The Sad Tale of the Brothers Grossbart by Jesse Bullington Page B

into the village streets after curfew. Its mottled pelt dully shone red, black, blond, and brown, with other patches of pink,
     warty skin where no fur grew. A lanky tail whipped the air lazily, and from distended paw to upturned ass it looked scrawny
     and ill. She succeeded in keeping her eyes from its head lest she scream.
    Directly above the wretched corpse, it sniffed again, its whole body wracked with slight spasms. Nicolette rose with the ax,
     the chair creaking loudly. It spun around just as she swung, the head of the ax catching it squarely between the shoulders.
     Its claws tore into her thigh, sending her sprawling across the floor.
    She latched her eyelids tight and prayed to her father and the Holy Mother, the creature bawling out a whining scream that
     deafened her. Her leg must be torn free, so ferociously did it hurt, and she cupped her hands over her ears to shut out the
     horrible noise. Then the noise stopped. Nicolette remained still for a very long time, and then opened one eye. The shadowy
     wall before her provided no clue to the state of the beast. With aching slowness she turned her head, the exertion sending
     pain blasting up from her leg into the rest of her body.
    With puffy, bloodshot eyes she took in the sprawled monstrosity heaped atop the witch, the ax handle jutting out of its back.
     It raised its front shoulders but its hindquarters would not move, foul-smelling ordure leaking from under its tail. Nicolette
     scrambled to her feet and immediately toppled over, her leg giving out. It tried again, now getting its back legs to jerk.
     Nicolette stripped off the stinking cloth that stuck to her bloody skin and rose more carefully, taking care not to look at
     the felled demon.
    Not daring to breathe, she moved behind the creature so its eyes could not stare malevolently at her. She found the largest
     log in the wood pile, and tiptoeing toward it, hurled the missile at its head. The blow slumped the creature again, but through
     her delirium she saw the fresh gash on its scalp close as soon as it opened, and the blood matting its coat flowed back around
     the ax blade. The ax handle rocked as flesh knit itself together, and the thing stirred in its forced slumber.
    Temples pounding and knees buckling, she leaned against the wall to stay erect. It seemed dreadfully unfair that after all
     her wiles the beast still lived, and recovered so unnaturally fast that it would soon be upon her again. Suddenly furious,
     she snatched the ax free and brought it back down where the fur gave way to pale skin below the ears. The body thrashed for
     only an instant, and she saw with delight that the gaping cut healed much more slowly than the vanished wound in its back,
     only a raised scar denoting where she had previously injured it.
    She hacked again and again until the ropes fixing head to neck gave out in a mess of red, black, and yellow fluids, bones
     jutting up amidst the pulp. The head rolled into a corner and settled facing her, blood leaking from mouth, ears, and nose,
     and it blinked its pale eyes. Nicolette began to scream and did not stop until she passed out.
    She awoke with a start, the fire dead and the haze of morning filtering into the room. The two monsters lay stacked like cordwood,
     and to her delight both remained motionless and mangled. The ax she still clutched to her chest, its cold, damp head stuck
     to her cheek. She cast it away and clambered to her feet. Whimpering, she stumbled out the door into the wood. She walked
     slowly, wary of her bleeding leg, and eventually came across a stream.
    Despite the chill morning air she braced herself against the mossy stones and plunged herself face-first into the shallow
     water. Gasping and shivering, she righted herself and set to washing off the caked blood, heedless of how viciously the water
     burned her skin and wounds. She rolled in the leaves beside the bank, steam pouring off her as she laughed, then sobbed, then
     laughed again.