I remember it was dark; too dark for us to clearly see where we were headed. I could hear Carl and Az closely behind me, flailing arms wildly and panting heavily, trying to put as much distance as we could between us and our pursuers. This was not the first time we’d been chased, each of us having his own story to tell about that, but I felt this time it was going to be very different from anything we had ever experienced. I just couldn’t shake off that feeling. We had put quite some distance between them but I knew it wasn’t enough and they would soon catch up with us. The dense vegetation cover that formed part of the forest in which we found ourselves was our only hope for camouflaging our trail.
I don’t remember exactly when Az tumbled down but it was his piercing shriek of agony that made me stop in my tracks. I turned to see Carl running over to him to muffle his mouth in a bid to make him quieten down but I knew it was useless. That scream would be carried off kilometers away into the depth of the dark night. The clouds had partially cleared, allowing scattered streaks of moonlight to filter through the overhanging branches of the trees. We’d just marked a bulls-eye on our current location and I didn’t intend to stick around longer than necessary. I rushed over to them and the sight of Az’s broken leg got me frowning, my brows already working their usual twitch and creasing. A misplaced footing had caught a ditch, the angle and force naturally causing the bone to break. At least his cries had reduced to a minimal and I had half-mind to think it was because Carl was probably squeezing the breath out of him.
I wanted to keep on running – away from the situation, but I couldn’t. I couldn’t live with the thought of abandoning a friend when he needed help. I shook my head to clear it. I did not have the time and energy to entertain the ongoing argument in my conscience between what’s right and wrong. I quickly tore the long sleeves off my shirt and tried to tie Az’s leg, like the way I’ve seen it done a couple of times for other people who had suffered similar injuries. Carl picked up a suitable piece of wood to serve as a brace for the broken leg.
We helped him to stand but he fell back down immediately and let out another bout of lung-filled scream. On cue, Carl rushed to pin him to the ground forcing him him to shut up. I looked around nervously, not seeing much into the darkness that engulfed us. Run away. Just take off and leave them here. The voice in my head was relentless in coaxing me. You’ve done your part so just go. They’re coming and you know it. I slowly started backing away from the them trying as much as possible not to draw attention to myself. I backed away once more and stepped on a twig. Snap! oh demmit. Carl and Az looked up at me. I wasn’t entirely convinced the patches of moonlight would allow them to see the betrayal on my face. Carl understood my action though, because he also got up, ready to make a break for it.
Az painfully forced himself to sit up, biting his lip, trying hard not to make any sound. “Please don’t leave me here alone,” he implored to no one in particular, “I’m scared.” He had his head bowed down as he spoke but i knew it was because he didn’t want us to see his free-flowing tears. Shit! I went over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder firmly. I couldn’t leave him like that. We’ve been friends since childhood – all three of us. The thought that I almost run out on him made my stomach churn with disgust at myself. I’ve really changed over these past weeks. I can’t blame myself much, I’ve seen too many people I know die recently. I’ve felt helpless too many times, I got used to it. I helped him onto his good foot, Carl rushing to help. We hooked Az between us, his hand around our shoulders as we moved onwards. It was now five legs between the three of us, Az doing well to hop on his right leg.
We hadn’t taken moved more than 10 paces when we heard it. A high-pitched bloodcurdling cackle, some hundreds or so meters behind us. The sound was so ominous it made my ears prick. I could feel goosebumps spreading on my arms, all the way to my back. I felt Az give a momentary shiver beside me. We however weren’t prepared for the next sound we heard – a long low growl that resonated throughout the area. An alpha Schale and its tracker hound.
We’d been found.