328 years ago:
When the first torch touched the kindling at the base of the wooden pole, Mary Sturgess moaned and writhed against the rope binding her in place. She dug her bare feet into the dirt underneath her as if to dig her way out and away. The wood to her left caught quickly and she felt the sudden heat in the warm night air. The first Elder stepped back, his eyes shining in the flickering light. The second Elder stepped forward and quickly set his torch to the wood to Mary’s right. Younger than the other two and only just raised to his rank, he didn’t raise his eyes to the woman in front of him. The younger man’s hand trembled so badly that it took three thrusts before the flames caught.
Fire licked at Mary’s feet and her flesh boiled. She screamed and tried to pull her feet away but her binding was done well. “Mayor!” She screamed. “Mayor Whitham, please! I beg of you! You can stop this. Oh, dear Lord, you can still stop this, please!”
The third Elder stepped forward, pushing past the other two. “You dare? You dare call on the Lord, our savior for succor? Did you listen when the babe cried for his mother? Did you listen then?” The mayor’s face contorted into a mask of rage and he stepped closer. His lips pulled back in a snarl as he approached the woman. He could feel the intense heat around him but his own blood boiled hotter in his anger. The hem of Mary’s dress billowed too close to the fire and she screamed when the thick fabric started to burn. “The Lord has no mercy for one tainted by Satan. Get used to the flames, witch. For, where you go, the flames burn yet hotter.”
Mary spate at the Mayor and he wiped his face while he lit the last stack of wood. His eyes never left Mary’s eyes. Four children. All thought lost to the elements until they found the fourth tied to a stump in the woods. Young Mary held a skinning knife in her hand and she was bloody up to her elbows. The child had been opened from navel to neck and most of his blood was collected in a bowl. The young child’s mother stood weeping in the crowd behind him.
Bloody sores were opening and oozing around blackened skin along Mary’s thighs as the flames burned higher. “Damn you!” She screamed. “Damn you all. I curse you and your small minds. I curse you in the name of my protector, Lord Taelish of the Seven Eyes! I curse you to-” Mary’s voice rose to a sudden shriek as her charred feet split open and her beautiful golden hair caught fire.
The mayor stepped back, his eyes feverish in his faith. He made the sign of the cross and, in a voice ringing with the strength of his devotion, he led the small group of villagers in prayer for the children’s unbaptized souls.
2013:
“No, listen. I’m not inviting her to my birthday party and I don’t care what she does.” Trish held her cell phone against her ear while she carefully added a layer of polish to her toe. She set the brush back into the bottle and looked at her toes with a critical eye. All smooth and even and not a ripple of paint. “Her parents? Are you kidding me? My dad runs this damn city now. He could buy Becky’s dad’s company tomorrow if he wanted. So, she can run and whine to her parents all she wants but I’ll make sure my dad knows that I don’t want her here. She’s a little whore. No, I saw her with Trevor.” Trish lay back on her pillows with her feet out in front of her. She wriggled her toes, enjoying the feel of the small cotton balls between them. She grabbed her stuffed lion and held it to her chest while she talked. She’d had the little toy since she was a child and, even at 17 years of age it still calmed her. She liked to snuggle it between her modest breasts and feel the softness against them.
The conversation with her friend turned to other things – school, the teachers they hated and the few they liked and then, finally, what Trish thought she was going to get for her birthday. She felt sure she’d get a car. She’d seen her dad looking at car magazines and he wasn’t the type to bother with things like that. Usually he had his nose stuck in a business journal or the local newspaper so she was sure it’d be a car. Every year she expected one for her birthday but her parents told her again and again that a car was a serious privilege. They just couldn’t understand how it made her feel at school to be dropped off by her mom every morning. Especially when they were the richest family in the city.
Finally, Trish hung up on her friend. She glanced at the clock and smiled – nearly time for her date. Tossing away the cotton balls, she sat in front of her lit mirror and worked on her makeup. Fifteen minutes later, she closed her desk drawer and then turned her face left and right to admire her work. If there were one thing she was proud of (and there were many) it was how good she was at her makeup. A touch here, a brush here and it looked like she was wearing hardly anything at all. Next, she grabbed a short sleeve dark green top and a black bra. She hummed a simple little tune while picking through her panties until she settled on a pair of silky black ones. Her lucky panties. Although, she reminded herself, she didn’t plan on getting lucky in that way any time soon. A black skirt completed the outfit.
It took fifty strokes of her brush until she was happy with her shoulder-length auburn hair. She thought about using a bow to tie it back but decided to let it hang free. The lights around the mirror made it look like her hair was on fire as she looked. Silky and shiny and a fine mix of brown and red. Her hair was yet another point of pride for her.
Trish’s phone buzzed the text message she’d received told her Trevor was waiting. “Time to go,” she said aloud. She grabbed her phone and her purse and opened her door. The plush white hallway carpeting absorbed her steps as she made her way to the staircase and then down. Her little sister was watching cartoons on the couch and her parents were in the kitchen. She heard her mother laugh and she walked in on the two sharing a smiling kiss. Trish rolled her eyes and stepped around a new batch of her father’s campaign signs.
“Dad,” she said. “The election is over. When are you going to get rid of these things?”
Her father turned to her and grinned. “Hey, kiddo. I was actually thinking about using them for wallpaper. What do you think? The walls filled with ‘Elect Mayor Whitman – The Best Man for the Best City’ signs. Eh? Eh? Good, right? You could stare at them while you fall asleep. Better than your Bieber posters, yeah?”
“Daaaad,” Trish whined. “Come on. I don’t listen to him anymore. You know that. I have to go. My ride is here.” The young girl turned and walked to the front door and her father followed her.
“Hey, Trish.” Her dad’s eyes were semi-serious. “You be good with that Trevor boy, all right? I know you’re smart but I remember being a kid. Keep your phone on you and call if you need something. I’ll be in a meeting late but I’ll come get you if you call. Okay? Promise? And text me with where you are?”
Trish sighed. “Dad, I know. I’m not going to do anything. We’re just going to get something to eat and hang out for a while. I’ll be safe and I’ll call if something happens. I gotta go.” Trish went to her tip-toes and gave her father a quick kiss on the cheek as she opened the door and left. She heard his whispered ‘I love you.’ but ignored it as usual.
Trevor’s black Dodge Challenger rumbled at the end of their driveway. The heavily tinted windows were rolled down and she could see her boyfriend staring at his phone. She walked a little faster and felt herself blush. Trevor was, in her opinion, the most handsome boy at her school. And, definitely the star basketball player. Over six feet tall and a dancer on the court. Sometimes she thought about writing poetry about him but she blushed furiously every time she tried. Trevor shut off his phone and looked up when she got to the passenger side. He grinned at her and she could see the slight spacing between his two front teeth. Trish thought it was adorable, even if he hated it.
“Hop in, beautiful.” He told her.
Trish settled in the car and buckled herself in while Trevor shifted gears. The car growled to life and lurched forward. Trevor’s hand settled on Trish’s thigh and she felt a warmth in her cheeks. A large part of her wished he wouldn’t do that but a very small part of her loved how his large, strong hand felt against her leg.
Trevor watched the traffic while he talked. “I thought we’d grab some food and go up to the End and sit for a while, you know? Sound good?” The young boy jerked the wheel as he changed lanes. “Jesus, man! Learn to fuckin’ drive!” Behind the heavily tinted windows, the boy flipped his middle finger to a larger truck while he passed on the right.
“Y… yeah. That sounds good, Trev. I haven’t been there before.”
The boy grumbled a bit and then glanced at Trish. “Yeah? Huh. Well, you’ll like it. You can see the whole city from there. You okay with burgers? Good.” With another sudden jerk of the wheel, the car swerved into the Terry’s Burgers. Trevor waiting impatiently in line behind other cars until his turn at the window. “Yeah, can I get two bacon burgers, a strawberry shake and… uhhh…” He looked over at Mary and then turned back to the young girl behind the window. “A veggie burger and a cup of water.”
Trish almost spoke up to say she’d take a normal burger and a Coke but her brain quickly played out the scenario. Trevor liked skinny girls and there was no way she’d take a chance at him thinking that she normally ate food like that. So, while her stomach groaned in protest, she sat quietly and waited.
“Would you come early to my party tomorrow, Trev? So you could be there with me when people show up?” She wondered if she should hold his hand while he held her thigh but she worried it’d be awkward.
“Your… oh, uhh… yeah, of course, babe. Yeah. What time does it start?”
Trish silently bristled. What the hell do you mean, what time? I’ve been talking about it all week! “Oh, five o’clock, remember? Tomorrow, at my house?”
Trevor grabbed the bags of food and then the drinks from the girl at the window. “Oh, yeah. Sure. I’ll be there early. Hey, hold this, okay? And don’t get any grease on the seats.”
Trish held the bag of food on her lap, grinding her teeth slowly at the thought of the grease getting on her new skirt. God forbid I get his car dirty, she thought.
Trevor’s car slipped in and out of traffic as he drove out of town. When the paved road turned to a small dirt road, Trevor grumbled at every little rock that dinged against the side of his car. Slowly, the road started to rise until they were climbing the large hill outside of town. Trish had lived in Portsmouth her entire life but had never gone to the hills surrounding the city. Finally, the car slowed to a stop atop the largest hill. The area opened into a huge, flat area overlooking the entire city. Trish stepped out of the car and took a quick breath. The air seemed to shimmer with an unnatural heat and there was a dryness in the air that, living next to a busy sea port, she was completely unused to.
In the middle of the clearing , a large blackened rock towered over the area. Smaller black rocks were scattered around with other plain white stones. Trevor carried the two cups over to the large rock and sat against it, facing the city in the distance. Trish swallowed and followed him. There were no trees or bushes and no small animals scurried for cover while she walked. The air felt dead around her.
When Trish settled with her back against the rock, she hissed and sat up. The large black rock felt like a furnace against her back. She looked at Trevor but he seemed to not notice or care as he sat trying to suck his milkshake through the straw. Trish rolled her shoulders and took her small burger from the bag. With a silent sigh, she bit into the burger and ate. Trevor finished his first burger when she was half-way done with hers. His second was finished just as she ate her last bite. Her ice water was tepid and tasted of some odd chemical but she was extremely thirsty so she drank it anyway. Trevor tossed his wrappers to the ground and then put his arm around Trish.
“You like it?” He asked.
Trish nodded. “Yeah, it’s pretty. I’ve never seen the whole city before.” The city lights were twinkling as the sun set behind them. Portsmouth was a busy city, even at night. Trish could make out the blinking lights on the crane working downtown. Bank of America was building a ten story office downtown and it was the largest in the city. The city spread out for miles below them.
“Well, you should. Your dad’s the mayor now. A hundred and fifty thousand people. Look at all of them.” Trevor’s hand slipped lower until she felt his fingers brush against her breast. She shivered at his touch but ignored the feeling. Or, tried to until he started groping her with his large hands.
“Trev, stop. You know I’m not ready for any of that.”
Trevor’s hand continued squeezing her slowly. “Come on, babe. You’re my girlfriend. This is what we do. Boyfriend and girlfriend. Relax.”
Trish bit her lip and did her best to ignore the clumsy way Trevor was squeezing her until she felt him pinch her nipple. She squeaked and pushed herself away from him. “No, I’m not like that, Trev. You know I’m not. Come on, let’s just sit here and watch the sun set.”
Trevor threw his hands up and rolled his eyes. “Fine, Jesus. All right.” Trish settled back against the boy and his arm held her close. She wanted to talk to him but his silence was oppressive and purposeful. After a few minutes, Trevor’s hand again touched Trish’s right breast and she felt his fingers rub against her.
Trish stood. “Trevor. Stop. I’m not doing this with you. Not right now. So either calm down or drive me home.”
Trevor frowned at her. “Why you gotta be such a… you gotta be so cold, Trish? We’re just playing around. It’s harmless. Come on.”
“No. I’m serious, Trevor. I’m waiting on this.”
Trevor’s frown deepened and he stared at the young woman. Minutes passed until finally he spoke again. “I been talking with Becky. I’m wondering if maybe you and me aren’t right for each other.”
Trish’s face was suddenly burning and she knew it wasn’t the unnatural heat. “You… Becky?”
“Yeah. Becky. She makes me laugh and she ain’t so fucking hard-headed like you are. I’m thinking we should maybe break up, Trish.”
“Oh… oh, Trevor. But… my birthday…”
Trevor shrugged. “I could still come if you want me to. Just not with you.”
Trish felt the tears rolling down her hot cheeks. She couldn’t remember walking back to Trevor but she was suddenly in his arms, crying. His long arms wrapped her completely but he held her silently. Becky, she thought. Fucking… Becky Johnson.
“I mean… unless…” Trevor’s hand touched Trish’s breast and she felt small in his large hands. She wanted to push him away again but, what would everyone think? Frigid Trish couldn’t keep her boyfriend? They’d laugh at her. Oh god, she thought. My makeup. Oh god. I must look horrible.
Feeling like the worst person in the world, Trish turned her head up and lightly kissed Trevor’s lips. Surely just a kiss and a little feel would be okay, she told herself. That’s all it has to be and Trevor wouldn’t leave me. That’s it. Just a kiss and let him touch my- Trevor’s hand reached into her blouse and she felt his rough hands against her soft breast. She tried to tell him to stop but then his mouth was on hers and his tongue forced her mouth open. At a little over five feet tall, she was a mouse to his lion. Transfixed and powerless. She winced when he pinched her nipple and the pain went all the way down to her lower belly.
Suddenly, the rock flared in white, blinding light. It burned her and she wanted to scream. When she could see again, Trevor was on top of her and her blouse was rolled up. His fingers worked behind her until her bra became unlatched. Hot. She was burning up. Sweat rolled from her face and body. Why isn’t Trevor burning, she wondered. Oh god, I’m on fire! Oh Jesus! Waves of heat rolled over her and she gasped for air. Each breath singed her lungs with a bitter, sulfur-like taste.
Trevor’s mouth was on her nipple and she felt his tongue flick her suddenly rock hard nipple. When his teeth bit against her, the pain she felt previously was now replaced with pleasure that reached deep into her belly, loosening deep inside of her until she gasped in a sudden different kind of heat. Trish moaned, twisting her head over and over as she grabbed Trevor’s body, pulling him hard down against her. The boy’s dick slammed against her mound and she hissed out through her teeth.
Trevor moaned. “Yeah… see? That’s- hey!”
Trish felt her blood boiling. She grabbed Trevor’s chest and hip and twisted, flipping him hard on his back. Her breasts dripped sweat off of her erect nipples. Trish breathed in deeply and smelled fire and blood and her own dripping wet vagina. She rubbed herself against the boy under her, grunting as his length pressed against her suddenly engorged clit.
“Oh… okay, yeah. This is fucking great. Jesus, you’re burning up, Trish. What-” Trevor tried to reach for Trish’s chest but she growled and grabbed his hands, slamming them down to the ground. Her breasts touched his hairless chest and she pressed her nipples against him while she worked her ass up and down.
“I- Trish, I can’t move my hands. What- It hurts. Oh Jesus, Trish. I’m… Fuck! You’re too damn hot!”
A strand of perfect auburn hair fell to the ground next to Trevor. And then another. And another. Trish sat up, pressing her pussy hard against Trevor’s cock. She could feel a pinch against her waist as her ass swelled slightly, pressing hard against the band of her skirt. Her panties stretched to breaking as her hips nearly doubled in size. The fabric pulled tight between her ass cheeks and pussy lips and she moaned at the feeling of it. Now her pussy lips were bare and she rubbed them harder against Trevor’s cock. The boy’s pants were soon soaked with her pussy juice. Trish reached up to her head, grabbing and pulling and scratching. Thick pieces of hair came out as she rubbed her scalp until the ground was littered with her hair. Now, completely bald, she looked down at the boy below her.
Trevor was terrified. He struggled beneath Trish but couldn’t budge her. His dick was starting to hurt from all the rubbing she was doing. Her hips looked cartoonish with her slim upper body. As he looked down, he watched her skirt split from her growing waist. Trish’s panties were stretched to unbelievable limits until the band around them finally broke. Her pussy felt like it was on fire and the heat radiated from her body in continuous waves.
“Ow, fuck!” Trevor screamed. Something hard had cut into cock. Looking down, he could see something metallic around Trish’s clit. Something green and metallic. Trish leaned back, moaning and Trevor was thankful for the brief respite in her attentions. She reached a hand down to her pussy and he watched the tip of her pointer finger tear apart as a sharp, black claw grew out. And then another finger followed. And a third. And a fourth. Her hand was swelling to fit the talons growing into place and, when she touched herself, Trevor heard the sharp ‘click’ of a fingernail against something hard.
A scale. A large green scale had grown into place directly above her vagina. As he watched, the skin next to the scale softened and turned slightly white before fading to a light green color. The light green darkened into a nearly hexagonal scale that overlapped with the first one. Trish moaned and Trevor looked up. Her breasts were growing. The flesh around the nipples pressed out and one new-clawed hand reached up to massage the itching flesh. Her already hard nipple swelled even larger and she pinched and pulled at it, as if to encourage its growth.
Trevor hadn’t noticed when exactly she’d grown taller. She was now at least his height and perhaps bigger. Trish mewled and Trevor watched her lips and nose darken into a pure black. Her canine teeth grew, cracking and breaking the teeth next to them as they lengthened into razor points. More teeth fell out as new fangs pushed through her now black gums. The skin on the back of Trish’s hands changed color in the diming light. Smaller scales grew into place along the back of her hands and she flexed her claws as the skin changed. Her ears lengthened slightly while her hazel eyes turned a bloody shade of red.
Trish looked down at the small thing under her. She was growing. She felt her shirt snap under the strain and she smiled at the feeling of her flesh being completely freed from the restraints of clothing. The immense heat she was feeling was becoming welcome to her. No, more than that. It drove her. She felt it deep within her being like a slow building orgasm. She rubbed her massive tits and felt how rough her hands had become. Her beautiful, scaled hands. She saw black skin on her palms and saw the way the flesh swelled. The feeling of that roughness against her nipples drove her even more wild.
A pain in her lower back brought her to her hands again and she roared, rolling her shoulders as green-tinted skin pushed from the base of her spine. Trish felt a moment of vertigo and, when she blinked she saw more than before. Her vision swam with two sets of eyes and it took several dizzying moments to realize she was seeing from her eyes as well as eyes looking behind her. She turned and saw what was growing from her spine. A huge snake, as large as a boa constrictor was slowly growing from her tailbone. Inch by inch it grew, shedding its skin over and over as the scales covering it adjusted to its length. With some as-yet uncontrolled muscle, the snake turned to look at her and she saw herself.
She was three times the size of the thing underneath of her. The forgotten thing. Scales were growing up her spine and shoulder blades. Her lips and nose were black and, when she opened her mouth, her gums and tongue were the same shade. A faint light roared deep in her throat and she could feel the fire burning in her belly. Watching herself like this, she saw what caused the sudden pain near her shoulder blades. Skin and scales split apart and thin bones pushed through the openings. Something cracked on her shoulder blades and the thin, long bones pushed out further. Wet black skin hung from the bones and she could feel them cooling in the still air. Blood dripped from the wounds in her back. Further and further the bones pushed. They thickened and grew as the black skin dried. New muscles attached to new bones growing beneath her skin and she suddenly felt them. Her wings. She roared and pulled at the muscles in her back and her wings cracked open, wide and proud.
Trish rested her paw on the top of the small black rock nearby with her other paw on the ground. Small hairs were growing along the tops of her bare shoulders. Small golden hairs. More and more of them pushed through her flesh until her shoulders were covered in fur. Her jaw ached and then broke, pushing forward into a short muzzle, allowing more fangs to grow in until her mouth was full of nothing but razor sharp teeth. A lion’s mane grew around her head and sharp pricks along her muzzle signaled the growth of her whiskers. She roared again and this time it was a try lion’s roar, deep and proud. Fur pushed out along her arms and thighs and calves.
Trish stood on shaky legs, her wings automatically folded close to her body and she could feel the leathery skin against the smoothness of her scales. Her massive clawed feet thudded into the ground and her snake’s tail swayed slightly. Scales continued to form up her heavily muscled torso until they reached her breasts. She messaged them both while the skin hardened like the rest of her, leaving only her nipples as bare skin. Claws screeching against the strange metal scales. The fire raged through her body and when she screamed in pleasure, a jet of red and black roared from her mouth, sitting fire to trees outside of the clearing. Her wings beat the air, fanning the flames until they spread quickly.
Another moment of vertigo ran over her as her snake tail moved, jaws closing over meat. She looked through it’s easy to see the small human. Its flesh turned a violent shade of purple and black as the poison inside of her snake coursed through its body. She watched as it… no, she feasted on the thing’s flesh. The human. The boy. She feasted and yet, it was not nearly enough.
Taller she grew and she went to one knee as it happened. A thin, pale green layer fell away from her body as she molted and grew. Cum slid down her scaled legs as the fire burned her. Pleasured her. Drove her. Fire and hunger. So hungry. Thirty feel tall. Forty. Fifty. She was a titan and she could see the world around her. Her wings spread out behind her and she had to dig her claws into the ground to keep from taking off. She sniffed the air and smelled all the flesh of the city. With ease, Trish reached down and grabbed Trevor’s car. She looked hard into the distance, reached back and threw it, watching the trajectory. The car whistled through the air as it turned over and over. She’d aimed for the tall building in the middle of the city but overestimated – the car slammed into a cargo ship. The ship rocked on the water, spilling shipping containers into the black depths. A minute later she heard the delayed boom of the car crashing into the ship.
Trish grinned and spread her wings. With a flap of her wings, she was airborne in the night sky. The full moon gave her all the light she needed as she flew to the buildings just outside of town. Houses. Rows and rows and houses all built the same. She landed on one of the houses and it collapsed under her weight. Nearby cars were pushed to their sides under the sudden heavy wind from the stroke of her wings when she landed. Sudden confused screams filled the air as she tore into the wreckage of the house, looking for meat. Her snake’s tail struck lightning-fast at someone trying to crawl away and, with a single gulp, swallowed it. She felt the muscles along the snake’s body work as it pulled the person deeper.
A loud crack rang out and Trish felt something strike her. Her black fur tipped ears twitched as she turned to the source of the sound. A small man held a thing (rifle, a part of her mind told her) and another bang sounded as she felt something hit her left tit. She cocked her head at the small person below her. The man was yelling something that sounded like the buzzing of insects. Trish crashed to her hands and feet, shattering windows within a hundred feet radius. Car alarms shrieked around her. The man was on his back, struggling to sit up. She leaned close to him and he screamed as his flesh blackened from the fire roaring deep within her. With every exhale, her heat poured into the world. Her black tongue rolled out and she picked him up, still screaming. She barely felt him crunch against her teeth.
More, she thought. I need more meat. Her snake tail whipped out behind her and she watched each terrified face as the person was eaten. Her heavy breasts nearly touched the ground as she prowled, crushing cars beneath her gigantic paws. With one swipe, she ripped a house from its foundation, scattering the people hiding inside. Easy meat for her to pick through. Occasionally some dim hero would try a rifle or pistol against her and she took great pleasure in partially melting them before crunching their bones. With each bite, with each person swallowed, the fiery pleasure built deep within her until she felt like she might go mad. Her pussy fairly dripped with her excitement, globs of her cum splashing and sizzling against the concrete.
Over half of the homes lay in ruin around her. She watched a young man and woman try to escape in a small red car so she lazily spate fire at them and luxuriated in the brief look of terror on the man’s face before the molten metal and fire consumed him. Trish wasn’t even sorry that she couldn’t eat them – there was so much meat here and she hadn’t even reached the city.
She feasted again and again, tearing apart homes with her claws. Shoving meat into her mouth while her snake caught the ones escaping. She beat the air with her wings as she felt the pain and pleasure inside of her reach a point so high that her teeth felt the vibrations. Thoughts became even more difficult as the furnace inside herself erupted.
Trish stood, claws dug deep into the concrete. The houses surrounding her were on fire. Broken fire hydrants uselessly spewed water everywhere. Crushed cars, shattered wood – the world was a hell around her and she’d never felt more alive or more at home. She spread her black, leathery wings and her heavily muscled arms and shrieked, jets of molten lava issuing from her open maw, lighting the silvery night. Her massive breasts heaved and she fell to her knees as the fire consumed her, ravaging her. She clawed the air and the ground near her as the orgasm wracked her body. Chunks of concrete and earth crashed into the few houses still standing and she suddenly launched herself violently forward, spraying fiery death as she screamed through the sky. Once over the city, her wing clipped the crane near the unfinished tower and then again into the top of the building itself. The top crumbled partially and pieces of metal showered the ground, killing the few curious bystanders.
And then Trish was falling. Falling and falling in the darkness.
Trish opened her eyes and groaned. Her head was aching terribly. Slowly, she sat up and saw that she was completely naked and covered in dirt. She tried to look around quickly but then groaned and leaned over to throw up. Her vomit was thick, meaty and bright red and left a copper taste in her mouth. The cool morning wind blew her auburn hair around her and she shivered slightly. She stood and then fell back again. After a minute, she tried standing again and then looked around. She seemed to be in a shallow gulch and the ground was mostly dirt with flattened grass. Pieces of the earth around her was blackened as if burned. She wanted to call out for help but her nakedness shamed her so she found the easiest side of the wall to climb and made her way up.
Helicopters swarmed the city in the distance. Black helicopters. Green military helicopters. News station helicopters. Something bad had happened because she could see huge amounts of flames on the other side of the city.
“First order of business,” she told herself. “Find where Trevor parked and where he is and figure out what happened.” Even as much of a jerk as he could be, she knew he’d give her a ride to her house in the suburbs.
Trish started walking toward the city, not looking back at the gigantic paw print she’d just climbed out of. She scratched at her lean belly with hard black fingernails and wondered if she’d find breakfast soon.