Free The Regenerates by Maansi Pandya Page A

Moments later, a rabbit hopped out from behind a bush and he let out a sigh of relief. The rabbit tilted its head at the strange arrival in front of it, and jumped away.
    Ven turned around and continued scanning the earth for edibles. He thought he had spotted a troop of mushrooms when a horrible crunching noise made his heart stop. He turned back and almost dropped his lamp, all hunger forgotten.
    A large, feline creature was licking its lips, clearly enjoying the supper of rabbit it had just consumed. Its fur was a dirty orange and it looked thick and straw-like. It turned its large head in Ven’s direction and growled, baring its teeth. Ven held his breath. He hadn’t brought any of their weapons with him. Would the creature fall for it if he played dead? Ven didn’t much like the idea of lying down in front of it, so he stood as still as possible. The animal looked at him, licking the blood that had soiled its jaw. He could feel himself shaking. Should he scream for Kayn? It pinched him to yell for help, especially to Kayn. What if Kayn didn’t help him at all, but let the beast rip him in half?
    The beast growled. It sensed prey in front of it, and it was still hungry. Just as it crouched, ready to pounce, Ven did the only thing he could do. He ran.
    He zigzagged in between trees and roots, trying to confuse it. He could hear the soft thudding of its paws as it bounded after him but he didn’t dare stop to see how close it was. As he neared the campsite, Ven reached down, snatched up their blasters and yanked the sleeping Kayn to his feet with all the strength he could muster.
    “What the hell do you think you’re–”
    Kayn took one look at the beast running at them at full speed, and leaped into the pod, jamming the buttons. Ven scrambled to get in after him, but just as the engine began to hum, there was a crackling sound. Ven looked down. The thick, steel-plated engine wires, along with much of the pod’s front, had been reduced to a sparking mess. The humming engine fizzled out pathetically as the creature ripped out the wires and the pod tipped on its side.
    Ven yelped as he felt his ankle twist beneath him. Heart racing, he and Kayn clambered out from under the pod and leaped to their feet, gripping the satchels.
    “SPLIT UP!” Ven yelled. To his surprise, Kayn obeyed and ran in the opposite direction.
    That seemed to work. The beast spit out the engine wires and glanced side to side, trying to decide which target to attack first. As Ven ran in between the trees, he turned to see the beast closing in on him. It seemed to prefer the weaker target. Not willing to wait for backup from Kayn, Ven grabbed a branch from the first tree he could find and began to climb as fast as he could.
    Just when he thought he had made it to a safe distance, he felt a sharp, excruciating pain in his leg. He yelled and looked down. The beast had slashed his calf, leaving a deep gash. His eyes watering, Ven fumbled at his waist for his knife with his free hand and flung it down at the beast’s head. It howled and let go of his leg. He fought with all his might to climb higher up the tree, dizzy from the pain and from losing blood.
    The beast was on its feet again. It jumped up, trying to snap at Ven once more, but it couldn’t reach him.
    Kayn appeared and shot the creature several times with his pistol. It staggered for a moment, but remained on its feet. Letting out a furious roar, it pounced on Kayn and pinned him to the ground. Ven watched helplessly from the tree as Kayn struggled to fight it off. It reared back its head, jaws opened wide. Ven turned his head in horror.
    A whoosh and a yelp caused Ven to look back. The beast had fallen on its side, dead. Several javelins stuck out from its back. Kayn was still on the ground, frozen but unharmed. They both looked around for their saviors.
    A group of people emerged from the trees, carrying lamps and spears in their hands. They eyed Kayn on the ground. A few of them