Hunter

XV

For a skinny thing, Aric was heavy.
Jade carried him back to the store, buckling under his weight.
She collapsed near the first aisle.
The cashier from before wasn't there, and Jade put two and two together.
Tim was the monster.
She got back on her feet, setting Aric down on his back.
His gray hoodie was soaked with blood.
Jade ran through the aisles, grabbing a pillow, water, first aid stuff, and some painkillers.
Aric moaned softly and Jade crouched down next to him.
His forehead was beaded with sweat, and she brushed his hair away, trying to cool him down.
She tried lifting his hoodie up, so she could clean the cut, but every time she touched it, Aric would cry out in pain.
She searched through the aisles, until she found some cloth scissors.
She quickly cut off his hoodie and the black shirt underneath, and muttering an apology to Aric.
The cut was burning hot and it made the surrounding skin feel too hot, which Jade was pretty sure was not healthy. It was deep, but the cut was only the length of her pointer finger. It crossed over his stomach, running over the ridges of muscle.
She cleaned it up, wrapping it in gauze.
After she was down, she washed her hands and covered Aric in a blanket she found.
He was motionless, muttering under his breath.
Jade sat next to him, dabbing his forehead with water.
He screamed. "NO! Mom! Moom!"
Jade jumped, a tear was tracing its way down his face. She wiped it away and Aric woke himself up.
He shot up then cursed as his cut stabbed him with pain.
He looked around, confused, then looked at Jade. He didn't notice the cut hoodie around him.
"Wha-what happened?"
Jade wasn't sure. What Aric had done...... It was a lot to take in. He was like a whirlwind, fighting against that thing. He was monster killing hurricane.
He was magical, summoning weapons to his hand and fighting. He was practically glowing.
Jade was speechless throughout the whole fight, as if she were watching a movie on a screen. That's how it felt, completely unbelievable. The fear that she had felt had rooted her in place, making her useless. How Aric could even breathe was a wonder to Jade.
Finally, after the thing was destroyed, she felt life returning to her, like she were just waking up from a dream.
Aric seemed to read everything in her expression.
"You must be so confused."
Jade laughed lightly. "Yeah."
Aric looked away, putting a hand over the gauze on his stomach.
"If you want to ask me something......"
Jade crossed her legs, fiddling with her hair.
"I just- I just don't know where to start. Maybe...... What did you say at the end?"
Jade remembered that best. When Aric had screamed that word, she could feel its power. It ripped away at her very being, like peeling the layers of an onion.
Aric cocked his head. "What?"
"At the end, right before you killed that thing. What did you say?"
"It was Latin." Aric ran a hand through his hair, pulling his bangs away from his face. "It means erase."
Jade stayed silent, staring at him.
He seemed to notice, and he turned, smirking. "Trying to get a peek?"
"Just cuz I helped you out, doesn't mean I won't punch you," Jade warned.
Aric held up his hands. "Fine, fine. I surrender."
Jade thought for a moment.
"What about those words you said to them first? You said them really quietly."
"I was telling it that I was a Hunter. They only help Hunters," he said simply.
"You kept talking to yourself. And I think you said the monster just ate...... What- what exactly does that mean?"
Aric sighed. "This is going to sound really morbid, straight outta a horror movie, but bear with me, ok?"
Jade nodded.
"Monsters eat souls. They have to, to survive. Like I said before, they have to eat at least once a month. If they don't..... They literally go insane. Eating us gives them energy, the way sleep and food do for us. And after they've just eaten...... They're practically invincible. Some monsters are less powerful than others so they have to eat more often."
Jade felt sick. She didn't want to be in a world where monsters existed.
This is was not how she wanted to spend her life.
She looked at Aric, wondering how he could stand it, having to bear the responsibility of killing these things. And managing to stay sane.
She glances at his scarred body and pointed to his stomach. "How are you feeling?"
Aric shrugged. "I've been worse."
Jade looked at his stomach, noticing something strange.
Three scars crisscrossed over Aric's hip, the darker patches of skin blemishing the smooth surface. He didn't have many other scars on his torso, so these stuck out like a sore thumb.
She reached her out hand but stopped herself. "What happened?"
Aric seized up, moving away. "Nothing. Just an old fight scar." He lost himself, thinking, but he snapped out of it. "You're getting a little desperate, aren't you?"
Jade growled, punching his arm. "I warned you."
He grinned.
Jade rolled her eyes. "You're so full of it."
His smile faded away and he looked down at the floor, idly running his fingers over the gauze on his stomach.
Jade felt some weight in her arm, and she was surprised to the see her bags.
She dug around through the bag of things she bought. Somehow, through everything that happened, she managed to hold on to it.
She pulled out the dark blue hoodie and Aric glared at it.
"I told you I didn't need it."
His body tensed, aggravated, and a scar on his collarbone glowed like a chalk mark against his skin.
Jade crossed her arms. "Look. Your hoodie is ripped up and I'm not emptying out my backpack right now so you can wear something else. So, hunterboy, put on the hoodie."
Aric scowled, his expression dark, and pulled the cotton hoodie over his head.
He flicked the hood up and staggered to his feet.
"Let's go."
Jade stood up, protesting. "Don't you need to rest? You're not invincible, you know."
He glowered at her, his hair hanging in his eyes. They glowed like beacons, making Jade feel like she was under a search light. "I'm wearing your hoodie, you're following me. Now let's go, before another monstrum shows up."
He walked out of the store.
Jade huffed, and stuffed the bags into her backpack, along with some extra supplies.
She followed Aric out the door, muttering curses under her breath.