The fog had thickened, but the shapes within it grew clearer—slithering, hunched, and utterly wrong. My hand trembled as I clutched the glowing coin, the only light cutting through the oppressive gray. The taser in my other hand felt woefully inadequate, a child's toy against these things.
The creature stepped forward, its form shifting and unnatural. It had the bulk of a wild boar but with elongated limbs that bent at impossible angles. Its glowing, lidless eyes locked onto me, and I swallowed hard, my throat dry.
"You want the coin?" I said, stepping forward despite every instinct screaming at me to run. "Come and get it."
The creature screeched and charged, its limbs pounding the wet ground of the dock with terrifying speed. I darted to the side, skidding on the mossy wood and barely keeping my balance. The taser snapped uselessly through the air as the creature wheeled around, its rage palpable.
My free hand instinctively gripped the coin, and I felt it pulse, almost alive. The engravings twisted and glowed brighter as the creature lunged again. This time, I didn't move away. I met it head-on, driving the coin into its thick hide.
The reaction was immediate. The creature convulsed, black mist pouring from its wounds as the coin absorbed it. The air buzzed with energy, and the creature let out one final screech before collapsing into a pile of ash and viscera.
I stumbled back, panting, as the coin's glow intensified. It felt heavier, more potent, as though it had been waiting for this moment.
"That's two," I muttered, glancing back toward the shack.
The light from the lantern flickered faintly through the mist, a beacon drawing me forward. My chest tightened as I sprinted toward it, the door creaking open as I pushed inside.
---
The sight of Leery nearly stopped me in my tracks. He lay motionless on the cot, his pale face ashen and still.
"No," I whispered, rushing to his side. "Leery, come on. Stay with me."
I grabbed his wrist, searching for a pulse. It was faint—so faint I wasn't sure I wasn't imagining it.
My hand slipped into my pocket, gripping the coin. Its glow was almost blinding now, warm and alive in my palm. My heart pounded.
"What's the cost?" I muttered, staring down at the intricate engravings. "What do you want?"
I had no time to debate. Leery's breaths were shallow, his life slipping away before my eyes.
"Save him," I whispered, clutching the coin tightly.
The room filled with golden light, the air thick with static. Leery's body jerked once, twice, and then stilled. The glow faded, leaving me alone in the silence.
"Leery?" I said, shaking him gently.
His eyes fluttered open, clearer than they'd been since we'd arrived. He sat up slowly, his color returning with every breath.
"You… used it," he said, his voice hoarse.
"Yeah," I replied, still shaken. "You were dying. I had to."
"What did it take?" he asked, scanning the room.
I shook my head. "Nothing. Not yet."
Leery's eyes narrowed, his expression darkening. "That's not possible. The coin always takes something. Always."
---
We sat at the small, rickety table, our silence broken only by the occasional rustle of the jungle beyond the shack. Leery seemed stronger now, his recovery nothing short of miraculous, but his concern for the coin's apparent lack of consequence loomed over us like a storm cloud.
"The creatures," he began, his voice steadier now. "They're drawn to the coin's energy. My wish to save you must've amplified their focus on me."
"And when I kill them," I added, holding up the glowing coin, "the coins recharge."
Leery nodded, pulling his own coin from his pocket. Its dim light flickered faintly, as though it was waking from a long slumber.
"I think I can fight now," he said, gripping the coin tightly.
I raised an eyebrow. "You sure? You just got back on your feet."
He smirked. "Kid, I've been doing this a lot longer than you have."
---
The next creature came quickly. Its hissing cry echoed through the mist as it slithered out of the jungle like a nightmare eel, its sleek, black body glistening with slime.
Leery stepped forward, gripping his coin in one hand and a rusted fishing spear in the other. "Stay back. I've got this."
His movements were slower than mine, but they were deliberate. When the creature lunged, he sidestepped and drove the coin into its side.
The creature screamed, black mist pouring from its wounds as the coin absorbed its energy. When it finally dissolved into nothingness, Leery held up his coin, now glowing brighter.
"We were right," he said, his voice tinged with both relief and resolve. "The coins feed on them."
---
The dock gave way to lush jungle as we pressed further inland. The air grew thick with humidity, the ground soft beneath our feet. Vibrant plants stretched toward the sky, their colors vivid against the endless green.
Leery led the way, his coin hanging from a cord around his neck, now glowing faintly with power.
I walked behind him, my thoughts drifting. I thought about my mom, probably sitting at home, pacing the floor and staring at her phone.
"She must be worried sick," I muttered under my breath.
Leery glanced back. "You say something?"
I shook my head. "No. Keep moving."
But guilt gnawed at me. My mom didn't deserve this. She'd worked two jobs to keep a roof over our heads and food on the table. She didn't deserve the torment of wondering if I was dead or alive, lost in some twisted nightmare.
"She'll be fine," Leery said, his voice softer now. "We'll get out of this, and you'll see her again."
I nodded, swallowing the lump in my throat. "Yeah. We will."
---
The jungle around us was alive with sound—strange cries, rustling leaves, and the faint hum of insects. The coins pulsed faintly in our hands, their power a constant reminder of the risks we'd taken to get this far.
Leery stopped suddenly, holding up a hand. "Hear that?"
I strained my ears, and then I heard it: the heavy, deliberate steps of something moving through the underbrush.
"Another one?" I asked, gripping my coin tightly.
Leery nodded, his jaw tightening. "We need to be ready. Whatever it takes, we fight."
I looked down at the coin in my hand, its glow steady and waiting. Whatever came next, the coins were both our weapon and our curse. And the price we hadn't yet paid lingered, an invisible shadow over our every move.
The jungle around us shifted, the creatures drawing closer.
"All right," I muttered, raising the taser in one hand and the coin in the other.