Supernatural Fresh Meat

SIXTY-FOUR




Sam spiraled through the air, trying to right himself by kicking his legs and arms out, but it was fruitless. He dangled at the mercy of the aswang.

It arced ever skyward, then suddenly dove past Sam again. He knew that in a second the whip would cinch tightly around his chest and shoulder and held on as best he could. He could hear Bobby and Dean shouting below, but couldn’t make out what they were saying. Then he was careening downward again, swinging out for that sharp pile of jagged rock.

He heard gunfire, the crack of Bobby’s .30-30.

The whip jerked against Sam and his body whirled around, slamming his back into the granite boulders. A sharp edge jabbed into his thigh, another into his ribs. The air rushed out of his lungs and he gasped for a breath while trying to catch a glimpse of the scene below.

Bobby ran with his rifle pointed upward. Then he fired again.

Movement on the rocks below Sam caught his attention. Dean jumped up toward him, taking the rocks three at a time. As Sam swung away from the pile of granite, he leapt, grabbing hold of the whip just above Sam’s head.

His added weight sent them plummeting downward. Dazed from the knock on the head, Sam felt the impact a second after it actually happened. Then he was flat on his back on the ground, staring up at the sky and the hovering creature, its huge wings flapping.

Dean moved hand over hand along the whip, yanking the aswang downward as it strained to fly higher. Sam struggled to his feet, joining Dean. Together they wrenched the whip downward, making slow progress.

The aswang twisted on the end of the whip, then brought its hands down to scratch where the barb lay embedded in its flesh.

“We can’t let it get free,” Dean said.

Bobby ran up, jumped and grabbed a higher section of the whip. The three of them pulled it lower and lower, while it tore at its own flesh.

Sam could see the aswang’s hands smoldering every time it touched the whip. The spices were working. The insectile face twisted in pain.

They were down twenty feet, then ten, and then Bobby reached up and grabbed one of the clawed feet. He seized the other one, yanking it to the ground. Sam ran over, catching hold of the aswang’s arms. He put all his strength into holding it down. It bucked beneath them, alarmingly strong, but weakened.

Dean grabbed the barb and dragged it downward through the flesh, tearing through its stomach. The barb ripped open its torso and Sam could see the aswang’s beating heart.

Dean yanked the barb upward and it caught around the rib cage, then he twisted it. The serrated tip pierced the aswang’s heart. It burst open, black fluid spewing over all of them. The creature fluttered on the ground, body going into spasms. Then its heart caught fire, flames engulfing the entire chest cavity.

They leapt back as searing heat swept over the body. With a dull whump it ignited, completely engulfed in flames. It sizzled, globules of spitting fat spraying outward. The body flailed, feet kicking out, wings flapping, and then it suddenly went limp. The fire burned to incandescent brightness, instantly turning the body to a heap of ash.