Steps splashed through the puddles. Thin raindrops falling from the sky as if they were weaving it. The cold wind pushed all his attempts to escape towards the forest, not far from him.
Drops of crimson blood left a mark of his passage, soaking the wet dirt. The heavy breathing of the burly man caused a rasping sound to come from his mouth. The man had his beard stained with blood, he was holding his left arm, which let rivers of blood flow to the ground.
"Damn it!"
He held back his scream, trying not to attract the threat that followed him. His body had lost all signs of strength, his legs crawled, trying to reach the forest. His arms constantly sent sharp pain to his brain.
The man looked behind him. There was a hill, mostly soaked in blood, staining the green grass, and at the top, hundreds of silhouettes looking at him with intense red eyes.
'I've been running three hours… Why are they so persistent?'
Barely forming a thought, the man fell to his knees, without more energy. The wet dirt made it sink slowly.
He lost all hope of escape.
The silhouettes went down slowly, as if they wanted to increase the person's suffering at every moment. Step by step, the creatures left deep marks of their footprints behind them, all the red eyes pointing in only one direction.
The bearded man.
The burly man glanced. Right now, he just wanted to finish this agony as quickly as possible. He hoped that it was going to be fast…
Finally, the creatures were close enough to feel their heavy breathing. However, they did not attack, they just looked at him.
The closest creature moved to one side, showing a young man appearing between the creatures.
Telos looked at the bearded man with his imposing eyes, and a satisfied smile appeared on his face.
"We've met again."
The young man's voice sounded excited, finally, he could take his revenge.
"Telos…"
The burly man's voice sounded hoarse and scratchy. He continued:
"...Why are you doing all this?"
Telos opened his eyes, surprised by his words. After a couple of seconds, he sighed, shaking his head slightly.
"What do you mean?"
Telos continued, without waiting for a response from the man.
"I've been hated since I was born, I grew up being hit every day, and nobody even worried about it. Are you sure that is the question you should ask?"
Those last words were full of anger and hate. But all that feeling was minimal compared to the rage he felt after the man responded:
"I thought… You wanted to be treated like that."
All emotion disappeared from Telos' eyes, replaced with a coldness and killing intent. He could not believe that someday he would hear those words. How is it even possible?
Telos chuckled in disbelief, covering his face with his hands.
"You can not be serious…"
The young man pierced him with his look, and with a serene voice, he ordered:
"Kill him."
The creature at his left moved a step forward and raised his arm… his tentacle… whatever it was.
Its arm was long and elusive, with multiple small spikes emerging along its arm. This one ended with six long, disgustingly human fingers… The body was strangely thick and greasy, taking on a circular shape like an octopus. Its face was harrowing, with a long mouth full of fangs that wouldn't let it close, and finally, its reddish eyes.
Telos closed his eyes, he was not ready to see that… Blood splashed on his cheek. He opened his eyes after a few seconds, only to observe the bloody furrows left by the man's knees.
There was no scream. No pleading. The man just accepted his fate.
Telos let out a sigh, tired of this strange day. He raised his head, looking at the hundreds of stars above his head, shining calmly, as if nothing had happened.
He tried to turn around, but suddenly, he received a strong blow on his back. He flew strongly backwards, being stopped by the first tree that gave entrance to the forest.
Telos coughed up blood. He grimaced in pain, trying to find out what was happening. He focused his gaze towards the front.
Now, the dozens of creatures had him as their aim.
He clicked his tongue and tried to stand up. He made it, with difficulty, but he made it. Telos grabbed the rough surface of the tree and used it to propel himself into the forest.
The persecution had started.
'Why, why, why…'
Telos tried to run the fast possible he could; his legs were still burning and damaged by the pillar that fell on one of them.
'We were good, why suddenly did they attack me?'
With despair in his face, Telos tried to run away, but the creatures were faster, stronger, and in a perfect form. They still had energy for days…
Dodging the trees, trying to confuse them, Telos felt his life drawing ever closer to its end. For some reason, the creatures still couldn't reach him. Was it because they couldn't? No... Impossible. They just wanted to give him hope of survival.
With every second passing, Telos' body screamed in pain more and more. His heart was nearly to explode, his lungs were burning, and his legs did not feel as if they had been ripped apart a long time ago.
But they were not.
Bubbling blood trickled slowly from his lips. His vision occasionally blurred, and his senses seemed to slowly fade. The last thing the young man could smell was the disgusting, emaciated smell of the creatures.
Even then, Telos persisted and ran. He had something on his mind? We could not know, but the glow of confidence in his eyes did not disappear.
Seconds passed, then minutes, and without even knowing, hours.
At this point, the sun emerged from the horizon. The first rays of light entering the forest, reflecting on the leaves and of course, Telos face.
The young man had lost all his energy. He dragged himself heavily along the ground, leaving behind a bloody trail. Stroke after stroke, Telos moved forward, without looking back.
But there was one thing he knew. He somehow had lost the creatures. During his getaway, he listened to how a battle started behind him, but he did not look what see the reason; he just ran away.
Stroke after stroke, the young man sensed how his body was about to lose consciousness, and his movement was slowly decreasing; his body was unable to move anymore. Even if his mind was telling him to, it no longer seemed to listen.
He stopped.
His mind was fading away, his sight was failing, his smell seemed unable to distinguish the different things that surrounded him, and his hearing… his hearing was filled with continuous annoying beeps, not before making him hear the footsteps of whatever was approaching.
Telos gulped, lightly hydrating his dry throat. Was this his final? He did not know, or yes?
His borrowed sight could barely make out the figure in front of him. But it was enough. The silhouette he saw was of a human. He did not know if was good news or bad news.
He only knew that his life depended on what that person decided.
Finally, Telos lost his consciousness, being trapped in absolute darkness and with an uncertain future. One thing was clear: he can rest now, at least.
***
Time passed by. The pure and fresh air filled Telos' lungs and cooled the sensation of burning on them. A warm hug surrounded the young man, enough to revitalize his body.
The singing of the birds entered his ears, healing them of the grotesque and loud sounds that he had constantly heard. Telos slowly woke up.
His vision was quickly invaded by the warm rays of light. He put his forearm covering them.
"Where am I?"
Telos wondered, looking around, he saw himself in a bedroom that was perhaps ordinary, but for him was like a luxury. A fluffy bed with a black quilt, which covered his bruised body. In front of him, it could be seen a space of a dozen of meters.
In that space, a big mirror reflected his figure. Its silver frame gave it an air of elegance and refinement.. On Telos' left side, a wooden window was opened, letting the sunlight and the pure air enter freely. The birds were playing in the tops of the green trees.
At his right side, a white wooden drawer lay empty, but it gave elegance to the room. The walls, on the other hand, were white with flower designs on them, and finally, on the roof, an enormous candelabra danced slightly with the breeze.
"Am I in heaven?"
The door of the bedroom opened, and a deep voice responded to his words:
"No, you're not."
Telos glanced towards the man. He was incredibly tall, and his body was perfectly trained. His face was sharp, it seemed that his face shone in the sunlight, and his blue eyes seemed to reflect it. His short, blonde hair danced slightly to the breeze's rhythm.
He was… a rich guy.
As if the man read his thoughts, he talked once more:
"I'm Colonel Jack. I do not know if you have an exact knowledge of what is happening in the world, but I'm here to explain to you."
He took a pause and continued. The air filled with tension.
"I want you to know something. The world is coming to an end."