Turn 142 of 226

I am an animal and my name is Lena, and as a challenge I start hunting animals with my bare hands. I win, but get severely injured. The addiction is satisfied. Diane and I eat my hunt. I heal faster than I did before the wish.

Lena's hands are the things that find the chain-link gap at the edge of the foundry lot. The gap is the thing that leads to the overgrown rail spur — the spur that is the thing behind the industrial district, the spur that is the weeds and the scrub trees and the things that live there. The things that live there are the things Lena smells. The smelling is not human smelling. The smelling is the thing the body does without trying — the musk that is the raccoon, the ammonia trace that is the coyote, the iron in the blood that is the rabbit. Lena's feet are the things that move through the gravel without sound. The moving is the thing the body learned from the night walks and the thing the body learned from the fighting footwork and the thing that is now the hunting footwork. The feet know the ground. The ground is the thing Lena owns.

The first kill is the raccoon. The raccoon is the thing that is under the rusted culvert — the culvert that is the thing Lena reaches into. The raccoon's teeth are the thing that finds Lena's forearm. The teeth are the thing that go deep — the deep that is the thing Lena feels and does not flinch from. The flinching is the thing the body does not do. The body's other hand is the thing that finds the raccoon's spine. The finding is the thing that is the grip. The grip is the thing that is the twist. The twist is the thing that ends the raccoon. The ending is the thing that leaves the raccoon limp and Lena's forearm bleeding. The bleeding is the thing Lena looks at. The looking is the thing that is the curiosity — the curiosity that is not pain, the curiosity that is the body registering damage and the body not caring about the damage.

The coyote is the challenge. The coyote is the thing Lena finds at the edge of the shipping yard — the coyote that is forty pounds, the coyote that is the thing that does not run. The not running is the thing that is the territorial response. The coyote's teeth are the thing that finds Lena's calf. The teeth are the thing that tear — the tear that is the thing that opens the skin and the muscle. Lena's hand is the thing that finds the coyote's throat. The throat is the thing Lena crushes. The crushing is the thing that takes four seconds. The four seconds are the things the coyote's claws use — the claws that are the things that open Lena's thigh, the claws that are the things that rake the ribs. The coyote dies. Lena stands. The standing is the thing that is difficult. The difficult is the thing that is the blood loss — the blood loss from the calf, the thigh, the forearm, the ribs. The blood loss is the thing Lena walks on. The walking is the thing that is the return to the lot.

Diane is the thing that sees Lena first. The seeing is the thing that is the blood — the blood that is on Lena's arms and legs and torso, the blood that is Lena's and the blood that is not Lena's. Diane does not speak. Diane's hands are the things that take the raccoon and the coyote from Lena's hands. The hands are the things that guide Lena to the concrete. The guiding is the thing that is the lowering. The lowering is the thing that puts Lena on the ground. Diane's mouth is the thing that finds Lena's calf wound. The mouth is the thing that is the cleaning — the cleaning that is the saliva and the pressure. The cleaning is the thing the animal does. The animal is the thing Diane is.

The eating is the thing the bodies do with the hunt. Diane's hands are the things that build the fire — the fire that is the thing built from the pallet fragments and the dried weeds. The fire is the thing that cooks the raccoon and the coyote. The cooking is the thing that is minimal — the minimal that is the animal's cooking, the cooking that is the thing that is more than raw and less than done. The bodies eat. The eating is the thing that is the teeth in the meat, the tearing, the chewing that is the thing that is the animal's eating. The meat is the thing that is the protein. The protein is the thing the body needs. The body needs the protein because the body is healing.

The healing is the thing Lena watches. The calf wound is the thing that closes in three days. The three days are the thing that should be ten. The forearm is the thing that closes in two. The thigh is the thing that seals in four. The ribs are the thing that stop aching in five. The healing is the thing that is faster. The faster is the thing that is different. The body healed the tournament bruise in a week. The body heals the hunt wounds in half the time. The wish is the thing that builds the body. The building is the thing that includes the repair. The repair is the thing that is accelerating. The accelerating is the thing Lena does not question. The accelerating is the thing the body accepts. The body accepts because the body is the animal and the animal is the thing that heals. The animal is the thing that hunts. The animal is the thing that eats. The animal is the thing that is Lena.