The only sounds are my pulse thumping in my ears and the rasps of my panted breaths. Even the bugs have stopped chirping. The jungle is as silent as death itself.
An eerie singular whooping noise goes off once, then twice but from a different direction and distance.
Another joins it.
Then another.
Soon there is a cacophony of horrific animalistic whoops and hollers, all sounding closer and closer.
With my heart in my throat, I scramble on hands and knees to the mouth of the cave. There wasn't just one of them.
There wasn't just one of them.
What had the Trixikka said about the mimyckah?They could tear you limb-from-limb.What would a whole bunch of them do?
Below me, the jungle is dark and hard to see, but I can make out Mavyx's skin-stars against the backdrop of the night. He grunts and thrusts his spear into some black mass of monster, making it let loose a blood-curdling scream as it clutches at the pole of Mavyx's weapon buried in its belly. It's then that I notice, Mavyx -my Mavyx- is already fending off another creature who has leapt on his back as five more dark shadows advance on him and God knows how many more are waiting their turn. All I hear is the terrifying whooping calls the mimyckah throw out into the night, signaling to each other to attack.
Oh God!
Oh God, no!
He can't deal with this all on his own! Not with so many. He can't even fly away right now! As soon as he's reached back to throw down the mimyckah who had climbed up his frame, another replaces it, grabbing his wings, trying to tug, twist and break.
Shit-shit-shit-shit!
Mavyx's growls morph into frustrated yells, accompanied by the odd grunt of pain.
No-no-no-no!
There's too many - they're going to swarm him. I have to do something.
Glancing around frantically I see the pile of sizable life-stones and grab a few. Hurling them as hard as I can, I start aiming at the monsters below. It's hard to see in the dim and some of the commotion is covered by the reaching branches of the jungle trees. My first throw misses, but the second lands, injuring a mimyckah's shoulder enough that it slinks away into the jungle. I would've preferred a kill but I'll take anything I can as long as it helps Mav right now.
I keep hurling the stones, my breath ragged and desperate. I miss more than I hit, but one at least seems to land on a smaller creature's head, knocking it out cold.
But all of this seems to draw attention.
One of the creatures looks up, noticing where the flying life-stones are coming from and all I see are its too-big yellow eyes honed in on me as it starts to climb the base of the mountain, a terrifyingly toothy grin on its hideous face.
No you don't, mother-fucker.
I drop another stone, but the monster sees it coming and swings out the way.
Turning to reach for more, my hand lands on nothing. I'm out of life-stones.
Shit.
When I turn back, the mimyckah isright there.
Just below the lip of the cave entrance and I can't stop it from ascending.
"Ah-Lanah!" Mavyx bellows from below. "Fuuuck! Ah-Lanah!"
I know he can't get to me. I know he can't save me.
The mimyckah's long fingers grip the edge of the cave mouth, trying to pull itself up. "No you fucking don't!" I say through clenched teeth as my shaky hand brings the dagger down, embedding itself in the back of its hand. The thing screeches.
"Ah-Lanahhh!....Argh!...Ah-Lanahhh!"
