Before I made it more than a dozen feet, a voice cut through the eerie silence, followed by another.

"Oh, naughty wolf! You killed my pet." The annoyed voice of a little girl bounced between the trees. "Granny Maybel, we need to punish him."

"We will, dearie. And when we're done, you can have the mortal running away. What do you say, a nice little pet as an apology?"

"Oooh, yes, Granny! Maybe he'll make a better pet than the stupid doggy."

My heart pounded in my ears, and I ran faster. I couldn’t look back, even as two demonic trills pierced the silence.

Must get away. I need to run.

I ran deeper into the darkness, using my good arm to lead me around the trees. My side throbbed, and my shirt clung to my body, dripping red drops behind me.

Tears streamed down my face, and I had to stop and wipe them away.

The man had been my only hope. The demon child wanted to keep me as her pet after feeding on him; I didn't want that!

I tried to push my legs forward, willing them to move, but I stumbled over an unseen root and crashed to the forest floor. A sharp rock met my stomach, puncturing my skin.

The same hopeless line kept repeating itself in my head.

I'm going to die.

There were sounds of fighting, and I lay there curled up into a ball, the cold trunk of the tree digging into my back.

I'm going to die.

More fighting erupted, and a brief flare of orange light pierced the unnatural gloom.

I hadn't noticed during the run, but the forest became increasingly dark, the moonlight so scarce I could barely see a foot ahead.

I'm going to die.

There was a scream so chilling my breath paused, and I felt the sound bounce around my head, knocking aside my thoughts.

"I'll rip you to shreds!"

Another trill echoed between the trees this time, and a distinctly male shout followed.

I ignored the pain and got up.

I'm going to- No! Enough. Screw this!

If I were to die, I'd do it on my feet. The man didn't hesitate to look death in the eye.

He smiled despite it all. Even with the injuries, he had a smile on his face. He knew he would die, but it didn't matter. He wouldn't go down without a fight.

I'm go- I'll fight!

I spat out blood that begun to pool inside my mouth from biting my tongue. With a grunt, I forced my feet to move towards the sound of fighting. My logical side begged me to run, to hide away and stay far from the monsters in the woods.

Shut it out; ignore the thoughts. You’ll die anyway, ten… twenty, it doesn’t matter how long it takes.

I smacked into another root but used my good arm to grab the nearest tree and hold myself up. My broken rib creaked, and I spat out more blood. More than a bit tongue could produce left my lips.

Stabilizing myself, I pushed onward and didn't stop till I reached the small clearing. The monstrous mockery of an old woman stood over the beaten and bloody man.

He looked like crap. His left arm ended abruptly below the elbow, and claw marks ravaged his chest

On the left, a little girl's disfigured body lay dead, her head twisted the wrong way. Her lifeless blue eyes stared through me–terror plastered on her face.

It sent a chill down my spine, but I continued examining the scene.

Granny ripped the man's axe from his hands and tossed it aside. "You Grimms and your precious iron. Without your claws and weapon, all that's left is a pathetic mortal."

The man raised his head and spat blood at the Granny. "Better than your ugly mug. The best glamours in the nexus wouldn't be able to hide your melting fleshsack you call a face."

Granny wiped the blood off her chest and held her hand up to the light. The drops of blood dripped into her open mouth, and she extended a monstrous tongue to catch every last one.

After slowly flicking the last drop into her mouth, she licked her fingers before cocking her head to the side. "Werewolf blood tastes the sweetest. Did you know that?"

She raised her foot and stomped down on the man's chest. He shouted in pain, but the Granny dug her foot in deeper. "I'll consume your corpse whole and grow a new coven. Be proud; your tainted soul will be of use to me."

She continued to twist her foot, and a sharp snap rang out. The man gasped for air but gritted his teeth and stared the demon dead in the eyes.

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

I needed to do something–She'd turn him into paste if I didn't.

I looked around the clearing, searching for anything, till my eyes skipped over the iron axe partially hidden in the dirt.

My gaze narrowed in on the fallen weapon. Images of the little girl's head severed from her shoulders flashed through my mind.

There is something I can do.

Another snap, another groan, but I blocked it out. My pounding heart helped me silence the horror.

With Granny's back turned and the man too engrossed in his torture, I crept across the clearing unnoticed.

I stopped and paused till there was another snap. This time, two snaps caused a feral growl to rumble past the man's lips.

Hold on—just a moment.

I bent down to grab the axe with one hand but nearly toppled forward. Panicked, I dropped low and spread my feet wide apart.

Holy crap, it’s heavy!

Slowly, I reached for it again with both arms this time and managed to barely lift the axe. The weapon strained my muscles, but I raised it above my head and rested it on my shoulder.

Only one thing left to do. My body slowly turned towards the torturer and torturee.

"I'll preserve your head. It'll make a nice mantle for my hut. Whenever one of my precious grandchildren asks me to tell them a bedtime story, I'll tell them yours. 'He was one of the great Grimms himself and became a decoration piece for my wall.' I can't wait," the Granny sang, her voice almost human.

"Your breath stinks."

Crunch!

"Can't forget to add how mouthy you were. It'll help teach the kiddos a lesson."

I snuck up slowly till I was only a few feet away. My heart was about to launch out of my chest, and I bit my lip so hard I drew blood. My arms shook, threatening to give out at any second.

The man, the hunter, saw me. There was no way he didn't. My legs shook so badly I feared the demon would hear me.

Do it. Raise the axe.

You're going to die.

I screamed in my head to drown out the noise, but it didn't work.

You're going to die.

My muscles strained, and I raised the axe high into the air.

You're going to die!

I froze, unable to move. I begged my arms to swing down, but I couldn't.

The hunter met my eyes, and he smiled through bloodstained teeth. He looked up and met the Granny's sadistic grin. "Do you know what's the most annoying part about hunting your kind?"

Another snap, more bones crushed to pieces, and he threw up blood and vomit in equal measure, the smell hitting my nose as it joined the rest of the bodily fluids staining the dirt.

"You little wolf, so big and bad until you try to hunt one of us. Our powers cancel your powers, turning you into a pathetic little pup," she replied.

He flashed his smile again, and something within me snapped. "You're right. But the thing is? It works both ways, bitch."

I screamed. Whether it was in my head or out loud, I didn't know. My arms swung downward, and I felt the metal axe bite into leathery flesh. There was a moment when the metal hit bone but continued its momentum less than a heartbeat later.

The clang of metal against compacted dirt echoed in my ears, followed by a wet schlunk, and I stopped screaming.

My ears rang, and my chest hurt. My legs tried to stay standing, but they gave out, and I fell to my knees as the Granny's body crashed to the floor in a lifeless heap.

The man watched me carefully before lightly shaking his head and letting out a slow, painful-sounding laugh. "Kid, I told you to run away."

I met his eyes and then turned away to throw up, my vomit mixing with his. When I wiped my mouth, I met his gaze again and spit out some blood to free my tongue. "I did. I couldn't stay away. Pointless… was going to die, anyway."

My words came out as short quips as I tried to regulate my breathing. Erratic heartbeats made that almost impossible, but I tried nonetheless.

The hunter laughed again and ignored the blood dripping down his front. "You're insane. That's good. You'll need it."

What?

"What do you mean? Why would I need it?" I demanded.

My nerves were too fried to deal with new things, especially if those things were unknown.

"Kid. Stop freaking out, it's over. The Labyrinth spell is fading now that the Reds are dead. The others are coming, and I don't have much time left."

My head cleared, and my eyes shot open. I'd ignored it in the heat of the moment, but the man should've been dead. One side of his chest was caved in; Granny had been systematically breaking his ribs to prolong his agony.

The man was a corpse, barely alive, yet still talking. Nothing made sense, but that was frighteningly normal right about now.

"You're dying."

"I am." He coughed up more blood and smiled as best as he could. "Perhaps my regeneration could save me if they didn't suppress it, but I doubt I'll last long enough for it to wear off."

"Wh-at do you need me to do? Can I… do anything?"

He shook his head. "To save me? No. But you need to know something before I offer you a choice."

He tried to sit up but gave up when he could barely shift his leg. He banged his head against the tree trunk with a sigh and spat out more blood. "You can return home. After some healing, we can erase your memories and make you forget about tonight. You'll be banged up for a while, but you'll be alive and none the wiser of the horrors you experienced."

Say yes!

I punched my leg and silenced the desperate me begging for release from the nightmare I was in.

"And my other option?"

"Can't tell you. You choose it and accept the new life you'll be stepping into."

I didn't answer him immediately, and the hunter was content to let me think. Every instinct inside me screamed to take option one. Who wouldn't choose to forget the insanity, the deaths, and the blood staining my hands?

He saved me. He stared down a demon, rescuing me from death and torture. He sat there, left with a missing arm and a destroyed ribcage, but a smile split his face, offering me a choice.

I'm going to live. And he is going to die.

The decision was easy, or so I thought. I tried to open my mouth and demand the first choice, but my tongue betrayed me. "Option two."

"Very well, kid. Extend your arm."

I did, and he grabbed it with a grunt before gripping my wrist so tight I felt it creak. "Tell the others this: 'It's the last moonrise, and the metal returns to the earth. Hunt on, for I join the endless pack.'”

I etched his words into my memory. When I gave a nod, he gradually slumped forward.

"To my sister, tell her I'm sorry. And not to blame the others. She'll make a great hunter, greater than I had ever been." He was so close I felt bloody drool splash against my skin, his mouth hanging open as he struggled to breathe. "And to you, kid. When you meet Bigs himself, deliver this message for me, please. Tell him 'the stars knew us well. And to keep howling, dear friend.'"

Another tear ran down my face and dripped into the man's hair. It was chestnut, streaked with thick strands of pure white. It was an odd thing to notice, but it helped me anchor myself through the tears.

His face touched my arm as he began to breathe so infrequently that I was sure he'd stop any moment now. He moved his lips slowly, and I felt something happen. More snapping bones sounded out, and I looked down in time to see his face morph into a snout.

Before I could pull away, he sunk his teeth into my arm, and I froze. A burning feeling raced up my arm and made my heart stop.

In slow motion, I watched his face change back into that of a normal human before his head dropped past my arm and landed on the forest floor.

With a final breath, I matched his last, and as the nameless hunter died, my world turned to fire.