Humphrey was vaguely aware of what was happening. He was losing contact with reality. That much was clear. Some things seemed to phase out of existence, his family for example.
He could tell the real from the fake easily for the most part. He was one of ten wolves left alone by Oshira so far. Over the past few months the kidnappings had tripled. His only family was Garth and Lilly's pups who he had taken care of, Shakey who had escaped and Lilly.
Although Humphrey saw her get dragged off, and indeed she was, but Lilly escaped. She had landed on a rock and broke her front right paw and yet she was able to limp away before Oshira could finish the job. Surprisingly, she was the only other survivor. They knew the fall couldn't kill, and yet all wolves who had fallen off the small cliff had vanished, never to be seen again.
Perhaps Oshira let her go Humphrey thought, but couldn't find any reason why she would do this.
Flash
It had happened again. He could sense it. He woke up to see, yet again a false memory. Humphrey was alone in his cave. He could hear noises outside and walked to the entrance of the cold pile of rocks he called home. He could see Kate playing with Garth and Lilly's pups in the field. A wind brushed his nose and for a moment it almost felt real. Lilly saw him, said something to Kate and the two bolted up the rest of the hill to the cave entrance.
"Welcome home Humphrey!" Kate said, smiling.
"No, this isn't my home. My home is dark and horrible." Humphrey yelled. My brain is playing tricks on me! Reality is so harsh that I imagined peace. Humphrey decided. And indeed soon after he woke up to his cave, empty once more but this time it felt real.
He looked around him and saw nothing. "Strange" Humphrey thought out loud.
"Usually Lilly, Shakey and the pups are here..." He started, but stopped himself once he saw the figure outside.
Some how from this alternate universe he kept envisioning he sensed his mother.
"That's it." Oshira boomed. "It's over. That's the last one. EXCEPT FOR YOU" Oshira screamed.
"I don't understand why you would do this. You killed everyone just to make me suffer! Why don't you just kill me at the beginning? All I did was run, and you caused mass genocide! I don't understand." Humphrey shot at her.
Oshira thought for a moment before replying: "I never even loved you."
Humphrey pretended not to notice the three small shadows that had emerged from deep within a turn in the cave, but it was too late.
"Got some stragglers now, do we"? Oshira grinned leaping towards the pups. "No!" Humphrey cried, tears filling his eyes. "Please spare them! They did nothing! they are innocent! Take me, I don't care just leave them alone!" Humphrey pleaded, sitting and grabbing onto his mother's legs.
"Fine." Oshira lied, biting Humphrey so he let go. She picked them all up in her mouth, something she had obviously had practice with and ran as fast as she could towards the cliff.
"Don't do this! Please!" Humphrey tried, to no avail. The two were still running full speed, one of them holding three cubs in her mouth.
Humphrey spotted the cliff and ran full speed towards it. Instead of trying to stop Oshira however, he jumped, trying to sacrifice himself to save the only family he had left.
Tears filled his eyes as he fell. It was as if the world had given him one last chance to suffer before his death. He had jumped towards a deeper part of the cliff where death was more likely.
In his last moments, it was like a slideshow played through his head. All the horrible things that had happened to him showing. His dad, gone.
His sister, gone.
His wife GONE.
His true family was all eradicated by the monster that called itself his mom.
Humphrey closed his eyes as he hit the bottom.
Flash.
