4:21 pm…
The day is going as usual. Finishing up his last gun maintenance session he plans to play videogames and relax for the rest of the day, but he gets an unexpected call.
“Alejandro are you there?” A female voice says.
“Hey Maria, how it is going there?”
“Pretty bad in fact, I called you because, well… you have powers and I have a problem. Sorry, I can’t find help from anyone else.”
“An alien critter near your home?”
“You guessed it, it’s far from here but… Me and my family are a bit afraid of that thing lurking in the woods! Who knows if it might decide to come closer and kill somebody, we don’t have guns here. The police and military are not really dependable here, in short, I don’t have any options. Can you help me?”
“Sure, I’ll get my pest control tools and head to your house in fifteen minutes.”
“Thank you very much! I’ll wait outside.”
Phrixus takes his revolver and pollaxe for the job. One stray beast shouldn’t be a proble
m.
25 minutes later…
Arriving at the backyard of Maria’s house, he meets her there.
“Thank you for coming!” Maria says. “I saw the silhouette of that thing over there.” She points to the south-west where there is a thicket. “It should be there hiding in the foliage, the only thing I ask is that you be careful.”
“Nothing I can’t handle. I’ll be back.”
Heading to the woods he traverses the vegetation and searches for game, looking for tracks, broken trees or large branches and any kind of sound the creature would make. Phrixus spends several minutes looking for his target. Arriving to a clear area he finds the creature unaware of his presence.
To get a better look at it, he decides to get its attention by yelling at it. The beast turns around and gets a bit closer, it is not a Surma but a different creature: this one is the size of a big bear. It has leathery, dark brown skin and an exoskeleton which look like armor plates protecting most of its body, except the joints. Its hind legs look a bit shorter than the forelegs which look more burly, the “paws” are short, broad claws that look they could be used to batter and pummel instead of ripping apart its enemy. Its muzzle is similar to a Surma but somewhat smaller in width and lacking the intimidating fangs. Perhaps the most imposing feature of the beast is its massive, curved horn on its head.
The creature pounds the ground with its paws and roars at Phrixus. As he pulls his revolver from the holster, the creature charges at Phrixus to gore him. Despite its size it is incredibly fast. Phrixus has to roll aside to avoid being impaled. The beast collides with a large tree, accidentally getting its horn stuck.
Phrixus shoots three times, the bullets manage to penetrate its hard skin which releases small spurts of blood, but this is not enough to mortally wound it. The creature breaks free from the tree and turns around to repeat the same tactic. Phrixus focuses and aims at its face, two of the bullets are deflected by its armor but the last one hits its left eye, causing it to bellow in pain and stop rushing forward. With no time to reload he wields his pollaxe to get up close and personal.
“Time to get this over with.”
Phrixus advances as the beast runs to smash him with both paws. He ripostes the attack with a spearhead to the chest. The beast tries to hit him back but Phrixus repeats the maneuver, this time using the hook of the pollaxe, and tears the exposed part of one of its limbs, crippling its right foreleg in the process. Enraged and adopting a more aggressive stance, it lunges at Phrixus with relentless attacks, he gets hit with its only working foreleg, and falls to the ground.
“Ow that hurt, gonna end this now,” Thinks Phrixus.
Phrixus evades another swing of its paw, then counterattacks with a vicious slash to its unprotected knee. Unable to fight properly Phrixus delivers the final blow by leaping behind the beast and thrusting the spearhead deep into its neck. The injury proves to be fatal and the creature dies. He removes the pollaxe from the body and takes some seconds to breathe.
“Not as bad as the Surmas… in any case, I’m definitely taking that horn.”
Using his bowie knife, Phrixus proceeds to carefully remove the large horn of the dead beast. It takes some minutes to seize the horn, which is in pristine condition despite having been stuck in the tree briefly.
“Another good trophy for the collection.” Phrixus heads back to Maria’s house to report the good news.
30 minutes later…
“…And after a long fight, I emerged victorious and ripped his horn with my bare hands to show him who’s the boss.” Phrixus shows her the horn.
She maintains an expression of awe and a bit of disbelief after listening to Phrixus’s story of his encounter with the creeping beast, then snapping back to reality she speaks. “Thank you, thank you! I’m glad to know that monster is gone, is good to know I can count on you to protect us against those things.”
“Just doing my public service exterminating those aliens buggers, call me if there’s another of those critters stalking in the woods.”
“You can count on that, thanks again for your help.”
Once done with the quest, Phrixus heads back to his lair.
Phrixus’s hideout, 7:21 pm…
Arriving at his hideout he finds Roberth checking something on the desktop computer. The trending topics and headlines are all related to the alien critter incidents worldwide, so far they are more of a nuisance rather than a serious public concern. The VOA along with private biotech corporations are publishing autopsies about the most recent creatures, primarily the Surmas and another specimen which looks identical to the one Phrixus faced this afternoon, called “Tauferum” by the media. The reports reveal their physiology is remarkably similar to the lifeforms of Earth, in the way their circulatory, digestive and respiratory systems function. The scientists theorize the natural and noteworthy weapons and defenses they possess such as large fangs, horns, talons and hardened skin could only be achieved by genetic manipulation, which further fuels the assumption that the alien creatures were deliberately designed as some kind of war beasts. Firearms are effective against them but blunt, piercing and edged weapons are also viable options if the user is experienced in close quarters combat. Roberth stops reading the flow of information and turns back to see Phrixus holding a large horn.
The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
“The horn of a Tauferum…” says Roberth, “are they as tough as the media says?”
“More or less, the one I killed had some fighting spirit but they are not invincible, it was stalking not far from Maria’s house.”
“So it sounds like they first go to isolated places and tend to hang out there until they decide to move to populated zones and attack. I guess the jungle will become more dangerous over time.”
“I wonder how many of its spawn Apophis will send,” Phrixus says, “and how long its siege will last, but judging by the size of that thing it could be a lot. At least we can kill them.”
“Better to have good damage control, just in case.”
The next day, 8:12 am…
To prove they can fight off the invaders, Phrixus, Roberth and Valeria set out on an expedition to hunt some Apophlings in remote areas where they expect them to be.
“So…” Valeria says, “how’s it gonna be, Phrixus first, then Roberth and lastly me, no matter the type of creature it is?”
“Yeah, it will be a duel, only one of us and the creature we find, no interventions so it will be more interesting,” says Phrixus.
“Doesn’t surprise me you got us involved in a self-destructive activity, Phrixus,” says Roberth.
“Don’t be silly, you silly-billy, this is just a warm-up to teach those bugs we are stronger than them.”
“It’s all fun and games until someone…” Valeria stops talking when they spot a lone Tauferum wandering in the area. Fortunately, it has not spotted the group yet.
“Hahah!” Phrixus says. “Looks like I found a target so I can try my new gun.” He pulls out a custom-built but well-crafted submachine gun. “This little friend shoots .44 Magnum rounds, holds 32 bullets in the magazine and it’s completely automatic, let’s see how bulletproof our lucky winner is.”
Valeria and Roberth stay behind and hide in the foliage while Phrixus cocks his gun and goes forward. He yells to the creature and gets its attention. The Tauferum responds by violently pounding the ground with its paws and roaring at him, then it charges forward at Phrixus as they had expected. He quickly dodges the attack but the creature halts its assault and turns to face Phrixus. He takes aim and opens fire. The Tauferum is riddled with lead, despite its armored body, it is not enough to deflect or reduce the penetration of the projectiles. The Tauferum is so badly wounded that it only makes it a few steps forwards, sighs once then falls to the ground and lays dead.
“Phrixus’s Certified Firearms, always getting the job done,” says Phrixus.
“That was an entertaining show,” Valeria says.
“You should consider opening a gun store, those aliens will surely get you fat sales,” says Roberth.
“That does sound good, now it’s your turn to show us your performance, let’s keep searching.”
35 minutes later…
After some time exploring they find a solitary Surma, with his Goedendag on hand Roberth prepares himself. “Here I go,” says Roberth.
Roberth reveals himself to the creature. The Surma snarls and runs toward him. Maintaining his position, Roberth waits for the moment to strike. The Surma leaps forward with spikes pointing at him. He doesn’t move or dodge, instead he allows himself to be punctured, it seems the long talons only managed to get halfway into him, and Roberth endures the hit to let the Surma get close. Finally he impales the creature’s chest with his weapon and lifts it up. The Goedendag’s spike has been heated up enough to burn its insides and, weakly flailing, the Surma quickly dies. Roberth proceeds to drop the dead body to the ground.
Phrixus claps. “That is what I call an entertaining spectacle!”
“I expected at least a few bashes, not a one-hit kill,” says Valeria.
He shrugs. “Heh, not my fault the Surma exposed itself to an easy deathblow, there is no such thing as poor sportsmanship when it comes to survival,” says Roberth.
“But we are engaging in a new type of hunting,” Phrixus says, “and you should show some level of… gladiatorial disposition with a touch of pizzazz.”
“Like...” Valeria says, “round up a bunch of those critters in a fighting pit and make superhumans fight against them while the normal folks place bets and watch the carnage? That would be a new and welcoming form of entertainment for you, Phrixus,” she says in jest.
“Don’t give him any ideas…” says Roberth.
As they walk to find another alien critter roaming in the area, Phrixus has a flash of inspiration. He says, in a sportscaster’s voice, “Watch The Apophis Arena on your TV, smartphone, tablet or desktop computer and tune in to our channels to be the witness to the most ferocious, bloody, savage and unrelenting fights against these evil beasts! Observe without censure how they are torn apart, sliced, crushed, mangled, brutalized, and eviscerated! This afternoon we have our gladiator ‘Death Penalty’ fighting against three Tauferums and two Surmas with her scythe, ready to reap their souls from their foul bodies. Be sure to bring your kids as this show is rated F for Family Fun, enjoy the matches anywhere in the world without advertisements and ask for our Premium Membership to see more detailed shots, and… and… darn it, I lost it.”
“So what’s it gonna be, a sportscaster or a gladiator? Can’t choose both, though,” says Roberth.
“That will be a real hard decision, I’d say…” Phrixus stops talking just when they spot two Surmas ahead, unaware of them.
“Phrixus, how about you and I get its partner, and leave the other one to Valeria?” says Roberth.
“No dice, I will handle them myself. I’m no damsel in distress,” Valeria says with confidence.
“Your call, show them what you are made of,” says Phrixus.
Valeria leaves the cover of foliage, takes some steps forward and gives a loud whistle to get its attention. The Surmas turn to face her, making their usual snarling they proceed to rush forward to her, one of the beasts reaches her first and lunges. Valeria responds by sidestepping the pounce and counterattacks with a strong kick to the underbelly of the creature. With the first creature stunned for the moment she quickly focuses her attention to the other aggressor which makes the same attack as its companion. It manages to narrowly hit her on the upper left part of her chest, but with the armor she is wearing it turns out to be only a minor puncture wound. She slashes the head of the Surma with her claws and it flinches.
The other Surma quickly regains its breath and swiftly pounces at Valeria from behind, it grasps her back and tries to bite her on the neck. Phrixus and Roberth want to help her but they are reluctant to step in the fight after she told them to let her do this herself. She suffers a moderate injury to her neck, this triggers an adrenaline rush in Valeria and she raises her arms and sinks her fingernails into the Surma on her back and furiously rends the creature, ripping its scales and quills in the process and breaking free from its clutches. The one who received the slash to the head charges forward, and she evades the attack, jumping over the critter and then stomping its head with her left foot with enough force to kill it. The remaining injured Surma tries to retaliate, even in such bad condition, but Valeria performs a roundhouse kick which leaves the creature completely powerless. She goes behind the beast, grabs it by the maw with one hand and with the other shreds its throat. With its blood gushing from the wounds, the Surma dies.
“Beat that, wimps,” Valeria says.
“The crowd cheers in exhilaration,” says Phrixus.
“As Phrixus once said, that’s the fighting spirit of a honey badger,” says Roberth.
“I haven’t heard that nickname since… elementary school, I guess that moniker is fitting.”
“Looks like we are done here, they better stay away from my backyard,” says Roberth.
“Also… you are not going to get a sample of their blood, Valeria?” says Phrixus.
“From those things? Hell no, by their hideous look I could morph to a grotesque, disfigured creature if I take a piece from them, at least my hands and fingernails rejected their blood.”
“In any case, we have passed Phrixus’s death test perfectly,” says Roberth.
“This was the first of many coming tests, my gullible buddy, we are just getting started,” says Phrixus.
“Aww, Fu…” Roberth curses.
They go back to the hideout, resuming their daily lives and sometimes going hunting to exterminate any excess Apophlings they can find in the wilds, turning it in some kind of training and hobby to spend the time, as nothing out of the ordinary was happening these days…