The red glow shimmered amongst the trees and I knew that the battle had only just begun. With a sense of terror like I’d never known, I forced myself to look up even though I didn’t want to.
The beast had arrived.
Two glowing scarlet eyes stared down at me, unblinking and dangerous. Within them, fires smoldered just like the one I’d stared into only hours before. Two thick, bull-like horns extended outward above those angry eyes and a mouth full of sharp teeth opened and closed ominously, gnashing with fury. The beast’s entire body glowed red, like it was comprised of living fire surging through its veins. I could almost see the flames smoldering just underneath its skin. With flaring nostrils, the beast breathed in and out slowly and smoke rose up around it, ominous and terrifying.
It walked forward on all fours and that’s when the screaming really started. Long, pointed claws curled into the dirt beneath it and at once, it hurtled toward us all.
It lashed forward with one paw and struck one of the members of my security team, lacerating him in two with just a single swipe. In horror, I watched as his upper half fell toward the ground, leaving his lower half standing for just a moment until it tumbled to the ground as well. The monster’s first casualty. I had a feeling this was just the beginning.
Like a wild cat, the beast slinked forward, growling and snarling as the rest of my team shot at it with everything they had. Laser pulses bounced right off the beast’s body, effectively useless against it. Flamethrowers did nothing against this beast of fire, rendering my men defenseless against it. We hadn’t been prepared for such a devastating creature. We hadn’t even known it existed.
The monster continued on its rampage and the sounds of bodies ripping into pieces was deafening. A keening, desperate noise echoed around me and it took me a long moment to realize that it was emerging from my own throat.
Blood and gore fell to the dirt all around me. I struggled to breathe and the coppery taste of blood felt stale on my tongue.
The man holding Jasper’s lifeless body finally dropped him to the ground.
“Kill them all. Leave those two alive,” he said, pointing in my and Alix’s direction. “Then destroy the airship and every last vial of their drugs. Leave nothing but ashes,” the man said, seemingly in the direction of the giant beast.
Then he rushed toward me and I didn’t even have enough time to lift my gun before he grasped my bag and tore it from my shoulder. My body wrenched backwards, and I tried to hold onto the backpack, but he was stronger than me. Alix lunged for him, but he was too late. The man dashed off into the woods with everything I held dear in his possession.
I didn’t have any time to focus on the loss of my bag though while the beast was tearing through the rest of my people. Death and devastation surrounded me.
The monster roared and its horned head descended down. I watched in horror as its mouth opened, glowing red from within. Teeth grated together and another man from my team was torn into pieces.
The monster attacked, again and again.
I knew then that I would never forget their screams.
The creature breathed in deep and the glow beneath its skin grew brighter, the smoke surrounding it thicker and much heavier. I took a step back in alarm. The great beast began to breathe fire, directed straight at the remaining members of my expedition.
The bandits that had attacked us scattered back into the trees. Overhead, the sun was just beginning to rise, and the sky was starting to lighten. It should have been beautiful, but the only thing it served to do was expose the death and ruin that this night had become.
One by one, the monster eviscerated the men who were supposed to protect me. Within just a few minutes, it had killed them all.
Then it turned toward us. I felt a droplet of sweat drip down my back, cold as ice. Even with Alix beside me, fear consumed me.
I stared into its eyes and it gazed down at me, promising my death should I step out of line. A soft growl emerged from its throat and the fire under its skin pulsed in warning. It was telling me to run. To get as far away from here as I could.
But I couldn’t move. I was frozen.
Behind me, Alix’s hands grasped my waist and all of a sudden, my feet weren’t touching the ground anymore. He hefted me up and over his shoulder, my body fitting against him like it had been molded for it. He sprinted off into the forest and I watched as the monster bounded off in the other direction. It moved toward our camp, our airship, and all of our supplies. Several minutes later, a ball of fire rose up into the sky. A great blast of destruction that took all I’d ever worked for and annihilated it within seconds.
I knew then that everything we’d brought with us must have been destroyed.
Everything.
Including the supplies of injectable suppressant.