Chapter Text
Ludwig took a slow drag from the cigarette clenched between his lips. Smoke curled from his mouth as he stood at the forest’s edge, staring into the dead trees ahead.
The woods were brittle and still, stripped bare by autumn. Dry leaves littered the ground in heaps, crunching faintly under the wind. Branches reached out like twisting antlers, black against the fading orange sky.
He squinted toward the horizon. The sun hung low, just above the treetops, and its glare made him tug the brim of his hat down lower. "Too damn late for this," he huffed.
He looked down at the wanted poster in his hand. The wind caught its edge, trying to tug it loose, but he held it firm. The sketch was rough, but clear enough. A bearded man with a scar down his cheek and the start of a five o’clock shadow creeping across his jaw. Beneath the drawing, stamped in big bold letters, sat the real attention grabber. Two hundred and fifty dollars. Dead or alive.
Though if you managed to bring them in breathing, you could usually squeeze a little more money out of it.
Ludwig eyed the sketch one last time, then let the paper go. The wind caught it immediately and it went tumbling through the dead trees like a brittle leaf. He didn't bother watching where it landed. With one last drag from the cigarette, he dropped it to the ground before snuffing it out with his boot. It let out a soft hiss before the ember died against the dirt and dried leaves.
The man stepped into the dead forest. Dry leaves crunched under his boots, scattering in brittle drifts. His poncho caught the wind now and then, fluttering behind him like a loose banner. One hand rest on the revolver at his hip, thumb grazing the worn grip out of habit.
The light faded as he searched the woods. The sun dipped behind the treetops, casting long, crooked shadows that made it harder to navigate.
Before he could take another step, a gunshot cracked through the forest.
The sharp sound echoed through the trees. A flurry of crows burst from the branches overhead, screeching as they scattered.
Ludwig chuffed, half-amused. "Makin' my job too easy."
He darted through the trees in the direction of the gunshot. It wasn’t long before he saw the flicker of firelight in the distance, dancing between the trunks. As he got closer, he heard voices, first just whispers, then murmurs, then clear words drifting through the cold night air.
Ludwig slowed, slipping behind a broad oak tree. The bark was cracked and flaking, but the trunk was wide enough to cover him. He pressed in close and then peered around the edge.
Three men stood near a small fire, their shadows twitching across the trees.
As he focused, one of the men looked familiar. It was his bounty. Even though his face was a half obscured side profile, he still checked out. Gruff, scruffy face with a scar along his cheek. It's him alright. He held a lantern in his hand, its light spilling across the trees.
The two men flanking his sides both held rifles.
Eager to get this over with, Ludwig started to creep out from behind the tree, but something made him hesitate.
"Y-You think there's more of em' out there?" one of the men said shakily.
He noticed that all the men looked panicked. The two me with the rifles held their guns shakily, fingers tight on the triggers, and they aimed at something off in the darkness of the forest.
"Who fuckin' knows," the bounty said, waving his lantern. "We have to leave now, I don't want to find out."
Ludwig peeked past the tree a little more, trying to see what got them so riled up. But a combination of the angle and the darkness obstructed his view.
The third man snapped his head to where they were all looking. "I-Is it still breathin'? It just took a nine rounds to the gut! It has to be some sorta demon!"
Even though they were talking strange, they were all distracted. Perfect opportunity for an ambush.
Ludwig cleared his throat and stepped out from behind the tree, thumb hooked on his belt. "Evenin’, boys," he said with a tip of his hat.
All three men jolted. One yelped. Then they all fixed their eyes on him.
The fear Ludwig saw in their eyes stuck him as odd. He’d seen men staring death in the eye before, but this was different. They looked like they’d already seen a ghost. They were completely pale.
He exhaled through his nose. "Let’s make this quick, yeah? Why don't y'all drop your guns and we take a nice stroll to the sheriff's office. We ain't gotta make it messy."
They didn't move, not even an inch. They just trembled, eyes darting back into the trees. A long, uneasy silence hung in the air.
Then the bounty twitched. His hand dropped toward his holster.
Ludwig's gun was already out. Revolver clearing leather in not even half a second.
The shot cracked through the night. The man's head snapped back in a spray of blood, his body collapsing before his revolver had even cleared the holster.
"Boss!" one of the others shrieked.
The two men blindly returned fire. Their shaky hands and panicked eyes did nothing to aid them. Their bullets flew into dirt and tree alike.
Ludwig dove to the ground and fanned the hammer. Four rounds shot out into the chest of one man, dropping him instantly. He turned and fired another round into the hand of the remaining man, causing his gun to fly to the ground with a solid thud.
Ludwig leveled the revolver for the finishing shot and pulled the trigger, but a hollow click filled the air. "Shit." He snapped open the cylinder, fingers working quick to reload.
A crunch of leaves caused him to look up.
The last man was running away. He was already halfway to the treeline before Ludwig could finish reloading, stumbling through the brush as fast as his legs could carry him.
Ludwig sighed and then called after him. "Get back 'ere, ya damn coward!"
No answer. Just fading footsteps swallowed by the woods. In a heartbeat the man was completely out of sight, the crunching of leaves now completely lost in the dark.
He thumbed the last round into the cylinder and snapped it shut. With a sigh, he pushed himself to his feet, brushing dirt and leaf mulch from his poncho. He twirled the revolver once around his finger before sliding it back into the holster in one smooth motion. Striking a match against his boot, he lit a fresh cigarette, letting it rest on his lip. Then he took a long drag, smoke curling from his lips with a slow exhale.
"Shoulda just dropped the gun," he mumbled, walking over to his now dead bounty, stepping over the other corpse in the process. He crouched by his mark. The shot had gone clean through the skull, but the face was still recognizable... somewhat. "Good enough," Ludwig mumbled. And with a quick hand, he checked for any hard earned valuables.
Nothing.
"Broke bastard," he chuffed.
But now for the hardest part of the job, dragging the dead weight back to town. His lip curled as he gave the body a once-over, trying to judge if he could even sling it over his shoulder in the dark.
Then his brow furrowed. “Wonder what the hell had ’em spooked,” he muttered under his breath. The men had been looking at the tree line like the Devil himself was walking out.
He bent down to grip the corpse by the collar- He froze. Something was breathing right behind him. It was faint, ragged, and heavy, the heaves crawling up his spine. His hand slid down to the revolver at his hip, and he turned as fast as he could, fingers tightening the grip. But as he turned, there was nothing. Only darkness. Darkness and the crackling campfire that cast long, jagged shadows that swayed across the trees.
Then, his eyes adjusted. Just a little. And in that thick black, something stared back. Two red eyes. Unmoving, unblinking, burning holes in the dark.
"What in the hell..." he said without even thinking. He took a cautious step forward. As his eyes adjusted more, the shape behind those eyes showed itself, and a cold shiver crawled up his spine.
There, slumped against the base of a tree, was some sort of beast. It had a body of thick, dark fur, as black as sin. It had hands, each finger fitted with a claw the size of a dagger. It's long muscular legs ended in dark, cloven hooves.
Where a head should have been, a deer-like skull stared back at him. White bone framed a half‑open mouth packed with crooked teeth, the corners fixed in a faint, permanent grin. Large, twisting antlers sat atop the skull. And deep inside the hollow sockets burned those red eyes. The beast was heaving ragged breaths, but it lay almost completely still.
The cigarette slipped from Ludwig's lips and hit the dirt. His hand was stuck to the grip of his revolver, sweat slicking his palm. He had no idea what he was looking at. It wasn’t a bear. Or a wolf. Or any kind of weird dog. He heard of some strange animals up north, but not anything like this. The longer he stared, the less sense it made. It looked like a demon.
Its form was twisted, unnatural. But even through the fear, something else caught his eye. Blood soaked deep into the fur around its abdomen, trickling down to pool at the base of the tree. It had been shot, likely by the same men he was after.
One of the creature's large, clawed hands lay lazily over its wound, doing a poor job of staunching the flow of blood. The oozing liquid seeped into its matted black fur.
He should’ve turned and ran. But he didn’t. Instead, he just stood there, caught in that awful quiet. And he felt something he didn’t expect... pity. It was suffering. For a heartbeat, it reminided him of his old horse. He remembered how he’d cared for it, how it had limped through its last winter. He’d always had a soft spot for animals. Maybe that’s where this feeling was coming from.
"Easy there, big guy," he said, keeping his voice low as he took a step forward. "Looks like you’re hurtin’ pretty bad."
He took another step and the creature let out a deep huff. The sound made Ludwig's skin crawl, but still he inched closer. Slowly, he eased his hand off the grip of his gun, raising both palms in the universal sign of peace.
"Eaaasy big-" He paused.
Now that he was closer, the shape of its body came into view. Something was off about it. There was a strange, almost human-like quality to it. The curve of the waist, the rise of the chest. It almost looked like... a woman?
"Girl?" he muttered, clearing his throat. "It’s alright. I ain’t gonna hurt ya."
He inched forward, closing the gap to just a couple feet. She didn’t move, snap, or even snarl, so Ludwig slowly croched down.
"Need some help?" he asked, keeping his palms raised.
There was no response, she only stared.
He shuffled even closer. "You ain't gonna eat me, are ya?" he said, forcing a nervous smile.
She stayed still, the only sound coming from that toothy mouth were slow, labored breaths.
He crept a little more closer until he was barely a foot away. And that’s when it hit him. Just how big she really was. If she were to stand up straight, she would easily tower over him by several feet or more. Her limbs were long. Her frame, even slumped and wounded, was strong and broad.
"You a big girl, you know that?" he said with a nervous chuckle. Just the sheer size of her caused a shiver to run down his spine.
Another thing hit him as he was so close, her smell. It was a thick, musky smell, very earthy. Not bad and quite pleasant actually. But that was quickly overshadowed by the unmistakable coppery smell of blood.
Her red eyes shifted, slowly looking down at him.
"Alrighty then," he muttered, more to himself than her, "Let’s see what we can do." He reached into his satchel, moving slow so she could see every motion, careful not to make any surprises. His fingers brushed past loose bullets and a rusted tin of coffee before finding a small leather roll of bandages.
He set the bandages in the dirt beside him, then pulled out a small flask of medicinal alcohol along with a strip of cloth.
"Now look," he muttered. "I ain't one of those... vetranar... vetra... vet- hell, I ain’t no animal doctor. So you’re gonna have to bear with me here." With a flick of his thumb, he popped the cork off flask. The sharp scent of alcohol hit the air. "Fair warnin’, this stuff’s gonna sting somethin’ awful."
He pressed the lip of the bottle to the cloth, letting the fabric absorb the alcohol. Once it was saturated, he began wiping away the blood, careful not to press too hard. The creature's whole body stiffened and tensed. She let out a loud sharp whine, but still kept eye contact.
"Easy now," he said, winching, half expecting her to lash out and lunge at him.
A few swipes in and the cloth was already dark red. He dragged it lower, peeling back some matted fur. He saw the wound, it stretched across her lower abdomen. A large cluster of shotgun bulletholes spread across her midsection. Some no bigger than a thumb, others wide enough to fit three of his fingers. It looks like she was shot nearly nine times in the same spot.
A low whistle escape him. Ludwig was amazed the creature was still breathing. "Whooh," he squinted at the wound "Did they do this to ya?" He couldn't spot any pellets. Either they were buried deep or she'd dug them out herself. Luckily the wounds hadn't punched through the other side, but they had gone deep enough to make the man's stomach turn. He began wiping the wound with the rag. "Well they ain't gonna cause you problems no more."
Once the gash was clean, he set the bloodied rag aside and reached for the roll of leather bandages. Wasn't much left, he'd used most of it on himself over the past week, but it looked like just enough for a couple wraps around her wide waist.
"Alright now... hold still if ya can, big girl," he said, glancing up at her.
Her eyes were still locked on him. Her head had shifted just a little since last time. She didn't growl, snarl or anything, but her red eyes made him feel uneasy.
He looked away quickly, not wanting to risk pissing her off with the wrong kind of eye contact or something. With sweat gathering at his brow, he unraveled the bandage, starting at the wound and slowly wrapping along her waist. Her sheer size made the action awkward. Two wraps seemed to cover her up pretty well. And he even had some leftover bandage that he rolled up and put in his satchel. He tied off what was left with a firm knot.
Even more nervous than before, he leaned back and inspected his work. "How's that feel?" he asked, knowing there would be no answer.
When he looked up, her skull had turned fully. Staring straight at him now. No expression, no sound, just those eyes. It was so sudden that he jolted back with a curse under his breath. He stood there for a second, not knowing where to look and not daring to make eye contact.
"Well you're all patched up now. I did you a favor so don't eat me for it, yeah?" He knew she didn't understand a word he was saying, he was just talking to talk at this point.
The beast shifted.
Every hair on Ludwig's body stood at once and he jolted backward, scrambling to his feet.
He didn't want to stick around for any longer. Without making any sudden moves, he turned and walked toward the bounty. Every couple of steps he looked back, making sure he wasn't about to get mauled by the beast behind him. But each time he did, she sat exactly where he’d left her. She was watching him, and that made his skin crawl.
He hoisted the corpse over his shoulder, picked up one of their lanterns off the ground and started to make his way back. Then he stopped dead in his tracks.
A faint voice echoed through the trees, a voice he has never heard before. He couldn't make out a word it said, but he turned around as fast as he could. Yet, all he saw were those red eyes.
That was enough to make him hurry into the forest.
---
It took him a couple hours, but he was almost back at the town.
The corpse slung over his shoulder didn’t make it any easier. Blood from the hole in the bastard’s head had soaked through his poncho, and the stench was starting to crawl into his nose. Still, that wasn’t what weighed on his mind.
Just what the hell was that thing? He couldn't make two cents of it. His mind kept replaying everything that happened. The more he thought about it the less sense it made. He’d never seen anything like it, not in all his years crawling through the wilderness. Maybe he stumbled across a devil, a devil taking the souls of poor sinners. And he just patched it up like it was a dying dog.
The more he walked, the more his mind doubted the whole thing even happened. But it did happen. Didn't it? "Alright, don't start losing yer gourd," he said to himself, adjusting the body on his shoulder.
Up ahead, the trees broke open into a wide clearing where the land flattened. A small town lay nestled at the base of a distant mountain, its cluster of wooden buildings dim and weatherworn, huddled close. Dirt roads were all that wound between them, save for the dry leaves skittering across the ground in the breeze. No lamps burned at this hour, only the pale light of the moon touched the rooftops, casting long shadows over the silent streets.
Reaching the town eased his mind a bit and the thought of the bounty dulled the edges of his nerves. He wasted no time heading straight for the sheriff’s office, eager to be done with it.
The building sat near the center of town. It was a quaint, weathered thing with nearly all its wood warped. Its porch sagged slightly at the corner, and the sign above the door read "Sheriff" in faded, flaking paint. But, a dim glow seeped through the foggy window. The only building at this hour that seemed to habor any activity.
Ludwig marched up the squeaky steps right to the old door. It felt like if he stepped any harder, the wood beneath him might just give way. He tried opening the door but it was locked.
He grumbled then started knocking on the warped wood.
No response.
He did it again and louder. "You in there, old man?!" he yelled.
There was silence for just a couple moments longer until rustling came from inside the building. The rustling was followed by a thud and a groan. "The hell is it?!" an old, gruff voice cried out.
Ludwig knocked a few more times just to mess with the man. "It's Ludwig! Now let me in, I got a surprise fer ya!"
The sounds of locks and chains being undone rattled behind the door. "Quit yellin' yer damn mouth off! You'll wake the whole town!" the man barked.
After a few more clinks and clanks, the door creaked open. The old man’s face poked through the crack, eyeing Ludwig up and down before sighing and pulling the door open all the way.
"Any idea what time it is?" he muttered, stepping aside so Ludwig could enter.
"Time for me to get paid," Ludwig said with a grin, shoving his way in with the dead weight still slung over his shoulder.
The sheriff’s office smelled like sweat, woodsmoke, and cheap whiskey. A single oil lamp lit the room. Paperwork, a battered rifle, and a half-eaten plate of beans sat on the desk. The floor was covered in miscellaneous objects and a few stray wooden chairs.
"That better not be who I think it is," the old man said, squinting at the corpse as Ludwig unceremoniously flopped it onto the desk.
Ludwig stretched his back and rolled his shoulder. "'Fraid so."
The sheriff let out a long, shaky sigh. "Christ, boy... I told you not to take this one."
"You told me a lotta things," Ludwig said, easing into a stiff wooden chair. He crossed one leg over the other and leaned back.
The old man eased into his own seat behind the desk, rubbing his temples. "You ain't get it. Bradner’s got half this town bought and the other half scared. You drag his kin in here dead, that’s a death sentence for both of us."
Ludwig lit a cigarette and took a slow, long drag before exhaling. Smoke curled toward the ceiling. "What's that fat bastard gotta do with this."
The sheriff leered at Ludwig then rolled his eyes. "We'll if you woulda just listened to me, you'd know you just killed his cousin!" He scoffed, poking the corpse on his desk with a tired finger.
The old man pulled in a slow breath, then reached under his shirt, fishing out a small brass key. He unlocked a drawer, pulled out a metal lockbox, and clicked it open.
Ludwig chuckled. "Ain’t my fault the man had a bounty. Should’ve taken the poster down if it was such a problem."
“That’s why I-” The sheriff stopped himself with a frustrated grunt. "You think I can just yank a state notice off my wall?" he snapped, then immediately softened, shoulders sagging. "Even if I wanted to, it’d raise questions. Folks in the capital keep tabs on these things."
A beat of silence sat between them.
The old man sighed. "Look, you ain’t makin’ this easy on me, son. Bradner finds out I signed off on this, it won’t just be your head he’s after."
"Then don’t sign," Ludwig said, tilting his head back to stare at the ceiling. "Just count."
The sheriff started pulling cash from the lockbox, stacking the bills on the desk one by one. He counted each dollar under his breath. "You know he's gonna find out, sooner or later."
"Then I did this of my own volit- vol-" Ludwig waved lazily, correcting himself. "My own damn free will. You ain't had nothin' to do with it."
The old man paused, jaw tight. He stared at Ludwig for a moment before finishing counting the stack of money, placing it on the counter.
"Just... watch your back from now on. And don’t come knockin’ here again unless you’re ready to leave town for good."
With a slow drag from his cigarette, Ludwig stood from the rickety chair. He plucked the cash from the desk, counted it quick, and tucked it into his satchel. "Pleasure doin' business."
The sheriff watched him with tired eyes. He didn't reply.
Ludwig turned for the door, but stopped. "'Fore I go," he cleared his throat. "You hear about anything... strange out in the woods lately?”
The sheriff was tucking the lockbox back into the drawer, not even looking at Ludwig. "What?"
"Y'know, like... a... uh... monster or something?"
A yawn escaped the old man's mouth. "What in tarnation are ya yappin' 'bout now?"
Ludwig scratched at the stubble along his jaw, eyes drifting toward the dark window. "Forget it," he muttered.
They sat in silence a moment, the only the soft crackling of Ludwig's cigarette filled the air.
The old man gave a long sigh, rubbing at his temples. "Go wash up, would you? You look like shit."
Ludwig gave a lazy tip of his hat. "Much obliged."
He opened the door and stepped out into the cold night. The old wood groaned behind him, then shut on its own with a tired click. Ludwig looked around. The town was still a graveyard. Chimneys smoked low. Windows were dark. Not even the bark of a dog broke the silence of the night. Just the scrape of his boots on dirt as he walked on.
He spat the dead cigarette onto the dirt road.
By the stables, he found a horse trough and leaned over it, splashing cold water onto his face. The shock of it stung his skin, but it helped clear his head. He wiped at his poncho with his palm, trying to clean off the worst of the mess, though the stain was already set.
"God dammit," he murmured, looking at his poncho.
All the inns were closed, way too late in the night to be accepting any patrons now. There wasn’t much left to do but head back to the treeline. He passed by shuttered saloons and dark inns, their signs swaying in the breeze.
He stopped at the forest's edge, mind thinking about that strange encounter. The creature, how it looked, how it smelled. It had to be real. Far too real to be a hallucination. But that brought a sense of unease, if something like that exists, what else is out there. He rubbed the back of his neck, then shook the thought loose. No sense thinking like that. He stepped between the trees, walking until the town lights disappeared behind the bark. A small clearing opened beneath the boughs, dry leaves blanketed the dirt. Good enough.
He kicked out a space, lit a match, and coaxed a small fire to life. Its glow painted the trees in soft orange. He sat with his back against a thick trunk, poncho wrapped tight around his shoulders. The cold gnawed at his fingers, but he’d been through worse.
The fire crackled gently. It was calming, let him clear his thoughts.
His eyelids felt heavy and he tilted the wide brim of his hat downward. Without even a yawn, he drifted off to sleep in the cold night.
---
A sharp, searing pain ripped through Ludwig’s gut and tore him awake.
He lurched up with a ragged gasp. A man’s face was inches from his own, twisted with rage. For a split second Ludwig couldn’t understand what he was seeing. Then he felt the knife buried low in his abdomen. His ears rang.
The attacker ripped the blade free and immediately drew back for another stab.
Ludwig reacted on instinct. His hand shot up and caught the man’s wrist mid-swing. The knife stopped just above his chest, trembling as the attacker forced his weight downward. With a strained grunt, Ludwig drove his boot into the bastard’s stomach.
The man stumbled back a step, but he kept hold of the knife.
In the dying firelight, Ludwig finally recognized him. It was the man with his bounty earlier in the night, the one who ran away. "Son of a-"
His hand lurched for his revolver before the thought even finished. He tore it free from the holster, but the pain in his gut twisted his focus sideways. He couldn't even line up a shot, let alone see straight.
He let off two rounds. Both screaming aimlessly into the dark woods. Before he could pull the trigger again, the man slammed into him.
The impact drove Ludwig onto his back and knocked the revolver from his hand. It spun off into the leaves somewhere beside the fire.
His eyes snapped up just in time to catch the glint of steel in the firelight. The knife came down, aimed directly at his chest. He jerked sideways, tThe blade scraped across his shoulder instead, slicing through poncho and skin before burying itself in the dirt.
He barely even registered the scratch, adrenaline coursing through his veins.
The attacker wrenched the blade from the earth. "You think you can just kill the boss an' walk away?!" he spat, rearing the knife back for another plunge.
Ludwig caught his wrist with both hands this time. The knife halted inches above his chest, quivering from the strain between them.
"I'll gut you like a hog!" the man barked, forcing the blade lower.
The tip pressed into Ludwig's poncho. Then through it. A sharp sting scratched across the center of his chest as the knife barely broke skin. He threw everything he had into stopping the knife, but he was straining.
Then he heard it. Far out in the black woods, something screamed. It was a vile, unnatural sound. It was like the cry of an elk, mixed and warped with something else. The cry rolled through the trees before dissolving into fast, pounding footsteps. The sound closed the distance in a dead sprint with terrifying speed.
The attacker either didn’t hear it or didn’t care. He kept pressing down, teeth bared, knife inching lower against Ludwig’s chest.
Then the footsteps stopped. The woods went silent. Only the sounds of the struggle remained. A struggle that Ludwig was slowly losing. The knife scratched a little deeper against his chest as his strength started to give out. The attacker’s teeth clenched, and he pressed more of his weight down.
Then a black, clawed hand shot from the darkness. It wrapped around the man’s throat, lifting him clean off Ludwig.
The man flailed, gagging as the black hand clamped around his throat began to squeeze. His knife slipped from his grip, clattering uselessly into the dirt.
Ludwig gasped sharply, gut on fire, shoulder slick with blood. But even through the haze of pain, he saw the thing that had seized his attacker. It stood over them, its fur as black as sin, its stature huge. The dying firelight traced the edges of its frame and gleamed against the pale, grinning skull that held those red eyes.
Ludwig’s breath caught. The skull. The antlers. The bandages wrapped around its waist, now blotched red. He knew it. The same creature from before now held a grown man aloft like nothing.
Though her ivory, skinless face held no expression. It was clear she was livid. The beast turned her head. For a moment, she stared at Ludwig with her burning eyes. But it didn’t linger. The gaze flicked back to the squirming man in her grasp.
The beast opened her maw, revealing jagged, gnarled teeth set along her skull. For a heartbeat, they gleamed like cruel knives in the firelight, and then she clamped down on the man’s neck.
A sickening crunch filled the air.
Blood arced from the wound, spraying the forest floor, and a guttural, tortured scream ripped from the man, echoing through the trees. The man thrashed, punching her bony skull and kicking her torso. But she was unflinching.
The beast bit down harder, seemingly irritated by the man's struggle. Another, deeper crunch filled the air as more blood sprayed out of his neck. His screaming turned into a cacophony of choked gurgles.
But soon, the struggles ceased. The man's arms went slack and the tortured, gurgling screaming abruptly stopped. He hung motionless in her clawed hands, her maw still clamped around his neck.
Releasing her bite, the beast's ivory skull was now stained a dark red. For a silent moment, she simply stared at the lifeless body, motionless save for the rise and fall of her chest. Then she let out that piercing, unnatural screech that tore through the woods, shattering the silence.
She bit down again, and this time slammed the corpse to the ground. Hunching over, her claws sank into the dead man’s belly with a wet rip, raking through supple skin. Her jaws tore the bones clean out of the body and crunched them until nothing was left but the gooey marrow.
Ludwig looked away, watching anymore would make him want to throw up. That and the hole in his stomach. Even though his mind was foggy, he knew he had to get the hell out of here. Once she was done tearing that corpse apart, he knew he'd be next.
He tried to stand, but pain flared like fire through his stomach. His legs failed him as he collapsed back to the dirt. But that wouldn't stop him.
Clawing at the earth, he dragged himself forward. Dirt and brittle leaves filled his hands as he pulled. Each shift of his body made his gut throb, unbearable pain shot up his ribs as he bit back a scream. Darkness closed at the edges of his sight. Tears stung his eyes. Still, he forced himself on, crawling away from the bloodbath.
Behind him, those horrible sounds raged on. The woods echoed with squelching, rending, crunching, the wet rip of flesh from bone. Snaps, cracks, the greedy tearing of meat. Every sound drove him harder to move.
Then, all at once, silence. The forest went still, as if holding its breath. Only the chirp of crickets and the pop of the crackling fire broke the quiet.
With held breath, Ludwig slowly turned his head.
His heart sank as he saw the beast loom above him. Her red eyes burned in the firelight, her bony maw half agape, gore still dripping from her teeth. Her black fur shimmered wet with blood, every breath steaming in the cold night air.
"Stay the hell away from me," he rasped, voice breaking. His hand twitched toward his hip, reaching for the revolver he knew wasn’t there. Instinct moved him, but his strength was gone.
His body couldn't hold on anymore. Pain, stress, blood loss, it all reached a boiling point. His gut flared white hot, and with it came an intense haze. His vision blurred and the world around him tilted.
The beast crouched low, her bloody maw not even a foot away from him. The smothering coppery scent of blood washed over him. The smell was suffocating.
Ludwig’s body betrayed him. His arms went slack, his chest hitched. Darkness crowded the edges of his sight until all that remained were her red eyes. Those burning, unforgiving, red eyes.
The beast leaned in even closer, her face now just a hair away from his. Her claws slid around his back and pressed him against her chest in an embrace.
He wanted to push away, to fight, to escape, but his body wouldn't listen. He could barely think anymore let alone act. And unwillingly, his eyes sank shut on their own and everything went black. His life couldn't even flash before his tired eyes.
Then, before his conscious fully gave way, a voice caught his ear. A strange, raspy voice. It sounded almost like a woman.
"Rest now."