No, I was going to die brave, or at least make an attempt at it.
CHAPTER 7
A loud bang rang out, causing me to jump in surprise as Abby let out a startled scream. I ducked low as another bang shattered the air; the weird, echoing screams of the creatures filled the night. They hissed and screeched as another reverberating bang erupted. My heart was hammering but I was finally able to place the source of the loud, startling explosions, as gunshots.
I looked rapidly around, but though the bright light had faded slightly from the gunshots it was still hard to make anything out. Another shot rang out, reverberating through the air. Bret cursed softly; he was half bent over the plywood as we hurried forward. I caught a brief glimpse of Abby as she darted off the trail and disappeared into the woods. Relief filled me. At least Abby was safer.
The strange screaming grew louder as another shot rang out. We were almost to the end of the path, almost to the thicker woods when my eyes finally detected the source of the gunshots. Cade stood at the edge of the woods, a shotgun leveled against his shoulder, his gaze focused on something beyond us. Relief filled me at the sight of him; I was finally able to easily breathe again as the constriction in my chest eased. I didnt know where he had gotten the gun from, and I didnt care as he fired another shot.
His dark eyes met mine for a brief moment before he dropped the gun and swiftly reloaded it. Hurry! Abby called from the woods. Hurry please!
Cade raised the gun again, firing another shot that caused the odd, hissing type of scream to explode in a torrent of rage and pain that made my eardrums ache. This way! someone else shouted from the woods.
Aiden left the trail, plunging deeper into the forest. Cade slipped into the shadows, momentarily disappearing
as he blended in with the darkness. We slipped through the forest, unnaturally loud as we crashed through the trees, and underbrush, desperate to escape the blinding light that followed us. I didnt see Cade again until he was suddenly beside me.
Give it to me, he said softly, his hand against mine as he tried to take the plywood from me. Let go Bethany.
No, my mom
Ill keep her safe, just get ahead of us.
Cade
Go.
His fingers caressed my hand briefly, sending a firestorm of sensations throughout me. I stared at him for a moment longer, trying hard to understand what exactly was going on, and failing miserably. Listen to him Bethy, Bret said softly. I fought against the guilt filling me as I slowly released my hold on the plywood. Stay with Abby.
I turned from them, unable to meet either of their gazes as I ran from them. And it was the two of them I was running from at the moment, not the aliens. I was oddly more terrified of them right now then I was of the monsters hunting us. For the first time I chanced a glance over my shoulder, horror filled me as I caught sight of the thing behind us.
It was one of the smaller ships, a little larger than a bus as it hovered over the forest. The lights had been toned down, but there were five of them still bouncing over top of the trees as it searched eagerly for us. It wasnt that far away, but I sensed that it might possibly be heading in the wrong direction. The creature that had followed us into the woods, the one eager for blood, was not going the wrong way though.
I could hear it crashing through the trees, stalking us, scenting our blood as it trailed us. And then I realized what was happening. The ship was moving off because it knew that we would not escape. It was not worried about us evading the creature it had left to destroy us. It was off to hunt other prey while it left one of its monsters to hunt us. And it was a monster. I could see it now, not clearly, but it was there. I sensed that it was different than the one I had seen earlier. It seemed larger, but it moved with startling speed for its massive size and cumbersome build.
It wasnt so much tall as it was wide. It skittered through the woods, shaking the trees as it bumped roughly against them, rattling the leaves in their bowers. Though the tentacles made it appear as if it were an octopus on dry land, its flattened head quickly squashed any octopus resemblance. Two giant pinchers extended from what I could only assume was its mouth, they were about three feet long and clicked eagerly together. A tick maybe? I thought wildly. Was it a giant tick? But no, it wasnt even like that, not with its pulsating red color that was translucent at times.
Then, ever so slowly, I began to realize that the red trickling through it was not its normal hue. The red color in it was blood, human blood, and this thing was not full yet. Its normal color was the nearly opalescent shade that rippled throughout the creature, flowing with its movements. An opalescent shade that made it appear jellyfish-like, but other than the color it looked nothing like a jellyfish either.