He tipped his head back then and roared just as he started to run right for us. He was fast, and with those wide footsteps would be on us in no time. I quickly scanned his body for any soft-looking spot in his skin, a place where I could do the mostdamage.
“Kit!” Noxgrowled.
I hoisted the heavy thing over my shoulder, double-checking it was pointing in the right direction, and moved backwardslowly.
The giant was coming so fast, the ground shaking violently the closer he got. The bastard could probably smell us a mile away with that gigantic snout on his face. The spot around his neck looked lighter in color and of a softer flesh, so I aimed my weapon to take his head clean off. Once I had it lined up as good as it was going to get, I stopped and planted my feet, pulling the trigger. With a jerk, the projectile sailed through the air but missed its mark, sank into his armpit. After a bang, it detonated, cleaving his left arm clean off. Green hyper-colored liquid, same color as most of the stuff all over this planet, oozed from the open socket, creating a river of gushing giantblood.
Yes!
But just when I thought he might keel over from blood loss, he tipped his head back and roared… and fire cameout.
Ohshit.
He was like a sentry-Galadriahybrid.
He isn’t smart enough to make a tourniquet or anything, is he? Dear God, please let him have the brain capacity of agrunt.
Something funny was happening with his arm socket as we waited for him to succumb to his injury. It had stopped bleeding and I squinted to focus, leaning forward to make sure I was seeingcorrectly.
“Why isn’t he falling over?” Nox asked, from a few feetaway.
“Run!” I shouted and spun on myheels.
His arm… was growingback.
May God have mercy on oursouls.
Five
The night had gonefrom bad to worse. We were running from a freaking gigantic ghoul that could spit fire and regenerate, and Maxine was still in a coma. My recovering ankle was starting to hurt like a mother, and I knew Ronnie and my physical therapist were going to kill me for balls-out running on it likethis.
Ommm. Find a happyplace.
“Head for that building!” I shouted to Nox and Brisk, who were carrying Maxine on a stretcher, her head banging up and down as we ran for our lives. A quick glance to my left showed Ronnie was about ten yards behind with Mr. Hansen, but I knew she’d heard my order when she hollered back heragreement.
The giant had stopped to let his arm regenerate, then plucked a few ghouls off the ground to eat right before we’d started running. Now I could see him, maybe two hundred yards away, ugly mug stuck up into the air, sniffing around. We’d lost Damien, Jeremy and Josephine, but I had to believe they were okay. When I could stop and take a breath, I would think of a plan. Hopefullyquickly.
The building ahead didn’t look run-down and blown up like most of the others. It seemed relatively new. And for some reason, that unsettled me. Did our military build it or theirs? Judging by the materials used and the thin layer of green stuff covering the outside, I was going with theirs. Still, it was our only cover. We’d blasted past the forest and were now in open air, so this place could buy us time to rethink our plan. Maybe I could call Master Aki again or something, though I wasn’t sure what good it would do since we were inBisbee.
Dammit, I needed a wakeragain!
I was the first one into the building and I flew through the doorway, flicking on the light scope at the end of my weapon. I did a quick five-second circle and determined the room we were in was clear—in every sense of the word. It was an open brick entry room with no furniture or anything decorating the walls, a hallway running behind it with two openings, one on eachside.
Nox and Brisk were next to enter. They had to tilt the stretcher to make Maxine fit, she nearly fell off. Her body jerked to the side as they rolled it, and I whimpered when I saw a few of her stiches rip and blood pool out of the wound. Ronnie and Mr. Hansen brought in the rear, dashing into the room huffing andpuffing.
“Did he see us?” I asked, still out ofbreath.
Ronnie shook her head. “I don’t think so. He got distracted by aGaladria.”
My eyes widened interror.
“Not Dawn,” Ronnie explained quickly. “It wasgreen.”
Relief poured through me at her words. I didn’t think I could handle losing Dawn. I didn’t know when I’d become so attached to that alien dragon, but what was done was done. She was my friend now. No goingback.
“Maxine’s stiches ripped,” I told her in a low voice. Though it clearly wasn’t low enough, Brisk and Nox swore at the sametime.
“We tried to be careful,” Brisk said, bending down to brush a lock of red hair away from Maxine’sforehead.
