Atlas Cloud And The Amulet of Thieves by L.M.J. Rayner Read Free Book Online Page B

him. I carried on walking quickly down the road. Off to the side there was a thick forest. The sight of something familiar gave me comfort in this strange environment. I strolled through the darkness, guided by the moonlight creeping through the tree branches. It was blissful. I caressed the leaves of the trees and plants around me as I strolled through their home. I was quite far from the inn now; if I got lost Eli would not be very happy with me. As I took in one last long, deep breath I saw something in the corner of my eye. I focused on the shape; and could hear whimpering ahead of me. I moved in closer to get a better look, the dark shadow becoming clearer. The whimpering stopped; it was replaced by snarling and the sound of tearing. I slowed down, the noises disturbing the bliss. There was a man crouched over a dead animal.
     
    I wanted to believe that it was just an ordinary poacher but when did poachers start eating their kill? The dark crimson red blood of the lifeless creature poured over him, following chunks of flesh. The man ravaged the inside of the animal; I stood there frozen in place, not able to take my eyes off the man. I realised that I was now out of sight of the inn, away from any quick help. I stepped backward, cautiously, trying not to crinkle any dead leaves on the ground. I hold on to the thought that it is an animal carcass and nothing else. The more I gaze at the horror, the more the man becomes beast. He was hunched over, not fully standing up, his clothes ripped and worn. Blood soaked into the seams.
     
    His head jittered from left to right in an unnatural way. The beast was now sniffing the air around him, sniffing my scent I probably smelt like a full English breakfast compared to the rotting carcass of flesh in front of him. I tread back faster now hoping to get out of the woods before he spots me. But his head swivelled in paranoia, catching me in his sights. It was hunched over, his head tilted at me. It had bright yellow eyes that were fixed on its next meal. It looked more monster than man; its teeth were sharp and looked more like fangs. Its hands were brandished with ugly claws, covered with the entrails of the innocent victim. I stopped moving, assuming it wouldn’t bother chasing me and would run off. It didn’t. Its attention didn’t waver from me; it was moving closer and closer waiting to pounce on me. Its eyes widened, drool slobbering from its mouth. It pounced and ran full speed at me, it ran on two legs even though it was an animal. Instinctively I kicked my right leg forward, burying my foot into its chest, knocking it to the ground. I turned and tried to sprint to safety, moving as fast as I possibly could, but it was faster. The beast recovered from the minor attack which only floored it, continuing with the chase. I swivelled my head to see the raging black figure catching up with me. It was bounding on its hands now like a lion hunting its prey. It jumped and tackled me, and I plunged to the ground falling on my back. It was now on top of me. I kicked and screamed for help, holding its arms stopping it from slashing my throat for an easy kill. Black slime frothed from its mouth.
     
    The smell of the creature was unbearable. I was concentrating too much on the deadly claws of the creature that it changed its mind and decided to bury its fangs into my left shoulder. I wail in agony, shaking on the ground trying to wriggle out of its grip. Its mouth was fiery hot, burning my heart and soul away with each second. I focused and tried to ignore the pain, grabbing its head, to pull it off my body. I looked it straight in the eyes. It had its fix and wanted more. I placed one hand on its neck and in a burst of rage punched it in the rib cage. A burst of blue flames flickered off my hand. I lunged it forwards, my hand breaking through its ribcage, the creatures heart exploding in its chest. The beast blasted back, smashing into a tree. It laid there as lifeless as the animal