D&D 5e // Changeling // lvl 4 Barbarian, Path of the Beast // lvl 2 Druid, Circle of the Moon

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The group huddled close to the fire, not for the cold, but for fear of the dark. The woods were thick on this part of the road, and stories always milled about the beasts of the dark. People always spoke about how their gods would protect them, save them. But there, in the dead of night, the crackle of the fire threw the sound back enough to play tricks on their ears. “Mother protect me,” one of them whispered repeatedly. The familiar tremble of his voice giving away the fact that the mantra was uttered out of fear more than devotion. The fire gave them warmth and light, but the trees cast long shadows in the other space, more tricks on the senses.

“Stop it,” the older man said. “You’re afraid of nothin’. There’s nothin’ out here but us.”

“They told us not to camp in the woods when we were in town,” the woman said. “All of the stories about travelers disappearing or being wounded by some unnatural animals from the dark.”

“Oh, fuck off with ‘at,” the older man shouted. “We know those things exist in the world, so what difference does it make if they show up at night in the woods?” The other two shared a look and shrugged in hesitant agreement.

“I still think we should’ve made camp before the tree line. Nothing wrong with being cautious,” the younger man said.

“And we’ll just show up late with the urgent news to bring to the other lords? Because we wasted half a fuckin’ day with our thumbs up our arses because you two were afraid of the fuckin’ dark?” The older man waved a hand at the other two. “Not about to lose my head because you two are shit eatin’ cowards.”

The two stared at him with a panic in their eyes like they’d seen the dead rise from their graves. “What?” He asked, and looked behind him, seeing nothing besides the flickering firelight on the trees and his own shadow, the empty black space that seemed to grow unnaturally wide and deep. He looked back at them and said, “There ain’t nothin’ there! You couple fuckin’ children!” He looked into the darkness again just in time to see the spiny tail jolt out and pierce him in the eye.

The two remaining screamed in horror, dropping whatever they held as they immediately backed from the fire, watching as the dire wolf padded into view. It’s fur was splotched with different colors here and there, and patches of it were missing, the revealed skin itself mottled and poxed. The spiny tail that ran from its hind was free of fur and far more prehensile than a wolf’s tail, the scales on it muscular and tensing as it shook off the body that stuck to its appendage. The wolf growled, it’s teeth slick with a sickly red and black ichor. Barking suddenly, the other too stumbled back again, the woman tripping on a bag and falling on her back. The beast leapt at her, and the man immediately turned and ran blindly into the dark of the woods. After feasting on the woman, the creature let out a piercing howl that echoed through the trees.

The man never came back for his compatriots or their belongings. They never do.

The creature hunched as if in pain, curling into itself as it stood on its hind legs. The tail withered and receded into the skin as the fur fell away in matted clumps.

Regaining proper senses and bearings I stood upright, naked next to the fire. I looked over at the dead older man, the gaping hole bleeding into the woodland dirt. “There’s advantages to hunting at night.” I shrugged and began to rifle through their things. “Of course, telling you doesn’t help you now.” I sniffed a bit of wrapped cheese and packed it in the bag. Stripping the clothes off the two, I put on the man’s attire and stashed the other. Satisfied with the pickings, I kicked dirt into the fire to snuff it, and left the bodies for the other animals. Walking away from the campsite, I called out over my shoulder to the dead, “Told you to make camp outside of the woods,” and began to whistle a tune on my stroll back to my cave.