City of Sinners

Chapter 49

That giant black dog, Cerberus, was growling to us while baring its razor-sharp fangs. Its teeth, it was all bloody and filled with remnants of human flesh. Whoever that flesh belongs to, I pity him for having end with that horrible situation. We were on the ground floor of the Farm Center establishment, that is why this dog has all the capacity to move with freedom. It has all the mobility to move, attack, and dodge to us. He has all the advantage: the space, his gigantic size, his reflexive muscles that gives him agility and movement power.

“We’re in a very dangerous situation,” said Gaston .

“We always were,” I replied back.

“But this one is truly dangerous. Looking at the people whom it had already victimized, it could kill us in just a snap.”

“There must be a way to tame this bloodhound.” I looked for possible tools that perhaps we can use in taming this beast. However, the place we were in, was just a place that is filled with tools and equipments that is solely for farming. If in this way, we were totally doomed.

“What are we going to do now?” one of our group member asked.

“We must find the icy mud,” Gaston answered.

Ocf course, the confusion and as well as the curiosity has creeped in to my body once again. While staring at the figure of the dog-in-turmoil, I asked my million-dollar worth of question for him.

“Icy mud? What in this hell is that?”

“I don’t know, really,” Gaston said, “it was just … if we are going to mimic how Dante has tamed this creature in his book, it would by means of feeding him an icy mud.”

“So Dante has tamed this monster already?”

“According to his book, yes.”

“That means we have the chance to tame it as well,” I said, excited.

“We have. But the problem is, are we able to make it alive before we can make tame him?” He asked, worrying.

Cerberus again growled, looking at us with his dire gazes.

“The icy mud should be just around here. It is the nature of this third circle of hell to have the icy mud in the surrounding, because that is the way how gluttons are being punished,” he added. “It must be somewhere. Maybe outside.”

“At the back gate,” I said, remembering something.

“What do you mean?” Gaston asked.

Valour, on the other hand, looked at me soon a s he realized something. Perhaps he had realized the same thing that I have realized right now.”

“The back gate would lead us to the hundred hectares of land that is solely made for farming. The last time that I remember, a big portion of it is for crops that heavily needs water.”

“Therefore it is muddy,” Valour added.

“I hate to tell this, but maybe those muds now were turned into what you call ‘icy mud’. Remember that before entering here, we were feeling cold? Maybe it was because of the breeze of the ice coming from the farm.”

“That’s … that’s a good thought, actually. Let’s take a shot of it.”

“But how are we going to escape from Cerberus first?”

Cerberus started to set his paws forward, sign that it was going to move and attack us any second from now.

“There is a good, basic way,” I answered.

“How.”

I looked at the door where it would lead to the farm. “We have no choice but to run.”

And so we did. The muscles in my leg had sprang up, and with all its force, I started to run. With the instinct of the other Vultures, soon as they heard Gaston shouting of “Run!” had started to follow us as well.

We ran the fast that we could. We ran for our lives. We did our best to escape from the hilarious sharp fangs of the black dog that is now chasing us.

They said that looking back while running would not do you any good, for it will just slow you down from your willingness to escape. Stupid me, I looked back, and checked where the Cerberus was. Just as I looked at it, I saw its huge fangs about to bite into one of Vulure that is quite slower to ran than us.

Quickly, I grabbed my jaded knife—the one that is remaining—and forcibly threw it towards the mouth of the demonic dog. It landed near its nose, making the creature screech in pain and shock. It was not prepared for the pain that I had inflicted that is why it frantically danced in the air. It must have probably not felt pain for a long period of time, that is why it had overreacted in that way. Yet, right after being able to adjust through the cursing pain, it has immediately composed its body into the usual, and started baring it fangs once again.

“Sitri, what are you doing?!” Gaston shouted as he noticed that I was not running anymore, but is just waiting for Cerberus’ attack.

“Go now!” I shouted. “I will make space for you. Just make sure you come back quickly and get that icy mud to feed this monster.”

“Are you stupid?!” Gaston asked, panicking.

I stared at him sharply, “Who are you calling stupid? Just go now and get that f*****g icy mud so that we can tame this monster! I can only hold for a minute or two!”

Having no choice, Gaston ran outside. I hope he could get thee icy mud he’s been telling as soon as possible.”

Now the dog was staring at me manically. The growling of its three heads was echoing in the whole building, giving me shrill until the spine. I tried remembering the reason why I let myself be let out inside this building, and have the Vultures save their assess out, while me being in the danger. But I seemed to forget it. Anyway, I grabbed a silver pill from my arsenal—which was just my bel bag.

Before Cerberus could attack me with his three sets of bites, I quickly crushed the silver pill in my hand, and from there, a single 2m Kolibri handgun has appeared.

Great.

Among all the silver pills (which, as I discovered, were loots of random weapons) that was in my belt bag, what I got was a handgun. It’s not that it is not useful, but, with the creature that is growling in my front, what would a handgun could do. Damn it.

Now, as quick as the stroke of the invisible wind, Cerberus started to attack me. Bullshit! All three heads of the dogs simultaneously came towards me, and then attempted to kill me in just one bite.

Miracles must have been true, because despite that greedy attack, I was still whole and alive. I rolled on the floor, and tried to evade every bite attacks of the three-headed dogs, which I surprisingly did. Damn it, I am still alive.

Perhaps, one of my advantage against Cerberus was that I only have one head. I have realized that Cerberus was having a hard time to find his real self, because he has three heads and three minds. This time, those three heads was contradicting to each other. They were fighting at who the hell between the three of them would have the privilege to taste my awesome human meat. Wow, I can’t believe it. Most of the times, the humans are the main predator of other animals. They would either hunt or domesticate animals and then eventually kill and make them as their food. We haven’t experienced being in the position wherein we are the one that is going to be eaten. Those things were just in books and movies. But in reality, it has never happened—except today. I feel like I am a food. I am going to be hilariously eaten by this wild hell dog in my front.

When the three heads of Cerberus seemed not having enough good time in arguing who will eat me, they just started to attack at me—with competition. May the best head of the dog wins: this must be their motto.

But who the hell are they to decide that they could eat me. I may perhaps less stronger than you, but I could fight.

I could fight for my life.

Despite knowing that I have no knowledge in using a gun, I have still pointed the gun towards Cerberus, and trusted my gut on how to use this thing properly. Nervous, I pulled the trigger of the gun. The reverberating sound of the shooting gun echoed through my ears, and seconds after, I heard one of Cerberus’ heads shrieking again.

Green blood poured at the left eye of the Cerberus’ middle head. It whimpered and cried pathetically, but the other two heads—both left and right—was still gazing at me, dead-sharp, and growling. Saliva was pouring put of their mouths, which made me grossed out. This dog perhaps has rabies too. How dangerous it was.

Then, even though the middle of the head was still crying, Cerberus has still continued attacking me. Perhaps, the other two of Cerberus’s heads was the one who is in charge of his own body now.

I made no time wasted, and then I started running. I ran and entered towards a big farming tractor that was found on the ground floor, and there I tried to hide. But this maniac dog had just bit and crunched the metal body of the tractor. I thought I was in movie. The exact same scene in movies—where the story revolves around gigantic monsters—would go rabid, ripping that is everything hindering them just to get the human who was trying to hide away from them, was the same scene that I am currently in. Cerberus just ripped the metal frame of the tractor just to get me.

I was frozen for a second when I realized that I have no chance of escaping anymore. Yet, the cold sensation of the gun in my hand was tingling me, as if telling that I have to use it—which I did not hesitate to do.

I consecutively pulled the trigger of the gun, and the repeated sound of its shooting has echoed in my ears. I think I am going to be deaf from the loud sound of the shooting, but then I did not mind it, long as I remain alive. Cerberus shrieked once again as the bullets hit on to him directly. Its splashes of blood rained on to me. immediately, I became sticky.

Yet, I took the opportunity to run away from the tractor and to Cerberus. However, I noticed that Cerberus was following me despite being in a dread situation. It was still standing and following me wherever I would go. I should have just targeted every eyes of Cerberus in order to make it blind. Or maybe I should target its legs so that it would be handicapped and wouldn’t be able to chase me anymore. Would that work? I don’t know, really.

But I should not hesitate, nor think twice. I should act quickly.

“Cerberus!”

As I was about to pull the trigger of my gun, Gaston’s voice echoed in the whole area. I quickly searched for him. He was standing at the entrance of the farm. On both of his hands, there was a peculiar thing. It was cold, I know, because of the smoke that is falling down the floor, instead of up. It was sticky in texture. Just like a mud.

Perhaps that is the icy mud.