Chapter 5

Despite being smaller and completely intact, the vehicle was abandoned quickly.It still has the gas pump nozzle stuck inside.Apart from the fact that no one is present, the four scratch marks on the vehicle's back are the only unusual feature.

Scottleans enter the gas station by breaking through the door.Two feet that protrude from behind are identified by a blood trail.They still radiate a distinct red glow.

Scott makes a brief pause before entering.he tries to be quiet, but the glass fragments under his sneakers crunch and crack.he stops moving, and everything quietens once more as it is the only sound in the area.

Even though Scott is aware of what he is about to see, the station's still silence still feels ominous.he walks around the corner one step at a time to bring the body into view.His arms are spread out in front of him as he lies on the ground.His shirt has a dark red stain because his eyes are closed.The young man is surrounded by a pool of fresh blood, and his clothes indicate that he worked as a clerk at the gas station.He is also extremely human.A normal man in his twenties with no big body, long arms, or weird face.a human man who was dead and in his 20s.

He feels his heart rate rise and his fingers and toes tingle, but this is no clouding hysteria in his head because he is aware that the human reaction would be to panic.merely rigid focus.

he moves closer than yelling.Although closer examination reveals that Astrid was not killed by bullets, Astrid's initial thought was that someone had shot him.Instead, he appears to have died from five severe stab wounds in his chest.a monstrosity.he makes a head turn.As he looks around the small store, his heart jumps, almost expecting something to stand in one of the shadowy areas.The stock doesn't seem particularly upset.A half that has collapsed is the only thing out of place.

his heart is pierced like a knife by sorrow.Thise was no struggle.No real struggle.Is it possible that something entered, brutally murdered him, and then ?

Scott has the impression that someone is watching his.he feels paranoia and fear in his bones as eyes that aren't those poke holes in his back until they see a display case next to the cashier.Although it doesn't look very appealing, it's filled with warmed gas station food, and Astrid knows right away that he needs to eat.

The unease is pushed away, almost as if he had been hypnotized.Fear and sadness, muted by hunger.his feet carry his past the corpse and around the counter, avoiding the blood on the floor.his eyes scan the options and focus on a sandwich that looks good.Even though it's completely icy, it seems better than nothing.

He walks over to the drinks and grabs a bottle of Coca-Cola from the help as he stuffs his mouth with the unappetizing combination of bread, salad, salami, and some kind of sauce.

A bottle cap falls to the ground, giving off a brief hiss and a quiet ping.

Scott thinks, as he gulps down the sweet liquid, "I never knew crappy gas station food could make you feel so strong and generally awesome."

The first sandwich is followed by a second and a third sandwich.Every bite makes him feel better.It makes him forget about the corpse and his recent near-death experience.

The pain in his shoulder reminds him of something else he needs to do as his stomach grows larger.

A first aid kit is discovered by Scott after a brief search.he takes a deep breath and looks carefully at his left shoulder wound.The blood has dried and the bleeding has already stopped.he applies the largest adhesive plaster to the wound as quickly as he can.It feels wrong to just cover it up that way, but Scott doesn't know how to properly care for a wound and thinks that if he tried, he would probably just hurt himself more.

He has eaten all seven sandwiches in the display case, but his appetite is still not satisfied.he has no idea whose all of this stuff is actually stored in his body, but he doesn't care if stuffing cake into it makes his stomach feel better.

Broken pieces of glass crunch behind his.Put your hands on your head!From behind him, a woman yells.Scott stops dead in his tracks and turns his head as he tries to shove a piece of cake down his throat.

Astrid is the target of a pistol that is held by a woman in a police uniform who is standing next to the entrance.

Astrid loses control of the Coca-Cola bottle and it breaks and falls to the ground, spilling its contents everywhere.The woman moves back to Astrid after turning his attention to the broken remains.

They stare at each other for a few seconds before an outsider yells, slightly audibly:``No one else is present."

After a brief pause, what appears to be his partner enters through the shattered door.It would appear that Scott's transformation had an impact on him as well, albeit in a different way.Even when he reaches his partner's waist, he does not.When compared to his body, his arms and legs are disproportionately small.His skin is covered in short, brown fur, and his neck is surrounded by a mane.Scott can see a fluffy tail emerging from his backside, and his eyes and cat ears appear to be too big for the rest of his body.The belt, which he has slung over his shoulder like a bandolier, is the only part of his police uniform that he still wears.A pair of underpants that he has bandaged up is the only this piece of clothing that is present on his body.He has not drawn his gun, unlike his partner.Yet.

Astrid's thoughts keep returning to them as he takes up position next to the police officer.his surprise, along with any fears or thoughts, vanish as his vision appears to narrow.he notices, for some reason, that the gun is pointed slightly below his collarbone.he feels a strange, out-of-character urge to duck to the right and lunge at the danger.

"Did you murder him?"The officer inquires.

Scottto is brought out of the trance-like state he was in just a moment ago by his words.he realizes that a single pull of the trigger is all it takes for a bullet to kill his.Fear of death and, by extension, the weapon pointed at his fill his rational thoughts.

He responds, his mouth still full of cake, "No... "he takes a swallow and then quickly adds,``I have no weapons.he drops the remaining food he is holding and raises his hands above his head to emphasize his lack of weapons.

As he examines every aspect of his, he observes the small policeman's eyes move.Through the fur, it's impossible to read his expression.he does not appear to be armed.In addition, the person who killed him did not use a firearm.he informs his human companion.he gives a brief nod to him.

"Okay, but don't try to be funny.“,he informs Scottas that he lowers his weapon and returns it to its holster.

Scott Relaxes and puts his hands back down after the danger has passed.

He watches as the two police officers examine the body more closely.

Despite the fact that he is no longer in danger, the stress continues to permeate his body and slow down his heartbeat.Despite his lack of fear of the two police officers, he still struggles to speak;Are you aware of the situation?his voice sounds much more confident than he expected or felt, which surprised his.

The police officer tilts his head.We don't, no.Following the emergency transmission, the police radio stopped working.After that, a strange fog appeared, our vehicle broke down, and we became unconscious.My partner had changed into... I didn't even know what he was when we woke up.

"So, what should we do now?"Scottasks.

"Our chief of police lives nearby in a short distance."“Noah- I mean Mr. Turner said he’ll know what to do,” he says with a nod to his partner.

Noah, who is examining the clerk's body, looks up when he hears his name.You ought to accompany us.He nods to the deceased man and turns to face the officer.However, I believe we have a problem.Neithis a knife nor a gun were used to cause these wounds.The thing that killed him has vicious claws.

The woman grunts.We have weapons.

The policeman's mouth is twitching in the fur.Don't get arrogant.I've heard of a boar cutting off the leg of an armed man.He suddenly turns stiff as stone and tilts his head.

"What's going on?"He asks Scott.

His face is filled with fear.When he responds, "Something is coming," his voice is barely audible.

Astrid's ears are met with silence as they all turn into still statues and listen for any sound that might indicate an approaching monster.

Noah crouches, yelling, "Hide!,"while he leaps from behind .

He also hears Scottw wondering what's wrong with him:a low stomp.

He slowly turns to examine the source.

A creature that is taller than the gas pumps can be found right outside the store.It has a thick coat of brown feathers that look like they are thin on its body.It has two legs and stands like a human.It looks at them with yellow eyes from a head that looks like an owl with big jaws.The monster is poised to slash its prey with its crest-shaped arms.Each of its five fingers has a massive, dagger-like claw on it, and it can extend them from either hand.Three craters in its coat on its chest indicate the locations whose three bullets struck it.

The police officer fires from his gun holster, seemingly out of instinct.Scott Has has never heard anything so audible before.The piercing bangs that the weapon makes with each pull of the trigger were never even close to being captured on television.Scott is unable to see who's or if the creature was struck by the bullets.he can only tell that the gun does nothing for all the noise it makes.The monster lets go of the bullets and lets out a ferocious roar.