The training pitch was filled with whispers.
Everyone had witnessed what Caarice had just done. The boy who used to struggle against ordinary players had suddenly moved faster than anyone on the pitch.
Even Coach Jackson could hardly believe his eyes.
COACH JACKSON: Caarice! Come here for a moment.
Caarice walked toward him, trying to hide his confusion.
COACH JACKSON: Where did you learn to play like that?
CAARICE: I don't know, Coach. I just felt different today.
COACH JACKSON: Different? You passed three defenders before they could even react. If you keep playing like this, you might earn a place in the first team.
Caarice smiled.
CAARICE: Thank you, Coach.
From the other side of the pitch, Caxton watched him with narrowed eyes.
He hated what he had just witnessed.
For years, he had been the most feared player at school. Nobody dared challenge him, and everyone praised his skills. But now, a boy he had always considered weak was attracting everyone's attention.
CAXTON: Enjoy your little moment, Caarice. I'll make sure it doesn't last.
Jane touched Caxton's shoulder.
JANE: What's wrong with you? You look like you've swallowed a stone.
CAXTON: Stay out of this, Jane.
Jane raised her eyebrows but said nothing.
Meanwhile, Milicent was watching Caarice from a distance.
She had noticed something strange about him since the morning. First, he had heard her conversation from an impossible distance. Then he had somehow known she needed a pen. Now he was moving around the pitch like someone with extraordinary abilities.
MILICENT: There's something about that boy.
JANE: Caarice? Don't tell me you're already interested in him.
Milicent laughed.
MILICENT: Interested? I barely know his name.
JANE: That's what they all say.
The two girls laughed as they left the pitch.
But Milicent glanced back one more time.
Caarice happened to look in her direction, and their eyes met.
For a moment, neither of them looked away.
Then Caarice quickly turned his face.
LENNY, who had been standing beside him, burst into laughter.
LENNY: Bro! What was that?
CAARICE: What was what?
LENNY: Don't pretend you didn't see her looking at you.
CAARICE: Just shut up, Lenny.
LENNY: My brother is becoming a football star and a ladies' man on the same day. I need to write this down.
Caarice pushed him playfully, and both boys laughed.
For the first time in a long while, Caarice felt as if his life might finally be changing for the better.
Unfortunately, he had no idea how dangerous that change could become.
---
THE STRANGE HUNGER
After school, Caarice rode his bicycle home.
The afternoon sun was slowly disappearing behind the trees. As he passed a small shop, he suddenly felt an overwhelming hunger.
His stomach twisted painfully.
He stopped beside the road and leaned against a tree.
CAARICE: What's happening to me?
His breathing became heavier.
He could hear everything around him—the wings of insects, the movement of leaves, and even the distant footsteps of someone walking through the grass.
Then he smelled something.
Blood.
A man nearby had accidentally cut his finger while repairing a bicycle. The tiny scent reached Caarice's nose, and something deep inside him reacted.
His eyes turned yellow.
His fingers tightened around the bicycle handle until the metal began to bend.
CAARICE: No... no, this isn't normal.
He closed his eyes and forced himself to breathe.
Slowly, the strange hunger faded.
When he opened his eyes again, they had returned to normal.
Terrified, he looked at his hand.
The bicycle handle was damaged.
How could he have done that?
He remembered the bite in Black Hub Forest. He remembered the creature's glowing eyes and the terrible pain that had followed.
Perhaps Lenny had been right about one thing: whatever had bitten him was not an ordinary wolf.
Caarice climbed onto his bicycle and hurried home.
He needed answers.
---
A SECRET AT HOME
When Caarice arrived, his younger brother was sitting in the living room watching television.
BROTHER: You're late. Did you get defeated again at training?
Caarice ignored him and headed toward his bedroom.
BROTHER: Hey! I'm talking to you!
CAARICE: Not today. I'm tired.
His brother laughed.
BROTHER: Since when did you become so important?
Caarice stopped at the doorway.
For years, he had endured the jokes, the insults, and the feeling that he would never be good enough.
But today, something inside him wanted to turn around and show everyone what he could do.
His fists clenched.
A low growl escaped his throat.
He froze.
Did he really just growl?
His brother stopped laughing.
BROTHER: What was that sound?
CAARICE: Nothing.
Caarice quickly entered his bedroom and locked the door.
He sat on his bed and pulled up his sleeve to examine the bite mark.
The wound had almost disappeared.
Only a faint silver line remained on his skin.
Suddenly, a sharp pain spread through his arm.
He fell to his knees.
Images flashed through his mind: a moonlit forest, a pack of wolves, and a massive black wolf standing on top of a rocky hill.
The wolf stared directly at him.
Then a deep voice echoed inside his head.
MYSTERIOUS VOICE: You have finally begun to awaken.
Caarice pressed his hands against his ears.
CAARICE: Who are you? Get out of my head!
The voice answered with a chilling calmness.
MYSTERIOUS VOICE: You are no longer the weak human you once were.
Caarice's eyes widened.
MYSTERIOUS VOICE: The blood of the Alpha flows through your veins.
The vision disappeared.
Caarice remained on the floor, struggling to catch his breath.
Alpha?
What did that mean?
Before he could think further, his phone vibrated.
It was a message from an unknown number.
I know what happened to you in Black Hub Forest.
A second message arrived.
And if you want to survive, do not go outside when the moon rises tonight.
Caarice stared at the screen.
Who was sending him these messages?
And how did they know about the forest?
Outside his window, the evening sky was turning dark.
Far beyond the houses, somewhere inside Black Hub Forest, a wolf howled.
Caarice felt the sound deep in his bones.
Then, without warning, his eyes turned bright yellow.
A smile slowly appeared on his face.
For the first time in his life, he was no longer afraid of the darkness.
The darkness was beginning to recognize him.
TO BE CONTINUED...