Chapter 1 - Part 1
The hiking boots that had fit nicely mere hours ago on Algy’s feet had now left painful blisters on his feet that had opened more than a hundred paces ago, but even with the raw pain in his feet and lungs, Algy had no time to stop because the creature following him was not going to stop either. The late fall frost had already covered the ground, and each step Algy took sent the sound of crunching grass all around the Black Bellmouth forest. There was no way the creature did not know where he was going, and hiding was no longer an option. All Algy could do was run, and as far as Algy knew, the only place he could escape to was the old mine just beyond the forest that was still somehow operational even after the years of decline. The men there had to fend for themselves against wolves and bears; surely their guns would work against even the creature gaining on him.
Now, Algy only hoped he had picked the right direction.
Algy did not dare to look behind him; the inhumane growls the creature was spitting were enough to let him know he was running against the clock. One by one, the monster had picked his hiking group, dragging them into the darkness before they had had any time to act, and when they had, it had already been too late. Most of them were gone, and Algy was the only survivor. Vielat’s coagulated blood on his face was everything that was left of the others, along with their screams; he swore he could still hear them echoing in his head. The brisk night air filled Algy’s lungs as he reached the end of the thicket, leaving him closer to his goal, yet also more vulnerable. The creature following him was a large one, and the forest might have slowed it down a bit, but here in the open, it would have more room to roam. The man took one quick glance at the bright night sky above him, sparing a small moment to wonder at its beauty before the terrifying screeches coming from behind him told him to run again. With the terror running havoc in his brain, there was not much room to think about anything other than survival, maybe not even that. All Algy could concentrate on was the next step he would take in the utter darkness, while the adrenaline rushing in his veins did everything else.
He could just barely spot the small, orange lights in the distance set by the Beira Digging Company, marking the outside of the Bleakfall Burrow. Algy still had more than four hundred paces to bridge the distance between him and the mine, yet the tiny hope inside his mind told him he was closer to safety than the creature, a sweet little lie if nothing else. Had Algy not known better, seeking cover in the workers’ trailers would have been his first thought, but he had seen the creature rip apart a log with its large claws, like it was the kind of paper used in the shittiest rest stops. What it could do to a human body, the man did not even dare consider. Running on the shale rock mountain side made Algy almost stumble, but he managed to keep his balance just barely. The half-frozen mud underneath the stones made each of his steps more precarious than the one before it, and it felt like his movement speed was halved, even with the burst of energy inside him that was the only thing separating him from a prey. Yet, in the blink of an eye, Algy made a decision he was going to soon regret.
After almost slipping again for the second time, Algy decided to look behind him.
Far too close to his liking, he could distinguish a large shape coming after him, its heavy claws hitting the muddy ground, and a thunderous sound of its weight now audible even under Algy’s heavy breathing and quickly beating heart. Where Algy struggled to run, the monster’s weight gave it more stability as its claws sank into the slope. Algy turned his head and began to run faster, more rashly, wobbling ahead, feeling the last shreds of hope leave him. The little lights grew larger right before him, but not fast enough, and the low growling behind him got closer, and soon he felt something gnaw at his calf. A quick, sharp, painful scream echoed through the mountainside as the creature sank its teeth into the tender muscle, making Algy hit the hard ground in an instant. He tried to crawl away, but the beast wouldn’t let him go, no matter what god he would pray to. Algy struggled against its hold, screaming and kicking as it dragged him back into the forest, deeper into the darkness and cover of the canopy. His hiking gear gave him a little cover as the shale cut into Algy’s skin. Leaving a stinging pain slightly eased by the brisk ground.
Here, even in the darkness surrounding them, Algy could finally see his hunter closer than ever before, and what he saw was straight from his worst nightmares. The large creature was bigger than any other animal he had ever seen, and far more gruesome. It was made from the same raw flesh as his aching heels ripped by his boots. Wherever it had eyes or not, Algy could not tell underneath its body as it finally stopped dragging him once they crossed the tree line. The creature released him from its razors and seemed to examine its shivering prey, who had already readying himself for the final bite, hoping it all would be over sooner rather than later, although the screams he had heard once his hiking friends had been taken away proved otherwise. The grotesque monster sniffed him with its almost bear-like, elongated snout, almost as if it wanted to make sure its prey would not dare to run away—something Algy would not dare to do anymore.
“Just do it,” Algy shivered before adding, “End it now.” The creature answered his prayer with a deafening howl that was mixed with an almost human-like scream coming from deep within its throat. Letting Aldy know that, no, this creature would not grant such pleas, as for it, this was no hunt for meal, but for something far more sinister.
The creature roared again and bit into Algy’s hiking pants, ripping them apart with ease. The human underneath its teeth screamed in terror as his lower part was exposed, his now bare groin feeling the mix of hot breath by the monster and the crisp night air. First, they go for the soft parts, like eyes and belly, Algy thought in horror, suddenly remembering every horrible fact he had learned while looking for missing people. Whatever this beast was, it was not something he had ever learned or even heard about. He had come here for leisure, not for voluntary help, even though Algy had heard that people had gone missing in this very forest for the past few months. Had he helped or reported if he had seen something during his trip? Sure, but he had not been actively seeking anyone. His mind reminded him of all the missing person posters he had seen near the visitor center and about the quaint local radio show, where the hosts had talked about the missing people. Someone in the car had been worried about it; was it Vielat? What had he told them? People go missing all the time; there is nothing to worry about. There had been a large earthquake in the area; things like that happen.
You will be safe with me.
The creature pushed its long, pointed tongue out of its maw and gave a slimy lick to Algy’s nether regions to the man’s shock. The gooey saliva felt warm against Algy’s bare skin, followed by a tingly sensation, which confused the hurt human even more. The monster’s slithery tongue moved to lick his groin again, gliding all the way down to his still slightly covered behind and pushing past his cheeks, brushing its goo on his puckered hole. Algy let out an unwanted cry as he felt it along with the growing tingling sensation on his cock. Nothing in this situation seemed what it should have been; no beast would treat their prey like this, and even Algy knew it. Any thoughts about being a mere meal were disposed of as soon as the creature’s pointed tongue entered his hole, slithering inside it and spreading the same slimy saliva inside him. Algy let out another barely muffled moan as his arousal got the better of him; the pain he was feeling earlier shifted, becoming more muted and enhancing his arousal, making Algy quickly believe that the goo he had been slathered with must have other properties than a mere tingling sensation. Instead of expected burning agony, there was now a slight throb gleaming inside him, making him feel almost paralyzed. The creature withdrew its tongue and drove it back inside Algy’s ass, feeling his body from the inside and readying him for what’s to come.
Algy squirmed slightly on the frozen ground, trying to grasp at something to grab onto or anything to get out of this growingly weird situation, but his hands only found wilted plants and brisk stones. His own cock now in half-mast, Algy glanced behind the four-legged beast and saw the large pouch between its hind legs. Slowly, the pouch opened up, and a bulgy, slime-covered member similar to that of a reptile with a tear-shaped, wavy tip began to erect from deep within, growing into a size far longer than Algy’s very human leg with almost as much width as his muscular thigh. As soon as Algy realized what it was, the rest of it protruded out and revealed four large sags hanging from the base, swollen with the creature’s terrible spawn. Algy was not going to be its meal; he was becoming its mate.
