by G Johanson
“The creature can’t. Royer, use your shovel,” Inès instructed and Royer set to work at trying to clear a path. Inès stood with Georges who seemed far sprightlier than usual and wasn’t even coughing. She reminded him of her plan, stating, “I’m going up there.”
“Remember who stopped the unstoppable Albert Harper. Trust me, Inès. We can all walk away from this. He can’t eat me,” Georges said. He demonstrated this by passing his hand through a crooked supporting beam. Inès was not sure if she had seen what she imagined, the lighting very dim in the abandoned building, and Georges repeated the trick. “Astral projection. I can’t do this for long so we have a limited window. Summon it.”
Inès looked at the progress Royer was making and she cut her wrist with the scalpel and repeated the phrase she knew off by heart. Georges praised Royer for his sterling work and told him to stand with Inès whilst he remained by the rubble at the stairs.
Royer saw it first and lifted his shovel up defensively. It stood between Royer, Inès and Georges and Georges shouted across, “Don’t hurt me!”
Inès had to give him his credit. He was a decent actor, his fear convincing her momentarily that he had changed his mind about stopping the creature and had given in to cowardice. The creature seemed convinced and followed Georges, squeezing through the rubble after him up into the tower. She turned to Royer and she said, “Get outside. When it falls you have to use your shovel instantly. Do you understand?”
“Crisscross crush?”
“Whatever,” Inès said, clambering through the small gap into the tower. She had assumed that once they had gained access to the stairs that they could then climb up them with ease and this was not the case. The creature had forged a path for her to follow through the debris and she spotted the creature teetering on the edge attempting to reach Georges who was ostensibly hanging from a gargoyle just out of its reach. It looked so big now whilst she was a little underweight for her age. The massive weight difference between them didn’t matter a jot; she could not have wanted this more and she trusted that her desperation would give her strength as she ran at the creature, giving it an almighty push. It was already unbalanced and overextended itself in its attempts to reach Georges and it fell to the ground. Georges looked up at her in despair for her reckless behaviour before he looked down to see what happened next. Inès clasped her hands together in prayer as she watched on tenterhooks. Georges grimaced and groaned at the sight of the creature landing effortlessly on its feet whilst for Inès it was the final straw. She had no other ideas.
Georges looked back to Inès, recognising from her hopeless, forlorn countenance exactly what she planned to do. “Move away from the edge.”
She did not comply and Georges ‘climbed’ back up to the ledge to block her path. He had to talk her down with reason, for she, unlike the monster, knew that he was immaterial and lacked substance, just like the real thing really he mused.
“It’s all trial and error. It took me a year to beat Albert. Otto Deiss took a while too. Come back down and we’ll come up with something el...”
They both heard the sound of Royer shouting, after which only Inès remained atop the tower. She knew that Georges hadn’t gone to investigate what the matter was; he had vanished because by leaving his body dormant he had practically sent out an invitation to be feasted upon. She decided to offer even easier prey and she stepped forward into the abyss...
Inès woke up in great discomfort. The pain was not as great as she expected, more of a dull throbbing sensation rather than the acute agony she expected. The worst of it was the bitter cold. Her face was wet and sticky as before, signifying that the creature had accepted her offering. Royer and Georges sat by her limp body, with Royer holding the head of the creature in one hand and his trusty shovel in the other. This weapon was now a thing of legend to him and belonged in folklore with Durendal and Excalibur. Georges determined to do his best to ensure that Royer became a legendary hero for it had been he who had decapitated the monster. He had saved Georges first by driving him away from his prone body before he killed the monster while it fed on Inès, Royer demonstrating finesse with his weapon by beheading the beast without hurting Inès, a difficult feat with her head completely entrapped between the monster’s jaws. Unfortunately she was already too badly hurt to save.
Georges saw that she was awake and he took her hand in his, proving he was the genuine article again. Inès was unable to move and she said tearfully, “I’m freezing. They always say it’s cold, when the time comes. Do you think...do you think I’ve done enough?”
Georges knew what she meant and he nodded and said, “You redeemed yourself before this. This is above and beyond.”
“Don’t tell Lucien...not about any of it.”
Georges nodded again and he watched her eyes glaze over. After a brief silence where they paid their respects, Royer spoke up, saying, “I feel better now it’s dead. Do you?”
Georges hadn’t thought about it and he realised he did, significantly so. “We’re out of the woods, my friend. In fact we’d be wasting two hospital beds which could go to those in greater need. What do you say? Time to move on?”
Royer nodded and, upon Georges instructions, he chopped the monster into tiny bits and dropped the pieces down the drain. While he did this Georges found a white rose which he placed in Inès’ hair and he kissed her cold brow before creating a cacophonous auditory explosion which had Royer covering his ears, the noise loud enough to wake the dead.
“You’ll make the walls collapse!” Royer shouted, trying to make himself heard.
“A heroine shouldn’t die quietly,” Georges said and, satisfied that her body would now be immediately discovered, they departed for pastures new.