The dream changed to a nightmare.

  Katherine ran, pulling Abigail along, the rain pouring down on them, clinging like black ooze that couldn’t be wiped away. It gathered and built and surrounded them, and eventually Katherine’s grip slipped from Abgail as she tried to move through the muck, unable to find her sister, lost forever. She became suffocated and consumed by the bubbling bog of dark sludge that surrounded her and filled her up.

  She jerked awake in a gasp and sat up to the disheartening sight of the night. She blinked and swallowed as she looked around frantically.

  “Where’s Abigail?” she asked, her heartbeat racing as anxiety built. The dream and that dark substance that was all around her still lingered.

  Maylin leaned toward her, grasping her shoulder softly. “Her and Rekka left a while ago.” She gave a reassuring smile as she knew Abigail was a touchy topic for Katherine.

  Katherine glanced around as if she didn’t hear Maylin. “Where’d they go?”

  “To my place,” Maylin said with a sigh. “Don’t worry, they made it safe. She’s going to sleep over there, see.” She lifted her phone’s screen to Kathrine, which had a message from Rekka and a picture of Rekka’s room with Abgail waving in the background, as well as a phone screen that showed the date and time as they knew that would appease Katherine. “Abigail’s fine.”

  “Oh,” Katherine said, feeling relief flood over her as she slumped in her seat. “Thank goodness.”

  Maylin held her smile. “You want to sleepover as well?”

  That sounded nice, and Katherine didn’t want to be alone right now, nor face Richard at home. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

  “Can I join the slumber party?” Kyle said with his sly smile. “I promise to be decent.”

  “No, you perv,” Maylin said, throwing a napkin at him, which he deftly dodged and snatched out of the way.

  “Nothing perverted about wanting to enjoy the warmth of two female bodies in cotton pajamas. Besides, it’s all platonic here.”

  “That’s a big word, lover boy,” Maylin said with a playful smirk.

  Kyle shrugged. “I know some stuff.” He stretched and peered at his brother that looked thoroughly tired and bored. “Well, I think it’s time we take our leave. ‘Twas another successful Noodle Friday.” He stood and motioned to the two girls and his brother. “Shall we?”

  “Yeah, let’s,” Maylin said with a stretch of her own.

  Since their houses weren’t too far from the pho place, they decided to stroll down the street. It was an oddly quiet night, save for a soft breeze. There weren’t too many cars or other people as they moved down the familiar sidewalk. Usually, it was all hustle and bustle of people out and about. In fact, it seemed eerily empty.

  As they made their way down the street, a crashing noise from the shadows of an alleyway made them all jerk to attention. They stared into the darkness, and Katherine’s heart felt a familiar pang of fear.

  William sidled up to his brother. “What was that?”

  “Probably some cat causing trouble or something,” Maylin said, stepping toward the darkness of the alleyway. She leaned down and began clicking her tongue and holding her hand out to beckon what she thought was a cat to come forward.

  It wasn’t.

  A beast very much like the one that Katherine had seen years ago stood from behind the dumpster, narrowing its eyes on them and let out a low growl as if being disturbed from something. It moved around the dumpster and stalked forward, the growl like a base from a concert speaker. A drooling snout of dripping saliva bared teeth. Its arms were longer than its legs as it crouched forward, the gray hair of its back bristling at the sight of them.

  It eyed Maylin hungrily, its slightly glowing pupils narrowing on her, positioning itself to pounce.

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  “W-what is that?” William said in a shaky voice.

  “No,” Katherine said, her heart sinking. It wasn’t the same creature, but it was similar enough to make her body freeze and lock up. Tears filled her eyes and a terror overcame her as she shuddered.

  All of them watched in silent horror as the thing stalked forward. It was a huge werewolf with large hands and fingers with long claws that could easily wrap around each of their heads. It snarled and showed a row of sharp teeth.

  “Oh, God,” Maylin said with a peep and a gasp. She stepped back and tripped over herself, falling on her butt. The sudden movement sent the thing into a frenzy, and it charged her, jaws and claws ready to strike and bite and rip as it lunged at her.

  “Look out!” William yelled, tackling her to the side in a swift movement.

  “No!” Kyle screamed, watching claws slice his brother’s arm, blood flying from the wound as William and Maylin both hit the ground with a hard thud.

  Kyle growled and dashed forward, fearless and angry, punching the creature with all he had. The thing flinched and jerked in his direction, pivoting with a slashing motion, slicing furiously upward, delivering a deep and thick and messy gash that spewed blood as he let out a cry and grunt of pain. He fell back—his chest and stomach gouged deeply, blood gushing—and thumped against the ground.

  Katherine stood wide-eyed and frozen in fear like a statue, unable to move as the horror unfolded. “No, don’t. Stop it. Please, stop it.” Her words were weak and scratchy against her dry throat as tears streamed down her face.

  William pushed himself to a knee, gritting his teeth as he clenched his bloodied arm, then peered down at Maylin, shaking her. “Maylin? Hey, Maylin, wake up!”

  She must have bumped her head as she was out cold. He watched the creature spin toward them, narrowing its eyes. “Crap.” He stood on shaky legs as the creature readied itself to pounce.

  “No,” Kyle grunted in pain, unable to move as his wound was too deep, blood flowing. He reached out a shaky hand, his vision blurry. “Run, William. Run.” He felt his strength fading, barely able to get the words out.

  William stood strong, arms spread out in a defensive posture to protect Maylin, and the beast kicked off the ground and bounded through the air, reaching claws forward, fangs ready to bite and tear and destroy.

  “Stop it!” Katherine screamed.

  Her scream became an echo as some sort of red line moved over her, through her, and beyond her, the area changing as it did, and—Kyle, William, and Maylin had all disappeared somehow…? What was going on?

  The buildings transformed, turning into decrepit things with broken windows, run down and abandoned, the streets worn and cracked, and everything was different, changed.

  The creature remained, though, smashing into the ground, tearing it apart, debris and pieces of concrete flying in all directions as it cracked and tore it apart as it if was pieces of grass.

  The thing shook itself, looking perplex as it had come down on rock and stone and stuff but not body nor blood or bones. As the dust settled, it let out a low snarl, then scanned and searched, its eyes falling on Katherine, which made her heart leap, and she let out a gasp while she felt un unbelievable pressure push down on her and take the air from her. Was it the fear? Or something else. It bared down on her, this pressure, making her knees buckle, and her legs feel as if they would give out, like she was engaged in a squat with ungodly weight.

  The creature leaned back and let out a mighty howl before leaning forward and charging her.

  She gasped, feeling something push out from her, and found her movement. But instead of running or dodging, she just fell back on her butt, and the thing came down on her. She raised her arms, closed her eyes, and cried out for her mother.

  The next thing that came was a quick succession of footfalls, followed by a swift slicing movement, and then a piercing sound and yelp of pain from the creature.

  Katherine opened her eyes to see a woman leaning into the beast, a spear held in her hands that had punched through the monster’s chest, a black substance dripping from the wound, the spear red and pulsating and looking like some sort of red lightning bolt.

  The beast had been stopped in its tracks, still alive, still trying to scramble forward, a smell of burning flesh came from where the lightning spear had pierced and burnt its body.

  Then the woman pushed hard, twisting the weapon, the intensity of the energy and lightning-bolt like material fluctuating. Smoke rose from the beast as if it was being burnt alive, and then it let out another cry of pain until its head fell forward, its tongue hanging to the side.

  She pulled her lightning spear free, and the body of the beast hit the ground with a resounding thud before dissolving into a black energy. The women lifted the tip of the spear at it, and like a vacuum, a dark energy was sucked into it, totally consuming it all, the body dissipating into nothingness.

  The woman closed her eyes, looking like she was trembling, in pain, perhaps experiencing an intense headache, her body twitching some as her body tensed.

  A moment later, she opened her eyes and gripped the spear with an exhalation of breath as she gave the spear a little flick of her wrist, twirling it around in her hands. The red light glowed intensely for a moment before dissipating to a silver-tipped spear with a blue handle as the she turned and stepped to Katherine.

  The woman leveled her eyes on Katherine, a little flick of her wrist again, and the weapon dissolved like magic.

  What was happening? Katherine shook her head, her lip quivering and eyes filling with tears.

  “W-who are you?” Katherine asked, her voice shaky.

  The woman stood over her with a cold and serious look in her eyes as she spoke in a hard voice that had a throaty tinge. “Everything you know is about to change.”

  Katherine passed out.