Ch. 23
The sun set and darkness fell over the campus of Monstrum Academy. There was a chill in the air that blew in with a cold front, signaling that the heat of summertime was fading away at last. Sophia exited the main doors of the library and lamented that she had not brought a jacket with her.
It was not an unusual thing for her to leave the library so late. Besides her job, her hobbies were also enjoyed in the quiet of the library. So, when she finished her work for the day, she typically just changed her seat and got on with her personal business. Sometimes that was reading her most recent book, other times it meant doing deep dives on the internet.
Sophia didn’t have many friends, but she didn’t particularly mind that fact. She knew that more friends usually meant less time for her studies, and that was her true passion. She did have a small group of loyal friends that she loved dearly, but they were very similar to herself. They were a group of quiet, learning-obsessed oddballs. They had their books and each other and that was all they needed. Some nights they did get together for a hang out, often to watch scary movies, but this night she planned to go home to eat and relax alone.
She finished locking the library up and started on her way to the dorm. She never found it scary to walk home at night through campus. Partly because there were plenty of streetlights gently lighting the area, and partly because she was so used to it. The dark corners and alleyways didn’t hold so much mystery when you passed them every day.
She was passing one such dark alleyway when she heard something unusual nearby, stopping her in her tracks. She stared down the alley, but whatever it was, it had come from where the light didn’t touch. She was about to forget it and move on when a loud growl reverberated down the alley in her direction. Sophia trembled, fearing she had run across something dangerous. Had a bear wandered into town from the woods? Or was some monster mage playing tricks on people for a laugh? She started to slowly backtrack away from the area, hoping to not offend whatever she had encountered.
As she backed away, the beast in the shadows stepped forward and into the glow of the night lamps. It was big and tall, much like many of the magical creatures commonly seen in Tourmaline. But unlike those beings, this thing truly looked like a monster. Some parts of its skin were covered in fur while other areas were smooth and slimy. There were two tentacles covered in hair sticking out from its backside like tails. But the most sickening feature was the creature’s mouth. It had four separate mandibles that opened independently of each other. Each part of the jaw had a set of sharp teeth. When they opened, they revealed a beak at the back of the throat poised to devour anything that should enter. The creature had two furry wolf ears on its head, and its eyes shook with madness, unable to focus on anything for long.
Sophia had no idea what was happening, but upon seeing the creature in full for the first time, she did two things instinctually. First, she screamed louder than she had ever screamed before. It was a high-pitched shriek of pure terror, and she could feel it tearing her throat. The second thing she did was turn and run.
The creature roared as she took off sprinting. Perhaps it was purely out of animal instinct, or maybe it just didn’t like the sight of her, but the creature wasted no time in giving chase. Sophia ran as fast as she could and yelled for help. Unfortunately, the campus was almost always empty this late at night.
Sophia looked over her shoulder to see the creature chasing her. She was not known for her speed, especially when compared to the many talented mages of Tourmaline, but she was managing to keep some distance between her and the creature. This was only because the creature seemed to stumble and fall over frequently as it chased her. It was like it wasn’t used to its own body.
Still, the creature was much larger, and it was quickly learning to run without falling. Sophia began darting around corners every chance she got. The creature struggled with the change in direction, and it helped her keep her distance for a little while longer. She panicked as she felt the burn in her lungs and legs already. She was not used to so much running. This chapter is updated first at g.com.
Sophia’s luck ran out as she turned a corner only to find herself running through the relatively open space of the clock tower courtyard. With the creature hot on her heels, she didn’t have any choice but to keep running. The long stretch of open field was all it needed to catch up with her. As she pumped her legs as fast as she could, she felt its hot breath fall on her neck. It was then that a sharp pain tore into her shoulder and sent her tumbling to the ground.
She rolled over onto her back and saw blood streaming down her right side. The creature’s sharp claws had flown out and torn into her arm. Sophia was badly hurt, but she could do nothing about it with the creature standing over her. A deep growl rumbled around in its chest. She imagined it was angry at her for having the nerve to run from it. The creature then leaned over and reached for her with all four arms. She closed her eye tight and looked away.
A loud roar rang out and shook the air. The creature looked up just in time to be tackled by a mass of muscle and fur. Sophia opened her eye to see what had saved her. In front of her was a large Bengal tiger. It had launched into the creature and landed between it and her. The creature got up to face the tiger, but it soon was brought back down to its knees. This time a large black body jumped in from the side and slashed a giant paw across its chest.
A large black panther had come soaring in, drawing blood. Both giant cats moved to stand between the creature and Sophia. She held her injured shoulder and quietly thanked her protectors.
Angry at the interruption, the creature stood and roared at its new foes. The roar was a sickening mix between a yell and a gurgle. The two cats growled in response and got into positions ready to pounce. Unfazed, the creature lurched forward and began swiping its many claws.
The tiger dodged a swipe from the two left arms as the panther took the chance to get in another swipe of her own. Before the panther could get close enough, the creature’s two tentacle tails flew out and wrapped around her neck and left leg. The tentacles forced the panther into the ground hard.
The creature quickly returned its attention to the tiger by again trying to slash it with its many claws. The tiger was grazed after narrowly avoiding the first onslaught, but she didn’t back down. After the third swipe from the creature, the tiger leapt forward and grabbed one of the left arms in its powerful jaws. The tiger held tight and pulled with all her might, sending the creature falling forward off balance.
Sophia saw the panther manage to wriggle free from the tails as soon as the tiger got a mouthful. With the creature off balance, the panther was quick to act. She turned around and coiled her body into a tight ball just in front of the creature. Then she exploded her long powerful body into a huge back kick that landed both giant paws straight on the creature’s face.
The creature reeled at the blow to its head and stumbled backwards a large distance. The two cats once again took a position between the creature and Sophia before growling loudly. Bloodied and rattled, the creature seemed to have had enough. It got to its feet, but it didn’t reengage the two fierce beasts. Instead, it turned around and looked at the tall clock tower.
For some reason, the monster seemed to be entranced by the clock tower. It lurched over to the wall and started to climb. Sophia and the cats watched silently as it climbed higher and higher. Sophia was just relieved that she hadn’t been eaten. She realized for the first time that there were several voices shouting in the distance. It seemed that her screams and the fight had caused quite a commotion.
The creature continued to climb the tower. Eventually it reached a ledge near the face of the clock. It stood there and looked out onto the campus as a loud siren began to sound in the distance. In response to the alarms, the creature raised its head and howled. It was a long gurgling howl that had never been heard before, even in the monster filled land of Tourmaline. The source of this chapter is NovelPing.
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Evan was barely managing to stay awake as he waited for his captors to move him. He figured it was only the adrenaline in his system keeping him conscious at this point. He had no way of knowing how long he had been waiting in his exhausted state, but it was long enough that he was relieved when the signal came saying that it was time to go, despite knowing he wasn’t going anywhere good.
Gagged and handcuffed, Evan had no choice but to walk where he was led. He was brought back to the elevator he had arrived in, and they returned to the surface. The building appeared to be empty outside of their group. Did the base not have any night staff? The answer to his question was soon made clear.
The officers led him through the first-floor hallways, passing several bodies on the way. Evan realized that employees not in on the plan had been shot and killed so that their group could get away without any witnesses. He was hastily led outside through a back exit where four SUVs were parked waiting. All the necessary luggage had already been packed up, and he was the last item.
General Carn and Dr. Campbell were standing by as Evan was brought out. Several security officers were also standing by looking for any signs of trouble. Now outside, Evan could hear the sounds of sirens and gunfire in the direction of the campus. He turned his head in that direction, but it was too far away to see anything.
“Sounds like our boy is doing his job well,” General Carn said. “Come on, let’s be quick.”
With that, Evan was shoved into the second SUV along with Captain Miller. General Carn and Dr. Campbell entered the SUV third in line. The caravan got underway once everyone had gotten situated. The direction they were headed was opposite the town and towards the edge of the base where the forest began. They soon came to a checkpoint where guards were protecting the only way in or out of the base on the forest side.
The caravan stopped as two armed guards stepped out to question them about their business. Little did the guards know that the occupants of the vehicles did not intend to leave anyone alive to share what they had seen. The guards were gunned down as soon as they got near the first vehicle. Someone then quickly exited the lead vehicle and ran to the guard box to raise the gates before returning. Just like that, they were underway again, this time leaving the base for good. Tears filled Evan’s eyes, his despair only growing the farther down the road they got.
The occupants of the caravan were in high spirits. Not only had they acquired all the assets they sought after, but their getaway plan had also gone over flawlessly. They began to celebrate amongst each other, treating a kidnapping like winning a football game. What they weren’t aware of was the tail they had picked up shortly after leaving the base. Far up in the sky, a giant eagle was soaring in their direction. And it wasn’t alone.