Chapter 7: A Fight and a Death


John could've sworn that they had been running in a straight line. Had the disfigured buildings impaired his sense of direction?

Rose and Jade also looked confused. The three of them had barely escaped an attack by the alien monster, only to find themselves on the same exact street they had been running away from.

"Something's not right here," said Rose, stating the obvious.

Jade was clutching a stich in her side, and John himself had to stop to catch his breath. Up ahead of them was his house, looking strange and alien against the backdrop of the gray, stormy sky.

Rose surveyed the area around them but didn't see anything out of the ordinary—other than the rows upon rows of wrecked houses. Looking troubled, she said, "Let's keep moving. If we get far enough from here, we might be able to figure out what is going on."

The other two could only nod in silent agreement. Again, John, Rose and Jade set off running.

Minutes later, the three were back on the same street, next to the same house and exactly where they had started from.

"What in the world…?" Rose took John and Jade by the shoulder and led them in the opposite direction they had been running in. "Maybe if we go in the other direction…" she trailed off, unwilling to acknowledge the strange turn of events.

Again, minutes later they found themselves in exactly the same place, albeit on the other side of the street. At this point, everyone was too winded to comment.

After catching her breath, Jade said, "It doesn't look like we can get any farther than this. It's like we're stuck in some sort of loop."

"Jade's right," agreed John. "It's no good running."

Rose nodded reluctantly. "It's like some sort of circular trap. No matter how far you run, you end up back in the same position."

There was a pause. Jade, looking worried, spoke up. "What do we do now? We can't run, and if the monster finds us…" She shivered.

"We'll fight."

Rose and Jade stared in John in bewilderment. Had he gone mad?

John was tired of running. He was tired of trying to reason with himself about the terrible mistake he had made by bringing in the egg. The only option left, he reasoned, was to fight—or at least go down trying.

A grim silence fell upon everyone as John's words sunk in. There was no going back, not now.

Suddenly, a bone-chilling howl ripped through the still air. The sound of wood planks snapping under enormous pressure rang out, and the monster appeared, leaving a gaping hole in the house's wall. Straightaway, it saw the three children, and its mouth contorted into a twisted grin.

Gulping nervously, John drew his weapon of choice—a hammer. The others did likewise, retrieving their own weapons; Rose had a pair of sharp knitting needles and Jade had a plain rifle.

There was a moment of pause, and John realized that Dave hadn't appeared. That could only mean one thing, and John didn't want to think about that possibility.

Jade and Rose had realized the same thing he had. However, none had time to mull over their knowledge because the creature lunged viciously at the three combatants, snarling and growling.

Rose was the first to move. She leapt clear over the bestial alien's head and brought down both of her needles into the monster's back, causing it to growl and try to shake her off.

While Rose distracted it, Jade braced herself and took several shots at the beast, hoping that she would hit vital spots. However, the bullets had no effect on it, as they simply bounced off its scaly hide.

Seemingly annoyed, with a toss of its shoulders the monster sent Rose crashing into the debris around them. Lumbering slowly, it approached her and reached out to smash her frail body. All of a sudden, John appeared, yelling at the top of his lungs and swinging his hammer wildly. "HEY! EVIL ALIEN MONSTER!" he shouted. "OVER HERE!" With that, he threw the hammer and hit the brute square in the face.

The monstrous alien growled; it was soft and dangerous, completely unlike any of the other bellowing calls it had made earlier. The sound itself conveyed its meaning very well to John and Jade—it was angry. Very angry.

With a snarl on its face the beast turned and grabbed Rose, her form tiny and delicate in its colossal hands. Raising its hand up high, it growled once again at John and Jade—then it smashed Rose into the concrete ground.

There was a sickening snap.

John could feel bile rising in his throat. Jade's eyes started tearing up uncontrollably, and she seemed to be trying to keep herself from screaming.

The monster lifted its hand, which was dripping with blood. It eyed the two, as if to say, I have complete power over you puny weaklings. See, I have killed two of your friends! You cannot stop me!

John suddenly felt something strange. It was familiar, yet all too alien. He was angry; the only thing he could feel was seething rage. With no concern for himself, he rushed blindly at the creature, wanting only to kill it at any cost.


What the heck am I writing...

- Long-Vuong