FINTS

(I was given a link to write and so I wrote it in less time than I normally write a story. Proper edits have not been done. I streamed my writing on the youtubes.)

FINTS

Kevin Conner Nov ©2022

Word Count: 1,442

FINTS

by Kevin Conner

The beast shuddered the trees beneath each beat of his wings. Breathless beauty lay before him, breaking only before the burnt out husk of a town. The strike was decisive, and old. The monster had its way with the town, and then the bodies of those who had dared to flee his terror.

The beast felt the air currents swoop around and break against his body, while the wildlife below broke for thickets and from thickets based on the consumption of air through each sweep of his scaled wings. 30 seconds at a time were spent in a deep cruising dive, low enough to scrape his belly against the tops of the trees, spooking a wide variety of avians and other skyscraping dwellers, before lifting up into a respectable height.

To the average viewer, it might appear to be a random series of aerial tricks and such nonsense. It wasn't. Every movement was to inspire a fear driven egress. Reminding all the sheer power of his size and domination of the skies. Someone, something, somewhere must have survived the town. No destruction could be so complete while buildings were left standing, albeit in the form of burnt out husks. To call it a town would almost be a cold mockery of those who died in the fires that turned streets into glass.

It was as he came close to the town on his fifteenth pass, that he heard the stifled wailing of a child. Curious, the beast broke off his normal circle, and bore down upon the woodland area. As he approached the forest line, he beat the ground with a swipe of both wings, launching him back and up, while bending the bows before his unearthly might.

The caws and calls of wildlife flooded the air with fear and loathing, as woodland creatures from all around, including the insects, broke for safer ground.

The crying stopped, or he was out of range, he wasn't sure. With an aerial backflip, his massive body slowly shrank to whatever onlookers may be below, while the valley itself became no more larger than a dinner plate.

A swift backflip followed, and he bore down upon the spot of the disturbance. It could've been a cat... or a crow... he had to make sure. A child would be no match for him, especially one frozen in place. Cats and crows would go silent, but human children would not.

As he embarrassed the pull of gravity, his body plummeted thousands of feet in mere seconds. “Eshcch-hkom'aht,” he muttered a spell that focused his sight and hearing on the land below. The wind breaking against his ears gave way to the sounds he otherwise could not hear. The sounds were definite. It wasn't a cry from a crow, or a mew of a cat... it was a human offspring, and the terror they felt was not terror of him.

He knew the cry, and it wrenched at his heart. As in all investigations of mass loss, he buried his feelings and empathy deep within. It was cruel to think, but the act of quick identification of survivors was a necessity. The quicker survivors were located, the quicker investigations could be ended, and monsters who created these disasters could be stopped. But, fear was still suffering, and people were still in pain. Most often looked beyond the methods, as they quickly grasped the whys... but not all could, especially those without the ability to reason.

As he approached the trees he prepared his magic for a disturbance free landing.

It was rough. The magic was swift, and complete, but it was rough. An 80 foot fall from any form onto a rough forest landscape was never easy. The end result was the same. Six feet, One Inch. The man walked toward the cries.

“Hello?” he called, the cries suddenly dimmed into a stifled whimpering. The man rounded a large tree and pushed past the brush. Thankfully, no more living things were around to surprise him with a sting or a bite. “I say 'Hello' there!” The human was hiding, but he could tell it was near. “I won't hurt you! I'm here to find some help! I had a bit of an encounter on the road!” He took a deep breath, for his current form that is. The child's location was within a few lengths, but he had been through this before. He had to wait, and pretend he didn't know its location. “I could sure use some help about now! Do you know of any parents or a teacher? They might be able to help me.”

“They,th-they-ere gone!” the child started crying, “They-re-all-l-l-all-go-g-g-gone!”

The man just stared, the child wasn't hiding from him, it wasn't able to move. It was hiding from what happened in the morning. He got up and walked over to the sounds, only to find the child wasn't running, they weren't afraid, they weren't cowering, they were curled up in a ball, crying, holding a strawman doll, and crying. He didn't know what to do. This was no longer an investigation, it was a crusade.

He sat down, again, and held his jaw with his hands, “I'm not.”

The child looked up at him after a few minutes, and wiped her eyes. It was a girl. It could've been a boy, for all he cared, but she did reveal herself to be a girl. Scrapes, ash, swelling... it was clear there was already infection setting into her body from whatever frantic ordeal she faced when escaping the monster who destroyed her town. Her body still quickened in huffing spasms of a deep seated cry, although her eyes were long dry. She gave winces of pain, while trying to squeeze out tears, but they weren't coming. The contortion of her face would've cracked all but the most blackened of hearts.

Without pity, without remorse, the man looked upon the girl, and gave the most heartfelt and reassuring look he could give. She already knew she was living one of the worst experiences she could live. There was no need for him to remind her of how pitiful she looked. She didn't need that. She needed to know someone was there. He guessed her age at around 2, and there were no eloquent words that he knew which could reason with someone so young. He just knew she knew they were all gone, and she needed to know he was there. He was a stranger, but he was there.

“I'm here,” he reassured her once again, “and so is your dolly!”

“M-ma-mom,” she said and held the dolly to him. Barely able to speak through her grief, he put two and two together.

“She made that for you?” he looked at it, and admired it with the skill of an appraiser, “It's the most beautiful dolly I've ever seen! This your mom's hair?”

She nodded and then held the dolly close as she could, before crying.

“A lot of people are still here, a lot of good people,” he tried to reassure her, “Your dolly looks hurt, we should fix her. If you follow me we can find someone to fix her.”

“Kay,” she sniffled, “She's hungry.”

“Then we should get her some food,” the resistance that kept the girl awake and alive, slowly subsided into a relaxed, tired ball. Fints picked her up, and quickly felt the body fall around the dolly, “Oh! Sack of potatoes!” he playfully joked.

“Dad,” she muttered in response, before falling asleep.

The next town was several miles away, but he couldn't risk travel by any other method than walking. It wouldn't be tiring, just slow. The girl's dreams were tormenting. Whenever she shook, he patted her shoulder, whenever she muttered, he whispered “It's ok” in her ear. Always, she kept a firm grasp on her dolly.

Still, he didn't have to walk long, before coming across a party. They were out for blood. The telltale signs of magic use and barbarism adorned their clothing, and while their smiles appeared welcoming, he didn't let the archer's drawn bow slip his gaze. Before they could speak, he made his announcement.

“Hello!” the man called, disturbing the girl slightly from her nightmares, “My name is Fints!”

“Ho, traveler! Vince, you say?” the dwarf took a step forward, “What have you with the girl?”

“The girl, was lost. I could use help bringing her some aid!”

“Aye, and ye?” the dwarf motioned to two companions, who eagerly stepped forward to assist the young man and the girl.

“I'm here to kill a monster.”

“What a coincidence, so are we!”

End