Author Games - Ghost Town

Task 5 - Male Entries

Clement Janwerd Jr.

The morning started early. We awoke to quiet arena, the building we had taken shelter in completely silent. Silence is never good in the arena. Aero was the first to stand, stalking quietly to the door. He held his hand out back to us, a warning. Something wasn't right, and we all could sense it. As Aero went to step outside, he jumped back in shock as a loud roar sounded from outside. Winter stumbled out of her sleeping bag, half-crawling her way to his side. I pulled my way into a crouch, wary of the noise. A large, golden paw swatted inside the door, knocking Winter across the room. She hit the wall with a sickening crunch, blood dripping from her scalp. Clara screamed, rushing over to Winter's body. I scrambled to the sword lying next to my sleeping bag, gasping as the cut I received yesterday burned and broke open again. As I unsheathed the blade, Aero furiously ran to the creature outside the crumbling building. His grunts as he swings at the animal were loud, angry, interrupted by short yelps of pain. My mind is slow to process everything around me, only absorbing small chunks.  Clara's sobs echo in the air as she clutches the chest of Winter's jacket. The glint of Aero's weapon as it catches the light. The sound of a cannon as a tribute dies. A scream of agony as Clara watches Winter die in her arms. With a wild, feral scream of fury, I charge the beast, it's back facing me. The golden lion roars more in anger then pain as I stab its leg, shaking the wound off as if it was nothing. Aero and I brave ourselves together, nodding to acknowledge each other. Aero skips off to the left of the creature as I slowly slide to the left, hoping to distract it. "Hey, uh, Fuzzy! Over 'ere!" I scream, waving my arms furiously. The lion lets out a grunt, the fur on its back bristling.  "Yeah, you! Uhm-" I stutter, trying to come up with something to say. "-You stink," I yell, but it comes out as more of a question. I hear Aero audibly sigh in annoyance, his shoes skidding along the stones as he runs and jumps on the lion's back. The beast roars in outrage, bucking its legs like a horse, attempting to fling the boy off. I watch as Aero grips defiantly to the golden fur, a handful in each hand. In between his teeth, he bite down on the bronze blade of a knife, the hilt jammed between the creature's shoulder blades. "Aero, hold on!" I scream, running around the lion, sword in hand.  "Oh yeah, I was totally going to let go just now, thanks for the reminder!" Aero shouts back sarcastically as he straddles the back of the lion, knife in hand. I roll my eyes, jumping and scrambling up the side of the lion to Aero. We clutch onto the fur for our lives as the creature shakes and bucks, ramming itself into a wall to try to fling us off. In the hustle, my sword is flung out of my grasp, the blade slicing at the muzzle of the giant beast we rode. As blood dripped down its jaw, it roared in fury, shaking its pelt. Aero and I were flung off, hitting a brick wall at full velocity. All at once, the air left my body, leaving me breathless and vulnerable. Stars sparked behind my eyes as I struggled to breath. Pain radiated all throughout my body, making my limbs feel like lead weights.   Where Aero hit the wall, it's structure had collapsed, the dust floating in the air. Slowly, I dragged myself over to the wreckage. Dazed but unharmed, Aero sat beside the wall, a sudden bright glint in his eye. We pulled ourselves behind it, hiding from the predator stalking us. Wordlessly, he turned his head to me, grinning. Beside him sat our rations pack, raw meat from the hunt the night before sizzling on the hot pavement. My head cleared as I realized what he was smirking about. Shaking my head, I laughed quietly, wiping the sweat out of my eyes. "You son of a bitch. You've got an plan, don't you?" He nodded, voice raspy as he leaned in to tell me what to do. "Well that hardly seems fair," I scowl, sitting up.  "Do you want to get rid of the lion or not?" Aero snapped, smacking the pavement with his palm. I nod slowly, grabbing the hunk of meat he offered me.  "Whatever. But if I die, I'm haunting the hell out of you for the rest of your life," I smirk, standing. With rabbit blood dripping between my fingers, I streak out in front of the giant feline. "HERE KITTY, KITTY, KITTY!" I screamed, jumping up and down. A stitch in my side shrieked in protest, but I ha to keep moving. The lion whipped around, noticing me. A growl of anger resonated from its throat as it eagerly padded forward, it's thick, wide paws strikingly the ground loudly. With each step of his I matched, jumping backwards swiftly as he began to move quicker. When this game of cat and mouse, pun not intended, had gone on for a full minute, I stopped moving, tossing the hunk of raw, bloody flesh to him. The lion looked down on it in confusion, dipping its brig head to nibble at the tender meat. With my other hand, ever so slowly, I pulled out another hunk of meat, gingerly creeping up to the large animal. I close my eyes, offering the rabbit to the lion with my bare hands. Behind me, Clara screams as the lion's jaws clamp around my hands, blood running down my arms.  Then the feline lets go, and the rabbit is gone from my palms. I sigh in relief as I wipe the excess rabbit blood from my arms, the lion purring loudly like a kitten. He sits at my feet, chewing at the meat like I didn't exist. Good for me, at least.  "Clement, you idiot!" Clara screamed, dragging me away from the lion by my arm. When we were far enough from the cat, Clara envelope me in a hug, surprising me. "Oh my god, I thought it was going to eat you," she whimpered, tugging at my shirt. Awkwardly, I pet her hair, half-hugging her back.  "Well, uh, it didn't?" I say lamely, letting her go. She quickly stepped away, clearing her throat.  "Yeah, uh, it didn't. I'm glad." Clara rubbed the back of her neck, glancing down awkwardly. Biting my lip, I turn away, visibly conscience of the red blush painting the tips of my ears. "Thanks, you know, for not dying," Clara laughed, patting my arm. I grinned, elbowing her gently. "No problem, honestly. My treat," I tease. She shakes her head at me, picking up my scattered sword from the ground and tossing it at me. I catch it with a huff, stepping back a step in surprise. She walks away from me, hips swaying.  "Whatever you say, Captain. By the way, the lion is your responsibility now," she calls back, jutting her thumb at the gold nuisance licking its paws and purring contentedly. I sigh, running my fingers through my hair. How that's going to happen, I don't know.