Ḥamād ran very fast, as fast as he had never run before. He was panting, while the anubises behind him chased him relentlessly. Howls followed his heart beat that seemed like it was going to explode!
Their jackal-like snouts dripped with saliva, and their obsidian eyes glinted in the moonlight.
He thought hard.
If he kept running like this, then he would run out of energy in no time. Meanwhile, those anubises, he never knew what their stamina limits were. It only meant one thing, he was just delaying his own death.
Like it or not, he had to fight.
But, how?
"Think, Ḥamād! Think!"
The only weapon he got just a piece of wooden stick. Nothing else.
Something. He needed to do something. As he ran like a madman, his gazes went everywhere he could. Looking for something useful, or some ideas. He didn't really know.
The crescent moon far above the sky, gave him enough light to saw a ruin of a building. Not house, but something bigger. A three story clay building, with some whirly decorations as its pillar.
The crescent moon cast jagged shadows over the ruins, turning the pillars into twisted serpents.
Actually, there were a lot more decorations all around that ruin. But, Ḥamād didn't have time to observe all. Behind him, the whole pack of anubises tailing him, getting closer and closer.
He could even hear their guttural sniffs now.
Though this world mostly mirrored his own—the same dusty plains, the same star-flecked skies—it twisted reality in ways that chilled him. This crumbling three-story structure, adorned with serpentine pillars, was nothing like the huts of his village.
But, there's no time.
Without any hesitation, he step into that ruin, and ran even faster. One thing he repeat in his head.
Whatever will be, will be. Any fight, with any weapon, gonna do it! No room for discussion!
He ran, and ran.
He turned into several other rooms, climbed several dozen stairs, picked up an iron rod lying on the floor, and stopped in that one particular room. His breath was almost gone.
As for that moment, he calm him self and prepared an ambush.
I'll thrust their eyes for sure!
One minute. Five minutes. Even after half an hour waiting there, there's no one - or nothing - come through that door.
Everything was so quiet. One thing he could hear was just his heavy breath. No foot steps, no howling, nothing.
They're stopping? Is it save for me to call it a day?
unconsciously, his feet began to step outside the room. At that moment, he remembered his first encounter with those mythical monsters. they hided until he felt that everything was safe, and started the hunt.
Toying him to the fullest.
There's no way I'll be fooled twice, you mutt-faced fiends! If you want some endurance battle, then yalla! I'll grant it!
He stand there aiming his iron rod at the door way. Ḥamād's fingers trembled around the iron rod, his knuckles whitening as if the weapon alone could ward off death. It's not that difficult to use this "weapon", he would swung it like a sword. Or stabbing with it. Or anything.
More time passed. Seconds feels like minutes, minutes feels like hours, so on, and so on. His curiousity began to embrace him in the worse occasion possible.
What in the actual fantasy world they're doing? What's happened to some rush uncalculated attack that got ambushed? There's something wrong happening for sure.
But, how can I know what's happening if I'm not seeing it myself?
He read the room, and came up with some -in his mind- genius idea. Slowly, he pressed his body against the wall at the end of the room, where a square hole -a window- was located.
His eyes widened.
Those anubises, they're just swarming around the ruin, moved aimlessly like zombies. As if they're unable to see the building in front of them.
As for now, he could calm down a bit that he's save. But again, his recklessness take him to another level of idiotic behavior. He descend the stairs, and peeked to the door.
They were not saw him.
He throw a small stone to them.
They're not aware.
Even when Ḥamād stand in front of the "door" and waved his hand to them, they're didn't give a shit. Like there's no one there.
He tilted his head.
Suddenly, a voice, dry as desert bones, slithered into his mind, resembling an old man insulting his stupidity.
"Was it death what you wish, human?"
"What the fuck!" He jumped and screamed. "Who's there?!" His whole body trembled in horror.
Panicked, he turn around so fast looking for the old man. His eyes darted around like a desperate orphan looking for parents he never had.
No one. There's no one in every direction.
"Yalla!¹ Show me yourself this instance. If we can talk, I'm not gonna do something terrible to you."
What's Ḥamād heard right after that is the most insulty laughter he ever heard his entire life. This old man mocking him in the best way he could.
"You? Gonna do something terrible to me? Oh, man. Don't joke around, can you? You're the one who stepped to my home without permission. It's trespassing, you know? Even in djinn's messed up culture, you're on the wrong side."
Hamad's eyes widened.
Djinn?
"And don't forget the fact that you bring your dog headed friends here. You put my families in danger."
Before this old man could say another word of his, Ḥamād's words began to pour from his mouth.
"Ain't no way you're a djinn, old man! Djinn is just a fairytale-being to scared kids. They're never existed. You must be playing some trick right here."
"You idiot. Can't you set your head straight? If I Am a fairy-tale being, what would you say about those dog headed shitty personality brat? Gosh! You make me frustrated already. Djinn cannot lie, mortal!"
After hearing this sentence, Hamad swallowed his saliva hard. This old man's words was right. How can be djinn never existed, where that Anubis-like creatures chased him?
But, as his dumb ass brain processing this information, his mouth spouting something else.
"Prove it. Prove me that you are a djinn."
"...".
There was a silent for solid three minutes. No answer.
And Ḥamād laugh so hard. "See. You lied, Mr. So-called djinn. You prove I'm right with your silence."
"You know what, young lad. I began to questioning my decision to save you from those human-eating dog heads. I'll let them feast you to the fullest."
Right after that, a howling start to heard again. As if those anubises realized that their prey is right in front of their noses.
Ḥamād turn him self to the door, and there's he find those anubises stared at him with their drools all over the place. Without any warning, they jump to him. All at once.
As the djinn said, they had a feast. Munching Ḥamād's leg, cutting his arm with khopesh, drinking his blood, and all kind of brutal things you can imagine.
All could be heard in those room was just two things; Ḥamād's scream in agony as his entire body got chewed up, and that djinn's maniacal laughter.
ARRGGGHHHH!
HAHAHAHA!
ARRGGGHHHH!
HAHAHAHA!
After some times, the djinn said, "okay. I think that's enough." A finger snap heard, as the djinn end his laughter.
Along with his regained consciousness, Ḥamād felt something strange. He could feel his whole body still attached, without any scratches. To reassure himself, he even touched every inch of his body. Frantically.
"What in the isekai world is happening right now? You resurrected me or something? I'm pretty sure that I'm as good as dead!"
Silence for some solid seconds.
"Really, human? If you this dumb, how can you survive this world?" The djinn asked instead of answering.
"You're not answering my question." Ḥamād said angrily. "How the hell, my body still intact after that attack?"
"Look outside, dip shit!"
Ḥamād turn around to the door. And there's he found that those anubises, still roaming outside like a bunch of idiotic zombies. There's no signs of after-eating party on them.
"What..." He said in disbelief.
"I put some imagery in your head, and you scream like you'll gonna die just because of that. Are you kidding? You should see your own face in that situation. It's very funny. Now answer me. How you survived 'till now?" The djinn ask.
"Illusion. You mean illusion, right?"
"Of course!" That djinn sounds frustrated again. He began to rise his voice. Again. "You ask me to prove about my djinn-ic situation, and I did just that."
Only that right moment did Ḥamād remembers some informations from his previous life. An information that comes from his grandmother's fairy tales about ghosts, djinns, and stuff like that.
It said that djinn, and any other "unseen" entities, had some power to put a curse, make illusion, make people sick, and all kind of scary stuff like that.
No way. That's all real?
"Now tell me your secrets, human. I am interested already." Said that djinn after some times.
***
Notes:
(¹): Yalla!: Come on!