The Midnight: Dark Horizon

Chapter 2: A Reach for a Faint Hope

     The next morning, Sebastian decided it'd be an excellent idea to practice awhile with his bokken. It not only helped him refine his technique, but was also a wonderful workout for his arms. Before he started though, he stretched limbs to evade any harm to himself like what happened last month. After a solid warm-up, Sebastian set up two dummies made of joined up hay on rods of wood in their small backyard.

     As he was picking up the bokken from the floor where he had left it earlier, there was an ominous 'flump' that occurred behind him. When he turned around, he sprang back in shock to see an animal moving toward him, inching on all fours. A relatively enormous creature had crept its way into their yard, searching for its next meal. The pelt on its large body was bronze, covered with gray spots, legs of a mighty grizzly bear crossed with a head resembling a hyena. Every step it took, its lengthy tail lashed the ground beneath it, dispersing dust into the air. Its mouth opened with a low growl, revealing its long, pointed fangs with two rows of filthy teeth and drool dripping down its jaw.

     He gripped onto his bokken's handle in front of him, bracing to defend himself as he grimmed. He did not dare make a sound or leave the animal out of his sight. Taking precaution, he drew his right leg in front of the other, lifting his left heel to take his stance. As he was ready to strike, he heard his mom inside the house gasp through a window. At that very second, the beast rushed toward him with fury, its claws ready to shred his skin. Immediately, Sebastian brought his bokken downward to his left and cut as hard as he could diagonally upwards, hitting the monster square on its jaw as he pivoted to his right. The fiend crashed right into the wall behind him with a resounding 'crack'. Sebastian immediately faced the intruder again, ready to strike if needed. After a minute of watching it motionless on the ground, he let out a heavy sigh.

    "Estas bien, Sebastian?!" His mother instantly ran out of the house and searched him for any injuries.

     Sebastian dropped his bokken to the floor, feeling his limbs almost collapse from the fright. "Yeah, I'm okay, mom. The Cransavo caught me by surprise."

     Sebastian's mom hugged him tightly like his life depended on it, "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have made any noise, I put you in danger!"

     "I'm fine mom, you're strangling me!" He exaggerated by sticking out his tongue.

     A knocking at the front door interrupted them. Sebastian's mother left to open the door as he remained near the Cransavo to make certain it was really dead. His legs shook in place, driving him to kneel as the shock faded gradually. The bokken he had discarded earlier had a minor crack along the edge of it he noted as he did his best to control himself. He took a deep breath while picking it up, then supported himself on it to stand back up.

     A minute passed, during which Sebastian collected his mind as he lingered standing, drawing in the air into his lungs with his eyes closed. A door slammed disrupted his thoughts along with the voice of Camila calling out to him. He exhaled the air within him and opened his eyes to catch her racing up to him.

     "Are you okay?" She hugged him worryingly.

     "Yeah, I was just collecting my thoughts-" Sebastian hugged her back, "- I've never had to fight one of these things since my dad was always here when one showed up. Scarier fighting one than watching from the side."

     "They really are, I'm glad you're fine." Camila let go, then looked back at the creature. "That's a big one. How did you kill it?"

     Sebastian recounted to Camila what transpired. After, she went up to review the beast to confirm the kill with some insistence from Sebastian to be careful. According to her, he managed to break his jaw while the wall shattered its skull from the sheer force of its jump. She praised him on a good first kill with no injuries to himself.