Naturist, Red in Tooth & Claw

by Stuart Pitsligo

  “I was going to use this to hunt rabbits for our dinner” she said as an almost feral look of a hunter came across her face. “I didn't think I'd have to hunt humans.”

  “Humans?” asked John.

  “I know, I know...” was Heather's reply as she sheathed the knife, “but we have to move now.”

  John and Heather quickly set off to follow the others, the creatures now being less than fifty feet below them and catching up fast. The group was making good time having been cooled by their swim and rest, but Brandon was starting to have problems. The bite in his leg was beginning to burn, causing him pain with every step and slowing him down.

  “What's wrong” said Heather as she caught up with the rest.

  “Its my leg” said Brandon. “Its like its burning up where he bit me.”

  “He's slowing us down and they're gaining on us” said Heather as she looked back down the hillside. The creatures were getting closer.

  “I'll stay and try and hold them off” said John, “and you guys can help Brandon.”

  “We'll stay” said Heather, “we can hold them here, the path is narrow enough.”

  “I'll stay too” said Chris.

  “No,” replied Heather, “you help carry Brandon, and look after Annie as well”

  “I don't want to leave...” started Chris, but John interrupted, not letting him finish.

  “No time for this” said John, “you guys need to go, right now.”

  Chris looked at John, scared to stay, but unwilling to leave his friends behind.

  “We'll meet you on top of the ridge” said Heather, reassuring Chris that they'd be okay, “now go!”

  With a last glance backwards Chris headed up the path to help Brandon as John and Heather turned to face the creatures that were now almost upon them.

  “Don't be afraid to hurt them” said Heather, “even kill them.” She unsheathed the knife and held it in front of her.

  “I'm not sure I can kill a fellow human” replied John.

  “I don't think they're human, not any more.” was Heather's reply. “Something's wrong here, very wrong. But don't hold back, okay?”

  “Okay” said John, “I'll do what I have to.”

  Heather turned and grabbed John, kissing him passionately and holding him tightly.

  “I won't lose you” she whispered in his ear as the creatures approached.

  She broke the embrace as the first creature was lunging at her. She spun quickly round, dropping to her knee and delivering a hard punch to its abdomen. The creature bent over and staggered back as John brought his foot down on the creature's knee, snapping its leg and sending the creature tumbling down the steep hillside to its doom, smashing its head off the rocks.

  The next two creatures were close behind it, but they moved to either side of the path, attempting to bypass John and Heather. As one of the creatures quickly flanked them, Heather jumped across the hillside, bring herself crashing onto the creatures back. Her whole body weight drove the knife into the creatures back and it screamed in pain, crumpling to the ground, with Heather still on it.

  The other creature was still below John and he jumped in its way, fists raised and ready to repel an attack, but the creature just looked confused and tried to move around him. Each time John moved in his way, the creature tried to get round him, seemingly uninterested. John thought he had it under control, but it made a sudden movement that was too quick for John and it turned back onto the path and past him.

  Throwing himself onto the ground John caught the creature's foot and pulled it back, knocking the creature down onto its face. The creature turned and lashed out at John as he stood up, knocking him back onto to the ground. Before he could react, the creature was up and running away, up the hill towards the rest of the group.

  Heather was struggling with her creature. She had stabbed it a dozen times, in the back and sides, but still she couldn't slow it down. She clung to its back as it tried to throw her off, her knife seemingly useless against it. Even when she stabbed it in the throat it barely slowed down.

  There was only one thing left to try. She tightened her grip with her left arm around the creature's neck, leant back and brought the knife straight down on his skull. The sharp steel smashed through the bone and drove straight into its brain. The creature instantly dropped to its knees and Heather jumped off it, just before it rolled onto its back, dead and motionless.

  “Chris!” shouted John up the hill as the creature ran up the path. Chris didn't hear him, but John didn't get another chance. Another creature jumped on his back but John threw it off, jumping to his feet and turning to attack it as he did so. As he pulled his arm back to throw a punch he noticed the creature was a woman, and he hesitated at the sight of her.

  The creature screamed before he even threw the punch. A spike of metal and blood burst through its forehead, showering John in blood and black fragments of brain. Heather's face appeared over the creature's shoulder as she pulled the knife out its head and let it fall to the ground.

  “Stabbing doesn't kill them” she said with a mad look in her eyes, “you have to destroy their brains.”

  “Bloody hell...” was John's only words.

  Chris heard the creature approaching as it was almost upon him. He turned as he heard the footsteps behind him, but the creature ignored Chris, its eyes fixed on Brandon. Knocking Chris to the ground it began to scramble up the steep rocks and boulders towards the path Brandon had taken. Only Annie and Claire stood in its way now.

  Both women stood their ground as the creature approached. Once again it seemed confused by the bodies between it and Brandon, but it knew he was there. Its eyes darted across the landscape behind the women, looking for the food it could only sense.

  But the women were not enough of a barrier to hide Brandon. On sight of him the creature pushed forward, knocking Annie to one side. Claire kept her footing though, and wrapping her arms around the creature she dragged it to the ground. Back on her feet now, Annie clambered onto its back, wrapping her arms around its neck and attempting to choke it. Both women struggled against the creature, refusing to give in to its strength.

  Brandon, now in almost too much pain to even stand, watched the surreal sight of the two women, blood splattered and naked but for their boots, defend him against this creature.

  Suddenly he felt ashamed. They were all fighting to defend him and here he was, sitting back and watching. He knew he had to act.

  Picking up a rock he began shuffling down the hillside as quick as he could. The creature became ever more frantic as he approached it, seemingly more and more desperate to get to him.

  Picking up speed as he slid, he brought the rock in his hand up ready. He was moving fast now, in an uncontrolled slide down the scree and he knew he only had one chance. As he reached the creature, he smashed the rock down on the creature's head, caving its skull in, and killing it instantly.

  Annie reached out to grab him, arresting his fall and pulling him into the group, where the three of them lay, stunned and exhausted by the attack.

  Heather and John stood side by side on the path as the last three creatures approached them, more cautiously than the others had. The creature's attention seemed to be fixed on the rest of the group at the top of the cliff, and they only glanced at Heather and John occasionally as they got closer.

  “Is it Brandon they're after?” asked John as he noted their obsession with the group above them. “What the hell do they want with him?”

  “I think you're right” said Heather. “I don't know why, but I really do think you're right”

  The three creatures began closing in on them together, but John and Heather held their ground. Two of them seemed to be moving towards Heather while one was moving slowly towards John.

  Heather made the first move. Without warning she dived at the middle creature, driving the knife into its eye and rolling back with it as it began to tumble down the hill. She rolled to the side, grabbing a rock to stop her fal
l and pulling the knife out as the creature's body rolled down the hill side.

  Both remaining creatures then moved to attack John, but he feigned a jump to the right, then slammed himself into the creature to the left. The creature fell back, striking its head on a rock and twitching slightly before it stopped moving.

  John turned to punch the other creature, but he was too late. The creature slashed at his chest with its claw-like fingernails, causing John to stagger back with the pain. Before he could strike back, the creature grabbed John by the throat, wrapping its hands round his neck and squeezing. Kicking out, he managed to knock the creature's leg from under it, but the creature never let go and they both fell to the ground, with John now trapped under it.

  The grip tightened, and John knew he had only seconds. He grabbed the creature's head and found its eyes with his thumbs. The creature screamed as John sunk his thumbs into the eyes sockets with all his strength, pushing the eyes back into the brain. The harder he pushed, the more he felt the grip around his neck ease. With a soft, sickening sound, John pushed his thumbs in as far as he could, as far into the skull as he could reach, and suddenly, the grip was released.

  John's sense of relief felt indescribable. From what seemed like mortal peril a few moments ago, John felt safe and secure, as if everything was going to be okay. He was still pinned under the creature, but the battle was over and he knew everything was going to be okay. He felt relaxed, even tranquil.

  But the tranquillity was shattered in an instant. The creature he had previously knocked to the ground was still alive and its face suddenly appeared just a few feet from his as it huddled over the body of its dead companion. It began to wail as if in pain, and it fixed its gaze on John,with an evil stare in its eye.

  Then there was the sound of a twig cracking, the creature spun round and there was Heather, driving the knife into the creature's skull. She put her foot on its head and pulled the knife out, letting the body fall to the ground and roll down the hill.

  “Hmmm....a male and a female” muttered Heather as she watched the body disappear down the hill.

  John looked up at Heather, seemingly like a woman transformed. She was almost completely covered in blood, her skin and hair caked in it. She was simultaneously incredibly beautiful and utterly terrifying, the beauty of a predator captured in female form.

  John started to stand up as she helped him pull the body of the creature off him, but without warning her knees went from under her, and she fell on top of him. John could feel her whole body shaking, and he sat up and held her tightly to him.

  “Its okay” said John as Heather's aggression slowly turned to tears. “Its over, they're gone now.”

  Heather's body began to shake violently as she lost emotional control, the tears flowing like rain.

  “I'm sorry” she sobbed, “I'm sorry.”

  “What for?” asked John.

  “Being silly” she said through the tears.

  John leaned back from her and looked into her eyes.

  “Silly?” he said, “You saved my life twice there. I guess that means you own me now, so you can do what you want we me” he finished with a smile.

  Heather just laughed, wiping tears and blood from her face.

  “Are you okay?” he asked, not sure if Heather was just putting a brave face on for him with her eyes still possessing a mad stare and her whole body trembling.

  “Not sure” replied Heather, shivering.

  “Its just the adrenaline rush,” replied John, “give a second, you'll be fine.”

  Heather paused for a second and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. As a calmness came over her face she stood up, picking up her knife and sheathing it. She stood looking at the bodies of the creatures, still partly in shock from the experience.

  “What do we do now?” said John as he stood up beside her.

  “I don't know” said Heather, “but there might be more of these things out there.”

  “You think so?” replied John, not having considered this.

  “Could be” said Heather, “and we're a long way from help. Phones don't work out here, so if we want help, we need to go find it ourselves.”

  Control was returning to Heather now. Action was needed and it was focusing her mind, conquering the adrenalin and bringing her a sense of purpose. She turned to look up at the rest of the group high above them.

  “We need to get to the top of the cliff and make camp” she said, “it'll get dark soon and I'm worried about Brandon's leg.”

  Chapter 15

  Brandon's attack on the creature seemed to have weakened him. John and Heather found him in an almost completely exhausted state when they reached the rest of the group, his leg now completely numb and useless. He had to be helped up the hillside one step at a time and by the time they reached the mountain's small summit plateau, he was barely conscious.

  “Listen to me” Heather shouted to the group as they sat on the summit, exhausted from their ordeal. “We'll camp here tonight, then move off in the morning. There's a village about eight miles south of here, it'll be quicker to get to than heading back to the cottage.”

  “Can't we head there now?” asked Claire. “Brandon's not getting any better.”

  “It'll be dark soon” replied Heather, “and there's no easy way down the crags. We have to wait till morning.”

  As the group began setting up their tents, Heather took John to one side.

  “I'm going for a look around” she said, “I want to make sure it's all clear, and I'll get some food.”

  “Anything you need me to do?” John asked.

  “Keep an eye on Brandon for me” she said, “I don't think he'll get any better.”

  The group put their camp together swiftly. Two tents were erected, one for Annie and Chris and one for Brandon and Claire. A camp fire was built from wood gathered in the glen at the start of the day. Food was prepared and things actually started to feel slightly normal.

  Most of the group were now dressed except John who, still sweating from the fight and climb, wore just his boots. Now, finally, he was able to take in the view from this summit.

  He looked down to the cliffs they had climbed up through, astonished that they'd not just climbed up it, but fought there as well. Then his view crossed the glen to the hill he had climbed with Heather the previous day. He could see the summit, with the lochan they had swum in and the spot they had made love on.

  But his gaze was drawn to the other side of the summit, and the steep slope that dropped down to the sea far below them. He so longed to run down there and throw himself in the water and wash himself clean. He wished that things hadn't gone so wrong, that he could be alone with Heather down on the beach below him.

  Then he saw the large island he'd noticed yesterday. He found himself dreaming of just swimming over there with Heather and living there, just the two of them, all alone, naked and wild.

  “We need a guard” said a voice from behind John. He spun round to see Heather behind him. She held three dead rabbits and a bunch of assorted berries in her arms as she climbed the last few feet to the summit.

  “There's more of them?” asked John.

  “Lots more” she said, “but they're not moving much, like they're going to sleep.”

  “What do we do?”

  “We're trapped up here for the night, it's too dangerous to move in the dark with them all around” said Heather. “So we grab some food, some sleep and then we move at dawn. But I'm betting on that fire keeping them away until morning.”

  Darkness had fallen within the hour, the rabbits and other food had been eaten and those with tents were in them. Brandon had developed a fever, and his only actions had been to tear his own clothes off in his semi-conscious state. Curled up to his burning hot body in the tent, Claire had stripped off too for some relief from the heat. Annie and Chris, exhausted from their day, hadn't even managed to get their boots off, and lay sprawled out on top of their sleeping bags, sound asleep in th
eir tent.

  Heather and John, not having brought tents, had found themselves a quiet and dry corner of the hillside, and had curled up into each other's arms. Away from the others, they had made love, but not with passion or intensity, but instead with slow intimacy, both feeling the need to be close to each other, as close as they could.

  “I'm not going back with the others” said John as he lay with his body pressed up behind Heather's. “I'll quit my job, never go back.”

  “Really?” said Heather, turning to face him. “Do you mean that?”