She had woken up abruptly, as if she were falling and had hit the ground at great speed, but without leaving the sound of impact.
And the same darkness that filled the cavity received her with open arms, with its heavy and humid air. Her body's breathing was erratic and agitated, as if she had run a marathon of several kilometers. The wolf's body trembled slightly, its muscles tensing from something that was dreamlike.
*Rain...*
The voice resonated in her mind, calling her name, like an echo, refusing to fade. The residual images of the dream still flickered in her mind and consciousness: the sickly yet soft voice, whose words held warmth and sadness. The last words it had told her, the promise that had bound her to this incorporeal body, the entity that used her purpose to place her in this strange world.
With her desperation not to forget, she squeezed her eyelids so tightly, trying to retain the fragments of that dream that remained before they dissolved completely into her consciousness. But her efforts were in vain. The memories slipped through her nonexistent hands, without a body to feel, but leaving her with the sensation of guilt, nostalgia, helplessness, anger.
*"No matter what it costs, I will save you"*
The last words she had said to him. The last promise. And now she found herself in this world, in the body of a wounded wolf, a land that wasn't the one she inhabited before, bound to a pathogen that a deal with the entity had condemned her to—
-AUUUUUUUUUUUUH-
She was interrupted by a howl that bounced off the stone walls, piercing through her ears like a spear.
The wolf's body shuddered and trembled completely. The ears flattened against the skull. The sound resonated with the walls, amplified by the narrow space of the cavity, stunning her senses.
[Danger Detection][Enhanced Senses]
A second howl was heard in the distance from her location. It was too loud, and at the same time very close to her position.
The howl was prolonged, very deep and very resonant, as if whatever was howling wasn't a wolf. Before she could continue analyzing the direction of the howl, it was cut off abruptly.
Silence. As if the forest understood it shouldn't make a sound before what was lurking.
The wolf's breathing had stopped. The muscles of her body were screaming on maximum alert.
Suddenly another howl in the same direction was heard, but it was different.
-(That howl isn't...?)-
A sharp howl was heard again. It wasn't a hunting howl. Nor was it a territorial one. It was a call. And it came from an alpha.
---
With curiosity, she moved cautiously toward the entrance of the cavity, looking at her surroundings, with the pang of pain that the wound in her ribs caused still present. Enduring the pain with the chemical analgesic she had applied that was still working, but the body was at its limit.
[Danger Detection]
The ability activated like an alarm. On the wolf's back, a chill ran down her entire spine; something inside warned her that something terrible was happening.
Bravely, she poked her snout through the opening between the tree roots. The dawn light barely began to penetrate through the foliage; the shadows created were long and distorted. Upon smelling the area, she noticed the air was heavier, loaded with a putrid and nauseating smell.
[Smell][Enhanced Senses]
With a sharper and more defined sense of smell, she separated each layer of odor: the humid earth, the moss, the sap of the trees, the trail of dried blood she had left the day before.
But there was a particular smell, something more; she could smell metal—it was fresh blood, not hers, but there was a lot of blood in her vicinity.
-(Did something happen here while I was resting? A hunt by other predators? Probably. I have to check.)-
She slipped out of the cavity, with her movements still limited but precise. She noticed the surroundings of the clearing that the giant tree dominated. In her environment, there were signs of change.
On one of the trees at the edge of the clearing, there were marks.
Deep claws carved into the bark of several trees, several trees with the same mark. They didn't seem to be from a wolf; they were too large, too wide to be left by a wolf of her size. But the pattern was the most curious and strange: there were four parallel lines that curved downward from the bark, as if whoever had marked them had retractable claws.
To one side of a bush, a trail of blood began to become relevant; the trail dragged toward the north of the shelter, disappearing among the dense forest undergrowth.
Suddenly a howl was heard in the distance, this time more penetrating, and it was followed by more howls, and another, and another.
It seemed to be a hunt.
-(No, rather it seems to be a chase.)-
In the howl, there was a very subtle difference in tone. It didn't sound like the coordination of a group hunting. It was full of desperation and fear.
[Acute Hearing]
By improving her sense of hearing, she could distinguish in more detail the sounds: heavy breathing, irregular steps, the crunch of branches with the gait of a considerably heavy creature. And in all those layers, there was a sound that left her frozen, making her fur stand on end.
A low, coarse but abnormal growl could be heard, as if this animal were nothing like anything she had heard before.
-(Should I go investigate? No. How scary. With what happened to me yesterday, I don't feel confident. My body is still recovering; whatever is in the forest would tear me apart. I'm not in favorable conditions to face a predator.)-
And then she remembered something—the dream.
-(But... if I keep hiding, I won't be able to get more symptoms and abilities.)-
[Precise Movement][Jump]
With a quick movement, she landed near the blood-covered bush.
-(And whatever is out there, if it's a bigger predator, it probably gives me the opportunity to become stronger.)-
-(Besides... if there's something more mysterious and dangerous in this forest, it's better to know in advance before acting, and be on guard so it doesn't catch me off guard.)-
[Agility][Endurance]
She ventured into the deep forest, following the trail of blood and searching for the origin of the wounded prey. With each step, the pangs of pain were repetitive; the pain in her ribs was still noticeable but bearable. With her hard determination to discover, she kept advancing.
The blood trail led her to a deeper area of the forest, an area where the trees seemed to become older and more twisted. In the tree foliage, the sunlight could barely be noticed; it was very suffocating.
It was then that she saw how the blood trail cut in a direction.
At the edge of a small ravine, partially hidden by thorny bushes, was the body of an animal lying down.
But it wasn't just any animal; it was a wolf—the alpha wolf.
Dark fur, now stained with its own fresh blood. Both of its hind legs were bent at an unnatural angle, as if it were a copper wire. The alpha was breathing with great difficulty, and the penetrating eyes that once imposed authority were now clouded by fatigue and pain.
But the most striking thing that caught her attention was the wound on its side. It wasn't a simple swipe from another predator; this one was deeper and more tearing. The alpha's viscera could be seen, destroyed, and you could almost see the vital organs. It was as if it wanted to tear its body apart and shred it to pieces. And at the edges of the wound, it had a strange outline and tone; it was dark, as if the skin were necrotizing, as if some poison were infecting it.
Suddenly, the alpha's eyes rose slightly and looked at her, recognizing the wolf it had expelled from its pack the day before.
When trying to growl to communicate, all that came out was a weak whimper.
-(Look at you now. Who's whose bitch now? Yesterday you tried to kill me. Isn't the situation ironic? Now that I'm in front of you, I only think you're simple useless trash that deserves this suffering. Haha...)-
She slowly approached the alpha's location, observing with an empty and cold gaze.
[Danger Detection][Danger Detection][Danger Detection]
Like a repetitive, incessant, and intense alarm, the ability warned of something. Whatever had attacked the alpha was still nearby, very close...
The wolf's body bristled and began to tremble, as if it still maintained genuine fear before a bigger predator.
-(What the fuck is this body reacting to? As if it wants to flee from this place, there's something that's still nearby. But I should take advantage to devour it right now. And that also implies that whatever attacked it noticed my presence...)-
In the middle of her thoughts, she was interrupted by another penetrating howl; this time closer.
And from the darkness of the deep forest, a figure made itself present. Due to the little light filtering through the environment, its features were barely noticeable, but the more it advanced, the more its appearance could be distinguished.
Just looking at it from the corner of your eye, it would only look like a larger-than-average wolf. But the more you looked, the more details from the shadows became clearer and more anomalous.
The wolf figure was massive, almost half the size of a grizzly bear. Its fur was an unnatural ashen gray color, and there were patches all over the large wolf's body where the skin was exposed and cracked; it seemed to have mange.
The part of its long spine and shoulders was too unnatural; there were protrusions sprouting almost all over its body. They looked like hard spines of pale rock, irregular and sharp, as if its own skeleton had grown in such grotesque ways to pierce the skin from within.
But the part that left her most speechless was the large wolf's head.
There were multiple eyes around its eye sockets: two where they should normally be, and four more distributed asymmetrically across its skull and forehead, blinking frantically and without synchrony. They shone with a dark yellow tone.
And its snout was very open, in such a way that revealed rows of sharp, twisted, and disorderly teeth that protruded at very unnatural angles.
Between the fangs, a dark and viscous substance was dripping that, upon touching the ground, burned the vegetation, leaving a very unusual hissing sound.
Additionally, the wolf's claws were long, and they seemed to be retractable and had fresh blood stains.
[Danger Detection][Danger Detection][Danger Detection][Danger Detection][Danger Detection][Danger Detection][Danger Detection]
The ability was screaming repetitively in her mind, with unbearable intensity.
The beast looked with its eyes erratically at its surroundings, until it fixed on her, all focusing for a moment. And then slowly turned its attention toward the alpha who was very moribund.
It made a grimace as if trying to smile; it was very creepy, showing its mouth full of twisted teeth.
With a slow and deliberate step, it approached the alpha. The beast seemed to be in no hurry, as if it still maintained part of its primitive mind.
The alpha, still on the ground, desperately tried to get up. With the effort of its front paws, it maintained its determination for survival that pushed it to keep fighting despite the disadvantage. Even wounded and moribund, it growled a weak sound, but full of desperation.
But it was a useless action.
The beast only looked and lunged with impressive speed that contradicted its size.
The jaws closed around the alpha wolf's neck, and with a very nauseating crunch, the dark substance began to filter through its mouth and began to drip onto the wound. The alpha began to convulse, whimpering in agony.
-(Impressive. It's a dark and slimy thing; it seems like some type of corrosive poison.)-
Observing from her hidden position among the undergrowth and bushes, each of the wolf body's muscles tensed, screaming for her to flee at any moment. But Rain didn't waver.
[Acute Eye]
By concentrating her vision, she could notice in more detail how disturbing the substance was.
The liquid dripping from the beast's mouth didn't just burn the skin; in its part, it seemed to consume the alpha wolf's flesh. The wound on its neck expanded, necrotizing at an impossible speed.
The alpha, kicking in pain, began to yield and stopped moving in a second.
With a movement, the creature raised its head with the alpha's corpse still in its snout, and with a quick movement, began to close its mouth slowly. The alpha wolf's body—you could hear how its ribs crunched, and in a snap, it closed its mouth, cutting the alpha wolf's body in half. Like a guillotine.
The guts fell, along with the corpse, leaving a viscous sound.
The creature began to sniff its surroundings, and with its multiple eyes moving erratically.
-(Ugh... It makes me nauseous just seeing its ugly eyes.)-
[Danger Detection][Danger Detection][Danger Detection]
It kept sounding in her mind, increasingly intense. But Rain was calm.
-(I can choose between three options:
First: Flee while it's distracted.
Second: Take advantage and manage to devour the alpha's remains.
Third: Infect the beast.)-
She glanced at the alpha's corpse. Even from her position, she could reach to devour a small part; it would be enough to analyze the genetic code.
-(Very well. I have at least a plan.)-
The beast remained standing in the same place, looking at the corpse fixedly with one of its multiple eyes, trying to figure out what to do with the corpse. The beast lowered its snout and began to devour the lower half of the wolf, not from hunger, not from need, just from habit.
-(I wonder, how fast could I move with this wounded body? It's distracted eating the other part of the wolf. Could I get close enough before it detects me?)-
The beast growled a deep sound, making the air around it vibrate momentarily. The sound of the alpha's corpse flesh tearing was repeating, in a very grotesque way, although it didn't seem to swallow the flesh it had in its mouth and escaped. Even so, it kept tearing off the flesh.
Rain took advantage of the distraction; the beast was busy eating, and the beast's eyes weren't paying attention to it.
[Precise Movement][Agility]
She walked stealthily through the undergrowth, circling to position herself in the beast's blind spot. Each step was worthy of a hunter, avoiding dry branches, crunchy leaves that surrounded the area. Despite the senseless pain in her ribs, she ignored it.
She had gotten very close, only four meters from the beast, almost close to the other part of the alpha wolf. The beast kept chewing; the multiple eyes didn't pay attention to their surroundings; they were focused on their food.
Three meters.
Two meters.
She prepared her muscles for a quick jump:
Bite, swallow, escape.
But it was then that one of the beast's eyes, one that was on the lateral part of its skull, turned sharply toward where she was.
And it saw her.
The other eyes turned and fixed on her simultaneously.
-GRAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWRR-
The roar was deafening, deep, and very loud, as if the roar were someone scratching a chalk blackboard. The beast stopped devouring the alpha's corpse and directed its fury toward her with ferocity.
-(AAAAAAAAHHH, it saw me. Well, I screwed up. I got too close.)-
[Cowardice][Jump][Agility]
Before her mind could act, her body had already jumped in the opposite direction, moving away a few meters. But the beast was much faster than it appeared.
[Cowardice][Danger Detection]
Rain felt the air displace behind her back. A swipe she had barely dodged by a few seconds; she ran off.
-(HAHAHA!!!. What kind of creature is this that I can't feel I can beat it! It's fascinating. I don't even have a chance to get close!)-
[Jump][Agility]
She jumped over one of the protruding roots to try to gain distance. But the creature simply destroyed it with its claws, without stopping.
[Danger Detection]
-(I have to think of a solution; if not, it will really kill me. It doesn't seem like I can beat it in genuine speed; also wounded with this body, it's limited in mobility; I won't be able to hold out for long.)-
The beast kept chasing at a fast pace, but the trees it crashed into and destroyed slowed its pace.
-(The only thing I can have an advantage in is intelligent thinking... well, I already have a half-formed plan.)-
[Ferocity][Endurance]
Rain braked abruptly, turning backward with her hind legs. The beast, surprised by her sudden change, slid trying to stop, losing its balance a bit.
-(There's my advantage. It's a somewhat suicidal plan. But if I can infect that thing. If I could at least bite it.)-
She lunged forward, heading toward one of its front paws, ignoring the massive body.
Her fangs pierced the flesh just above the loin.
-Grrrrrr...-
The beast hadn't reacted to the pain; it observed her for a second and just shook its paw violently. The impulse threw her several meters, crashing against a tree.
The impact had knocked the air out of her lungs. The wound on her ribs got even worse, exploding in sharp pain.
But the plan had been executed. It was already bitten; she just had to wait for it to get infected. Survive.
*Applying [Replication][Infectivity] to host pathogens.*
A deafening buzz exploded in her mind, followed by an avalanche of announcements.
*Unable to perform [Replication] on host. Life form not Animalia.*
*Unable to perform [Infectivity] on host. Life form not Animalia.*
*Unable to read RNA of host. Life form not Animalia.*
-(WHAAAAT?!)-
The beast growled, looking at its paw with curiosity, where blood began to drip. But there was something special about this blood; it wasn't red. It was black, very dense; it looked like tar.
-(Hey, what the fuck is that creature? How does the system not consider this thing a living being? That thing can breathe, move. HAHAHA. This is getting more interesting.)-
The beast looked at her again with its multiple eyes.
This time not with curiosity in its gaze. There was only a look of defiance.
-(Shit. I seriously can't infect it. I'm scared, but I can't shake the excitement. Why am I so excited? Is it because I feel I'm on the edge of death? Is it because I'm with something that breaks the laws of nature? HAHAHAHA. I DON'T KNOW! I just feel like I want to keep feeling this sensation!)-
[Danger Detection]
It repeated with intensity and sounded in her mind like an emergency alarm.
The beast roared with much more intensity, almost leaving Rain stunned. The beast lunged again, this time aggressive, faster. It no longer had a hint of caution. Now there was only pure unleashed violence.
[Cowardice][Agility]
She rolled to one side just centimeters from the beast's claws, destroying the ground where she had been. Rock splinters flew out, along with dirt flying in all directions.
-(Woah! If that claw touches me, it's going to tear me apart! My only objective here is to get the alpha's abilities. I have to get there to see if it has anything useful!)-
But the beast got ahead and stood between her path toward the alpha's corpse, as if it knew what she was trying to do.
-(Motherfucker! Fuck you, you mangy dog! You're making the situation more difficult for me!)-
The beast charged again to attack. But Rain jumped instead of dodging to the side.
[Jump][Precise Movement]
She propelled herself with a protruding root nearby and used it as a platform, passing over the beast's head, positioning herself behind it. For a second, she could be very close to the alpha's corpse right in front of her, just a few meters away.
But the beast was aware of what she was going to do and reacted faster than expected.
One of its hind legs struck her at an impossible speed in mid-air with tremendous force.
The force of the impact sent her flying laterally, crashing against a dry and thorny tree. The tree's splinters stuck all over her fur and fractured her ribs along with the wound that exploded in blinding pain.
-(AAAGHHH!)-
She desperately struggled to get up, but her paws barely responded. The adrenaline shot was no longer enough to ignore the massive damage.
The beast advanced at a slow pace, very slowly. Again with its row of teeth, it tried to imitate a smile with a disturbing grimace. The tar blood kept dripping from its wounded paw, but it didn't seem to perceive the pain at all.
-(Shit! I can't let it eat that! If it does, I won't be able to multiply, and it would be my end!)-
But then, she noticed something that caught her attention. The alpha's corpse.
It was less than 9 meters to her left. A part that the beast had left behind in its pursuit.
-(Gyyyhhhhhh! I can't let them defeat me here. This is my only chance.)-
The beast roared and was preparing for its final attack, tensing its massive muscles.
At that instant, Rain made a hasty decision.
[Ferocity][Endurance][Vigor][Speed][Jump]
Ignoring all the pain. Ignoring her body that begged to give up. She ignored everything in herself; she only had one clear objective.
She lunged to the side at the last second, just in time, before the beast's jaws closed where her head had been. She rolled on the ground, feeling how the tree's splinters tore more of her skin, but she didn't waver for a second.
She ran. Not toward the forest. Not toward her safe refuge. She headed toward the alpha's corpse.
The beast roared behind her, chasing her with terrifying speed. She could feel the hot breath right behind her back, the sound of its claws destroying the ground.
Five meters.
Three meters.
One meter.
-(DAMN IT! ALMOST!)-
She lunged over the alpha's corpse, sinking her fangs into the flesh that was still warm. She tore off a piece of meat, where blood flowed freely. And swallowed.
A buzz, along with the announcement.
*Detecting readable genetic code.*
*Analyzing RNA.*
But she didn't have time to hear the announcement. The beast had caught up with her.
The beast's jaws closed around her torso, lifting her off the ground with crushing force. The other twisted teeth sank into her fur, piercing the flesh with ease; the bones were heard crunching dryly.
A pain that was very indescribable, almost leaving her consciousness blank.
-(MOTHERFUCKER! I STILL CAN'T GIVE UP!)-
The black substance began to filter through the beast's black mouth, burning her skin and turning cells into necrosis at a surprising speed.
*New absorbed abilities acquired:*
*[Intimidation I][Pack Coordination I][Territorial Instinct I][Stealth I]*
*Fragmented genetic code reconstructed:*
*[Leadership #] > [Leadership II]*
-(And that's it? That's all? FUCK ME. FUCKING SHITTY EFFORT. THAT'S ALL IT HAD...)-
The beast began to shake its head violently, further destroying the wolf's body, letting seas of blood fall. Vision began to fade. Pain became cloudy.
-(GYAAAAAAH!! NO... I CAN'T LET MYSELF DIE LIKE THIS!!! I MUST... SURVIVE!!!)-
And it was then, just when the wolf's body was beginning to give up, when darkness began to envelop her vision, she noticed something.
Near a bush.
She saw a pair of yellow eyes. Watching.
There was a hidden wolf, one that was in the alpha wolf's pack.
It seemed wounded, altered, scared, but it was alive. And it was perplexed by what it had seen.
-(DAMN IT! I ONLY HAVE ONE WAY OUT!)-
And with the last vestige of control she had over the wolf's moribund body, she sent a signal to its snout, releasing a cloud of pathogens.
[Airborne Transmission][Endurance]
The red sand full of pathogens came out of its open mouth, floating in the air for a brief time before dispersing, being carried by the wind.
Moving toward the hidden wolf.
The beast finally released the body, letting it fall. The wolf was destroyed; the body was disfigured, leaving only the head recognizable. It no longer moved. It no longer breathed. It was just motionless.
For any spectator, they would say the wolf was dead and had no salvation.
But not for a tiny virus, invisible to an observer. Despite its host having died, it was conscious.
Floating in the air.
Floating.
Letting itself be carried, to find a new host.
Searching.
-(Almost there... I just need to reach it... I must get a little closer...)-
The pathogens traveled to the bush where the hidden wolf was.
Paralyzed with fear. Trembling with terror.
And breathing air erratically.
The viruses entered through that breath, and...
[Replication][Infectivity]
*Replication 30%...80%...100%*
*Applying [Domination] on New Infected Host.*
*New abilities acquired:*
*[Cowardice I] > [Cowardice II] [Reflexes]*
She didn't have time to read the ability announcement.
The perspective changed instantly.
She was no longer bleeding out; her body wasn't destroyed.
She was among the bushes, trembling like jelly, observing the beast as it tore apart her old body, which was now a corpse.
-(Uuuuuuuf... I-It worked... By very little I didn't make it.)-
Her new paws could barely stay firm. The wolf's body was wounded, although its wounds were minor, they weren't serious. It had superficial cuts and a hind leg that limped; it probably tore a muscle from fleeing from the beast.
The beast raised its head, sniffing the environment, scanning with its multiple eyes blinking asymmetrically.
-(I shouldn't stay here. It will end up finding me.)-
There was no wait.
[Cowardice][Speed][Vigor][Endurance][Precise Movement]
And what remained of the small wolf body's energy.
She began to run.
Venturing deeper into the deep forest, as fast as she could, as much as her wounded paws allowed, without stopping to look back.
Behind her, a last roar from the beast was heard. But it didn't pursue her.
It was probably satisfied with its hunt. Or maybe it thought it wasn't worth pursuing another weak prey.
-(That beast... No, a monster. Whatever it was. It was a creature that wasn't a normal animal; it was clear to me that it can't be infected. What kind of creature exists that the system can't identify it as life?... but... it's interesting.)-
She kept running deeper into the forest until the pain and exhaustion of her paws protested to force her to stop, and they couldn't take anymore.
She let herself fall under the shadow of a protruding rock, panting heavily.
-(Fuuuuuuh... that was close... without a body to lodge in, maybe I would have died.)-
She closed her eyes; she could hear her heartbeats, and they rumbled throughout her body; they were through the roof. She tried to recover her breath slowly, and the sound of the drums of her heart began to cease.
-(But at least I got some abilities from the alpha, and from this small wolf, which is my new body, and it's weaker, but at least it's alive.)-
She slowly opened her eyes, looking at her surroundings in the deep forest.
-(This strange world is much more dangerous than it looks. If there are beasts like that roaming this forest... things that no longer seem to be living beings, and I can't infect them...)-
-(Then I need to be much stronger, evolve faster. Have more abilities. Have more symptoms. Be much more lethal. Be much more infectious.)-
And so it was that the small calamity set out to have a goal to reach... a goal that would bring her closer to a destiny where Chaos will have power in her. Dear calamity, Rain. A very wonderful adventure awaits you; continue on your path. Entertain me.
You, dear reader who reads my words, will be knowledgeable of this path; you will be a spectator of a massacre by my little calamity.
I hope you also find it interesting.