Pack [Eddsworld]

CHAPTER TWENTY [2/2]

Three of the five leaders were down and over half of their gang lay dead in and around the house. It was a grim scene to behold but it meant they were just that little bit closer to victory.

He allowed himself a moment of recovery, summarising the extent of his injuries and concluding that they were unlikely to be lethal, just as long as he got medical attention soon enough. Tord took off his hoodie, twisting it up and tying it tightly around his stomach to try and slow the blood flow from the stab wound: it would do for now.

He headed around the side of the house, stepping over bodies and trying to keep his last meal down at the gory stench. There were a fair few people left fighting in the back garden, although Tom was dealing with most of them rather quickly. A single, giant foot stamping down on them was enough to end their lives.

Tord glanced around, getting frustrated with the amount of people who approached him with the intent of killing him. The only person he needed to see was Ormarr, but the snake was still nowhere in sight. He noticed Matt and sprinted over, only realising at the last second that he was in a fight with Bella, the final of the lower four.

She sneered unpleasantly as she saw the Norwegian. "Not dead yet, huh?"

"Can't say the same for the rest of your friends." Tord spat back with a bloodied smile, stepping between the ginger and her.

A momentary look of grief flashed across her scarred features before the scowl returned and she flourished a red-stained silver chain. It snapped around the Norwegian's robotic arm as he raised it to shield his face. He could feel the circuits straining inside as she began to pull back, her thin fingers gripping the metal links with a dark drive. Her shoulders tensed as she took a step back, widening her stance, and in a movement all too swift she had tugged Tord away. She flicked the chain back and watched as he was slammed into the ground, sparks whizzing from his damaged arm as it was released.

He went to pick himself up, knowing that he was vulnerable while down, but he felt the chain snake around his ankle and pull his leg from under him. His entire body ached and burned, and now that the initial fearful adrenaline was passing he could feel the exhaustion set in again. It was a surprise to him that he'd even survived this long after everything he'd been through, but the idea of death suddenly seemed very alluring.

There was a squeaked battle cry and a scream of surprise; Tord managed to turn his painful neck to see Matt on the woman's back, his hands clamped over her eyes and his teeth drawing blood on her shoulder. She was blindly stumbling around, yelling profanities as she attempted to pry the stubborn boy from her body, but to no avail. The chain was curled on the ground, dropped from her grasp, and Tord forced his aching body to get up another time as he picked up the odd weapon.

He had no idea how to use it offensively, so the best he could do was tightly wrap up her legs until she fell. Matt leapt from her back and landed on his feet, glaring at the woman as she yelled death threats and struggled uselessly. A shadow hovered over her and she froze, only able to watch as her death approached.

Monster-Tom withdrew his viscera-covered foot with a look of faint disgust. He was covered in bullet wounds and slashes that oozed purple blood, but the fact that he was still standing was good enough reassurance that he was alright. His ears suddenly pricked up and he glanced over his shoulder, only for his single eye socket to widen and his large arms to draw around Tord and Matt.

There was a loud explosion very close by. Any shrieks of fear were drowned out by the noise. Tord closed his eyes and instinctively brace himself, even though he could feel the scaled warmth of Tom's hand protecting him. Once the falling debris ceased and the dust settled, the Norwegian let himself look around. He caught Matt's gaze and the two of them shared a nervous look.