SNAFU: Hunters

They headed out in diamond formation. Nathan took point.  Professor took rear security. Leon was on the left, Deacon the right. Donaldson took the centre, escorting Hiro. They marched a long time, deeper into the forest, without speaking.

“Hey Nathan,” Donaldson said. “The boatman wants somethin’.”

“He wants a fix,” Nathan said.

“I don’t think so.”

Nathan stopped and turned. Hiro had a wide-eyed expression. He spoke urgently, fear in his voice, and motioned to the trees.

“What’s up with him?”

“Prob’ly just freakin’ out from the drugs.”

“Probably not,” the Professor said. “Heroin has a calming effect.”

“You think he knows something we don’t?” Donaldson’s voice wavered.

“Nah,” Leon shook his head. “He’s just a junkie.”

Nathan wasn’t so sure. Fear crept along his skin, like the forest was watching him. “Keep your eyes open,” he ordered. His heart beat hard in his chest, and he wiped a bead of sweat from his temple. “Something’s out there.”

“He’s pointing at something,” Donaldson said.

Hiro gesticulated towards the forest, an angle halfway between Nathan and Leon.

“What do you see?” Nathan squinted as he stared into the forest. A shape resolved, nearly imperceptible against leafy backdrop. A tall, slender creature stood just two dozen paces away, nearly invisible, seemingly made of glass. Its outline was only visible from the creature’s gentle, hypnotic sway.

“Squad,” Nathan said just loud enough to be heard. “Rapid, on my signal.” He levelled his rifle. The creature cocked its head to the side then leapt into the trees. Nathan fired, bullets tracing the movement of the thing into the leaves. A hail of fire followed from his squadmates; bursts from Deacon and Leon, shots from Donaldson and the professor.

“Ceasefire!” Nathan ordered.

“Did we get it?” Leon asked.

“I don’t think so.” Professor shook his head. “No body.”

“There was just one right?” Donaldson asked.

The men scanned the forest, listening intently. It was deathly quiet. No motion, except for the swaying of leaves in the wind.

“It was standing right in front of us. Shit, man, did you see that?” Leon’s voice wavered.

“It was almost fuckin’ invisible,” Donaldson said.

“My question is,” Nathan said, “how did he know it was there?”

The men glanced briefly at Hiro.

“Is it still around?” Nathan asked Hiro, waving towards the forest. “Is it still out there?”

Hiro seemed to understand. He squinted, ran his eyes over the forest, took a deep breath then pointed. Nathan looked towards the spot but saw only waving leaves.

“Ready,” Nathan said, and the squad aimed their weapons.

“I don’t see shit,” Deacon muttered.

Leon frowned as he peered at the spot. “Where is it?”

“Grenades,” Nathan ordered. Deacon popped a high-frag round into his XM-148, and Nathan loaded a high-explosive. “Fire.”

The team unloaded. Two grenade rounds exploded in the distance, one blasting a sphere of destruction, the other sending a hail of fragmentation through the trees. They emptied their magazines into the forest.

“Ceasefire.”

It was quiet, except for the reloading of weapons. Nathan plugged a canister into his 40mm attachment when something dropped from the trees. It landed forty paces away, crashed flat to the ground.

Nathan signalled to move, pointed to the spot, and the squad advanced in formation. Nathan reached it first, and saw a giant green body splayed on the ground. “We got it,” he said over his shoulder, keeping his weapon trained on the motionless body. The others rushed forward; circled around the fallen creature.

“The hell is that thing?” Donaldson said, disgust thickening his voice.

“Whatever it is,” Leon said, “we really fucked it up.”

There were more than a dozen holes blasted through the creature’s body. Its right arm was severed near the shoulder, and other limbs hung by strands of flesh. Pieces of the creature were scattered around where it fell, and the whole mess sat in a puddle of green liquid and innards.

“Looks like it’s got scales,” the Professor said. “Like a fish.”

“That’s not a fucking fish,” Leon scoffed.

“No shit.”

The Professor bent to examine the creature. He probed with the barrel of his SKS, running it against a series of large open slits on the creature’s mangled torso. “It’s got gills, too.”

The creature twitched.

A flash of movement.

The Professor’s eyes went wide, his jaw dropped open. The creature’s remaining arm had plunged through the Professor’s gut, emerging blood-soaked from the other side. The appendage withdrew, and the man slumped to the ground.

“Professor,” Deacon yelled. He pulled his squadmate close as Donaldson and Leon unloaded into what was left of the green carcass, shredding it into sloppy chunks.

The Professor coughed up blood. “Shit,” he managed, through heaving breaths. “Must’ve been a reflex… Defence mechanism for the gills…”

“Take it easy, Professor,” Nathan said. “We’ll get you back to base.”

“Bullshit,” the Professor said. He was leaking badly from both sides of the wound.