Nightstalk

I think this’ll be the last of the golden oldies. I figure i have to start writing some new stuff or else i’m really going to fall into an abyss i won’t be able to get out of of. Well, here goes… Enjoy!

Moonlight shone down upon the dark landscape, coloring the world in a silvery hue. The wind rustled through the trees, the leaves singing their endless nocturnal lullaby. The stars were shining brightly in the clear night sky, like white pinpricks on a dark velvet backdrop.

The dark shape hurtled from branch to branch, tree to tree; performing feats that would have been impossible for any normal man. Its blood red eyes scanned the nighttime countryside. It was seeking to feed, and whatever it set out to do, it did. Suddenly the wind shifted and the great beast jerked its head. That scent. So familiar. With rippling muscles it moved fluidly from its hiding place to the source of the scent. It was perfume, with a hint of lavender. The creature stood back behind the tree line, watching with earnest as the young female walked the path not 30 paces from its hiding space. Watching her brought back joyous and ecstatic memories for the beast. It remembered the swell of her breast as the pace of her breathing increased. It remembered the silky smoothness of her skin, and the flawless satin texture of her hair. It remembered her warmth as she invited it into her, and her willingness to complete their act of unity. The memories brought with it a sense of arousal that only served to provoke its hunger even more.

It knew, as it watched her walk down the dark path, that it loved her. It wanted to be with her, to be one with her in every way. It wanted to share in her sorrows and her joys, to spend its moments lying close to her. However, that part of the beast was not in the ascendancy at this particular moment. There was a part of the beast that wanted her to know that she was being hunted. An all consuming and ravenous desire to taste and feel warm blood silkily draining into its throat. It wanted her to know fear right before it killed her. It wanted her heart to beat faster and faster, pumping blood to all parts of her body, making the meat tough and nourishing. This inner lust for savage violence was provoked into a chaotic sense of ascendancy by the beast’s hunger. What thoughts it may have had, what emotions, memories, sensitive inclinations; all were furiously swept away in a tide of desire. It was the desire to rend flesh and snap bones, to sink monstrous teeth into soft and yielding flesh. With effortless strength the beast leapt from its hiding place and landed several feet behind the lonely female figure.

Sensing the new presence behind her, the woman turned and, for a moment, was unable to comprehend what she was seeing in the moonlight. The apparition stood there, seemingly from the depths of her nightmares. Its muscles bulged and rippled with every movement, large hands ending in curved and wickedly sharp talons. Its eyes the crimson of freshly spilled blood, fangs extended and gleaming brightly in the moonlight. Faintly humanoid in appearance, it was anything but. From behind it, she could see a dark shape swishing back and forth, possibly a tail. Her every instinct screamed at her to run, yet she stood rooted to the spot as she watched her death move ever so closer. It was only when the furry clawed hand brushed her cheek and caressed her face that her body was broken from its stupor. Jerking her head back, she let out a scream as she frantically scrambled to get away from the monster. Her foot caught on an exposed tree root and she stumbled and fell. In that instant the monster was upon her, claws pricking through her dress in an effort to get to the flesh underneath. Still screaming, the woman frantically reached under her jacket in a bid to reach the small dagger that she kept for emergencies. Grabbing hold of the leather wrapped handle, she drew the blade and lashed out with all her might. The dagger struck flesh, causing the beast to let her go. Taking advantage of this momentary distraction, the woman fled into the protective canopy of the trees.

When the blade sank down into the skin, the beast roared, more out of surprise than in actual pain. A moment of recognition struck the beast’s mind as it gazed upon the wrapped hilt of the dagger. Another memory flashed through its mind, one where the beast itself had presented the knife to the girl. “Use it for protection,” it had told her. “It is a frightfully dangerous world out there.” How savagely ironic. It reached up and ripped the blade from its chest and, in a blinding burst of speed, bounded after its intended victim. It would enjoy tasting her sweet flesh once again.

With seemingly endless power, the beast surged towards its victim. Now that blood had been drawn, nothing would stop it. It leapt high into the air to land in front of the girl. She stopped, her eyes wide with the terror she felt in her heart. The beast loomed over her, its massive clawed hands clenching with anticipation. Yet it hesitated in striking the killing blow. There was something in the back of its mind that kept it from finishing what it set out to do. Something just kept pushing its way to the surface that the primal mind of the creature was caught unaware. Its victim sensed the changed in the creature’s mood. She also saw something else stirring deep within its crimson orbs. All of a sudden a glimmer of hope, of familiarity flashed through her frightened mind. Somehow, she felt as if her and this beast shared something other than the primal bonds of hunter and prey. She had to follow this feeling. She needed to be sure. Her life depended on it.

“Gabriel…?”

It was barely more than a whisper, but at the sound of her voice a tumultuous change came over the beast. It reared up and roared into the night sky, the sound full of fury and confusion. It seemed lost, unable to realize what it was and where it was. All thoughts of its victim seemed to be forgotten as it rampaged within itself and in the earth around it. Trees were ripped from the ground, deep gouges scored into the earth. And as quickly as it had started, the rampaging stopped. It was as if a switch had been turned off within the monster. Hunched over and breathing rapidly, it slowly turned its head towards the girl. She looked into its eyes and couldn’t see any trace of the cold murderous creature that had, until a minute before, been seeking to kill her. The relief that she felt was total as she stood and quietly approached the sulking behemoth. Its eyes still on her, the beast too slowly started to stand.

. . .

A shrill, piercing scream cut through the silence of the night, only to be abruptly silenced. It was followed by a long howl, its anguish unmistakable.