"Let's hope your nose is as big as your wings.”
I prepared the rest of my trap, then, perched like a shadow in the grove, I counted the heartbeats that thudded against my rib cage. My fingers twitched at my sides, eager for movement, but I tethered them with an iron will.
Patience, Collie.
But patience had never been my virtue, and yet here I sat, playing the most dangerous waiting game of my life. The anticipation was a tangible thing, crawling up my spine and prickling at the base of my skull.
A breeze flirted through the trees, whispering secrets I strained to hear. Every rustle, every snap of twigs set my nerves alight.
A sound came then—a distant thrum that grew louder, more insistent. Wings. Huge, powerful wings beating the air into submission.
My pulse quickened, and I clamped down on the surge of adrenaline threatening to unseat me. I tightened my grip on the hilt of my dagger, the cool metal grounding me. With my other hand, I traced the invisible lines of magic that laced the clearing, ready to weave them into defense or offense—whichever the bird would invite first.
The flapping grew closer.
My muscles coiled, preparing to launch at a moment's notice.
The shadow descended like a cloud of doom blotting out the early morning sun, and suddenly an eerie half light bathed the clearing. I squinted skyward, my pulse beating into my throat as the giant bird plummeted towards me, its talons outstretched like the fingers of fate itself.
I shifted my feet on the forest floor, every sense tingling with the electric charge that buzzed in the air.
As the bird swooped lower, I sprang aside, rolling under its vast wing, so close I could feel the rush of wind that followed it. Dirt and leaves clung to my cheeks, but I scrambled up.
With a squawk that rumbled through the canopy, the bird circled back, its eyes fixed on me, black and unblinking. They held intelligence and cunning.
I twisted as I dodged another dive, the ground quaking beneath the force of its missed strike. Magic pulsed at my fingertips.
I flung a hand out, casting a net of shimmering tendrils toward the beast. The magic ensnared one clawed foot, but the bird was relentless, tearing through my magic with a shriek that set my teeth on edge.
Ehuna would have scolded me for underestimating my opponent. But then, I never did like taking lectures.
I conjured a barrier just in time to deflect a wing buffet. The impact resonated through my bones.
The bird reared back, preparing to unleash another assault. It lunged, and I met its charge with a burst of speed, sidestepping a razor-sharp beak aimed for my head. I countered with a bolt of my own power, striking the bird's underbelly.
The bird faltered, a sign that my magic had hit true.
"Come on, big guy…or girl," I panted out as I braced for the next attack, "let's see if you can keep up with me."
I cast a glance at the traps I'd laid out. They were simple pits covered with foliage, but to the bird, they might as well have been invisible.
I darted between the trees, my steps light despite the heaviness in my chest, leading the bird on a chase.
The bird screeched, a sound that sent shivers down my back, but I didn't falter. I skipped narrowly away from talons that could shred me to ribbons, my pulse pounding against my throat.
I dashed towards the first trap. A quick leap, and I cleared the hidden pit just as the bird swooped in. With a bewildering crash, it fell through the leaves and branches, its cries turning from anger to confusion.
"Ever heard of a thing called gravity?" I wiped a bead of sweat from my brow.
I readied myself as the bird thrashed against the magic net below, eventually clawing its way free. By now, it had to be fatigued.
My hands crackled with the raw energy coursing through my veins. As the bird regained the sky, I feigned weakness, stumbling back, my breathing ragged. I needed it to believe it had the upper hand.
It dove, a streak of shadow across the sun, and I waited until the last possible moment before rolling away, another trap ensnaring one of its massive wings.
The bird flailed, disoriented, its wing caught tight in the invisible web of ropes and nets I'd conjured. Its eyes blazed with embers of hatred. But even those flames seemed to flicker with uncertainty as I moved toward it.
Its free wing beat the air, stirring a gale that threatened to uproot the very trees around us. The giant bird reared back, its beak poised like a lance.
