet dragging through the dirt, propelled by curiosity and trepidation.

A distant glow caught my eye, breaking through the dark and offering a glimpse of what seemed to be my bathroom. Stretching my hand towards the light, my fingers appeared as mere silhouettes, but one scary detail caught my attention—six fingers. I had six bloody fingers. A shiver ran down my spine.

A soft glow enveloped me, revealing more symbols on the walls. They were red; it was blood, and it was dripping. Slowly, before becoming a steady flow, like a tap. A deep breath confirmed my fear, yet the origin of the burnt meat smell remained elusive.

Was I dreaming? Possibly, if so, I wanted to wake up. I wanted out. Now. I headed for the sink, hoping the cold water might shake me from this surreal fucking nightmare. As it streamed from the tap, I watched, gripping the white edges of the sink. The longer I stared, the harder I prayed for this to be over, whatever this was, but the haunting experience persisted. An unsettling breeze brushed against my back, prompting an involuntary shudder.