Re-reading before I post I don't think I've really done a good job of what I'd taken as inspiration from the title: that the creature had picked up on Red's scent (the 'traces of you') and is now stalking him. (Um, maybe that should have had a spoiler alert? Ok, spoiler: Red dies as well). But that's the idea I got from the prompt, I just haven't developed it well. Blame... blame me travelling all day yesterday to get to Kyiv :)
Traces of you [DWP, 26th November] In hindsight we shouldn't all have reloaded at the same time. I was slipping the bullets into the chamber of my pistol when the creature hooted like a foghorn and launched itself out of a window from the building it had been clinging to before we first shot at it. It startled Jimmy so much that he dropped his pistol and it clattered to the stone pavement below. Ben roared in surprise and swung his gun up, but the chamber hadn't clicked home and spilled open, bullets falling out and pinging as they bounced around. I hunched down, still trying to fill the chamber instead of closing it and trying to fire, and the creature crashed into the side of me. It was a dead weight; I went over like a rotten tree in autumn storms and my gun, thankfully now loaded and closed up, spilled from my hand and slid away across the stones. I rolled, trying to get to my feet, but the creature bounded and crashed into me again and a smell like turpentine filled my nostrils. I choked and tried to pull away, and the creature reached for me with long arms with vicious curved claws on the end of them. They were black as jet and shiny and they scared the crap out of me. I fell back, desperately stretching away from them, and they swiped past my face so close that I swear they actually trimmed my beard. "Red!" yelled Ben, and somewhere nearby I could hear Jimmy swearing, but I had no time to look around. I definitely wasn't taking my eyes off this creature, and it seemed fixated on me. I scrabbled backwards, my feet not getting enough purchase on the old yellow stones and slipping underneath me, and the creature pulled itself up, onto all fours, and tensed, readying for another leap. "RED!" Ben sounded frantic, but there was no way I could look away from the creature now. I was certain that if it landed on me I was going to die. Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime of waiting it leaped, and I threw myself sideways, rolling as hard as I could and praying to all the gods I could think of in those few seconds that this would be enough. The creature hissed as it landed, less than half-metre from where I was still rolling and still trying to get away, and then I rolled up against a wall and stopped. I was staring upwards, and I was torn between seeing what was blocking my escape and seeing what the creature was doing. Seeing the creature won in a unanimous vote and I turned, to see it moving towards me with its swaying gait from its outsize pelvis and its clawed arms outstretched. Then there was a loud bang and the creature leaped upwards, folding in the middle as though to protect itself. Another shot rang out and the creature flinched in mid-air, and when the third shot hit it, it crashed onto the ground and laid still. I sat up slowly, not taking my eyes off it. "Is it dead?" Jimmy came over, holding his gun out in front of him and pointing it at the creature. "A couple of shots in its head probably wouldn't be a bad idea," I said. "It survived more than we expected already, let's not take chances." It probably didn't need a full chamber of bullets to make sure it wouldn't get up again, but it got them anyway.
Greg - well I like that you found inspiration from the prompt that wasn't as straight forward as I would have expected. And travel fatigue excuses all.
That opening line is quite chilling. Also stop trying to convince me Red dies cuz he doesn't. That's not allowed.
Also: I fully appreciate that full chamber insurance policy at the end there.
2 comments:
Re-reading before I post I don't think I've really done a good job of what I'd taken as inspiration from the title: that the creature had picked up on Red's scent (the 'traces of you') and is now stalking him. (Um, maybe that should have had a spoiler alert? Ok, spoiler: Red dies as well). But that's the idea I got from the prompt, I just haven't developed it well. Blame... blame me travelling all day yesterday to get to Kyiv :)
Traces of you
[DWP, 26th November]
In hindsight we shouldn't all have reloaded at the same time.
I was slipping the bullets into the chamber of my pistol when the creature hooted like a foghorn and launched itself out of a window from the building it had been clinging to before we first shot at it. It startled Jimmy so much that he dropped his pistol and it clattered to the stone pavement below. Ben roared in surprise and swung his gun up, but the chamber hadn't clicked home and spilled open, bullets falling out and pinging as they bounced around. I hunched down, still trying to fill the chamber instead of closing it and trying to fire, and the creature crashed into the side of me. It was a dead weight; I went over like a rotten tree in autumn storms and my gun, thankfully now loaded and closed up, spilled from my hand and slid away across the stones. I rolled, trying to get to my feet, but the creature bounded and crashed into me again and a smell like turpentine filled my nostrils. I choked and tried to pull away, and the creature reached for me with long arms with vicious curved claws on the end of them. They were black as jet and shiny and they scared the crap out of me. I fell back, desperately stretching away from them, and they swiped past my face so close that I swear they actually trimmed my beard.
"Red!" yelled Ben, and somewhere nearby I could hear Jimmy swearing, but I had no time to look around. I definitely wasn't taking my eyes off this creature, and it seemed fixated on me. I scrabbled backwards, my feet not getting enough purchase on the old yellow stones and slipping underneath me, and the creature pulled itself up, onto all fours, and tensed, readying for another leap.
"RED!" Ben sounded frantic, but there was no way I could look away from the creature now. I was certain that if it landed on me I was going to die. Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime of waiting it leaped, and I threw myself sideways, rolling as hard as I could and praying to all the gods I could think of in those few seconds that this would be enough.
The creature hissed as it landed, less than half-metre from where I was still rolling and still trying to get away, and then I rolled up against a wall and stopped. I was staring upwards, and I was torn between seeing what was blocking my escape and seeing what the creature was doing. Seeing the creature won in a unanimous vote and I turned, to see it moving towards me with its swaying gait from its outsize pelvis and its clawed arms outstretched. Then there was a loud bang and the creature leaped upwards, folding in the middle as though to protect itself. Another shot rang out and the creature flinched in mid-air, and when the third shot hit it, it crashed onto the ground and laid still.
I sat up slowly, not taking my eyes off it.
"Is it dead?" Jimmy came over, holding his gun out in front of him and pointing it at the creature.
"A couple of shots in its head probably wouldn't be a bad idea," I said. "It survived more than we expected already, let's not take chances."
It probably didn't need a full chamber of bullets to make sure it wouldn't get up again, but it got them anyway.
Greg - well I like that you found inspiration from the prompt that wasn't as straight forward as I would have expected. And travel fatigue excuses all.
That opening line is quite chilling. Also stop trying to convince me Red dies cuz he doesn't. That's not allowed.
Also: I fully appreciate that full chamber insurance policy at the end there.
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