MicroHorror

In the poor soil atop the ridge scrub pines grew twisted and deformed, making an eerie silhouette against the darkening sky. Upon the ridge was the beast.

Warm breezes wafted up the heavily forested slope carrying telltale scents of what lay hidden in the river valley below. There was the musky scent of deer. An overwhelming urge to hunt moved the creature down the slope when suddenly there was a new odor, one of burning wood mixed with another tantalizing scent–that of flesh being charred. It sniffed audibly with flared nostrils to locate the source. It moved toward it.

***

Through the steamed-up windshield Sue gazed up at the crescent moon, thinking, “How many hands does he have, anyway?”

“Todd,” she said, “do you realize there are Americans on the moon? I mean right now,
this minute?”

Todd glanced upward. “Groovy. Now where was I?” He unsnapped her jeans.

“Todd!” The AM radio was playing “Hey Jude” again. Sue wanted to just sit back and listen. She sighed, “The Beatles, men of many talents; Todd, man of many hands.”

“Come on, Sue, they invented that pill for a reason.”

“Uh-huh. The hamburgers are burning.”

“Hamburgers?”

“You know, the 69-cents-per-pound hamburgers. The ones you made a scene about to the store manager.”

“It was robbery! And gas went up to 32 cents!”

“But I’m worth it. Now check the burgers.”

Jerking upright when the windshield caved in, Todd caught a two-inch-long claw in his forehead as four gigantic fingers clamped the base of his skull and squeezed unmercifully. The beast pulled and swiveled, jerking Todd through the shattered glass, sending his shredded body cartwheeling across the river, his crushed skull spewing blood and brains.

Sue barely had time to scream. A monstrous back and massive shoulders silhouetted against the night sky were all she saw. Glass from the shattered windshield continued to fall, sparkling proudly in the faint moonlight. The thing turned. As its eyes met hers she mercifully fainted.

***

Flashing lights and radio chatter filled the picnic area.

“Eaten,” a deputy said. “Flat eaten!”

Sheriff Harris barked, “Deputy Riker! Get a blanket and cover that… that thing!”

“It’s not an ‘it,’ sheriff. That’s Sue Erving, or what’s left of her. The car is Todd Posner’s. Wonder where he is?”

The sheriff fought to keep his supper down. “Grizzly attack, maybe. Probably dragged the boy off somewhere. But hell, there haven’t been grizzlies around here for decades.”

“Maybe one just passing through?”

“No. Check the spacing of the claw marks on the roof. No bear has a paw that big.”

Another deputy shouted from near the river, “Sheriff, look at this!”

He looked where the deputy indicated with his light. There in the riverbank lay a trail of enormous human-like tracks sunk into the rocky soil.

The deputy nodded. “Whatever it was went into the river. Bear looking for salmon, maybe?”

Harris shook his head. “No. Whatever made these walks on two legs and has a seven-foot stride. Get casts. Good God, they look twenty inches long.”

The deputy had a very uneasy feeling. “God in Heaven, Sheriff, what happened here tonight?”

He shook his head. “Other than the obvious, I don’t know.”

“The obvious?”

“Yeah, whatever it was was huge and powerful… and hungry.”

They felt a sudden chill while gazing into the dark undergrowth on the other side of the river.

The Earth continued on its endless journey through the icy cold of space. The creatures of the night resumed their calling. One of the most momentous days for America was about to pass into history, leaving in its wake three very confused law officers.

• Copyright: © 2009 Jerry Scarbrough