Crimson Flesh

Chapter 4:

"Good thing we were able to kill that thing!" Isaac yells, panting for air. "Yeah. Y'know, it's getting pretty dark outside. Let's find a nice place to stay." Michael says. "Alright. Let's go." They walk around for about 10 minutes, and it's already pitch-black outside. "It's really creepy here at night." Michael says, keeping his voice low. "I know. Hey, I have a question." Isaac says. "Sure. What is it?" Mike responds with. "How did you bless that knife? I know your dad taught you but, why?" Michael's face grows cold. "I recited biblical verses in my mind. And to answer your question about why I learned, it was against my will. My father always said I was possessed, and would bless objects like knives and he would stab me... I learned how to do it before he would eventually kill me. To prove that I wasn't possessed."

"O-Oh... I didn't know that's what your life was like... Wait... Were those the weird marks on you when you went to school? And why you always have holes in your clothes?" Michael feels tears build in his eyes, until they suddenly begin to pour out uncontrollably. "Y-Yea... I don't want to go back home..." Isaac wraps an arm around his friend. "It's OK dude. I'm always here for you." Michael cries into his shoulder until they hear rocks move and twigs snap. His tears stop suddenly, and the two jump to their feet. "What was that? Be on guard, something could attack at any moment." They stand up straight, and they scan the area thoroughly, until they get back down.

"It was probably nothing." Isaac says, his heart rate speeding up by quite a bit. "M-Maybe. But we should still keep an eye out for something." They lay down on the ground, trying to get in a comfortable position to fall asleep. They hear a noise once again, but this time it appears to be coming from all directions. Michael grabs the knife and the flash light, and Isaac grabs the bible. Michael points the light into the distance, but only to find nothing. "Jeez. I'm getting a bit creeped out... And I'm really sore from fighting those monsters. Let's hope it's our imagination." Isaac says, stretching. "Hopefully." Michael says, letting out a large breath. "We haven't even seen what's in this bible. Point the light at it. It could be a trap." Michael obliges, and Isaac flips the pages but finding only blank pages until near the end of the book. It was a page with words written in blood. It read, "KILL ME", they feel uneasy, and throw the book to the ground.

More sounds come from the shadows, but they seemed closer than ever before. "Forget about the bible. We gotta worry about whatever is in the darkness. Whatever it is, it's only a few yards away." They look in all directions, until they see dozens of eyes following their every move. "Shit! There's more than one of these bastards!" Michael yells. That's when they realized it. They'd been being stalked for a few hours by a pack of monsters. The creatures then circled around the two of them for a bit, until one of them darted for Isaac's leg. He kicked it full throttle in the face, sending it flying backwards. The creatures then decide to go after Michael, for he was the smaller, and obviously weaker one. "ARGH!" Michael yells, as multiple hairless-hyena looking creatures attacked his left leg. He tries to kick them away, but it only makes them bite down harder. "FUCK!" Mike yells, as a chunk of his leg had been torn away.

Isaac stomps on one of their head's, turning it into nothing but blood and brain. The monsters leap into the shadows, and hide, nowhere to be seen. Isaac takes the knife from Michael's hand, and guts the monster he stomped on just to make sure it was dead. He darts towards Michael, and inspects his leg. "Holy shit! U-uh... Umm... I got it!" He pours some alcohol on it, sending a great deal of pain to Mike. "F-fuck... Give me a warning next time, dickhead!" Blood trickles down his leg, but then it stops, leaving a crimson puddle beneath his feet. "At least it wasn't a big chunk."

Michael sits in silence, holding in his pain. Sounds are heard again, except growling can be heard this time. "What the hell?! I thought they were scared away?!" Michael yells in panic. "Same here. I don't think they'll attack since I'm here. I think we can go to sleep. If they attack, wake me up, 'k?" Isaac says, yawning. "Alright. Night." Isaac falls asleep almost instantly, leaving Michael by himself, and afraid.

The noises get closer and closer, but Michael just stays put, trying not to panic. They stalk him slowly, not attacking for a while. They were trying to instill fear into him. And it was working. Suddenly, after 15 or so minutes, one of them lunges for his injured leg, biting right next to the wound. "Fu-" Michael tries to yell, but more of them kept attacking his leg. "SNARL!" the creatures growl. Multiple of them begin to drag him away from Isaac, leaving a trail of blood into the darkness. When he was brought into the darkness, he mustered up all of his strength and yelled as loud as he could, "HELP ME, ISAAC!" Michael passes out due to shock and tiredness.

Isaac jolts up with his vision blurry. "Mike? Michael? Where are you?" Isaac jumps to his feet with the knife and flashlight in his hands. He calls his name once more, by with no response. "Shit!" He yells, pointing the light at the ground, finding the trail of blood. "Dammit! He could be dead! I have to find him. It's a black night, and I'm in their territory... I'll take my chances." Isaac follows the trail into the dark abyss that is the shadows.