But panic had a tight grip on the kangaroo’s mind, and the crocodile was almost on them, its jaws opening to snap shut on his tail or his leg before the kangaroo finally relinquished control, and let Trent change back into his human form.
Hold on, Quicksilver,Trent thought, cupping a hand around the little creature as soon as hehada hand to hold it again. It managed to keep its grip on Trent’s shoulder as he took off at a run, hearing the crocodile’s jaws snap shut around the thin air where, less than a moment ago, his tail had been.
Trent’s senses were more dulled now, but at least he could move at a run – he dashed down the tunnel, hearing the deep, terrifying growl of the crocodile behind him, thethudof its massive feet on the stone floor, and the scrape of its sides against the walls.
How can it evenbethat big?!
He knew even as he asked the question that it was stupid, however – giant prehistoric crocodiles were a thing, after all, and he himself was a prehistorical mammal, who had two griffins, a marsupial lion and a diprotodon on his team. He wasn’t exactly in any position to be saying a giant crocodile was a thing that should not be.
Even though it isn’t!
“Pirrup? Pirrup?”
Quicksilver sounded just as uneasy with the situation as Trent felt.
How can I fight that thing, though?!
He knew even as he thought it that he couldn’t. His only option was to evade it. He had to find his way to Zina through the labyrinth of this mine – which seemed never-ending – and get them both to safety.
I need to focus on the mated bond. It’ll show me the way.
Finally, the tunnel he was running down opened up into two, forking off from each other. Trent hesitated only a moment before choosing the left-hand path – something in his heart told him it was the right choice, and right now, Trent didn’t have time to stand around debating his instincts.
Let’s hope that thing has bad eyesight,he thought, though he knew with a sinking feeling that if the Bloodhound – no,Bloodcrocodile– had retained his tracking ability in his shifted form – and Trent couldn’t see why he wouldn’t – then it wouldn’t matter if he was as blind as a bat. He’d still be able to find him, no matter where he went.
Well, I don’t have to evade him forever,Trent thought, as he heard the crocodile begin tracking him down the path he’d taken.Just for the next little while. Just long enough to get out of here.
But the deeper he went into the mine, the more Trent grew worried that his instincts might have led him astray. The farther he went, the darker it got, and the fouler the air became. It was stale and musty, filled with dust, and Trent had to hold his arm up over his nose and mouth to breathe properly. And at every pace, he could hear a huge, relentless, bloodthirsty predator behind him – one that couldn’t be reasoned with, couldn’t be fought, couldn’t be evaded.
“How are you doing, Quicksilver?” Trent asked, his voice muffled by his arm, but Quicksilver seemed to be doing just fine. In fact, it was darting its tongue out, then happily making smacking sounds with its lips – with a small jolt, Trent realized it was eating the tiny particles of rock out of the air like a frog catching insects. “Well, I’m glad you’re relaxed enough to have a little snack!”
“Pirrp?” Quicksilver said, looking at him inquisitively, and Trent shook his head.
“No, I’m not angry or anything – we’re just in a tight spot right now.”
Just as he spoke, Trent found himself suddenly standing at the mouth of a large cavern – much larger than the one Zina and he had found when they’d first been exploring. It didn’t look like it had been excavated – large columns of rock stood from floor to ceiling in what looked like natural formations, and the ceiling was uneven and jagged. It had probably been a natural cave that the miners had stumbled upon during their digging, Trent thought, as he stepped out into it – but more to the point, he thought, as he moved between the giant stone columns, where the hell was the exit?!
He couldn’t go back the way he’d come – there was a giant prehistoric crocodile down there, which Trent could hear coming closer and closer by the second. But this room was a confusing maze in itself, impossible to walk in a straight line through, and disturbingly easy to lose his way in.
And there doesn’t seem to be another way out…
Trent called his kangaroo forward as far as he dared, feeling its panic pressing up against his mind, but needing its heightened senses to feel if there were any slight gusts of wind coming from any other direction.
But there was nothing. The only way out was the way he’d come in, and right now, that simply wasn’t an option. Not least because the crocodile had finally caught up with him, and its massive snout – filled with massive teeth – was emerging from the darkness of the tunnel, its beady eyes swinging this way and that before they locked onto Trent.
Shit.
He moved back behind a thick pillar of rock, but he knew the thing had seen him. He’d just have to play an extended game of keep away – with himself as the thing he had to keep away – until he could work his way around the room and back out into the tunnels. And then, he guessed, he’d have to start all over again in his search for Zina.
All right. Seems simple enough.
In fact it didn’t, but Trent didn’t see the point in defeatist talk right now.
He could hear the low growl the Bloodcrocodile made echoing off the walls of the cave, making it seem as if the beast was everywhere all at once. Trent edged his way around the column, ducking his head out to scan his immediate vicinity before breaking cover and moving around the perimeter of the cave, trying to keep at least a few stone columns between him and the Bloodcrocodile at all times.
The Bloodcrocodile, however, seemed to be at the limits of its patience, and it definitely had other ideas. Its massive head swung toward Trent, and then itcharged,heedless of whatever was in its way. One of the smaller, narrower columns of rock that stood between them was smashed apart by the force of the crocodile’s bulk as it charged across the room.
“Shit!”
