Black Market Rabbits

 The sirens began sounding at about five in the evening. I was walking through one of the tunnels along the road. When I heard them I ran out to the open and looked down a the beach. Sure enough the large doors were closing, sealing off the sand from the water. The guards on the wall were standing at ready, rifles raised. It was happening again, like it had so many times before.

Maybe I just never got used to it, or I didn't want to. Either way I never felt truly ready for it. It was a massacre. The amount of people that died every time they came to pay us a visit was horrid, and the death toll seemed to rise every time.

It was happening again, and just as before I wasn't ready. I waited. They would come. The wall and doors merely slowed them down. But they would come as they always did. Slaughtering and destroying. The soldiers always did their job valiantly. But it was just never enough. So I waited. Sword drawn, ready for another fight.

An old man approached where I was standing and looked down at the wall too. We watched as people scrambled up the beach away from the wall.

“It always surprises me for some reason,” he said.

“I know what you mean,” I replied.

“Just when I think they've stopped attacking, they come again,” he said plainly.

“I often wondered whether or not they want us to just stay out of the ocean...”

“Why would you wonder that?”

“After every attack we always go back to playing amongst the waves. Surfing and swimming. It is their territory after all. Maybe they would stop attacking if we stopped invading their space.”

“Makes sense...” the old man said as he turned and walked away.

And there was the first one. It came crawling over the wall on all fours like a human looking spider. It was shot immediately by a guard. But a minute after that move were coming...and more...The wall was soon swarming with the creatures and they began making their way over to the other side. They would be running up here any minute. I held my sword at the ready. One minute. Two minutes...three minutes...here we go. They were running up the road towards me. A dozen of them at least were there. I sprang into action. Twisting and twirling my deadly dance until they all lay dead, their green blood glistening on the ground.

And so it continued. The attack lasted a good give hours. When it was over the body count was surprisingly not as high as it usually was. At least, there were more dead creatures that there were humans. I cleaned my blade and went home. Well, instead I went to the coffee shop near my home. I was hoping to meet my friend, Grizzly Dan there. He was biggest toughest grizzly bear in the city. But he was also a very good friend. He looked after as best he could. No doubt he had been fighting down at the beach somewhere too...but he hung out around here a lot...so I sat at the bar.

“Two decaf lattes please,” I said to the girl behind the counter.

She made one and handed it to me.

“Oops, I forgot to make it decaf, let me remake that for you,” she said pulling it back. She blushed slightly. She was new. I hadn't seen her there before. I was about to ask her if she was new, but I already knew the answer, and I didn't want to sound like a jerk.

“No problem,” was all I said with a smile.

“You were fighting down at the wall weren't you?” she asked admiringly.

“Yes, I usually end up doing that,” I said, “you see I spend a lot of time at the beach. I'm a lifeguard.”

“Oh! Very cool! You carry that with you all the time then?” she asked pointing to my sword.

“Yeah usually...I find it safer to have it with me.”

“Oh for sure,” she said handing me two lattes, “there we go, two decaf lattes.”

“Thanks....Mary...” I said reading her name tag.

She smiled, still blushing, and bustled off to do dishes.

“There he is!” came a gruff voice from behind me.

“Dan,” I say getting up, “how are you?

“Good,” he says holding a smoking cigarette between his paws. “One hell of a fight am I right?”

“Meh, I think they're losing their touch to be honest.”

“How many did you kill?”

“Forty-three.”

“Ah good once! I got twenty-four...but I'm not as good as you of course.”

“Ha, thanks Dan.”

Dan lowered his voice.

“Want to go do some black market gambling?”

“Sure why not,” I said with a shrug.

“I found a little place out back, come on,” he said getting up.

I followed Dan out back to the ally. He pulled back the chain link fence which led into a passage. I followed him down it. There was a light at the end of the tunnel. We walked towards it. We entered a kind of chamber. There was nothing in there but a table and some chairs. Next thing I new we were attacked. Dan was knocked out. But he landed right on one of the attackers, crushing him flat. The other attacked came at me. It was a rabbit. He held a knife.

“Welcome oh foolish wanderer. You now must die for invading our sanctuary.”

“But I thought this was a gambling den.”

“It is for those who are worthy of it. You are far from worthy You are a worm, scum of the earth. You are pathetic and evil. I demand your blood. We love blood, and we want your blood.”

The rabbit began cutting himself on the arm in eagerness for blood. He did it so much that he felt faint. He dropped the knife and fell to his knees. Not wanting the rabbit to suffer I picked up its knife and thrust it slowly into its neck.