Halloween Stories of Transformation

The first day found them setting up their campsite

with the supplies they'd brought and foraging for firewood.

By night's end, they enjoyed the fruits of their labor

while casting lines into a nearby river,

sipping beers and chewing through dinner as they shared old stories.

There was a sign not too far from their campsite

warning visitors away from the area downstream.

"Dangerous wildlife," it read.

With a bravado of half a dozen beers and a rifle in each of their hands,

the men decided to check it out.

They were prepared to do some hunting while they were here anyway.

Down the side of the river, the cleared path faded into brush and overgrowth,

slowing their progress.

One of the men stopped to piss on the side of a tree as the others continued.

He ignored the sound of a snapping branch

right before being hoisted up into the air

and snatched away before he could utter a cry for help.

The others continued for several minutes before noticing they were shortening one.

...