‘A perfect reaping,’Death whispers before his faint image disappears.
‘Levi, spin the other way. It can help while I try to direct it from here,’JP calls out. I look up and find Levi trying to move against the cyclone that’s pulling his body into its depths. Levi resists the pull in the opposite direction while JP slowly tries to manipulate the tides from the bottom. It must be from my Horseman powers, but I’m able to see and track JP’s outline just fine. Or maybe it’s because we have our own relationship, who knows, but I’m grateful for it. From here, it looks like he has a pretty good handle on it. The other cyclone is already out in the wild, so hopefully that’s not causing too much damage.
BOOM!
‘Miska!’someone sobs. I catch sight of one of the twilight twins running out of the room and Moni’s perplexed look before a scream catches my attention.
Shit, Rez and Serafin.
I spin as I catch sight of two motionless bodies floating in a red mist of blood.
‘REZ!’I scream, teleporting to the haze, my heart pounding in my throat. I frantically look around before seeing Rez and Serafin drifting motionless, and I spot blue and yellow in the distance. Is that blob Ryker?‘Ryker, help!’
I urgently nudge the bodies apart as Ryker comes up from the other side. He flips over one body that’s so scratched up and covered in open wounds that I can’t identify who it is. As Ryker flips the other one, the massive slash across the chest into theabdomen is the clear culprit as to where all the dark blood is coming from, as their entrails slide out of their body.
‘Shit. Rez?’My body starts shaking out of control with nerves as Ryker’s tentacles move to push back the dark hair out of the way so we can see the face, but damn it, the dark blood pouring out of her obscures her features.
I need to know, and by the look of the trembling of Ryker’s tentacles, he’s feeling the same way.
‘Don’t you dare feel sorry for that dead bitch,’Rez wheezes, and I twirl around to see Rez holding her side where her skin is slowly knitting back together as she pushes her hair out of her face.
‘Rez!’Ryker and I shout, and we both tackle her. Well, my tar ensnares her.
‘Yeah, just cut up, but I’m already healing,’she points out, giving us a small smile full of sharp teeth as she shows us her biggest slash across her ribs.
‘Sweet, can we get out of here?’I ask, trying to calm myself down. I don’t think I can handle something else happening to Rez or anyone else in my family. I don’t want to press our luck any further.
‘Yeah, we’re pretty much done here,’Ryker agrees.‘They will come down to collect the bodies and give Serafin a royal burial.’
‘Good riddance to the bitch!’ Moni snaps.
‘Moni!’ Rez looks at her bestie like she’s crazy.
‘What?’ Moni bobs up and down like a yo-yo. ‘You know she was horrible, and she got what she deserved, finally.’
‘Guys, let’s go!’I call out, and I’m answered with a loud groan echoing deep within the grotto behind me.
‘Moni, please tell me that’s your stomach,’Lynx asks.
‘Nope. I’m all dieseled out,’she admits, sounding small.
Rocks break loose and crash into the water as an eerie, deep roar creeps into the grotto.
‘I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to stay around to find out what can make that sound,’ Lynx points out.
‘For once, I agree with the hairball,’ Knots agrees.
We all turn in the direction JP points and come to a halt as we notice the fallen rocks are blocking our exit.
‘Moni. Can you start blasting a way out for us? Ryker, can you help? The rest of us, let’s see who our guest is,’Levi instructs before turning towards the back tunnel.
Aww fuck, I was hoping he wasn’t going to say that.
‘On it!’Moni lets a boom go into the rock wall, and it cracks a massive boulder, but it doesn’t shatter or break it up.‘Hmm. This might take a little longer,’she says, turning a little pink.
Another groan rips through the tunnel, preceding the guest that can make that sound as a massive shadow emerges and something squeezes itself through the tunnel and into the grotto. I watch as the creature unfolds itself to its full height, and my stomach drops to my hooves.
‘Death comes to those who face me,’the creature taunts.
