Darkened Heart

Chapter Fifteen

She couldn't tell what it was due to the surrounding darkness. As its red eyes glared into hers, she froze. Charlotte felt that if she ran, it would catch her. Its growl sounded like a large dog, ravenous and hungry. Her feet automatically backed away as she frantically looked around for something to use as a weapon. However, she tried to do so without looking away from this... beast. Suddenly, it leapt from the bushes and howled loudly at her. Its limbs were like wood, splintered and crackling, and its screech sounded like something that would originate deep inside her nightmares. Every time it moved it created a clanking sound like wooden wind chimes. Around its wolf-like ears were blackened silver swirls that bent and shriveled as it scowled with a sinister thirst to dig its sharpened wooden teeth into her. It took her a moment to realize it, but her jaw nearly dropped when she did. She realized that this creature was once the bench where the other father and she had once shared their first kiss. It walked towards her like a cat on the prowl, letting out a few inhuman sounds as it did so. "Stay back!!!" She shouted at it, figuring that it had the same persona as a large dog would. Charlotte found herself backed up against a nearby tree. The creature seemed to take her command as a challenge, looking as if it would tackle her at any moment. A fog engulfed her head as another presence interrupted her thoughts. Cornelius's voice entered her mind, yelling at her with all of his might, "RUN!!! GET AWAY! RUN CHARLOTTE!!!" He didn't have to tell her twice. Just as the creature pounced, she took it upon to scramble away from the tree, nearly tripping in the process.

The sound of wood hitting wood echoed through the night air as the beast crashed against the trunk. Charlotte ran. She ran and ran as fast as she could possibly go. Her feet slammed against the perfect cobblestone path. All the while her heart felt as if it would explode out of her chest with fear. She could hear the creature behind her, getting closer, closer, and closer. Its steps were much quicker than hers; vibrating through the air faster than anything she had ever heard. Every step it took made her stomach churn more than a gunshot would. As she was running, she realized that the creature had to have been guarding something. After all, why else would the other father want her away from the garden? He said it himself that he controls all beings in the other world... Just then, she felt the gravity of something large hurl itself onto her back. Sharp paws grinded against the back of her dress as she crashed down on the floor. Turning around, the creature had her pinned. Charlotte let out a scream, but refused to give up. Using her forearms she held its neck above her so its teeth were not touching her. Its mouth was the scariest thing about it. It was large and wide, so wide that it could probably snap anything in half if it wanted to. Its saliva was like tree sap, brown and sticky as it flowed down her hands. It barked repeatedly and tried to tare itself from her grip. All the while, she pushed his neck away as far away from her as possible. Her head rubbed against the dirt of the cobbled floor as she began to sweat. She wouldn't be able to keep this thing at bay forever. Fear was stabbing at her heart, as she was fighting it. The monster seemed to know she was getting weaker, as its mouth was growing closer to her face. Whimpering, she closed her eyes and turned her head when it was only two inches away from ripping her apart. "He has the eye, Charlotte!" Cornelius said to her, his voice almost fading into nothing.

Opening her eyes, she looked at the beast just as it broke her grip. That was when she saw it. The monster wasn't guarding anything, he was guarding himself! As it opened its jaws, she could see all the way into the back of its splintered throat that was made up of twigs, rotten flowers, and gross mosses. In the very back, something glowed. A red aura of light was visible. She gave the creature a daring look, and without thinking, pried its jaw open. It screeched loudly, as if in a panic. Although she was hesitant to do such a thing, she stretched her arm inside the beast's mouth, trying to yank the eye from its sappy-grasp. However, she realized she needed to reach further; the upper half of her body was submerged. The creature's breath smelled of dew and moldy grass. It made her want to gag, but she knew she had to go through with it. Once her hand landed on the slimy object, she gripped it tightly, and pulled. The tree sap around it was hardened, and in return made it a difficult task. Her ears hurt from its loud cries. She could even feel its horrible excuse of a voice vibrate through the small red sphere as she yanked and yanked. Using her legs, she kicked the wooden monstrosity with all her might, ripping the blasted ghost eye out of its throat. Just then, something strange happened as the shards of hardened sap let go of the trapped item. The screaming stopped, gradually slowing like a broken record. The wooden twigs that formed the monster began to decay and come loose from their form, its teeth rotting and crumbling to nothing but sawdust. Little by little, yet very swiftly, she felt the weight of it all fade into colors of black and white. Everything but the sticky sphere in her hand began to fade.