Episode 3

Creatures of the Night

The forest lay still but awakened, and the doom awaited. She pulled back her black cape and ran her sludgy tongue over her canines.

“Her blood will quench my thirst. It will perish my soul's hunger; she will fall to the same fate as me.” The murders laughs reverberated through the trees, her blood boiled to a high and the soul felt liberated.

“After all these years and all the pain I endured, I will have my revenge.”

Covered in black, just like her soul, she strode through the forest, hunting the night, drenched in delight that the doom was near.

“She has to die, and the kingdom will fall,” She laughed with devilish echoes, “I will have my revenge.”

She howled into the starless night.

“The curse is awakened, and the prophecy will come true. And no power on earth, or all of Heaven can stop that. Not even me.” She scowled hysterically.

As he held her hand, Jack felt the powers inside him swivel. It was a strange feeling for him.

“Nothing and nobody has had the kind of effect that she has on me,” he thought, amused by himself, “How is this possible? I just met her I haven't even looked into her eyes. How does she have this power over me?”

He could feel her pain like it was his. As Jack sat drenched in her beauty, he heard a loud thud on the door. Slowly, he unentangled his fingers and pulled away. With a grasp, Jack resumed back to reality and rushed to attend the door. Within minutes, Nathaniel and Vanessa rushed in through the door. Vanessa along with a case of medicines rushed past him upstairs to the room.

Nathaniel had a look at her and returned back down to Jack who was standing in utter dismay. Nathaniel patting jack on the shoulder, read the serious look of concern on his face.

“She'll be alright.”

Jack simply nodded, but didn't seem convinced.

“Tell me everything that happened. Tell me everything you know.”

Jack poured out everything chronologically without missing any details. He told him everything he had seen, but unintentionally. He missed out the part, where heaven thundered. And as he said it out loud, Jack stood there numb, trying to comprehend the entire situation.

“I could have saved her before she was attacked but…”

Nathaniel comforted his son, “You did the right thing. Bringing her here and calling us. Don't be hard on yourself.”

Her face flashed before his eyes and Jack cringed. He squeezed his eyes shut, thinking of all the things that could have happened. Breaking into the silence, Nathaniel asked,

“Does anyone else know? Did anyone see you?”

Jack thought about it and replied, “I don't think so. At least as far as I know.”

There was just one probability, what could have happened. They both were thinking it. Jack said softly

“ You don't think it could be.”

Nathaniel's face went pale, “There's no other possibility.” They held each other's gaze for a few moments.

Jack gulped in fear. It was an ancient myth from centuries ago. No proof of existence. Just a fable. No one ever imagined that it could be real. Jack's lips trembled as he said the word out loud,

“Bloodhound.”

Nathaniel and Jack sat in a state of complete shock as Vanessa attended to the girl.

After a long silence, “Do you think it could have been the bloodhound?”

Daniel had no answer, for he himself didn't know it could have been true. Jack had too many things running in his mind.

“ What do we do now?”

He paused for his father to respond. But Nathaniel had nothing to say. Jack understood his father's silence. They were both helpless. The safety of the pack was on the line. It was an ancient myth about the bloodhound

An impurely made werewolf, one of the deadliest creatures alive, though no one had seen or encountered it, the stories of its atrocities circled throughout the kingdom. Nathaniel could see that this was bothering Jack far more than he let it shown There was nothing he could say or do to make him feel better. They simply sat quietly and stared about.

Breaking into the cold and dead silence, they were both shocked when they heard Vanessa’s footsteps coming down the stairs. Jack impatiently spoke out,

“Mom, how she doing?”

Vanessa replied very calmly, “She is fine. Perfectly alright.” As the words left her mouth, Vanessa could see Jack side with a sense of relief, “But she's still unconscious.”

Nathaniel added “It must have been pretty rough. It may take her some time to bounce back.”

Jack knew he was right. He simply acknowledged with nod. Vanessa continued,

“I have cleaned and dressed her wounds. I have done everything that I can do.”

Vanessa was not a doctor, though she knew almost everything there was to know about it. She had learned natural medicines and different healing tactics staying in the woods.

“But that's not going to be enough, Is it?” the word spat out of Jack's mouth almost immediately. Unknowingly, he was forming a connection with this girl he had found almost dead in the forest he began caring for her without even knowing who she was where she was from.

Jack spoke sternly, “We need to call a doctor. We have to take her to the hospital.”

Vanessa looked at Jack and Nathaniel and spoke in a hush, “That's the problem.”

Jack was confused. He spoke in the same tone as hers, “What do you mean?”

Vanessa spoke looking at Nathaniel, “We can't take her to the hospital or call for the doctor.”

Jack did not see it coming, or maybe his mind was to fogged with thoughts of saving the girl he just found woods that he was not thinking straight. All he knew was that she was badly hurt and any person in the right state of mind would have taken her straight to the hospital.

He voiced his concerns, “What's going on mom?” He was slightly irritated after getting such an irresponsible response from his mother, “Why can’t we get her to the hospital?”

On his face was a serious expression. Nathaniel looked a bit confused too but he trusted his wife reasoning. If she says we can't call a doctor, she must have a solid reason as why, so he just stood quietly waiting to hear her. Jack on the other hand, saw that his parents didn't get the seriousness of the injury

“She must have a concussion or may have terrible injuries,” he was speaking in a louder tone now. Vanessa reached over and placed a hand over his shoulder.

“Jack, calm down, have a seat here.”

Jack continued still confused, “She was lying in the snow, for God knows how long. She could have frostbite or the…”

Vanessa cut him off. She clearly understood why he was freaking out.

“She has no frostbites or anything, trust me.”

His eyes finally met Vanessa’s, he understood she was trying to say something. He softened up and with a calm tone said, “What is it?” hoping to get a straight answer.

Vanessa brought her palm to his cheek.

“She is alright, perfectly fine. Now you first tell Everything that happened,” She could see in his eyes as his mind went back to the events from earlier, “Start from the beginning give me all the details.”

Jack Narrated everything down to the last detail. He began from when each changed into a werewolf at the site of the full moon. Jack was been extra descriptive. It helped him see last night more clearly. In case he missed any dots, he could connect the dots. Working up the details in their mind, they were listening more and more intently.

“So there was more than one howl?” Vanessa asked inquisitively.

Jack considered it and replied, “It was the other werewolves that howled and vowed tearily to that one howl. The sounds echoed from different places that's why, I'm sure.”

Jack remembered one more detail, “also, it was the night of the full moon, so most to them shape shift. So that makes things all more unclear. It could have been anyone.” He then went on to narrate the clues he found and gestured. He was very expressive and spoke animatedly.

After he was done with the entire story, they all sat in complete and utter silence, more confused than ever. They were deep in thought, about what exactly it could have been and what they have to do about this.

Jack spoke then, trying to read in all their thoughts, “Was it the bloodhound?”

There was again a long pause as they consider that angle of the incident.

“ It seems like the only possibility.”