On a foggy day, amidst the silence of a marsh known for its croaking frogs, dawn broke, cold and ominous. A flock of birds descended to drink from the marsh waters at dawn. As they sipped, a sparrow was reduced to dust and feathers, mauled by a dog that left no trace. The dog looked rabid, not normal. Its attack caused the other sparrows to flee to the trees.
Hamed, the farm's guard, stood drinking tea, watching the birds' panic in the tree. He glanced down at the two-story building and saw the mangled remains of a cat. He called to his young son, Mahdi. "There's something there! What's going on?"
He grabbed his antiquated rifle, the one that hadn't fired a shot since it was discontinued in China or perhaps during the war. But it still worked.
"Why the rifle?" Mahdi asked.
Hamed looked at him as he slung it over his shoulder. "I think it was a rabid dog." There was a cat dead in the street, and I don't think it was just any dog.
Mehdi looked down at the street and saw the cat's mangled body. He felt nauseous for a moment and called for his father, who had moved away, but not too far.
"Be careful it doesn't bite," he warned.
Hamed looked at him, gesturing for him to go inside and close the door. He called after him, "If you see it running from here, let me know."
Hamed continued on his way, but slowed his pace after being shocked by what he saw. Dozens of dead birds lay scattered in the street, some eaten, some as if they had drunk poison. Hamed put his hand to his mouth because of the smell; it was too strong to bear, but the birds weren't the cause. Hamed knew the source of the smell when he looked to his right. His shock intensified when, after scrutinizing the fog, he saw a dead cow. It appeared to be mutilated, with many bites all over its body and long claws everywhere.
Hamed, trembling, grabbed his rifle after seeing those marks on the cow. No ordinary dog could have left those marks. Hamid wondered if it was a large wolf or a hyena. Those marks couldn't possibly have come from a dog. Through the fog, Hamid heard the cries of a lamb. Words couldn't describe the scene. It wasn't a lamb, but a newborn calf. It seemed the cow had removed it while slowly butchering it. Hamid heard the calf's desperate pleas, a child who had come into this cruel and merciless world. Its rattling sounds confirmed that it didn't have much time left in this life, that something was devouring it without pity.
Hamed hesitated, taking one step forward and the other back. He felt that the rifle was only meant to scare away a sensible thief, not the monster that had killed the cow.
But there was no choice left. He was thinking about the robe as his curiosity, like that thing, moved forward, shrouded in the fog. The fog lifted, revealing a large, imposing creature whose face was hidden inside the calf's entrails.
Hamed grabbed the rifle, aiming it at the creature. It turned out to be a dog, but not a stray. It was one of those trained dogs, known for their ferocity. The dog poked its head out, startling Hamed, who was momentarily hesitant to shoot. He closed his mouth when he saw the dog's eyes screaming that it was dead. Its throat had been carefully cut from one side to the other, and its eyes were white, filled with the blood of its poor prey. Hamed fired immediately, his breath caught in his throat, as if he had been running all day. The bullet struck the dog's abdomen. The dog was close enough to kill him. Hamed's legs couldn't support him, so he sat down for a few seconds with the dog lying in front of him. But Hamed's cries for help rose after the dog got up, as if nothing had happened. Hamed couldn't even see the other side through the dog's stomach, which the bullet had torn to pieces, leaving a large hole inside.
On the other side, Mahdi heard the gunshots and was terrified, knowing something was wrong because the shots were coming one after another. Mahdi rushed downstairs to see what was happening, but he tried to see from the second floor, hoping to get a better view. However, the fog was thick. As he stared intently for a few seconds, he saw the shadow of the dog, which was running as if chasing someone. Then Mahdi saw his father covered in blood and collapsed while running. The dog continued on its way after seeing a cat running away from it. Mahdi didn't care about the dog chasing him and ran quickly to see Hamed. He stopped when his legs gave way at the sight; Hamed's face was unrecognizable. No eyes, no nose, no mouth.
Mehdi's screams echoed in the void. The farm was isolated, reclaimed in the desert, and the nearest neighbor was at least half an hour's drive away.
Seconds later, Mehdi approached, trying to ignore what he was seeing. Hamed had breathed his last, his claws digging into the ground. Mehdi thought he had choked on his own blood. Trembling, he grabbed the phone and called for an ambulance, knowing it was useless. Then he called the police. He didn't know what to say except what he had witnessed in those half hours. He couldn't even tell if what he had seen was real or imagined as he tried to describe the dog to the police on the phone. He thought he hadn't been paying attention properly, as he saw the dog with its organs protruding from its stomach, yet it was still alive enough to disappear into the fog, running away.
The police ordered him not to touch anything until they arrived.
After some time,
the ambulance arrived. Two men got out, along with a doctor who tried to rush towards Hamed's body and remove the sheet covering Mahdi laid him down, knowing he was dead.
The doctor was shocked by what he saw: Hamed's face, neck, and chest mauled. The sight left no doubt that Hamed was dead. Dr. Sami asked Mahdi if he had seen what happened, but Mahdi, stifling his sobs, cried out, "It was the dog!" He had been going in that direction to see if a dog had killed a cat. He then pointed towards the cat, whose head had been torn off, leaving only a few features of a hand and feet. One of the doctor's assistants almost vomited, but he controlled himself after indicating that he had seen part of a cow and some pieces of Hamed's body scattered along the road, extending off the road.
While they were talking, the sound of a police car approached, and more than four policemen got out.