The explosion almost knocked me out, but I managed to push through. That was our last resort. Our hail Mary, our light at the end of the tunnel. From what anyone knew, it’s been decades since the last time a blast like that hit an Eater. Maybe there was enough time for them to have lost the way to defend against missiles like they had in the past. Or maybe this group wasn’t capable of surviving something like that to begin with.

Either way, I kept running as the pouring rain flew at my face almost as if it was trying to stop me from moving. My legs burning with the strain but I couldn’t stop. Not now, not this close to where those creatures were. I couldn’t even call for Pops. Or anyone, for that matter. If I did, I would be luring any of the surviving monsters towards me. But he should be ok. I made sure to only start the fuse when he was already far from our home. Even if he’s an old man, he is more fit than most people in the village.

For the others… I could only hope they managed to get away safely. If not, I hope the explosion killed them. That would be a better fate than being devoured by an Eater. Speaking of it… I didn’t even get to taste the cake. We were in the middle of singing happy birthday when everything happened.

I shook my head. This wasn’t the time to think about that kind of thing. I had to run. I had to survive. Even so, it was a struggle to move through the dark woods in the middle of the night. I could barely see what was in front of me. The only thing that illuminated the area were the occasional lightning strikes. But that didn't matter. I lived here my entire life, I knew the place like the back of my hand. The tall pine trees towered, their shadows hiding me from those creatures, leaving the underbrush mostly free from branches or anything that could hinder my movement. The occasional Willow or Aspen tree could be a good place to hide, but not here. The monsters were too close.

Glancing back, the ash and dust finally had stopped falling. From the raging fire that had once been my home and the village, shadows of creatures made out of tendrils appeared. Some struggled and fell, hopefully dead, but others continued. Searching for the one responsible for their pain.

Almost nothing was known about those creatures. Where did they come from, why they attacked us, how were they so hard to kill, how they were able to evolve so quickly? No one had the answer to any of those questions. But one thing people knew. An absolute rule that everyone who faced an Eater should remember. Never attack an Eater. Or else they will chase you until the ends of the earth.

There were stories about how, back in the old world, someone flung rocks at an Eater just before boarding a plane to the other side of the country. A few weeks later, that same Eater appeared in front of them. It ignored all the other attacks it received on the way and devoured that person whole before going after its new prey.

But maybe I wouldn’t have that problem. All said reports mentioned guns, rocks, arrows. In other words, all those cases had one thing in common. The Eater saw the attacker. This was a trap, not a direct blow. Maybe that would be my saving grace. The fact that I wasn’t there when the missile went off.

My legs rushed across the forest while my arms were in front of me. The storm was getting even more violent, and the rain that was refreshing began to sting due to the cold. At some point, I would need to look for shelter, there was a tall mountain nearby that could work. The hunters used a cave to rest when they had to spend the night away from the village.

When they asked me to join in one of the hunts, they also showed me that place. As long as my memory was right, and no Eater was chasing me, I would be safe there. Hell, maybe I would get lucky and someone left some supplies there.

A noise coming from my left made me stop. It was a telltale sound of metal grinding against metal that came from the maw of an Eater. Without even thinking, my body shifted to hide behind a nearby tree. From my vantage point, above a small hill, I could still see the flames created by the explosion in the distance, but the shadows were no longer there.

Could it be one of the same monsters? No, they were too far away, and even if they survived the blast, they couldn’t move that fast. This had to be another one.

Maybe a weaker one that wasn’t able to reach the village in time. Or one that was waiting out here to catch anyone who ran. Could the Eater have some sort of hierarchy where only some of them were allowed to attack a settlement?

Taking a deep breath, I peeked out of my hiding spot. Lighting struck right at the same time, allowing me to see the Eater properly. It had one of its sickly gray tentacles undulating from side to side as it moved. And another dozen more reaching everywhere around it. Large thick spider legs that became bulbous near the ground, and became hundreds of tiny needle like pegs just as they were about to hit the floor.

There was no face, no head, no arms, only the legs and tentacles connected in a circle. In the middle of its body, where all the appendages joined together, was an unnatural agglomeration of flesh. If its metallic skin could be called that. The Eater’s limbs were gray, but as it got closer to that center, they turned black, but not in a natural way. It looked as if its own skin was being charred, or tainted by whatever was inside its mouth.

Inside the maw were hundreds, if not thousands, of metal teeth that rotated in various directions. From it a ghastly pale light emanated, but it struggled to illuminate the black limbs that looked more like shadows trying to devour the light. Holding its body was a set of eight massive spider like legs, taller than me. And that was it. It had no face to speak of, no eyes that could be seen, ears to hear. Nothing, it was just a mass of death and hunger.

Despite the sight, my eyes focused on something else, and a second flash of lightning confirmed my fear. Beyond the Eater, crouching near a couple of tree were my grandfather, along with Michael and Vanessa. All three of them staring at the monster with terror in their eyes. Another shot of adrenaline hit my bloodstream as my mind started working on overdrive.

There were three people there, the Eater, and then me. If it was just Pops, I know what he would say. We both run and pray we can escape. It’s likely that one of us would get caught, and even more likely that Pops would try something to save me. But if I tried to distract the Eater in any way, he would sacrifice himself to give me a chance to flee. This was a conversation we already had before, and those were the terms he put forward, refusing to change anything no matter how much I argued.

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Michael and Vanessa were also there. If they were alone, the answer was obvious. I would run and leave them behind. Even if I did something to save them, how could two 10-year-olds survive alone in the middle of a forest filled with Eaters? It would hurt, and I could never look their parents in the eye again, but that was the best option.

However, they were together. Pops was more than capable of taking care of the children while finding a safe place. They wouldn’t be alone in the forest, and with a bit of luck, they would be able to reach a new village and find another home. Maybe their parents were running to the same place, allowing them an emotional reunion.

It was their life weighted against mine. And, just as my parents did before me, I decided my life was lighter.

Clenching my fist, I reached for the ground as the Eater moved closer to Pops and the children. Grabbing a random rock, I tossed it at the monster.

“Pops, kids! I love you. And come get me, you ugly ass nightmare!”

I yelled at the top of my lungs. A last farewell for them to understand what I just did. Still, only when the rock hit the Eater and the tentacles turned in my direction that I started running again.

This time it wasn’t just an attempt to flee what could be there, but a race against a relentless being that would never stop. The fact was, I was dead. There were no two ways about it. If people said that humans were persistence hunters, that only meant they never saw an Eater. Try to escape a creature that never sleeps or rests before saying I’m wrong.

Even so, Pops didn’t raise a quitter. I’m not going to roll over and let it devour me. My dying breath will be with me fighting against it. I don’t care if it’s a pointless battle. I’ll struggle to the end.

Running felt much faster this time. Knowing that a monster like that was after me was a massive incentive, but that wasn’t all. While escaping the village, I tried not to attract attention. To move fast, but quietly. The necklace that Pops gave me as a birthday present hit my collarbone following the rhythm of my steps. It was a memento from my late grandmother, who I never met.

I guess that would change soon.

Now, any semblance of care went out of the window. Speed was the name of the game, and between my participation in the hunts, my daily exercise routine, and the forest parkour that Pops taught me, I felt I was doing pretty well. But that lasted only a moment. The tentacles of the creature lashed out at me with a metallic clang. A noise that became the only thing that served as a warning.

I ducked, feeling the rapid movement of wind just above my hair as the tentacle snapped and split a nearby tree in two. A single hit from one of those things would be more than enough to kill me. Another clang became a second warning. This time, forcing me to jump, kicking off from a tree and tumbling forward. A branch pierced the side of my shirt, which ripped almost instantly as I refused to stop for any reason.

The longest tentacle of the Eater started to coil, and with the sound of a tensioned spring being released, it shot out towards me. If another lightning bolt hadn’t stuck, illuminating the area just at that time, I wouldn’t be able to see the attack coming. But even with that warning, my reaction took too long. My body shifted to the left, yet it wasn't enough to get out of the way completely.

Even with a glancing blow against my shoulder, there was enough force behind the attack to send me tumbling down a hill to the side. At the same time, a loud sound echoed through the forest as the tentacle hit a massive tree that was directly in front of the Eater, causing it to fall on top of it.

I don’t know how long it took me to start moving again, but when I looked up, the forest was silent. Maybe I got lucky and the Eater left? No, that shouldn’t be the case. Since when do monsters give up a prey?

Trying to get back to my feet, I felt my dislocated shoulder and warm blood dripping from my arm. Reaching down, my hands found a large metal pole that was just there. Rusted and abandoned. A relic of the old world. Ignoring that, I grabbed a branch from the ground and shoved it in my mouth before popping my arm back in place, struggling not to scream. Not just because of the arm. My ankle was sprained, maybe even broken. Any hopes of running were now gone.

Just as I spat out the branch, the metallic sound of an Eater appeared again. On top of the hill, the same creature that was chasing me appeared once more. Now it had fewer tentacles and an odd white ichor dripped from various parts of its limbs. Another lightning bolt struck, and the light revealed the numerous pieces of wood embedded on the monster’s body.

I chuckled, “That’s what you get, bitch.”

The Eater’s entire body shook, as if it was screaming, before the legs lowered and the creature jumped. Using the last remaining strength in my body, I grabbed the pole from the ground and pulled it up. I could only take one side off the ground, but maybe that would be enough.

“Aaaaaaahhhh!” I roared, doing my best to aim the somewhat pointy end of the pole at the Eater.

The monster slammed onto the pole, and I saw how part of its maw was torn apart by the impact as I impaled an Eater. Any sense of victory quickly vanished as I felt a pain in my stomach. Looking down in shock, I knew there was nothing else I could do.

I might have impaled an Eater. But it impaled me back. One of its tentacles was now lodged inside my stomach.

I coughed blood as my strength started to leave my being. More of the tentacles moved towards me, but they were just a bit too short to reach. With a smile, memories of my parents came to mind. I would finally meet them, if there was such a thing as an afterlife.

The last thing that I saw was a pure white light. Not one at the end of the tunnel, but the light of a lightning bolt that had just struck the pole in my hands, electrocuting both the Eater and myself. Before I lost all conscious, I could’ve sworn that my chest was glowing. Then again, it didn’t matter now.

And to think that just two days ago, everything was fine. I guess that’s life.

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[New user detected.]

[Identified as the first human user in the network.]

[Human registered as the 7th intelligent species in the network.]

[Warning: User’s body in the process of breaking down. Cannot continue with system integration in such conditions.]

[Searching for solution…]

[…]

[…]

[…]

[Solution found. It will require use of nearby available resources. In addition, solution requires temporary relinquishment of motor functions.]

[Solution cannot be implemented without users’ permission.]

[User Cassandra. Do you wish to live?]

[Yes] [No]