Mag and Sheila emerged from their pod. Mag stepped outside first, holding his gun with both hands. One finger stayed on the trigger while his eyes scoured the horizon. The soft mud below squished underneath his boot, creating a footprint. "Watch your step, Sheila. Mud's soft. Don't want to give away our location by making footprints that are too easy to follow.
"I know, I know," Sheila replied. She followed her father, keeping her arms spread apart as she stepped onto the mud. "I've been through section of the Eco-Dome countless times in the simulator. I know what happens if you're not careful."
"This isn't a simulation," Mag shot back with an aggressive grunt. "I don't care how many times you've gone through the scenarios! If I tell you to be careful, you listen! Is that understood?"
Sheila replied with a quick series of short nods of her head. "Yes, Father."
"Good. That's how you'll stay alive. Now. Watch. Your. Steps." Mag trudged forward, keeping his gun low. Together they continued along the soft terrain, both keeping an eye on the bubbling swamp water to their side.
"Think he's in there?" Sheila whispered quietly. She stopped all her movement and focused on a small patch of bubbles that formed in the middle of the water next to them.
"Could be," Mag whispered back. "Or it could be a Jagmaw. Either way, we'll have to kill it."
Both of the Granis lifted their weapons to eye level and took aim at the moving stream of bubbles. It slowly travelled closer to them, making its shadow more evident underneath the murky water as it swam closer.
"What a shame it would be if that was Gurk. Getting eliminated only thirteen minutes into the hunt!" Sheila said as she grinned, her soft voice filled with confidence.
"What did I say about being so full of yourself? That's a good way to get yourself killed! Gurk will always be a threat until he's dead. Same goes for all Essencima. Don't tell me you've already forgotten that bit of training!"
"Sorry, Father." Sheila's smiled disappeared as she kept her gun pointed downwards and into the swamp. Mag moved in, standing of his daughter and pushing her back with one arm so she stood behind him.
"Get back. I can tell by the shape of the silhouette that's a Jagmaw." They both then retreated further back into the marsh, standing a few feet in front of a long row of thick-trunked trees. "These things like to jump—"
As soon as the word left Mag's mouth, the swamp water flew nearly four yards into the air like an rocket off the ground. The large black creature was obscured by mud and leaves as it soared towards the Granis. As the water cascaded to the ground, the form of the Essencima became clear.
A long black crocodile-like mouth opened wide, showing off the seemingly endless rows of sharp and jagged teeth. Bright yellow eyes glared at the two hunters, illuminating against the dim shadows of the swamp. Its body was roughly the size of Mag's height and a half. The Essencima's flesh was almost pitch black with pulsating purple veins that were interwoven among the creature's scaly exterior.
"Stand back, Sheila!" Mag shouted as he placed his body in between his daughter and the approaching Jagmaw. He kept his eyes focused on the sights of his weapon. Without hesitation, he pulled the trigger. A small explosion ejected from the barrel of the gun. A short burst of bullets shot out, riddling the thick exterior of the Essencima.
The ammunition made a series of small craters into the front of the Jagmaw’s snout, leaking a black liquid onto the ground. The Jagmaw flinched, turning its head to the side and wincing from another round of bullets. One of the shots punctured its eye, making a loud crunch as the projectile popped the organ. It bellowed in pain as it writhed about, flinging its long and serrated tail towards the hunter.
A quick duck from Mag made the limb go over his head. Now with the creature's back turned, Mag let his gun dangle to his side via its strap before unholstering the knife on his hip. "Gonna save a few bullets," he shouted to Sheila as he darted forward, clutching his knife with an underhanded grip. Mag landed on the Essencima's back, making the monster grunt from the sudden weight. He wrapped his arm around the creature's neck with his free arm while his other hand was poised to stab the Jagmaw in the neck.
The Essencima rolled over, unable to free itself from Mag’s clutches. The Jagmaw kept him pinned underneath its weight, tossing and turning in a struggle to both free itself and inflict damage on the hunter. Mag let out a wail of anguish as Essencima continued to thrash about, turning on its back and putting the core of its mass on the hunter.
"Father!" Sheila exclaimed as she watched on in horror as Mag squirmed underneath the Jagmaw’s back. He managed to get a few more stabs in, but the Essencima's weight proved too much for him to overcome. With its gray underbelly exposed, Sheila held her small machine gun with both hands and pointed it at the soft section of flesh.
A long and rapid burst of gunshots ensued. Dozens of shots filled the Jagmaw's underside, but the recoil from the gun hampered Sheila's aim. The weapon lifted upwards the longer she held the trigger, making some of the bullets go into the trees in the distance.
"Short bursts, Sheila!" Mag screamed as he managed to land his knife into the other eye of the Jagmaw. "I said short bursts!"
The woman began to pant. She let go of the trigger and took aim again. With a short squeeze, she fired a five more bullets that penetrated underneath the Jagmaw's chin. The Essencima stop squirming, prompting Sheila to stop firing.
"Help get... this damn thing off me!" Mag tried to push the dead Essencima off his other arm, but the angle from which he was pinned made it impossible to get proper leverage.
Sheila activated the safety switch to her weapon and ran towards her father. She placed both hands on the back of the Jagmaw and helped Mag to push the oozing corpse off. The creature toppled over and landed on its front, sending mud scattering to the side. Once upright, the exit wounds from Sheila's bullets became visible along the top of its head, leaking dark purple fluid.
Mag stood up straight, pressing his hand against the arm that had been pinned underneath the monster. He spun his arm on by the shoulder, wincing in the process. "That went terribly," Mag muttered just loud enough for the daughter to hear.
"I'm sorry, Father," Sheila said with her head hung low.
"You've used that gun before in simulations. Don't know how you managed to send a third of your magazine into the trees. Did you see Gurk in the distance or something?"
"No." Sheila kept her head down. "I... got nervous..."
"What did I say about getting nervous, huh? You think now is the time for you to forget all of the training done? When it matters the most?"
"Sorry."
Mag lifted his daughter's chin with his hand, forcing her to make eye contact with him. Sheila's eyes big, red and filled with water. Her lips quivered as she stared into the frustrated gaze of her father.
"I love you Sheila. But we're on the battlefield now. That means I'm going to have to treat you like a soldier if both of us are going to make it out of here alive. No more coddling. No more pats on the back for doing the bare minimum. This is life or death. And we're only done once Gurk has been eliminated and we're safe and sound back inside the estate."
"I understand, Father."
"Good. But I will still give you credit when it's due. You managed to kill the Jagmaw without hurting me. That takes some decent aim."
"Thank you." Sheila blinked a few times, clearing out the bit of tears that remained in her eyes.
"Now don't beat yourself up too bad. I could have done better too. I'm not used to having to defend someone else and slowing down my pace. We’ll… just have to consider this to be a learning experience for both of us."
"Understood." Sheila nodded, quickly erasing the look of sadness on her face and replacing it with confidence. "Where will be heading to next?"
"We've barely made it into the swamp. I'd say we keep scanning for a bit longer. If Gurk was here, hopefully those gunshots didn't scare him off."
"He didn't know what I was up to when I tricked him into getting into the Dormancy Chamber. He probably would have come running to help if he was actually here."
Mag looked at his daughter with a raised eyebrow. "That dense, huh?"
Sheila shook her head. "No. Well, maybe. But I think he would have come to help regardless."
Mag stroked his beard as he stared off into the dense foliage of the swamp. "Best not to take any chances. We'll just have to assume that he's out to kill."
