Monster Gauntlet by Paul Emil

before, my body went on autopilot and my mind was free to wander. In one way, we were doing alright. We were still working together as a team. We had faced two monsters, and as of now, there were two dead monsters and five living, injury-free Runners (well, not including Marine). So far so good.
    But then there was the other side of the coin. The contest had just started and I had almost been taken out. I hated to admit it, but I couldn’t have survived without help. I shuddered to think what was in store for us, and that this was only the beginning. The day had just started.
    I was starting to lose my mind but regained control. I hoped that would last. I didn’t know how we were going to make it to the end of the day, never mind nightfall. And if did make it to castle to camp, what horrors awaited us in the night?
    Again, the one recurring thought I kept trying to banish from my brain returned. We’re doomed.

13
     
     
    We carried on northward until we came to a rushing burn. It was full of fast-moving water, which is typical from the rain-swollen weather. Fortunately, there were places where it was small enough to jump over. I knelt at its banks and plunged my hands into the icy water. I rinsed my mouth. At first I tasted traces of my own blood and spat. Then I drank the pure, cold water. I checked my teeth with my tongue. They were OK. My left eye was swelling up. I cut part of my sleeve to make a rag, dipped it into the ice-cold creek, and held the compact to my face. It helped keep the swelling down. Well, that, and a pill from the med-kit.
    I had lost all sense of time. Out of all of the tools we’d been offered, nobody had thought to ask for a watch. I had no knowledge of and no control over my time. I hated the feeling. Unfortunately, the helpless feeling sort of fit my mood. My sense of time and my ability to plan accordingly were just more things I had no control over.
    One thing the group agreed on was when it was time for a break. We found some large rocks to sit on and we ate. I shared my food with the others. Bear scowled at my generosity. He probably figured I owed it all to him for saving my life (which he kind of did), but I didn’t let that sway me. I was sure cared less about my life and more about “wasting ammo.”
    At some point, Marine nudged me. I looked down at saw him holding a metal canister. He was handing back my mace.
    “You found it!” I exclaimed. Then, after some thought, I said, “Keep it. I have a gun now.”
    He shook his head. “No,” he said. “It’s yours.”
    Then, with a sly smile, he added, “Don’t worry about me.”
    His weird smile made me wonder just what type of secret weapon he might be packing, or if he really thought he was that badass with just a knife and grenade. Either way, his confidence was sexy.
    Bear growled, “Sorry to interrupt your love fest over there, but’s time to get moving.” Everyone agree, and we did.
     
    –––––
    We crossed the creek and clouds descended on us like gaseous monsters creeping their way down from mountaintop haunts. Wind and rain pushed us about, then subsided to a moist lull between storms – typical Scottish weather. Even after the storm subsided, the clouds in the sky churned and swirled like gambling gods looking down and deciding out fate.
    At some point the trees parted as we passed through an isthmus between wide open spaces. The walls of forest closed in like the jaws of a death trap. I felt better when we passed through to the other side,” but then I tensed up almost immediately. Far off in the middle of open area up ahead was a large mound – a bump in an otherwise flat field. It pushed up from the earth like a something hiding under the covers at the foot of your bed at night. On top of it was something that looked like a crucifixion.
    We passed the base of the knoll with weapons drawn. The wooden cross looked like a capital “T”. There was a figure bound to it with rope. It was unmistakably