(Previously, from AFTER THE FLESH - LIMBS - PREDATOR PREY - 001.)
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In stunned silence, you tightly grasp James’ arm, and you walk over to Brian, to see your little brother dead. His arm oozing blood and his head partially cracked open. The older couple doesn’t know what to do, so they come to stand beside you in shock. You let go of James’ arm and crouch down, just to check for a pulse on Brian, even though you know you won’t find one.
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You don’t even notice that James has gone over to study the corpse of the other man, laying dead near the casket. Or that he has picked up a shovel. You put your finger to your brother’s neck and find it cold and dead. Without warning, Brian’s arm shoots up and grabs your arm in an iron grip, turning his sunglass clad face towards you, as he shouts “Die, Bitch!”
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(and now...)
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After the Flesh - Limbs - Predator Prey - 002
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Brian’s hand is supernaturally strong, and you can feel it starting to break your arm, as he pulls you towards him like you weighed nothing. His mouth opens, just as you feel the older couple grab you and try to pull you away. It’s a tug-of-war, with you and these two strangers on one side, and a prone dead Brian on the other. It is obvious that your deceased brother is winning, even though he is only using one arm. Your mind races and you start to panic, but you can’t think of anything to do. You are using all your strength, weight, and focus to try to pull away, because you have the trepidation that if Brian bites you, it’s over.
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Without warning, you hear a clang, and you see the shovel head bounce off the older man’s skull. He drops like a rock, right onto Brian. Brian immediately let’s go and grabs the older man with both arms and bites deep into his neck, sending a gush and spurt of blood all over you and the older lady. She shrieks in horror “Earl!”, and grabs her husband’s jacket in desperation, trying to pull him off.
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You step back, stunned. James is standing there, holding the shovel with a look of determination and… glee(?) on his face. Calmly watching the older man getting bitten and the older lady trying to pull him away. He states, “She’s going to die if she keeps trying to help him.”
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You stare at your son in complete horror. This 13-year-old boy just calmly caused the death of a stranger and didn’t even have the nerve to look bothered. But… it also just saved your life in a situation you were not going to get out of on your own. That thought sobers you up, and then becomes action. You grab the lady and pull her away from her husband and Brian. She’s fights against you, trying to help her Earl, and wailing in terror.
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“What have you done?” you yell at your son while you wrestle the woman away from the carnage of her dead husband. She stops fighting you and just stares at the grisly scene. Brian sits up, holding Earl’s dead body on his lap. He drives his hands into Earl’s torso and starts pulling out handfuls of organs, stuffing them into his hungry mouth, with viscera and crimson fluids smearing his face.
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You pull James and the lady back down the hill, towards the vehicles and away from this appalling feast. None of you take your eyes off Brian as you three back away quickly.
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James replies, “I was saving you from Brian.” He almost sounds hurt.
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“James. You just killed a man. Do you understand that?”
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“Yes, I do. But you’re my dad and I need you. I used one potential threat to stop another.”
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You stop walking at his words. The… simplicity of it. The cold calculations and lack of hesitation in this boy who is still holding the shovel he just used to sacrifice a man. Not even concerned that that man’s wife was walking with them and hearing every word. What must she be thinking to hear James describe her husband as a ‘potential threat?’ How is she ever going to live with everything that just happened?
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All of you are shocked out of your thoughts as Brian roars “Die Bitch!” as he spews out all the entrails he just consumed. Like they were rotten, and he was rejecting them. He looks around and sees you three backing down the hill and immediately stands up, dropping Earl’s limp, desecrated corpse to the ground. Brian starts to stomp towards you, gaining speed like a juggernaut. He even kicks through a tombstone with one leg as he storms towards you.
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“Run!” you yell, as you turn to flee. Brian is moving quickly, and you just know you won’t be able to outrun him. Especially if tombstones aren’t even an obstacle to him.
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This time, your stomach turns when you hear the “Clang.” You turn back to see James starting to run with you, the shovel in hand, and the older lady on the ground, holding her broken knee and staring at James with shock and complete dread. Brian is baring down on her, as James runs past you saying, “Come on Harry, let’s get away while he’s distracted.”
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What is your next step?
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For the rest of the story up to this point, start here:
-> AFTER THE FLESH - PITH - 001 (main story)
-> AFTER THE FLESH - LIMBS - T&A - 001 (first spin-off)
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I'm going to mention all the folks who said they wanted to be tagged when new installments of this story, here in the blog, instead of in the comments. If you don't want to be tagged any more, please let me know and I will remove your name from future entries, with understanding. If you want to be tagged so you can see each new chapter, please let me know and I'll add you.
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@alexislust, @alyria, @aschiron, @ajsul, @belladonna, @bob_dylan, @bradmax, @capsblazem, @cerebus666, @headshot, @helainked, @iwasagain, @jadestone, @jecht, @jjtjames5x, @johnnydiscard, @juliju, @littlejohn22, @metalfreak, @mirameow, @nerestorm, @rare, @samihain, @samis, @shameless, @sheashannara, @smashcls, @starry, @tarot, @tc_nikon, @thullemontes, @wizard0, @wolfwood1203
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Thank you everyone, for helping me stay motivated with this. And I would love to hear your thoughts on this.
