The sound of the river reaches you before you clear the trees. You look at the limping Warrior next to you. The water had saved your life once before but now it only stirs fear in you. The Warrior hisses reassuringly to you and it calms you down. When you clear the trees you look left and right. When you are sure the coast is clear you run to the river bank. Dipping your head in eagerly, you slurp up the water. The Warrior next to you takes careful sips, all the while surveying the area around it. You lift your head as a strange scent reaches you. The scent troubles you, its familiar and the memories of the encounter are still fresh in your mind. Your shoulder tingles as the memory of a tail pinning you to the ground flashes through your mind. You let out a worried hiss and the Warrior raises its head. It nods knowingly to you, having already picked up the scent.
Suddenly, there is a screech and a Warrior leaps out from across the river towards you and your companion. You jump to the side but your friend isn't fast enough and is tackled by the enemy Warrior. As your companion is pinned by the enemy it looks back at you and hisses; telling you to leave it and warn the others. You take a step forward but two more Warriors leap out and you quickly turn and run back into the woods. The crash of underbrush warns you the enemy is chasing and closing in. You pick up the pace, hoping to outrun the Warriors just enough to warn the others.
You knew, ever since you made the clearing your home, that the Warriors from the Hive would come after you. Since you had been born in the wild, without a "Queen" as your companion had described it, you were marked as a reject and were unfit to live in the Hive. Therefore, any Warriors from a Hive would try to attack you.
Finally you clear the woods and enter the clearing of rejects, which has been your home for the past two months. You run to the center of the clearing and hiss frantically. The other Warriors stare at you, not understanding the warning. A crash behind you alerts you to the danger seconds before a body slams into you, throwing you to the ground. Another shape leaps over you and you watch as it tackles a Runner. The Runner screeches as it's dragged to the ground and the enemy attacks it mercilessly. As the panicked screeches of your family fill the air the Warrior on top of you makes a move. You block out all other commotion around you and focus on keeping your one goal; staying alive.
Kim yawned and shifted her hands on the steering wheel as her mini-van chugged down the dark road. It had been a long day at work again and all she wanted to do was get home and take a nice, long, hot shower. Kim squinted, as the road in front of her began to curve; her left headlight had burned out a few days ago so Kim was having trouble seeing the road. Not that it was the best of roads; it wasn't well lit and twisted this way and that through the dark woods. Kim had always envisioned something hiding in the shadows and waiting for her to pass before making its move. Suddenly, a dark shape shifted in the blackness. Kim gasped and slammed on her breaks which squealed in protest as the car started to fishtail before slowing to a stop. Kim looked back, expecting-no, hoping- that the shadow had just been a deer venturing too close to the road. When nothing moved Kim relaxed and slowly started to press down on the accelerator. A low cry, almost like a moan, sounded directly behind Kim's car, causing her to jump. Her breath caught in her throat at the sound of the noise; she knew immediately what that sound was, for she had heard it many times in the veterinarian office, an animal in pain.
Kim twisted around to gaze into her backseat, looking for her giant flashlight. She found it tucked underneath the seat. She hesitated before unlocking the door and stepping out into the street. She shinned her flashlight onto the edge road but the animal wasn't there. Kim stood in the middle of the road, wondering if the animal had died or moved on, when the low cry sounded again, coming from inside the woods. Kim walked slowly to the end of the street to the woods, telling herself that she wouldn't go far into the woods. As she scanned her light into the trees, hearing the low rush of a river nearby, the darkness seemed to shift. She quickly placed the beam of light on that spot and gasped at what she saw.
The creature lying curled in a ball of pain was unlike any animal Kim had ever seen. It had a long, smooth, curved head with no visible eyes and a mouth full of sharp teeth. It had a black, exoskeleton body, with long, spindly fingers ending in dagger-like claws and a long tail that ended in a sharp barb. It was about twice the size of an Irish Wolfhound -maybe taller. It let out another cry of pain and immediately Kim saw why; the creature had been wounded by something. Four parallel gashes ran across the creature's back. A voice in Kim's head told her it was a bad idea to take the creature. But her desire to help was stronger than her fear.
Taking a step forward, Kim tried to get close to the creature, but it backed away and let out a warning hiss, like a rattle on a rattlesnake just before it struck. Kim ignored it and took another step forward. This time, the creature pounced forward; aiming for Kim's throat. But before the creature could reach Kim it fell to the forest ground, writhing in pain. Kim then took two quick steps and got alongside the creature. It shrieked and tried to slash at her with its claws. From years of dealing with reluctant cats and dogs, Kim was able to get her arms around the middle of the creature. As Kim's arm touched the gashes the creature shrieked and its tail quivered. Kim stared at it fearfully but when it didn't move again Kim guessed the creature was too weak to strike her.
Kim shifted the flashlight around a bit before managing to get the beam to point at the ground. Then she slowly began making her way back to her car, half carrying and half dragging the creature. When Kim finally reached her car she popped the back door open and pushed aside some of the empty boxes from the office. She heaved the creature into the car, watching it closely for any signs that it was going to attack, but it was still too weak to fight her. The creature raised its head slightly to look around the car before lowering its head to the carpet. When Kim was sure the creature was comfortable she shut the door and climbed into the front seat. As she started the car a thought crossed through her head; what was she going to tell her husband?