Chapter 20: Hawk Hunt

Daniel slowly opened the heavy wooden door. He pointed the tip of his Carbine ahead and swept his gaze across the room. He didn't see any movement, prompting him to enter the room. Once inside, he scanned the room more thoroughly. It reminded him of the vestibule of the apartment complex he lived in before the bombs fell. He noticed a glinting light peeping through a gaping hole in the wall. He stepped over the cracked drywall and wood into another room. If was a largely empty bathroom, save for a tiny fire pit, a rope tied to a bucket stretching through another hole in the ceiling, and a wobbly clamp made of wooden boards and rat trap springs that held the rope tightly in place. It reminded Daniel of a clothespin. Daniel holstered his weapon and approached the contraption. He inspected the clamp. The wood wasn't rotted, which was a surprise to Daniel.

"Roy," Daniel called quietly, "Come here."

Roy and Brutus stepped into the fire light.

"What's up?" Roy asked.

"You see this?"

"What about it."

"Just look."

Roy stooped next to Daniel and looked at the clamp. Brutus looked over his shoulder to get a closer look.

"What am I looking at?"

"You see how it's set up? The wood holding the rope."

"Yeah."

"Always make sure it's set tightly. If it's just sitting there off the clamp, it means the counter-weight got cut off. If there's no counter-weight, the thing isn't going anywhere. Got it?"

Roy nodded. Daniel stood up and gently pushed Roy aside. He placed one foot inside the bucket and wrapped both hands tightly around the rope. He kicked the bottom of one of the boards, releasing the clamp. He was immediately propelled upward, through the hole in the ceiling. He quickly ascended through the building. He watched as the counterweight, a large chunk of concrete, sailed past him. He rocketed through the building, bypassing a few floors before coming to an abrupt stop at his destination. Still slightly dizzy from the rapid movement, he held onto the rope until he could steady himself.

"Fifth floor: birding and hunting supplies," He joked to himself.

He took the walkie-talkie Tim had given him from his belt and held a button on the side in.

"I'm sending the elevator back down," he said, "Make sure it's secure before you empty the bucket, got it?"

Roy replied, "You got it, Boss."

Daniel stood the bucket on the floor beside him. He placed several heavy pieces of rubble and wood he found in a pile nearby into the bucket. He held the bucket steady until it stopped wiggling before releasing the rope and letting it slowly glide down to his companions. He stopped the counterweight from moving when it reached the top. After a few moments, the counterweight suddenly dropped. Daniel could hear Roy screaming throughout the entirety of his ride on the elevator. Roy came to an abrupt stop at the peak of the elevator shaft. Daniel promptly pulled him off the elevator by his coat's collar and cupped his gasmask with his free hand to hold his face in place.

Daniel scolded him in a disgruntled whisper, "Keep it the fuck down!"

Daniel released him. Still slightly dizzy, Roy stumbled back against the wall.

"Man," he exhaled, "That was a rush."

Daniel placed the bucket on the floor.

"Take some rocks from that pile in the corner and fill up the bucket. We need to get Brutus up here."

Roy nodded and crouched beside the bucket. He started placing large rocks into it.

After Roy had placed several rocks into the bucket, he turned to Daniel and asked, "This good?"

"Is it heavy enough to go back down?"

Roy hung the bucket over the hole. After steadying it, he released the rope. The bucket hung in place above the hole. Roy added more rocks and wood until the bucket drooped and sank into the hole. A short while afterward, Brutus practically flew up the shaft and came to an abrupt stop just before hitting his head on the ceiling. He fell backward off the bucket, out of breath.

"That was a rush!" he said between gasps.

"You get used to it after a while," Daniel explained.

Daniel started toward the window carved into a nearby wall.

"What, do you people do this every day?"

"More or less."

"You people are crazy."

Daniel stooped next to the window. Roy soon followed. He pushed a small pot filled with dirt aside and peered through the frame down into the park.

"Twenty years ago, I used to watch Russians jump from rooftops on tire swings and hop between the tops of moving cars."

Brutus adjusted his gasmask and joined Daniel and Roy beside the window.

"I said the same thing about them too."

Brutus chuckled. Daniel noticed a Lucky rifle resting against the windowsill.

"How's your aim, Brutus?"

"I'd say I'm pretty good shot. Why do you ask?"

Daniel took the rifle and passed it to Brutus. The scope glinted in the dim sunlight. Brutus took the rifle and examined it. Daniel pulled his monocular from a pocket on his thigh. It had been a pair of binoculars in the past, but had long since snapped in half. Daniel had continued using the half that retained its functionality. Daniel looked into the park. He noticed several Howlers wandering between the trees. Daniel had only just realized that the cold season had ended and the leaves had begun to emerge from the branches of the trees. The trees were shaped almost like umbrellas. They dotted the park, creating a tiny, sparse forest.

Daniel spoke into his radio, "We're ready whenever you are."

Tim responded, "I hear ya. On our way now."

Daniel placed the radio back on his belt.

Brutus struck up a conversation, "You know, you're pretty ballsy to hand an enemy spy a gun."

Daniel responded half apathetically, "Didn't we already do this bit?"

"Maybe we did. I'm surprised you haven't tried to kill me, yet, though."

"Why is that?"

"Well, we did blow up your city. Most people would be pretty upset about that, no? They'd probably hate our guts."

"Probably."

"But you don't?"

"If you had asked me a few years ago, I would have said I do."

"And now?"

"Look, I've got monsters trying to eat me, several armies trying to invade my home, and a new life-threatening job to do every day. I've got way too much going on in my life to worry about hating Russians."

Brutus laughed. He seemed to find Daniel's ranting quite amusing. Daniel noticed another animal wandering into the park. It had an incredibly long neck, with even longer legs. Its neck was lined with a black mane that reminded Daniel of a hairbrush. Its legs were covered with a dark brown carapace that crept all the way up to its underbelly. It slowly meandered toward a tree before stopping in front of it and nipping at the budding leaves with its long beak-like snout. Its long, thin ears twisted back and forth, as if scanning its surroundings. Between its radar-like ears were a couple long, thin horns shaped almost like antennae. Its skin was covered in alternating stripes of white and black.

"Well, that's what keeps attracting the Howlers," Daniel whispered to himself.

Brutus seemed to notice it too.

"What is that thing?" he asked with a degree of amazement, "Some kind of weird zebra-giraffe monster?"

Daniel answered, "It's called a Jackalope. It's harmless."

Just as Daniel answered, a group of Howlers surrounded the Jackalope. The enormous creature immediately darted away at an incredible speed, leaving the group of hungry Howlers in the dust.

"And what are those dog things? That one looks like old bulldog I had as a boy. Oh, and that one looks like Lassy!"

"Howlers. They're nasty, but nowhere near as nasty as a Tabby."

"Tabby?"

"It looks like a big tiger and is as mean as a scorpion."

"Any other beasts or monsters I should know about?"

A hawk suddenly swooped down and landed on top of a Howler, crushing and killing it instantly. It then turned and screeched at the other Howlers nearby. Its raven colored feathers and menacing howl filled Daniel with dread. It was as if the Reaper had descended on the pitiable creatures that scrambled to escape it. It scooped the dead Howler up with its beak before flying away to devour its kill.

"Does that answer your question?"

"You people deal with these things every day?"

"More or less. More just them, though."

Daniel gestured toward the group of Hunters as they marched up the street.

Tim's voice crackled through the radio, "I guess we're a little late, huh?"

Daniel responded, "You just missed him."

"I guess we'll just have to call him back over, then, huh?"

The Hunter in the center of the line pointed his weapon into the air and fired off several rounds. After a few moments, Daniel could see several curious Howlers cautiously approaching them. The Hunters began firing at the monsters as they approached. It didn't take long for the Hawk to take notice and find itself a perch atop one of the buildings overlooking the park.

Daniel warned the Hunters, "He's on the north end."

Daniel noticed one of the Hunters peering through the scope of a rifle toward the north. Daniel assumed it was the sniper, Roger. After a moment he shook his head.

"No shot. Let us know if he moves."

Roy tapped Daniel on the shoulder and said, "Dan, there's a Tabby there."

He pointed at the road. Daniel saw a Tabby slowly inching its way toward the group.

Daniel spoke into the radio again, "You got a Tabby behind you guys; back the way you came from."

Daniel watched as a Hunter turned toward it just as it pounced. He drew his pistol and cupped his hand around the barrel of it. As it leapt toward him, he smashed the pistol against the side of the huge cat's head. The Tabby was sent reeling and tumbled to the ground. Another Hunter slammed his boot onto the Tabby's neck, pinning it in place, before delivering one fatal blast from his Remmy shotgun to its head. Dissatisfied with simply observing the scuffle, their quarry decided to take flight. It rose into the sky. Raven-colored feathers gently swayed through the air. Just as quickly as it had taken flight, it plummeted to the ground. It landed near the group of Hunters. Daniel could feel the tremor of the landing shake the building. It snapped at Tim. Tim quickly pushed his gun into its beak to block the attack. The two giants struggled for a few moments before the bird attempted to take flight again. Tim released his weapon and stumbled backward. Daniel could hear him shouting, but couldn't make out what he was saying over the snarls and gunshots. He watched Roger follow the monster with his gun. He fired twice, hitting the bird both times. His effort wasn't enough, as it continued to climb into the air. Brutus fired a shot at the beast. The sudden noise startled Daniel. However, Brutus seemed to land the killing blow. The bird tumbled and fell from the sky. It flew right toward Daniel and his group. Roy tried to hurry away from the window, but tripped and fell backward. Daniel noticed the bird was too low to actually hit his window. Instead of running, he gripped the windowsill and braced for the impact. The bird slammed into the building at a lower floor. The building rumbled and shook. Wood and rock rattled along the floor. Parts of the ceiling and supports rustled or collapsed. Daniel could hear the debris falling beneath him. The commotion quickly died down.

Daniel held his hand in front of him and quickly said, "Nobody move!"

He waited a few moments. Brutus and Roy didn't move or speak. Daniel waited until he was surrounded by total silence.

Tim's voice suddenly blared through the radio, "You guys alright?"

Daniel looked to Roy and Brutus. Each nodded to him in affirmation.

Daniel took the radio in his hand and responded, "We're good."

"Good, good. Damn nice shot by the way. Could you check it out and make sure it's dead?"

"Yeah, we're on it."

Daniel placed the radio back on his belt and stood up. He took the rifle from Brutus and walked to the elevator. He placed several weights in the bucket and descended through the shaft. Daniel knew the bird was only a couple of floors down. The dust created a thick fog. Daniel turned on his flashlight and stepped off the elevator on the floor he was sure the hawk was on. He quietly searched the floor for the bird. He opened a door and discovered the monster lying on the floor. He glanced at the gaping hole where it had breached the building. It reminded him of an old comedy film where a wrecking ball invaded the protagonist's home. Without the time to giggle at the memory, he quickly pushed the thought aside. He loaded his rifle and slowly crept toward the hawk. It was deathly still, but Daniel didn't want to take any chances. He aimed the rifle at the bird and shot a bullet through the top of its head. The only motion it showed was from the force of the bullet tearing through its skull. Daniel loaded his rifle and stepped closer to it. He placed the end of his gun against the beast's head and fired one more time. Absolutely sure the creature was dead; he turned to rejoin his companions. He stopped at the doorway and took one last look at the monster.

"'Flying rats' my ass…" he whispered to himself.

He let out a sigh of relief and headed for the elevator to return to the safety of the subway tunnels.