The Spiked Wolf

by David Shiels

  They would work for their fine feast.

  She continued to run through the tangled forest, the floor was filled with large tree roots ready to trip up any unprepared guests but Claudia managed to avoid these traps of nature and found a small cabin; It looked old, dirty and rundown but she could hear whimpering coming from inside; perhaps it is more survivors, or as Claudia believed, more baggage to weigh her down.

  But she decided to look inside the cabin out of curiosity.

  She walked up the old small steps of the cabin, some planks were snapped and rotten, each second her mind battled with whether or not she should proceed. She carefully edged the door open and took a few steps inside, the door behind her quietly closing. The sight she witnessed next is one she will never lose the image of.

  The room was barren of anything except 20 tables, and on 10 of these tables were women chained to them; their arms were red with blood and soars from where they had struggled to free themselves from their binds for who knows how long. Their legs were forcefully spread apart by some makeshift metallic leg braces and their ankles had been broken so badly that they flopped around the table like a dying fish out of water as the women tried to excite themselves at Claudia’s presence.

  They tried to beg Claudia for help but their tongues had been removed so all that came out were sad saliva drenched whimpers. There were drips attached to each of the women which seemed to supply them with basic liquid food and water. Some of the women appeared heavily pregnant and some just looked worn out and ready to give up. Claudia assumed that some of the remaining tables were for her and the two Asian tourists. Claudia did not want to become like these pathetic women used only for their wombs; she was a strong woman who would not become like this.

  She slowly backed herself towards the door to exit the room, ignoring the symphony of cries from the women. She exited the room, closing the door firmly behind her, and descended the wooden steps. As she raised her head at the bottom of the steps she was greeted by the four deformed men who had been pursuing her. Amongst them was the small man, the large man and two medium sized men. They were grinning and laughing while they slowly approached Claudia. She did not dither for long before deciding to run away and nor did they not wait to give chase.

  The chase was a close one, with the deformed men being extremely close behind. Claudia knew inside that this was the end, they lived here, they knew this area, and she was running around in darkness not knowing where she was going. Suddenly Claudia tripped and fell down the side of a large slope. She rolled down for a few seconds that felt like minutes; the pain all over her body was horrendous.

  When she reached the bottom she felt an excruciating pain in her right arm and let out a howling scream; it had landed in the open mouth of a wolf statue. The statue was dirty and old and looked like it had been there for many years, perhaps even hundreds and its placement appeared random; it was just at the bottom of a slope.

  Whoever placed it here did not want it being seen by many.

  A small thought went through Claudia’s mind about how much it would be worth and how she could sell it in one of her shops; even in the most serious of situation, she was all about business. Claudia’s arm started to bleed and blood dripped into the mouth of the statue.

  She quickly pulled her hand from the statue when her leg was grabbed by the large deformed man; she kicked and screamed but he had her firmly in his grasp with his friends right beside him. He started to pull Claudia along with him. This was the end, the prey had been caught and she was going to be like those pathetic birth machines back inside that cabin.

  She barely had time to have strong feelings about this because as she looked behind her she noticed the wolf statue starting to shed its stone. It quickly shined a bright light, the stone shards dissolving, to reveal a large silver wolf; it had extremely spiked fur, like a wolf that had just recently had a bath, with a ferocious look on its face.

  It adjusted its vision on Claudia, and then moved on to the men walking away with her being dragged behind. It pounced on the large thug sending him towering to the ground and the other three men turned to see what had happened when the wolf jumped at the little deformed man and tore out his jugular; the small man held his throat as his bled out and fell to the floor. Dead.

  The two other men ran at the wolf with their axes armed when it reared its back up, its fur hardening and turning to face them, and shot two spikes off of its fur, hitting them in the throat. They fell to the floor. The large man rose back to his feet when the wolf shot another one at him, hitting him in the forehead. During this Claudia had taken the opportunity to crawl away and began running aimlessly through the forest. The spiked silver wolf had noticed her running yet decided to ignore her. It instead ran off in the opposite direction.

  Claudia continued her run through the forest when she saw yet another cabin. This one appeared to be in better condition than the other disgusting cabin and she did not even think about what she may find in this one. She ran inside without hesitation and slammed the door shut fast behind her.

  Inside the building was a medium sized room and at the back was an open door which appeared to lead to a bedroom. The room was littered with a large variety of furniture that you would not expect to find inside a cabin in the woods. Most of it appeared inconsistent; it was probably stolen from people they had captured and boats they had plundered. Some were very exquisite works such as a dining table fit for a queen while some were basic wood carvings which a poor hillbilly family would most likely own.

  Suddenly from the outside of the cabin she heard howling, as if a pack of wolves were residing outside. Claudia approached the window and to her shock witnessed 3 wolves sitting outside looking up at her growling.

  She was not allowed to leave this cabin it appears.

  On the other side of the island the great silver spiked wolf jumped into the ocean and began swimming in the direction of Russia.

  Outbreak: Day One

  The Beginning

  Of The End

  The sky was clear as the clouds had hastily departed. The sun was shining its warm rays all over, causing a blindingly stunning reflection upon the surface of the clear ocean. Sailing steadily on the ocean front was a fishing ship. It was of a huge structure, it was pure white at the top and dark blue at the bottom half, this colour swept all the way around it. It glided effortlessly across the top of the ocean despite its immense size and weight.

  On the back of the ship was a massive crane which was used to attach nets so it could easily catch large batches of smaller fish; the net was currently filled to the rim with them. At the front of the boat was the captain’s area where the ships navigation was performed. All around the ship were various ways to get to the lower cabins where the crew spent most of their time between stops to catch fish, or trade at different stops around the world.

  Inside one of the lower cabins slowly awakening from her restless slumber was a young beautiful woman; she had long blonde hair, sparkling blue eyes and voluptuous lips that many a man would give their right hand to steal a kiss from. Some would say she is wasted on a fishing ship and would be better suited to Hollywood.

  The cabin she was in was only small and simple, it contained a small single bed, a hand basin, a wardrobe and a small table, all of which was made of oak and was of high quality. Its appearance did not match well with the rugged exterior of the boat.

  Suddenly there was a knock on the door “Are you up, Angela?” Said the voice beyond the door. “Yeah, I’m up…just, come in” She replied in a sleepy, yawning tone.

  A man entered the room; he was a well-built middle aged man with short grey hair. He was wearing a brown fisherman’s hat and a blue turtleneck jumper with blue trousers.

  “Did you sleep okay?” He asked as he entered the room.

  “Not really, I couldn’t help thinking about those gun shots we heard last night” She said as she put her eyes to the floor “I really think we should have done something, they sounded so
close”

  “Angela, Dear” Said the old man as he sat down on the edge of her bed, Angela was now sat up “We couldn’t interfere. The seas around that area are home to pirates, we leave them alone, and they leave us alone. We need that route”

  “But Winston they could have been people in troub-”

  “Enough! Angela” Winston slammed his hand down on her bed, Angela recoiled in shock “this is only your second week on the job; you do as you’re told. I’ve been sailing these seas for 30 years and one thing you never do is get involved in other people’s business. It’s the law of the ocean, if you cannot accept that then maybe this job isn’t for you. Maybe you’re missing your family too much?”

  “No, please. I need this job; I have two children to feed” Pleaded Angela as she pushed herself forward.

  “I just worry that being away from your family one week per month may start to affect you, but we will see how it goes. Just remember to forget anything you heard or saw last night, okay?” He said in a gentler, more understanding tone as he started to ascend to his feet.

  “Yeah, okay. Sorry.” Angela said softly as she removed the duvet from over her body and started to leave her bed. She was wearing a white basic dressing gown; it was down to her knees in length, obviously meant for a shorter girl.

  “Get yourself ready we will be docking soon, you did great work this week. Your family will be glad to see you” Winston praised as he left the room.

  Angela wished she would be able to go see her family but her second job as a waitress starts as soon as this one finishes. She would not be able to see her children until the evening.

  Angela stood on her feet, stretched her arms in the air and arched her back while letting out a loud yawn. She thought about how much she hated this job and the people on this boat, but she had no choice, her husband had recently lost his job and money was tight. The job means one week away from her family a month, which she finds very difficult but she knows it has to be done or they will lose their home.

  She then approached her wardrobe and opened it. Inside were clothes similar to Winston’s. They were clothes she wore during her week’s work as a fisherwoman, apart from them was one ordinary outfit, it was a long colourful summer dress, she grabbed this, a towel and a bag off the top of the wardrobe and began to leave her Cabin room.

  “Aww, did poor little Angela get told off?” A male voice said in a childish tone.

  Angela looked in fear at the man standing in the doorway, he was tall and stocky and was dressed the same as Winston but without the hat. He had long blonde hair down to his shoulders.

  Angela said nothing and backed up a little.

  “I hope you realise I don’t want to see your face here next time?” The man said, as he slowly entered the room, his face was scowling, as if he had pure hatred for the woman.

  “Please, stop this; I need this job for my family.” Angela pleaded, her hands clutched together tightly.

  “What have I told you? This is not a woman’s job, men rule the mighty seas, and you women belong in the kitchens at home cooking the food we work hard to catch. You should be at home bringing up your children” He walked closer towards Angela, his face becoming redder as he spoke with a passionate rage.

  “I’m not leaving this job no matter what you say; your sexist remarks will not stop me” Angela backed herself up as the man continued the slow walk towards her, his fists now clenched.

  “I had a mother like you. She would always be out late working and I would never see her. She never knew her place, cooking me my meals; she was scum, just like you are! You have no right being here, your kids would be better off if you were dead” He was now shouting, as if he did not even care if anyone heard him…as if no one would care about what he is doing.

  “That’s enough!” Angela’s voice boomed. She dropped the items she was holding and slapped the man hard across the face; it made a loud sound and the man recoiled slightly, as if shocked.

  “I’ve had enough of you bullying me! Every day you are making sexist remarks and insulting me! I have enough right as you men to be here, this is 2017, not 1940! And it’s not my fault your mother was useless”

  “Oh, you stupid bitch” The man spewed. While holding his face with his left hand, he very quickly and suddenly smacked the back of his other hand against Angela’s face; she stumbled low, placing one hand on the floor to stop herself from falling over completely.

  Angela looked up at the man while holding her face; her mouth bleeding from one side. The boat had now finished its journey; it had reached the docks in Saint Petersburg.

  “People like you disgust me” He approached Angela and pushed her shoulder, forcing her to the floor. “You don’t deserve children” He began kicking Angela hard in her stomach multiple times.

  Angela tried to block the kicks with her hands but the blows were so hard they were smashing her fingers. She tried to shout out for help but could not catch her breath to do so, when suddenly there was a lot of shouting and screaming on the deck of the boat. The man froze and halted his assault, then looked up to listen.

  Angela squirmed on the floor in agony.

  The shouts and screams continued and a voice was heard against all the commotion “It was amongst all the fish in the net!” Gunshots were fired. The man, without even looking at Angela, sprinted out of the room to join his comrades on the deck.

  Transformation

  Angela, still in pain from the beating, slowly pushed herself to her feet. The screaming from above continued but it felt like there was slowly becoming less of it; it could mean the threat is being vanquished or the threat is vanquishing the fishermen.

  Angela, holding her stomach, walked towards the door of the cabin to see what was going on. She knew it was a bad idea to go and look and that she should just lock herself away in the wardrobe until it all hopefully blows over but her curiosity got the better of her so she walked out of the room into the hallway.

  The hallway was thin and metallic, a far cry from the interior of her cabin. On the ceiling was a thin strobe light which span the entire hallway; it omitted a weak light which barely lit the hallway. There were six rooms on this hall, and four cabin areas in total on the ship. It would be a struggle for two people to pass down the hallway due to its size and would be a nightmare for a claustrophobic person.

  Angela was terrified of what she might witness when she gets on the surface; terrorists, or maybe those pirates from last night. However, those thoughts ceased when she heard growling; like a beast, and as the screams became clearer it sounded as like the screams of people being tortured.

  As Angela continued her slow walk down the cold hallway, her body shivering, she got near the turn at the end, which leads to some steps to the main deck when, shockingly, Winston tumbled down the stairs, his face and hands covered in blood, a trail of which was left down the steps. He landed in a seated position with his back against the wall and his legs up the stairs. Angela ran to him without hesitation.

  “Winston! What’s happening? You’re bleeding! What’s that in your neck?!” There was a large needle wedged in his neck, it was about one inch thick. This was causing all the bleeding.

  Winston, struggling to talk, let out a few words before pushing Angela away “Run…now…hide…” As he muttered these words the sound of wolves could be heard from above, amongst the fading screams. Angela paid no attention to this as she was focused entirely on Winston.

  “I can’t leave you here!” Angel screamed, tears starting to form in her light blue eyes. Winston’s neck was starting to pulsate, and then soon after he started to scream in pain “Just go!” he yelled and pushed Angela away even harder.

  Angela said nothing, turned her back and began her emotional walk back to her cabin room. She thought about how Winston had offered her this job as he knew of her struggling finances since the twins were born. She may hate everyone on this boat for their sexist old fashioned ways but Winston was always there for her. These thoughts m
ade Angela tear off the bottom of her dressing gown and return to Winston to tend to his wounds.

  As she approached him again, something happened, something that would have been the last thing she would ever have expected to happen.

  Winston began to scream at the top of his lungs as if he was in the worst pain imaginable. His face began to distort, bubble and stretch. His chest began to expand and his legs began to shrink and change shape. Hair started to form over his face and arms; the sound of his bones cracking and changing shape made Angela almost sick. She slowly began to retreat towards her room. Winston was transforming into some kind of monster and Angela did not want to be around for when this monster was born.

  Angela briefly contemplated running up the stairs Winston had fallen from but she quickly concluded that it would be suicide as what ever caught Winston, would also catch her.

  She decided it was best to take Winston’s advice and hide. She clumsily started back to her cabin room but slipped, banging her knee on the cold metal flooring. She barely felt the pain and jumped back to her feet. She arrived back in her room and slammed the door behind her.