TOOMICS

Chapter 17: Big News

As he regained control, all that met his eyes were the remnants of his victims.

They lay mangled beyond recognition, even by their loved ones. It was a gruesome and disturbing sight, yet to him, it was just another day.

He didn\'t see his actions as wrong; after all, he was a monster .

To him, humans were mere sustenance, and any sense of pity towards them indicated a flaw in his mind. For a being like him, showing concern for human life was akin to a mental disorder .

"I need to escape," he muttered, his senses tingling with urgency.

Realizing he had no time to spare, he fled from the cemetery, this time veering away from the town and into the depths of the forest.

Knowing that dogs could follow his smell, and with a path of dead police officers behind him, he understood it wouldn\'t be long before others would be chasing him.

He had managed to deal with those policemen easily because they were unprepared and armed only with pistols.

However, he knew that facing a special forces team, equipped with heavy machinery and thorough preparation, would be a different story. If they were to pursue him, catching him would be easy for them.

SWOOOOOSH!

SWOOOOOSH!

His four legs ran through the forest, the cold air of the night brushing on his face . He needed to create a distance before morning.

Good thing that he increased his stamina so he wouldn\'t get tired that fast.

Unlike living beings, Reign\'s stamina operated differently. When it depleted, he didn\'t experience tiredness; instead, he would instantly feel the need to sleep. He made this discovery when he pushed himself to run to his limit a few days ago.

As he fled deeper into the forest, his feet pounded with each leap from one tree to another, his movements quick and agile.

Branches blurred past him as he navigated the dense foliage, his senses heightened to the slightest rustle in the undergrowth.

Finally, he stumbled on a serene river snaking through the heart of the forest.

\'I feel sleepy already,\' he muttered, stifling a yawn as the weariness of his escape took its toll.

Despite the urgency of his situation, he forced himself to scan his surroundings.

To his relief, he spotted a cave nestled amidst the rugged terrain.

Dragging himself into the darkness of the cave, he collapsed onto the cold, rocky floor, surrendering to the embrace of sleep as the world faded into oblivion around him.

***

Back to town.

The community received news about a wild animal, possibly a grizzly bear, that was killing people. So, they were all instructed to stay at home.

While some of them who were not superstitious believed the story, others suspected that it might not be just a grizzly bear, but rather a supernatural creature instead.

"Could it be a werewolf?" A man voiced his concern as he peered out the window, clutching a shotgun.

He felt the need to safeguard his family if there was something lurking in the darkness and harming people.

"Do you believe in that nonsense?" His wife responded, reclining on the bed while scrolling through her phone. It seemed more plausible to her that it was simply a wild animal behaving erratically, possibly due to rabies.

While instances of bears having rabies were exceedingly rare, it was not impossible, given that all mammals could contract the disease.

The husband stopped arguing and stayed watchful.

"Mama," a small voice echoed from just behind their door.

Hearing their daughter\'s voice, the mother walked slowly towards the door, opened it, and saw a girl around the age of 12 holding her doll.

"Did the noise wake you up, sweetie?" The woman patted her daughter and gave her a hug before lifting her up.

"Mama, are monsters real?" the kid asked.

"Of course not, sweetie. Your father is just superstitious, that\'s all," the woman replied, reassuring her daughter.

"But Daddy is right," the kid replied.

The mother wanted to reassure her again, but before she could do anything, she felt a cold sensation on her neck. Then there was a thud, and her head fell down.

The father witnessed everything and pointed his gun towards his daughter, who was now floating in mid-air, using his wife\'s blood as a stool.

"Daddy, are you going to kill Anna?" the girl said with a sad expression.

"I..." He hesitated, the girl in front of him was his daughter after all.

"I won\'t." He dropped his gun and knelt on the ground. He had known all along the true identity of his daughter, but he had hidden it because of his love for her.

"Daddy, let\'s go to the forest and save my own kind," she said as she walked towards him and patted his head.