The Master of Death

Chapter26: Hunger

Its consciousness rose slowly, instincts taking over till no human thought remained. The wolf whimpered when it registered the pain within its body. Bright and hot it coursed through its veins, till the last waves of it slowly subsided. It licked over its muzzle, cold air hitting its wet nose. The beast stretched its sore muscles, stiff joints popping - newly formed - just like the bones, they were connecting. Only after shaking its thick fur it took in its surroundings, curiously scenting the air.
Soil and rotting leaves were the first things it noticed. Disgruntled it flicked its ear as it felt the scent of smoke invading the cool air. But it was faint enough to dismiss it. Then its attention shifted onto the more immediate threat. There were others of its kind.
The smell of sweat and blood still lingered and it shifted warily, fur in its neck slightly rising at the unknown beings around. Its lips pulled back to reveal sharp teeth.
When another wolf tried to come closer the being growled.
The other creature smelled foreign. Wrong. Not like its pack.
But despite the growling, the interloper didn't back down.
The werewolf snarled again and snapped at the other wolf; jaws connecting with a clicking sound as they closed around nothing but cold air. A warning.

The other wolf lowered its head.

Not satisfied yet, the werewolf stared at the other one till it whimpered submissively. Pleased, the being snorted, a cloud of steam forming around its snout. It turned away and absentmindedly nosed the pile of fabric on the ground. It smelled like itself. Dismissively it raised its head and walked towards the shadows of the treeline. It relished in the feeling of its muscles moving beneath its skin. Never taking its eyes off the other wolves, it tried once more to scent the air.

The restlessness inside it grew. There was not a trace of its pack. A confused whimper left its mouth as it circled the other wolves.

Hunger for something gnawed in its core. Like fire, it burned through its veins, the need to run, to fight and claim. It licked over its teeth, made to rip and tear.

An image of bones snapping beneath its jaw.

The need to hunt overwhelmed the urge to find its pack. It needed prey. It wanted blood.

A wolf not far from it howled.

It stopped dead in its tracks, head-turning, ears pointing forward. It shivered with anticipation. An invitation to join. Shared need for a hunt.

After a moment of silence, there were others who joined in. Howls after howls cut through the night, till eventually the wolf itself joined the chorus.

Paws dug into the earth as they made their way through the forest. The sounds of their voices echoed through the woods, announcing their presence to anyone who'd dared to enter them tonight. They ran as one. Mindless minds, snarling and howling at first. They snapped and growled at each other, till everyone had learned their place.

Then there was silence, no noise besides the dull sounds of their paws hitting the ground and their breath as they ran.
Like water they parted when their way was blocked by trees, jumping over rocks and thorny bushes till they ran next to each other once more. They moved like a river as they wound their way through the woods in search of prey.

Sudden alertness let them slow down. Like a wave it hit them and one after the other raised their heads. A howl breached the silence. Then the wolf caught it too.
The whiff of something familiar in the air. The scent of something it knew. But the need to stop and protect was overridden by its instincts to follow the others. Because while it was familiar, it also smelled like prey.