HWE The Obscure Beast pt2

The nurse at the desk at the emergency room entrance sat in her chair, typing away on the keyboard in front of her. All was quiet, and not a soul sat in the waiting room. Focusing was only broken when her phone jingled an annoying little tone.
Her concentration broke, and she picked her phone up. A few taps of the finger and she put it back down. While her attention was free, she looked toward the glass door and froze still. A pair of red eyes stared out from beyond the beam of lights. They blinked as they stared at her. She stood up. Slowly she stepped toward the doors, very cautious. Their eye contact didn’t break. Soon as she was at the automatic glass doors, she threw her hands on the latches and flipped the lock, keeping them from opening. Soon as that was done, she turned and ran toward her desk.
There was the sound of the reinforced glass being smashed. The nurse ducked as she stumbled to her desk and yanked the phone up, pressing the page button. She looked back… whatever it was stepped just to the side, giving her only the view of a shaggy pelt and a naked take, something like a rats. “Hello?” She paged again. “Hello? Yes, there is something outside the Emergency Entrance and it just smashed the doors in. I think it’s a bear, a big, white bear.”

The speakers around the hospital ran to life, the loud pitched rings lasting half a minute before the intercom came alive. “Due to an emergency situation and for the safety of our patients and staff, his hospital is now under lockdown. Please stay in your rooms, and page a nurse if you have any needs.”
Todd listened in as he sat back on the couch in his temporary room. He had the gown on, but refused remove his pants. No need to do any of that, so why bother.
“Until further notice, please do not leave your rooms. The doors of the building will be locked. Thank you.”
Well, things couldn’t get worse, Todd figured. Not like he was going anywhere tonight, anyway.

Up on the second floor, the raven haired girl laid in hospital bed, still contracting in labor. Her raven hair was still greasy and unkept, but she had been cleaned up otherwise and put into a hospital gown.
The faint crash from down on the first floor, though, made her jump. “Where am I? Oh… Oh!” She put her hands on her stomach. “God, it hurts…”
Hearing her struggles, a male stepped in through the door. Standing next to her, he put a hand on her shoulder. “Relax, don’t force it. Your in labor-“
“I know I’m in labor, you idiot!”
The sudden outburst made the man jump back, her wild eyes putting the fright in him.
“You have to get it out of me!” The woman didn’t see there was something very wrong with her.
“You’re hysterical. You need to calm down.”
“You don’t understand! It’s…” The woman cringed, slowly slouching back as pain took over. Why couldn’t they see she was trying to tell them something? “Oh god, make it stop!”
“I’ll go get a doctor. Stay here and just breathe.”
Soon as he left, the message read across the intercom. Her eyes strained. It was here.

Vans and trucks were stationed around the building now. Animal Control members cautiously walked around the building, guns loaded with rubber bullets. The idea was to drive off the animal in question. Flashlight beams ran across the darkened parking and surrounding area, looking for the animal.
An Animal Control Officer wandered off into the grass and to the border, looking out into grassy field. The illuminated something, and he focused the light. He could have sworn something was there a moment ago. The sound made him jerk to the right, the sound of something growling.
He was dead before he felt a massive palm sent him flying through the sky and into the air. The body hit the ground, bloody and broken.

The chaos outside could be faintly heard. “What is going on?” Todd stepped toward his window and looked out. He saw a few cars, but no one was out there. It must have been on the other side of the building. Gunshots and screaming, that was clear…
Too clear…Not again.  
Todd shook his head, fighting the anxiety. People screaming and fire everywhere as that giant serpent form stalked among the wreckage. People being eaten, or dying in the chaos of the attack.
How did he get on the floor? Todd slowly pushed up, feeling the sweat covering his body. “God damn it, I blacked out.” He looked to the clock. Only a few minutes past, but all that felt long, and yet at the same time a fraction of a second.
The gunshots could still be heard, but less of.
“Attention, this is an emergency,” the words echoed through the intercom. “An evacuation has been issued. Please stay in your rooms and keep the doors locked until a nurse or doctor directs you to leave.” “What kind of thing is happening?” Todd threw off the hospital gown and threw his shirt back on. He wasn’t about to stay in his room while something really big was going on.
Todd found himself not the only one thinking that, too. Soon as he got out the door, a few other patients were out and about; healthy ones by the look of it, or at least capable of moving about.
“You know what’s going on?” a woman patient asked him as he walked by.
“Uh, no, I don’t. Sorry!” He kept on walking. Todd had a sneaking suspicion, though. Something felt like he should know something, but what?

A patient waited in their room, in their bed after a surgery two days ago. He recently had surgery for his kidney, and the pain made him not want to get out of bed. Quietly and hopefully he waited, because for the last hour he heard strange noises aside from the gunshots. Two floors above the ground, he felt relatively safe.
The room shook. He sat up, the tremor scaring him, but not as much as the following subtle vibrations that grew more intense with each second. They got closer, and closer.
A great massive hand came up over the window, long claws digging into the ledge. The man scrambled from his rest, pain nothing compared to his fear as a massive horned figure peered in through the window.
Quickly he ran out the door, whining in shock. The sound of glass shattering was followed by massive thudding of big feet echoing through the hall. The door and doorway no longer existed, and a shaggy figure turned around the corner as if it never noticed the fleeing man.

The loud footprints could be felt on the floor above and below. People were soon running away, screaming heard echoing through the halls.
“Oh god, it hurts!” The woman dug her nails into her sheets. The maternity staff had the dilemma of evacuating and attempting to care for a woman moments from birth.
The nurse, gloves on, stepped in front of her and kneeled. “Okay, this is what we’re going to do, ma’am. We are going to deliver this baby, and then we are going to evac’ you and your newborn to a safe location.”
“No! Leave it… leave it!”
But none of them listened. The doctor, a mature man with a matching grey beard to go with his hair, held her arm. “Just breathe, and push.”
She screamed, and pushed, but still nothing… yet.
“It’s almost there, the nurse said. “Get someone else to get a towel! We forget to get one in all this mess.”
“We don’t have time for any of this!” The doctor quickly walked to a cart and leaned down, yanking out a towel himself and giving it to the nurse. “Okay, deep breaths, and push,” he urged the exasperated woman.
The woman tensed up, gasping in an attempt to breathe. She screamed the top of her lungs, but the next scream after wasn’t the one anybody expected expected. The nurse backed away, hands over her face as she tried to hold back her voice.
“What is it?” The doctor stepped forward. “Is the baby o-oh my god!”

The halls were relatively quiet, now. Many fled down the stairs, and few bothered to stay once word go around something was roaming the hallways that killed most of animal control. A very brave few stayed in their rooms, or were unable to leave on their own.
Todd could feel his urge to follow suit, but something kept him slowly roaming the hallways. That girl was on his mind, the one he brought here in the first place. Last thing he wanted was to find out that she ended up getting mauled by some wild animal after going through all this trouble, but aside the determination to keep his efforts valuable, he couldn’t stand the idea of a mother and newborn dying, either.
The sound of the footsteps could be heard. He stopped in place and slowly backed behind a interns desk. Where was it coming from? It had to be a bear, but what kind of bear was that heavy and made that much noise? They slowly faded again. Was it gone? Was it even on his floor, or below him?
He continued walking on after a moment. Was there anyone left on this floor? He didn’t feel safe calling out.
He was about to approach an intersection of hallways when someone stepped around the corner. Todd stumbled back as a gun was pointed right at him by Finnegan, the officer from earlier. In some ways he was relieved, but this was the last person he wanted to see.
“You! What are you still doing here?!”
Asshole… “I’m looking around, whats’t to you!?”
“Don’t get smart with me, boy,” Finnegan threatened, gun lowered. “You get down those stairs and get out with the rest of the patients.”
Every part of Todd screamed to argue further, but he bit back the words as he stood upright. “I need to do something first.”
Glaring him down, Finnegan pulled out handcuffs. “Don’t make me drag you out there.”
“I’m not leaving until I find that girl and make sure she’s safe,” he stated.
“You’re in no position or have any authority.”
“Isn’t your authority to be down protecting the patients?”
“I am protecting them,” he shouted. “I’m looking for stragglers who can’t leave on their own, but instead I found an idiot who’s too belligerent to leave and just wants to start trouble with the law!”
Todd swung around, but the faced the man again. “You know wh-“
The sound of a crash and a loud grunt echoing down the hall made both of them scramble for cover. Todd ducked down behind a cart, while Finnegan laid flat on the ground and peaked around the corner. The sound came from down two intersections. Both now had their eyes on the far end of the hall, through the beams light filled with dust.  
A massive form walked into view. It was had to make out through the destruction it caused, but it was walking up right, and it had a lot of shaggy fur. Each step it took thudded loudly. Sniffing and snorting, it kept walking toward the two men only about fifty feet away.
Todd looked to Finnegan, mouthing his words “what is that?”
Finnegan gestured him to keep quiet.
Maybe twenty-five feet now, it stopped. The mammoth thing turned at the intersection and continued walking on, its footsteps fading.
Todd stepped out from his hiding spot. “That’s definitely not a bear,” Finnegan said. He pinched his nose. It smelled awful, like rotten eggs.
“No, that’s… I don’t know what that is,” Todd admitted.
“Get out of here. I’m going to follow it,” the officer said, standing up. “I need to get rid of it.”
“Get rid of it?! How?”
“Live ammunition. Now go!”
Todd felt his urge to run away from danger ebb at him. Common sense exists for a reason, but his conscious told him that he shouldn’t. “I can’t,” he said at last. “I brought that girl here, and if she doesn’t get out safe, I’m going to be kept awake all night.”
Finnegan looked at him, eyebrows furrowed. “What is with you and that girl?” He asked.
“Nothing!” Todd still sensed he wasn’t believed. “I ain’t leaving until I know she’s out of here. You want to argue with me more and waste time or d’you wanna actually go stop that thing before it ends up killing someone. I could do either, really!”
Finnegan rolled his eyes. “I guess I can escort you out; can’t get raked over the coals for watching a suspect. Fine, come on.”

The intense pain made the woman nearly pass out. There was a moment of peace. The pain horrid pain began to fade, but another great pain took over. Gasping for air, the second intense pain every bit as bad as the first.
The woman felt relief. It was over… the nightmare was over, she thought. The pain and weight no longer blurred her mind.
The sound of crying made her stiffen, though. The nurse and doctor stood there, staring at the thing that was lying on the bed just under her legs. What reprieve she had was now gone, and she was wishing that the crying was all in her mind.  
Slowly she sat up, weak, but she felt almost compelled to look for herself. Terrified at what she was going to see, she pulled the gown out of the way. There, lying side by side back as one wailed was two tiny infants. Clearly they were mostly human, but the tiny nubs on their heads and both had a tail.
The woman could feel every terrible memory come to mind, and how horrible it was. The very day she was carried away, and every day after that was a hell all of its own. She wanted oh so badly to die not long after, but the instinct to live kept her alive in her captivity.
These two are the product of that… She hated it, rather, them, for the longest time knowing what they were, but they looked so tiny and helpless.  There weren’t fangs, or claws… it was just a pair of newborn babies that are taking its first few breaths. They weren’t monsters, she thought… Despite her fearful expectations, her babies were not demonic, horned monsters.
Carefully she reached out, putting her hand on the boy’s chest. The tiny hands grabbed her fingers, holding on weakly. Her eyes softened. Very gently she put her hands around it, pulling the newborn to her body and holding it, then the other. Whatever she thought before, the woman knew she couldn’t just ignore their needs.
“They’re not human,” the nurse’s voice said, bringing the black haired girl’s attention to them. Suddenly she was afraid. What would they think? Would they try to take them away, her babies? What if they took them off to some lab for a captive life where they would be kept alive but miserable like how she was…? That fear in the nurse’s eyes sent anger through the woman’s heart. She tightened her arms around her newborn son and daughter.
“Now none of that,” the doctor told her. “They are not a monsters, it’s just… a deformity. That’s all. It’s not strange. This woman was probably mistreated for months. A lack of proper care is what caused this.”
“But you saw them! Both!”
The woman narrowed her eyes. “My babies are not monsters!” she glared.
The doctor stepped forward, stopping when he saw the mother try to back away. “It’s okay; I’m not going to take your children. We just need to evacuate you now.”
That’s right! The woman’s mind race, from the possible danger in the room, and the other reason that she knew was coming now. Franticly she looked around, then to the hospital staff. It was coming for her. The doctor stepped behind the bed and began pushing, the nurse stepping in to help. Together they began to push her bed through the doors and down the hall.

Finnegan lead the way as he and Todd stayed on the creature’s path as it meandered through the halls. It took no notice of them if it even did. It would stop at every intersection, sniff around, and then continued going onward.
“What do you got in mind,” Todd asked.
Finnegan fiddled with the safety of his revolver. “Shoot at it, but otherwise I don’t know. You shoot at a bear, it may keep charging. This thing may just get pissed.”
It stopped again, prompting the two to take cover. The creature then turned, picking up its feet fervently. “I think it’s looking for something,” Todd stated. As it walked ahead, they followed it. They turned the corner, seeing the shaggy creature stop at the stairs. With great effort it ducked and squeezed itself through the entrance and downward. “It went down to the second floor.”
“But why?” Finnegan ran toward the stairs, slowing down as he got near them and cautiously looked down. “It climbed up this far only to go right back down? I reckon your right: it wants something.”

The beast of a creature stepped forward, eyes focused intently forward. It sniffed again, slowing. It looked to the left at the two doors, and then stepped forward. One big hand pushed the doorway open, but the entrance was too short. Pressing one clawed hand up to the arch of the door, its muscles under its pelt bunching as it destroyed the top part of the doorways to make a bigger entrance. It walked into the room.
The smell here was strong, as well as the smell of birth. Its head turned side to side. It sniffed again, turning away and walking out of the destroyed doorway. Smell was fresher this way. Forward it ran.

“Holy shit,” Todd exclaimed as they came to the destroyed doorway. He looked down the hall just as the beast turned the corner. “Where?” He looked back to the door and saw the sign.

Maternity Ward, Room 8

Todd didn’t understand. What did it want here? Finnegan looked at the door. “Whatever it wants, nothing’s going to stop it.”
A thought ran through Todd’s mind. It killed lots of people easily and it can tear through walls. A tree fell in front of his car racing back… “I think I know what its after,“ Todd said. He had a hunch something was amiss! “It’s after the girl I found.”
“How’d ya figure?” Finnegan looked perplexed.
“Was that girl in this room?”
“I think so,” he told Todd.
“And a tree fell in front of my car on the way here. I think it saw me with her, and it tried to stop me.”
“That’s insane as it is stupid!”
“Maybe it is, but I ain’t gonna let it.” Todd didn’t wait for an argument. He just ran.

The woman held onto the infants in her arms as the bed was pushed along to the nearest elevator. The doors opened and they got inside. The doors closed and the doctor pressed F1. They began to move, but as it did, a horrible noise echoed through the elevator shaft.
Fear took the woman, eyes wide with terror. It knew where she was, and it was going to get her, and she knew it would take her back to its den, and then…
The Elevator door began to open, but it stopped halfway. The whole room jerked upward, and then again. “What’s going on?” The elevator dropped back into place. The door opened all the way then. As they began to step out, great weight hit the top of the elevator, crumpling slightly.
The doctor and nurse wasted no time pushing the bed, neither looked back as they heard the elevator being forced open.

“We gotta take the stairs!”
Todd and Finnegan rushed past the opened elevator door, running to the nearest staircase and rushing down it. Soon as they were on the first floor, Finnegan aimed his gun and fired as the towering hairy monster that just breaking its way out of the elevator shaft.
It turned its hateful red eyes toward the two. Red blood began to flow through the creatures white fur, staining it. The muzzle curled into a snarl, the bullets inciting its anger.
“Run!”
Todd was already ahead of him, all strength being pushed into going as fast as he could. He looked back, seeing the towering shaggy form keeping up behind them. It shrieked loudly at them, ripping a reception counter out of its foundation and throwing it after them. Still running, Todd threw his arms over his head, and was relieved when he realized he was still alive.
Looking back again, he saw the creature wasn’t there anymore. “Where did it go?” For that matter, where did Finnegan go? “Finnegan?”
“I’m here.” Slowly the policeman came out from inside a side room, looking around. “I shot it and it didn’t even flinch.”
“I don’t think bullets are going to be enough.”
“I got a shotgun in my car, and some flashbangs. Maybe if I can get close, I can put a slug right through its head.”
If it don’t rip you apart first, Todd thought.

Outside of the building, the woman was being loaded into ambulance to be transported somewhere safe. The doctor was still with her, climbing in along for the ride. Other patients were being driven away too, along with armed law enforcement who was overseeing the evacuation.
What security she felt was shattered when people began yelling and shots being fired. People were screaming, engines roaring as some cars began to take off.
The ambulance suddenly was struck hard, and a clawed hand reached around the door. She screamed as the doctor was snatched out from beside her and crushed before being thrown away. Despite her weakness after birth, she tried climbed out of the bed and tried climbing to the front seat before, only to be pulled back as the hand grabbed her by the leg and dragged her through the back door.
She clutched her babies close as the horned figure now held her by the arm. “Leave me alone!” she shouted, trying to pull her arm out of its grip. It leaned its head in, making her freeze in place in fear. When it tried to get a closer look at her two newborns, she turned herself away, defiantly glaring at it. She wasn’t going to hand over her newborn so long as she was alive.
The beast’s red eyes stared at the two intently. With a grunt, it picked her up with one arm, making her gasp in surprise, and began to run, one great footstep in front of the other. “No! No!” She kept shouting loudly.

Finnegan handed ammo carriers to Todd. He already had his shotgun. The screaming got their attention. “To hell with this! Get in the passenger seat!”
Todd did what he was told, opening the door and throwing himself into the seat. The car took off a moment later, the lights and sirens on. Careening through the parking lot, they weaved around the fleeing patients and staff. “There it goes!” Todd pointed at the shaggy figuring running off hospital property and out onto the main road. “It has her! I saw her in its arm!”
No questions asked, Finnegan pressed the pedal to the floor and began perusing it. Buildings and signs went by. Twenty five, thirty, thirty five, forty five… “How fast can this thing run? I’m I already have forty five and I’m barely keeping up.”
“Fast enough. I wonder how she got away for this thing in the first place.”

The beast’s footsteps shook the ground as its legs worked hard. It didn’t bother looking back. It had what it wanted and it wasn’t going to stop until it was back in its lair. It only slowed to run across an grassy divider in the road.

“Hard turn!” Finnegan slammed the parking brake and turned the wheel. The tires screeched over the asphalt.
Todd felt his hand grip the handle of the door. “Oh shit!”
Soon as the car was out of the turn, the stick was shoved into drive and Finnegan took off again.
“God, ain’t we a bit far north for dukes of hazard bullshit?!”
After he collected himself, Todd stared ahead, the towering behemoth creature just barely in sight since it kept jumping fences and into alleyways. Finnegan kept up, keeping mind of where all the ins and outs were in his town.
“I think its following the path I drove to get here, “ Todd said.
“You came this way?”
“Yeah. If its retracing its steps, then it’s going to duck into the forest as soon as it’s in the forest, and we ain’t gonna follow it in this thing.”
Finnegan pursed his lips. “We need one of the Animal Control trucks.” He grabbed the radio, repeating his words, “And make it four wheel drive!” he added. “I need it ASAP, now, this instant. I’m in pursuit and can’t lose sight of this thing.”

The small market, which had been under attack, was currently under investigation given the apparent animal attack.
“We have a truck over here,” the man said into the radio. “What is the target?”

“I d’know. Its big, it’s on two legs, and has horns. It’s carrying a girl in its arm. Do not open fire.” Finnegan put the radio down.

The keys went into the truck. Two legs, big horns and kidnapping a girl… What, no cloven feet and pentagram tattoos? Finnegan must be imaging things, the man thought.
He looked down toward the street and into sound. It had to be a bear. It couldn’t be anything else. Just a big, strong bear that needs to be taken care of before it did any more harm.
Then he saw the stoic figure tearing down the road. “No way…” He grabbed his gun, hiding behind the truck as it kept coming. He was ready to fire, but the beast didn’t turn to bare down on him. It kept running down the street, toward the forest. He breathed a sigh of relief.  
Not a moment after the police car skidded to a halt, doors opened already. Todd and Finnegan hoped out, bringing what they needed with them. “What was thing?” The Animal Control Officer asked.”
“You don’t wanna know, Todd shouted as he truck went from zero to twenty five in less than five seconds.
Barreling down the road, the trees were just ahead. No sign of the creature. Where did it go? Finnegan turned the high beams on. The trees now were all around. There, to the right! It was running through the trees. “How are we going to follow it through trees?”
“We’ll take the truck as far as we can. After that I reckon we’re gonna be walking.”
Todd didn’t like that the sound of that, but there wasn’t a choice in the matter. The fallen tree from earlier came up, making Finnegan slow down and swerve around it. Todd had his eyes off the thing for just a second, but when he recovered from the violent motion, the white form was gone. “I lost it! It’s run deeper into the trees.”
Finnegan picked up the speed. The trees thinned until the field opened up to the right. “Hang on!” He yanked the steering well and suddenly they were off road. The truck bumped around from the uneven terrain. Forced to slow down, the cop came to a complete stop, put the shift in park, and switched to four-wheel drive. The truck took off again. “This field has a hunting trail on it. The truck should fit, but eventually the hills get bad. If I had to bet, I’d say that monster lives out there where people can’t get too. How else would not be seen until now, whatever it is…”
“It may be closer. It can run down a man,” Todd noted, hanging onto his seat as the truck kept bumping around. “If a pregnant woman can get away…”
“She probably ran off when it went away hunting for food.”
Todd didn’t think of that. What did it even eat? Something like that clearly wasn’t eating leaves and twigs. What if it was going to eat that girl? No, if that was the case, she’d be dead already. There wouldn’t be running off to gather food, too, if she was already the food. Maybe the girl somehow hurt it, and it was mad, but why was she still alive, then?

The drive continued another hour, Finnegan going as fast as he safely could. “Damn it, we ain’t gonna find this thing easy. For all we know, it went another direction.”
Todd sighed in frustration. “Is there any caves in these hills?”
“Some.” Finnegan looked out to the left. “But none deep e’nuff to hold that thing without someone finding it, but I imagine anyone that did didn’t live long to say anything.” He was quiet a moment. “But there are some old mine shafts. Deep ones, too. Back in the old days, they went looking for iron or anything else. A lot of them are too dangerous to be around.”
“where’s the closest one?”
“There’s a few.”
“What about big ones, big enough to hold a bear or something?”
Finnegan stopped he truck and then fumbled around the seats. He grumbled something about never having a decent map, and then pulled out one. “Okay, we’re about here, I’d say. If I figure we are here, then there is a big mine shaft right here. It was dug out since were traces of silver here. They found none and then abandoned. Good as any place to start looking, I reckon.” Finnegan and Todd got out of the car, stacking up on all what they needed.
Looking to Todd, he asked “ever shoot a gun?”
“Not in ten years.”
Finnegan shook his head and pulled out his revolver, offering it to him. “You need this. I got the twelve gauge.” Then he went for the radio. “This is Officer Finnegan. I’m on the old hunting trail…”
Todd took it, looking it over. Grand, a gun, he thought. He was afraid of it as he much as he was comforted. He took a flashlight, and had at four flashbangs. Now they just had to track down a seven foot tall horned monster thing and kill it, and save a girl. “Living through a dragon raid wasn’t enough?” Todd huffed.
Soon as he was done, Finnegan walked around the truck. “Let’s get this done…”
Both of them steadily entered the tree line, lights on to illuminate their way. Neither of them talked as they kept their wits. Their own crunching against sticks and leaves alone were too loud.
Todd wiped the sweat from his forehead. By all means, he should have gotten far away from here before all this began. He could have just walked away and drove off, and no one would know any better or come looking for him. There would be miles between him and all of this crap. He would have never had to deal with any of this.
He shone the light to the side, hair standing on end. There was nothing there; nothing. He knew his mind was running away with him. There was a giant hairy bugbear out here, somewhere, and they were looking for it. There was a dragon overseas raining fire down and a giant gold god chasing it. There was a giant fucking dinosaur in Japan! A werewolf in Wisconsin!
Just why am I chasing after this thing?!
Todd stood there, frozen, fighting that panic attack. This wasn’t the time to fall down zone out! Blood came from his tongue as he sank his teeth into his tongue. Pain brought him back fully to reality. He spat, slightly regretting doing that.
Finnegan got ahead. Todd quickly caught up.
The trees gave way to a game trail, most likely used by deer and other animals. “This should lead us there,” Finnegan mumbled just loud enough to hear.
Without trees and shrubs in the way, both men hurried along the trail. The path wound up and through the trees until they parted, gravel and stones that long ago been put there making it impossible for trees to get a decent start.
“This must be where they dumped all the stone they dug out of the hillside.” Finnegan lifted the light up to shine it around.
Good, they were close. That alone wasn’t what made Todd hope, though. That smell of rotten eggs was in the air. “Smell that?”
Finnegan sniffed. “Sulfur?”
“It smelled it back at the hospital when we were following that thing. I think it just smells that way.”
“We must be in its den, then. This place smells like a batch of rotten eggs.”
“Where’s the mine?” Todd asked.
“Follow those.” The light was shone on half buried rails.
Todd briskly walked along the rusted metal lines buried in the rock and dirt, leaving the other man behind. He looked up every now and then, looking for the creature. The light then showed the darkened hole in the side an unnatural granite rock face long ago carved out. This was it! There were broken wood planks hanging off the edge. It must have been blocked off so no one would enter after that. The monster must have broken in off to make this its cave.
Now there was a question of if the owner was home…
Todd looked back behind him. “Finnegan! Finnegan!” After a moment the flashlight caught him, making Todd wince. Soon as he was in sight, he walked forward, shining the light down the dark tunnel. It was big enough to fit a small car in easy. They must have had expected a very large haul.
“Still have the handgun?”
Todd looked back, annoyed. “No, I threw it away in the woods. What do you think!?”
“Don’t get snippy!” Finnegan looked behind them. “Reckon we better go in while its gone.”
“If it is gone…” Todd took a deep breath and continued forward.
The only direction to go, Todd felt somewhat confident that if it was here, they’d see it long before it got to them and they could take care of it. On the other hand, the commotion may kill them all. The wood was obviously weak. The walls and ceiling held up this long and even long after that thing has stomped its way in and out many times, Todd figured anyway.
Todd looked back to the entrance a ways behind them. Any sane person wouldn’t be two feet inside let alone this far. The silence combined with the vacant space ahead only enhanced the sounds; the creaking and subtle breezes that sounded like something was breathing right in Todd’s ear.
Patter-patter-patter…
The sound made the two stop in place.
Patter… Patter…
Then silence.
Todd slowly lifted the flashlight to illuminate far reaches of the tunnel. There wasn’t anything there. They both heard it, so what was it? It definitely wasn’t human. Maybe small animals lived here too. “Bats maybe?”
“What kind of bat walks like that?” Todd answered the officer. “Come on…”
Despite the darkness hiding the culprit, they walked forward.  
There was the first branch off. “Great…” Todd sighed. “Okay I ain’t doing this horror movie bullshit.” He shone the light down each. “Hey, anyone here!!?”
Finnegan jabbed Todd hard with the shotgun. “What’dya you think you’re doing?! You’re gonna get us killed!”
Todd did his best to ignore the sharp prod. “Shut up, I’m trying to listen!” All was then quiet. Erie emptiness echoed. Then there was a faint voice that sounded like “help me…”
“Straight ahead!” Todd quickly walked forward.
The entrance was almost completely gone. It was all dark except for the flashlights. There were other branches, but the girl’s voice and the sound of crying echoed through the tunnels to lead the way. The tunnels widened. “Help me, please.” The voice echoed now.
“Where are you?”
“I’m here! Shhh… be quiet…” Todd stepped forward toward the voice and put the light on the girl who was sitting against the wall. Her eyes were wide with fear and relief.
“You came,” she said quietly, happily.
“We’re gonna get you out of here.” Kneeling down, he offered his hand and she took it. As he took her hand, Todd took notice of all the things scattered around the spot. There was a piece stone with bits of quartz in it that caught his eye first. His gaze then went to the piece of what appeared to be blue colored silk. It was a bit dirty. There was a few animal bones too, namely antlers and teeth. These things were arranged all close together. What was this exactly? Then there was something Todd knew didn’t belong here.  
It was smooth, somewhat shiny. It looked a bit like a tile. Putting the beam of light on it, and Todd recognized it as scale, though it looked more like a ceramic plate. A scale that big made Todd think of the dragon… This didn’t look like the scale of that monster, but nether less, that was a giant scale that did belong to something.
“Hey, look at this!”
That was Finnegan’s voice. Todd turned around, still holding the girls arm. Light on Finnegan, he saw the officer pointing at the glittering wall. Flashlight on it, Todd saw the silver embedded in the stone, shining brightly and untouched by rust. There was silver after all. “I don’t get it,” Todd admitted.
“I don’t either. The story is that there was no silver to be had.”
“Clearly there is, but why say there isn’t then?”
The girl whimpered. “Please, we need to go before something finds us…”
“That thing isn’t here.”
“Not that…” She looked around. “I’ve seen such horrible things in the dark. Things with big eyes, and things that slither, and horrible sounds…”
Todd had a split second to catch the impulse to say she was crazy, but he knew better. If he didn’t witness one flying fire breather already, he’d still not say it. That horned monster came from somewhere…. And it came from here! Those broken planks were not broken into to make the mine a home… the mine was the home! Somewhere deep down in this mine there were other monsters that were itching to climb their way out.
Or already were out…
And that’s when Todd knew the truth. This was a silver mine, but it dug deep, and it found monsters. That’s why it was abandoned. It was sealed up to keep them inside so they would never get out.
Todd felt new fear. That thing wasn’t here, but there was probably other things… things he rather not see. “We gotta go, now, fast,” he told Finnegan. “And keep those kids quiet if you can.”
She nodded, almost about to cry herself. Gently she caressed one, whispering to it soothingly.
“Finnegan, stay behind. I’ll lead. I think I can lead us out.”
“You think?” The man didn’t sound convinced.
“Just let me lead, damn it!”
One cautious step after another and light forward, Todd began to lead them back. Yes, this was the way. He remembered only a few turns. Reasonably he stopped at first turn, though, and would slowly peek around the corner, gun drawn. What would he expect anyway? Aside the one monster, big eyes made him think of bugs. Big bugs if that meant anything. Whatever else may be down here, he could only guess. Bugs were not the only thing though, were they? Things that live in the dark; things walking in these long caverns man-made and old, grew big eyes just to see.  
The next turn came. He took a breath and turned the corner, gun drawn. Down the long hall he then saw something. Long feelers, many legs… at first he thought it was standing upright, but the light revealed it hung from the ceiling. It was ugly and made his skin crawl. It had many legs. It had eyes the size of quarters and many of them.
When it saw the light, though, he turned quickly and scurried down into the darkness much to Todd’s relief. They were monsters, but maybe they were all smaller than he let his imagination run onto. Something told him though that may not be entirely true.
He looked back to the girl. “I forgot to ask your name.”
She looked up. “Samantha.”
“Okay, Samantha… We’re gonna get out of this.” He looked back behind her. “All good Finnegan?”
“Good as can be, I reckon...”
The three continued to walk, faster, more confident. The sound of footsteps was joined with sound of something big moving ahead of them. Todd quietly hushed them, flicking his flashlight off. One thud after another and the strong smell of rotten eggs; the monster returned. Todd gestured to duck into the next turn, hunkering down.
The sound got closer, and closer. Todd had to hold the Samantha’s mouth closed to keep her from making any noise. Finnegan was ready, shotgun raised.
It was right in front of them. Even in the dark it was hard to miss. It walked passed them a few feet, then stopped. It was sniffing.
Crap, crap, crap… Todd knew it smelled them. It obviously didn’t see them, so it didn’t see in the dark. It must get around in the blackness by its nose. Now that he thought of it, it probably smelled them soon as it entered the mine and was most likely following them, or to check to see if it still had Samantha in its lair. As long as they kept quiet, it should keep going forward.
Come on, go away, Todd willed…
Stubbornly the monster stood there. Clearly it knew something was up.
Finally it stepped forward, stomping its way down the mine shaft. Each step faded, but Todd knew it wasn’t going to be long before it figured out that it passed them up. “Go slowly at first,” he said, then finished with “then run as fast as you can.”
Quietly they all walked, looking back and not daring to turn the flashlights on. Long precious seconds passed. At last, the final turn off came. That meant the entrance was ahead.
No sooner then they realized that threshold; the thunderous footsteps were coming up behind them. “Run!” Todd told them, and all rushed forward with flashlights on to light the way. Their sudden commotion brought the attention of their pursuer, who quickened its pace. The exit was so close, now!
There wasn’t any outrunning it. At the entrance, Todd made a decision. “Run ahead, Samantha!” Todd turned, pulling the handgun out and flipping off the safety. A second later Finnegan pulled his keys and threw them at the girl, shouting at her to take them and drive off before taking up the defense too.
Flashlights aimed down the hall, they saw the shaggy white body racing toward them. They aimed and fired, gunshots loudly echoing as they began unloading everything they could to stop the charging beast.
The monster did not slow. Blood soaked its fur, but it seemingly didn’t care. The men were shoved aside as the line of defense failed. Todd was smashed against a wall.
A moment he felt nothing. Pain then was in his chest. The effort to push up heightened it.
Samantha was. He looked up, seeing the horned monster had her in its paws again and carrying her back. She kicked hard, trying to free herself while still holding onto her two infants.
It took no notice of him or Finnegan who remained still on the ground as it nearly stepped on them. Todd felt angry. That thing felt determined to keep that girl in the dark, miserable and sure to die. It could at least do the favor of killing her so she wouldn’t suffer, but no, it was like some greedy possessive boyfriend!
He fumbled to find a weapon. Ignoring the pain, he grasped a rock, stood up and chucked it as hard as he could into the monsters back.
It stopped and looked back.
Todd stumbled forward, grabbing the shotgun Finnegan dropped. A claws palm lashed out, thick fingers clamping around the weapon. Todd pulled the trigger; the slug struck the stone wall. The weapon was yanked away effortlessly from his grasp.
For a moment the beast glanced at the shotgun in its hand, and then slammed it against the wall of the cave, mangling the weapon beyond use.
It knew, didn’t it? Todd could hardly accept that; that this thing knew to go for the gun and to destroy it. One step back, there was the urge to run. There was no need for that though… He stood there, frozen, afraid to turn his back to something that would obviously chase him down soon as he did.
For a moment the red eyes stared at him, as if it didn’t know what to do with the human that was still in front of it. Todd felt defiant of the doom that was moments away. “Well come on!” He shouted. “Kill me! Come on and kill me you dumbass animal!”
Did its eyebrows furrow? The lips curled to reveal the incisors and canines, the thing snarling at him.
“What is it? Too damn nice to suddenly kill!?”
It took a step forward, one of the clawed hands slightly raised. Then it stopped. “You stupid faggoty, goat-faced asshole! Why ain’t you killing me?”
The humanoid creature pulled its hand back, hiding Samantha behind its shaggy arm who tried stepping forward.
Todd felt frustrated at the clear attempt to still keep her from getting away. It made no sense. Why was it so determined to keep her here? Now what am I going to do, Todd asked himself. He still had the flashbangs, but how much would that help? They all would get stunned blind and deaf in this narrow mine.
Finnegan moaned in pain as he began to wake up. The moment he did, the horned creature turned its attention to him and growled.  
Finnegan quickly stumbled back as he tried to get on his feet, remember where he was and what was going on. Now on his feet, both men were now staring at the towering wall of shaggy fur standing there between them and the girl they come to rescue.
“S-so what now,” Finnegan said quietly.
Todd honestly didn’t know. Nothing he thought of seemed like it would be good idea. Run now, and they may never even get away if it decided to run them down. Fight now with what all they had, and they would surely get killed. The shotgun was their best chance to kill it if they just had a headshot.
Wait… the handgun. Todd looked around franticly. There it was, a few steps behind him and to his left. Okay, so it wasn’t going to move in fear of Samantha getting away. That meant she was the first priority, oddly something he could understand as he wanted to protect her… from… them.

A revelation came to Todd, one that made some strange amount of sense.
He looked at the creatures red eyes. How long did this thing live down in this mine shaft and farther still? Why did it come to the surface from the dark hole it was living in? It was incredible in some sense that it could even live down in the dark for years and years. If this old mine dated back a few hundred years and people saw something like this, Todd thought. It stands up like a human. It is smart like a human. Just maybe it needed to socialize like a human.
That would explain absolutely everything. It must have taken Samantha at some point in some desperate urge to form some sort of makeshift pack so it wasn’t alone.
For a moment there was pity… The white fur of this thing was stained with its blood from the gunshots endured all because it got attached to a human. Maybe it was the last one of its kind for all anyone knew.

That, however, did not change the fact that it killed people, and still could kill that woman by keeping her shoved away in a dark mineshaft. None of this was excusable!
In one quick movement, Todd turned and dove for the shiny glint of the ground. The beast must have known. Soon as he turned, the giant form was already over him. He pointed up and began firing bullet after bullet up at the red eyes. The weight nearly crushed him for the split second it fell on him, but it was immediately gone. The tunnels were filled with loud shrieking howls, the thing falling backwards as it held both hands to its face.
Samantha already made a break for it, Finnegan right after to escort her. Todd, despite the pain in his chest, hobbled behind. He pulled a flashbang from the belt and pulled the pin, throwing it down the hall. A few seconds later a bright flash was followed by a deafening bang. Todd had to cover his head. Soon as it was done, he pilled another, throwing it.
Todd looked back after it went off. The monster, blood covering its face, blindly stumbled around the hallway. How long would it be stunned for? Did it still have its sight? He looked to the gun in his hand. That piece used to cock the gun was pulled back. That meant it was empty, right? He couldn’t kill it with bullets, then.
As the monster bumped against the mine wall, the wood that held up the walls and ceiling creaked, giving him an idea. He had two flashbangs left. He pulled the pins on both and threw them into the mine, praying that it would be enough. He threw up his arms and shut his eyes tightly.

There were two thunderous blasts followed by the sound of rock and dirt shifting. Todd opened his eyes as part of the ceiling caved in, blocking the path with wood and dirt. Despite blinded and stunned, the massive creature charged forward and began tearing away at the barrier, but the unstable, old mine shaft was not up for the abuse. The top of the mine started to sink in. The rest of the mineshaft suddenly all came down at once, tons and tons of earth coming down all at once.

Staring at the collapsed entrance, Todd again felt pity. That thing needed to die, but he wouldn’t wish a slow, suffocating death by being buried alive. At least it was over, now. With a deep sigh of relief, he turned away. “Finnegan? Finnegan?”
Todd had to walk for a bit before he heard them. He found the two hurrying along as fast as Samantha could go carrying new very distress babies. “That you, boy?”
Again with this condescending bullshit. “Yeah, it’s me…” Todd felt like he earned respect, but he was too worn and hurting to care.  
“We need to go before that thing-“
“It’s dead,” Todd cut him off.
“Dead?”
“I used the flashbangs to collapse the mine. It was buried alive…”
“Well hallelujah, we’re saved!”
Todd leaned on a tree, out of breath. “I think I got busted ribs.”
“I’ll get ya there. Both of ya.” He put his hand on Samantha’s shoulder. “I can carry one of them, if you let me.”
Samantha shied away.
“It would be easier.”
“No.” Her tone was final.
Finnegan just shrugged. “Just try’na help.”

The walk back along the trail was a steady, slow one. Without flashlights, it was hard to see, but the game trail did most of the work. As they came to the end, they began their walk up the hill. With a weakened mother and a man with broken ribs, Todd sat down to rest.
Samantha though spoke up. “I-I want to go first,” she said. “I want to-to get my kids settled into the truck.”
“Alright, take her first Finnegan.”
“I’ll come back for ya. Don’t worry, I won’t leave ya here.”
Better not… Todd watched as Finnegan led the hurt woman up the steep hillside to the truck just barely visible at the edge of the road fifteen feet up.
This had been a hell of a night. Right now, Todd wanted to take a hot bath, go to sleep, and after all he went through, take that nurse up on her subtle hints. Now there’s a thought… a date would just be nice. Hell, I’ve earned it, he thought.
Finnegan hobbled down the side of the hill now, leaves rustling all the way. “Come on,” he offered a hand.
Todd took the offered help, and began their walk up just as the sound of the trucks engine coming to life. They looked up to see the vehicle suddenly take off at high speed.
“Son of a bitch!” Finnegan shouted
Todd was dragged up faster than he liked, sore by the time they got to the top. Off in the distance the red rear lights flickered, growing smaller and smaller. The officer cursed and ranted about giving her the keys, pacing around in anger.
This night went from bad, to horrible, to worse… Todd sat there Indian style, watching the truck vanish from view. All of that work just for that girl to hijack their truck and drive off for unknown reasons. “I’m done…” he mumbled.
Looks like they were walking their way back…