Mya's Monster Collection - Part 1

The car drove quietly along the winding single-lane road. Tall rock walls were littered alongside the forest, giving any would-be hikers a challenge.

Mya peered out the window of the car. The scenery was relaxing. Definitely more relaxing than looking at her driver, Marco. She was too shy to look him in the eye after Marlon, his brother and her friend from class, accidentally slipped about her crush.

“Hey Mya, have you ever been hiking along here? My family took our dogs out here a couple of times when we were younger. They say a lot of wolves and deer live here but, you know what, I would love to visit that place in Japan where the deer walk up to you and let you feed them.”

Mya snapped out of her trance and shyly replied, “oh, I think you mean Nara, Japan. I’ve only seen internet videos but yeah, that does sound cool. Mya made sure to speak to the back of Marlon’s seat in front of her. Looking at the driver was a bit too much. She didn’t want her heart to start racing. The hike hadn't even begun.

Marco snickered at Marlon.

“A deer might bite your hand off, Marlon. You know you got that magic touch with animals. Remember the petting zoo when you were 8? The goats snatched the feed right out of your hand and you freaked. You haven’t been able to pet an animal besides a dog since then.

Marlon frowned and blushed.

“Don’t embarrass me in front of friends, bro. And besides, that happened a while ago. I haven’t been afraid of anything like that.”

Mya giggled listening to the embarrassing story before quickly averting her gaze. She almost caught Marco’s eye in the rear view mirror.

“Well, we’ll be at the lake soon. You know the camping around this area is supposed to be some of the best in the county. I heard there are some interesting fish and birds to see on the edges of the lake.”

Marlon laughed and added. “Well, hopefully the animals don’t bother us.”

As if by sheer coincidence, Mya noticed a blue tinted creature, staring at the car on the side of the road before disappearing as quickly as she saw it appear.

“Oh, that looked interesting. It was some kind of blue creature. Like a rabbit or something.”

Marlon and Marco both laughed unconvinced.

“There aren’t any blue rabbits out here, Mya. Let’s get to the lake soon. This car ride is giving you hallucinations,” Marlon said with a grin on his face.

Mya rolled her eyes and replied, “Fine then Nature Man. Let’s see how well the woodland creatures treat you before you are ready to head back home.”

Like a sheet of clean glass, the water on the lake appeared almost smooth. There was little wind in the air but strangely, the clouds seemed ever abundant.

“This seems like a good spot to set up the fishing lures. Marlon, did you and Mya want to get the bait ready on the fishing hooks?”

Marlon grabbed a large, red container from the trunk of the car and held it up.

“Got it right here, bro. Mya, did you say before that you haven’t done this before, right? Let me show you.”

“Sure,” Mya said as she followed Marlon to a log to have a seat. Peering into the red container, Mya gulped as she saw various insects squirming and writhing over one another.

Marlon smirked at Mya as he could read her discomfort.

“Don’t worry. It gets easier the more you do it. Just put on these gloves. It helped me the first time I did it.”

Mya slipped on the pair of gloves Marlon handed to her.

“If you say so. I’ll just follow your lead.”

Marlon dove his hand into the container and whispered to Mya.

“You know, you don’t have to be so shy. I’m sorry again about telling my brother about your crush. He likes to poke fun at me all the time and I just…let it slip. Sorry!”

Mya gave a soft smile and gave Marlon a quick glance.

“I’m not upset about it. I mean, look at your brother. I always knew he was out of my league. Plus, you know, he is in college. We’re just about to finish high school. It was just a little crush. I’m sure I’ll be over it eventually.”

“Oh, I thought you said you liked him since middle school. It didn’t seem like…”

Mya narrowed her gaze at Marlon and she prepared to stick her hand in the container..

“Let’s not worry about it. What I am worried about is this thing crawling into my clothes and under my skin where it can lay eggs and…” Mya waved a worm in front of Marlon’s face as he jumped back. Mya giggled as Marlon fell to the ground.

“What’s wrong? I thought you were over your fear of bugs like you said in the car…”

“Take your advice and ignore the past,” Marlon snapped back and he pulled himself up.

Mya giggled once more as Marlon sat back down. Just as Mya was about to bring her attention back to the worms, she stared over Marlon’s shoulder as a small, blue blur darted behind him and into the bushes.

“What was that? What is a blue jay or something?” Mya asked as Marlon turned around, confused.

“I don’t know but, want to go see it?”

“Sure but what about the bait?”

“Don’t worry about that. Let’s not miss the chance to see some pretty animals. I think I need this trip to relax after all the assignments we’ve been getting.

Slowly dashing away as Marco was focused on emptying the car, Mya and Marlon stealthily made their way through the bushes, looking for any sign of a blue creature.

“It was like a navy blue color. Something really vibrant that...ouch.”

A branch snagged Mya’s brown kinky curls and she tried to move through the foliage.

“Hold up, let me put this beanie on,” Mya said, pulling a small knit hat from her hoodie.

Marlon and Mya looked around the bushes, walking slowly so as to not disturb the creature in case it was frightened.

Without warning, a small rabbit dashed past Marlon.

“Look, there is it. It’s a blue rabbit or something!” Mya said quickly to try and pinpoint where the creature scurried off to.

Marlon looked quickly around him and stopped in his tracks, staring into the distance.

“Look! Look! There it goes Marlon! Don’t you want to…”

Mya stared at Marlon, confused as his attention seemed to be elsewhere.

“Umm, Marlon, the rabbit…”

“Wait!” Marlon shot back, holding his hand up to pause Mya. “Something is coming this way. It sounds like a car or…”

As if appearing from nowhere, the sound of a motorcycle could be heard fast approaching. In only a few moments, the sound of forest being crushed and torn filled the air.

“There! Behind you, Mya!”

Before Mya had time to react, a motorbike raced past her, destroying whatever foliage it trod upon. A person with a black biker suit grasped onto the motorbike with one hand and held a long black stick in another. As if lighting a torch, the tip of the black stick flashed bright blue.

Leaning off the side of the motorbike, the person in black swung the black baton into the bushes, striking the strange rabbit in hiding. The rabbit flew through the air with a squeal before landing ever so softly on its feet. Crouching slightly, the rabbit gazed at the motorbike just as it performed an about-face. The machine revved its engines before charging the small creature once more.

Mya and Marlon could only lean tightly against a nearby tree, too frightened to move. The black baton again glowed a luminous blue, but this time, electric sparks cackled from the weapon’s tip. With the swiftness of a dancer, the rabbit again dodged another blaring swipe from the motorcyclist. The rabbit seemed to relaxed its stance, confident the

“Why isn’t that thing running away?” Marlon asked Mya as she could only stare at the scene unfolding.

“Why aren’t we running, Marlon?” Mya shot back as they each gave a quick glance to the other before proceeding to make a quick exit.

The small rabbit instantly took notice of the other two attempting to escape and took aim. The rabbit dashed after the two, leaving the motorcycle struggling to maneuver a new direction so quickly.

Running with all their might, the pair continued their escape until finally, they reached the fishing spot near the lake. Out of breath, the two

“What the heck was that? That thing...uh...rabbit, whatever really was trying to fight that motorcycle,” Marlon said, still trying to catch his breath.

Before Mya could reply to Marlon, her eyes widened to see the blue and white rabbit jumping nimbly from tree to tree overhead.

As if conjuring a scream from deep inside her belly, Mya let out, “Watch out!” just as the rabbit leapt to a nearby tree. Without any time to react, the rabbit plunged from the tree and onto Marlon, grasping tightly to his head and covering his eyes with its claws.

Marlon screamed as Mya ran to his side. The sound of fast approaching footsteps could be heard as Marco quickly shot out, “What happened? Marlon, Mya, what’s going on?!”

Mya tried to grab the rabbit but Marlon, in pain and distress, flailed his body around, trying his best to dislodge the creature.

Seemingly all at one moment, Marlon’s body froze stiff. Marco, finally grabbed the creature, pulled on Marlon’s head with all his might, but was unable to tear the creature away. With all the commotion, both Marco and Mya jumped as the motorcycle had finally caught up with them. Flashing the baton once more, the pursuer charged the motorbike straight toward Marlon.

“No! What are you doing! Stop!” Marco screamed as the bike grew closer with every second. In a desperate frenzy, Marco grabbed Marlon, throwing himself and his brother to the ground to dodge the charge. Mya watched as the bike twisted itself around, ready for another strike..

(To be continued…)