I woke up in the middle of the night to howling. Angry, lonely howls. Instantly I jumped upright. The noise sounded far, but close enough to make me uncomfortable. Another howl pierced the night, and it was closer. There was nowhere for me to run. Darkness stretched out everywhere I looked. No one could save me out here.

They emerged from the darkness. Black pelts glistening, lips pulled back from their teeth. There was six of them. I had heard of wolves before, but these were massive. Their eyes glowed bright red. These were sinister creatures, and they wanted me. The pack crept in closer, blocking any means of escape.

There was only one way for me to go; down. Turning around, I threw myself into the lake. Cold water flooded into my nose and wrapped itself around my body. The cold woke me up, making the situation feel even more real. Fear multiplied like bacteria in my heart. I thrashed about in the lake, not knowing which way was up or down. Letting my body relax, I let gravity do the work and bring me to the surface. I emerged sputtering, vomiting up water and algae. When the water was out of my eyes, I saw that the wolves were padding the water with their paws. It wouldn't stop them.

I didn't know how to swim, but I managed to push my body through the ice-cold pool, as far into the middle of the lake as I could. My only hope was that they were worse swimmers than I was. Behind me, a splash told me that one of the wolves had braved jumping into the water. The rest followed suite.

They were faster than I was. Even awkwardly splashing with tqo front paws gave them faster movement than I could ever manage. The first one was close enough for me to smell rancid meat and unwashed fur. I could see how enlarged his pupils were, and that they were locked onto me; the predator hunting his prey.

He snapped and threw his body at me, digging sharp claws into my forearms. I screamed out in pain and tried to pull away, but his grip was too tight. It was like a fishing hook sinking into my skin, and the wolf only pulled me closer to his teeth.

This was a game. I didn't think I would feel such intense fear. I didn't think I would feel pain.

I saw his mouth open wide and start towards me, coming at my neck. And then there was a yelp. Blood exploded outward, coating my face and steaming in my eyes. More yelps followed. The body of the wolf that had his claws inside my skin suddenly slumped. His body began to sink, and it brought me down with him. Before my head went underwater, I swallowed a last breathe of air, then all I felt was a cool darkness. We sunk deeper and deeper. So deep I could feel the sea grass squishing underneath my toes. I tried my best to escape his grasp, managing to remove most of his claws from me, but his heavy body was on top of me, pinning me to the bottom of the lake.

I could imagine myself under here for the rest of eternity, slowly dissolving in the water. I felt my mind slipping. until there was nothing left but silence.