CHAPTER 12: SCARFACE / TREE HOUSE

"STAMMER"

The Hexclaw menace had its upper and lower body awkwardly attached, seeming like they'd fall off any second...

With its middle section absent, the Hexclaw had only four arms, and its height was shorter, but not by any significant difference.

Its hunched back faced the motionless and thunderstruck Elizabeth, unaware of her presence as it held a red apple. It suddenly froze still, calmly straightening its posture and dropping the fruit to the ground. Elizabeth fought desperately to force herself to overcome fear; to kick her frozen muscles into gear, in a life-or-death situation. Then, in a split second, the Hexclaw sharply twisted its head 180 degrees, its haunting eyeball scanning the area fiercely, only to find nothing of significance. Elizabeth had already taken herself outside, hiding behind the wall with her back against it, fighting desperately not to utter a sound. After thorough scanning, the Hexclaw finally relaxed its eyeball, casually rotating its torso and lower body 180 degrees where its head faced, then slowly starting its feet to step outside. It passed Elizabeth, unnoticed of her presence, and she quietly hid herself further from its sight behind the corner, watching as it marched ahead to yet another destined destination, wherever that was... After some time, it was finally away from Elizabeth, and she released a great sigh, her heart pounding heavily. It seemed that everything was going just fine for her, but in a flash of dread, her eyes lit in terror at the sight of the direction the Hexclaw was heading. Her breaths grew rapid, and she lacked any idea on how to prevent the undeniable future from taking place without getting herself doomed in the process. With desperation and uncertainty, she quietly tailed the Hexclaw while keeping a distance, trying to develop some sort of strat that would prevent the monster from reaching none other than the haven where her beloved companions remained. As it got nearer and nearer the farmhouse, Elizabeth grabbed a shovel nearby on the floor, clutching it tightly—almost too tightly. Then, out of nowhere, the Hexclaw Menace turned, heading straight for the livestock on Elizabeth's farm, with a focused eye. Elizabeth kept her eyes locked on the target, but she couldn't help but feel perplexed by its sudden change of direction. The monster halted by the maize livestock, and Elizabeth observed it from a distance behind the fields. Oddly enough, and to her surprise, the Hexclaw casually began to weed the maize crops with great precision and care, its touch unusually not altering the crops' form. Elizabeth grew even more confused, and at the same time, her blood boiled at the thought that this monster had its claws over her brother's work. As if about to pray, it got on both knees, and it carefully scrutinized the crops for roughly 8 seconds or so, before picking and dropping every weed with a steady rhythm. Once finished, it moved onto the next patch and repeated the ritual… A bizarre thought suddenly hit Elizabeth, like a bolt of lightning. She felt a strange familiarity upon witnessing the way it weeded the poor crops, and an incredibly uncomfortable feeling came over her as she began to notice the Hexclaw's genuine care for the crop, as well as its sharp ability to weed it without error. She eagerly observed further, and the Hexclaw began to weed another patch of crops—tomato crops this time—and it commenced that same damned ritual from before, before displaying yet another masterclass in weeding. Elizabeth grew more uncomfortable, questioning deeply: Why was it weeding the crops by her brother's farm? Why did it choose this farm of all other farms to weed crops? Why did it travel from the capital all the way to this specific little farm for such a purpose? And why did it have such an obvious interest in caring for these specific crops?

"What if... No, that's impossible," was the thought that lingered ominously in the little girl's mind, and without any sort of self-awareness she stepped forth, shaking in fear, and she hesitantly stuttered the word, "N-N-Noah?"

The menace spun sharply after noticing her cracking voice, meeting her fear-struck eyes. She stumbled away in a rush and began a desperate sprint toward the farmhouse. As she ran, her legs grew weak and she constantly lost her balance. 

She finally reached the door, and bursting through, she met the three oddlings sitting quietly by the couch, all three of them unharmed.

Bonnie, corn in his hand, stepped forward and said, "Hi Elizabeth. I saved you some corn. It's pretty cold, and… dirty, and… not-so-neat anymore, but... Here, you can have the rest of it." 

Elizabeth, shell-shocked, began to stammer, "M… M-My b-bro-ther… He… he's… th-the…"

Bonnie, noticing her nervous shaking and panting, inquired with heavy concern, "Elizabeth? What's the matter?"

"He… he's… th-the…"

"Elizabeth, whatever it is, I am goin to help you. Tell me everythin, dear."

"What's wrong Elizabeth?" Anna also inquired.

Suddenly and aberrantly, colossal tree branches violently burst forth, rapidly sprouting from the ground and forcing the surroundings to collapse upon the quartet. The looming menace was already at the door, its four arms firmly pressing into the ground, and its eyeball retaining a furious gaze, emanating a demonic red hue. Although the speed of the emerging branches grew lesser, they showed no sign of ceasing, even as the once-familiar home transformed into an unrecognizable landscape. Elizabeth lay on the floor, disoriented and in pain. As her vision gradually cleared, she was met with a sight... Bonnie stood over her, his face broken on one half and crackling and crumbling like plastic, revealing a black, hollow void within his interior. The rest of his diminutive frame bore major scratches after the eruption. With one arm, he strained to hold back a collapsing section of the roof above Elizabeth, his frame subtly shaking under its weight. Despite the dire circumstances, Bonnie extended his other arm toward Elizabeth, offering an unwavering smile of kindness as the environment continued to crumble around them. Stuttering his name in confusion, Elizabeth trembled as she reached for his hand. Upon contact, Bonnie's hand emitted a soft yellow glow, and the dirt and bruises on Elizabeth's skin gradually vanished. Bonnie's smile persisted, but his expression remained oddly blank and silent, an eerie contrast to the chaos unfolding in their surroundings. Elizabeth could only watch in shock as she stretched a trembling hand toward the ruin that was his face.

"B-Bonnie? Bonnie? Ar-Are you… okay?" 

His unwavering expression and vacant gaze delivered a response that would only exacerbate her distress, "'Bonnie'? 'Bonnie,' huh? Okay... That one is… odd… But I think I can get used to it. What is your name, miss?"

Terror and confusion reflected in Elizabeth's eyes. Amidst soft weeping nearby, she turned to witness a scratched-up Anna, whose blindfold had unravelled to reveal one of her empty eye sockets. She sat on her knees, and in front of her was an unconscious and torn-up Rodri lying motionless on the floor.

"I'm sorry," she wept. "I'm sorry…" It was all she said. She repeated the words like a broken record.

Bonnie suddenly collapsed unconscious onto the ground, and Elizabeth, holding him in her arms, called desperately for him to wake up, yet he too gave no response. As the Hexclaw Menace retracted its claws from the ground, Elizabeth summoned all her strength to carry Bonnie on her back. She urged Anna to retreat, but Anna, unresponsive and consumed by grief, continued weeping with Rodri in her arms. Elizabeth then took both their tiny bodies in her hands and began her way toward the ranch, and as she fled, the fire by the fireplace caught onto one of the branches and slowly spread throughout the surroundings. Reaching the horse station, Elizabeth placed Rodri and Anna on one of the horses' backs before putting Bonnie on, then finally mounting it herself. With a slap, she signaled the horse to commence its gallop, and from there, they swiftly made their way out of the invaded countryside. 

As they rode away, Anna, still holding onto Rodri, inquired softly, "Where are we goin?"

With uncertainty in her eyes, Elizabeth answered, "I-I don… don't know. We… n-need to get f-far from here… first. Then… we'll f-figure somethin out…"

Anna blindly reached for Bonnie's unconscious finger and guided it to touch Rodri, but there was no effect.

"Rodri's dyin..." she muttered softly.

With nervousness in her eyes, Elizabeth peered at both Bonnie and Rodri, then with uncertainty, she said, "W-We'll…go to the capital… We'll go to the capital."

Meanwhile, within Elizabeth's destroyed shelter, the Hexclaw made its way onto the only intact bed as the flames continued to envelop the place. It nestled itself under the covers with utmost nonchalance, and with that, the beast rested its eyeball to rejuvenate for another day.

CHAPTER 12 of 'Bonnie's Touch' ends