“We all would,” Rufus said.
“I’m just saying,” Gary said. “If I’m going to fight something called an apocalypse beast, I’d rather have my powers.”
“We do what we can with what we have,” Rufus said. “Complaining about what we don’t have doesn’t help.”
“It isn’t actually called an apocalypse beast,” Farrah said. “That’s more of an informal category.”
“That’s what we need,” Gary said. “Pedantry.”
“Did you say podiatry?” Jason yelled. The churn of the blood-like pool was growing louder and louder. “Is there something wrong with your feet?”
“I said pedantry!” Gary yelled back.
“Will you both please shut up!” Rufus bellowed.
“If we let this entity go,” Farrah yelled, “it will get out and start feeding on the local animals. The more it feeds, the stronger it gets. If it eats its way through a village or a town, then it will get too strong for any of the local powers to stop it.”
“Can we even do this with our abilities sealed away?” Gary asked. “A handful of cultists is one thing, but a world-destroying blood monster? We have one sword between us. Going for help might not be the worst idea.”
“Real help is a long way from here,” Farrah said.
The pair looked to Rufus for the deciding vote, who turned his attention to Jason.
“You’re the reason we aren’t all monster soup right now,” Rufus shouted. “The decision is yours.”
Jason looked at the three of them looking back at him. They clearly had no idea of the magnitude to which he was out of his depth.
“What are our actual chances?” Jason yelled.
“Terrible,” Gary said.
“Not good,” Rufus said.
“Getting better,” Farrah said, pointing.
They all looked and saw Cressida’s body hadn’t fallen into the pool, but onto the stone floor at the edge of the chamber. Unfortunately, it was on the far side. That portion of the floor had barely a lip of stone between the pool and the wall, but Cressida had landed lengthways along it.
“She has the key to the collars,” Farrah said. “If I can get this thing off my neck, I can blast whatever crawls out of this pit back into blood soup.”
“Not sure I’d want to walk around the edge of that pool,” Jason said. “Sometimes all your choices are bad, I guess.”
“We do it, then,” Rufus said. “Farrah, go for the key, but be careful of the pool. Ideally, you’ll have it and be back before this thing emerges, but Gary and I will stall it if we have to. Jason, what kind of combat abilities do you have?”
“None,” Jason shouted. “I was taken out multiple times by a guy with a shovel. I am very bad at fighting.”
“That’s fine,” Rufus shouted back. “Just stay back and try not to die.”
Farrah was already moving, putting the book on the ground and setting off around the pool, not waiting for Rufus to finish talking. She carefully hugged the wall, wary of the churning blood pit. Suddenly the blood, which had been roiling like a stormy sea, went as still and serene as a sheltered pond. The roaring noise they had been shouting over immediately fell silent.
“Here we go,” Rufus said, his voice an intrusion to the sudden quiet.
Ripples disturbed the edge of the pool, and something emerged from the blood, smaller than they had expected.
“Is that a leech?” Jason asked. It was the right size and shape for a leech, but had the gaping, tooth-ringed maw of a lamprey.
“I do not want that thing crawling up my leg,” Gary said.
“I think that’s a consensus opinion,” Jason agreed.
A second leech crawled out, then a third. They came two at a time, then five, ten until they were spraying out like runoff from a storm drain. They piled on top of one another, forming squirming, writhing mass.
“We should probably attack while it’s still forming,” Rufus said to Gary. “I don’t suppose you want to go first?”
“How am I supposed to fight a pile of leeches?” Gary asked. “I don’t think the sword will work. Also, you have our only sword.”
Strips of blood-soaked cloth, long and thin like bandages, started pushing their way out of the leech pile. They wrapped themselves around the leeches, pushing the pile into shape.
“Any idea what it’s doing?” Rufus asked.
“None,” Gary said. “Jason?”
When Jason didn’t answer, they turned to look around and found Jason was no longer there.
Gary look up the stairs and out through the door, seeing no trace of Jason.
“He’s done a runner!”
There was no time for distraction and they turned back to the monster forming in front of them. More bloody strips were emerging from the pile, pushing into what they started to recognise as a humanoid shape. It was only a crude approximation, splitting at the seams as leeches spilled out between the bandages. It shambled forward, barely in half-steps, shedding leeches as it struggled to keep balance.
“Just stay close enough to keep its attention,” Rufus said. “It doesn’t seem very fast and we just have to stall it.”
“Or I could punch it,” Gary said. “It’s a person shape, now. I know how to punch people.”
“What? No…”
Gary’s fist slammed into the creature, passing straight between the red-stained bandages and burying itself in the creature’s chest. It seemed to have no impact and Gary staggered back. His arm emerged from the leech monster with a sucking noise like pulling out a leg that had been stuck in mud. It was covered in leeches, burrowing through his fur to sink teeth into flesh. He staggered about, yelling more in anger than pain as he started ripping them off. Chunks of flesh and fur went with them, clenched in rings of teeth.
The bindings around the mass slowly tightened, giving it a more discernibly humanoid shape. It grew faster and more coordinated. Frowning, Rufus tossed aside the sword and picked up the heavy book Farrah had left behind. Winding up as he lunged at the creature, he took a huge, two-handed swing.
The book slammed into the creature’s torso, sending it staggering back. The bindings loosened, leeches once again spilling out of the main mass. The floor was now covered with them, crawling at Gary and Rufus, seeking out their legs.
Rufus watched with satisfaction, stepping back from the seeking leeches.
“And she said the book wouldn’t help.”
Rufus failed to notice the leech crawling over the book until its teeth were buried in his hand, causing him to yelp as the book dropped to the floor. He tore the creature off his hand, a chunk of flesh going with it. He reached down for the book, but there were leeches crawling all over it.
“Help!” he heard Farrah call out, and he looked around.
Gary was still wildly ripping leeches off his now blood-soaked arm. Farrah was most of the way around the pool, but bloodied bandages, like those wrapping the leech monster, had emerged from the pool and were trying to drag her in.
Rufus looked around for where he had dropped the sword, then picked it up and hurled it through the air. His confident throw was on the mark, dropping only a few feet from Farrah. She hauled back on the bandages trying to pull her into the pool, leaning hard for the sword.
The leech monster, in the meantime, had once again tightened its bindings and started walking towards Rufus. He skittered back, still faster than the creature but its speed increased with every step.
Rufus stumbled, falling onto his back with the creature still coming at him, when a bright light descended from above. Jason, starlight cloak floating around him at maximum illumination, drifted down to land between Rufus and the sanguine horror. Tucked under one arm was a small sack. Reaching into the sack, Jason grabbed a fistful of salt and tossed it at the horror. The creature recoiled. Jason did it again, forcing the creature back again.
“I’m really glad that worked.”
“What is that?” Rufus asked, getting lightly to his feet.
“Salt,” Jason said, throwing out another handful.