Chapter 49: The Taste of Fear (1/1)

The creature was hungry, but it didn't understand what that meant. It was alone at first in the green of the woods, wondering about the emptiness inside it that demanded to be filled. Someone had called it to this place.

The creature could still taste the fear that had given it life.

The fear came from someone, his master perhaps…but it was directed at someone, as well. The creature sniffed the air. Several someones.

The scent of his creator's fear echoed faintly through the shadows and formed outlines in his mind in flickering streaks of black and red. One shape rose above the others. He wondered if he should seek it out. It was strong and dangerous. It might know what to do about the hunger.

As the creature searched the woods for the thing that would make him feel whole, he found more like himself. They flocked to him, one by one, following behind him through the trees. It didn't bother him. Perhaps they could work together.