"Run!" Aian screams.
"To the cave, two o'clock!" I scream and hope that no one will be confused about where their two o'clock is.
Migo and I are the first to the cave, followed by Aian. Then Renz and Cielo come in while holding hands. I frown at it, and instead of saying anything, I put my attention somewhere else. I step closer to the entrance, wondering where that creature goes after my two hated people enter the cave. Then, suddenly, it appears, which almost makes me lose my footing. It is a green scaly creature with teeth like that of a piranha, which it bears and is trying to reach us. Thankfully, its huge head cannot fit at the small opening of the cave.
Probably frustrated, it growls like a lion, which is strange because sea creatures usually do not growl, or rather there shouldn't be a sea creature prowling at the shore or a beast large enough that its head cannot fit the mouth of the cave. Yet, the creature's inability to devour us did not stop it from salivating as it smelled its prey.
It gives another push towards us. Then, finally, the mouth of the cave starts to yield. The stones are cracking on either side. If I extend my hand, I can touch its nostril, which is dripping wet. I hear whimpers from my left and realize Cielo is tightly holding on to Renz, which is supposed to be my place.
I take a deep breath and look around the small cave. There is a glint on my right, only a few meters from the entrance, where the creature is trying to reach us. I hope it is what I think it is. From my excitement, I hurried to it. But, unfortunately, it is a stupid move because I see the creature's tongue reaching for me from my peripheral vision moments later. At that instant, I see myself being killed, my body cut in half by its enormous teeth. Gratefully though, someone pulls me away from the grasping tongue and sees that it's Migo.
"Damn it, Jade! Stop acting like a scatterbrain!" he scolds.
I smile sheepishly at him because it's true. That's a mistake that almost cost me my life. "Sorry," I say, then point at the thing that caught my attention.
He immediately understood my meaning. That instant, I want to pat his head and say a job-well-done. However, between us, there's no need. Migo and I always have this connection that allows us to understand each other easily. Sometimes, I feel like we are born in the same womb and at the same time. We are always together, and truth be told, I spend more time with him than I will ever spend time with Renz.
Migo winds his arms around my waist as I try to pull that thing from the small hole. Grasping it, I know what it is despite its size. So Migo and I both pull. It seems minutes or an eternity passes before both of us stumble backward and hit Renz.
I exclaim triumphantly as I look at what I unearth from the tiny hole. It's a weapon that looks like a sword. It has a hilt but no crossguard, which conveniently makes it easier to extricate. Yes, it's unusual, a weapon that will hurt the wielder as much as it will damage the target. But as I am inspecting it, it feels right in my hand.
"Feels perfect," I deduce.
"Let me use it instead," Migo offers and tries to take the sword away from me.
I pout at him. "No! You're supposed to be the bait!"
"Me? A bait?" Migo asks in confusion.
"You're fast and I think you'll survive running away from that," I answer and point at the monster, which is inch by inch getting closer to us.
"Let me do it instead," Aian interjects. "I'm always in trouble so I can stick that with--"
"No!" Somehow, I feel an attachment to the strange weapon already. "You are to think of ways to survive when my plan fails," I answer. "You're my deputy," I add and smile at him.
Aian has no choice but to give up. "I don't want you going out there to sacrifice yourself, Jade. Is that clear?" he says instead.
"I won't hand over my leadership to you that easily," I answer and look back at the creature whose teeth are now a meter away from us.
"I can do it," I freeze in Renz's voice.
I know that he trained in arnis and dabbled a bit on kendo. I am also aware that he's the best choice for the task. Usually, I'd just say yes. Whenever we're together, I grow silent and let him decide everything. Most of the time, I just lay my head on his shoulder and stare and listen at nothing. With him, I feel lazy to think to the point that sometimes his relatives look weirdly at me. But whatever prejudice they have against me, it doesn't matter. That's how calm his presence makes me feel.
"No!" Cielo refuses while I note how she wraps her arms around him again.
"See? You can't do this. Just protect yourself," I pause, and with unmasked scorn, I say, "and her." I so badly want to say her name and spat on it. However, I remind myself once again that there's a time for it.
"You should gather sand, guys." Aian interrupts and grabs a fistful of sand, anything he can gather inside the cave. Then he turns towards Migo and me and asks, "Are you two ready?" We both nodded.
Aian faces the monster and throws a barrage of sands into the monster's nostrils. The beast shakes its head, almost breaking up the mouth of the cave, then it pulls back. I run towards it that instant, and before the monster stands on its entire length, I astride it.
On the other hand, Migo is trying to take the attention of the monster away from me. I try to get a good grasp on its head, but I almost slip. Migo throws vile curses at the creature as if the monster can understand it. Still, it's evident that it knows it's being goaded by its food. The creature slithers towards Migo, who starts to run for his life.
As I hold on to my dear life, I notice Aian going out of the cave and quietly contemplating. His eyes scour the area the second time. This time, harder and more patiently. Probably, he's looking for any weapon or anything that can aid us on defense or escape. The choice depends on my and Migo's success.
Then I see how the creature catches up with Migo and how it constricts him by its scaly body. I feel nervous. Maybe using Migo as bait is a wrong decision after all. Sidetracked and worried for a second, I slip a second time, my feet dangling precariously on the creature's side and close to its mouth.
The creature focuses its attention on me. I feel weak. The second time that my life is on the verge of ending. Then I hear it, my name being called by Renz. I feel hope. However, instead of Renz helping, it is Aian who runs to our rescue. He starts to use himself as bait, because throwing sands on the creature won't do anything except agitate it. He even starts to kick at its body which is not doing any good either.
Somehow, the scene makes me believe that the three of us can do it, so I find my footing while Aian is doing unnecessary things. Then the creature writhes. Finally, Aian catches its attention by somehow inflicting some kind of pain on it. Then, the creature loosens its hold on Migo and descends its mouth on Aian.
It is in a heartbeat when I finally catch my bearing and strike at its single eye with as much force as my arms will allow before it tries to attack Aian. The effect is evident as Aian let go of the stone he's holding and knelt in fear. When the creature starts to violently thrash around, this time, I hug tightly on the creature's neck. Finally, the monster fully lets go of Migo, who's choking and weak.
Both are safe. However, it's far from over, at least not for me, as I continue to endure the creature's thrashing due to the loss of its sight. It's become more dangerous; however, I know I must risk it. I clamber on the creature's neck, reach for the sword, take it and plunge it once again on the creature's eye, this time deeper and with more strength, putting my whole weight on a single swift motion. Unfortunately, the sword disappears inside the creature's eyes and flesh, and I lose my footing, falling on the sand with my back.
I expect the creature to use the opportunity to feed on me while I'm lying on my back. But, instead, the creature's massive body falls inches beside me.
Seeing a dead living thing on my side, I rejoice. It's the first time I feel so relieved seeing a corpse. I stand up and notice the pain in my body as I fix the fabric around me. The creature made a number on me, and I know there will be lots of bruises the next day. I approach the creature and sink my hand on its one eye.
I pull up the sword just in time when Aian hugs me. We both wince at the pain the contact causes. We look for Migo and find him crawling towards us and groaning at the pain in the process. He looks like he will faint any minute but stays longer to share the victory with us. We approach him instead of waiting for him to drag himself to us.
"Didn't know we could be as calm as that when faced by a monster." I hear Migo say before he faints in our arms, with Aian supporting most of his weight.
Aian and I look at each other and giggle, both our apprehensions temporarily forgotten.
However, those giggles are interrupted by the hooves of horses. We look at the source of it, and for the first time, we meet the inhabitants of the land we are in. The men are carrying primitive weapons. They are looking at me, Migo, and Aian, who are all wounded, with the slain creature less than a meter away from us. Like us, they look equally surprised.