“Kyris?”
And then she saw it.
It looked like a dust cloud off in the distance. But as it came closer, she realized what it was.
That was no cloud.
It was nesters. A frickin’ swarm of nesters. She’d never seen so many of them before. To create a dust cloud that big, there had to be at least fifty of the things.
The horror made her freeze as she swallowed hard.
But Kyris didn’t move. Instead, he turned her around to face him and the look in his eyes only terrified her more.
He was worried. And if he was worried, that only meant she should be mortified.
Reaching into the sack still draped across his back, he took out the little blade and pressed it into her hands.
He didn’t need to say a word.
There was only one reason why he’d give her a weapon.
Fuck.
She might need to use it.
As the swarm came closer, their screeches and hisses got louder and then she realized why Kyris wasn’t moving.
All around them, in a wide circle, the ground seemed to be rumbling, almost as if something was trying to rise from the earth.
As the first spiked tails appeared through the sand, Song gripped the little blade.
He wasn’t moving because they were surrounded.
He’d never seen so many nesters in one place. And there were more. He could hear them underneath the sand.
They were surrounded.
For three days and nights he’d fought. Killing them as they’d appeared. There had been some close calls but he’d kept her safe. He would always keep her safe.
Yet, now, he couldn’t help the sliver of worry that was snaking its way through him.
This was bad. This was very bad.
A black, scaly tail pushed through the sand. Erect, the barb was aimed in Song’s direction as the nester shot its poison. He just had enough time to knock her to the sand, his body covering hers, as he evaded the poison.
Even as he was getting back to his feet, another barb poked through and another shot of poison was aimed in their direction.
That one was easier to evade and as both creatures rose from the sand, Song’s labored breathing caught his attention.
All around them, nesters were coming up from the earth beneath. The sand shuddered and moved as if no longer solid but a thick fluid.
Her dark terrified eyes were on him as she gripped the small blade, her knuckles white.
Two slices of his blade through the air and he killed the nesters closest to them but he knew the fight was far from even started.
He needed to do something.
As one of the creatures launched from the sand, its body airborne and its tail pointed downward, the sharp end aiming for her, he pulled her into him, swinging her in his arms and out of the way effortlessly as his blade hand moved forward to deposit the sharp end of his blade straight through the nester.
The thing screeched and purple blood burst forward unto them and into the sand.
As Song gathered her bearings, the wind having been knocked out of her, another nester’s tail began pushing through the sand beside her leg.
She was trembling but before he could kill the thing, Song slammed the small blade into the tail. Pulling her arm back, her hand covered in purple blood, she stared at the blade. The nester she’d attacked screeched beneath them, irate as it rose, and for a moment he saw the fear manifest once more in her eyes.
Slamming his blade deep into the sand, he finished the creature off even as the screeching around them grew more intense.
All around, the sand shifted and pulled as nesters climbed up from underneath. The swarm was upon them too now and there was nowhere to run.
In every direction, the creatures stood, their tails flicking and swaying mercilessly in the air. One by one they came forward and Kyris’ blade swung.
Keeping her behind him at all times, he circled as he fought, his efforts mindless as he let his years of training with the blade take over. He didn’t have to think about his movements. All of his senses were focused on her. He could hear every breath that shuddered through her, every gasp, every whimper.
As he fought, the sand being bathed with purple blood, the nesters came. Their attack was relentless. No matter how many bodies fell to the ground, they came. Over and over they launched themselves at him and over and over he cut them down.
But it didn’t seem as if he was going to win this fight.
As soon as he killed one, there were ten to replace it.
They were surrounded, hundreds of nesters around them, their hisses and screeches going up into the air in a shrill song.
He couldn’t take them all out. It wouldn’t work. They would just keep coming. There was only one thing he could do…
He had to lead them away and there was only one way to do that.
Glancing down at Song, his blade still raised, he knew he had to do it.
“I’m going to lead them away.”
She was still trembling, her bloodied hands shaking, but in her eyes he saw her resolve. She could do this.
“I’m going to lead them away. When I do, you have to run in the opposite direction.”
“Okay.” She nodded.
“You can’t look back. You can’t pause. Just run.”
“Okay.” She nodded again then, as if his words finally hit home, her worried eyes reached his. “Wait…why are you saying it like that? What’s going to happen?”
The urge to pull her into him and comfort her hit him deep. But the screeches around them were louder. The longer they delayed, the more dangerous it would become.
Without another word, he unfurled his wings and her eyes widened into little pools. With a thrust of his wings, he was off. Rising into the air, he left the ground beneath him.
22
The scream that left her lips shook her core as
