This is an original story written for today's blog. I hope you enjoy it.
Though the sun had not set, it may as well have been midnight for all the light that came through the canopy. I held my lantern in front of me, a dim piece of light that barely illuminated the ground. Barely was enough to guide us, and enough to make us a target of the oolat, should one of the creatures be around.
I felt a hand on my back. I turned, bringing the light around. Rihala the little elven girl stood there, seeming even smaller than normal in the darkness.
"I fell behind. You walk fast," she said, quiet as a mouse on my shoulder.
"We must move quickly. Every moment here is another monster we attract," I replied with a whisper.
“You can take any monster with your swords,” she said with her child-like faith and innocence.
Rihala nodded gravely. I began moving more slowly so she could keep up. We moved quietly, but the darkness seemed to magnify every sound. The one that stopped me was a heavy breathing sound, behind them and slowly catching up.
I handed Rihala the lantern. "Take this and get up that tree. Quickly."
She nodded, took the lantern, ad climbed. I backed away from the light, so my eyes could adjust.
There was a blur of movement and a flash of claws as big as my daggers. I was knocked away, slammed into a tree. My head began to pulse with pain. Rihala screamed, and hugged the tree from in the branches. A bear-sized lump of fur and slashing claws was clawing the tree, taking chunks out with each swing.
I pulled out one of my daggers and threw it at the oolat. The dagger glinted slightly as it hit the creature. It roared and turned to me. The light gave me a brief outline of its face. It had horns coming out the top of its misshaped head. Tiny red eyes gleamed out from the mass. When it roared, I saw it’s teeth, like sharp little arrowheads, ready to slash into flesh.
I stood and my head began to spin. I drew my swords. The motion, the faint glint of light off my swords got its attention. Stupid me, never planning far enough what, now that I had its attention, I wasn’t really sure what to do. I decided I was going to start planning things a little further ahead.
It took a few steps toward me, then was by me almost before I could bring my sword around. I stepped away. I’m not sure where I’d hit the creature, but I had felt the change in the word’s trajectory. I swung one sword overhand, got the creature watching that one and moving its claw’s to fight me off. I stuck the next one under. I definitely connected with the creature’s flesh, a couple inches in before I yanked back, my head protesting the sudden movement.
The oolat swung its paw at me again. I tried to step back, but took a slash of claws to my arm and torso. It forced me to take a step back, tripping and falling. The swords released from my grasp, falling nearby as I hit the ground. The breath was knocked out of me, and the creatures stood over me, its claw raised. It was silhouetted in light. The light was coming closer. The oolat turned its head.
I turned my head and saw a sword glinting. I grabbed it, and pointed it at the oolat’s chest. It looked back to me and roared. I pushed the sword up into its stomach, through organs. It let out a roar of pain and anger. Then it stopped, and fell on me.
“I really have to start thinking these things through,” I told myself, and began the work of getting out from under the monster.
Rihala approached me, holding the lantern high as I pull my last leg out from under the monster.
“Maybe we should sleep,” she said.
I nodded my agreement, and lay back on the ground. I closed my eyes and hoped that we wouldn’t sleep too long.
“Rihala? Thanks for throwing the lantern. That was good timing.”
She didn’t answer, but I could practically hear her smile. I drifted off to sleep.
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