HOWL OF THE DAMN
1167 Words
ELIRA
I believed I had finally reached the limits of my suffering, that pain had nothing more to inflict upon me,atleast after all the pain and the suffering what more could happen.
I was mistaken.
Pain is an unending cycle. It morphs in form but never vanishes. It clings to me like a shadow, haunting me even in sleep. I breathe it, endure it, and each morning it constricts around my throat like spit would do, whispering that today might be the day I crumble.
Yet I never do.Even in my desire to die, death evades me,death never came after all.
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Weeks had passed since the villagers nearly beat me to death over the lost child. I had scarcely begun to heal. Every step sent pain through my body, bruises fading from purple to yellow, and my arm still throbbed from their burn, painful throbs. The forest had grown colder, the nights longer than usual, with winds cutting through my ragged clothes like daggers would do.
Sleeping was off limits for me. Hunger playing tik tok on my stomach, creating a pit that felt perpetually empty. My limbs felt leaden, my skin stretched tight against my bones, and every time I glimpsed my reflection in a stream, I resembled more of a specter than a girl,like I really looked awkward due to hunger and suffering.
But something more dangerous was approaching.I sensed it somehow,I could feel it in my body and soul.
It began with the howls.
Initially, I mistook it for the wind. The forest was filled with cold and chilling sounds, creaking branches, animals calling in the night but this was distinctly different,like really different. This howl was long, deep, and filled with a sorrow that chilled my blood. It runs through the trees at night, distant yet sharp, like a cry from an ancient being.
I sat up in my makeshift shelter, hugging my knees, trying to convince myself it was just wolves.
Deep down, however, I knew better.
The next morning, I ventured to the village border to sift through their refuse for food scraps. That was when I heard the screams.
A woman burst into the square, tears streaming down her cheeks. "My goats!" she wailed. "All gone! Ripped apart!"
I froze, ducking behind a wall, watching as villagers gathered around her, fear showing on their faces.
"Wolves?" someone inquired.
"No wolf could do this," she cried. "Their bodies… torn to shreds. Their heads are missing!"
Panic spread like wildfire. In the ensuing days, more animals disappeared, chickens, cattle, even dogs. The pattern remained the same blood, dismembered carcasses, no clues as to who or what was responsible for all this.
Whispers circulated. Rumors.
“They come at night,” someone muttered. “Shadows with shining wierd eyes.”
“I saw something,” another stammered. “Something huge, on two legs. It watched me from the trees.”
“They’re beasts. Demons. Monsters.”
And then, inevitably, someone mentioned the name that sent chills down my spine.
“Elira.”
It was only a matter of time.
“She cursed the village,” a man spat. “Now she has summoned demons to prey on us.”
“She resides at the forest's edge,” another hissed. “That’s where the monsters emerge from!”
I tried to run, to disappear into the woods before they found me again. But they were too fast,more faster than me. Desperation turned them vicious. They dragged me back into the village square, their eyes wild, fists held,hate written all over their faces.
“It’s her fault!” a woman screamed. “She’s cursed! She brings death!”
“I swear I didn’t,” I sobbed, collapsing to my knees. “Please… I’ve done nothing.”
The Seer arrived, her expression frozen, her words dripping with malice and anger. “She is a beacon for darkness. Her soul calls to monsters. She must be cast out deeper into the cursed woods.”
The villagers cheered.
Rain began to pour as they marched me through the mud, pushing me further into the forest than I had ever been. Thunder split the sky, and the wind howled like the beast itself. I stumbled, slipping in the muck, soaked through, my hair plastered to my face.
“Go!” someone shouted, shoving me. “Stay out there. Never come back!”
I fell painfully, my knees striking rocks, pain shooting through my legs like dagger. The storm drowned out their voices as they turned and left, their torches shining into the distance.
Alone.Once again.
I sat there, rain pelting my skin, thunder booming around me, sobbing so hard I gasped for breath. My heart felt as though it would burst from sorrow. My body shook, not just from the cold, but from the immense weight of everything.
Why was I still alive?
Why did the world despise me so?
I crawled through the trees, deeper into the cursed woods, branches scratching at my skin, mud soaking through my torn and worn out dress. My breaths came in ragged gasps, each step a struggle.
That’s when I felt it.A pull.
Not from the outside, but from within. It felt as though something deep inside me was awakening, something ancient and peculiar. My skin prickled with something I can't phantom, and the air thickened, almost alive. The trees seemed to whisper, the ground pulsing beneath my feet.
And then I saw them.Eyes.
Glowing, silver eyes fixed on me from the shadows between the trees. They didn’t blink. They didn’t move.
I should have been terrified.But I wasn’t.
I took a step closer, my heart racing so fast. The creature remained still, massive and larger than any wolf I had ever seen, its fur shining like moonlight. It regarded me not with hunger or rage but with a sense of recognition.
I felt it resonate within my bones.We knew each other.
The beast let out a low growl, and my body trembled not from fear, but from something else altogether. Connection. It felt as if we shared the same pain, the same chains.
Then it vanished into the tree as soon as possible.
I collapsed onto the forest floor, shaking, confused, and frightened. What was happening? Why did I feel such a pull towards that creature, like it was beckoning to me? Observing me?
Night came, cold and unforgiving. I curled beneath the roots of a tree, shivering, gripping my arms. My stomach twisted with hunger, my throat parched, my eyes swollen from weeping.
Sleep came in fragmented patches.And in my dream, I saw him.
A colossal silver wolf, wounded and chained to a blood-red rock beneath a bleeding moon. It howled not in fury, but in anguish and pain. A sound that resonated within me, tearing through me like fire.
I reached for him, but chains bound my wrists as well.I screamed.And woke up alone.
My body was drenched in sweat, hands shaking.Something was approaching.Something dark.Something connected to me…..
- Writer
