“No,” repeated Silla, but this time it sounded far more like a plea.
It’s too late for begging,growled the god of chaos.
And with a godly burst of darkness, Myrkur consumed her.
Chapter 64
The scream tore from Hekla’s throat as she charged at Gjalla. Horror and panic battled within her as the spider twirled Kritka with frantic speed, further enshrouding him in silk, and somehow, muffling his pleas with it. The grimwolf let out one last plaintive yip, but it was quickly silenced as his air was sealed off. Gjalla dropped Kritka to the ground, the silk-wrapped bundle writhing to get free. Hekla had to get to her wolf, had to cut him free from his binds before he suffocated—
But Gjalla’s fangs stabbed downward, and she dove out of their path with barely a heartbeat to spare. The force of the spider cratered the snow and ground beneath it, the whole of the woods shaking with the impact. Gjalla chittered in rage, ripping his fangs free and launching at her.
Hekla kept her gaze on the writhing white mass that was Kritka, just beyond the wolfspider’s back legs. She was not fast enough to make it, but she was foolish enough to try it all the same. Gritting her teeth, she charged forward, then threw herself on her stomach, saying a silent prayer as she slid on the snow toward Kritka’s bundled form. But her momentum came to a jarring halt as one of Gjalla’s six remaining legs slammed down and caught the edge of her lébrynja jacket. Hekla’s grip on her sword loosened, and the blade spun across the snow.
The spider clicked with apparent glee as she thrashed against hishold, unable to reach her sword. But it seemed the vile creature had forgotten about Hekla’sotherweapon. She thrust her claws into the joint of his segmented leg, and the spider reared back with a vicious screech. Shouting her anger, Hekla heaved against the leg until her jacket pulled free.
Then she was scrambling across the snow, desperate to get to Kritka. His movements were weak, his muffled yelps so feeble. She knew she didn’t have long.
A sudden gust of air had Hekla rolling. Gjalla’s fangs slammed deep into the ground, sending snow powdering the air and shielding Hekla’s view. A great shadow blocked out the last light of day. Again, Hekla sensed an impending strike; again, she rolled. But this time, as her back hit the snow, Gjalla’s leg slammed into her stomach. Air punched from her lungs and pain blazed through her as something cracked—a rib or two had certainly just broken.
Your fortune has ended,gloated the spider.You won’t sneak your way free this time.
Pinned like an insect on her back, Hekla blinked up at three glowing red eyes—at the fangs gnashing down, down, down…
The last time she’d faced certain death, Hekla had been at peace, glad to die with a sword in her hand. Now hazel eyes filled her mind. A black lupine nose nuzzled against her palm. She heard Silla’s laughter and saw Axe Eyes sharpening her prosthetic’s claws.
A scream built in her throat as Hekla drove her claws upward. Steel and carapace smashed together. Hekla shrieked, pain radiating down what remained of her limb as Gjalla’s fangs grappled and yanked at her prosthetic arm.
The spider screeched in anger, and time seemed to slow. She twisted her limb to the side, and as the anchor clicked, she gave a hearty shove. Unhooked, her metal arm slid free, and Gjalla stumbled backward with the surprising shift in momentum.
The enormous weight lifted from her chest, and Hekla clambered to her feet, ignoring the pain radiating from her residual limb and broken ribs. Gjalla scuttled about, trying to regain his balance.But before the beast could regain his senses, Hekla staggered forward and, with her left hand, scooped her sword up from the snow.
Unleashing a scream of pure, visceral wrath, she slashed her sword upward.
Burrowed it deep into the spider’s soft underbelly.
Wrenched it forward with every bit of her strength.
Black ichor poured from its wound, an earsplitting screech wrenched from the spider as he tipped to the side. Hekla dodged a twitching leg and dragged her gaze from the dying spider to the silk-encased bundle lying still on the snow.
“No!” Hekla choked out, digging through her pain to reach Kritka’s side. She fell to her knees, unsheathing her dagger before slashing through the spider’s silk.
Please,she pleaded through their mind-to-mind connection.Kritka, wake up!
But no answer returned to her.
Black canine lips were stark against the white spider’s silk, yet they were utterly still. Swallowing back a sob, Hekla worked her blade carefully, widening the hole. Soon Kritka’s entire muzzle was free.
“You’re alive,” she whispered, a plea to the gods as she pulled the sticky silk away from his face. “You’re alive. You’realive.”
The battle raged nearby, and Hekla was vaguely aware of Kritka’s pack guarding her from the Turned creatures as she worked to free their kin. It was painstaking, but at last she was able to slice down the length of his binds and free him entirely.
Kritka rolled onto his side. The grimwolf’s eyes remained closed, but as his chest rose with steady breaths, Hekla’s sob broke free.
Protector,came Kritka’s voice, feeble in her mind.
“You’re alive!” Hekla buried her face in Kritka’s scratchy fur.
A grimwolf’s howl met her ears, then another and yet another. Hekla knelt back on her haunches, gaze swinging around the clearing. One by one, Kritka’s pack lifted their heads to the sky and howled in triumph.
