Good and Deadly

A/N- Heyy :) just wanted to let you guys know that I'm really excited about this story. I edited it to first person and added some parts for those who read it before.

Good and Deadly

Chapter 1

Joseph narrowly missed the twig which could have easily led to our capture. I slowly and quietly let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding until now. We couldn’t afford to be making careless mistakes at a time like this. The slightest noises could give our position away. But just as I let out my breath, I heard an unforgiving snap. I turned to look at Scottie, Joseph’s son, who had stepped on that very twig his father had just narrowly missed. The young boy closed his eyes, obviously realizing his careless mistake, and waited for some type of signal that we were caught.

I remembered back six months ago when I didn’t have to worry about this sort of thing at all. I used to be just another seventeen year old guy who had an interest in sports, video games, and of course, girls. I never thought that I would be fighting for my life everyday for the next six months and probably for the rest of my life. I even remembered the exact day it all started. It was late April and I had just gotten home from school. Normally, I would get home around three but that day they let us out early due to attacks happening nearby. Maura had somehow managed to gain control of military bases and attack populated areas. I rushed home to find my parents watching the news and told me to pack my backpack. I knew not to ask questions but that didn’t stop me from thinking any. I just wanted to know what was happening. I quickly packed my things and we all shuffled into the car. We could feel the ground shake from bombs falling miles away. I swore they were getting closer.

We were driving for maybe ten minutes when a bomb landed ahead of us. It rippled through the ground and ripped up the pavement. It lifted into jagged pieces that stood straight up. My dad pressed the breaks but the car didn’t stop in time and we crashed. Luckily, I had my seatbelt on. Unfortunately, my parents did not. Basically everything after that crash was a blur. The only things on my mind were that my parents were dead, and I had to find somewhere safe. I just couldn’t believe it, though. My parents were actually and truly dead. And I knew the only place that I felt safe at was my Aunt’s house. Eventually I managed to get to her house, pass out for two days, and survive from then on. We made our way to the forest after hearing that someplace safe was somewhere past there. A man passed by an abandoned house we were staying at and told us about it. We left a few days later to pursue it but got lost in the forest by the far corner of a scout’s base. I knew we had to escape and it should be easy.

I knew, however, that this easy escape would go bad quickly if the scouts brought their favorite pet along. The Acutos was a very unique creature that was never seen before until Maura decided to kill people off. This creature had excellent sense of smell that was literally like no other. Nothing could compare, which is why they would be specially trained by scouts to sniff out refugees. The were rather small, but their sharp, pointed teeth and dagger-like claws made them deadly. They had unnatural speed, too, that made them hard to aim at. Really, the only way to successfully kill an Acutos was to shoot it while it was off guard.

I feared that if the creature showed up, our capture would be inevitable. Our only hope was if the scouts had left their pet behind. But I never did have good luck, why should it start now? A peek behind a bush we were crawling behind showed that the scouts backed off a bit but were shining flashlights into the shadows of the woods. That’s a good sign, I thought hopefully. The scouts wouldn’t be wasting their time searching the shadows themselves if they had a creature that could smell where we were a few miles away!

I followed behind the group as we continued forward, then I heard the growl I feared. It was deep and low, then was shortly followed by a vicious snarl that sliced through the air like a knife. It echoed for a while until another snarl replaced it. I encountered one of these creatures before and knew it was aware we were there. I needed time to think of something. All we needed was a way out. But we wouldn’t get very far with that beast on our heels. I turned toward Joseph and said quickly, “While I distract the Acutos, you kill it with the gun. Aim for the head or neck, nothing else. Take out the scouts until you have a clear shot of the Acutos.” Joseph nodded slightly then crouched behind a log in front of us. He aimed his gun at a scout closest, pulling the trigger once he had a clear shot to the head. A loud bang erupted from the gun and the scout fell to the ground, a pool of blood around what once was his head. The Acutos let out a louder snarl. I slowly stood behind the tree, readied to jump out and start the distraction. I took a few quick breaths and gripped my gun until my veins bulged. Think fast, rely on your instincts, you aren’t dieing today. I continue thinking that to myself for a little. I didn’t know why I kept thinking it, but it helped. Honestly, it did. I took a few more quick breaths then jumped out to face the creature.

In front of me stood a 4ft beast on all fours with claws that looked as if they could tear through a tree without effort. A metal collar was fit snugly on its neck with a large, bulky chain leading from the collar to a scout, who was holding on tightly. The creature fought against the scout holding the chain, trying to make him release his grip. I kept my eyes on the beast, not paying any attention to the scouts, who were worried more about the shots being fired at them. I stepped closer to the Acutos, looking at it straight in the eyes. The Acutos looked back at me with cold, deadly eyes. It snarled, showing off its rows of pointed and jagged teeth. Whoa, it seriously needed to brush it’s teeth. It was an alarming smell of rotten meat and skunk. I aimed my gun at the creature, keeping eye contact, and shot at it’s feet.

I knew the Acutos would dodge it but I needed to make it focus it’s attention on only me. I shot at the beast again, then again, not hitting it once. I heard gun shots behind my own and knew it was Joseph. He had taken out at least four of the seven scouts surrounding them. Within minutes most of the scouts were dead, all but the one that held the chain of the Acutos. I glanced at Joseph and nodded slightly, signaling to Joseph that he can kill the scout holding the Acutos chain. Doing that would give the Acutos a fair chance to kill me while also giving Joseph a chance to kill the creature. I figured it as long as I stayed on my toes I would be fine. We needed this thing dead anyways.

Joseph shot the scout and the Acutos immediately sprung towards me, ready to kill. I dodged each strike the creature made, claws flying everywhere, but it knew I couldn’t keep it up. Then I fell over a log. The Acutos was so close, it could have killed me that instant, but instead it just stared at me. At first, it had its one arm raised in the air, prepared to strike, but then it fell to it’s side. The creature cocked it’s head to the side as if hearing something I didn’t. It started to back away then it was shot in the arm. Blood flowed out of it. All of a sudden, its eyes turned red - something I didn’t even notice before - then it turned in the direction the shot was fired.

The Acutos bolted at Joseph, not even giving me a chance to warn him. Within seconds, the creature was on top of Joseph. I cursed under my breath, and started to shoot at the Acutos. It ran out of bullets after the first shot. “Shit” I muttered. I lunged to the dead scout’s body. I felt kind of bad searching through a dead man’s clothes but I needed to. I searched it quickly, still hearing Joseph’s screams. I found a gun and stood, aiming at the head. I didn’t know how many bullets were left so I knew I had to make this count. I took a slow deep breath, aimed and….BANG! The Acutos fell over without a sound, dead. Joseph stopped screaming, too, and I ran to the dying man.

Aunt Emma! Scottie! Quickly!” I called to them, wherever they were hiding. They came forward, looking around before preceding forward. As soon as they reached me, Aunt Emma burst into a cry and pulled Scottie into her. He pushed away and stumbled toward his father, tears washing the dirt off his cheeks. I remained silent. Aunt Emma fell to her knees and wept. I felt slightly guilty since I told him to start shooting the Acutos which drew attention to him, but I knew he wanted to do it to protect his family. I was never really close to Joseph even though he was my uncle. He was never really around when I was at my Aunt’s house so I didn’t spend much time getting to know him. All of a sudden, scouts fell from the trees. I swore silently. We were caught.

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A/N~ so how is it? tell me what you think! thanks! :D