For Blood & Glory

by Cassandra Hendricks

  Sefira’s eyes darted to the barbed wire above the metal gate and her stomach dropped. The monster was gone. A glistening chunk of flesh dangled from the barbed coils in its stead. Her breath hitched in her throat.

  “Look out!”

  Wet fingers emerged from the darkness as the creature lunged toward her. Sefira reeled backward, almost tripping but managing to stay afoot. Quickly, she called upon the energy and was surprised by how swiftly it came. The response was immediate, but different. The air thickened like it did at the party and she felt a massive wave traverse the atmosphere, crashing over the creature; pulling it in like a boat to sea. A dapple of light washed over the mush that was its face and she saw its pained expression freeze, the remainder of its body to follow.

  Sefira’s chest heaved as she caught her breath. “It worked,” she muttered under her breath, staring at the creature. It was more of a mannequin now, just as the people from the party were. What was this thing anyway?

  “What are you doing?” The girl’s voice jarred her. She was now standing close enough for Sefira to glimpse her smeared make-up and swollen jaw. “Run!” The girl nudged her with her forearm, pushing her away.

  “I—I’m not leaving without you!” The words tumbled out before Sefira had time to vet them. Eyes glued to the frozen creature, she stepped back and reached for the girl’s arm. Maybe she could prop her just as Kaetano did. “C’mon.” She turned toward the girl and grabbed her forearm, intending to place it around her neck when she heard a voice in her ear.

  “My turn.”

  The next thing she knew, she felt as if her scalp was on fire. This thing had fists full of her hair. She screamed, beating on its gummy knuckles as it dragged her backward.

  “No!” The girl grunted, jumping into the foray. Sefira’s eyes rolled up to see fists pounding upon the creature’s back, beating on it like a conga drum. The monster’s grip loosened but only for a second. It regrouped, tightening its grip on Sefira while reaching back with its free hand to snatch the girl underneath her armpit and flip her over, body-slamming her to the ground. Air escaped the girl’s lips as she landed with a thwack loud enough to make Sefira cringe. A cursory glance to Sefira’s left showed the girl on her back, her head rolling slightly to the side before all movement ceased.

  At that instant, Sefira’s fear was eclipsed by anger. All adrenaline, she reached for the energy inside of her that was available seconds earlier, but somehow she came up short. So she grabbed the creature’s wrists and drove her nails as far as she could into its barbecued flesh. Still it did not surrender, instead it ripped her nails from its wrists, grabbed her shoulder, spun her around and yanked her close. She wanted to retch, looking at the disgusting sight before her. Besides its skinlessness, this thing had no nose—just two vacant holes where its nose should have been and large alien-like eyes. She tried to wriggle free but its slimy hands gripped her tight, pinning her arms to her sides. Voice cracking, she asked, “What do you want from me?”

  The monster’s slit of a mouth widened, forming a grin as the web of blood vessels littering its face coursed harder. “Only this.”

  A cracking sound ensued as the creature’s mandible disconnected from its jaw. Unhinged, its mouth fell open wide enough for her to see the black cave of its throat, wide enough to swallow her whole. Desperation kicked in as she did everything in her power to fight back. With an upward thrust she knee’d the creature as hard as she could in the groin. Its mouth clamped, its grip loosened and a shriek ensued, creating a small window of opportunity for Sefira to wriggle her arms free. More cracks were heard as her fists collided with its face. She managed a few punches before it seized her right wrist; she followed by driving her left thumb deep into the hollows of its right eye until it pierced a mushy membrane. The monster screeched as green mucus oozed like egg yolk from its eye. Sefira tried to launch another assault but before she could do so it grabbed her other arm, cocked its head back and opened its mouth. A steady stream of white mist gushed, floating through the air. Something about the way the mist moved was strange. Instead of dissipating, its particles pulled together to form a long and thin, ghostly shape. Very much like that of a worm. It wiggled as it floated in her direction. Sefira made every effort to avoid it, turning her head violently in each direction as it neared her face, but it was no use. With her arms arrested and her power unavailable, she had no choice but to watch in horror as the worm slithered right into her nostrils.

  A lightheadedness fell upon her, loosening her balled fists and causing her head to drop. Her gaze shifted to her hands and what she saw left her in a panic. Grey, pulsing veins surfaced on her skin and crawled like spiders up her arms. Soon, the sensation in her hands and arms left as did her legs shortly thereafter. Within seconds, she folded like a deck of cards collapsing on the asphalt.

  “You know,” the creature crouched down, straddling her, a leg on each side. So close was he that she could smell the ragged stench of his breath wash over her face. “I could’ve used a tasty morsel such as yourself right about now. It’s been a while since I’ve had something so—succulent. Fortunately for you, you’ve proven to be much more valuable than a side dish. I think you may require a little something extra, just to ensure that you don’t slip away.” He cocked his head back.

  If Sefira could turn her head backward she would. Anything to get away from that repulsive worm. With great effort, she managed to turn far enough for her cheek to graze the asphalt, but that was hardly a defense against a floating worm. What has that thing done to me? Her mind wandered, imagining the worm slithering around her insides; burrowing through muscle and bone, devouring the fibers of her nervous system. The worm had already exacted quite a bit of damage, she was certain of that. More concerning, was the fact that it only took one of those nasty creatures to cause the paralysis she was feeling and now this monster meant to pump her with more? The thought left her feeling absolutely despondent.

  Whatever her life was or wasn’t, she never imagined she deserved for it to end like this. That she’d be lying helpless in some dirty back alley somewhere in the dark, at the mercy of a monster. Those were the kinds of tales you heard in storybooks. The ones where disobedient little girls who failed to heed warnings ended up dead. The irony. She wasn’t supposed to leave the party. She could’ve been safe with her friends right now but she chose to go off on her own chasing “answers”. Maybe she was that willful little girl after all—Little Red without the fairy tale ending.

  “Stop it!”

  The monster’s head whipped toward the voice. It was the girl again, her face twisted in pain as she struggled to get to her feet. As soon as she tried to put weight on her left leg, it buckled, and she cried out as she fell to the ground.

  The monster laughed. At least, it seemed like that was what it was doing. She could feel its stomach muscles reverberate against her thighs.

  The girl lifted her head. Her face was plastered with sweat and hair and her chest heaved so hard Sefira could see the muscles in her clavicle tighten. The stare she gave the monster was so intense it gave Sefira the chills. “I’m going to kill you,” she said, only her voice sounded different—throaty, deeper.

  The creature turned its attention back to Sefira and stretched its mouth further than was humanly possible, unleashing the mist. Sefira’s blood turned cold, flinching as more worms began to take shape. One formed and slid into her nostrils. This time, her body felt heavy, as if weighted by bricks yet her spirit felt light as a feather. The dichotomy was so strange—like a dream where she felt trapped inside her own body. She couldn’t move nor talk, but she could see and what she saw next stretched the confines of her imagination. A few feet away, the girl was on the asphalt seizing. Back arching and body twisting in ways that defied the laws of nature. At one point her feet were planted firmly on the ground and her back rolled upon itself like a corkscrew, and as it unfolded Sefira glimpsed her eyes. They’d turned a striking shade of blue, glowing like hot coals in a furnace. Me
anwhile, her face elongated and became shrouded by strange, glowing rune-like patterns that tumbled down one side of her face down to her legs. Chest heaving, the girl turned so that all fours were on the ground, crying out as long black claws poked through her fingertips and black fur, sleek and short sprouted from her skin. It was her howls that brought the monster’s poison pumping rampage to a halt. His head spun round just in time for him to witness fangs, black as night, protrude from her mouth. A thunderous growl emerged from her essence as she leapt to her feet with a long, whip-like tail waving behind her.

  The rapid transformation caught her adversary completely off guard. “Aren’t you something.” Sefira felt the weight of the creature lift as it took to its feet. “Ten for originality. Mommy’s eyes, but the rest—all Daddy.”

  The metamorphosis was over. This new being cocked its head to the side, as a forked black tongue licked canines. And then it spoke. “Is that right? Daddy, eh?” Although raspy, the voice was still that of the girl and somehow Sefira felt a measure of relief in that. She stood up, pacing, the markings glowing briefly beneath her fur. “We were discussing him, weren’t we? Sounds like I’m more like him than you thought.” Her eyes drank in her new body. “My guess is, your little elixir doesn’t work on his side of the family?” She leapt atop the trashcan, effortlessly balancing her body on all fours as she squatted, addressing the monster. “Now, where were we? Oh yes, discussing the terms of my abduction.”

  Without warning, the girl pounced on the creature and kicked him in a way that Sefira had only seen in movies. Moving with remarkable speed and precision, she executed an animalistic, capoeira-infused brand of martial arts, the likes of which the creature was totally unprepared.

  Blood gushed from the multiplicity of cuts induced by her claws, sending the creature’s shrieks echoing into the night. Plainly, she was too fast, too agile for him. The creature put up a fight, but for every sluggish, roundhouse punch he threw, there were five more combinations coming his way and unlike him, she didn’t miss.

  Panic flashed across the creature’s face. He took a step backward, turning on his heel, but that was as far as he got. The girls’ tail hissed, cutting through the air with the swiftness of a viper. Sefira heard a snap as it wrapped itself around the creature’s arm, yanking him back so the girl could commence making ribbons of his flesh.

  In a last-ditch effort to regain control, the monster’s jaw unhinged, and he lunged forward, but the girl dropped to the ground and sideswiped him sending him crashing like timber to the pavement. Wasting no time, she pounced on him, using her limbs to pin him down and the beating resumed. The girl’s arms moved with lightning speed. Back and forth she raked, claws ravaging the creature’s face and chest sending chunks of flesh and blood flying through the air.

  “Prepare to meet your maker,” the bloodied girl sneered. From the sound of things, one more swipe, and his life was over. Right before she delivered her final blow, Sefira used what little strength she had to interrupt.

  “Wait,” she yelled. Her body throbbed, but she was beginning to recover some feeling in her limbs. It took every ounce of strength she had to roll over, elbows and forearms scraping small rocks and broken pavement as she struggled to get to her hands and knees. Elbows locked, she managed to prop herself up and noticed the veins in her arms were still visible but fading.

  “Wait? For what?” The girl scowled.

  “Don’t—kill him. Not yet.” Sefira exhaled deeply then crawled toward the girl, muscles aching with each movement. A blur in her peripheral caught her eye. She turned to see a small, scruffy curly-haired grey mutt padding in their direction. It stopped short, parking itself a few feet away, head cocked to the side, dark, beady eyes watching.

  The monster was lying flat on the ground, its long thin arms sprawled. Rivulets of blood leaked from its mouth; the thick veins that had coursed so vibrantly with life before appeared shriveled in comparison.

  “What are you?” asked Sefira.

  The monster’s chest heaved as it laughed hysterically. “Is that what you really want to know?”

  “No,” answered the girl. Her claws were at his throat, threatening to end him at a moment’s notice. “I want to know why you’re after me. Who sent you?”

  “A far better question, for sure. Truth is you mean nothing to me, but you mean everything to her.”

  “To who?” Sefira asked.

  The creature laughed again, blood splattering from its mouth as it heaved. Through bloodied teeth it answered, “You can’t outrun her. She will find you one way or another. I’m not the only one you know. Had I known there were two of you here, I would have proceeded differently.”

  Two of us? Now I’m included? Sefira thought.

  Curiously, two more dogs appeared from the shadows. A Dobermann and a German Shepherd this time. The girl saw them but didn’t appear concerned. Sefira gulped, keeping watch as the girl pressed further.

  “She? Who’s ‘she’? What does she want? I’ve done nothing.”

  “It isn’t about what you’ve done.” The creature cut her off, staring intently with its one good eye. “It’s about what you can do.”

  The girl sat back as if mulling over the words and for once she looked to have been at a loss for them, so Sefira picked up where she left off. “What are we?”

  The creature grinned, staring at them. “Dead.”

  The girl’s lips curled. “You’ve said enough.” Her eyes trained on the dogs. “Sic ‘em.”

  The response was instantaneous. The canines pulled up on all fours with ears pinned back, heads lowered, lips peeled as the muscles tightened in their muzzles and hind legs. The creature didn’t even know what hit him. Its screams keening in the wind as teeth and claws ravaged him, ripping limbs from joints with the ferocity of trained killers. The scene proved gruesome enough that Sefira briefly turned away. When she turned back the deed was done and what was left of the dismembered carnage disintegrated, leaving nothing but small piles of lumpy goo behind.

  The dogs backed off, panting, tails wagging and looking directly at the girl as if awaiting further instruction. “Good dogs,” she said. “Now go.” Just like that, they were off.

  The girl threw her head back, sighing as if she were finally able to allow herself to tire. Through her breaths she asked, “You alright?”

  Sefira’s voice quivered. “I don’t know.” Her eyes went back to the goo. “You?” Sefira flinched as something in her peripheral neared her. It was a bloody hand. The girl’s hand. It was normal. Sefira’s eyes skimmed the hand, then the arm right up to the girl’s face, dismayed by the fact that she had already returned to her former self.

  “It’s okay, I won’t bite,” said the girl, hand still extended. “Not you anyway.”

  Sefira took her hand and the girl helped her to her feet.

  Her initial impression of the girl from the party was that she was someone that gushed strength and confidence. Although she’d obviously been through quite a bit, she still came off that way. Her makeup was undone, intermixed with blood and sweat now; one side of her face looked like it was storing nuts for the winter and her catsuit had so many tears in it, it looked like the suit was wearing her, not the other way around. Despite all this, she addressed Sefira cool as a cucumber.

  “Want a smoke?” She reached into her cleavage and pulled out a cigarette, offering it to Sefira.

  Sefira waved a hand. “No thanks, those things will kill you,” she muttered, still feeling somewhat dizzy.

  “Oh yeah? So will bald-headed poisonous monsters.” The girl shoved a cigarette between her lips, pulled a lighter out of the same undisclosed place and fired up. Folding her arms, she tried to take a drag. “Ow!” she said, smoke billowing from her mouth as she ran her fingers along the contours of her jaw. “Damn monster’s got my jaw swollen.” Her face soured as she glanced at what was left of her outfit. “I was gonna return this costume. Guess that’s out.” Turning to Sefira, she said, “What’s your name? Wher
e are you from?”

  Sefira imagined she must’ve looked like a dying guppy the way her mouth gaped. It seemed her brain had short-circuited—“stranger danger” came to mind. “My name’s… Lisa, and I’m from Northridge.” She’d never been to Northridge. Didn’t even know where it was. But it was the first place to come to mind.

  The girl’s eyes narrowed. Halos of smoke streamed from her mouth as she chuckled. “Hello, Lisa from Northridge. I’m Joy from South Central.”

  She offered a hand, the sight of which now turned Sefira’s stomach. “Wait—hold on, you’re bleeding.” Sefira looked frantically around. “My phone. Where’s my phone?” It was on the ground, a few feet away. After retrieving it she returned. “I think we should call an ambulance.” Before she could dial, Joy snatched the phone away.

  “Does this look like the kinda thing 911 could handle? What are we gonna tell them? A veiny monster with jacked up skin tried to nab us?” She rolled her eyes.

  “I don’t know,” Sefira answered, raking her fingers nervously through her hair.

  Joy stood there, silently smoking. “Well, I suppose I owe you one. I called you and you came. I’ve got friends who won’t even do that.” She shifted, using her hand to support her smoking arm. “How’d you get here so fast?”

  Sefira decided against telling her she was following her. She might get the wrong idea.

  “It was weird. I was—on my way to the car when I heard your voice and then there were these pictures that flashed in my head that kind of led me to you.” Swallowing hard, she continued. “When I saw you there. On the ground with that—thing. I couldn’t just leave you.” She glanced at the gooey remnants. “What was it anyway?”