Hostile Creatures

Mama told me not to go out at night. She worried about the creatures. She said anything the creatures touched would die. In fact, none of my kin felt comfortable knowing they lurked, watching, waiting to destroy.

Too bad I couldn't stay home. I just had to press my luck on account of an ache in my belly. The odor seeping through my pores anytime I'd get anxious was more than I could bear. So once again I crept in the woods, trying not to let the full moon's glow reveal my position. My anxiety increased with the hopes of spotting one of them. The creatures didn't scare me even though I had seen the tragedies they caused. Bodies everywhere. The sound of profound loss multiplied through wails of mourning. So much death and destruction every single night.

Twigs snapped, freezing me in place. I inhaled, trying to spot the change in the atmosphere while doing my best to blend in with the shrubbery. A few seconds later, I heard vegetation shifting. I knew it couldn't have been a breeze on account of the dry humidity. A familiar scent reached my nostrils. It took all of my control not to puke from the stench. Holding my breath proved challenging, but I had to endure. I had to get back to Mama. She would be real angry if anything happened to me.

Just when I was about to move, bushes parted and I was face to face with a hideous beast. Two holes expanded to reveal glowing black pupils. Its mouth opened revealing uneven teeth. I thought about sprinting out of there, but a slushy loud noise coming from the creature made my stomach growl.

I wanted to communicate with the monster, to tell it not to make noise, but they never did understand us. Its shrill scream was deafening. Running was no longer an option. The malice permeating from the creature as it raised appendages had traumatic affect on me. A shiny metallic claw-like thing came barreling towards my head, narrowly missing me.

Any thoughts of taming the beast evaporated for my drive to survive dominated the frightening encounter. I didn't have time to get away so I stopped the clawed arm and snapped its head back. The sound similar to the cracking of twigs ended its screams. Yanking its head clean off, I dug my teeth deep inside its torso, chewing on its entrails, alas eliminating the pain from my belly. 

I knew Mama wouldn't be happy with me for eating another hostile creature, but the hunger always won. Besides, the misguided beast had attacked me. What I thought a strange talon glimmered on the ground. An ivory handle revealed it was a weapon. 

Thoughts of dragging the carcass so that my kin could feed and discover the tasty treats were replaced my the inevitable speech that would follow. Momma wanted us to keep to the rules for hunting. She wanted us all safe. Besides, colonizing the beautiful planet would take time. My kind had planned to share the environment with the hostile creatures, but if the others could learn to acquire the same tastes I did then perhaps they would see that taming the savages was no longer an option. They would discover that the hostile creatures...humans were delicious. 

© Copyright Nomar Knight 2015. All rights reserved.

A Knight Chills Flash Fiction Presentation.