Thane grunts as he falls. The beast attempts a bite at him, but Thane flips onto his back and shoots it in the muzzle with a stream of gold. It whimpers and backs off, giving him just enough time to roll away and jump to his feet.
However, while he fights one shadowhound, another shows up. It notices Algar, yellow teeth bared, sensing an easy meal.
“Algar!” I yell.
Another shadowhound appears a short distance away from me and Rynthea. It growls low, red eyes flaring, whispers of gray smoke surrounding its head. One pounce forward and we’ll be lunch.
“My scythesword.” Rynthea’s words are strained as she points behind me. I dive for her weapon.
The shadowhound snarls and launches itself toward us as I toss Rynthea her scythesword.
An agonized yelp splits the air as Rynthea roars, swinging her scythesword at the beast. She hits it directly in the chest, and the shadowhound goes down. Grunting, she kicks it off her blade with a hoof. It lands beside her like a lump of meat, its teeth mere inches from her thigh. The short tip of her scythesword is drowned in black blood.
“Get. Algar,” she croaks.
Right.Algar. The shadowhound is right above him now.
“Hey!” I scream, scrambling to my feet. “Get away from him!”
This beast lifts its head, and its snout quivers as it reveals glistening teeth and magenta gums. I let it lock its sights on me.
What now, Zaira?
Thane can’t help me. He’s still fighting off his own shadowhound, and Rynthea can hardly move.
I panic as the creature stalks toward me. I frantically search my surroundings, looking for anything to help me fend off the shadowhound. There’s a cave off to the left, just big enough for me to squeeze into. I dart for it, and the shadowhound belts out a vicious bark as its paws pound into the ground. I feel it closing in on me, the heat from its savage pants warming my back. I duck into the cave just as the creature speeds headlong into it with its teeth bared. I hear a hardsnapas its fangs break off on the entrance.
Catching my breath, I slide backward and burrow deeper in the cave. Holy Crystal. I can’t believe I made it.
The growls echo, and the shadowhound sticks a paw inside, swiping left and right. I move back as far as I can, pressing my back against the rocky wall. This is a shallow cave, though. It could still reach me.
The shadowhound keeps clawing inside with vicious snarls. While it does, I grab my dagger. There’s hardly any light, so I can’t see exactly where to strike, but I go for it anyway.
Raising my arm, I yell as I slice downward. The dagger penetrates its flesh, and the shadowhound yelps like a wounded puppy. I snatch the dagger back out, and it jerks its paw away.
Breathing rapidly, heart hammering, I wait to see if it’ll run off. The paw drifts away from the cave, and I catch it limping off. Even though it’s leaving, I don’t dare move.
I close my eyes for a fleeting second to pull myself together and collect my breath. My lungs burn, and my heart feels like it’s about to burst out of my chest. My hands shake, and my veins pump with more adrenaline than I’ve felt before.
I’m safe for now.
Suddenly, something pierces through my skin, and white-hot pain floods my thigh. My eyes fly open, and I unleash a high-pitched scream. The shadowhound’s other paw has silently made its way back into the cave and has impaled my upper thigh—and the claw is stuck.
I wail as it tries to yank its paw backward, taking me with it.
I’ve really pissed this thing off.
I lift the dagger again, fighting through the agonizing pain, and give its other paw several stabs. The shadowhound yelps and rips its claw out. It hurts more coming out than going in.
“Fuck!” I wail. “Oh gods. Orvena, help me.” Hands shaking, I study my leg as best as I can in the dim light. Blood gushes from a massive gash, running onto the gravel. “Oh goodness. Okay. Okay, breathe, Z. Think.”
Hands trembling, I remove my rucksack and pull out a pair of pants, ripping them into three sections with my dagger. I tuck one piece of the fabric under my thigh to soak up the pool of blood forming. I bite down on another piece, readying myself for what’s about to come next—the tourniquet.
My muffled scream bounces off the walls of the cave as I give another piece of fabric a yank above my wound, tying it as tightly as possible. With tears swelling in my eyes, I look down at my leg. The tourniquet is useless. My blood is soaking right through the fabric.
“Damn it,” I whimper. I rifle through my bag again and pull out the last bottle of healing elixir I took from Immalon. I pop the cork and chug it down. It tastes like shit and burns like acid.
“Zaira!” I hear Thane call.
