The Beast: A Short Story

The air was cool as it brushed up against my face. I was walking home from a party. It was dangerous walking home alone, yet I think I'll survive. The visibility was low and the fog was setting in from the hills. There was a light drizzle and I could hear the rumble of the lightning storms to the far west. I don't really know where I am. I see a cemetery among the horizon. There are a few homes on to the right. I am approaching my town and should be there within the hour. I smell something, it is very bad, it smells like a rotten corpse. It mustn't be anything, it is probably the cemetery.

As I'm walking back toward the town I hear something. It is a strange tapping sound. Wait, maybe it is footsteps. It sounds heavy and sounds like a drum repeating the same beat over and over. Yes, I know I am sure it is footsteps. I'm starting to walk faster now, hopefully what ever it is I can lose it. My heart is beating harder. The faster I walk the faster it walks. It won't stop. As it gets closer I get a whiff of its smell. It smells worse. It smells like 100 rotten corpses that were held in a room with raw sewage for a year. It isn't a human or is it. It could be a homeless man, yet I don't believe so. The visibility has dropped. Now I can only see five or so feet in front of me. It's getting closer, footsteps faster and well paced.

My heart is pumping harder. I must catch a glimpse. I turn around and see it. It is not a human, but only a beast. It has red eyes the color of fire. The beast had muscular, bulky body which resembled one of an overgrown hairless German Sheppard. It had bat wings the size of a Cessna 350. The wings were thin and felt like hard leather. It had a horrid stench the same one that I had smelled before. Its teeth were huge. They were the size of golf balls and were stained a blood red. Its claws were huge; it looked as if they weren't groomed for years. I look at its face. It looked sad and depressed. It looked as if it went through plenty of trouble and pain to get where it is now. It looked mad as if killing me would release his pain.

I run harder. I am now in the town. I run into an alley hoping I can get rid of the beast. The beast is hot on my tail. I'm breathing harder and harder. My chest is pumping, my heart is beating rapidly, and I don't think I can make it. The alley is dark, cold, and moist. I'm becoming weak. I am dehydrated and I need water. Time is running out. Oh no! Tunnel is a dead end. There is no where to go. There is a dumpster to my right. That is my only option. It stinks like rotten fish, chicken, and other foods. There is no other option. I must jump in. The beast spreads its wings and flies. I jump into the dumpster.

I feel around in the dark dumpster as the beast attacks the outside. I am in an ankle foot deep puddle of water. The rains all last week left an awful amount of rain. Something sticky is on my hand. It smells like rotten eggs mixed with sewage. It gooey and sticky texture makes me feel uneasy. The beast stopped pounding. I heard the loudest scream I had ever heard. After the beast let out a blood-curling yell, there was an awkward silence.

There was silence and it was pitch black. The stench was horrid. I decided it was time to leave. I opened the door to see if the coast was clear. I snuck outside and started walking home. I was on the side walk walking home when I started to hear a tapping noise. It was coming from behind me. I started walking faster. I got a glimpse of what was behind me. It was the beast. I ran into the street into oncoming traffic. I heard a smash and a car breaking suddenly. The beast was dead. The driver ran out of the car and asked if everything was okay. I replied. He also, asked who was hit and I said the beast. I looked at me weird and I looked at the front end of the car. The beast was gone. It lived.

John Yerwerk was walking home from a long day at work. Behind him there were red glowing eyes and a hungry growl. Its foul expression showing this one will not tolerate failure.

I was walking home when I heard a faint scream. I smiled then frowned. I kept walking.