Home for Horny Monsters - Book Five

A Pruned Branch

The world was quiet, save for the occasional thump of melting snow. Abella trudged along what may have been a trail. She had some sense of where Mike was, but dreaded meeting up with him. The dog tags around her neck were far heavier than anything she had ever carried, and she would often pause and touch them for strength. How would she break the news to him?

She wished she could fly, but that was out of the question. Her wing throbbed painfully as she pushed her way through the deeper drifts and there was no way it would support her weight.

A few of the forest children were scattered through the woods. They were animals and hybrids she was unfamiliar with, but some Nirumbi children came out of hiding to greet her. She was surprised when they hooted to get her attention, but even more so when they took her by the hand and led her away from the trail.

Minutes later, she found herself looking at a small camp of Nirumbi. They were huddled around a couple of fires for warmth. The children led her through the refugee camp to a large makeshift tent made of animal hides.

Abella pushed the flaps aside and walked in. Blankets had been placed on the ground, and each one was occupied by a Nirumbi. Upon closer inspection, she realized that they were all injured.

"Why have you brought me here?" she asked, only to realize that the children were gone.

"Because I told them to." Bigfoot rose from the corner, his eyes tired. The dim light of the tent made him look like a hairy shadow, and he stepped toward her. "I tracked Vee to the mountain, but lost the trail. The mountain imploded sometime last night. This whole area is a mess. The Nirumbi needed my help, so..." He let out a heavy sigh. "Leeds had formed a cult, using the young warriors of the tribe. They slaughtered each other in the caves, and these were the ones who were lucky enough to get away. I told everyone to keep an eye out for anyone from the cabin and to bring them here."

"Where is the owl-woman? Shouldn't she be here?"

"Gone. Leeds had her killed." Bigfoot knelt down to help one of the Nirumbi sip water from a ceramic bowl. "Did you ever catch up to Velvet?"

Abella didn't know what to say. The moment of indecision was not missed by Bigfoot, who stood slowly with his fists at his side.

"Well?" he asked, an edge to his voice that she didn't like.

"I'm so sorry," she whispered, then let go of the dog tags she had unconsciously been holding. They jingled against her chest and then went still. "Leeds destroyed the cave while we were inside. Velvet saved my life, but lost hers in the process."

Bigfoot let out a groan as if struck, then stomped past her and outside of the tent. She followed. The forest children gave him plenty of room as he stormed out of the camp, his breaths accompanied by a growl. Once safely away from the camp, he let out a roar and kicked down a tree.

"NO!" He grabbed onto his hair and pulled, ripping out giant clumps of fur before letting out a howl that scared the birds out of nearby trees. With a strangled cry, he fell to his knees and sobbed.

"I'm sorry, Darren, I'm so sorry." As he wept, Abella moved to his side and put a hand on his shoulder. His fur was surprisingly soft in her hands, and she wrapped her arms around his mighty neck and hugged him.

"I need you to help me get to Mike," she told him. "When he finds out... he's going to need us."

Bigfoot snarled, his body expanding with every breath he took until he was enormous. He cracked his knuckles and let out a growl.

"You point, I'll get us there."

Abella obeyed, and Bigfoot walked to a nearby clump of trees,opening a portal between them. Abella felt the distance between her and Mike shrink considerably and let out a sigh of relief.