by J. Hickey
Chapter 17
In the Belly of the Beast
The vile creature known as the Beast of Bladenboro snarled gruesomely as it made its way into the opening of the cavern. Sebastian looked in rough shape. His clothes had been tattered from being dragged through the thick forest, and the rocky flooring of the cave probably wasn't easy on him either. He seemed to slip in and out of consciousness , randomly groaning in pain while the creature carried him on effortlessly.
Dominick looked over toward the children and signaled for them not to move. He steadied his rifle on top of the large rock. The creature dropped Sebastian from its powerful jaws near its nest. The small laser scope rested on the beast's neck, and Dominick smirked as he pulled the trigger. The dart whizzed out of the rifle and struck the beast dead on. The creature jumped violently backwards, pawing at its neck and knocking the dart off. Suddenly, the beast fell violently on its side, crashing hard onto the cavern floor.
"Got you, you bastard!" Dominick stood up. He motioned for the children to stay back as he cautiously approached the beast, poking it with his rifle-it didn't make a move. "It's safe," he said. "Quick, check and make sure this guy's okay."
"Are you sure? Last time that dart didn't do anything," Hunter questioned, slowly stepping out from behind the large boulder.
"Tripled its dose," Dominick explained. "Quick, he needs help, use this." He unclipped a small medical supply kit from his belt and tossed it onto the floor next to Sebastian. "I need to stand guard and radio this in."
"I can help; my dad taught me some stuff." Alistair rushed over to Sebastian. He quickly opened up the medical supplies, digging through its contents. "Any open scratches we need to sterilize with these." He handed Liv and Elly disinfectant pads. "Hunter, anything that's deeper, we need to stop bleeding. Use these." Alistair handed Hunter some large medical gauze. "Anywhere there is a deep puncture, put pressure on it," he noted.
"Clean him up good; we don't want him to get an infection." Dominick turned back from the beast and unclipped his radio from his belt. "I'm calling us some reinforcements to get this thing out of here, and to get you stupid kids home safely. You're dad should owe me huge for saving you, Liv," he mocked.
The beast suddenly jolted back awake and swiped viciously at Dominick's legs. The sheer strength of the animal sent Dominick falling hard on his back, knocking the wind out of his chest. The beast was still groggy but mounted Dominick, sinking its razor-sharp teeth deep into his shoulder. He screamed in pain.
"No!" Elly yelled. Her eyes once again filled with terror.
Trayer heard the scream and ran quickly to Dominick's aid.
"Trayer!" Elly yelled again, fearful for the pup's life. Trayer sprinted with all his might and tackled the beast head on. The two monstrous animals collided so hard it sounded like the loudest thunderclap the children had ever heard. The two animals snarled and growled as both tore into one another's flesh with their mighty jaws. Trayer, still a pup, was slightly smaller and less muscular then the vile and bloodthirsty Beast of Bladenboro, but he fought with all his might to protect the children.
Tears now streamed down Elly's cheeks as Trayer fell prey to the larger animal. The Beast of Bladenboro now mounted the pup, ready for its fatal strike.
"Save him!" Liv yelled.
Hunter saw the pile of Agent Roberts' clothes a few feet away from him and remembered that beneath them was a rifle.
"Get its attention!" Hunter yelled, handing Alistair a large rock. "Throw it at him!"
"What?"
"Just do it!" Hunter yelled.
Alistair threw the large rock as hard as he could. It hit the beast square on the nose. It snarled loudly, showing its razor-sharp teeth.
"I don't think it liked that." Alistair grabbed another rock, readying to throw it. "Elly, Liv, slowly move away from me."
Hunter ran over to the pile of tattered clothes and grabbed the rifle. He had never shot one before, but he had seen Dominick do it earlier. He checked the chamber; there was a dart ready and loaded. The beast eyed Alistair while holding down Trayer, who whimpered beneath the creature's mighty weight.
"You have to manually load it," Dominick whispered to Hunter, motioning how to cock the rifle. Hunter nodded. He fiddled with the rifle for a second until he heard it click. "Point and shoot," he whispered again.
Hunter carefully aimed the rifle. His hands shook nervously. Timing was critical, he had to ready the shot before the beast was able to attack Alistair or mortally wound Trayer. He lined up his aim and held his breath. He squeezed the trigger with all his might. The force of the weapon sent a kickback so hard that Hunter collapsed onto the ground in pain. He hadn't held the butt of the gun firmly enough against his shoulder, causing it to dislocate. Hunter winced in pain as he watched the dart strike the beast in its hindquarters. This time, the beast had no fight left in it, and it quickly fell to the ground.
"Good shot, kid," Dominick murmured.
"Trayer!" Elly and Liv ran over to the young pup. "Are you okay?"
The pup whimpered a bit but quickly sat upright, wagging its tail as the girls showered him with attention.
"I think he just has a few cuts," Liv said.
"Are you okay, Hunter?" Alistair helped his friend up from the cold stony earth.
"Yeah," Hunter winced. "That rifle really hurt my shoulder."
"I think it's dislocated," Alistair noted. He pointed out the weird lump on Hunter's shoulder.
"Quick, go into my bag," Dominick ordered, he tossed his backpack to the children. "There are industrial steel cables in there. Tie the beast's feet up in case it wakes up again."
"Is it safe now?" Elly unzipped the bag and pulled out the steel cables. They were surprisingly heavy for being so thin.
"I sure in hell hope so," Dominick added. "I'd do it, but I can't move my right shoulder. Could you patch me?" He nodded to Alistair. "You seem to know a thing or two."
"Yeah, a bit." Alistair smiled.
"How's the other guy?"
"We cleaned his wounds up good. Lots of scrapes and bruises," Alistair noted.
"Those rifles have a wicked kick back to them. How's your shoulder?" Dominick asked.
"I can't move it," Hunter answered, hiding the painful tears.
"Tie that bastard up good." Dominick managed to unclip his radio with his only good arm. He flipped its switch on and held down the talk button. "HQ, report. Suspect is controlled, injuries on site, need medics and cleanup crew."
"You got it?" Patricia's familiar voice chimed in over the radio.
"Confirmed. Immediate medical attention required. One man down, three injured, ranging minor to severe. We need a team out at Cerberus Cave. Repeat, we need a fully operational team at Cerberus Cave-stat."
"Copy, who is with you?" Patricia answered.
"Young male, mid-twenties, was brought in by the beast. I have four kids with me, and you will not be happy."
"Kids? Way out by the caves? What kids?" Patricia's voice grew angry.
"The Jakobs kids and their friends-again."
"What?" Patricia was now yelling over the radio. "Please, Dominick, keep them safe."
"Get me my team, and have our helicopter ready to fly out of here with the creature in our possession, as promised, and we have a deal."
"We always honor our obligations, Dominick," Patricia answered. "The team has already left. Do not let harm come to those kids. I repeat, keep them safe."
"You hear that, kids? Tie that beast up good. That's the best way to keep us safe until the team arrives to get us out of here."
"How long's that gonna take?" Hunter grimaced as he tried to straighten out his arm. He had to sit down, as he felt lightheaded from the pain.
"Stop moving it!" Dominick barked. "Just gonna cause yourself pain. Sit tight and get as comfortable as you guys can; it may take a while for them to get here."
The children huddled up together to keep warm in the dreary, dank cave. Liv had found a small blanket in Dominick's s
upplies and used it to cover up Sebastian. The group was banged up and tired. Hunter's shoulder was quickly swelling, and the discomfort was becoming unbearable. He was embarrassed sitting next to Liv, as he failed to keep back the tears of pain streaming down his red cheeks. Sebastian drifted in and out of consciousness, rambling incoherently.
"Hunter, it's okay that you're hurt," Liv said quietly as the group sat waiting impatiently for the rescue team.
"It's not that bad."
"That was very brave of you," she added a bit bashfully.
"Oh?"
"And, Alistair, I never knew you knew so much about medical stuff," she said.
"My dad taught me a lot." Alistair smiled.
"Kids," Dominick barked. He popped a bottle of pain pills and swallowed a mouthful down. "Quiet. My head is throbbing. Sit there and wait. Okay?"
The children nodded. Then they waited.
