Not Alone

Chapter 1: Just dropping in

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wake up

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you have work to do. wake up.

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My eyes fly open as coughs tear through my lungs, reflexive tears prick my eyes as I try to catch my breath through the harsh hacking. I roll myself over to my stomach and prop myself up on my elbows as I wheeze, sucking in air. It takes a couple of moments, but I eventually manage to quit coughing and blearily look around from where I lay, pillowed by soft green grass.

Trees. All of them deciduous? Confusion spirals through me. I was hiking in Canada with my fiance, Dias, when I blacked out, and while BC has some broad-leaf trees, we were hiking around coniferous trees, mainly Sequoia.

Wait...Dias! Where is he?! He was with me!

I look around wildly, taking only moments before I spot him on the ground a few meters away clutching his head. A pained groan comes from him, causing me to scrabble up from the grass and rush over to him.

His hands are buried in short black hair, eyes squeezed tightly shut, and pained gasps pass through his lips as he lies on his back.

"Dias!" I say worriedly, but as quietly as I can manage "Did you hit your head on anything?! Are you okay?!"

He groans, almost a sob, as he grits out in a whisper "my head! it feels like it's splitting!"

I spot his bag beside him and quickly rummage through it, bringing out his water bottle and a bottle of Acetaminophen. Giving him the two red pills and his water, I watch with a worried frown as he swiftly downs the pills.

Kneeling next to Dias, I can't help but spot the shining gold markings on his face. Four lines, two across the bridge of his nose reaching across his cheeks and two starting from his lower lip to the bottom of his chin. I stare at them as Dias starts to relax, the pills kicking in.

Those markings were not there before we started our hike. What the hell is going on?

Howls in the distance snap me out of my contemplation. Fuck, not good! I quickly look around for anything that could help or hide us. There is a thick tree a few feet away, but Dias is in no state to climb.

I drag him over to the base of the tree anyways, he tries to help me by shuffling over with what little strength he has to spare. After propping him against the tree, I quickly jog over to our oversized hiking backpacks and dig out whatever I can that might prove useful, namely some bear spray, an air horn, and a multipurpose knife.                                                                               I throw the bags into a thick brush, hoping that even if wolves do show up, they will be deterred enough to leave our stuff alone.

It doesn't take long before the howls and barks grow closer. I pull out the bear spray, my breath stuttering in fear, as several big wolves stride out from the bushes, mouths open wide in canine grins, tongues lolling.

The wolves circle and pace for a little before a particularly daring one lunges forward. I spray the bastard directly in the face the moment it gets within range, the wolf yelping and springing backward, shaking its head and pawing at its face.

Maybe! God, maybe they take the message that I'm more trouble than I'm worth!                                                                                                                                                       To no avail. It takes seconds before the sprayed wolf is snarling and pacing again. Shit.

I hear rustling behind me. Dias. "Dias! Get in the tree!" I call out behind me, hoping that he has recovered enough to get in the damn tree.

Another wolf lunges, ignoring my air horn blast. I stumble back, trying to avoid it, when a black blur shoots past me from behind and slams into the wolf.

I fall backward onto the ground as the black object tangles with the grey wolf and breaks out into a vicious-sounding snarl, watching with wide eyes as blood and fur go flying.

It is only a few moments of snarls, yelps, and barks before the wolves retreat back into the woods, blood trailing behind one of them.

I stare at the black creature, easily the size of a horse, as it turns around to face me. My breathing quickens as a pink tongue licks across large, bloodied fangs, and massive ribbed ears rotate to face me. A bat. A giant bat.

The giant bat slowly approaches me, its clawed finger ripping up the grass as it walks. I scramble backward, a scream building in my throat- Wait... it has something on its face.

Large, golden stripes mark its face. Exactly in the same spots as the ones on Dias. A quick glance behind me shows that Dias is nowhere to be seen.

The large bat continues to approach slowly, dropping its head low as small, beady eyes look into mine. I whisper out "Dias?"

A high-pitched chirr rings out through its fanged mouth.

I push myself to my feet and remain still as the massive bat walks ever closer. It only stops when it comes close enough to touch "Dias?" I shakily reach out a hand, feeling soft fur as the bat pushes its face into my hand.

Between one breath and the next, the giant bat seamlessly flows into a human shape. Wide green eyes stare into mine as Dias chokes out "What the hell?!" 

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I won't do these authors' notes often, only when a new main character is introduced, and I can get a good pic of them. but I felt that should disclaim a couple of things before I start this journey.

1. This story is entirely for enjoyment! And I will primarily write whenever I am struck by the muse, So I really can't promise any kind of consistent update schedule other than the notion that I have no intentions of permanently abandoning. 

2. This story WILL involve some serious cussing and explicit scenes. The story isn't ALL cussing and sex, but they are present, so if that's not really for you (totally fine, everyone has their likes and dislikes), then here is your opportunity to back out before those kinds of things start to pick up.

3. I ADORE your comments and will absolutely read every single one, even if I don't respond to them all. I do accept positive criticism, but please be nice, I am just doing this for shits and giggles.

4. I am somewhat open to suggestions on what you would like to see. I have a general plan of where I want the story to go, but there is definitely some wiggle room, so if there is something you would REALLY like to see, then I will definitely take it into consideration, though I offer no guarantees lol.

That's about it for now! I you enjoyed the chapter!

P.S. Did I write this instead of studying for my midterm? Yes. Yes, I did.