Wendigo

www.AntonioGarciaBooks.com

Brandon couldn’t believe what he had just heard. How could he be dying? He was too young.

As he sat in the café, sipping on his coffee, what the doctor had told him kept swirling around in his head.

Instantly feeling alone, he needed to see his friend and mentor. A local Native-American man who just went by the name Carl.

Carl and Brandon’s parents had been close, and when they had died a few years ago, Carl had been there whenever Brandon needed him.

Brandon quickly drove out to see his friend to tell him the news.

After telling him what the doctor had told him, he asked, “How long do you have?”

“The doctor says, maybe six months,” Brandon answered.

Brandon could tell Carl was not only upset but pondering something.

“I may have an idea,” Carl said. “It’s not a good one, but it may keep you alive a little bit longer.”

“What do I have to lose,” Brandon said sincerely.

“Go home and get some rest,” Carl started. “Come for dinner tomorrow night and I’ll show you.”

They said their goodbyes and Brandon went back to his apartment to think about all he wanted to get done before his time was up.

The time between then and dinner the next day seemed to drag on forever, which would have been fine with Brandon, if it wasn’t taken up with all the thoughts of dying he was having.

When he arrived at Carl’s, dinner had already been prepared and Carl led him in.

“Sit down. Let’s eat,” Carl said.

Brandon wasn’t really hungry but didn’t want to be rude.

The meat was different. He couldn’t tell from what animal it was from, but after a few bites, he didn’t care. To him, everything tasted like chicken anyways.

When he was done eating, he asked, “So what was your idea to help me.”

Carl looked at him with a smile and said, “You’re eating it.”

Cautiously, Brandon looked down at his now empty plate.

“I performed an ancient ritual on the meat you just ate,” Carl explained. “Here, I made enough to last you a month.”

Not sure if he really wanted to know, Brandon asked, “What kind of meat is it?”

“The meat doesn’t matter,” Carl went on. “It’s the ritual that makes it work.”

“What does it do?” Brandon asked.

“This ritual can temporarily heal and prolong life,” he said. “Eat this for a month and then go see your doctor to see what your results are then.”

Brandon was skeptical but was ready to try anything and he trusted Carl with his life.

“Do not tell anyone though,” Carl said. “This is for you and you alone.”

Brandon knew when Carl was serious and when to do as he was told. Carl’s wisdom surpassed any one else’s that Brandon had ever known.

Brandon nodded and looked at the large tray of the meat Carl had made for him.

For the next month, Brandon added the meat to his meals once a day and when it was all gone, he set up an appointment to see his doctor.

“I don’t understand,” the doctor said, looking at the new results in disbelief.

“What is it, doc?” Brandon asked.

“Your results,” the doctor started. “They’re all negative. You’re completely healthy.”

“That’s great, right?”

“Yes,” the doctor answered. “I just don’t understand how it’s possible.”

Brandon also wanted to mention how much stronger he felt. He not only felt healed, he felt rejuvenated, but he didn’t want any more questions as to how this had happened.

After his appointment, Brandon rushed to Carl’s place and nearly burst through the door with excitement.

“It worked!” he said as soon as Carl opened the door. “Whatever you did. It worked!”

Carl smiled.

“Good,” Carl said. “I’m glad it worked. You are too young to be pulled from this world.”

“Also, I have more energy than I’ve ever had before,” Brandon stated.

Carl’s smile faltered but he played it off.

“You have to share this with the world,” Brandon said. “Do you know how many lives can be saved?”

Carl’s face turned strained.

“No,” he said. “This was meant for you, and you alone.”

Brandon wanted to argue but knew better.

The rest of the evening, they spent celebrating Brandon’s recovery and when it got late, they said their goodbyes.

After a week, Brandon lost his extra energy and actually felt more tired than he had his entire life. He also felt a hunger he couldn’t explain or satisfy.

Another week went by, and no matter how much he ate, he was always hungry. None of the food he ate tasted good. It all seemed bland and he felt weaker every day. It was like someone had sapped all of his energy.

One restless night, he felt the strong urge to go for a walk.

The cool air felt good on his skin and except for a couple waking through the park, he was alone.

He stopped in his tracks as he picked up a scent. It smelled like the meat he had eaten at Carl’s, but sweeter somehow. He started to follow where the smell was coming from.

Focused only on the smell, he had walked towards the couple until he was close enough to realize that it was coming from them.

He started to walk behind them, keeping his distance.

His stomach growled and he started to want nothing more than to taste them. He shuddered at the thought, but it didn’t stop him from continuing his pursuit.

Something was stirring inside of him. Something animalistic.

Looking around and seeing that they were the only three in the park, he sped up his pace and closed the distance between him and the couple.

As he got closer, he picked up a rock and when he was close enough, he struck the man from behind, knocking him out immediately.

Before the girl could react, he struck her unconscious too.

Taking one more look around; he then dragged the couples limp bodies into the bushes one by one and began eating them.

He had never felt more satisfied in all of his life, and as he laid there next to the mutilated bodies and staring at the night sky, it all felt natural.

Not even bothering to do something to conceal the bodies, he simply got up and walked home. Fortunately, no one saw him. Especially since he had blood all around his mouth.

When he got home, he took a shower and then went to bed.

The next day, he had a pep in his step. He felt rejuvenated again, and as he passed by all the restaurants on his way to school, hunger was the last thing on his mind.

Reflecting on what had happened the night before, he surprisingly felt no remorse. He didn’t feel like he did anything wrong. As far as he was concerned, since emotion didn’t seem to play a part, he only did what seemed to come natural to him.

Days went by and he didn’t eat a thing. He no longer craved normal food. When hunger did finally strike, he tried to eat food from a restaurant, but almost immediately threw up. The food tasted like dirt.

The hunger grew rapidly, and after only a day since his hunger had returned, he felt like he was going to starve to death if he didn’t eat soon.

Knowing what his body was craving, he threw on a hoody and went out into the night to hunt.

It wasn’t long before he saw a middle-aged man walking alone through a neighborhood.

He followed him until he walked down an alley, where he quickly ran towards the man, tackling him to the ground.

The man tried to scream, but Brandon’s first bite was to his throat, causing him to only be able to gurgle.

Brandon tore into the man with a satisfying lust he had never felt before. Blood sprayed along the walls of the alley, and a pool of blood formed around the body.

When he was done, he was prepared to dispose of the body in a nearby dumpster, but he was interrupted by a scream from a woman at the end of the alley .

Rather than go after her, he decided to run in the opposite direction. His instincts were strong to not get caught.

When he arrived home, he quickly got undressed and took a shower.

Concern over being seen filled him, but he also knew that there was no way she could have seen what he looked like.

The next day, the two murders were on the news. He hadn’t even noticed the news coverage of the first couple he had eaten, but now that he had been seen, and he turned on the television, he saw that the authorities had obviously connected the two heinous crimes.

Being his second time, he hoped he could go days without eating like he did after the first time, but he would have to figure out how to survive without getting caught.

Instinct was kicking in and he felt like he needed to go into the woods for some reason. His home was no longer feeling like home anymore.

Without packing a thing, he walked into the nearby woods and just kept walking.

Over the next couple of months, he fed off of hitchhikers and backpackers. Their deaths were ruled, ‘Death by wild animal’ based on how badly their bodies were torn apart.


When Carl saw the story on the news about the couple and man that were killed, he knew instantly that it was Brandon.

He was afraid of this. The ritual he had performed was a risky one, but he had hoped that once Brandon was healed, as long as he didn’t know what the meat was, he would go through some minor withdraws and stay normal.

According to the legend, only a person who seeked the power of the Wendigo, would eventually turn into one, but Brandon shouldn’t have been driven by that. He should have been satisfied to have been healed, and with no desire to eat human flesh, the transformation shouldn’t have begun.

Carl didn’t understand why Brandon had decided to start feeding, but he blamed himself.

He rushed to Brandon’s apartment, only to find it empty. Nothing seemed packed and there was no sign that he had been there for at least a couple of days.

When the stories started popping up of hikers that had been attacked by a mysterious animal, Carl knew what he had to do.

He packed up his hunting rifle, got in his pickup truck, and drove to the area where the bodies had been found.

He carried enough food to last him for a week and he hoped that would be enough.

Under normal circumstances, the campfire under the cloudless night would have been a pleasant one, but for Carl, it was a sign of things to come.

The fire wasn’t just for warmth, it was to attract Brandon, wherever he may be.

Even though he heard the cracking of branches from somewhere behind him, he didn’t turn. He wanted to wait until Brandon came into the open.

He kept his nerves steady as he heard the approaching sound of something stealthily making his way toward him.

When he was sure Brandon was close enough, he quickly turned and brought his rifle to aim.

What stood before him wasn’t Brandon. Not exactly.

Before him stood a creature that looked similar to Brandon, but it was naked and had wooden horns. It looked like it was starving. It’s ribcage practically pushed through the ashen skin.

What was left of Brandon growled and dreuled as it stared hungrily at its next meal.

Carl couldn’t bring himself to shoot. It wasn’t a monster he saw, it was Brandon. The son of his closest friends. He thought of him as a son, and it broke his heart to see him like this now.

He was about to lower his rifle, even though it meant certain death, when he heard the laughter of a couple of hikers from less than a hundred of yards away.

Both Carl and the creature looked in that direction.

Carl saw that the creature was going to run off after them instead. He knew he couldn’t let that happen.

With tears filling his eyes, he said, “I’m sorry” and pulled the trigger.