Chapter 6

The silent darkness emphasized the subtle shuffles from beyond the void. Boone picked up the lantern with his left hand and sheathed his pistol. He then grabbed Anya’s hand tightly and uttered.

“Don’t let go no matter what, got it?”

“G-Got it.”

Boone dashed in the opposite direction of the noise while gripping on Anya’s hand. The lantern allowed for rounded visibility but held a shortened area of effect. He had to be quick and reactive to ensure they did not stumble and fall. They ran through the clustered road, filled with various debris at full speed. On several occasions, they nearly collided with oncoming obstructions. Through experience, Boone knew that running through an open field would be suicide against the crawlers. His only hope was to delay the crawlers with obstacles while putting as much distance between them and the creatures as possible. However, he also knew that this created a new dilemma: their extraneous exercise had intensified their scent. Boone quickly entered the nearest enclosed structure, shutting the door behind them. After placing the lantern onto the ground, he reached inside his rucksack and pulled out a large jar of black-gray powder.

“W-What is that?” Anya trembled.

“Ash and grounded charcoal, them Crawlers don’t like anythin’ to do with burnin’.” Boone opened the jar and then proceeded to coat his sweaty skin with the powder. “Don’t just stan’ there, put some on yourself.”

“U-Uhn!” Anya extracted a handful of powder and attempted to cover herself. Her quaking hands permitted the powder to seep through her fingers with each tiny shake.

Boone, with a handful of the mixture, slathered it onto Anya.

“It’s goin’ be okay, we’ll get through this. Just stick close to me at all times.”

Anya agreed with a nod. Her anxiety did not subside, but she trusted Boone.

“Sh-Shouldn’t we turn off the lantern?”

“Them creatures don’t see but we do. Now listen, them Crawlers may not have eyes, but they can damn sure hear and smell. If they get near you, hold your breath and stay quiet. Hopefully, they’ll lose interest and leave.”

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

The sound resonated from beyond the entrance door. Anya jumped back and hid behind Boone. Unfazed by the screech, Boone sighed and withdrew a nearly full bottle of clear liquid. Quickly, he untwisted the cap. After taking a sip, he stuffed a spare sock from his rucksack into the opening of the bottle.

“Anya, hold the lantern.” Boone turned the bottle upside down, saturating the sock with the liquid.

The frightened child speedily picked up the lantern with her left hand.

“Do me a favor, open the door for me.” The man’s voice filled with sorrow as he pulled a small rectangular device from his pocket. The top of the device flipped open, revealing a nozzle with a small gear attached. Using his thumb, Boone spun the gear, creating a spark which ignited a flame on top of the nozzle.

Anya stood by the door, continuing to tremble. She feared confrontation with the creature but knew that this door was their only exit.

Boone ignited the sock while displaying a solemn expression. His right foot stepped backwards, creating a wide gap between his feet and at the same time turning his body sideways. He bent his knees slightly, stabilizing his upper torso. Lastly, Boone cranked his right arm back with his elbow turned downwards, his hand gripping firmly on the bottle.

Anya slowly turned the doorknob and tried to open the door as quietly as possible. The unoiled hinges squeaked every inch of the way.

Fifteen feet from Boone was a crawler. It pointed its face in various directions, sniffing the air. The noisy door caught the creature’s attention, causing it to reorient its body and begin charging at the door.

“What a damn’ shame.”

In one smooth motion, Boone flung the bottle directly at the crawler. The bottle flew in a virtually straight trajectory, slamming into the creature’s face then shattering. Clear liquid doused the creature’s upper body.

BOOSH

In an instant, a burst of flame engulfed the crawler.

EEEEEEIIII! EEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIII! EEEEIIIIIII!

The crawler slid and fell to the ground and frantically flailed its limbs.

Anya observed the scene with widened eyes as she could feel the heat radiating from the intense flame hitting her face.

Without any hesitation, Boone grabbed Anya’s hand and ran out of the building. They sprinted down the road and away from the wallowing creature.

“Why are we… still running…? You got him...” Anya continued to pant, for she had done more running at this moment than in her entire life.

“Them Crawlers come in packs.”

“Don’t you… have more… bottles?”

“Then I wouldn’t be out here, missy.”

Without a clear destination, the two continued to run. Fatigue affected Boone, but he persisted, understanding the dangers of stopping. On the other hand, Anya was on the verge of collapse. With one failed step, the girl lost balance and tumbled. Boone’s grip kept her from injuring herself. The lantern, however, was not so lucky as it fell to the ground and shattered. Both of them stood in complete darkness.

Boone pulled his pocket device and emitted a tiny flame, allowing him to just barely see Anya’s crying face.

“I’mw… sworry…” Her sobs and panting intertwined, distorting her sentences. The girl’s attempt to wipe away her tears with her fingers only polluted her eyes with dirt, causing it to water even further.

Boone held onto Anya’s hand and tugged.

“Come-on, it ain’t a big deal. We gotta get moving.”

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

The noises were approaching, the crawlers proved to be more agile than Boone had originally thought. He knew running was not an option anymore as they could not see more than six inches away.

“Anya, now listen’ to me. You’re goin’ get over to that side, and you’re goin’ hide. Don’t move and breathe as quietly as your body can.”

“What abowt you…” Anya’s sobbing began to subside, however, it still impeded her speech.

“Don’t worry about it. Now go.”

“But…”

“GO!”

Anya hastily crawled to the structures as instructed and hid behind the wall. She took deep breaths as she sat down to calm her racing heartbeats. Her eyes slowly adjusted themselves to the darkness until she was able to clearly see her surroundings. To her, the world became gray and black.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

The girl straightened her back and covered her mouth. She knew the creature stood just beyond the wall.

Eeeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

The crawler concocted an eerily quiet version of its screech and sniffed the air. Anya closed her eyes, praying to the Ancients that she would not be discovered.

“…” Silence followed the faint steps of the creature leaving.

Anya placed her hand on her chest and let out a sigh of relief.

The Ancients have blessed me, she thought.

Anya turned her head toward the door to check her surroundings. She could not spot a single living creature on the road outside.

Crack

The girl froze, slowly glancing upwards.

“Aaaiieee!” Anya screamed.

The creature dropped from the frame of the door and slowly approached Anya. It gave an ominous screech that gradually increased in loudness and hostility.

eeeeeeeeeeeEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

No matter how hard she tried, Anya could not move. Fear overtook her and her body would no longer respond to her commands. She could clearly see the creatures face, even more so than her last encounter. Unlike the previous crawler, the eyelids showed bulging to suggest the globular organs inside still remained. Scars and dried bloodstains lingered where the slits would be as if to imply the orifices were melded together. The creature opened its mouth to expose its near perfect set of teeth. Suddenly, it stopped its advance and turned its head slightly sideways. The creature clenched its teeth and emanated a softer and more tender noise.

eeeeeeiiiiiiiiiii?

“OVER HERE, YOU DUMB INBRED SACK-O-SHIT! AIN’T GETTIN’ A PIECE OF THIS MEAT!”

The creature diverted its attention to Boone and charged.

POM-POM-POM.

The gunfire juxtaposed with the stillness of the night.

Anya cautiously exited the building; this time, examining every conceivable direction.

Why did the Crawler…? Anya shook her head. Now’s not the time.

POM.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII

A part of Anya wanted to scuttle, but another did not let her leave Boone behind. Slowly and steadily, she tracked the distant commotion.

At first, the girl walked slowly, and then a sense of urgency hit her and she increased her pace.

Splat.

Anya glanced at her feet. Her worn out shoes bathed in a pool of viscous blood. Soaking in the fluid was the pistol that Boone held earlier. Hesitantly, she picked up the weapon and continued.

Spots of blood littered all over the ground, Anya felt nauseous as her mind pondered at what she would find.

“Get offa me!”

Boone! Anya ran toward the source of the voice.

Two crawlers had ganged up on Boone, one on top held each of his limbs still with its own. The other positioned itself next to the man’s head. Boone constantly struggled with all his might but could not overpower the creature’s raw strength.

“Boone!” Anya called out as a form of confirmation.

“Wha-What are you doing?! RUN! GET AWA-” The crawler stuck its leathery fingers into Boone’s mouth and pried it open.

Shivers ran down Anya’s spine as she was familiar with the creatures’ actions. Anya was terrified, every nerve in her body demanded that she escape.

“N-No, I’m-I’M NOT LOSING ANYONE ELSE!!!” With the pistol aimed at the two crawlers, Anya unleashed a barrage of shots.

POM-POM.

Each flash of bright light momentarily blinded her. Anya was surprised at how little recoil the pistol had. Even with an injured arm, the weapon felt like a toy. This, however, did not affect her accuracy as all her shots missed.

Why…

POM-POM-POM.

None of the salvos succeeded in connecting with its target.

Why can’t I hit anything…?

POM.

Anya slowed down her fire in the hopes of improving her accuracy, but this proved to be insufficient. She could spot the thrashing tongue bouncing on the ground. She knew what was to come.

No…Stop it!

POM.

“GO AWAY!!!”

POM-POM-POM-Click-Click-Click-Click.

In a stroke of luck, two of the shells struck one of the crawlers. Both of the creatures halted their ritual and turned toward Anya. The girl knew she had run out of bullets and prepared for the worst to come.

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii

The two crawlers released their grasp and hurriedly scurried away.

Boone, confused and unable to see in the dark, sat up and began to pat his body, then his surroundings.

“Anya? You there? How’d you get them off?”

After verifying that Boone was safe, tears fell from Anya’s eyes. She dashed toward Boone and embraced him tightly.

At first, Boone was startled, not knowing what was squeezing him. Realizing that it was Anya, Boone wrapped his arms around the girl and embraced her as well.

“Damn fine shootin’.”

“I only hit two shots.” Anya’s stuffy nose gave her a nasally voice.

“Least you hit somethin’. Can’t see a damn thang.”

“…”

“Boone?”

“Yes?”

“I’m sorry about the lantern.”

“Ain’t nothing broke I can’t fix. So as long as I find it.”

The two released each other at the same time.

“I can find it.”

***

“How’d you see anythang, missy?” Anya held onto Boone’s hand as she led him through the darkness.

“I don’t know, maybe I got it from my parents.”

“Your parents moles or somethin’?”

“Moles?” Anya pondered, “I don’t know about my mom, but I’ve never seen any moles on my dad.”

“Nev’rmind.”

Anya was still clueless on how moles could allow a person to see in the dark.

“Ah, found it.” Anya spotted the shattered lantern and quickly retrieved it. She guided Boone’s hand to the handle of the lantern. Boone ignited the small pocket device and gave it to Anya.

“Hold this for me, will you?”

With the dim light, Boone carefully unscrewed the broken bulb. Then, he searched through his rucksack and pulled out a bulb still in pristine condition.

“I’ll let you do the honors.” Boone offered the light bulb in his hand.

Anya graciously accepted and proceeded to install in the bulb.

“Um, missy?”

“Hmm?”

“Wrong way.”

Realizing why the bulb did not fit, Anya blushed and swiftly turned it in the opposite direction.

After some flickering, the light turned on, forcing both Anya and Boone to turn their heads and squint. When her eyes readjusted, Anya glanced at the brilliant light.

For the first time since she left Black-Rock, Anya let out a gentle smile.