Inside a medical treatment bay at Anderson Science Center, a group of orthopedic students prepared to fix the fractured wing of an injured female tarragon. Their goal: to use their laser weapons in such a way as to render the beast unconscious -- without hurting her -- in order to treat her injury.
"Okay, Lucuz, let's have a go at it," Dr. Wilem shouted. He and Dr. Tomas watched the proceedings from a safer vantage away.
Zzzzzzazzzzz!
Lucuz' initial shot struck the dragon's right flank.
Aaarrrkkkk!!! Shhhrrrkkkk!!
The mighty lizard swung her tail and struck Lucuz squarely in the shoulder, dropping him to the ground.
"Stay away from her back side!" Dr. Tomas called out, too late.
Shhrrkkk!! Aaarrrkkkk!!!
"Remember, a low power setting should not hurt her," Dr. Wilem instructed, "but it might still irritate her."
"Have a turn, Tewyn," Dr. Tomas called out.
Across the room, Tewyn took aim at the wailing beast.
Zzzzazzz! ZzzzaZzzzz!
Despite close range, Tewyn missed the intended target. The blast struck the wall harmlessly on the other side of the bay.
"Ha!" Tober roared, holding a hand to his face, doubling over in laughter.
Rrrrraaaaaarrrrrrkkkk!
The giant lizard screeched and promptly stood up from where she lay. She swung her tail sideways and bowled Tewyn over.
"We warned all of you to be aware of her tail," Dr. Wilem called out. "Please pay attention and be careful!"
In the midst of the exercise, Tober noticed Alessandro's non-participation. The new student was strangely calm and stood separate from the others.
"What're you looking at, ya gimnot?" Tober said to Alessandro. "Get in there and take a shot!"
Alessandro ignored the insults.
"Consider stunning a specific area of the animal's body," Dr. Wilem advised the group. "What are you trying to achieve?"
"Target the head?" Lucuz asked.
"Ah, but be careful," Dr. Wilem warned. "The head contains delicate tissues. If you strike it too much, even at low power, you might kill the animal."
"Stun the tail first?" Tewyn answered, straggling back into the group behind his fellow classmates. He held a hand at his flank.
"Yes," Dr. Wilem nodded, "any functioning extremity the animal could use against you."
"You could have told us that beforehand," Lucuz muttered. He rubbed his shoulder from the earlier wallop.
"But then you would not have learned," Dr. Wilem said.
"You have a funny way of teaching, Doc," Tober retorted, "when you're not trying to kill your students."
"Tobie," Dr. Tomas cut in, "why don't you show the other students how to approach this situation?"
"With pleasure, Sir," Tober replied.
He drew his gun, handling it discreetly.
Time to end this thing.
He took careful aim.
ZazzzZzzz! ZazzzZzzz!
He struck the tarragon's tail a couple of times.
Shhrrkkk!! Aaarrrkkkk!!! Shhrrkkk!! Aaarrrkkkk!!!
The lizard screeched longer and louder now, straining against her restraints. The shots had accomplished their desired effect -- the creature's tail now moved with less vigor.
Alessandro glared at the glowering Tober.
"I thought the shots wouldn't hurt the animal," Tewyn said privately to Lucuz.
"Well, I guess it didn't kill the damn thing," Luc replied back.
"Good work, Tober!" Dr. Tomas approved from afar.
"Okay, Tewyn," Dr. Wilem said. "Have a try again."
This time, Tewyn stood further away from the beast. His arms were fully extended, and his head strained away from his weapon piece.
ZzzzZazzz! ZzzzZazzz!
Again, Tewyn's shots were inaccurate. The lizard maneuvered out of the line of fire.
"Get closer, you nomnut!" Tober yelled.
"I-I can't!" Tewyn cried.
Zazzz, ZzzaZzzz! He shot again, still without contact.
"Ha-ha! You're a terrible shot!" Tober howled. "You'll never last a day outside of Anderson!"
"Don't listen to him, Tewyn," Dr. Wilem said. "The tail has been stunned, so there's less of a chance she'll use it against you. Focus now! Where should you aim next? What is your objective?"
ZzzzZzzz!
Tewyn quickly took another shot and this time, hit the dragon in the chest. The great beast screamed and flailed. Tewyn moved in closer.
ZazzzZzzz! ZzzzZazzz! ZzzzZzzz! ZzzzZzzz!
A couple of shots missed, but the others struck the lizard recklessly at her back and broken wing.
Shhrrkkk!! Aaarrrkkkk!!! Shhrrkkk!! Aaarrrkkkk!!!
The tarragon became more wildly animated.
"Tewyn, think about what you're trying to do!" Dr. Wilem instructed.
Shhrrkkk!! Aaarrrkkkk!!! Shhrrkkk!! Aaarrrkkkk!!!
Before Tewyn could recharge his gun, the lizard reared her head high, surprising the student and causing him to lose balance. A short tail-swing caught Tewyn in the face and chest and knocked him to the ground, his weapon flying.
ZmzzzZzzz!!!
Suddenly, the beast's head snapped sideways, as if punched with an unexpected cross. Coldcocked.
ZmzzzZzzz!!!
A second shot rang out. But this time, a diving Alessandro had tackled the other shooter.
The blast was thrown off-center, striking the bay's ceiling instead.
Thudd-dd-dd!!!
The giant lizard fell to the ground with a heavy landing.
On top of the fallen marksman, Alessandro wrestled the gun away from a surprised and startled Tober.
The rest of the group watched in shock.
"What just happened?" Dr. Tomas said in disbelief.
"I don't know," Dr. Wilem said in wonderment.
"Hurry, everyone!" Dr. Tomas urged. The elder physician tried to restore order to the situation. "Let's get that fracture stabilized!"
As the students joined Dr. Tomas at the creature's right wing, Alessandro stood up from where he and Tober had grappled. He jerked one of his legs free from the entanglement. Then he walked over to Dr. Wilem, who was watching, and handed him Tober's gun.
Tober on the other hand, remained on the ground, stupefied. He looked to each of his teachers, then to the others.
"Did you see what that gim-wad just did to me?" Tober yelled at Dr. Wilem.
Dr. Wilem examined the confiscated gun. "Yes, Tober, I did. Why don't you take the rest of the day off."
Tober was exasperated. He got up off the floor and stared at the congregation gathered around the giant lizard.
"Don't everybody thank me at once," he muttered and stormed out of the emergency bay.
From a distance, Dr. Wilem looked at the remaining group of students. Alessandro had made his way over to his other classmates, but while they were interested in the dragon's fracture, Alessandro paid more attention to the lizard's head. He placed his arms around the fallen beast's neck and softly comforted her.
YOU ARE READING
Creatures of God
Fantasía(COMPLETED/Re-EDITING) For Elliot, life after graduation meant a doomed existence -- surviving a post-apocalyptic world besieged with mutant animals -- until he awakens Alessandro, a supernatural youth, from a centuries-long sleep. Together, the two...
