The first howl shattered the night at 2:17 a.m.
Alex Gavi woke as if something had ripped her from a dream. Her breath caught in her throat, heart hammering so hard it hurt. For a moment she lay still in the darkness of her apartment, listening. Greyhaven was never truly quiet—there was always traffic, sirens, the hum of life—but this sound was different.
It wasn't a siren.
It was a call.
Long. Raw. Ancient.
Alex sat up, the thin sheet sliding from her shoulders. Goosebumps crawled across her skin, not from fear alone, but from a strange familiarity she couldn't explain. The howl echoed again, closer this time, vibrating through the walls and into her bones.
"What the hell…" she whispered.
She swung her legs out of bed and crossed the room, drawn to the window despite every instinct screaming at her not to look. Outside, streetlights bathed the empty road in pale yellow. The rain from earlier had left the asphalt slick and reflective.
Someone stood in the middle of the street.
A man—at least, he had been a man seconds ago.
Alex froze.
The figure bent forward sharply, hands clutching his head as a scream tore from his throat. It broke mid-sound, twisting into something deeper, more animal. Alex's stomach dropped as she watched his body convulse.
Bones cracked loudly.
His spine arched in an impossible curve. Skin stretched and split as dark fur burst through it. His arms lengthened, fingers fusing as claws erupted from where hands had been. His jaw widened, teeth growing into jagged white weapons.
Alex staggered back, slamming into her kitchen counter.
"No… no, this isn't real…"
The transformation ended as suddenly as it began. Where the man had stood now loomed a massive wolf—easily the size of a small car. Its fur was black as midnight, soaked with blood and rain. Amber eyes lifted slowly.
They locked onto Alex's window.
Her breath stopped.
The wolf tilted its head, nostrils flaring as if it could smell her through glass and concrete. Then it threw its head back and howled again.
The city answered.
Howls rose from every direction, overlapping, multiplying, turning Greyhaven into a chorus of monsters. Car alarms blared. Dogs barked wildly. Somewhere close, glass shattered, followed by screams.
Alex dropped to the floor as something heavy slammed into the building below her. Her phone buzzed violently beside her hand. She grabbed it, fingers numb.
EMERGENCY ALERT:Remain indoors. Lock all doors and windows. Reports of violent attacks—
The message cut off.
The lights flickered, then went out.
Alex's apartment plunged into darkness, broken only by the red glow of her phone screen and the fires beginning to rise outside. She scrambled to her feet and rushed to the door, sliding the deadbolt into place just as a terrible crash echoed from the hallway.
Someone screamed.
"Please! Open the door!" a woman cried, pounding desperately. "Something's chasing me—"
A snarl cut her off.
The pounding turned into a wet, choking sound. Alex clamped her hands over her mouth to keep from screaming as claws scraped along the hallway walls, slow and deliberate.
Something stopped outside her door.
She could hear it breathing.
Sniffing.
Alex backed away, heart threatening to tear itself from her chest. She grabbed a metal kitchen knife, knowing how useless it would be. The doorknob rattled once, twice.
Then the sound moved on.
Alex slid down against the wall, shaking uncontrollably. Tears streamed down her face, but she made no sound. She didn't know how long she stayed there—minutes, hours—but eventually exhaustion pulled her into a shallow, restless sleep.
When she woke again, the world was silent.
Morning light crept through her window, revealing smoke drifting across the sky. The city looked… wrong. Burned cars littered the streets. Blood smeared the sidewalks. Bodies lay where they had fallen, twisted and broken.
Greyhaven was dead.
Alex stepped outside cautiously, knife still in her hand. Other survivors emerged from nearby apartments, their faces pale and hollow. No one spoke. There were no sirens now. No police. No help.
Only distant howls, fading with the moon.
News broadcasts, when they returned briefly, spoke of a global event. People transforming under moonlight. Entire military units torn apart. Scientists arguing whether it was a virus, a mutation, or something older.
Alex barely listened.
Something was wrong with her.
A heat simmered beneath her skin, growing stronger with every passing minute. Her heartbeat slowed, steady and powerful. She could hear things—footsteps blocks away, whispered sobs behind walls. Scents flooded her senses: fear, blood, smoke… life.
Her hands trembled as her nails darkened, sharpening slightly before returning to normal.
"What's happening to me?" she whispered.
A memory flickered through her mind—dreams she'd had since childhood. Running beneath a full moon. Wind tearing through her hair. The taste of iron and freedom.
She had always thought they were just dreams.
A howl rose in the distance, deeper and commanding. Not wild like the others. This one carried authority.
Alex's chest tightened.
Something inside her answered.
Not in fear.
In recognition.
Her lips parted, and a low sound escaped her throat—half breath, half growl. She slapped a hand over her mouth, eyes wide with terror and awe.
The apocalypse hadn't just spared her.
It had chosen her.
As the sun climbed higher, Alex Gavi stood in the ruins of the world, caught between human and monster, knowing with terrifying certainty that the night would come again.
And when it did—
She would not be prey.
She would howl back. 🐺