Katrina's mouth remained agape for a whole four minutes. The eyes she looked at in the mirror were similar to those of that woman. It terrified the hell out of Katrina. She wanted to scream, thrash, cry, anything to release this horror of this tragedy. Yet, she remained silent as the visor was slammed shut and a grunt was released as Katrina beamed out the window.

"Hey," Carson said gently, sympathy oozing out of his stature.

"Just leave me alone," Katrina grumbled.

That's how the car ride remained, in a deafening silence.

Katrina pondered how the hell this happened, how any of this happened. The past few days had been the absolute most confusing her life. She was just a struggling biology student that was preparing for her final exam, but, somehow, she turned out to be some sort of werewolf.

None of this fucking made sense to Katrina. How could she just learn about this now? Were her parents oblivious to the signs, were there even symptoms of this dreadful disease? Was it preventable? Was there a way to still avoid it?

The old truck made a sharp left onto a rocky gravel road. Katrina watched the trees as a sign read 'Private Property.' Questions raced through her mind, and, not to mention, she couldn't even breathe properly.

Katrina jumped in her seat as the sound of a phone ringer went off. She glanced at Carson as he pulled out a small flip phone. Katrina's breath labored as static started to screech at her. She pulled her hands to her ears in an attempt to block out the excruciating noise. Soon enough, Katrina started to feel pain divaricate from her head as Carson continued to whisper to the other person on the phone. It only took a moment before she started to feel a drip on her shirt, and what she saw made her cold all over.

Blood.

Katrina nudged Carson as more blood started to fall along her white blouse. It became a constant stream of red. When Carson didn't look right away, Katrina nudged him again. He quickly glanced over to Katrina and whispered some words under his breath before closing the phone.

Carson let out a heavy breath which only worried Katrina more.

"I need you to remain as calm as possible or else it will only cause more pressure on your body. We are about two minutes away, let me explain what is about to happen. Just focus on your breathing for now; it will he---"

"Jesus fuck, hurry up! It is fucking burning, my whole body is burning!" Katrina screeched impatiently as she started to scratch at her skin. Her whole body started to flare up in a raging fever that made her arms cramp and legs feel like they were being bitten by fire ants.

"Katrina!" Carson snapped, trying to get her attention. She glanced at him, wide-eyed. Her heart started to beat quickly as anger gripped her insides. She wasn't sure why she was so angry, but it was ripping her from the inside out. She just wanted to wrap her hands around his neck and slam him against the dashboard until his face was beaten bloody.

"Listen to me, we are going to get to the field. You will be met by our second in command, London, and our first in command's son, Alfie. The rest of Alfie's family will be arriving shortly. They will give you a better rundown of what is going to happen. Do not worry when you see other folks on the borders, they are there in case things get out of hand. Within the next few hours, you will be undergoing a radical transformation, and you may not recall any of it. I need you to work with me. I'm here to help you."

Katrina clenched her teeth as she gripped the edges of her seats, her fingernails digging into the soft cloth. Her whole mind started to shut down as she focused on her deep breathing. Soon enough, even that started to be the most demanding of tasks. Her lungs ached as each breath felt like lava dripping down her esophagus, the burning only increased. Katrina's knuckles started to turn white as everything screamed at her to move, to run away.

After what seemed like hours, the two arrived at a large, open-spaced plateau. Katrina's gut was submerged in butterflies, the pain numbed by terror. Men and women of all ages and statures stood along the edge of the land. Two people stood only yards away from where the car parked.

Katrina's instincts kicked into gear as a searing rage soared through her limbs. It didn't take more than a mere second to recognize the female, the one that threatened to murder her in the cafe. She wanted to tear this woman apart, limb by limb.

She was not normally an aggressive person, but throughout today, and the last few days combined, nothing seemed to be normal about her.

Katrina nearly kicked the door open as her teeth ground against each other, causing the anguish in her gums to start to overload, blood soon starting to ooze from her lips and teeth.

Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

"You," Katrina snarled as she slammed the car door. The anger she felt was boiling over with every step she took. By instinct, she leaped forward towards the female with the intent to beat her face into the ground.

However, before she could reach the female, Katrina felt strong arms restrain her.

She thrashed like a wild animal trapped in a cage. "Let me go!" Katrina roared as her golden eyes glared at the female with so much hatred that every single soul in the area felt a chill run down their spine. "I'll kill you all!"

The alpha male, Alfie, had his grip slip along Katrina's slim arms; her will to fight forcing people to stay on their toes. Archie and London shared a look of despair before they both glanced at the rising moon. Time was becoming short.

"Listen," London whispered as Archie was soon pinning Katrina down to the ground in his last attempt to control her. "Tonight is a full moon, all of us will be in lycan form as the moon takes hold of our disease. You need to calm down and take a deep breath. It will be over soon, okay? So stop stru---"

"If you don't let me go right now," Katrina breathed heavily "I will kill every single one of you. I don't care who you are, or what you are, I will tear you to pieces to the point where only your flesh remains in shreds."

Everyone in the perimeter remained silent as the young female was no longer thrashing, but, instead, she remained still as the moon continued to rise higher. Everyone glanced nervously at the young woman as Alfie started to release his grip on Katrina.

"We are not going to hurt you, please work with us," he pleaded as Katrina finally seemed to listen and settle down. London glanced at Alfie as Carson sat on the hood of his car. Everyone seemed to give a little sigh of relief as Katrina just looked around with cautious eyes.

"Why shouldn't I kill her? Do you remember what you did to me in the cafe? Do you remember? I was bloody terrified! You were going to fucking kill me! Do you remember that? Do you?!" Katrina snapped, though her body didn't waver. London remained quiet as shame and guilt poured from the souls of her eyes. Alfie only looked down, everyone awaited for the alpha family to finally arrive.

"Listen, sweetheart ---"

"Don't call me that," Katrina growled lowly.

"Katrina. I apologize, I really do. I can't explain my actions, but I know that they were wrong and I am extremely sorry for it. I need you to work with us here to make this as easy as possible."

"And why should I do that? What if this is just a trap to kill me? To finish off what you started," Katrina scoffed loudly.

London huffed as her patience was starting to wear thin. "Listen, I'm done talking. I wanted to just explain this to you, but since you don't feel like cooperating, this is the last thing. We are lycans, or, in simple terms, werewolves. You will be undergoing your transformation, and if you don't listen, you will die. Alfie, the one that was restraining you, will show you a general idea of what you will look like."

"I'm doing what?" Alfie questioned as London and Katrina both glanced in his direction. Before either one of the women could utter, or shout, a word, a black Cadillac Escalade pulled up from the gravel road. Alfie let out a long-winded breath as the car parked and three individuals stepped out.

The rest of his family had arrived.

"About fucking time someone bloody showed up," Katrina laughed dryly as her eyes suddenly glazed over at the sight of one male, dark and brooding.

Her breathing, already labored, got clogged up, and, thus, a series of chokes was released. Her eyes stared at the male as her body started to shake violently, like that of a seizure patient. The gold in her irises shone brightly as blood dripped quickly from her gums and, now, her fingertips.

Hayden and Katrina stared at each other as the moon soon stuck brightly in the sky. Yet, the connection they held for that mere second was disrupted as Katrina roared in agony. Her hands scratched at her chest as everyone gazed at her; the feeling of eyes staring at her made the pain only that much worst.

She could tell that the boy she had so much interest in wanted to move forward, but the state she was in seemed to make him hesitant. She closed and opened her eyes as her bleeding hands showed that her nails started to elongate and sharpen, to that of individual knives. Her eyes grew big as the new nails reached for her bleeding mouth. It was the first tooth that scared her, but then it was that of a movie, she couldn't stop it. She spat up blood --- and teeth. Each tooth that came out of her mouth scared her even more. This was to the point where her aching hands reached to her mouth, feeling for a new set of sharpened canines breaking in.

Everyone's eyes made her scream loud, her claws starting to rip at her clothes that were fast becoming smaller. She wanted to scream even more, but her vocal cords snapped, leaving her with a wheezing sound that soon became less human.

Fine hairs started to appear on Katrina's body, black as the night's shadow. Her clothes shredded due to her fast increasing size; Katrina's limbs started to elongate as her claws soon started to fully grow in. Each one black and sharpened, ranging from three to four inches. Her shins splintered into a million pieces as the bones started to reconstruct themselves. Her arms ached as muscle grew beneath the blossoming fur. Katrina licked the inside of her mouth, the new canines aching underneath the gums. Her eyes glanced back and forth as she went silent. Screaming no longer would bring her any comfort.

Fur grew along her body whilst her ears started to turn upwards, like that of a wolf. Sounds soon grew louder as Katrina could hear the quietest of a pin drop; her sight increased as the light that was once dim grew clearer like that through a microscope. Her body shook in tremors, a new muzzle forming. What was left of Katrina stood on shaky feet as her size matched that of an eight-foot giant.

What once was a human was a mere ghost. A beast stood in front of the moonlight, humanity soon gone from the eyes. There was no emotion, just a beast ready to kill. The beast shook off the rest of the blood, letting out a massive roar in the process. It could feel fear in everyone's bones. It enjoyed the freedom and now it wanted to prove its dominance.

Everyone remained quiet as the beauty of a new alpha was right in front of their eyes. The beast was calm despite the saliva dripping from its sharp jaws and the roar it released. It stood still, looking for prey, but it was smarter than to charge at the small critters below it. Its bright eyes lingered on Hayden as it could tell that the male was simply in awe of the beast; it felt proud.

Yet, one movement, loud and unwarranted, sounded the beast's natural instincts. One second it was there, the next moment, it was gone.