🦋ALTHEA
The baleful sound permeated the air, vibrating in my marrow. I stood frozen as the transformation began all around me; the gruesome, rhythmic symphony of snapping bones and tearing fabric.
Even the infants seemed to hear the sound and recognise it. They did not fuss, nor did they cry. They simply clung to the fur of whoever carried them, as if knowing to brace for what was coming for them.
A force met my back, pushing me forward with a buck.
I still knew exactly who it was. "You cannot shift," he said, his head dipping lower, slowly, like he had all the time in the world. I gasped involuntarily; even now, my body reacted before me. His breath fanned across my ear from behind, caressing my cheek. "Do not let the song settle in your bones. If you hear a voice you remember, it's a lie—"
The howling in the dark wood went on, louder, rising higher, a crescendo.
