When Given a Lemon

Part 8

Running in the snow is a complete bitch. It shouldn't even be considered running if we're really honest with ourselves, it takes far too much effort for the little distance we move!!

We scramble after the creature but it dodges and weaves through the branches and brambles, seeking an escape that hopefully doesn't also lead us to our demise. The way it moves makes its puffy resemblance make me feel like we are chasing an angry cloud. I kick up frigid powder that creates little scatter spots in the deeper snow around us as I run, what frost lands on me instantly melts as it makes contact with the heat of my exertion.

No matter how we try to catch this foul thing, it always slips just ahead out of reach, almost as if it is taunting us. It buzzed fast underneath the exposed roots of an overgrown juniper and gets its weird furry body stuck a little ways in. Without thinking I dash up and grab a hold of it, dragging it back, only to be bitten by its tiny but sharp teeth in my forearm!

“Ahhhhk!”

I yelp in surprise, unable to hang onto it, sending sweat and snow everywhere as I stumble back. I watch in disdain as it slips through the branches, quickly reaching heights far above me. A high arcing rock face behind it seems to block its further escape but I have no way to get to it. It does attempt to fly up around it but quickly returns, making me wonder if it is unable to fly more than short distances or beyond a certain height. I glare because it's still too far, puffing hot air as I breathe, refusing to give up; doing my best to ignore the throbbing in my arm.

Lemon and another soldier arrived soon after, the latter with a handful of rocks they somehow had time to gather as they ran after us.

“Wanna try to knock this mutant puffball from its perch!” They declare. The target sits watching without any discernible emotion from high above. “We've got to get it to lead us back to its den!” They continue before throwing a sharp stone that goes skittering off a rogue limb, missing the creature by over a handspan. “Get down ya little fucker!”

Tak! Tak! Tak!

One after another he attempts to knock it down, each time missing the target. The last knocked a heap of snow loose from a high up branch, sending it down onto its attacker, entirely missing the buzzball as it came down.

“Do you have to throw rocks at it?” Lemon huffed, looking a bit put out by the action, “we don't even know if it's dangerous.” The comment brings me back to my arm and I look down to see they had broken skin in several places but none of the cuts were very deep. Their bites don't seem nearly as bad as their stings and even then those weren't terribly serious for most of us. As big as the stinger was, it's effect was pretty mellow. For some reason I don't point out my injury to the others; the pain is only enough to be a nuisance anyway, nothing more serious than that. So while the soldier ignored Lemon, continuing to try to figure out how to knock the creature down to us, I wandered off to find some moss or something to cover my arm with.

Not a moment later, I heard a surprised scream emanate from behind me. Spinning back around, the soldier is covering his face and the fuzzy creature is ‘flitting back and forth’ or something like that –buzzing back and forth between low lying limbs and hovering right above him for a moment. I really think it can't actually fly more than a few feet without touching down. It seems to do a lot more short buzzing jumps, otherwise we never could have chased it down this far.

About to ask the soldier what the hell happened, I'm interrupted by more furry creatures suddenly popping out of everywhere to join the first in attacking the man. He frantically swats at them with one hand while still holding himself with the other, screaming curses at them. I realize belatedly that we are just standing there watching. Glancing at Lemon who looked on with a bemused expression. After our earlier battle with these things, we no longer hold the same fear of them as before. Not that I wouldn't be freaking out if one swarmed my face either.