Could I even strangle it to death?
Fuck. It was ungodly strong. I squeezed with everything I had. The beast thrashed, savagely snapping. Its muscles were solid under my too-soft grip.
Shit! Shit! Shit!
It was too powerful.
My arms began to tremble from the effort.
My organs tangled like vines, twisting with dread, choking. My heartbeat was a racehorse galloping out of my chest cavity.
One second away from getting my face carved up like turkey meat.
Help . . . help me . . .
I didn’t know who I was calling for. I didn’t care. My instincts had taken the wheel and I was desperate, screaming—inwardly, outwardly.
Then, I felt it. That deep, rumble of something primitive, stretching awake. That dark beast within.
Blackness peeled back as tendrils of light swirled up my skin. A soft glow rising like mist, illuminating the space around me. Wisps curled around my arms, spiraled my torso, and wrapped down my legs like an armor spun from moonlight and waterfalls. A Soulsayer phantom unleashed.
In front of me, the beast emerged, massive and snarling. Its fur a matted, greasy gray. Tufts jutted out around its deformed, dog-like ears. Blood-red eyes pierced into mine with hunger as talons scraped the floor like built-in scythes.
What the fuck was?—
I remember the taste of Onchu Dog,an eerie voice whispered in my mind. Echoing with laughter, the sound of a spirit’s lullaby.
Onchu dog? What the hell was going on!
Then, a sudden flicker. A shadow darted out from the back wall. So quick, most wouldn’t notice it, except those born from death. It struck the beast at full force, sending it tumbling back several paces with a soul-rattling whine.
Holy shit! A soul did that!
My heart hammered.
Move, now! Move, now!the spirit yelled.
I dove for the gun.
Behind me, another growl. This time, deeper. Made of pure fury. A sound that didn’t belong to this world. Perhaps the pits of hell . . .
“Carwynn, run!”
I didn’t recognize the scream. Finley? Lochlainn? Maybe both. Maybe neither.
I spun toward the back door—and froze.
My power swept over me, prickling every hair on my body to stand up. Not a surge, but a gentle touch. A caress comforting, reassuring.I’m here.
“No.” The word came out foreign and jagged, as if someone else had spoken through me.
Slowly, I turned back toward the beast and watched it rise. Its head lowered with grim purpose, a lethal promise. Its teeth glistening, reflecting the radiating light of my magic.
It washorrifying.
There was another cry from above, but I blocked it out.
One paw crept forward. Calculating. Slow. Predatory.
