The four in black came in during the darkness, right when it was active, and it easily detected them from the incoming noise of the boat’s motor. These were of the same kind as the ones who hurt it during its captivity. For these ones, it reserved a special kind of hatred. The memories of pain still lingered in its mind, for it was something that could never be forgotten. Striking back against those tormentors had had a profound effect on its wellbeing, and it looked forward to this evening’s hunt.
It lay submerged in the water and they never saw it. The four waded in from the beach, and it could smell the sweat they exuded from their feet. Humans seemed to posses no natural weapons, their weak bodies couldn’t hurt it no matter what they did. The only things it feared were what these people carried in their forward limbs. Those black objects called weapons.
The four men stayed together, each one looking out for the other as they slowly made their way into the house. The prey were in the darkness, and they used no lights, unlike the ones who were there before. By now it could recall where every corridor led, every nook and cranny, each possible direction they could take. There would be no trouble in stalking them. The hunt would be like any other.
It had once feared them greatly, but now its feelings were akin to hate. These were not merely prey, they were enemies that needed to be killed. There would be no mercy, no pity, for it had never been taught any.
Learning to hunt properly meant having patience. It took a few tries in order to hold back the bloodlust, for an alerted prey meant the task would only get harder unless it stayed in control. Extra care was needed to make sure it could strike and kill them one at a time without exposing itself. The injuries it had sustained during the time of captivity were never life-threatening, yet it was the pain that had become the hardest burden to endure. Even after the physical wounds had healed, the searing flashes of agony would still be remembered from time to time.
Sensing the powerful weapons these four carried made for a careful hunt, and it was determined to succeed. It followed them at a discreet distance, for it sensed that these ones could also see in the darkness. The territory had already been marked with its distinct smell, and that proved to be a much-needed distraction for its enemies.
Only when one of them had gone into a room and could not be immediately covered by the others did it finally strike. This first prey wore some sort of armor on his chest, and it had to strike the hairy man in his fleshy neck and face, for there was additional armor on the head too. The prey went down, but he screamed before dying.
The remaining three instantly reacted. It had to quickly hide back in the deep shadows when the deafening noise from their weapons erupted, poking holes in the nearby walls, narrowly missing its back. Luckily it had already climbed out of the window and into an upper level, avoiding the pain they had attempted to inflict upon it.
For awhile the three remaining ones seemed confused, as if they could not understand what they were up against. It could hear their shouts coming from down below. With its enhanced senses returning quickly, it soon felt something else in the air: their rising fear. The tables had suddenly turned.
“What happened to him?”
“Take a look, his face and neck’s been ripped open!”
“I don’t know of anybody being able to do that!”
“What the hell have we gotten ourselves into?”
They were now making the same noises the others made. It couldn’t understand the exact meanings of what it heard, but the growing panic amongst its enemies was obvious. A new feeling began to manifest itself. It was a newfound sense of confidence. It had nothing to fear from these ones either. They were just like the other prey.
It took some time, but it was able to kill them all. The last one seemed to just give up and tried to run back out of the house and towards the beach, but it easily caught up to him. When it got near the shore it sensed another far out across the water, sitting on a boat.
With its hunger satisfied, it decided to stay on land for the rest of the night. There would be no need to hunt the one out at sea unless he got closer. After a time, the boat started up and went away, back to where the blinding lights were.
A new sensation came over it after this latest meal. It felt like a primal instinct, a task that needed to be done in order to thrive and expand its territory. A single word floated in its thoughts, one that had been taught to it during one of the times they had attempted to communicate with it. Children.
19
EARLY MORNING IN LEMURIA, and the coffee shop near the hotel’s front desk was still mostly deserted except for a single attendant manning the counter. Taylor Erskine downed another cup of hot black coffee before asking for yet another refill, which the server dutifully fulfilled. He hadn’t gotten any sleep since he had been monitoring the mercenary team’s progress inside the security room all evening, and now they had failed to contact him the moment they were sent in.
Howie and his people were supposed to check in hours ago, he thought while walking out of the cafe and towards the pier.
He activated his walkie-talkie and held it close to his mouth. “This is Erskine, did we get any coms in yet?”
One of the staffers in the security office answered him. “Nothing so far, sir.”
Erskine made a silent curse as he placed the radio transceiver back onto the side of his belt and continued to walk towards the long jetty. More guests were due to arrive later in the day, and the dawning realization of failure crept into his mind. I’m gonna get fired real soon.
Kazimir Morgenstern was expecting Erskine’s call to deliver the good news that his brother had been found and rescued, and now would have to be told that it didn’t happen. The thought of having to face Kazimir’s withering criticism filled Erskine with more dread than just being let go.
If this place wasn’t an island out in the middle of nowhere I would have already resigned, he thought. Just pack my bags and walk out. But I sure as hell can’t do it here.
He expected Kazimir to fire him, and he would then be forced to find his own way back to the mainland. That’s the kind of man he is. Kazimir won’t tolerate failure of any kind, and he’s going to humiliate me.
Ignoring the morning greetings of a couple of cleaning maids he met while walking along the sandy trail, Erskine pivoted and made his way onto the wooden pier. A small catamaran and a couple of dive boats were moored alongside the dock, their gleaming white hulls reflecting the pooling rays of the morning sun onto the clear blue water.
Erskine spotted one of the boatmen doing some cleaning on one of the brand new dive boats, and he kept walking until he got within earshot. “Gopalan, get up here. I want to talk to you.”
The boatman placed the cleaning rag into a plastic pail full of soapy water before making a short climb back onto the side of the pier. Gopalan stood a meter away from the security chief and made the Namaste greeting. “Good morning, Mr. Erskine.”
Erskine hated having to do the greeting all the time, so he made a dismissive gesture with a wave of his right hand. “What happened last night?”
“I did as you ordered, sir. I took this boat with the four men, and dropped them off at the restricted side of the island.”