Splash.
Splash. Growl.
A dry mouth accompanied him faster than he thought possible. Swallowing thickly, to no avail, Daniel practically clung to the wall, the traction in his shoes keeping him on the floating crate rather well. But for how long?
Splash. Growl. The Englishman stayed as still as he could, feeling the spray of cold water glaze his lips and left cheek. It was so close. So close. Had Daniel not been keeping his hand on the wall and the other tightly clasped on the lantern, they would've shaken like a brittle leaf of a low wind.
The male glanced to the side, his right hand lingering just beside a lever. He knew what it did. He just didn't want to run past this…this…demon! Daniel, once again, swallowed and let his fingers lay dauntingly on the handle.
Clenching it quickly, he slammed his hand down on the lever, feeling his numb fingers once again before he leaped over the creature and ran, water kicking up from his heels. The monster was soon hot on his trail, its occasional splashing the only thing proving of its invisible existence. Daniel delayed the monster even further by leaping over boxes, blood rushing in his ears as if to further echo that damned sound. The gate was just up ahead. If he could just-
A slick spot made him plummet into the cold water, making his limbs completely lock for a moment. Remembering the beast and also knowing his lantern would be useful to only a junkyard for a good hour or so, he leaped up and attempted to run. His clothes were heavy, soaked and his brown bangs attempted to cling to his eyes. The metallic clinking made him dart up even faster, knowing that the grate was beginning to close on him.
Teeth sank into his ankle, causing him to howl and attempt to yank it free with everything he had, the fresh ripping of flesh causing him to shudder.
"Let-Let go, you beast!" And his free foot swatted at it, forcing him to fall as his heel collided with a heavy object which removed itself from his ankle. Blood filtered from him and into the water as the monster slammed into the nearby boxes and bookcase.
The man's fearful, bright green eyes now widened from shock as he could now see the monster. And it certainly did not look like one. The monster resembled a boy about the age of seventeen, its dark green hair plastered to its cheekbones and broken jaw. The skin adorning its body was scaled here and there, colored a deep blue as well. But what made Daniel's stomach truly turn, aside from its shark-like teeth, was the fact that its legs, resembling his own, were grotesquely twisted. Was that why it was forced to jump through the water?
Knowing the grate was well closed behind him, the Englishman slowly stood, keeping well off his bleeding foot. It was daring to become inflamed but the cold water was helping keep the skin from swelling too much. Daniel set the lantern down on a nearby crate as he slowly ran his hand over the beasts' broken jaw, furthermore noticing the concussion on his head from the recent collision with the wooden crates and bookcase.
Daniel suddenly shrieked as the beast suddenly snapped its eyes open and tackled him down, forcing him beneath the water. The male immediately attempted to fight back, shoving his hand at its throat and quickly hoping to crush its windpipe. Despite its slick skin, the beast tossed his head, unable to escape the others grip. Its eyes soon tried to find Daniel's but to no avail.
Daniel, shivering now, looked over the Kaernk once more and frowned as he shoved his head out of the water. It was incredibly thin…and blind. The creature growled and snarled, attempting to bite Daniel's hand and claw at it. However, Daniel noticed that it looked too weak to put up a proper fight. He looked like he hadn't eaten in days and, perhaps, he could fix his legs.
The male swallowed and soon, dangerously and slowly, let go of the Kaernk's neck. Clawed fingers left his arm as the Kaernk happened to gratefully breathe in air, soon honestly allowing a soft cough before another growl echoed.
"E-E-Eas-sy." Naturally, it didn't listen as its growl increased in volume before it was suddenly moving to suck and roughly bite at Daniel's bleeding ankle. The male yelped and pulled away quickly, soon hopping up nervously onto a crate.
Automatically, the other attempted to follow, but could do nothing with its twisted legs, its clawed fingers only scratching at the surface of the crate. That was all this poor creature was, he soon realized. Hungry. It was in pain from starvation. And the male had yet to find out that the Kaernk here and in the next room would soon follow him like lost puppies. Even out of the water.