Dark clouds scudded lazily over a bright moon, shading the woods from its glow for a only a moment before light spilled onto the trees once more. The leaves were still and the forest was quiet, only the occasional chirp of a cricket causing Shadow's ear to flick.
The ebony hedgehog was on his way home after an excruciating six days away from the city on G.U.N. missions. His bones seemed to shriek with every step he took and every part of his body ached. All he wanted to do was get back home and relax for the night, no disruptions. He ran a single hand through his quills, straightening them out and sighing as he did so. During his excursion, he had hardly slept and food wasn't eaten. He had been so busy that he couldn't afford to lose time with either of those things.
Chaos, I reek, Shadow thought to himself, his muzzle wrinkling when he sniffed his armpit. I need a shower. I should be almost home... The sun is gonna rise soon anyway. He kept his hands held by his sides, gradually making his way through the dark towards the city. If he was being totally honest with himself, this whole place was giving him a sense of uneasiness. Something just felt off, yet he couldn't tell why. It looked like everything was just as it was meant to be...
The bushes rustled viciously in the distance.
Shadow's head shot up, ears twitching about in every direction, trying to listen for any sign of danger. When there were no following sounds, Shadow let a breath he hadn't realized he had been holding to slip out of his lungs. He felt so drained. While he did have his Chaos Emerald on him, he was exhausted of Chaos Energy after his long mission. His only way home was on foot. His air shoes worked, but with this many trees, it would be a hazard to try and zip through them without getting caught on a protruding root.
Another loud rustle was heard, this time causing the hedgehog to stop in his tracks. His red eyes darted to the right, where the sound came from. Hesitantly, he stepped closer to the bushes, knowing that what he would find would most likely be some nocturnal rodent that had just been foraging for its dinner. But he wanted to be sure.
His senses were in overdrive. If it was a wolf or a bear, he would have to be prepared to fight. He was not intent on becoming an animal's prey tonight; Rouge would never let him forget it if he were mauled half to death.
The ebony hedgehog silently made his way towards the source of the sound. The bushes were clear, thankfully, yet something else caught his ruby gaze. On the other side of the growth was a large clearing. The moon's light painted the grass a silver color, illuminating the area for Shadow. Revealing a massive creature hunched on the opposite side of the area, just barely out of the moon's gentle glow.
Shadow inhaled sharply, watching as it pulled his jaws out of a lump of... Something on the ground, a nauseating ripping sound following its actions. The beast had two large hands placed onto the thing, keeping it held still while it chewed loudly before diving back in. This time, it slightly moved what it had been eating into the moonlight, the dark hedgehog's eyes growing wide at what he was met with.
A dead raccoon mobian, its eyes glazed with death and blood coating its tan fur a sickly crimson and deep brown. The animal continued to tear away at its flesh, a guttural growl constantly shaking its chest as it swallowed its meal in large desperate bites. It gulped down the prey with ease, sharp bloodied teeth being shown off each time it slammed its jaws together to chew.
Shadow placed a hand over his muzzle, trying to steady his breathing. He wasn't at all sickened by the sight of the dead, however he was worried about his own safety. He was lacking any kind of energy and would not stand a chance against this being, so a silent escape would be his best option. Despite not being fazed by the sight of death, he did feel a little remorseful for whatever mobian had been foolish enough to wander the woods alone at night.
Snap.
Shadow's blood ran cold.
The creature's head snapped in his direction, its eyes reflecting the moon's light, shining eerily in the dark. The large quills on its head were raised defensively and a soft growl began vibrating in its throat as it tilted its head.
He could feel the broken twig beneath his shoe, a thick ball of saliva being swallowed. The animal sniffed the air. Shadow just had to prey it wouldn't pick up his scent, but with how bad he smelled, he stood out like a sore thumb.
Large paws were placed down as the creature made its way across the clearing, keeping itself on all fours while it approached the hedgehog. Its fangs dripped with blood and saliva and its shaggy blue fur shook with every step it took; green eyes locked onto him, its pupils only small slits within their pools of emerald.
Without thinking, Shadow whipped around and tore hell for leather through the woods, leaves flying from beneath his shoes as he made haste for the city. The beast reacted quickly, not hesitating to chase the small, black hedgehog through the thick undergrowth. Shadow couldn't see it under the cover of night and trees, his only indicator that the animal was following him being the sound of its heavy paws slamming against the ground as it threw itself after him.
Shadow panted heavily. He was debating on if he should use his skates or not. It was risky, but being torn to shreds by some slobbering, blue hairball in the woods was not a way he wished to go out. One last thought, and he took off, his shoes lighting up with small flames as he shot off further into the woods, hopefully closer to the city.
Foolish decision. For not even twenty seconds on his shoes and his foot had already caught itself on a protruding arched root, twisting his ankle at a terrible angle and drawing a retched cry from his throat. Shadow stumbled forwards, body impacting with a tree which he proceeded to use as support. He couldn't tell if his foot was swollen or not through his shoe, but he really didn't have time to check. That beast could be anywhere.
His forearm was used to help push himself away from the tree, the injured foot being kept off of the ground to avoid putting pressure on it. Just as he was about to keep moving, two massive, pale blue paws slammed him back against the trunk. Shadow gasped and looked up, his ruby red eyes locking with the fiery green ones of the predator.
It huffed loudly, one massive paw place firmly over Shadow's chest, keeping him stuck while he struggled in its grasp, his heart pounding like crazy in his chest. Never had he been so frightened, but with how tired he was and lacking Chaos Energy, he was practically as good as dead.
The wolf-like creature violently shoved its muzzle into Shadow's neck, a loud yell of surprise bouncing off the trees. He thought that that was it. The beast would open its jaws and tear his throat out with one powerful bite. Yet, much to his shock, it simply began to sniff him, low rumbles still resonating through its vocal cords.
The hedgehog tried hard to steady his breathing, feeling long claws dig into his side just to keep him from squirming around in the animal's grasp. The feeling of its nose twitching against his neck made him want to shiver and try to push the hound away from him, but his current position made it near impossible.
Shadow froze.
The sensation of a wet appendage against his fur made him tense up, his pupils shrinking at the feeling. He could feel its teeth graze his flesh, but never pierce it, as if it were testing how he tasted. Deciding if he were apt to be a meal.
Its tongue swirled around lewdly, only making Shadow more and more uncomfortable by the second.
Fuck, I need a way out of this. If I don't think fast, this thing is going to snap my neck and leave me for the flies. Think... Fucking th-!
Shadow gasped when he felt the beast bite down weakly on his neck, drawing out a soft moan from his lips. He immediately shut his mouth upon realizing the noise had come from him, eyes wide. The creature just hummed, continuing to violate Shadow's neck with its tongue.
"Get off of me..!" he shouted, only to be silenced by claws digging into his side. He groaned with pain; blood pooled from the fresh wounds on his body. Shadow could tell it was still curious, now moving its nose from his neck to his chest, where it continued to sniff around, even going as far as to invade his armpits before pulling back and proceeded downwards, towards Shadow's legs.
The ebony hedgehog tried to keep them squeezed together in an attempt to tell the wolf that he wanted to be released, yet it ignored him and calmly pushed his legs apart, beginning to sniff at the inside of his thighs, still growling. Trying to assert its dominance. Inhaling deeply, Shadow gave his own attempt at a growl, his lips pulling back in a snarl, trying to show that he too was an assertive male. Unfortunately, he was simply answered with another much louder and more gruesome growl from the hound, its ears bending back and spines raising to make itself look bigger, as if it wasn't already big enough.
And then, as if nothing had happened, it returned to the inside of Shadow's thigh, leaving stains of blood all over his fur from the... Meal it had earlier. The beast's nose moved from thigh to crotch, initiating Shadow to begin his struggles again. What the hell was this thing doing!? Why hadn't it killed him yet!? And why the fuck was it so interested in his lower region!?
Its nose moved painfully close to Shadow's tail hole, both of his eyes shooting wide and his lips pulling back with disgust. "Chaos, get away from me!" he cried out, kicking the beast's shoulder. He needed a way out. Fuck, just any way out. Anything would do, as long as he wasn't near this thing anymore.
When Shadow landed another violent kick to its hairy shoulder, it finally raised its head to look at him, green eyes narrowed and muzzle wrinkled angrily, though it didn't seem as if it were going to hurt him. Only trying to tell him who was in charge. Just get off of me. Let me go. They both glared at each other for what felt like an eternity, their ears pinned to their skulls and teeth bared, though it was very clear who looked more threatening.
As it started to move its head back down to where it had been before, the first rays of the morning sun just barely peaked over the horizon, turning the inky sky a pale blue, the stars beginning to fade from sight. The animal looked up, one ear flicking. Then it grumbled lowly and pushed itself away from Shadow, letting him fall to the forest floor. It gave him one last look, licking the blood from its muzzle, and then turned around, quickly darting back into the depths of the woods without another sound.
Shadow was left panting like he had run four marathons without a break. The heart within his chest slammed painfully against his ribs as he stared into the dark undergrowth where the predator had vanished. The hedgehog's body was tattooed with bite marks and bruises. He could hardly see straight just from the shock that still remained in his body after such a paranormal encounter.
He exhaled and wiped the sweat that had begun to collect on his forehead. Chaos... It's over... It left... And I'm alive.
If he thought he was tired before, he clearly hadn't been as tired as he thought he was, because now he was completely worn out. If he hadn't almost been killed by some bizarre wolf-like beast in the woods, he would have considered just resting here for the night, but he needed to keep moving. He had no idea if that thing was on its way back or not and he wasn't about to stick around to find out. So, begrudgingly, he stood up and stretched, being sure to keep his twisted ankle off of the ground as he started his limping journey back to the city.
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A/n
Finally writing a book that isn't Alastor related omfg... I hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter! More to come soon...