Teamwork

Fiction Written By: El Zambo

Written for the Blood Games II Setting

Something landed on top of the car with a thud. Something heavy and powerful enough to dent in the car’s top visibly to the three within.

“Damn!” shouted Leroy.

Lily rolled down the passenger side window, leaned out, and flailed blindly with her silver dagger, feeling it sink into whatever it was on top of the car. In the back seat, Leroy desperately fired his weapon into the roof of the car, temporarily deafening the occupants in the process.

Something landed on top of the car with a thud. Something heavy and powerful enough to dent in the car’s top visibly to the three within.

“Damn!” shouted Leroy.

Lily rolled down the passenger side window, leaned out, and flailed blindly with her silver dagger, feeling it sink into whatever it was on top of the car. In the back seat, Leroy desperately fired his weapon into the roof of the car, temporarily deafening the occupants in the process. The wolf-man smashed his massive paw through the driver’s side of the windshield and slashed at Chloe, slicing into her scalp and sending blood flowing down into her eyes. Keeping her wits about her, she floored the accelerator and then braked sharply. Lily was tossed back into her seat.

The creature was undeterred. Lily jumped out of the car, and the wolf immediately pounced on her, gnashing it’s teeth and swiping viciously. Its claws ripped into her flesh, and the teeth sank deeply into her shoulder. Lily slumped to the ground.

Leroy sprang out of the back seat, shooting at the lycanthrope.

Simultaneously the werewolf leapt back, unharmed, giving Leroy an opening to help Lily to stand. She wobbled, but gathering a last bit of strength, she slashed at the creature’s throat with her sword, cleaving it nearly to the neck bone. It toppled over backward, clearly dead from the devastating blow. They watched in horror as the creature’s body writhed, morphing into the shape of a normal wolf.

Quickly, Leroy bundled Lily into the back of the car and slid in beside her. Chloe again tromped down hard on the gas, peeling out and away from the two red eyes she saw in her mirror.

“Leroy! There’s another one following us! Shoot it! Shoot it!” she screamed.

Leroy smashed out the rear window with the butt of his weapon, emptying a clip directly backwards, and shredding the lycanthrope. It collapsed onto the road behind them, convulsing jerkily as they sped away.

He turned to Lily and shakily emptied the contents of his silver flask onto her shoulder in an attempt to disinfect it.

Some distance away, Zak and his crew took off cross-country through the dense undergrowth of the steamy wood. Zak used his dagger to forge a pathway, carrying Anita on his back. Will followed, holding little James in his arms, and Lucius brought up the rear, holding the lantern aloft, grumbling to himself. Zak knew they were making far too much noise, practically inviting the enemy to follow.

As if reading his mind, the lycanthropes attempted an ambush. As the group was passing beneath a moss-hung live oak, Zak heard crackling from above, then saw one of the creatures drop down through the branches onto all fours right in front of him, snarling and drooling.

“Damn! There’s more of ’em!” he shouted.

The werewolf leaped forward, slashing with his claws, but Anita in her fright inadvertently covered Zak’s eyes with her hands and he stumbled blindly over a tree root as the wolf soared over them.

A second wolf landed just behind Will, smashing the back of his head like a pumpkin with his heavy claws. James tumbled down as Will dropped like a rock. The young boy rolled and ducked into the underbrush as Zak shouted “Brother!,” having heard the snarls behind him.

Rolling to his feet, Zak dashed towards Will, the wolf following. It leaped at his unprotected back, but a cottonmouth, disturbed by Zak’s passage, uncoiled right in front of it, and the creature jerked back from the deadly flash of white.

Zak looked down in dismay as he saw the blood seeping from Will’s head. The lycanthrope who had downed his brother snarled and vaulted toward Zak. He dropped to his knees between it and Will’s body. “Anita! Cover!” he shouted as he unleashed his MP-5 at the wolf. Three puffs of scarlet blossomed across the creature’s chest, staggering it backward.

Thwarted by the snake from its original intent, the first wolf spun around and went after Lucius. Lucius stared into the creature’s red eyes as it sprang, muttering an incantation. The werewolf froze with a crackling sound as it turned to stone in midair, and smashed into chunks as it hits the ground.

“Make Stone!. Works every time!” Lucius muttered to himself.

Zak fired again, and the creature was knocked backward by the impact of three more bullets. Zak heard more howling from a distance behind him as he watched the thing attempt to stagger erect.

“Anita! Check on the Father!” Zak pleaded

“He hurtin’ Mr. Sokol! He bleedin’ all ovah the place!”

“Zak! I got this one, he’s stone!” shouted Lucius.

“Help with Will, Buddy!”

“Gotcha.” Lucius ran up and attempted to rouse Will with a shake, to no avail. It looked to him like Will had a fractured skull, and when he reached down to touch the carotid artery, Will’s pulse was thready and thin. Lucius was uncertain how he could help.

Zak’s opponent stumbled to its feet again, bleeding heavily from the wounds in his chest and legs, a bloody froth dripping from its mouth. Zak pressed the trigger once more, emptying the clip into the creature’s body, shredding its chest into furry chunks.

James, trembling and sobbing tearfully, ran off screaming, and Lucius chased after the poor boy. Zak quickly picked up his brother in a fireman’s hold and followed, admonishing Anita to grab his belt. The howls sounded nearer now.

Blood Games II is available at RPGNow.com

Tags | blood games, flying-mice, horror fiction, vampires