Crunch!

"AAaaGGHHHh!"

The monster reflexively released the young woman's hand as it howled in pain.

It grasped the crossbow bolt protruding from its chest as its wolfish face twisted into a fearsome grimace,

and he young woman stifled a scream as the creature dug its claws deeper into her shoulder.

It took hold of the shaft of the bolt and yanked it out with a savage tug, and a fountain of blood spurted out from the creature's chest as the barbed broadhead mutilated the monster's insides as it was extracted. Bright blood bubbled up and splattered the leaf-speckled dirt path as it coughed violently.

It could feel that its internal organs had been mangled by the bolt, and it felt as if its insides had been set on fire. However; despite being wounded, the creature was by no means at death's door.

A murderous growl filled the young woman's ears as the monster's hate-filled eyes searched for the source of its suffering. It's nostrils flared as it raised its snout to sniff the air.

"Grrr... Where... Are... You..."

A faint wind rustled the leaves of sturdy trees, and the shadows danced like enthusiastic actors under the setting sun. The crisp scents of damp earth, wild animals, and fear filled the monster's nostrils, but it couldn't detect any human scents other than the whimpering figure at its feet.

The monster gnashed its knifelike teeth in frustration at not being able to disembowel its attacker and feed them their own innards. The woman beneath him screamed in agony as it raked its claws over her body to alleviate its frustration. The sensation of tearing through cloth and flesh improved its mood somewhat, but it still boiled with rage at being caught unawares and wounded. However; the fact that it received no warning from its sharp sense of smell, and could not locate its attacker's scent even after it was aware of their presence brought it a prick of unease. It stopped clawing at the woman, who was now bleeding profusely, and listened to her sobbing to soothe its nerves.

"Hmmm..."

An unsightly smile twisted its lips as it thought of something. In one fluid motion the creature grabbed the young woman by her neck and raised her into the air by her throat. At this point her cloak and dress were tattered and covered with blood, and she seemed to be treading the border between life and death. Her hood had fallen back, revealing long, glossy hair the color of obsidian, and her beautiful face was warped by pain as the monster cut off her air flow. The monster wasn't that much larger than the woman, but it easily held her aloft with an unnaturally long arm.

"Show yourself... Or the girl... Dies!"

The monster shouted at the trees as the woman clawed at its hand with her fingernails and tried to kick its torso in an attempt to escape its grasp as her eyes bulged and her lungs felt as if they were being slowly crushed.

The creature ignored the woman's struggling. Its black eyes focused on the trees to either side of the forest, watching for any hint of movement from the general direction that the bolt came from. Despite its vigilance, the only movement the monster spotted was a crow flying over to rest on a different tree as the woman's kicks grew increasingly more feeble and her eyes glazed over. It noticed that its hostage's pulse was growing increasingly faint, and bared its teeth in annoyance at the prospect of giving its plaything an early death. It knew from experience that it took a while to die from strangulation, but the woman was approaching her limit.

I hate smart ones, the monster thought. Unless they're missing their limbs: then they're pretty entertaining.

…

Little Red felt her consciousness fading. Her limbs felt like lead, and black spots dominated her vision.

Help... me.

She had been prepared for death, even welcoming it if it meant avoiding prolonged torture, but the appearance of the bolt in the monster's chest reignited hope in her heart, whether that hope was the human will to live or the animalistic desire to survive.

…

Little Red gradually became limp as time dragged on, and the monster curled its lips in a human-like expression of disappointment.

Clink. Clink. Clink. Clink.

The creature's ears snapped back like a wolf as it heard an unnatural noise coming from behind it.

Oho, so that's your plan, the monster thought as it dropped the woman without hesistation.

She fell to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut, and lay unmoving on the road to her grandmother's house. Her red riding cloak was splayed out around her like the petals of a flower.

"Clever... Such a clever human... You left a young woman to die... To save yourself... That's humans for you... What cowardly creatures... You'll do anything... To avoid suffering."

The monster stood with its back to the noise as it worked to pinpoint its location. Meanwhile, it addressed the opposite direction to avoid alarming its new prey.

Clink. Clink. Clink. Clink.

"Your fear... Of suffering... Is what makes inflicting it so... Delicious!" the monster roared as it suddenly spun around and bolted towards the unnatural sound.

Unlike when it was toying with the young woman, the creature ran on all fours at a pace faster than a galloping horse. In an instant it was amongst the trees. It spotted an unkempt-looking man in a stained black gambeson using a windlass pulley system to reload a crossbow. The man decisively dropped the crossbow as soon as he saw the creature, and reached for a pouch at his side.

You were smart to ignore the woman and attempt a second sneak attack from the rear; unfortunately for you, you made the foolish decision of trying to kill me, the monster thought with a sneer.

"TOO LATE!" the creature bellowed as the man was reaching into the pouch while it drew just a single bound away.

I'll tear through him as he draws his weapon. If he survives, I can play with him for a while, the abomination thought gleefully.

Just as the monster's claw came bearing down on him, the man hurled the pouch's contents into its eyes as he leapt to the side. A gray cloud blew into the monster's eyes as the man executed an acrobatic roll back onto his feet.

Huh?

A moment of confusion due to flashy dodge and plume of powder in its face preceded a senstion of intense agony as the fine gray powder entered the monster's eyes, nose, ears, and mouth. It felt like several swarms of wasps were stinging all of its orifices at once.

The spine-chilling howl that rose the monster's throat was enough to make a seasoned soldier faint, but the man in grimy armor unflinchingly swung a two-handed axe into the back of the monster's leg as it clawed at its face in an attempt to remove the powder. The iron axe head struck the creature in the depression behind its knee, tearing through muscle and cracking bone, and bringingt it to the ground.

A gutteral scream came out of the abomination's mouth. It caught itself on its hands and knees as it collapsed, and its triangular hat fell off. As pain consumed its mind and blood poured from its wounds, the creature experienced a moment of clarity amdist its hazy thoughts.

"You're... a Huntsman!" it growled.

"And you're dead."

The man replied dispassionately as he brought the axe down on the monster's neck. The axe went halfway through the neck before the spine stopped its momentum. Seizing the opportunity, the creature lashed out with its dagger-like claws, but it was met with cold iron as the Huntsman ripped the axe out of the abomination's neck in time to deflect its claws with an upward swing, slicing off a few of the monster's fingers in the process. He then reversed then direction of the axe and brought it down on the monster's neck once more, chopping through its spinal cord. He raised the axe a final time to sever the beast's head, and it completely collapsed into a limp heap.

The Huntsman watched as the severed head morphed into that of a human face bearing a grimace, then wiped his axe on the ground to get rid of the blood as a crow cackled in the trees above.