The figure stayed motionless and when they got close enough, Autumn gradually aimed her flashlight at it.
“Oh my God,” Autumn whispered, feeling her stomach lurch at the grotesque thing looking back at her.
Its skin was grey and hollow, and its dead eyes blazed crimson in the flashlights glow.
The creature’s body was massive and burly, and it was hunchbacked like its own weight was too much to bear. Its veiny arms throbbed and tensed, and it growled, emitting a sound that sent shivers down Autumn’s spine.
It had huge claws that were long and black, and it had no nose, only nostrils. As it opened its maw to growl again, Autumn saw rows upon rows of razor-sharp teeth.
“That doesn’t look like a lizard at all,” Mandy said, unable to take her eyes off it.
The monster watched them menacingly, breathing heavily into the night air.
Autumn wondered how intelligent it was. Was it instinct driven or did it have a penchant for death and destruction? Judging by its murderous stare, it was most likely the latter.
Autumn reached into a pocket in her armor and slipped on the night vision goggles Nathaniel had given her. Rick and Mandy already had theirs on and both were in their fighting stances, weapons in hand. Autumn followed their leads, getting her scythe at the ready.
She felt the familiar rush, as her heart slammed into her chest. The creature moved towards them, cracking its veiny neck side to side.
Then, like lightning streaking the night sky, it lunged, springing from its position and into the air, kicking directly at Mandy.
Mandy tried her best to dodge, but the blow landed. This monster was far faster than the last, and it kicked her in the leg, its large foot claws digging into her armor.
Mandy cried out and the monster growled gutturally, kicking again, closer now and with inhuman speed.
It hit her once more near the same spot, this time piercing her armor, gashing her right leg, above her knee.
The blood dripped from her leg onto the grass, and the monster watched the ruby liquid trickle down, fascinated and entranced. It licked its lips hungrily and snapped at Mandy, but she jumped back narrowly, dodging its bite.
“Mandy!” Autumn cried out, her adrenaline pumping. She rushed at the creature while it was distracted.
She swung her scythe and clipped it in the arm, below its elbow. It cried out, hissing in pain and she swung again and hit it in the shoulder.
Grunting, it leapt away, landing a few feet from her. As Rick stood posed to defend, Autumn took the opportunity to get to Mandy.
“Are you alright?” Autumn asked but before Mandy could answer the wound was sealing itself up, the bleeding desisting.
Eric. Autumn thought to herself.
“Thanks Eric!” Mandy said, looking upwards to praise her hero.
Then, her face set with determination, she looked around, spotting the creature.
It was tangling with Rick, who was blocking its attacks and slashing at it with his sword to no avail.
“It’s mine!” Mandy cried and she ran at the beast, nunchucks spinning in her hands like propellers.
The creature snarled, its sharp teeth bared and its claws ready to strike.
Autumn went to Rick, her eyes still on the beast, when she heard another sound. It seemed to be coming from behind her. She felt her body tense up, and she turned around, dreading what she already knew.
Another creature, this one tall and wiry, was coming towards them. As it got closer, Autumn noticed this one resembled the lizard man they saw before. It had shiny, scaly red skin, dotted with several black spots. Its back and head were covered in spiked, black horns.
This creature didn’t bother to size them up.
It charged at them, hissing ferociously.
Rick was the first to get a shot in, slicing the lizard across the chest with his sword. The lizard hissed and revealed its long, forked tongue, its bulging, frog-like eyes filled with malice. It swiped at Rick, clawing him in the arm but still not penetrating his armor.
“Nice try!” Rick said arrogantly. “Too slow!”
Autumn swung her scythe at the creature, aiming for its head, but it quickly ducked. It hissed again and sprang, its sights set on her now. Autumn was startled to see it was wielding a rusty ax.
“It has a weapon!” Rick said in disbelief.
The monsters head spun around, resting on its neck at an unnatural angle.
It looked at Rick, its lips forming a sharp-toothed grin.
Autumn felt goosebumps crawling along her arms. It was a sight nightmares were made of.
“Master trained us,” it hissed. “To fight with weapons and to kill all the humans.”
Autumn gaped at the creature, stunned.
It could speak … in human tongue.
Rick looked at the monster incredulously. “Holy shit.”
The creature snorted, its breath making clouds in the cool night air.
“TIME TO DIE!”
It snarled loudly, its head spinning back into place. Then it moved with lightning speed towards Autumn, ax raised above its head, ready to slash.
20
Eric watched from the van, horrified, as the battle raged on.
He continued scrying, when he heard the creature speak in human tongue. It shocked him most when it referred to a master.
This intrigued him. He had always assumed, for lack of better knowledge, that the demons were abominations conjured by some evil magic and left to roam the caves. Now, for the first time, he saw a possible motive. The demons had a ringleader, a puppeteer.
The question was, who was pulling the strings and why?
The ax came swinging down towards Autumn, and she screamed. She waited for the feeling of rusty metal to slash through her. She waited for the pain, the agony and of course, the flow of blood.
Instead, she heard clanking as Rick’s sword clashed with the creature’s ax. Rick had jumped in front of her and was now pushing his sword against the ax. Rick used all his might, pushing the creature backwards through the muddy grass.
It screeched, struggling to keep its balance as Rick shoved all his weight against it.
When Rick managed to get close enough to the monster, he didn’t hesitate. With a grunt, he plunged his sword into its gut. The creature cried out in agony, its face contorted in pain, and it fell to the ground, motionless.
Rick pulled his blade back out, and it seemed to shimmer in the darkness. The mix of blood and gleaming was almost blinding.
Autumn stood still, in shock, when she heard a silenced gunshot come from the bushes nearby.
The monster Mandy had been fighting, who looked rather beaten and bruised, was hit by a soaring bullet.
The ghoulish, grey creature fell to the ground, thudding. It twitched for a moment, writhing wildly then its eyes went dead and its huge body remained still.
Nate. Autumn thought numbly as Rick rushed over to her. He slipped his arms around her shoulders. She didn’t even look up at him. Instead, she stared blankly at the two dead things on the ground. The two dead things that together, they had killed. The thought was absurd and surreal, and her mind couldn’t fully process it.
Monsters are real. It was a fact her brain couldn’t quite fathom.
Still, she didn’t feel remorse. Those things deserved everything they got. They killed people, ruined lives and tore apart families. Eric’s included.
“Are you alright?” Rick took her face into his hands gently.
He looked wild with panic, as he brushed his fingers across her cheeks lightly.
“Aut, come on honey. Are you in there?”
Like an anchor, his blue eyes pulled her back from the depths, from her own wandering despair. Her fear, and the idea that this was all a horrible nightmare she would wake up from, all of it melted away.
“I’m fine,” she paused, her breath coming quick and clipped. “The ax could’ve hit me. I could have died.”
Rick nodded, his eyes welling up. She had come so very close to death.
“You could’ve but you didn’t. I would never let anything happen to you.”
“Perhaps I wouldn’t have died. Maybe it just would’ve hurt, really bad,” she went on, her shoulders trembling. “The ax was dirty and so rusty and …” she trailed off.
“You are fine. You are safe now. Take a deep breath sweetheart,” Rick said gently, his eyes not leaving hers.
“It’s over now.”
Autumn followed Rick’s instructions and took a few deep breaths.
If they were going to protect Whitan, she had to get better at controlling her fear. She couldn’t let the monsters throw her off, and get the edge. The others couldn’t protect her all the time like Rick had today. If he was too busy watching her back, he wouldn’t have time to watch his own.
“Hey, is everyone alright here?” Mandy came over to them, looking dishevelled, sweat dripping from her brow.
Rick nodded, wiping his bloody blade on the damp grass.
“Yep we are good.” He began looking around him.
“Where is Nate?”
“Present!” Nathaniel, armed with his gun, came jogging over to them from the brush.
“We won!” he said, grinning. “Go team humans!”
“Let’s get that magic dagger out and collect the blood before more monsters come,” Mandy suggested grimly.
“On it,” Autumn said and she pulled out the magical dagger Eric had entrusted to her.
She did exactly as Eric had instructed. She put the dagger right in the first monsters grey muscled chest. She left it there until the hilt of the dagger turned from white to red and then placed the daggers tip into the vile he had given them.
The four of them watched as the dagger tip began seeping blood into the vile. The thick, murky blood filled it, until eventually the dagger was sucked dry. Autumn screwed the cap on the vile and watched as the blood inside bubbled ominously.
Not long after they had retrieved the blood, Eric came to join them and help them dispose of the dead monsters using his magic. When they were finished, and every piece of debris and evidence had been cleaned up, they began walking back to the parking lot.
“Your fighting has improved,” Rick said to Autumn as they trekked along through the damp field. “I’m impressed.”
Autumn felt much stronger than the last time they were at the caves, but she knew she could do better. In her mind, there was always room for improvement, and she wouldn’t be satisfied until she could stand on her own without needing to be saved by anyone.
She looked at Rick. “I just wish I didn’t freeze up when he swung that ax at me.”
He took her hand into his and squeezed it reassuringly.
“I don’t know anyone that could look into the face of death and not freeze up,” he said. “You did amazing Aut.”
“Thanks,” she said, smiling weakly.
The rain picked up again, making everyone move faster.
Unsure if it was the slippery, wet terrain or just bad coordination, Autumn felt the earth slide from beneath her. She flailed wildly, trying to keep her balance, but she toppled over, plunging to the ground.
“Damn it!” she cursed.
“Autumn, are you alright?” Rick asked, reaching out his hand to her.
“I’m alright,” she said, taking it. “I tripped over something.”
She looked at the ground, curious to see what rock or tree branch she had managed to hit.
Her heart stopped when she saw what caused her fall.
“Oh my God,” Rick began, his eyes getting wide. The others looked at the huge indent in the ground.
Autumn examined it more closely, confirming it was a giant footprint.
More than that, it was a giant paw print.
Autumn awoke the next morning with cold morning dew against her skin and birds chirping boisterously above her head.
Her eyes shot open and she immediately panicked. She recognized where she was. She was lying on her back in the field, only steps away from where the caves were.
She sat up slowly and groggily, trying to remember how she ended up here.
Eric, Mandy, Rick, Nathaniel and she had been heading to the van when she tripped over the paw print. They were examining it, and that was the last thing she remembered.
Judging by the blinding sunlight it was late morning now.
She stood up and dusted off her black Kevlar suit. She stretched and ran her hands through her damp hair.
It was cold, and she could feel the frigid air cutting through her armor and clothes, both damp from sleeping in the rain-soaked grass.
She began to walk across the field, looking for Rick and the others. She called out into the crispy air, searching the seemingly endless field, when she spotted something clustered in the distance.
She began running.
Her heart pounding, the air releasing from her lips in smoky clouds ahead of her, she ran for what felt like miles until she was breathless and had to stop.
That’s when she noticed them.
Lying in the field, in varying positions, as far as the eye could see.
Bodies.
Lifeless and still, they were scattered all around her.
There were hundreds. At first, they were faceless and unrecognizable.
Autumn felt her stomach lurch unpleasantly as she rushed to the closest form, trying to decipher someone’s identity.
The first was Mandy; she was torn to bits, shredded to ribbons, with her face the only part of her left intact.
Not far from her was Nathaniel, covered in acidic spit that had burnt through his clothes and skin leaving behind nothing but disintegrated flesh and bones.
Autumn ran to the other side of the field to the next body. It was Eric. His neck was clearly broken. His head was resting on the ground at an unnatural angle, and his eyes were lifeless. In his bloodied hands, he clutched an ancient book of spells.
The wind whistled loudly, whipping her black hair around her face and chilling her to the bone. She felt tears falling from her eyes, tasting like salt as they trickled from her cheeks to her lips.
Her attention was drawn to a trail of bodies that led closer to the cave mouth. She followed them along like links in a chain, like a person on a sick and twisted scavenger hunt.
The last person, whom she feared looking at most, though she wasn’t sure why, had a sword skewered through them. Their body was lying limp and ragged, in a pool of vibrant red blood.
Autumn let out a terrible scream when she saw his face.
It was Rick and on his torso, written in blood were words.
Time to die.
She knelt beside Rick trembling, stroking his curls, her mind denying everything she was seeing and touching. Her screams echoed in her ears, her body racked with sobs of despair, until everything around her went black.
Autumn.
Someone was uttering her name in a singsong voice.
Autumn.
The voice sounded far away, like it was being filtered through many walls.
Autumn, wake up.
She opened her eyes and bolted upright, feeling a body next to hers.
“Whoa!” Rick exclaimed. “It was just a nightmare Autumn. You’re safe.”
Autumn looked around her, letting her surroundings slowly come into focus. She was in Rick’s room, in his bed. Her clothes were soaked with sweat. She kicked off the covers. She was overheating.
Rick was stroking her hair softly and looking
down at her with his adoring eyes.
“Are you alright?” he asked, looking concerned. “You were thrashing and muttering.”
Autumn felt relief rushing over her. Rick was alive. It was just a nightmare, a dreadful nightmare. She reached out to Rick and clutched him tightly.
She remembered now. They had come home from their cave monster expedition and after a shower and a warm cup of tea Autumn was still pretty shaken up. Rick offered to sleep with her. She didn’t decline. It all made sense now.
“You were dead,” she began quietly. “Everyone was. Mandy, Nate and Eric. And there were piles of other dead bodies. Strangers. People I didn’t recognize.”
Rick didn’t let her go, whispering gently into her ear. “It was just a nightmare.”
“It seemed so real,” she murmured, inhaling Rick’s familiar scent. With his arms around her, she always felt safe.
“How about you relax here, and I’ll go get you some breakfast?” Rick offered. “Will that help cheer you up?”
His face was inches from hers now, and she wanted to kiss him so much it made her ache. She told herself she wouldn’t do this. She wouldn’t give into temptation. She had chosen neither Rick nor Eric but now looking at Rick, the way he doted on her, the tenderness in his eyes. Her resolve was quickly slipping away.
Autumn could feel the electricity between them. The anticipation was palpable.
She could tell Rick felt it too.
“I am actually famished,” she admitted. “I could use some carbs.”
He cleared his throat, gaining his composure. “I’ll run to the coffee shop. The usual then? Tea with two sugars and two milks and a bagel with extra cream cheese, right?”
Autumn nodded grinning like a fool. Rick really did know her inside out. This didn’t help to deter her admiration. It only amplified it.
“Thanks Ricky.”
“No problem,” he placed a quick kiss on her forehead. “Be right back.”
Since more sleep was no longer an option after her nightmare, Autumn jumped onto Rick’s laptop to kill time while he fetched breakfast.
When she turned it on, the first thing she noticed was his screen saver.
A Night without Stars Page 22