The Change

I hear a strange hissing noise like an auditorium full of snakes but I can't be distracted.

The ogre reaches around and grabs the dead tree next to him. It's fossilized in some weird way and he cracks it at the base. He turns back to us, bringing the trunk down to crush Melodie and Sarah. I roar and sprint faster but Sarah and Melodie are fast - they leap to the side at the last moment and the club crashes down on empty earth. Rock-like pieces of the tree spray around us.

I'm in mid-air and headed straight for the club. The creature is slow in bringing it back up. I tuck my legs in and twist. I land on the tip of the club and almost slide off of it - the wood is stony. My legs work independently to find flat surfaces to push against. I'm airborne with my arms out. I was aiming for his throat but I missed and now I'm headed for the top of its chest. The creature cries out with a loud "HUOOOOMMM!" as my claws dig into his skin. I try to pull myself up to his throat and my jaws are snapping.

The ogre reaches back with his free arm and swipes me off of him. I can feel the joints in my arms and legs stretch near to breaking. He's torn a small muscle in my shoulder but I feel it itching and the pain goes away. I take fistfuls of his flesh and muscle with me in my claws. Blood gushes out of his wounds and he cries out, "HUOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!" even louder. I twist in the air again - my tail is invaluable for balancing and I land on my hands and feet. My back feet touch down on loose wood and I slip back, just in time to miss being crushed by the ogre's tree club. My claws sink into the ground to stop me. I can see Sarah and Melodie behind the creature. They're close to the broken farm house.

Time slows.

The creature is there.

It's not a black spot in the world, anymore. It's a simple looking, small man except his crotch is smooth and he's covered in tattoos. He has a plain wooden staff in one hand but it's been driven into the ground. Sarah is bounding straight for him and Melodie is behind her. I watch in horror as a black haze gathers atop the man's staff. He's yelling in a voice I don't understand. It hurts my ears. The man points at Sarah and the blackness collapses into a sphere and hurtles at her chest.

Things become even slower. I start a roar of rage. Melodie has her feet dug into the ground for another leap when she sees the ball moving for Sarah. She twists her feet and jumps at Sarah. She's so fast; faster than Sarah and me. I'm roaring. The ogre is picking his club up for another attack. The ball is so close to Sarah but she can't get out of the way in mid-air. Melodie slams into her side and Sarah is thrown. The orb doesn't change direction. Rather than gut Sarah, it blows through Melodie's left shoulder. Blood and bones explode in the air and Melodie is screaming. The ball buries itself deep in the earth with a smoking trail.

The scaly sliding hissing scrabbling noise grows in volume and I feel hairs up and down my back standing on end.

CHAPTER 25

Sarah's tail tugs at her spine wildly as she flies through the air. It's trying to compensate for her to help her land on her feet. She rolls her upper body and slams into the ground on all fours; Melodie was not gentle with her tackle. Sarah growls with her lips pulled back. That's the second goddamned time someone saved me from this asshole! She yells at herself.

Melodie screams, the sound coming out as an anguished howl. She has no time to land gracefully and, instead, crashes solidly to the ground in front of the demon. The pain is intense and continuous. Her left arm hangs useless so she hugs it to her side. She closes her mouth and breathes through her nose. She can't seem to hear anything out of her left ear anymore. She catches a glance at Sarah in the corner of her eye and is happy to see her unharmed.

When Melodie focuses on the man again, she sees the black light gathering above his staff. Fuck, she thinks. If this is how it's going to end then at least I won't die on my knees. She shifts her weight to get into a position to jump at the creature. She breathes in through her nose and out through her mouth, rumbling deep in her throat each time her breath goes out.

The darkness above the thing's staff solidifies into a ball. Melodie can see Sarah in the air, reaching for the man. No! Not her, you bastard! Melodie screams wordlessly, her rage coming out as a roaring howl. Melodie leaps at the man before he can change his target. The light streaks towards her, screaming through the air. She has never been this angry in her entire life. She's always been the one to help heal friendships and always had a kind word for someone. But this thing... this creature thought it could hurt Sarah again! She doesn't think of herself or what she is doing. The wolf pushes her forward and Melodie gladly follows.

A sudden shout behind her overpowers Melodie's roar and the scream of the unnatural missile. Silver light flares from ball and it only has time to burn a patch of fur from Melodie's chest before it disintegrates into nothingness. Melodie is still in the air, aiming for the man. She's two feet away when the man pulls his staff from the ground and slams it down again into the earth. A pulse of black light explodes from the center of the staff, making a small crater around it. When the edge of the light touches Melodie, she's immediately hammered to the ground, inches from the creature. Sarah is thrown back again and Melodie can smell blood from her.

The man looks down at Melodie and laughs, harshly. She tries to move but it's like she's at the bottom of the ocean. Her ears pop and all she can hear is a high pitched whining noise before her accelerated healing fixes her ear drums. So close! And that... that thing is laughing at me! Laughing! Only her eyes seem to move and she can smell burning hair. Patches of her fur are on fire. It feels like someone is trying to rip her apart, joint by joint.

The demon brings its foot down on Melodie's muzzle. He grinds her face down into the ground, laughing the whole time.

It speaks in English for the first time. "Heel, dog."

Sarah roars and slams into the barrier made by the demon. It's impossible to break through and the cut in her leg makes her weaker than she should be. It feels like it's infected already. The creature looks at Sarah briefly and makes an odd motion with his left hand. Sudden white light flares in her left eye and she hears a small pop sound. Half of the world goes dark; her left eye is gone. She barely hesitates before slamming into the barrier again and again. Her fur is on fire.

Melodie can smell the pain and anger coming from Sarah. This thing will kill us. I have to move! Move! The demon isn't watching her; he's arrogant in his belief that she's contained. Melodie hears a sickening crunch and smells blood from her mate. He's howling in pain. He's hurt! We're dying! MOVE!

The wolf in her is throwing itself against its bonds. It shakes and strains to get out. One push. Just one push. It tenses, bringing every ounce of strength it has down into its core. Then, it leaps for its prey. Melodie pushes with her one good arm and her jaw closes over the demon's stomach, bringing the creature down to one knee. It shrieks in pain over and over again.

The black barrier around the demon weakens, turning nearly transparent. His arm shakes on his staff. His shrieks turn into high pitched chanting. He brings his hand down to Melodie's forehead and closes his eyes.

Melodie knows what's going to happen. She's not afraid and she doesn't close her eyes against what's coming. Oddly, a simple truth suddenly becomes clear to her. If all of this is real -- werewolves, demons, creatures from myth, then why not an afterlife? She stares at the demon, wishing she could move her head to rip him apart.

If there's an afterlife then she will see them again. She will run through green fields with both of them while the sun warms their fur.

CHAPTER 26

The ever-present hellish sound is temporarily drowned out as I watch the black sphere tear through Melodie's shoulder. I'm roaring and crouching to run at the small bald man. Black flecks are gathering from the air and being pulled to the top of his staff again. Sarah has landed and flipped herself. She's gathering her strength so she can tackle the man. Melodie is back and down. Her left arm hangs uselessly at her side and she's holding it against her body with her right. She's howling in pain but trying to stand back up. Most of her left shoulder is gone.

I'm in the air, aiming myself at the man, claws out and roaring. Everything is red. Melodie is crouched down. Her lips are pulled back and she's growling at the man. She's tensing for a jump. Sarah is in the air. The black light collapses again and flies directly at Melodie's chest. There is no way she can move in time and Sarah is too slow on the jump. Melodie pushes against the ground and leaps at the creature, knowing she will die. I hear Amelia's voice suddenly loud in the background. I don't recognize the words but she's shouting something loudly. Silver light flares from the pitch black ball as it streaks towards Melodie's chest.

I'm ten feet into my leap when the ogre gets in my way. I howl in rage. Its massive arms are swinging the club and I can't avoid it. I slam into the hard surface and it forces me down. The air whistles around my ears. I grab the tree trunk and turn in the second it takes to hit the ground. I hear my left arm break in four places and the club has either broken my left leg or just hurt it bad because I can't feel it very well. I use my right arm to throw myself over the tree. When I land, my left leg is working again. The creature is yelling at me and raises the club again.

I sprint forward, towards the ogre's legs. My left arm trails on the ground but my right arm and legs throw chunks of hay and dirt behind me as I run. The giant roars out "HUOOOMMM!" again and twists to keep me in front of him.

I can feel my left arm now and it digs into the ground, adding a burst of speed. I see a huge foot rise to crush me. Its foot is falling. I spring up and crash into his shin. I throw him off balance and he uses the club as a cane to keep from falling. My jaws close around the front of his legs and I hear bones break. He tastes rancid and even his blood is disgusting. The fur on my muzzle turns dark black and I'm crunching and tearing as fast as I can. I dig my hands into his leg and pull chunks of flesh and bone out with my claws. Blood sprays from his legs and the creature shrieks a loud booming sound.

The horrible alien noise is louder. My ears are filled with buzzing and the sound of thousands of maggots crawling over rotten meat.

The ogre's leg is still coming down. It tries to shake me off. I see its free hand coming toward me with the palm flat. I push myself off of his leg and tackle his other one. My right hand claws dig in and I position myself behind his ankle. His fist misses me. I hear his leg crash down and the sound of bone splintering. He tilts over to his side. I work furiously on this leg. I'm snapping tendons and bones with my teeth and clawing bloody strips out of his leg. He falls on his side and tries to push himself up again. He's dropped the club and tries to reach for me. My whole body is soaked in his blood.

I can hear yelling but I can't make out who or what is doing it. I see a figure sail past the ogre's shoulder and crash into a post that's somehow still standing in the ruin. My feet dig deep into the ogre's ruined leg and I claw my way up his body to his throat. He's clumsy and slow; I hear his hand slap his leg behind me and it sounds like he breaks his own knee.

His roar of pain is constant and his hot breath ruffles the fur on my back. His teeth are huge and flat. Mine are sharp and many. I latch onto the side of his throat and pull. A chunk of his neck comes away in my mouth and a geyser of blood jets in the air. I'm temporarily blinded when I'm sprayed in the eyes but my hands find the hole I made. I dig them in deep and pull them apart, rending his neck. His surprised shout cuts off suddenly.

I see his hand moving in the corner of my eye so I jump off of him. He falls backward slowly and claps a hand to his neck. Blood sprays between his fingers and large red bubbles are foaming at the corner of his mouth. He's dying and with both legs shredded, he's not a threat. I turn to Sarah and Melodie and run as fast as I can.

Amelia is kneeling nearby. There's a small group of people surrounding her but they can't seem to get close. They're beating their fists on something in the air around Amelia and screaming at her. They're naked but unrecognizable. Their flesh is completely black with red, oozing sores covering their bodies. Many of them are motionless on the ground around her. I assume those are dead but I don't care.

My pack is all that matters. Sarah. Melodie.

The naked man is down on one knee with his right hand holding his staff. He's chanting and pointing at Melodie. Melodie has her teeth into his side. She's glaring at him but can't seem to move. Patches of fur on her body are bursting into small flames and burning off, leaving blackened skin underneath. She's growling between panting. Her ruined shoulder is bleeding freely.

Sarah is to the side of the man. She has a huge cut down her right leg that's gushing blood. Her left eye is closed and crusted over. I can see some of her skin through patches in her brown fur. She's readying herself for another leap at the man.

I'm so close. One more push with my legs and I'm there. This close to him I see a shimmering curtain of faint blackness around the man. The tips of my fingers touch it and burn. I hear two of my fingers snap. The burn runs down my arm as I pierce the shroud. I grit my teeth in pain and close my eyes against it. My shoulder breaks the man's staff. I hear him scream in a raspy voice. Melodie is suddenly able to move. She roars and rips the man's right leg off. There is no blood.

Hitting the thing's staff throws me off so I slam into the man's chest rather than his neck. Sarah doesn't miss -- her teeth find his neck. The force of my impact pushes him hard into Sarah. Her teeth close around him. His neck tears and the horrible insect buzzing sound stops. Sarah lands on all fours, skidding six feet away and she throws the head with a snap of her neck. I roll a few times before coming to rest on my hands and feet, breathing hard.

Sarah and I howl together, loudly. Melodie tries to join in but she's in too much pain. I pad over and rub my muzzle against the side of her head. She weakly rubs back against me. Sarah sits close to Melodie and pulls her gently into her lap. Melodie whines and rubs her head in small circles against the fur of Sarah's leg. I walk over to them and lick Melodie's shoulder gently. Her blood is hot and tastes wrong on my tongue.

Only three figures stand near Amelia. I watch as tiny flames burst from the pores of one of them and he, she or it blows apart. Amelia is sweating and resting her hands on her knees. She's staring at the next creature and chanting. I walk over and rip the other two apart. They burn my fingers when I touch them but otherwise offer no resistance.

Amelia collapses to the ground. I give her exactly three seconds to relax and catch her breath. She squawks when I grab her by the wrist and pull her to Melodie. I point at Melodie's shoulder with a claw and then the pinky finger of her right hand. I have to do it twice before she understands. She lays her right hand on Melodie's neck and closes her eyes. I can hear a soft humming noise from all around us.

Melodie grips Sarah tightly and whines softly. Sarah massages Melodie's furry shoulder and makes a soft "ruuuuuuuuuu..." sound. The flesh inside Melodie's shoulder lightens from sickly black to dark pink and some of her skin grows back. Amelia turns her head and vomits blood. I pick her up, gently this time, and lay her down on her back. She's already asleep.

Sarah and I keep watch over both of them. I sit next to Sarah and she leans into me. Her body is warm against mine and I notice her left eye is open now. Her leg is also no longer bleeding.

It's late by the time Melodie can stand up. Her shoulder is healed but dark grey fur, rather than black, covers a large scar where the hole was. I hug her close to me for a long time. Sarah stands nearby and I pull her into it as well. A sudden wind ruffles our fur gently and, in the distance, I hear the sweet call of a single bird.

EPILOGUE

I carried Amelia back to the car and we cleaned out most of the glass before leaving. We had to wait until we were human again. There was no way the three of us would fit in the car if we were still changed.

Amelia stayed with us for two days while her body healed and then went back to the farm to "sterilize" it. She promised to come back to visit some time again but wasn't sure when.

We're still getting used to our bodies. It'll take time. Sarah and I took the week off from work and we all went house shopping. We found a house outside of town on an acre of land and we took it. The rent is expensive but we can afford it easily when we combine our incomes. Melodie is excited about having space to plant an orchard and she's trying to convince Sarah to learn how to grow a vegetable garden with her.

We actually look at the possibility of raising cows for meat but it's Sarah (surprisingly) who says she'd have a problem killing them after she raised them. Luckily, there's a farmer not too far away that sells meat wholesale and has no moral objection to slaughtering his own cows.

Our new bed is huge but we're still waiting for the frame to be delivered. Sarah will sometimes walk through a room and nonchalantly mention the word "headboard" on her way back out. Melodie shivers every time. They tease each other constantly but in good nature. I'm surprised and happy at how well that's working out. It helps that Melodie is shy (the wolf in me says 'submissive') but she does have her moments. She's fierce and fast when she needs to be.

Both women have been visiting the local Humane Society in the hopes of finding a good dog. They say it's eerie when they get there - everything goes quiet. Every single cat goes bushy and just shakes. All the dogs find the furthest corner of their pen and make themselves as small as possible. They've had no luck yet but they keep trying. They're thinking of trying some local breeders if they can't adopt something. Maybe a puppy would work if we raised it from a young age.

I was sad to hear that all the animals freak out - I really like cats. Cats... for some reason thinking of cats reminds me of the mall the other day. Why...? I'll figure that out eventually.

Soon we'll be back at work. I wonder how that will go. We'll have to get used to being around people again on a daily basis. I really, really need to work on whatever it is I do that scares people or turns them on.

We wonder about the future but not for too long. I used to worry more than I do now and I don't know if it's the wolf in me or something else relaxing me. The future will come. In the meantime, Sarah, Melodie and I are together and that's all that seems to matter.

What comes, will come and we three will stand together to face it. To the end.