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The rain had turned the forest road into a sheet of black glass.
Rhian barely had time to see the fallen tree before Rafal shouted.
“Rhian!”
The steering wheel jerked.
Tires screamed against the wet pavement. The car spun once, twice, and then everything disappeared into darkness.
When Rhian opened his eyes, he couldn't understand what he was seeing.
The forest looked enormous.
The moon seemed impossibly bright.
And the ground was beneath him.
He tried to sit up.
Instead, four paws pressed into the muddy earth.
Rhian froze.
He looked down.
Brown and black fur covered his legs.
A long, dark tail moved behind him.
His breathing became quick and frightened as he stumbled toward a puddle.
A wolf stared back.
Brown fur covered most of its body, streaked with deep black along its back, ears, and legs.
Rhian stepped backward.
The reflection did the same.
“No…”
The sound that came from his throat was a low, confused whine.
Then he heard something behind him.
Heavy footsteps.
Rhian spun around.
A second wolf emerged from the trees.
Dark brown fur.
Broad shoulders.
Bright eyes reflecting the moonlight.
Rafal.
For several seconds, neither moved.
Then Rafal slowly lowered his head.
Rhian recognized the expression immediately.
Fear.
“Rafal?”
The dark-brown wolf made a quiet sound.
Not quite a growl.
Not quite a whimper.
But Rhian understood.
I'm here.
Rhian took a cautious step toward him.
Rafal stepped forward too.
They touched noses.
And somehow, despite everything, Rhian felt a little less afraid.
They turned back toward the wreck.
The car lay crumpled against the trees, smoke curling from beneath the hood. Their clothes were scattered across the muddy ground, but there was no sign of their human bodies.
Only two sets of pawprints led away from the wreck.
Rhian stared at the destruction.
“We were supposed to die.”
Rafal looked at him.
Rhian's ears flattened.
“But we're not dead.”
A distant howl rose somewhere beyond the trees.
Both wolves went still.
Another howl answered.
Then another.
Rhian's instincts screamed at him to run.
Rafal moved in front of him.
Protective.
Fearless.
Rhian pressed against his side.
For the first time since the accident, he didn't feel alone.
They ran.
Through the forest.
Between ancient trees and silver pools of moonlight.
Rhian discovered that his new body could move faster than anything he'd ever known. His paws barely touched the ground. Rafal raced beside him, dark brown fur disappearing into the shadows before appearing again beneath the moon.
Eventually, they reached the top of a hill.
Below them stood a small town.
Lights flickered through the darkness.
People were searching the roads.
Emergency vehicles surrounded the wreckage.
Rhian watched silently.
“They'll find the car,” he whispered.
Rafal looked toward the town.
Then back at him.
Rhian sighed.
“What are we supposed to do now?”
Rafal lifted his head.
A strange calm settled over him.
Then he howled.
The sound echoed across the valley.
Rhian stared.
A smile somehow found its way onto his face.
“You really think this is going to be okay?”
Rafal looked at him.
Rhian understood the answer.
No.
But they would face it together.
Rhian raised his head beside him.
And together, the brown-and-black wolf and the dark-brown wolf howled at the moon.
Their old lives were gone.
Whatever waited beyond the forest, they would meet it as wolves.
Together.