The fire crackled softly beneath the hanging spit.

  Fat dripped from the roasting meat and hissed when it struck the embers. Smoke drifted upward in lazy spirals, carrying the scent of cooked flesh into the dark forest.

  Red Hood turned the skewer once more.

  Across from her, Grey slept.

  The young wolf was curled tightly, silver fur rising and falling with slow, steady breaths. One ear twitched occasionally at distant sounds—branches shifting, insects humming, something moving somewhere beyond sight.

  Red Hood watched him for a moment before pulling the meat away from the flame.

  “Grey. It’s done.”

  One golden eye opened instantly.

  The other followed.

  His gaze locked onto the food in her hand with sharp intensity.

  She handed him his portion.

  He devoured it without ceremony, crunching bone and tearing through meat with small but efficient bites. His tail thumped once against the dirt in quiet satisfaction.

  Red Hood leaned back, finally taking a bite of her own.

  The night sky above them was clear. Stars scattered across the darkness like fragments of broken glass.

  For a little while, nothing felt urgent.

  Grey finished eating and nudged her knee with his snout.

  She ignored him.

  He stood.

  Then he jumped.

  He landed squarely on her chest.

  The impact knocked the air from her lungs.

  “—Grey!”

  She coughed, shoving him off before he could flatten her completely.

  “You’re getting heavy.”

  He panted, tail wagging furiously.

  She tried to stand. He lunged again, paws thudding against her shoulders. This time she caught him mid-leap, gripping the loose fur at the back of his neck.

  “Enough.”

  He huffed in protest but settled.

  For a few minutes, the quiet forest filled with muted laughter and playful growls.

  Eventually, the fire burned low.

  Grey curled beside her again, pressing close for warmth.

  Red Hood stared at the stars until sleep came.

  Morning arrived wrapped in thin mist.

  Red Hood extinguished the last of the embers and packed her belongings efficiently.

  This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.

  “Grey.”

  He was already awake.

  “We’re almost there.”

  The wolf shook out his fur and fell into step beside her.

  They walked north.

  The forest gradually thinned, sunlight filtering down in pale shafts between the trees. The air smelled cleaner near the edge—less wild.

  Wastrebugrth was close now. A guild city. Trade routes. Adventurers.

  Noise.

  Movement.

  People.

  Grey’s ears twitched before she heard it.

  Voices.

  When they stepped out from the trees, a small party of guild adventurers stood near the forest’s edge, resting beside their gear and horses.

  One of the men noticed her first.

  His expression shifted from boredom to confusion.

  “Hey. Girl.”

  Red Hood stopped but kept her distance.

  “What are you doing out here alone?”

  “I’m heading to the city.”

  The man’s eyes moved to Grey.

  His posture stiffened slightly.

  “You from around here?”

  “No.”

  Another member stepped closer, studying her more carefully.

  “Have you seen anything strange in the forest lately?”

  Red Hood blinked once.

  “Strange?”

  “Monsters,” the woman clarified. “We’ve been tracking reports. Some of them are turning up dead. Torn apart. Not eaten. Just… ruined.”

  Red Hood shook her head.

  “I haven’t seen anything.”

  The first man exhaled slowly.

  “You should be careful. It’s not safe to wander alone.”

  His gaze lingered on Grey.

  “That’s a dire wolf, isn’t it?”

  Red Hood did not answer immediately.

  “He’s Grey.”

  The man frowned.

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  Another of the party members spoke quietly to the leader. “Dire wolves don’t usually travel with people.”

  Red Hood simply stood there.

  After a brief silence, the leader waved a hand dismissively.

  “Whatever. Just watch yourself. Something’s off around here.”

  She nodded once.

  “Thank you.”

  Then she continued walking toward the road.

  Grey followed.

  After she disappeared from sight, the youngest member of the party shifted uneasily.

  “That was weird.”

  “What was?” the leader—Dans—asked.

  “A girl alone in the forest with a dire wolf.”

  “There’s a hunter village nearby,” Dans replied. “Oto. They train beasts sometimes.”

  “Still.”

  The woman crossed her arms.

  “She didn’t look lost.”

  “She also didn’t look scared,” another muttered.

  Dans shrugged.

  “Not our problem.”

  They began setting up their camp near the treeline.

  It happened without warning.

  The bushes behind them rustled violently.

  Someone stumbled into the clearing.

  Armor cracked.

  Clothes soaked in blood.

  “Dans—!”

  Edna collapsed to one knee.

  “Back up!” she gasped. “Now!”

  Dans rushed forward, grabbing her shoulders.

  “What happened?!”

  “Monster,” she choked. “It’s wrong—something’s wrong with it—”

  Her voice broke.

  “It killed everything. It didn’t eat. It didn’t even chase properly. It just tore them apart—”

  The ground trembled.

  Lightly at first.

  Then again.

  The horses panicked, pulling hard against their reins.

  Gilb turned slowly toward the forest.

  “Did you feel that?”

  Another tremor.

  Closer.

  Something moved between the trees.

  Large.

  Unsteady.

  Its outline shifted as it advanced, not smoothly like an animal—but unevenly, like pieces attached where they did not belong.

  Edna’s fingers tightened around Dans’ sleeve.

  “It saw me.”

  A branch snapped loudly.

  The shape stepped partially into the light.

  Flesh layered over flesh.

  An extra jaw hung along its side, opening and closing without sound. Eyes blinked from irregular patches across its torso. Bone protruded outward in jagged curves.

  Gilb staggered back.

  “That’s not natural…”

  The creature inhaled.

  The sound was thick and wet.

  Then it screamed.

  The noise ripped through the clearing like tearing metal. One of the younger adventurers dropped to the ground, clutching his ears. A horse collapsed in terror.

  Dans forced himself to move.

  “We retreat! Now!”

  They lifted Edna and ran.

  Behind them, trees snapped one after another.

  Not fast.

  Not frantic.

  Just steady.

  As if it knew there was nowhere they could truly go.

  Far up the road toward Wastrebugrth, Red Hood paused.

  Grey stopped instantly beside her.

  He growled low in his throat.

  A distant sound carried through the forest.

  Faint.

  A scream.

  Red Hood turned her head slightly, listening.

  The forest fell quiet again.

  Birds rose from the treetops in a scattered wave.

  She frowned.

  “Stay close,” she said quietly.

  Grey pressed nearer to her leg.

  She looked back once toward the trees—but saw nothing except shifting leaves and distant shadows.

  After a moment, she faced forward again.

  The road ahead curved gently toward the rising outline of city walls in the distance.

  Whatever had made that sound was behind her.

  And she intended to keep it that way.

  They continued walking toward Wastrebugrth.

  Behind them, deep within the forest, something continued to move.