Free Ordained by Devon Ashley

Mira and Darby were liquored up and still enjoying the festivities. A sudden yearning for solitude, Abby headed back towards the trail out of town. Her hope was short-lived as Emily spotted her backside and stumbled after her. Darby and Mira followed.
    “Abby, you made it!” Emily slurred happily.
    “Actually, I’m on my way out.”
    “What? Why?” cried Darby loudly.
    “What time is it?” asked Mira.
    “Almost two.”
    “Damn. How long does this thing last?” asked Darby.
    “I don’t care,” whined Emily. “I have such a headache.” She looked to her in drink in disgust, then offered it to Abby. “Do you wanna finish this for me?”
    Abby’s faced puckered at the overwhelming scent. “Alcohol is hard on my system. Makes me do crazy things.”
    “All work and no play make hunters go crazy,” added Darby, using her finger to draw a circle on the side of her face for dramatic effect.
    “Something like that.”
    Abby turned to leave. Emily passed the drink to Mira and followed. Mira did the same to Darby. She turned to unload the drink but there was no one left. She shrugged what the hell and downed the drink.
    The sky began to thicken with snowflakes once more. Hiking back up the mountain was no easy feat. Abby tried her best to keep them from sliding back down. They were not making it easy for her, constantly giggling, slipping and falling.
    “Exactly how many drinks did you guys have?” asked Abby, slightly annoyed after the fourth tumble.
    “Just one,” said Mira innocently.
    “After another,” added Darby and she and Emily burst into a fit of laughter.
    “I’m not so much drunk as I am sick,” groaned Mira. “One too many corn dogs. But these two licked the barrel clean.”
    Abby felt a twinge down her spine and suddenly halted. She said firmly, “Shut up and stop.”
    The hunters stood as quiet as they possible could. Abby tried to sense their surroundings - nothing but the rustling of leaves in the wind. No distinct scents in the air. No singing birds, no chirping insects. No tracks were in the snow but their own; four sets coming and going. The girls began to giggle again.
    “Do you hear that?” asked Abby in a hushed tone.
    “What? I don’t hear anything,” said Emily in a not so hushed tone.
    “Exactly.”
    Abby pulled a five inch dagger from her backside. Within seconds it happened. A speckled green and white blur fell from the upper limbs of a cypress tree. No more than five feet high, the reptilian-like creature landed with a heavy thud atop Mira, knocking her unconscious on the ground. Its chameleon-like scales changed to match the glittery pastel shades of Mira’s fairy costume. Gasping in shock, Emily and Darby stumbled backwards on to one another, causing it to sway its head towards them, hissing and exposing its many teeth.
    As the creature hunched down, ready to spring, Abby moved closer to draw its attention away from them. It leapt towards her, growling and swiping its claws continuously. She dodged its every erratic advance until the final swipe. Claw marks were sliced into her arm as she moved in to snap its neck. The creature slumped lifelessly to the ground, the scales altering once more to match the freshly stomped forest floor.
    “Well. That was a buzz killer,” Darby said foully as she and Emily rose to their feet.
    Mira too began to stir and move around. “What the hell was that?” she asked as Emily helped her up.
    “Looks like a grinloch demon,” answered Abby solemnly.
    “Really quite ugly,” added Darby.
    Worriedly, Emily pointed to Abby’s left side and said, “Your arm.”
    Abby looked down. Three claw marks spanned five inches of her upper arm. Blood was trickling out.
    “It’s just a scratch,” she replied, putting pressure on the slashes. “Look, the manor is only about a half mile more. Think you guys can make it on your own?”
    “You’re not coming?” Mira asked anxiously.
    Mira was more worried about the half mile she would have to