11-04-2014, 06:31 PM
The pops and creaks of the wall continued but she was following a trail away from that wall so she wasn't as concerned. She did keep her heavy blade handy though. The long weight of it in her hand filled her with a sense of power. Her arm itched to swing it hard, to feel the thwack of it meeting flesh.
But she couldn't be so focused on chasing him down that she missed another. The thing was injured anyway. It wouldn't move fast. An injured animal could still kill you. She wouldn't be easy prey in any case.
She peaked her head out the hallway- down low in case anything was waiting at head level- and saw nothing. The blood trail was still fresh and she walked out the arched way into what used to be a garden but was now just an overgrown mass of bushes and trees and vines. It was only late afternoon but the over-growth and the high walls made it seem like dusk. She stopped, the sounds of the wind stirring leaves and tall grasses and leaves muffling the sound of anything else.
She stood there, quiet, feeling the place. Her eyes adjusted until she could see just fine. She crouched with her weapon free and scanned the ground while never really stopping from watching everything else. She could see from the placement of leaves and bent grass- its leg had been cut badly and it was dragging it- the direction it went. This was the most dangerous moment of all. It was hiding somewhere in here.
She moved imperceptibly, the sounds and movements from the wind masking her progress partially. Despite the growth, the walls showed she was approaching a densely covered corner of the wall. She'd be stupid to go into that. The thing was fleeing, which meant it was hurt and scared. If she went in there, she'd have limited freedom of movement and its anger and strength could overwhelm her.
Without thinking, she pulled another flashbang from her pocket and readied herself. She looked around and could see the thing would be coming out straight towards her. She got her blade ready and then set it and throw it. She was ready and the loud bang and smoke and light only momentarily fazed her. The noises and lights coincided with a crash that was slightly off to the right. She shifted and swung just as it jumped at her. It lay on the ground still moving but she didn't immediately go to it.
More than likely that was all of them but she still needed to be careful. When she heard nothing else, she went to the creature. It gave off a low moan as she kicked its foot- happening to be one the leg she'd but before. She smiled at its pain. They were still dangerous like this and the intelligent part of her told her to just put it down. But she felt that hunger in her. She wanted to see the fear in its eyes.
She crept closer until she could see its eyes. The middle was nearly slice in half and it was bleeding out and clear in pain. She smiled and watched it. There would be no bullet in the eyes, no quick death. She was alert to the rest but could not stop staring at it. She couldn't see what the creature saw, but she did see its reaction. She treasured it and kept looking until something about the way it held itself- the way its muscles were clenched- relaxed and the eyes glazed over.
Carefully- after signalling Ricky that she was ok- she backtracked, searching the rest of the Convent. For any others. She found evidence of their living- and their eating, but nothing else. As she did, she placed the remaining charges that had been in her hip bag. The single ante-rooms destruction had place a huge strain on the north wall. She place the others in the other chambers and on a few cross walls. They were all keyed to the same frequency.
Once she was outside, it was starting to become dusk for real. Ricky was probably worried so she radioed him that she was on her way. The relief in his voice was palpable. She followed their old route- around the ruins of the antechamber- to the truck. He was there with the four girls, one of whom clung to him and wouldn't let go. She rolled her eyes.
"Let go now!"
she barked and the girl's hands loosened. She dug into her pouch, really glad that Ricky had thought to give them water, if for not the reasons he thought. They didn't have a lot of time. The explosion was going to call attention to this place and she didn't want them to be here. And they weren't going to keep the girls around for longer than they had to.
She passed out three pills to them each. "Take it."
The words were simple but brooked no argument. At Ricky's look she explained. "They've been with the rougs. They obviously weren't for food except for an ear maybe. You figure it out."
The girls seemed frozen. One of the girls, the one who'd been holding on to Ricky began crying and crossed herself before touching her stomach. "No, no, no...." She exhaled in irritation. She didn't have time for this. She pulled out her gun and put it to the girl's head. "It's the pills and maybe some cramps for a few days or this. Decide quickly."
She would give them 10 seconds.
But she couldn't be so focused on chasing him down that she missed another. The thing was injured anyway. It wouldn't move fast. An injured animal could still kill you. She wouldn't be easy prey in any case.
She peaked her head out the hallway- down low in case anything was waiting at head level- and saw nothing. The blood trail was still fresh and she walked out the arched way into what used to be a garden but was now just an overgrown mass of bushes and trees and vines. It was only late afternoon but the over-growth and the high walls made it seem like dusk. She stopped, the sounds of the wind stirring leaves and tall grasses and leaves muffling the sound of anything else.
She stood there, quiet, feeling the place. Her eyes adjusted until she could see just fine. She crouched with her weapon free and scanned the ground while never really stopping from watching everything else. She could see from the placement of leaves and bent grass- its leg had been cut badly and it was dragging it- the direction it went. This was the most dangerous moment of all. It was hiding somewhere in here.
She moved imperceptibly, the sounds and movements from the wind masking her progress partially. Despite the growth, the walls showed she was approaching a densely covered corner of the wall. She'd be stupid to go into that. The thing was fleeing, which meant it was hurt and scared. If she went in there, she'd have limited freedom of movement and its anger and strength could overwhelm her.
Without thinking, she pulled another flashbang from her pocket and readied herself. She looked around and could see the thing would be coming out straight towards her. She got her blade ready and then set it and throw it. She was ready and the loud bang and smoke and light only momentarily fazed her. The noises and lights coincided with a crash that was slightly off to the right. She shifted and swung just as it jumped at her. It lay on the ground still moving but she didn't immediately go to it.
More than likely that was all of them but she still needed to be careful. When she heard nothing else, she went to the creature. It gave off a low moan as she kicked its foot- happening to be one the leg she'd but before. She smiled at its pain. They were still dangerous like this and the intelligent part of her told her to just put it down. But she felt that hunger in her. She wanted to see the fear in its eyes.
She crept closer until she could see its eyes. The middle was nearly slice in half and it was bleeding out and clear in pain. She smiled and watched it. There would be no bullet in the eyes, no quick death. She was alert to the rest but could not stop staring at it. She couldn't see what the creature saw, but she did see its reaction. She treasured it and kept looking until something about the way it held itself- the way its muscles were clenched- relaxed and the eyes glazed over.
Carefully- after signalling Ricky that she was ok- she backtracked, searching the rest of the Convent. For any others. She found evidence of their living- and their eating, but nothing else. As she did, she placed the remaining charges that had been in her hip bag. The single ante-rooms destruction had place a huge strain on the north wall. She place the others in the other chambers and on a few cross walls. They were all keyed to the same frequency.
Once she was outside, it was starting to become dusk for real. Ricky was probably worried so she radioed him that she was on her way. The relief in his voice was palpable. She followed their old route- around the ruins of the antechamber- to the truck. He was there with the four girls, one of whom clung to him and wouldn't let go. She rolled her eyes.
"Let go now!"
she barked and the girl's hands loosened. She dug into her pouch, really glad that Ricky had thought to give them water, if for not the reasons he thought. They didn't have a lot of time. The explosion was going to call attention to this place and she didn't want them to be here. And they weren't going to keep the girls around for longer than they had to.
She passed out three pills to them each. "Take it."
The words were simple but brooked no argument. At Ricky's look she explained. "They've been with the rougs. They obviously weren't for food except for an ear maybe. You figure it out."
The girls seemed frozen. One of the girls, the one who'd been holding on to Ricky began crying and crossed herself before touching her stomach. "No, no, no...." She exhaled in irritation. She didn't have time for this. She pulled out her gun and put it to the girl's head. "It's the pills and maybe some cramps for a few days or this. Decide quickly."
She would give them 10 seconds.