Crimson

Disclaimer: Look at screen name. Griffin. Not JJ Abrams. Okay?
Summary: Kate meets the monster in the jungle, and only just survives – but now she's injured, alone, and Cerberus is very, very, mad.
Rating: I'll put it as Teen, because I don't think there'll be anything really explicit... though it could get dark. You've been warned.

A/N – I'm wondering now whether this should be M. It could be a little graphic later on. If anyone has thoughts on this?

Ikon4332 & 4-8-15-JuliaThorne-16-23-42– thanks for your reviews. Because I got two, I am updating now.

Chapter four

Kate fell to her knees. The pain, which had been steadily increasing over the last few hours had just cut off. There was a pleasant numbness there. She saw the darkness creeping in, and thought, I'd better build a fire. But... shouldn't she be back by now? She wasn't that far away. Couldn't be.

Vision hazy and mind working on half-capacity, she struggled to comprehend where she was. The sun was setting over there... so that meant... what?

She was not where she should be. She was too far south. A long way inland, too. She touched the bandage gingerly, wondering if she should unwrap it. But the pain spiked for a second, and she let her hand drop down to her side. This was not good.

Injured, she thought. She'd never been seriously hurt before. Never. It felt surreal. Especially when she thought about how it had happened. She shivered, and hoped once again it was dead. If something like that could die. Maybe it couldn't – but then, it could feel pain, so it wasn't entirely machine.

She sat back, and looked around. Fire. She needed fire. Cerberus didn't like fire. That thought, at least, helped her move. She wondered where the name had come from – whether the monster had somehow communicated its name, or if her subconscious had thought of it. From what she remembered of Greek mythology, Cerberus was the three headed dog who guarded the gates to hell.

Appropriate, she thought wryly. There was a rustling noise behind her, and she spun around, ears aching for the screaming-metal sound it made. In her frightened state, she could easily believe the monster had been drawn by her thoughts.

Chicata-chicata-chicata. Something dark flashed behind her.

Kate turned uneasily. She should have started the fire sooner. She tensed. It was nearby, she knew. The back of her neck prickled.

Then there was a flash of blinding white light. For a moment, it shone out through the gathering darkness, and then disappeared completely. Even before Kate could wonder why, she knew – she couldn't see a thing. She was blind.

She ducked on instinct, and felt something pass over her head. Then it came back, and smacked her in the back. It was as hard as a sack of bricks, and she fell forward. On impact, she hit her right shoulder on the ground, and cried out.

She rolled over, and found her vision was coming back, slowly. She could distinguish something dark... and with a shock realised it was right above her. There was a deafening roar, and she felt hot tears rush to her eyes. She was on her back on the ground, with a homicidal cloud of black smoke pushing into her chest and stomach.

There was a noise like knifes scraping together – and then a hideously painful sensation in her legs. It was making sure she didn't run again. She couldn't feel anything below her waist.

The lighter, she thought. Need the lighter. With her good arm, she tried to pull out her lighter again. It was stuck in her pocket, and the growling above her was growing more threatening every moment.

"No!" she cried aloud, not able to bear the thought of failing, of dying out here. This morning, everything had been beautiful. They'd been running short of fruit lately, sure, because the trees near the camp were empty – even up high – but never had she thought she may not see another morning.

The lighter came free, and with a triumphant yell, flicked it open in the monster's face. Cerberus backed off a little, and she knew it was remembering their encounter earlier. It knew the square box was to be feared. She didn't give it a chance to reconsider – she lit a flame.

Which flickered... and died. No matter how urgently she tried to light another, the lighter remained lifeless in her hand. And then another roar from the monster, this one gleeful. Smug, even. It knew she was helpless.

Kate rolled into a ball, trying to keep the invisible blades/teeth away from her. Something ripped the flesh along her back. It was laughing. She could feel it echoing inside her, its joy at having finally got her. It had been chasing her for a long time... and each time she had escaped. Twice she had caused it incredible pain.

The lighter was clenched in her left hand, but it was practically useless now. It was probably empty. She could see again, and her face was pressed against the crude bandage – which was by now soaked through with blood.

Night had fallen completely. Or maybe the cloud above her was stopping her from seeing anything else. She wasn't focusing on the pain anymore. She knew that it was dragging this out on purpose. It could have killed her already, by snapping her neck or biting through her throat, or by simply tearing her into a million pieces.

The bandage... Kate saw the dried flecks of blood, the rough fabric of the bandage. Something was taunting her. Right in her face...

The lighter. Suddenly Kate felt herself pull away from the pain. Was she dead? Maybe. But she had one last chance. A cigarette lighter – on the island used for everything from lighting fires to cooking small bits of meat – is full of compressed gas. When the wheel is turned, a spark hits the gas and a flame is produced. Kate's lighter was out of gas, so... what?

She tried to think. She probably had only seconds before Cerberus grew tired of its game and decided to finish her off. The lighter had no fuel... so give it something...

She knew if this worked, she'd go through a lot more pain. But if it didn't, she'd be dead. Not much of a choice.

She gave the lighter one more try. As it turns out, calico bandages are very flammable. And, dried blood is the perfect starter fuel.

Her whole arm was on fire, and with the last of her strength, she thrust her arm up, into Cerberus. Its screams joined her own, as the fire spread across both of them, the black smoke burning and Kate's shirt and pants all alight.

She wondered if she'd ever be able to hear again. Even now, the hideous, ear-blistering cries were fading out of her consciousness, but her own screams continued.

She was writhing around on the ground, and felt her skin burning. It was, actually, the movement that saved her. As she squashed the flames, they began to die down. And after a minute, she found herself lying in the jungle, unable to move and barely able to breathe.