The Fractured World, page 20
“Does this mean we are ready to escape?” Casella asked.
“That depends if you’ve finished your side.”
“Pff,” Trez snorted. “You think we came gawking at you for nothing? Cass!”
Casella rushed away and came back with a massive green lasso. Together, the girls uncoiled their creation. It just kept getting longer and longer, seemingly without end.
After they’d gotten a good twenty feet apart, and still had plenty of rope to spare, they stopped.
“Enough for ya?” Trez said.
“Trez has tested it already,” Casella said. “It’s enough.”
“You would’ve noticed if you weren’t making out with your wood instead of me. Right pain to coil back up, it was.”
I gave the taut rope a tug. The whole thing held steady. They’d done a splendid job creating it. Color and texture aside, it looked just like the real thing.
“You girls are awesome,” I said.
“Tell me about it,” Trez said. “Seriously, you can tell me anytime. In fact, you better be telling me all the time after I totally nail this shit.”
“I also wouldn’t mind hearing such praise,” Casella said. “Although, I’ll be sure to return it twice over.”
You couldn’t have paid me to wipe the stupid grin off my pace. I adored them so much.
“Then let’s call this our final night in this frosty hellhole,” I said. “Anybody up for a celebration?”
There enchanting smiles was the answer I was looking for. Together, we returned to our cave to make our last night in this dump one to remember.
Chapter 23
It was the fated day. We were going to escape our predicament and get to a climate where we could flourish at last.
At least, that was the plan.
Trez blew away a spattering of snow whirling around her face. “I hate this planet so damn much!”
“Same,” I grumbled.
My aspiration had made me naive. I had allowed the clear skies to lure me into a false sense of security. The weather was not our friend. When we needed its cooperation the most, that was when it had turned its back on us.
A blizzard battered the environment. Wind and snow crashed together, ripping trees of their leaves and us of our hope.
It was as if the snow biome didn’t want us to escape from its cold grip.
“Will we have to cancel?” Casella asked as she tried to raise her voice over the elements.
The cliff did a job in shielding us from the worst of the weather, but it was far from pleasant standing in its shadow.
“I don’t think we have a choice,” I replied.
“Oh…”
I gritted my teeth and squeezed my fists hard enough to hurt.
All this effort just to get snowed off? Dammit, that’s too cruel.
“Is this about me?” Faris said into my ear. She was once again draped over my back and wrapped in all the layers we could find.
Even that didn’t feel enough.
“Partially,” I said.
“I’ll be fine.”
“You can’t know that.”
“I’ve been fine so far.”
“Which is why I don’t want to risk it,” I said. “Nothing’s worth endangering your health.”
Her tail tightened around my waist. “You act like I’m your mate,” she whispered.
“Sometimes I forget you’re not,” I confessed. “Like it matters. I’ll protect you all the same.”
Faris kept quiet. The sudden burst of heat radiating from her cheeks was hard to miss.
“Are we seriously crying off after all this shit?” Trez complained. “Can’t we just risk it?”
“I will not risk any of you,” I said.
Trez held up her hands. “I get it, I get it. No reason to get all intense. It’s just… I was so looking forward to getting out of here.”
“I think we all were,” Casella said with a heavy sigh. “Oh well. There will be other chances, yes? Shall we return to camp for now?”
“That’s probably for the best,” I said. I didn’t like subjecting Faris to the cold for no reason.
I went to set off, but I froze in place. Something locked my legs and made my mind race.
This feeling… it can’t be. Not now.
The horizon was muffled by the snow. There was no way to see or hear anything. But I could sense them. I could feel their presence with frightening clarity.
“Trez,” I said. “Up, now.”
She perked up. “We doing this?”
“Hurry,” I snapped. “We don’t have a lot of time.”
Trez couldn’t miss my anxiety. She grabbed the rope and pulleys and scuttled up the cliff.
“My Brandon?” Casella said, shimmying close to me. “Is something wrong?”
“They’re here,” I growled. And it wasn’t just the one. My instincts wouldn’t have screamed at me in such a way if that had been the case. There had to be more of them, more than I’d ever seen before.
Why now?! Why couldn’t they just leave us alone?
Can’t let them get my mates. Need to get them to safety.
I dropped Faris onto the lift and practically tugged Casella on with her. I stayed clear.
“My Brandon!” Casella said. “Whatever are you doing?”
“It needs to be this way,” I said.
“But—”
“This isn’t open to discussion. Somebody needs to buy you time.” And I was the only one who could.
You gave me this power for a reason. It’s time to put it to use.
“I’m ready!” Trez yelled, her voice barely carrying with the blizzard in the way.
I glanced at the heavens. “Pull!”
The rope tensed and the lift jiggled, but it never got any higher than the smallest of bunny hops.
“It’s too heavy!” she shouted back.
I ground my teeth. Of course. Trez had struggled when it was just me. Together, Casella and Faris weighed more than I did.
Not to mention the snow’s piling up already.
The clicking of mandibles finally leaked through the veil of sleet. Shadowy figures emerged from the forest in a quantity previously unseen. For once, they didn’t care about stealth. They didn’t need it. Their numbers advantage was substantial, and we had nowhere to go. Our backs were literally to the wall.
Even the girls couldn’t miss the scythe-armed demons visible in all their hideous glory.
“Go,” Faris said to Casella as she staggered off the lift. “I’ll stay.”
“You can’t,” Casella said, grabbing Faris by her coat. “You’re sick. You need the warmth.”
“It’s dangerous.”
“Dangerous for you too,” Casella correctly pointed out. “Please, Faris. Did you not teach me to fight for a reason?”
“To keep yourself safe! Not for this.”
“Faris, go,” I said.
“What?!” she snapped.
“You’re not well enough to fight. We all know it.” Faris had done her best to hide it but her caramel skin lacked its usual luster and her steps were shaky. She’d collapse the moment she tried to fight.
“I won’t endanger Casella,” Faris said.
“You’re not. You’re leaving her with her mate.” I locked eyes with Faris. “I won’t let any of those things lay one claw on my girl.”
The stubborn stand-off I’d been envisioning didn’t materialize. Faris smirked and retreated. “If only the men on my planet were like you.”
“When we get off this dump, I’ll give them a kick up the ass on your behalf.” I turned to face the hideous alien swarm. “Now go.”
“Stay safe,” she said, soon taking off into the sky.
At the speed the lift was moving, it would take at least ten minutes before we saw it again.
The stalkers would not wait patiently for that long. They were already encroaching on the open area where we were making our stand.
Casella gulped. “I know I told Faris to go on ahead, but I have to admit I’m not feeling my best.” Her knees knocked together and the spear in her hands shook.
“I’d rather you be scared than confident,” I confessed. A nervous mate wasn’t liable to act beyond her means. “But it’ll be okay. You made me yours for a reason. I’m not looking to disappoint.”
“My Brandon,” she cooed. Her trembles subsided.
I smiled until the chitter of evil reminded me of the challenge we faced.
The creatures famed for attacking using stealth flung themselves forward for a frontal assault.
I drew my club. “Stay behind me!”
Casella pushed against my back.
The avalanche of stalkers arrived with their mandibles spread and their claws ready to slaughter.
I roared and swung my club, meeting the front runner in the jaw.
With a hideous crunch, its head shot up into the sky. The entire thing ripped from its socket and soared, raining a stream of green gunk on its kin.
It distracted the others for just a moment.
In that time, I smashed in the faces of two more and went for a third.
The stalker scurried back a moment before it had its features permanently rearranged and its brain turned into fertilizer.
I grinned as the others did the same. “Not so funny when it happens to you, is it?”
It was simple common sense. Fiends known for assassination tactics don’t have the best defense. If they were an RPG character, they’d be a rogue. Fast, stealthy, and able to kill anyone with a burst. However, put them on the front lines and they’d be lucky to come out unscathed.
Despite what all this may suggest, I wasn’t quite patting myself on the back. I was still heavily outnumbered.
The stalkers demonstrated some base level intelligence by fanning out. They encircled us, putting that numerical advantage to good use.
I pulled Casella closer to me and growled.
Of course, they don’t make it easy. That’d be far too convenient for this shithole planet.
They approached, step by step, counting down to our demise.
If I didn’t act quickly, we were doomed. I wouldn’t let that happen to my mate. I grabbed our bag of supplies and launched it at the stalker of my choice.
The fabric-wrapped boulder smashed the alien bowling pin out of the way.
I rushed through the gap, with Casella in my arms, before the stalkers could close it. Doing so took a few skull-caving whacks, but it got us to the other side.
Once in the clear, I got running.
The stalkers launched after us. Their blade-arms literally cut through the snow, giving them speed I couldn’t match.
And they didn’t have a gorgeous mate to worry about.
I glanced over my shoulder to see how close they were.
A scythe hovered a second way from splitting my brain in half.
Squelch.
A spear stabbed the stalker in the face, knocking it off stride.
“Don’t you hurt my Brandon!” Casella yelled.
“Fuck, I love you,” I growled, clutching her into my chest.
The helpless pampered princess fended the incoming stalkers off with determination beyond her upbringing. Her blows lacked the punch of anything I could do but they were enough to keep us alive which was what truly counted.
Casella was so incredible that the stalkers stopped trying to slice me in the back and took to overtaking from outside her range.
“They’re going to cut us off,” Casella warned.
“In their dreams,” I said before I kicked to the side, catching a stalker with a surprise shoulder tackle. Without breaking my stride, I rushed into the forest.
The stalkers pursued. They vanished amongst the trees.
“They’re gone!” Casella said.
“Not quite.” I couldn’t see them, but I could sense them. My mind had become a radar that alerted me to every threat that dared come after my mate.
A stalker shot from behind cover, blades first.
I swung and smashed straight through its claws and, in the follow through, its jaw. They were kidding themselves if they thought those old tricks would work on me.
As long as we were within the trees, we could survive. Their speed was nerfed by the terrain and their stealth by Casella’s gift. Surrounding us was impossible and their only option of attack involved ambushes my instincts saw coming.
Green blood spilled across everything and anything. I killed over a dozen, yet the nightmare didn’t end. Another was hiding behind every tree.
Is there an end to them?
Every breath scorched my throat. My endurance had increased but I wasn’t a perpetual motion machine. I had my limits and an endless swarm of jump-scare aliens were very good at making me aware of that fact. Each swing made my arms a little stiffer. Ever meter ran increased the fire burning my muscles. Even my mind felt the strain of being stuck on edge.
And still I lashed out at every hideous insect that appeared in the corner of my vision.
I shouldn’t have worked for two days straight. I’ve still not fully recovered.
It doesn’t matter. Must protect Casella.
Must protect my mate.
Warm green splashed across my cheeks and the scent of fresh death imprinted itself into my mind. All I had to do was hold out until the lift returned. There couldn’t be long left…
Yet another stalker came for my life.
I swung to return the favor. The club connected but not completely. The rock crushed into its shoulder while its blade sliced up the length of my arm and into my hand. I grunted and dropped my club in a puddle of fresh red.
“Brandon!” Casella squeaked.
“Damn. I screwed up,” I cursed.
If you were a glass half full kind of guy, I’d still managed to reflect the worst of it. If you had common sense, my clumsiness had reduced us to sitting ducks.
I stumbled against a tree, drilling into it with my bad arm. Molten agony dripped from the wound and down my unmoving fingers.
“My Brandon, no,” Casella whimpered.
“I’m okay,” I lied. The most I could do was make the digits twitch. My strongest arm was out for the count.
Dammit. I can’t fight like this!
How could I let this happen? Aren’t I supposed to protect her?
Am I destined to fail again?
The surging wind started to mock me. Voices echoed under the current, scorning my screw-up. At least that’s how it sounded. I couldn’t make out what they were saying. Either way, it didn’t matter. My instincts warned me that another ambush was coming, and I knew full well I couldn’t do anything about it. Pain jolted through my arm when I tried to move, keeping me pinned.
A blade burst from the shadows, lit up bright by the lost sunlight bleeding through all adversity.
I dropped, but not because of a scythe in my chest. Casella dragged me to the floor.
The stalker’s attack drilled into the tree, where it got stuck.
Casella sprung up and buried her spear straight through the monster’s mouth.
It hissed and vomited green blood. Moments later, its body crumpled, only held up by the blade stuck in the tree’s trunk.
“You saved me,” I said, unable to stop gawking.
“Even if I am not able, I will never not fight for my mate,” Casella said.
Such gloom-piercing words. How anybody wouldn’t want her as their partner was beyond me.
If she’s willing to fight then so am I.
Moving made my nerves scream. I ignored their prattle, hoisted Casella onto my shoulder, and burst back out of the forest.
The lift was sat there waiting for us.
I smirked. No doubt my instincts were responsible for looping me back. Casella’s boon could never be underestimated. Just like her, it was the gift that kept on giving.
After covering the small distance, I dropped her onto the elevator.
“Brandon, don’t,” Casella said.
“You know you can’t beat them,” I said.
“Then let’s go together.”
“Sorry. Something’s telling me we shouldn’t; I’ve learned to trust it.”
“But—”
The stalkers emerged from the forest the same way they had fifteen minutes prior. Their numbers seemed as high as ever despite all the destruction I’d caused.
“There’s no time,” I said. “Don’t worry, this isn’t goodbye. I’m not going on a suicide mission. I’m doing this to keep my mates safe.”
“You truly mean that?” she said.
I robbed Casella of a kiss that she wouldn’t be able to argue a word against, one that left her hot of face and short of breath. “Convinced?”
Her long lashes fluttered. “Be safe, my Brandon.”
“You too.” I yelled for the others to start pulling. Once they had Casella off the ground, I turned to face my foes. “So, we’re back here.” To say it was the exact same position would be a lie. I was an arm down, missing my weapon, and the numbers were tilted even further in their favor. It was a position only a true idiot would face without fear.
Which makes me the biggest moron there is.
I stood strong against the incoming swarm with a smile that didn’t belong on my face. “Let’s finish this.”
Chapter 24
The stalkers charged into battle with a one-track determination.
I braced myself for the worst while my brain hunted for a way out of this mess.
It turned out I didn’t need to bother. They didn’t come for me.
The stalkers gave me a wide berth and descended upon the cliff. Their blade-arms buried in the rock and turned into climbing axes. They raced up what most were unable to ascend.
Including me.
I gave chase either way. I’d never considered this scenario in a million years. So much for those instincts I prided myself on.
Casella had a head start, but the stalkers were faster. It was a matter of when, not if, they’d catch her.
I had to do something. But what? My mind and body scrambled as one. How could I hit what I couldn’t reach?
The answer crumbled in front of me.
Each strike of hardened chitin on frozen stone sent a shower of rocks raining down. The same material could be found in excess beneath the snow.
A quick scramble loaded me with a handful of natural projectiles. Just thinking of launching them with my strong arm made my injury burn. It had to be my left which made precision impossible.
“That depends if you’ve finished your side.”
“Pff,” Trez snorted. “You think we came gawking at you for nothing? Cass!”
Casella rushed away and came back with a massive green lasso. Together, the girls uncoiled their creation. It just kept getting longer and longer, seemingly without end.
After they’d gotten a good twenty feet apart, and still had plenty of rope to spare, they stopped.
“Enough for ya?” Trez said.
“Trez has tested it already,” Casella said. “It’s enough.”
“You would’ve noticed if you weren’t making out with your wood instead of me. Right pain to coil back up, it was.”
I gave the taut rope a tug. The whole thing held steady. They’d done a splendid job creating it. Color and texture aside, it looked just like the real thing.
“You girls are awesome,” I said.
“Tell me about it,” Trez said. “Seriously, you can tell me anytime. In fact, you better be telling me all the time after I totally nail this shit.”
“I also wouldn’t mind hearing such praise,” Casella said. “Although, I’ll be sure to return it twice over.”
You couldn’t have paid me to wipe the stupid grin off my pace. I adored them so much.
“Then let’s call this our final night in this frosty hellhole,” I said. “Anybody up for a celebration?”
There enchanting smiles was the answer I was looking for. Together, we returned to our cave to make our last night in this dump one to remember.
Chapter 23
It was the fated day. We were going to escape our predicament and get to a climate where we could flourish at last.
At least, that was the plan.
Trez blew away a spattering of snow whirling around her face. “I hate this planet so damn much!”
“Same,” I grumbled.
My aspiration had made me naive. I had allowed the clear skies to lure me into a false sense of security. The weather was not our friend. When we needed its cooperation the most, that was when it had turned its back on us.
A blizzard battered the environment. Wind and snow crashed together, ripping trees of their leaves and us of our hope.
It was as if the snow biome didn’t want us to escape from its cold grip.
“Will we have to cancel?” Casella asked as she tried to raise her voice over the elements.
The cliff did a job in shielding us from the worst of the weather, but it was far from pleasant standing in its shadow.
“I don’t think we have a choice,” I replied.
“Oh…”
I gritted my teeth and squeezed my fists hard enough to hurt.
All this effort just to get snowed off? Dammit, that’s too cruel.
“Is this about me?” Faris said into my ear. She was once again draped over my back and wrapped in all the layers we could find.
Even that didn’t feel enough.
“Partially,” I said.
“I’ll be fine.”
“You can’t know that.”
“I’ve been fine so far.”
“Which is why I don’t want to risk it,” I said. “Nothing’s worth endangering your health.”
Her tail tightened around my waist. “You act like I’m your mate,” she whispered.
“Sometimes I forget you’re not,” I confessed. “Like it matters. I’ll protect you all the same.”
Faris kept quiet. The sudden burst of heat radiating from her cheeks was hard to miss.
“Are we seriously crying off after all this shit?” Trez complained. “Can’t we just risk it?”
“I will not risk any of you,” I said.
Trez held up her hands. “I get it, I get it. No reason to get all intense. It’s just… I was so looking forward to getting out of here.”
“I think we all were,” Casella said with a heavy sigh. “Oh well. There will be other chances, yes? Shall we return to camp for now?”
“That’s probably for the best,” I said. I didn’t like subjecting Faris to the cold for no reason.
I went to set off, but I froze in place. Something locked my legs and made my mind race.
This feeling… it can’t be. Not now.
The horizon was muffled by the snow. There was no way to see or hear anything. But I could sense them. I could feel their presence with frightening clarity.
“Trez,” I said. “Up, now.”
She perked up. “We doing this?”
“Hurry,” I snapped. “We don’t have a lot of time.”
Trez couldn’t miss my anxiety. She grabbed the rope and pulleys and scuttled up the cliff.
“My Brandon?” Casella said, shimmying close to me. “Is something wrong?”
“They’re here,” I growled. And it wasn’t just the one. My instincts wouldn’t have screamed at me in such a way if that had been the case. There had to be more of them, more than I’d ever seen before.
Why now?! Why couldn’t they just leave us alone?
Can’t let them get my mates. Need to get them to safety.
I dropped Faris onto the lift and practically tugged Casella on with her. I stayed clear.
“My Brandon!” Casella said. “Whatever are you doing?”
“It needs to be this way,” I said.
“But—”
“This isn’t open to discussion. Somebody needs to buy you time.” And I was the only one who could.
You gave me this power for a reason. It’s time to put it to use.
“I’m ready!” Trez yelled, her voice barely carrying with the blizzard in the way.
I glanced at the heavens. “Pull!”
The rope tensed and the lift jiggled, but it never got any higher than the smallest of bunny hops.
“It’s too heavy!” she shouted back.
I ground my teeth. Of course. Trez had struggled when it was just me. Together, Casella and Faris weighed more than I did.
Not to mention the snow’s piling up already.
The clicking of mandibles finally leaked through the veil of sleet. Shadowy figures emerged from the forest in a quantity previously unseen. For once, they didn’t care about stealth. They didn’t need it. Their numbers advantage was substantial, and we had nowhere to go. Our backs were literally to the wall.
Even the girls couldn’t miss the scythe-armed demons visible in all their hideous glory.
“Go,” Faris said to Casella as she staggered off the lift. “I’ll stay.”
“You can’t,” Casella said, grabbing Faris by her coat. “You’re sick. You need the warmth.”
“It’s dangerous.”
“Dangerous for you too,” Casella correctly pointed out. “Please, Faris. Did you not teach me to fight for a reason?”
“To keep yourself safe! Not for this.”
“Faris, go,” I said.
“What?!” she snapped.
“You’re not well enough to fight. We all know it.” Faris had done her best to hide it but her caramel skin lacked its usual luster and her steps were shaky. She’d collapse the moment she tried to fight.
“I won’t endanger Casella,” Faris said.
“You’re not. You’re leaving her with her mate.” I locked eyes with Faris. “I won’t let any of those things lay one claw on my girl.”
The stubborn stand-off I’d been envisioning didn’t materialize. Faris smirked and retreated. “If only the men on my planet were like you.”
“When we get off this dump, I’ll give them a kick up the ass on your behalf.” I turned to face the hideous alien swarm. “Now go.”
“Stay safe,” she said, soon taking off into the sky.
At the speed the lift was moving, it would take at least ten minutes before we saw it again.
The stalkers would not wait patiently for that long. They were already encroaching on the open area where we were making our stand.
Casella gulped. “I know I told Faris to go on ahead, but I have to admit I’m not feeling my best.” Her knees knocked together and the spear in her hands shook.
“I’d rather you be scared than confident,” I confessed. A nervous mate wasn’t liable to act beyond her means. “But it’ll be okay. You made me yours for a reason. I’m not looking to disappoint.”
“My Brandon,” she cooed. Her trembles subsided.
I smiled until the chitter of evil reminded me of the challenge we faced.
The creatures famed for attacking using stealth flung themselves forward for a frontal assault.
I drew my club. “Stay behind me!”
Casella pushed against my back.
The avalanche of stalkers arrived with their mandibles spread and their claws ready to slaughter.
I roared and swung my club, meeting the front runner in the jaw.
With a hideous crunch, its head shot up into the sky. The entire thing ripped from its socket and soared, raining a stream of green gunk on its kin.
It distracted the others for just a moment.
In that time, I smashed in the faces of two more and went for a third.
The stalker scurried back a moment before it had its features permanently rearranged and its brain turned into fertilizer.
I grinned as the others did the same. “Not so funny when it happens to you, is it?”
It was simple common sense. Fiends known for assassination tactics don’t have the best defense. If they were an RPG character, they’d be a rogue. Fast, stealthy, and able to kill anyone with a burst. However, put them on the front lines and they’d be lucky to come out unscathed.
Despite what all this may suggest, I wasn’t quite patting myself on the back. I was still heavily outnumbered.
The stalkers demonstrated some base level intelligence by fanning out. They encircled us, putting that numerical advantage to good use.
I pulled Casella closer to me and growled.
Of course, they don’t make it easy. That’d be far too convenient for this shithole planet.
They approached, step by step, counting down to our demise.
If I didn’t act quickly, we were doomed. I wouldn’t let that happen to my mate. I grabbed our bag of supplies and launched it at the stalker of my choice.
The fabric-wrapped boulder smashed the alien bowling pin out of the way.
I rushed through the gap, with Casella in my arms, before the stalkers could close it. Doing so took a few skull-caving whacks, but it got us to the other side.
Once in the clear, I got running.
The stalkers launched after us. Their blade-arms literally cut through the snow, giving them speed I couldn’t match.
And they didn’t have a gorgeous mate to worry about.
I glanced over my shoulder to see how close they were.
A scythe hovered a second way from splitting my brain in half.
Squelch.
A spear stabbed the stalker in the face, knocking it off stride.
“Don’t you hurt my Brandon!” Casella yelled.
“Fuck, I love you,” I growled, clutching her into my chest.
The helpless pampered princess fended the incoming stalkers off with determination beyond her upbringing. Her blows lacked the punch of anything I could do but they were enough to keep us alive which was what truly counted.
Casella was so incredible that the stalkers stopped trying to slice me in the back and took to overtaking from outside her range.
“They’re going to cut us off,” Casella warned.
“In their dreams,” I said before I kicked to the side, catching a stalker with a surprise shoulder tackle. Without breaking my stride, I rushed into the forest.
The stalkers pursued. They vanished amongst the trees.
“They’re gone!” Casella said.
“Not quite.” I couldn’t see them, but I could sense them. My mind had become a radar that alerted me to every threat that dared come after my mate.
A stalker shot from behind cover, blades first.
I swung and smashed straight through its claws and, in the follow through, its jaw. They were kidding themselves if they thought those old tricks would work on me.
As long as we were within the trees, we could survive. Their speed was nerfed by the terrain and their stealth by Casella’s gift. Surrounding us was impossible and their only option of attack involved ambushes my instincts saw coming.
Green blood spilled across everything and anything. I killed over a dozen, yet the nightmare didn’t end. Another was hiding behind every tree.
Is there an end to them?
Every breath scorched my throat. My endurance had increased but I wasn’t a perpetual motion machine. I had my limits and an endless swarm of jump-scare aliens were very good at making me aware of that fact. Each swing made my arms a little stiffer. Ever meter ran increased the fire burning my muscles. Even my mind felt the strain of being stuck on edge.
And still I lashed out at every hideous insect that appeared in the corner of my vision.
I shouldn’t have worked for two days straight. I’ve still not fully recovered.
It doesn’t matter. Must protect Casella.
Must protect my mate.
Warm green splashed across my cheeks and the scent of fresh death imprinted itself into my mind. All I had to do was hold out until the lift returned. There couldn’t be long left…
Yet another stalker came for my life.
I swung to return the favor. The club connected but not completely. The rock crushed into its shoulder while its blade sliced up the length of my arm and into my hand. I grunted and dropped my club in a puddle of fresh red.
“Brandon!” Casella squeaked.
“Damn. I screwed up,” I cursed.
If you were a glass half full kind of guy, I’d still managed to reflect the worst of it. If you had common sense, my clumsiness had reduced us to sitting ducks.
I stumbled against a tree, drilling into it with my bad arm. Molten agony dripped from the wound and down my unmoving fingers.
“My Brandon, no,” Casella whimpered.
“I’m okay,” I lied. The most I could do was make the digits twitch. My strongest arm was out for the count.
Dammit. I can’t fight like this!
How could I let this happen? Aren’t I supposed to protect her?
Am I destined to fail again?
The surging wind started to mock me. Voices echoed under the current, scorning my screw-up. At least that’s how it sounded. I couldn’t make out what they were saying. Either way, it didn’t matter. My instincts warned me that another ambush was coming, and I knew full well I couldn’t do anything about it. Pain jolted through my arm when I tried to move, keeping me pinned.
A blade burst from the shadows, lit up bright by the lost sunlight bleeding through all adversity.
I dropped, but not because of a scythe in my chest. Casella dragged me to the floor.
The stalker’s attack drilled into the tree, where it got stuck.
Casella sprung up and buried her spear straight through the monster’s mouth.
It hissed and vomited green blood. Moments later, its body crumpled, only held up by the blade stuck in the tree’s trunk.
“You saved me,” I said, unable to stop gawking.
“Even if I am not able, I will never not fight for my mate,” Casella said.
Such gloom-piercing words. How anybody wouldn’t want her as their partner was beyond me.
If she’s willing to fight then so am I.
Moving made my nerves scream. I ignored their prattle, hoisted Casella onto my shoulder, and burst back out of the forest.
The lift was sat there waiting for us.
I smirked. No doubt my instincts were responsible for looping me back. Casella’s boon could never be underestimated. Just like her, it was the gift that kept on giving.
After covering the small distance, I dropped her onto the elevator.
“Brandon, don’t,” Casella said.
“You know you can’t beat them,” I said.
“Then let’s go together.”
“Sorry. Something’s telling me we shouldn’t; I’ve learned to trust it.”
“But—”
The stalkers emerged from the forest the same way they had fifteen minutes prior. Their numbers seemed as high as ever despite all the destruction I’d caused.
“There’s no time,” I said. “Don’t worry, this isn’t goodbye. I’m not going on a suicide mission. I’m doing this to keep my mates safe.”
“You truly mean that?” she said.
I robbed Casella of a kiss that she wouldn’t be able to argue a word against, one that left her hot of face and short of breath. “Convinced?”
Her long lashes fluttered. “Be safe, my Brandon.”
“You too.” I yelled for the others to start pulling. Once they had Casella off the ground, I turned to face my foes. “So, we’re back here.” To say it was the exact same position would be a lie. I was an arm down, missing my weapon, and the numbers were tilted even further in their favor. It was a position only a true idiot would face without fear.
Which makes me the biggest moron there is.
I stood strong against the incoming swarm with a smile that didn’t belong on my face. “Let’s finish this.”
Chapter 24
The stalkers charged into battle with a one-track determination.
I braced myself for the worst while my brain hunted for a way out of this mess.
It turned out I didn’t need to bother. They didn’t come for me.
The stalkers gave me a wide berth and descended upon the cliff. Their blade-arms buried in the rock and turned into climbing axes. They raced up what most were unable to ascend.
Including me.
I gave chase either way. I’d never considered this scenario in a million years. So much for those instincts I prided myself on.
Casella had a head start, but the stalkers were faster. It was a matter of when, not if, they’d catch her.
I had to do something. But what? My mind and body scrambled as one. How could I hit what I couldn’t reach?
The answer crumbled in front of me.
Each strike of hardened chitin on frozen stone sent a shower of rocks raining down. The same material could be found in excess beneath the snow.
A quick scramble loaded me with a handful of natural projectiles. Just thinking of launching them with my strong arm made my injury burn. It had to be my left which made precision impossible.
