Hummorph: Red!

“Demon squirrel! Demon squirrel!” the guard bellowed, leveling his spear, “it must be killed!”

The demon squirrel in question understood none of this of course but her albino fur bristled all the time as the giant hurled his spear at her -- her instincts telling her that she was in danger. She let out a high-pitched squeal and, seeing the giant spear as if time was standing still, hopping off to the side, the blood-red fur of her limbs - the reason for the classification of demon - flashing as she darted.

The spear pierced the ground beside her, lounging itself into the hardwood. The giant cursed.

“It can teleport!?”

If the squirrel had understood that, she would have chittered at his stupidity. Instead, she was driven by pure instinct, a primal fear that kept her dashing - darting and weaving through the feet of other giants in this dwelling. A tinge of metal filled her ears and her fur bristled again. And time seemed to slow down. She looked up, heart hammering, and saw one of the giants hurling a dagger at her. She didn’t know it was a dagger, only that it looked sharp and sharp things meant death. And she didn’t want to return to the void-before-birth.

She hopped onto the dagger and ran across it, jumping onto the giant’s face!

“It’s on my face! Getitof, getitof, get it off!” the guard yelled, and started to try to pry the squirrel off. This caused the squirrel to dig in with her “demon” claws. Which in turn, caused the guard and the rest of the giants to scream in terror and horror. She then hopped onto the guard’s metal forehead. And jumped onto the hanging-stalks-of-heat-flowers.

The guard continued to claw at his face.

“It’s infected me!! I can feel it’s demon energy coursing through me!”

With a hysterical roar, the guard yanked his sword from its sheath and began swinging wildly.
“Stay back! The demon’s cursed me!”
His frantic slashes caught the bosom of a woman who had been trying to calm him down. She shrieked, stumbling backward, while the other guards abandoned all reason and turned on their “infected” comrade, wrestling to subdue him.
The squirrel, of course, didn’t stay to see the outcome. She darted away, leaping onto a nearby table—
And froze.
A giant sat before her, watching in silence. His snout-less face was expressionless, shadows darkening his eyes. Unlike the others, he wasn’t afraid.
She could feel that.
Yet her fur bristled all the same
His eyes turned toward her dark beady ones. She couldn’t see them of course but she knew the feeling of being watched.

But unlike the others, whose panic made her want to run, this giant kept her rooted in place.

Slowly he took out a large sharp thing and placed it gently upon her squirrelly head.

When nothing happened except the feeling of cold steel on top of her head, he exhaled as if in disappointment.

“Not a demon,” he grunted, “just a squirrel. And here I was beginning to think I may have to interfere.”

The squirrel cocked her head slightly then darted away and out the window — where she grabbed the limbs of a tree and scurried up its bark.

The guards scrambled after her but she vanished before they could see her.

“Why didn’t you catch it, demon-hunter?” the lead guard scowled.

The man grunted, resting his silver blade on the table “why do you think?”

*****

The squirrel -- let’s call her Red for simplicity’s sake -- darted from a tree,her tiny heart hammering in her small chest.

From her perch on a tree, Red looked down at the giants below her.

They were stomping about the ground with their thick second-skins, walking through and peeking out of their hard nests. Their giant squirrelings scrambled about the place, some clinging to their mothers, others alone or playing together.

None of the giants, young or old, seemed to be chasing after her which settled her heart but the lingering fear was still there, wrapping like shadows around her instincts.

Red looked up cautiously. The blue-expanse above her was clear of those flying-squirrel-eaters but she still didn’t let her guard down.

Instead she scurried up further into the tree, to hide amidst its leaves. Just then, more giants in shining thick-skins came barging out of the large wooden nest (a tavern) dragging the shadowed-eyed giant between them.

“This man is a fraud!” the guard yelled, “he let a demon escape!”

“I told you, superstitious fools,” the giant between them growled, “that was no demon, it was just a squirrel with red fur on its limbs!”

“Lies!” the guard yelled, smacking the demon-hunter across the face with his gauntlet, leaving a red mark, “you saw the demon curse one of my men! And did nothing!”

“Your man was not cursed, he just believed he was cursed, you pompous --”

Another smack, “silence, you fool! How dare you question the integrity of my men!?”

The shadowed eyed man spat, “if he was truly cursed, your men would be dead -- everyone would be dead, everyone except me! And that’s if I got lucky!”

“To the stocks! He shall pay for his deception!” With a signal, the guards pushed the man forward, dragging him to the stock amidst looks of shock amongst the crowd.

“You are fools, all fools. Chasing after innocent animals! What happens when an actual demon shows up -- you need me!”

The guards laughed, “if a demon shows up, we will just gather in our church, where no demon can touch us!”

“Half of you will be dead before you could reach it -- you need me!”

“We will deal with this demon on our own, like we should have a long time ago!” the guard said, laughing.

With a clank, he was forced into the stocks, his head and hands sealed into place. Red continued watching, curious but still not understanding. Two guards stood beside him, eyes on the crowd -- clearly making sure he didn’t escape or making sure no one freed him.

Red chittered nervously, a part of her wanted to go to him, he was the only giant who didn’t attempt to hurt her, the other part needed to stay hidden.

And Red, being a creature based on instinct rather than thought, chose to hide.

At least until danger has passed.