The Wolf of Everfree

Trixie wasn't sure where she was, exactly. But she did know that it was a dark forest at night. However, it wasn't a normal forest.

Streams of shadows were blowing from the dark trees as if blown by a wind Trixie couldn't feel. She didn't know where she was, but she had a feeling that she was heading towards a desired destination. As she walked, she couldn't help but get the feeling that she was being watched.

She walked out into a large clearing with the same dark trees all around. It felt like she had to be in the clearing for some reason.

Many dark shapes emerged from the trees on the opposite side of where Trixie stood. The shapes took the form of huge wolves with glowing golden eyes. The shadowy wolves parted for another shape emerging from behind them.

The form of a tall bipedal creature emerged from behind the wolves. It was tall and thin, but gave off a sense of great strength. Its head was somewhat wolf-like, with pointed ears and a shortened muzzle. It gazed at Trixie with bright icy-blue eyes and held out a clawed hand to Trixie.

"Come to me," the creature said in an echoed voice.

Trixie woke up with a start. She threw off a set of covers covering her body. A cold sweat poured from her forehead and her heartrate was through the roof.

Now that she was awake, Trixie saw that she was in a hospital room. She looked to the sides of her bed and saw the classic machines one was normally hooked up to. Trixie looked to her arm and saw an IV hooked up to a bag of saline and another one hooked up to a bag of A-positive blood. A nurse walked in and smiled to see Trixie awake.

"Miss Lulamoon, you're awake! That's good!" the nurse said. "I'm Nurse Redheart, you're nurse helping you recover".

"How long have I been asleep?" Trixie asked.

"About a whole day," Nurse Redheart replied. "But that makes sense, given your injuries".

"My injuries?"

"You don't remember? You were attacked by an animal at Camp Everfree. You're lucky to be alive".

"My friends, are they okay?"

"They're fine. They've barely left your side until we had to take you in for surgery. Funny thing, though, some of your wounds seemed to just disappear before we started".

"Well, I strangely feel a lot better".

"Good. Still though, the doctor thinks you should remain here for a while for a few tests. We vaccinated you for rabies while you were unconscious but we want to test your blood for other viruses just in case".

"Fine. Whatever gets me out of here faster".

Trixie laid back in her bed with a slight ache in her throat. Nurse Redheart smiled.

"Is there anything I can get you?" she asked.

"Well, I do feel pretty hungry and thirsty," Trixie said.

"I'll get you food and water right away," Redheart said.

Once Redheart left, Trixie laid back wondering about her dream.

"What the fuck was that dream about?" she asked herself.

A dream about a dark forest, wolves, and a tall monster telling her to go to it. That left Trixie feeling weirded out. Why would she be dreaming about stuff like that? Maybe it had something to do with that thing that attacked her. Her train of thought was interrupted by Nurse Redheart returning to her room with a tray full of food and a small cup of water. The growling in her stomach kicked it up to high-gear at the sight of food.

"Okay, Trixie, I brought you some chicken breast, some mashed potatoes, some applesauce, and water," Redheart said.

As soon as Redheart set the tray down on her bed, Trixie grabbed hold of the food and ate it with her bare hands. She didn't even acknowledge the plastic knife and fork she was given. Nurse Redheart looked at her with surprise.

"Well, it's nice to see you've got an appetite," Redheart said with a smile.

Trixie laid back on the bed with satisfaction. Redheart went to the window next to Trixie's bed.

"It's a bit dark in here. We should let you get some sun," Redheart said before opening the window.

The light suddenly thrust into the room made Trixie's eyes feel like they were on fire. She thrust her hands in front of her eyes and gave a growl.

"Shut the blinds!!" she shouted.

Nurse Redheart shut the blinds quickly. Once she did, Trixie looked around with relief. But as she did, Nurse Redheart noticed that Trixie's eyes had changed. They looked at her with a shining glow, like an animal's eyes at night. She found herself staring intently at Trixie's eyes.

"What's wrong?" Trixie asked.

"N-nothing! I was just surprised by you shouting, that's all," Redheart replied.

"Sorry about that. It's just that my eyes feel sensitive to light," Trixie said.

"Nothing to worry about," Redheart said. "Also, since most of your injuries have healed up nicely, you should be discharged later tonight".

"That's nice to hear. I'm sure my friend Lavender is worried sick about me," Trixie said.

Nurse Redheart left with the mental note of taking some of Trixie's blood for testing. Seeing Trixie's eyes shining made her uneasy. If there was something wrong, her blood would reveal it.

Jawbone Jed's Cabin

In the woods far outside the city of Canterlot was a simple-looking cabin home to Jawbone Jed, the town hermit with a prosthetic leg and scars on his face. He made a decent living making and selling wood carvings and growing beautiful flowers for people. Apart from that, he was an experienced outdoorsman. He was planning to settle down for the night with his two dogs when the news channel came on.

"And this just in: a young teenage camper was found dead on the grounds of Camp Everfree yesterday morning," the news anchor said. "Authorities believe it to be an animal attack. All the campers have been sent home for there own safety."

"But that's not the only interesting thing. Apparently, one of the other campers was attacked, but managed to survive," the second anchor said. "She's now in the hospital receiving treatment for her injuries. But it's weird since there are no large predators in this side of the nation anymore. What's weirder is that the tracks found don't match any known animal".

Jed's eyes went outside to look at the moon. Once again, the moon was full and bright. It seemed that the beast had resurfaced. One of the victims survived, too. That was even worse for everyone. Jed walked over to a small box on the mantlepiece and pulled out a necklace. The necklace was a simple leather strap with long fangs tied to them. Jed stroked each one of the teeth.

"I'm sorry, guys. It looks like things have gotten bad again," Jed said with his deep Southern accent. "But I may not be able to do much this time. I hope y'all can give me the strength to fight".

Jed had gotten up and went to his dogs next. The two hounds licked at his face in excitement. Jed chuckled slightly. These dogs had been with him forever.

"I hope you two are ready for a hunting trip," Jed said.

Both the dogs barked with excitement. Jed then got up and walked over to the entrance to his basement. He would have to prepare himself for hunting once again. He wouldn't let anyone die on his watch.