by Ballan, Greg
Steve studied the area intently. He recognized a particular tree as the spot where Erik collapsed after his first battle with the creature. He walked over to the tree and could see traces of blood staining the tree bark.
“We were here,” Steve pointed out. “Our first encounter was a half mile or so due west, up the mountain.” He gestured up the gradually sloping incline.
Robinson studied the area carefully then motioned Steve to follow him. Both men walked a small distance from the others who were either drinking from their canteens or adjusting various belts and buckles on their gear.
“Can you take us to the spot where you two squared off with these things?” Robinson asked.
“I believe so. It's almost perfectly due west up the mountain. If we continue in a reasonably straight line, we should end up there in a little under thirty minutes or so,” Steve answered.
He had to admit, deep down, that he really didn't want to go back up there. The horrors of that encounter were still too fresh in his mind. Robinson informed the command and control van of their intentions.
“Command Control, come in,” Robinson said into his portable radio.
“Go ahead,” Nelson answered.
“We're heading toward the hot spot up here. Do you have a positive fix on us?”
There were several seconds of silence before Nelson answered. “Affirmative, we have you all locked in.” Nelson sighed an audible sigh heard through the radio. “Be damn careful up there, Captain.”
“Roger that. Robinson out.” He tucked his radio in his belt pouch and walked back toward his men. Steve followed quietly behind.
“Okay, men, here's where it gets interesting. We're a scant half mile from the hot spot. Everyone keep your eyes open. Billy, unlock the safety on that M-60. You see anything at all out of the ordinary, a dark shadow, a funny shape, unload at your discretion,” Robinson instructed.
Billy nodded, quickly unlatched the safety from the large automatic rifle, and double-checked the bullet feed from the pouch on his back. “All hot, Sir.” he reported crisply.
Next to Billy, the remaining soldiers were getting themselves ready, going over their weapons one last time. Steve nervously checked the cylinder of his forty-four magnum, which seemed to pale in significance with the other heavy weaponry in his company. He spun the cylinder and quickly assured himself that each chamber had a good round. He flipped the cylinder back into the large pistol frame, placed the weapon back in its holster, and deliberately did not set the thumb break snap; if something happened, he would need every precious second. Steve glanced down at his left hip, assuring himself that the four Bianchi speed loaders were still on his equipment belt. He was as ready as he would ever be.
“Let's get to it,” Robinson bellowed, causing the reservists to quickly fall in.
Steve watched apprehensively as Kaulfax and Billy melted into the woods for their next 150-meter scouting trip. Steve marveled at how the two men were able to move through the dense forest with barely a sound.
* * * *
Phil Kaulfax stepped carefully around some briar patches as he kept his eyes peeled for any unusual motion or phenomenon. He quickly glanced over at Billy and gestured for him to proceed forward. Billy cautiously moved himself forward another twenty-five meters, scanning for any unusual disturbances. He found nothing. Billy motioned for Kaulfax to move forward to cover the next section; he would then follow to that point, which would finish the next twenty-five meters. He saw Kaulfax, moving like a forest ghost, making his way up and beyond his point. After they had completed 150 meters, they would radio back to Robinson, and the rest of the group would proceed forward while the two front men provided cover.
Kaulfax reached his position and suddenly froze. Billy watched, stunned, as a patch of darkness, darker than the deepest night, began to descend upon his partner from the trees above. The patch of darkness was nearly impenetrable and all consuming, covering everything as it fell from the treetops. Billy shouted out a warning as the spreading patch of inky-black darkness was swallowing up his partner.
Kaulfax raised his automatic rifle into the blackness and fired off several rounds. Billy screamed as he ran toward his partner. Then he saw the giant feline head reach down from behind the cloud of darkness and, with a quick snap of its jaws, remove Kaulfax's rifle and both arms from his body. Kaulfax's shriek of pain and terror rang through the forest, which had suddenly become deathly silent. Billy took aim with his M-60 and unleashed an armor-piercing hailstorm upon the monstrosity inside the black. The M-60's muzzle spit fire and bullets, tearing into the creature, causing it to roar with distress and disappear back into the darkness. Billy continued firing into the inky blackness as he closed on Kaulfax's position.
When Billy arrived seconds later, the blackness was gone, along with his friend's weapon and upper limbs. Kaulfax's body was hemorrhaging blood and he was already in shock. Billy screamed for assistance as he tried in vain to stop his friend from bleeding to death.
“Hang on, man, hang on,” Billy whispered to his partner.
“Not like this,” Kaulfax whispered. “I don't want to go out like this.”
* * * *
The sound of heavy arms fire caused Robinson and the rest of his group to move forward quickly. He saw one of the soldiers firing his weapon into the forest, but he was too far away to make out the target. All he could see was the fiery muzzle flash from the M-60 as it sprayed hundreds of bullets into the forest. It took the group thirty seconds to traverse the fifty yards. No one was prepared for the sight. Billy was sitting on the forest floor, covered in blood, holding the now dead body of Kaulfax, rocking the corpse back and forth.
“Five-meter defensive circle,” Robinson barked.
Each man responded, forming a rough five-meter circle around Billy, their backs to him, weapons facing out, covering a full 360 degrees.
“Billy, what the fuck happened?” Robinson demanded.
Billy sat, staring down at the lifeless body of his friend, as the blood continued to pour from the tears in the body.
“Damn it, soldier, I asked you a question,” the Captain hollered, using his deepest military tone.
Billy slowly looked up at his CO. “Something came out of the darkness and ate his gun and his arms. Snap! Just like that, and his arms were gone. He fired at it; he must've hit it. I let loose a hundred rounds into the darkness before it disappeared. It has to be dead, it has to be,” Billy whispered as he looked back down at the body of Kaulfax.
“Sir?” a soldier cried out in a sickened voice. “I think we've found his arms, sir.”
Robinson closed his eyes for a moment, and then turned toward the soldier. The soldier was pointing some twenty meters out. He handed Robinson the binoculars, and Robinson panned the general area. Sure enough, he spotted both arms within a scant few feet of each other. Robinson felt the bile build up in his stomach, and quickly put the field glasses down. He pulled out a plastic trash bag from his pack and walked out of the defensive circle toward the limbs. He knelt over them and gently scooped the severed arms into the bag. Robinson looked out, peering into the woods.
“What in God's name could do this to a man?” he asked himself quietly.
Robinson tucked the bag under his arm and lifted the muzzle of his M-16 as he stood. He carefully backed up toward his circle of waiting men, shifting the muzzle of his weapon from side to side, covering his retreat. Once back in the circle, Robinson placed the severed arms next to Kaulfax's body. Billy carefully placed the body and limbs in a thin body bag that was intended for one of the creatures. He then covered the bag with leaves and brush, and emptied a vial of sterile alcohol around the makeshift tomb to ward off any nosey animals until they could come back and move the body.
“I'll be back for you, bro', as soon as I put another hundred rounds into whatever killed you,” Billy said to his departed friend. He cycled the M-60's firing chamber and re-activated the unit's battery pack. “Time to go hunting,” he whispered to
himself as he headed back toward the other men.
Robinson had been conferring with the Halls Command and Control Van, and informed them of the loss of Kaulfax.
* * * *
Erik was carefully watching the monitors when Robinson radioed the news. He was saddened to hear of the loss of the man, but relieved that it wasn't Steve. Nelson and Erik pleaded with Robinson to withdraw, but the soldier insisted on continuing. Erik emphasized what anomalies to be aware of that would announce the creatures’ presence.
“Be careful, Robinson, you don't know what you're dealing with,” Erik urged.
“Pity you're not out here with us, expert!” Robinson chided Erik. “Maybe we could have saved the life of one of our men if you were here to sense these things!”
Erik's shoulders suddenly slumped, and Nelson saw the injured look in his eyes. Erik slowly keyed the mike. “I'm sorry, just be careful,” he whispered.
“We will,” Robinson replied. “Robinson out.”
Nelson stared at Erik, wanting to say something—anything to ease him through this difficult moment “It's not your fault, Erik. Robinson's just letting off steam. He just lost a man. He didn't mean what he said, he spoke out of anger.”
“Maybe so,” Erik answered. “But he is right, though. If I was out there, I could probably sense these things. Maybe that man would still be alive.”
“And maybe you'd be dead along with him,” Nelson argued. “We don't have time for self pity now. You're not at fault; believe it and move on. We need to monitor the situation even more closely. If you have any inkling of where these things could possibly be up there, you need to let these men know. Think, man!” Nelson urged.
Suddenly, something struck Erik. Something he saw all along, but just put into the front of his mind.
“Steve, come in. Over.” Erik called.
“Yeah, Erik, go ahead.”
“Steve, if you were a wild feline predator, where would you most likely be in order to ambush your prey, where would you hide, hoping not to be seen?” Erik asked.
There was a long silence as Steve considered the question.
“Look around you,” Erik urged. “What's the best position to be in for an ambush?”
“Son of a bitch!” Steve swore, as he finally understood. “Thanks for the tip.”
“No charge, amigo, just watch your butt!”
“Will do, out.”
Erik looked over at Nelson. The older detective looked puzzled. Erik grinned. “The trees. Our feline creature is using the trees to hunt, just like any wild cat. It came down from the trees at the parkland. They came and went with Lisa Reynolds by utilizing the large oak trees,” he guessed. “They have a screening capability, but the only way to carry somebody of that distance without being seen or seeing a disturbance would have to be the trees. There's a complete network of 100 plus-foot trees between here and the Hopedale Park. Those trees could easily support a creature of that mass and magnitude. They took Lisa Reynolds from the park, carried her up the nearest tree, and carried her to the park utilizing those fucking massive oak trees. That's probably how her buttons fell off her shirt, the fabric got caught on a limb or branch and ripped off, and why nobody saw the darkness or the creatures or the girl after she was taken.
“We never look up; we don't expect anything to come at us from the trees. The cat is hunting us the same way we would hunt a deer; ambush from above, where your prey doesn't expect a threat to come from. There are hundreds, thousands, of those massive old oaks, a literal superhighway all throughout the town and in that mountain. They could travel virtually anywhere in town above the public fray,” Erik guessed, not fully understanding the nature of the creatures or how they moved.
* * * *
Billy took the lead, sweeping the barrel of his M-60 in a wide arc. Each man carefully looked above into the treetops, fearful of some black creature ambushing them from above.
After twenty minutes of travel, Billy paused. He knelt down and picked up a shiny object.
“Brass casing from a .45. They're all over the place, the grounds been kicked up in quite a few places,” he radioed to Robinson who was still several meters back with the main body of men.
“That's where the initial contact was made with the creatures,” Steve remarked. “He'll find some .44 casings as well, the .45s are from Knight's Wilson pistols,” he added, recalling the events that took place the last time he was here.
The group approached the area and carefully studied the forest floor, looking for more indications of the earlier conflict.
“We have more of that sulfur-based fluid on the leaves,” a soldier reported. “And this.... “He held up the handle and one inch of broken blade from a large hunting knife.
“Just like they reported,” Robinson whispered as he examined the broken blade.
He casually tossed the blade and handle back onto the ground and carefully continued his examination of the area, studying the upturned earth. He easily read the signs of conflict and studied the different foot patterns in the upturned earth. Robinson knelt down before a set of prints that he quickly ascertained weren't human. He studied the prints intently, trying to estimate size and weight from the deep impressions in the soil.
“This thing's gotta weigh at least three hundred pounds, maybe four,” he said aloud as he concluded his analysis. “What the hell are we dealing with?” Robinson scanned the area intently, looking for any unusual signs of movement. “Okay, soldiers, let's keep moving due west. These things are out here. Let's find them.”
“And hope they don't find us,” a police officer mumbled as the group proceeded up the sloping terrain.
* * * *
The party ascended another quarter mile into the mountain. Steve didn't really know when he noticed the silence, but he felt a deep shiver run down his back.
“They're near,” he called out.
Everybody stopped and began peering into the depths of the woods. It was only then that Robinson noticed the absolute silence.
“Aw shit,” Robinson cursed as he panned the treescape surrounding them.
Billy hefted the massive M-60 rifle and adjusted his grip on the firing mechanism. “Come on out, you bastards!” he screamed. “Come on out and face me like a man!”
“Billy,” Steve whispered harshly, “shut up!” Steve radioed Command and Control, and locked the transmitter key down on his radio. The folks at C&C would be able to hear everything that would occur.
“Over there!” a soldier whispered excitedly. “I saw something moving, over there!” He pointed.
“Where, I don't see anything.” Steve raised his forty-four magnum and assumed a combat stance.
“What the hell happened to the sunlight?” Robinson asked as it suddenly grew as dark as night in the forest surrounding them. “Switch to Starlight and activate IR scopes!” Robinson barked as the darkness around them intensified. “Find me a target, soldiers.”
“I thought they were in the trees!” Billy said. “This blackness came out of nowhere, right in front of us!”
“Sir, I've got a silhouette, big and moving right at us,” a soldier announced.
“Oh, God, help us all,” Steve whispered.
Then all Hell broke loose.
A large black figure appeared from the darkness and impaled the nearest soldier. The man fell, vomiting and coughing up bile and blood. Billy spun around, screaming as he fired his rifle. The flame from the muzzle lit up the darkness and illuminated the dark figure briefly. Then it was gone. The forest was deathly quiet and dark as the deepest, starless night.
“Hudson!” Robinson screamed. “Activate the spotlight. Find me a target, damn it.”
The young soldier fumbled with his pack, reaching for the desired item. He didn't see the long whip-like tail that dropped from the trees and coiled around his neck like a noose until it had begun strangling him. Hudson gasped and wheezed, choking as he was lifted into the treetops by the silent abductor.
“Hudson!” Bill
y screamed as he fired into the trees. The remaining men heard a roar that was louder than any African lion and caused the ground around them to vibrate. Hudson's body fell limply from the trees and landed with a sickening thump on the forest floor. A Hopedale police officer panicked and began running. In his mindless terror, he ran further up the mountain, instead of down. He didn't see the creature until it reached out and grabbed him, lifting him clear off the ground and holding him aloft with one hand. The officer screamed, a shriek of pure unmitigated terror, as the creature's icy grip slowly squeezed his life away.
Steve heard his fellow officer's scream of terror, but there was nothing he could do. He was totally blinded by the darkness. He heard gunfire all around him, and Robinson trying to bark orders to his remaining men. Steve felt a cool shiver race down his spine. He slowly glanced up into the tree nearest him. Two large, green cat-like eyes returned his gaze.
Steve raised his revolver and squeezed off three rounds before a large leg, the thickness of a heavy tree limb, swatted him, lifting him nearly fifteen feet into the air. Steve was carried backward, slamming his back into a large tree. Steve heard his back break, shattering like glass from the forceful impact. He tried to move, but couldn't, losing all sensation below his neck. He looked up and saw the large cat-like creature approaching him. He tried to scream for help, but his voice was drowned by the sound of gunfire.
He watched, paralyzed and helpless, as the creature vindictively tore the arms and legs from his body. Mercifully, his broken back prevented him from feeling the pain, but it also prevented him from losing consciousness from the pain and shock. Steve Forrest was forced to watch himself being torn apart, only to eventually die from severe blood loss. Steve watched, as the remaining men continued to fight. Steve saw the last of his brother officers fall. He placed a picture of his wife and children into his mind.
