Animan(on hold)

PRELUDE

The silence of the building was broken by a deafening roar followed by the crash of glass. A man's body was thrown outside and he screamed for his life. The cries of terror and pain rung through the night's chilly air until it was silenced by his fall to the ground, passing three stories of concrete.

Tables and chairs were scattered everywhere. Men, women and children alike lie dead on the ground, disembodied or either bled as moonlight illuminated their corpses through the broken window.

They have been celebrating not long before the terror met them to stop their laughter and smiles. The party now lies in cold wake; the footprint of the beast left as proof.

With moonlight as the night's candle in the dark, the figure of the monster let out another roar as it stood up, proud of its handiwork. It neither wanted them for food, nor found them a threat, but it was in its instinct to kill. The savory feeling of taking life, watching its prey scream in fear or fight back in pointless force was what it needed. It was what it wanted. It was what it was born to do.

It was camouflaged in the darkness. Even with the moonlight, only its eyes, blood red dots glowing in the dark, could be truly seen.

Suddenly, a soft cry was heard. The creature stopped in its tracks just before it was about to flee the scene in search for its next victims on the grounds.

"Mommy.... wake up Mommy....", came the crying voice.

It was a child, about 8 years old. She was lying beside the corpse of what it seemed to be her mother's. Tears were falling from her eyes as she pushed and pulled, never accepting the reality of death.

The monster sprinted on its paws towards the child. For a moment of hesitation, the creature looked at the child, growling mildly. It never stopped staring as its form remained shielded by the darkness of the room. The child on the other hand, was lit by moonlight of the window.

"Mommy! Mommy! Please wake up! Please!", the child pleaded. She was shaking in fear and felt like her heart was about to burst out of her chest.

Children had no idea what to do when death knocked on their door. She could hope and only hope that this was all a dream. That Mommy was just sleeping. That all of this will be gone when she opens her eyes. That she will be back in her room with a teddy bear on her hand and that everything she knew as her world would be back the way it was supposed to be.

Suddenly the monster grew silent and calm. It started drawing nearer and nearer, which in response made the child hold her dead mother's hand tighter and closer to her chest. The red eyed monstrosity could feel the strong heartbeat of the girl which sounded like the beat of a drum.

"Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub"

With every inch closer, the child breathed faster. Her eyes were wide open now because of the fear within. She wanted to run but her legs were numb. She wanted to scream but the voice was trapped in her lungs. Fear had paralyzed her body.

It was now only a few centimeters away from the child. The darkness and the moonlight illustrated different worlds, with the child on the light and the creature at the other. The creature growled again, this time ready for the kill.

"MOMMY!", screamed the child as she was about to be gnawed. She closed her eyes, raised her hand for protection and braced herself. But after a second which seemed like forever, nothing happened.

The child opened her eyes slowly, and when she opened them fully, she saw the same eyes that she was staring before.

The creature was now whimpering, like a dog asking for forgiveness. A dog that was more like a wolf. A wolf indeed in sheep's clothing.

The child finally knew what the creature wanted. It was just a pet that needed an owner. Someone to love it as much as it would love back. She looked again at those eyes. They weren't evil, they were just lonely. The thought of the monster as a misunderstood being overcame the child's senses and managed to make her reach out her hand, wanting to touch the beast.

The creature was much more in a distance than what she thought. Still shaking, she reached her hand out further, hoping to touch the head of the creature.

It will be just like the movies, that the monster would become friendly once you touch it, she thought.

Deeper and deeper the hand went into the abyss. She wasn't contented when she touched nothing, so she reached out her entire arm, slowly, full of doubt. Did she do the right thing?

She let out a scream when she knew what she did was wrong. As if in response, a police siren started wailing and caused the monster to jolt away. Forever hidden in the darkness of the outside world.

By the time the police had come in to the building they were too late. A small puddle of blood was found in the scene along with the dead bodies. It was the only thing that the investigators found eerie.

In the middle of the puddle was the hand of a small child. The body was never found.