Peter David - After Earth

As he looked once more at his opponent, there was a flash of hope when he saw that two shards of crystal had pierced the Ursa’s body, trapping it in place. Unfortunately, Kitai was similarly trapped as he tried to move only to discover that his foot was trapped underneath a shattered section of the crystal bridge. His boot protected his foot from injury, but he was still stuck and needed to free himself in a hurry. It would have been comical to be an observer watching the two life-forms struggle to dislodge themselves from the same predicament. Only it was not funny to Kitai. This was life or death, not just his but his father’s, too.

Worse, the Ursa had six limbs and was using several to try to pry itself free while one was pushing down, trying to crush Kitai’s foot. The human was fighting back, struggling to lever himself free, but was failing with every attempt. Done with the crystal, the Ursa’s free claw was now swiping the air before the teen’s face.

Suddenly the claw vanished, going to the aid of the other limbs in freeing the body, allowing Kitai the precious moments he needed to yank his foot away from the crystal chunks and roll free. Grabbing the cutlass, he spun about, ready to slay the impaled beast. Instead, he turned about and his weapon shook with the force of an incoming blow from the Ursa. It was powerful enough to send the human flying three meters backward into an outcropping. The air was expelled forcefully from his lungs as his back hit the rocks.

The impact dazed Kitai, who remained low, trying to absorb the pain throughout his body and regain his strength. As he gathered his energy, he watched with renewed terror as the Ursa pulled itself off the twin shafts of crystal, dark gray blood trailing from the wounds. Now free, it stood for a moment, seemingly checking its own limbs, letting the blood pool atop the crystal floor. Kitai had no choice but to run.

The Ursa was right behind him, roaring in pain and fury, hurting his ears. Energetically, Kitai leaped off the ground, propelled himself at an angle off the side of the cave, and flipped through the air to avoid fresh stalagmites and stalactites, hoping they would slow the beast. Instead, the charging creature shattered the crystal structures and kept running toward the cadet. And it was gaining.

Kitai spotted a small crevice to his left and low to the ground, and he dived headfirst through the narrow space. Sure enough, he took some bruising as he landed, but his guess had been right: It was too small for the Ursa to follow. Instead, it thrust claws at him and bellowed but didn’t make contact. In a rage, the Ursa threw its weight at the space, shattering the crystal walls. As debris fell, Kitai scrambled to his feet and continued deeper into the cave. He acrobatically ran, jumped, and leaped around, over, and under crystal impediments.

Just as he thought he had gained some distance from the Ursa, which was charging through the natural formations, it reached forward and clipped Kitai’s leg with its claw, sending him sprawling in pain. Rather than give in to it, he used the momentum to roll quickly and resume running. As he moved deeper, Kitai began to notice the tunnel growing narrower.

The Ursa was gaining on him.

Finally, Kitai spotted an opening into a narrow cave, maybe a meter wide. The Ursa was too big to follow him in there. He slid into the cave and caught his breath, listening to the monster’s howls of anger and frustration. After it was done yelling, Kitai peered into the tunnel. The Ursa studied the opening, spying Kitai within, and then backed away.

That was when Kitai realized how truly intelligent the beast was. He hadn’t stopped to realize that stringing up the animals was a sign of cunning. It wanted him scared since it fed off his fear and used it to track him. Now it was waiting him out. This was a deadlier foe than he’d ever imagined.

As he considered that, he watched the Ursa through the small entrance. The creature stared back and then placed one claw on the crystals and another on the rock wall. Within seconds, it seemingly vanished before his eyes, taking on properties of both minerals. Daring him to try to escape. Instead, Kitai edged farther back a meter and rested his injured body against the crystal wall. It felt safe, but he knew full well that just before him, somewhere out there, the Ursa waited for him, camouflaged and startlingly silent.

The waiting game had begun.

Kitai squeezed his eyes tight, shutting out the images from nearly five years earlier. Calling to Senshi, wishing she’d hide with him. He opened them slowly and stared out the small cave entrance. He tried to see a movement, something that would show him where the Ursa was hidden in plain sight.

Although he saw nothing, he did hear the steady drip, drip, drip of blood. He couldn’t see the gray droplets but knew they were there.

That was when the Ursa came into view, once more hanging upside down, literally crowding the entrance, as close as it could come to the human. First one claw, then another reached inside the cave, trying to reach Kitai but failing. That seemed to frustrate the beast more than anger it. It stretched deeper this time and nearly nicked Kitai. To retaliate, he waved the cutlass before him, forcing the limbs back through the entrance. Once the Ursa backed off a bit, he shimmied himself farther back into the cave.

With its limbs out of reach, the Ursa used another of its formidable weapons and spit several black globules of venom at Kitai. The paralytic agent missed his face by centimeters, striking the back of the crevice. The next attack finally proved successful as one of the black masses hit the lifesuit and his exposed skin. The mere touch of the icky, vile-smelling stuff caused him to scream. He knew this would slow down his reflexes and give the Ursa a decided advantage.

The Ursa managed to wedge itself into the crevice, its sheer bulk wearing away the edges. As it neared Kitai, it spit more black poison in his direction, and the law of averages dictated that a second bit of the gross venom would make contact. He continued to crawl backward. The Ursa matched him centimeter by centimeter. As Viper closed the distance to its prey, the Ursa once more tried to snatch Kitai with its foreclaws but failed to reach him. It spit again, pressing its advantage.

Kitai continued to shimmy back, not daring to take his eyes off the beast. As a result, he missed the fact that he was running out of space. Before he knew it, he was slipping, and gravity took hold of his slender form and yanked. Suddenly, he was falling. Not far, maybe two meters, but enough to surprise him before he struck a rock. Pain radiated from the impact, and he grunted more than once but refused to scream. Instead, he flipped from the rock, spun around, and continued to fall, this time much farther down. He remembered how sailors fell to their doom in Moby Dick and feared he was about to join them.

That was when he hit water and confused the novel with his own situation. He nearly swallowed a mouthful as he sank low. He threw out his arms and legs, spreading them to distribute his weight evenly. Without taking the time to hold his breath, he had precious little oxygen in his system and needed to get control of his situation. Fast.

Steady but still underwater, he opened his eyes, impressed that the smart fabric in his lifesuit still provided some illumination. Twin spots of light from his shoulders let him see maybe two meters in any direction. As he hurriedly assessed his position, he saw a shaft of light waver in the water. Light meant escape and, he hoped, freedom. A chance to complete the mission and save his father. But if he made it down here, could the Ursa have followed? And did it know how to swim? He hadn’t sensed the kind of impact a creature of its bulk would have made, but that didn’t mean anything.