Fiction: The Hunt on Wind Breaker Island 2

This month's Words for Wednesday prompts are provided by C.Lee McKenzie. This week's prompts are:  Realize, Sticky, Chocolate-covered, Wrapped, Doorbell, Delight, Flummoxed, Diet, Stuffed, Inspected, Heart-shaped and Box. I think I used all the words but I can't be certain if I hadn't cut one out when I edited.  Visit C.Lee McKenzie's blog or more takes on the prompts over here.

~ Read Part 1 here ~

Fiction: The Hunt on Wind Breaker Island 2
Sedge picked up her shovel and started digging until a strange cry rung out. It was more of a shrill-like droning. All around her, the other six contestants and Boots paused to listen.
    The cry died away. Whatever it was, no one appeared deterred until a harsh wind came bringing along a rotten egg-like scent that circled them like coils. Sedge pressed the back of her hand to her nose. Around her, the other contestants covered their mouths with a few muttering curses. Aside from Boots. Most times, Boots was quite flummoxed about everything but not about how lucky he was right now. When he hit his head, he also lost his sense of smell. Since Sedge had complained enough about the stench, he knew how bad it was. A quiet screeching escaped Boots' mouth. Boots' laughter always reminded Sedge of silly, happy monkeys.
    Sedge walked the few paces to give Boots a kick but he backed away. Why was it so damm hot even at night? Her short hair struck to her. She swore. The scent faded away and Sedge and Boots started digging again.
    A few hours later, they were setting up tents for the night. Sedge would have slept in one of the abandoned cottages but most of them had strange creatures that stuck to the darkness and left sticky substances all over the walls and floors of the cottages.
    "Well, well, you are looking rather...unkept this evening. How are you doing, Yang Yang?"
    Sedge looked up. No one called her by her given name except her father. "Just fine. And you, Jaz?" She would like to spit at her ex but then that would only give him more reasons to taunt her. For three days, she had avoided any type of talk with the man. Why is Mr. Fancy here? Boots' thought swam to Sedge's head. Jaz's family owned half of a city, there was no reason for him to be here.
    Jaz came closer, close enough for Sedge to smell his cologne which had always dazed her but now just gave her a headache. He lowered his head close to hers and whispered, "I know what you are. I saw your arm fell off." Then he straightened up. "Don't you think, Yang Yang, you should quit while you're still alive?"
    Sedge's heart quickened. She scowled but then she smiled. "Why don't you quit? It's not like you need to be here."
    "Hey, I'm here for the adventure." Jaz winked. There was not a speck of dirt on his neatly pressed shirt or trouser. He dared to wear an ascot in this weather. Sedge curved her free hand into a fist. If only that ascot had somehow gotten tighter.
    Jaz grabbed the neckband and gasped for air.
    What the heck? Sedge loosened her hand.   
    Jaz let out a series of deep breathes. He pointed a finger at her. "What did you do?"
    Sedge shrugged. "I don't know what you mean." She really had no clue.
    Jaz gave her a sneer and ran off.
    Sedge turned back to her tent. Boots was looking at her with a grin.
    "What?" Sedge heard nothing from him. His thoughts were blank. He shrugged and went inside his tent.

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On the ground beneath a tall tree, Sedge lay in her tent, unable to sleep. Nearby, Boots' snoring cut through the silence of the island. A little while ago, there were arguments among the contestants which Sedge was certain because of the mind links. Somehow being linked to Boots' mind wasn't as annoying as she had thought. Sometimes Sedge thought of Boots' brain like a box that was always empty until it got filled and most of the time, it got filled with silly nonsense and a desire for lunch. Sedge, on the other hand, couldn't always focus on digging. If Boots noticed her thoughts, he didn't mention it.
    Jaz. Ugh. And his ascot. What had happened there? She was certain she had no powers. No, that wasn't the problem. Jaz knew about her arm. It was easy to kept it from him while they were dating as he was too absorbed in himself to notice anything. He could turn her in. Biomechatronic devices and anything related to it were banned by law. Sedge had only known about the law because her neighbors were against it and often would go on protests about it.
    A shrill-like cry rung out close by. Sedge sat up. The previous inhabitants were gone after the island was brought for the hunt but perhaps not everyone left. Sedge crawled out of her tent. There was a faint light from the moon that lit most of the surroundings. A crab ran pass her. Right after they landed on the island, Sedge and Boots had inspected it for edibles. There were crabs that ran here and there but they were too strange looking with their bug-like eyes for Sedge to eat. The fishes in the water also appeared a bit askew with multiple fins and eyes. Boots didn't eat meat as he thought every living being deserved to live. They both settled on the odd-shaped fruits that grew among the trees. Some of the fruits were even heart-shaped which delighted Boots for no reason other than it was something he had not seen before
    That evening, all Sedge had for dinner was a star-shaped fruit that was a bit too tangy. What she wouldn't give for some chocolate-covered sweets right now. Boots had stuffed himself with the fruit, not really caring about the taste. Sedge had often said she was on a 'Get fat quick' diet since no matter, she was still quite 'rounded' as her father put it. It took years for Sedge to realize her shape couldn't be changed no matter how much she cut down on eating.
     Another shrill-like cry and this time it sounded even closer than before. What was it? Sedge didn't want to wake up Boots as Boots didn't know how to be quiet.
    She stepped farther away from her tent. A cold wind was sweeping about. The temperature dropped in the second that she stood there. Was there a magician about? Most mages had died out but it didn't mean there weren't any around here. A shiver ran through Sedge's body. She wrapped her arms around herself.
    Something whined softly. At first Sedge thought she was dreaming but the emerald eyes blinked while its head with its cat-like ears shimmered in greens and blues. The creature dipped his head toward Sedge but something struck the side of its head making a ping sound that reverberated. Slowly, it backed away.
    "Stay away from that thing!" Jaz held a large gun and was aiming more shots at the creature. What the hell was he doing with a weapon on the island? The creature roared sending out a loud screech through the air.
    Each shot bound off the creature and richoted in various directions with ping sounds. There wasn't even a dent in its skin. It merely shook its head. Sedge pulled the gun from Jaz.
    "Give it back!" he shouted.
    "There was no reason to shoot it!" Sedge backed away.
    "It's a monster! That's what we do with monsters! What? Did you want it for a pet?" He sneered. Sedge knew the guy had other emotions but every time she looked at him, he seemed to be sneering.
    The creature stumbled but righted itself. Then it came toward them. Sedge ran. The loud noise and the shaking of the ground would surely wake the others. Jaz grabbed the gun from her and ready to take a shot but Sedge slugged him. He fell to the ground and dropped the gun. "What the hell did you do that for?" He looked up at her with his eyes almost popping out of their sockets.
    "I told you, there's no reason to shoot. You moron!" Sedge kicked him.
    He sprang up and rubbed his leg where she had struck him. "I was trying to save you!"
    "Ha!" Sedge laughed. If he hadn't shot the creature, they wouldn't need saving now.
    A chilly wind blew on her back. She turned around. The creature towered over them like a tree only this one seemed to have a long body that Sedge couldn't see the end of among the debris that it had swept up. Jaz nudged her arm. The gun was near her feet but she didn't want to shoot the creature. Suddenly, someone knocked her to the ground.
    She turned on her back. At her left, Boots was running toward them. Beside her, Jaz was rising his gun toward the creature. "No! Boots, no!" All Boots was thinking, 'Danger, must save the dragon.'
    Sedge scrambled to her feet and knocked Jaz to the ground but he had already pulled the trigger. The bullet went through Boots' left shoulder. His eyes widened and he fell forward. There was a chime like a doorbell. The creature turned its head as if it heard it too. It took off into the air. Its long tail swept by Sedge. She dove just in time not to be hit. The creature disappeared into the dark clouds.
    "I didn't mean to shoot him. He just... He got in the way. It's not my fault." Jaz was staring across from him where Boots was lying on the ground.