Lost in thoughts, it took me a few seconds to register the loud distant howls that echoed in the valley. Two of them. Three of them now! ... And then, nothing. Silence once more. Deadly silent. W-what the heck was that? Did I just suffer from an auditory hallucination? Five years since I’ve settled here, and I’ve never heard anything of the sorts! What kind of unholy abomination even trailblazed these woods this late in the day, let alone produce such blood curdling screams?