As Glenn stepped from the old man's doorway, neck hairs suddenly bristled. Some gaze burned into his back—heavy and viscous.
He whipped around, stare nailing the second-floor window across the street. Behind pitch-black glass lay nothing, only bottomless shadows flowing.
"Who lives in that house?" he muttered quietly, knuckles unconsciously brushing the waist holster. Memory depths yielded no information about that building's occupant.
"Heh..." Hoarse laughter drifted from behind. The old man still huddled in his doorway shadows, only half his withered face outlined by dim light. "That fellow across the way... quite the wealthy type. Won't you knock for a drink?"
Glenn ignored the bait, only squeezing vague acknowledgment from his throat. He pulled his coat tight and strode away quickly.
...
The town remained gloomy even in daylight. Sparse wooden houses stood scattered roadside, no figures visible behind window openings. Even birdsong was rare—only his boot soles grinding gravel broke the silence.
He needed to retrieve that revolver. The weapon lost after last night's ambush was now his only reliable asset in this damned world. His previous life had scattered like smoke—now only survival mattered, preferably comfortable survival.
The corpse site had become a slaughterhouse.
Glenn halted abruptly, stomach acid churning. Torn clothing mixed with dark red flesh chunks splattered through grass, hair strands with scalp clinging to broken bones. Heavy iron-rust stench mingled with putrid decay, flooding his nostrils.
The revolver lay ten paces away, steel barrel reflecting wan skylight.
He rushed forward and seized the gun. The moment fingertips touched the trigger guard, rank stench suddenly penetrated his nostrils—not blood's scent, but more like some beast's glandular secretions. Cold, foul, triggering instinctive throat spasms.
Glenn froze in place, shotgun already shouldered. The old weapon he'd robbed held three shells—enough to drop a bear.
But what approached probably wasn't a bear.
Leaves crackled somewhere. Extremely light, extremely fast, like a predator padding on soft paws. Sounds shadowed his heartbeat rhythm, left then right. Cold sweat at his temples slid into his collar, yet he couldn't catch even the enemy's outline.
Too quiet. Even wind held its breath.
Suddenly—!
Neck skin abruptly tightened as icy chills shot down his spine. Glenn spun and dove, shotgun rolling to point at empty space.
No attack. Only silence strangling his throat.
It was right there.
The ink-black beast form stood ten yards distant, massive as a warhorse. Its wolf head was grotesquely enlarged to washbasin size, single eye embedded in forehead center with cloudy yellow pupil contracted to a vertical slit. Massive jaws split to neck sides, bone-white fangs protruding beyond lips as drool hung in sticky strands, corroding grass beneath its feet.
The shotgun's front sight locked deadly onto that single eye. Glenn's knuckles whitened with tension. No memory contained records of such monsters.
The creature's throat rolled low whimpers, tongue rasping across muzzle as more mucus dripped. It was savoring fear in the air.
Standoff stretched time taut.
Suddenly, beast claws scraped earth. It pressed closer, exposed tooth crowns gleaming bone-white as whimpers shifted to threatening growls.
Too close. Glenn squeezed the trigger.
Boom—!
Muzzle flash erupted. Shot pellets punched into flesh above the single eye, exploding in bloody spray. The beast shrieked while shaking its head, yet pellets lodged between hard skull bones, metallic gleam faintly visible.
Glenn worked the bolt to eject shells, second round not yet chambered when rank wind struck his face!
The massive beast twisted to avoid the gun barrel at physics-defying speed, claws tearing air. Bone-white teeth arrays lunged straight for Glenn's throat!
"Get back!" He leaned backward urgently, waist twisting violently as his combat boot carried full-body force upward into the beast's jaw.
Dull impact rang like striking iron. Agony exploded from heel to knee, yet earned the beast's pain-howl. The eight-hundred-kilogram frame was actually lifted and overturned by this spinning kick, crashing thunderously!
Glenn palm-planted to leap upright, injured leg trembling continuously. Can't show weakness. Predator laws he knew all too well.
The beast arched upright, single eye blazing furious crimson. It pounced again—fast enough to blur into shadow.
Glenn couldn't dodge in time, ankle suddenly screaming pain—fangs had bitten through his boot! Spinning dizzily, he was slammed to earth, lungs emptied of air. Before vision cleared, bloody maw already engulfed his face.
Death's breath felt ice-cold and sharp.
Heartbeats hammered his ribcage like mallets—instantly, something dormant in his blood vessels thunderously boiled!
Vision flooded with crimson veils. Killing lust surged like magma, crushing rationality. Bones crackled beneath skin as muscle fibers swelled, tore, and madly reorganized.
Glenn released an inhuman roar, right arm explosively extending—pitch-black bristles burst through sleeves as claws curved like sickles, rending air!
Riiip—!
Beast belly split open, blood rain spattering. The creature wailed while staggering back, entrails dragging on ground.
Glenn kicked off in pursuit, claws again tearing hide and shredding muscle. Beast blood burned like molten lead, splashing across his chest. He pinned the beast while rolling, using claws and fangs to tear—every swipe bringing fragments of bone and flesh.
Within mere breaths, the beast had become a quivering meat pile, white bones jutting from its surface in fragments.
Glenn knelt with knee pinning beast throat, blood-stained claws raised high—claw tips mere half-inches from the eyeball.
The beast released cub-like whimpers, going limp.
Boiling blood tide slowly receded. Crimson vision gradually cleared. Glenn gasped heavily, staring at the forelimb pinning the beast—
From claw to elbow covered in pitch-black bristles, five fingers had become massive wolf paws with cold light flowing along curved blade edges.
He lowered his head, seeing an elongated wolf muzzle protruding from his face, exhaling rolling white vapor.
Forest silence reigned. Only blood dripping from claw tips made sound.
Drip. Drip.