The Hidden Monster War

My name is Samantha Blake, and my high school just became ground zero for a war no one else seems to notice. Vampires, werewolves, and monsters—yeah, the kind from scary movies—are real. And they go to my school.

It started during third-period biology. I was dissecting a frog, trying not to gag, when Jayden, the guy who sat in the back, bolted out of his seat.

"Mr. Dyer, can I go to the nurse? I feel sick," he said, clutching his stomach.

Jayden was one of those quiet, keeps-to-himself guys. But something about the way he moved felt...off. His steps were too smooth, like he was gliding.

"Go ahead," Mr. Dyer replied, barely looking up.

Jayden shot a glance at Vanessa, who was sitting two rows over. She stiffened, her blue eyes narrowing into slits. They stared at each other for a long moment, like they were talking without words.

Weird.

At lunch, I sat at my usual table with Mia, my best friend, and Eric, who always stole fries off my tray. Today, though, neither of them touched their food.

"Did you see Jayden?" Mia whispered, leaning closer. Her curly hair brushed against my arm.

"Yeah, why?"

"He ran past me in the hall. His eyes were glowing red. I’m not kidding, Sam. Red."

Eric snorted. "Come on, Mia. Maybe it was the light or something."

"No way," Mia said firmly. "And Vanessa—she followed him out like she was hunting him."

Hunting him? That sounded crazy, but Mia’s face was pale, her freckles standing out more than usual.

"Maybe we should tell someone," I suggested.

"Like who?" Mia shot back. "The principal? 'Hi, Mr. Peters, we think Jayden and Vanessa are monsters.' That’ll go over well."

Eric shrugged. "I mean, it’s probably nothing. Right?"

The bell rang before anyone could answer.

I didn’t see Jayden or Vanessa for the rest of the day, but by the time the final bell rang, something was definitely wrong. The air felt charged, like before a thunderstorm.

As I walked toward my locker, I noticed groups of kids whispering in corners. One girl had tears streaming down her face.

And then I heard it. A growl.

Low and rumbling, it came from the stairwell.

My stomach flipped, but curiosity got the better of me. I crept closer, my sneakers squeaking on the tile floor.

Jayden stood at the bottom of the stairs, his back hunched, his arms trembling. His hands...weren’t hands anymore. They were claws, black and razor-sharp.

Above him on the stairs was Vanessa. Her skin seemed to shimmer, and when she bared her teeth, I saw fangs—actual fangs.

"You don’t belong here," Vanessa hissed. Her voice was sharp and cold, like ice cracking.

Jayden growled again, louder this time. "Neither do you, leech."

"Is that what you think?" Vanessa tilted her head, her blonde hair glinting under the dim light. "You don’t want this fight."

Jayden lunged at her, faster than my eyes could follow. They collided with a deafening boom, and suddenly they weren’t human anymore. Jayden’s body twisted, fur sprouting as he became this massive, snarling wolf. Vanessa moved like liquid, her hands clawed and her eyes glowing an unnatural blue.

I stumbled backward, my heart hammering.

"What the..."

A hand clamped over my mouth.

"Shh," someone whispered. I turned to see Mia, her eyes wide with fear.

"You saw them, didn’t you?" she said, her voice trembling.

"Y-yeah," I stammered.

She pulled me down the hall, away from the chaos.

"They’re everywhere, Sam," Mia said, her words spilling out. "The vampires, the werewolves, the other...things. They’ve been hiding, pretending to be normal. But something’s changed. They’re fighting now."

"How could no one know?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

"They’re good at hiding," she said. "But not anymore."

A crash echoed from the stairwell, followed by a howl that made my blood run cold.

Mia grabbed my hand. "We need to get out of here."

As we ran, I couldn’t stop thinking about one thing: if the monsters were fighting, what did that mean for the rest of us?

We burst through the double doors into the parking lot, the crisp evening air hitting my face. The sky was an eerie orange as the sun dipped behind the trees, casting long, sharp shadows.

"Where are we even going?" I asked, trying to keep up with Mia’s frantic pace.

"Anywhere but here!" she shot back, glancing over her shoulder. Her face was pale, her curls bouncing wildly.

The sound of shattering glass echoed from the school behind us. I turned to look and saw Jayden—still half-wolf—crash through one of the second-floor windows, landing in a crouch on the ground. His glowing red eyes locked onto us.

"Oh no," I breathed.

He didn’t attack, though. Instead, he sniffed the air, his nose twitching. Then he growled low, his gaze shifting toward the woods beyond the parking lot.

Vanessa appeared seconds later, leaping gracefully from the same window. Her movements were unnervingly smooth, almost too perfect.

"Jayden, stop running!" she called, her voice sharp and commanding.

He let out a snarl in response and bolted toward the woods. Vanessa hesitated for a moment, then followed, her form dissolving into a blur of motion.

Mia and I stood frozen, our breaths clouding in the cold air.

"What...just happened?" I asked.

"I think we just witnessed the beginning of something really bad," Mia said, her voice shaky.

Before I could respond, a car screeched to a stop in front of us. It was an old, beat-up pickup truck, and the driver—a boy I vaguely recognized from junior year—waved frantically for us to get in.

"Get in!" he yelled.

"Who are you?" Mia demanded, stepping protectively in front of me.

"Brady," he said. "You don’t know me, but I know what you saw in there. If you don’t get in now, you’ll regret it."

I hesitated. Everything about this screamed "bad idea," but then another unearthly howl echoed from the woods, and I realized we didn’t have a choice.

"Fine," I said, grabbing Mia’s arm and pulling her toward the truck.

We climbed in, and Brady floored it, the tires squealing as we sped away from the school.

"You know about them, don’t you?" I asked, my voice rising as the adrenaline pumped through me.

Brady nodded grimly. "Yeah. Vampires, werewolves, and a lot worse. They’ve been around forever, hiding in plain sight. But something’s changed."

"Changed how?" Mia asked, clutching the seatbelt like her life depended on it.

"They used to have rules," Brady explained. "Truces, agreements. Kept their fights hidden. But now those rules are breaking down."

"And we’re just...stuck in the middle?" I said, my stomach twisting.

"Pretty much," he replied.

"Why us?" Mia asked. "Why now?"

Brady hesitated. "I don’t know yet. But I think it’s got something to do with you two."

Mia and I exchanged a look.

"What do you mean, us?" I asked, my voice barely above a whisper.

Brady didn’t answer. Instead, he reached into the glove compartment and pulled out a crumpled map. He tossed it onto the dashboard.

"What’s this?" Mia asked, picking it up.

"Where we’re going," Brady said. "There’s someone who can explain all of this. Someone who can help."

"Help us how?" I asked, trying not to panic.

"By keeping you alive," he said flatly.

The truck sped down the dark road, the headlights cutting through the growing night. My heart pounded as I glanced out the window at the dense woods.

Somewhere out there, monsters were tearing each other apart. And for some reason, Mia and I were caught in the middle of it all.

I leaned back against the seat, my mind racing.

If vampires, werewolves, and other creatures were real...what else was out there? And why did it feel like we were just getting started?

The ride felt endless. The truck rattled and groaned as we sped down winding roads, the darkness outside swallowing everything but the narrow beam of the headlights.

"Where exactly are we going?" Mia asked, her voice tight with frustration.

Brady kept his eyes on the road. "There’s a safe house outside town. It’s run by someone who knows how to deal with...them."

"You keep saying ‘them’ like they’re one big group," I said. "But Jayden and Vanessa were fighting. They’re not on the same side, are they?"

Brady shook his head. "Nope. Vampires and werewolves have hated each other for centuries. And the other creatures—well, let’s just say they don’t play nice with anyone."

I frowned. "Then why is this our problem? We’re just normal kids!"

Brady shot me a quick glance, his face shadowed in the dim light. "Are you? Because normal kids don’t usually end up in the middle of supernatural turf wars."

I opened my mouth to argue but stopped. Something about the way he said it made my skin crawl.

"Do you know something we don’t?" Mia pressed, crossing her arms.

"Not yet," Brady admitted. "But I’ve got a hunch. And if I’m right, you two are more important to this fight than you realize."

Great. Just great.

We drove in silence for a while, the tension in the truck so thick it was hard to breathe. I tried to piece together what had happened. The glowing eyes, the claws, the fangs—it was all so unreal. And yet, it was impossible to deny.

Finally, Brady pulled off the main road onto a dirt path. Trees loomed on either side, their branches twisting together like skeletal hands.

"This is the safe house?" Mia asked, her voice dripping with skepticism.

"It’s ahead," Brady said. "Stay close to me. If anything happens, don’t run. They’ll see you as prey."

Prey? Fantastic.

We got out of the truck, the night air colder than I expected. Every crunch of gravel underfoot sounded like a gunshot in the silence.

The "safe house" turned out to be a cabin, its windows dark and its wooden frame looking like it had barely survived a hurricane.

"This doesn’t look safe," I muttered.

"It is," Brady said, leading the way to the door. He knocked three times, then twice more in a strange rhythm.

A few seconds later, the door creaked open, and a woman appeared. She looked to be in her forties, with sharp green eyes and a long braid of gray-streaked black hair. She was holding a crossbow.

"Brady," she said, her tone both relieved and annoyed. "You’re late."

"Ran into some trouble," Brady replied, gesturing to us. "These two saw everything. I think they’re connected to the escalation."

The woman’s eyes narrowed as she studied us. "Connected how?"

"We don’t know!" Mia blurted. "We’re just trying not to get eaten!"

The woman smirked, though her expression stayed hard. "Come inside. Quickly."

We stepped into the cabin, and I was immediately hit by the smell of herbs and smoke. The walls were lined with shelves crammed full of books, jars of strange substances, and weapons I didn’t recognize.

"Who are you?" I asked.

"My name’s Evelyn," she said, closing the door behind us and locking it with a series of heavy bolts. "And if you’re here, things are worse than I thought."

"What’s going on?" Mia demanded. "Why are we suddenly in the middle of a monster war?"

Evelyn sighed, setting her crossbow down. "Because the balance is breaking. The vampires, werewolves, and other creatures—they’re not just fighting each other. They’re fighting for control of something powerful."

"What kind of something?" I asked, my voice shaking.

Evelyn’s gaze locked onto mine, her green eyes piercing. "A weapon. One that could tip the scales for whoever holds it. And if you two are involved, it’s because that weapon is tied to you."

Mia and I stared at her, stunned.

"Us? Why us?" Mia asked, her voice rising.

Evelyn’s expression softened slightly. "I don’t know yet. But if they think you’re the key to finding it, they won’t stop until they have you—or until you’re dead."

Dead. The word hung in the air like a thunderclap.

"So what do we do?" I asked, barely able to keep my voice steady.

"You learn," Evelyn said. "You fight. And you pray you survive."

She reached for a jar on the shelf and pulled out a handful of what looked like salt, scattering it in a circle around us.

"What’s that for?" Mia asked nervously.

"Protection," Evelyn said. "Because if they’re hunting you, they’ll come. And when they do, you’d better be ready."

The sound of a distant howl cut through the night, and my stomach twisted into knots.

Ready? I wasn’t sure I’d ever be ready for this. But it didn’t look like I had a choice.

Evelyn’s words hung in the air, heavy and unshakable. The distant howl sounded again, louder this time, and my hands started to tremble.

"What do you mean by learn?" I asked, my voice cracking. "We’re just kids! How are we supposed to fight that?"

Evelyn arched an eyebrow, her lips curling into a wry smile. "You’d be surprised what you’re capable of when survival’s on the line. And trust me, you’re not just kids anymore—not in their eyes."

Mia crossed her arms tightly, trying to mask her fear with bravado. "That’s not an answer. You dragged us out here, locked us in this creepy cabin, and now you’re saying we’re supposed to fight monsters?"

Evelyn nodded. "Exactly."

"But we don’t even know what’s going on!" I blurted. "Why us? What makes us so special?"

Evelyn leaned against the wooden table in the middle of the room, studying us like we were pieces of a puzzle she was still trying to solve.

"Something ancient is waking up," she said finally. "A weapon forged long before humans walked the earth. It’s been hidden for centuries, but now the monsters can sense it stirring. And for some reason, it’s connected to the two of you."

Mia and I exchanged a panicked look.

"Connected how?" I asked.

Evelyn shrugged. "That’s the part I haven’t figured out yet. But the vampires and werewolves—they’re not subtle. If they’re circling around you, it means they think you’re the key to finding it. And if they think that..."

"They’ll kill us," Mia finished, her voice barely above a whisper.

"Not if I can help it," Evelyn said firmly. She stood and grabbed a bundle of weapons from a chest near the fireplace. Swords, daggers, even a few strange-looking guns.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," I said, backing away. "You’re not seriously expecting us to use those, are you?"

"You’ll have to," she replied. "When they come—and they will come—you’ll need to defend yourselves."

"I’ve never even held a knife," I said, shaking my head. "This is insane."

Evelyn softened slightly. "I know it’s a lot. But you’re in this now, whether you like it or not. The sooner you accept that, the better your chances."

"How is this our lives now?" Mia muttered, pacing in the small space. "Yesterday, we were worrying about math tests. Now we’re supposed to fight vampires and werewolves?"

As if on cue, a heavy thud rattled the cabin door.

Evelyn froze, her hand darting to her crossbow. "Get behind me. Now."

My heart raced as Mia and I scrambled to the back of the room. Evelyn moved with terrifying calm, loading a bolt into the crossbow and aiming it at the door.

Another thud. This one harder, splintering the wood slightly.

"Is that—?" Mia started, but Evelyn silenced her with a sharp look.

The next sound wasn’t a knock. It was a deep, guttural growl, followed by scraping claws against the door.

"Get ready," Evelyn whispered. "And remember what I said. Don’t run."

The door exploded inward with a deafening crash. A massive creature barreled into the room—a werewolf, its yellow eyes glowing like twin lanterns.

Evelyn fired immediately, the bolt piercing its shoulder. The werewolf howled in pain, but it didn’t stop. It lunged at her, claws swiping through the air.

I screamed, grabbing the closest thing I could find—a wooden chair—and swung it with all my strength. The chair shattered against the creature’s back, barely slowing it down.

"Useless!" Evelyn shouted, dodging another attack. "Get the salt from the shelf! Now!"

Mia leapt into action, grabbing the jar of salt and tossing it to me. My hands shook as I unscrewed the lid.

"What do I do?" I yelled.

"Circle it! Hurry!" Evelyn barked.

I dumped the salt onto the floor, making a shaky circle around the snarling beast. As soon as the circle was complete, the werewolf recoiled, yelping as if the salt burned it.

Evelyn didn’t hesitate. She grabbed a silver dagger from her belt and plunged it into the creature’s chest. It let out a final, agonized howl before collapsing to the ground, its body shrinking back into human form.

I stared at the lifeless figure, my stomach churning.

"This is real," I whispered. "This is actually real."

Evelyn wiped the blood from the dagger and turned to us. "That was just the beginning. More will come."

Mia looked like she was about to faint. "How are we supposed to survive this?"

Evelyn placed a firm hand on her shoulder. "You’ll learn. Because if you don’t, you won’t just lose your lives. You’ll lose the weapon. And if the wrong side gets it...the entire world will burn."

Her words hit like a punch to the gut.

The monsters weren’t just after us. They were after something bigger. Something that could destroy everything.

And somehow, we were the only ones who could stop it.

Next: Mark of the Chosen

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