Gold

2: TWO

TWO

     It was a fury of fur, metal, and claws. The beast, massive in size, nearly filled the entire interior of the hut. Cassia lunged forward and embedded her blade in the animal's side. A high pitched shriek emerged from its curved snout. She pulled the blade out as quickly as she could, but the beast snared a long claw into one of her leather boots. The force sent Cassia falling flat onto her back.

    "Cassia!" She heard Todd shout. Blood pounded in her ears and sweat and blood coated her body. The beast pinned her down with a giant paw. It was no use as she struggled to lift herself up, the weight was too great. She watched in terror as her father attempted to slice at the beast's neck. For a moment it was distracted by the movement, and the weight lessened slightly. However, it did not last long. The beast swatted her father with its other front paw. Now bloodied, he fell to the ground with a grunt.

    "Pa!" She called out hoarsely. Now the beast reared its head, about to strike its killing blow to Cassia.

    Then, out of nowhere, Todd jumped onto the beast. His blade dug deep into its flank. The weight lifted off of her as it tried to shake her brother off. Cassia leaped to her feet and sliced at the monster. Her blade cut it's eye, filling the home with shrieks of agony and more blood. 

In one quick motion, the beast threw Todd off of it, slamming him against the wall. There was a loud crack as his body made contact with the earthen wall. Cassia gasped.

"Todd!" She cried. His amber eyes were closed, and his body limp. I can't lose both of them, she thought as she eyed both her brother and her father lying still on the ground.

Adrenaline surged through her. She rushed the beast again. It angrily pawed at its one wounded eye, screaming in pain. Cassia lifted her machete and aimed for the other eye. The blade hit the target with a loud squish. Bodily fluids spewed around the room. This sent the beast roaring and bucking. She quickly attempted to move out of its reach, but a massive claw nicked her side. Pain blinded her as she cried out. A sticky warmth grew and seeped through her shirt. As much as it hurt to move, Cassia knew she had to get up or the beast would finish her.

Wincing, she slowly rose to her feet, her body blazing with pain. She struggled to stand up straight. Her vision was spotted, balance uneven, and breathing ragged. Through the blurs, she managed to see her machete lying by her feet. She also saw the beast thrashing wildly, knocking over everything in the home. Then it stopped and turned in her direction. Damn it, it must smell the blood.

With a screech of rage, the animal lunged forward. Cassia tried to take a step back, but tripped and fell to the ground, the pain becoming more intense. She groaned loudly, barely being able to comprehend the scene before her. The next thing she knew, the beast was standing over her. She knew it was about to strike.

"I'm sorry," She weakly whispered, hoping maybe her brother or father were conscious and could hear her.

But then a miracle happened. Seemingly out of nowhere, a figure jumped onto the beast, with what appeared to be a spear. The person launched the weapon into the animal's hide. The beast screamed and moved away from Cassia. Whoever this figure was, they were now unarmed, and the beast quickly bucked them off. The person landed beside Cassia. She could now see the face. "Reed," She breathed.

For a moment, Cassia could barely believe that the quiet boy of the village had managed to come over to her home, let alone bring himself to attack the beast. Never had she seen Reed do something so...dramatic. The worst part, to Cassia, was that his heroic attempt had helped in the moment, but in the end both of them were still sprawled on the ground vulnerable.