17. Chapter 17

I had no idea what would happen. Would the beast slam into all of us or pick us off one by one with his mighty jaws? I didn't dare look away from it, balancing on my feet to make a quick step to the left or right, even though I realized how futile it would be. Not only was the creature fast, but also the two Vandruk warriors to my left and right made it nearly impossible to jump either way. I would have had more luck trying to move one of the giant boulders than them.

So this is how you die . The words moved through my head, strangely removed. Well , at least you got to see Vandruk .

I wasn't ready to die, especially not like this, but if this was to happen to me, I would face it head-on.

The beast was so massive that I didn't truly consider that we would be able to stand a chance against it. Not even if it was outnumbered eight, well seven since I didn't really count myself, to one. Its shoulders stood higher than my head, and I didn't think even the Vandruk warriors would be able to take it down. Calmness spread through me despite my horror at being chomped to bits and pieces by those sharp fangs.

And then a roar sounded out. Loud and strong, so primal, it reverberated through my bones. The sound definitely hadn't come from the beast, as its head turned away from us.

So did mine, and my heart rate picked up a notch. Khadahr came charging through the thicket of a grouping of spiral trees, holding his bone sword lifted high into the air as he catapulted forward, there was no other word for it, as it seemed he was flying through the air.

His face was contorted into a mask of resolve, focus, and elation. His enormous biceps bulged as his hand grabbed the hilt of his sword. The muscles on his thighs looked rock-hard when he landed in a crouch only a few feet away from the snarling creature.

Its jaw opened incredibly wide, exposing row after row of teeth, reminding me of an alligator.

It didn't even look as if Khadahr's feet touched the ground before he was up again. Using both hands on the hilt of his sword now, he and the beast circled each other, each solely focused on their opponent.

My throat tightened as the creature's jaws opened again, and it suddenly rushed forward to take a bite out of Khadahr's side.

It happened too fast. The movement blurred.

But Khadahr jumped to the side with the agility of a panther.

His sword swiped across the animal's side .

The beast hissed and stepped back. Its eyes glowed with hate at Khadahr, but there was also a cunning intelligence visible in them that chilled me to the bone.

My momentary paralysis at seeing Khadahr enter the fray gradually left me, and I turned to Del-Khet, expecting him to join the fight and come to Khadahr's aid, but he just stood there, frozen like a stone. I pulled on his arm and pointed at Khadahr, but he only shook his head.

When I looked to my left, Mak-Thar was nowhere to be seen, but instead of aiding Khadahr, he was actually holding back two human guards who were about to join the fight. What the hell?

"Do something," I screamed.

I took a hesitant step forward. If they weren't going to help their leader, I would.

A heavy hand landed on my shoulder, pressing it and holding me back. I glared at Del-Khet, who shook his head at me and said something in his language that I didn't understand.

When my eyes moved back to the fight, I noticed blood on Khadahr's hip while the beast circled him, now limping. Black blood oozed from one of its hind legs. Both opponents must have gotten a few licks in while I was distracted.

Again, the two adversaries circled each other. The monster's snout kept to the ground to better keep its glowing eyes fixed on Khadahr. It's not paying any attention to us , I thought and lifted my spear. I had never thrown one before, would have preferred to use it to stab at the beast, but I had to do something.

I was about to throw it, when a hand clamped around my wrist—Del-Khet, again. Now he was holding my shoulder and my arm. I twisted to get out of his grip, but he only applied more pressure.

"What is wrong with you?" I muttered in frustrated anger but didn't receive a response.

Khadahr's sword slashed through the air as the creature made a run for him. He sidestepped it like a matador and pushed his sword into the beast's side. The creature let out a howling cry of pain, turning on its hind legs so fast it ripped the hilt from Khadahr's hand.

Without a sword, Khadahr and the beast faced off against one another. One of the monster's hooves pawed the ground, ready for another attack, while Khadahr pulled a bone knife from its sheath by his calf. His wound was bleeding freely. Blood spilled down his side and hips, and a red line moved down his oversized quads in hypnotizing rivulets. Or maybe I just needed something to distract me because, with Khadahr only having a small knife, the fight seemed to be over, and the thought of this man dying frightened me. I remembered how calmly I had stared into the face of death earlier and how my concern for Khadahr was far greater for him than it had been for myself. I didn't have time to dwell on what that meant because the beast was charging at full speed toward Khadahr now.

With a cry of defiance, and a strength I hadn't known I possessed—or perhaps I caught Del-Khet by surprise—I pulled myself free from the Vandruk and threw my spear at the beast just as Khadahr jumped onto its back to drive his still-embedded sword deeper into the beast's flank.

My spear flew by, but not without collateral damage. The head scraped against Khadahr's flesh, opening his skin. Still, unbelievably, it embedded itself into the beast's side.

Khadahr didn't even react. He kept pushing his sword in deeper while the beast tried to buck him off.

At the same time my spear flew through the air, Del-Khet caught me around the waist and swung me back—that's how fast everything was happening.

I squirmed and yelled, but he didn't put me down. All I could do was stare at Khadahr as he and the bloodthirsty creature squared off again, still with Khadahr only having a small knife.

This time, when the beast charged him, Khadahr stumbled over a rock on the ground. The monster's sharp teeth cut another slash at Khadahr's thigh. The momentum moved Khadahr to the ground, where he rolled over his injured shoulder, and I winced at the pain I imagined he had to be enduring. I froze in Del-Khet's arms and stared in horror as the creature spun around faster than it should have physically been able to. It didn't waste a second as it ran toward Khadahr, who was still on all fours, working on getting back on his feet.

I could already see it in my mind's eye how the beast's hooves would trample Khadahr, its fangs burying into his flesh to devour him, and a pain the likes I had never experienced before rushed through my chest.

"No!" I screamed .

The beast turned for one second, maybe not even that long, but it was long enough for Khadahr to get on his feet. He jumped forward, his enormous arms hugged the creature where its neck turned into its chest and slowed it while his legs scraped against the ground. He had the beast in a tight grip, but even his arms weren't long enough to fully embrace the large ribcage. To make it worse, with his arms busy, he couldn't use his knife on it either.

It was only when the monster turned that I realized Khadahr was pushing down on the spear I had thrown, still embedded into its body.

It slowed more as Khadahr moved his feet like brakes. The creature's eyes rolled backward and forward in panic. It knew it had been bested. It roared one more time, and Khadahr leaned farther over, to push with more of his bodyweight against the spear until the beast's legs gave out underneath it, and it crashed to the ground with a thud, burying him partly with it.

"Khadahr Tzar-Than!" the Vandruks cried out, pumping their fists into the air.

Del-Khet let go of me, and I rushed forward to where Khadahr was pushing the giant beast off him. His expression was a mix of pain and fury.

"Are you alright?" I asked more breathlessly than the short sprint justified.

Garnet-red eyes took me in before turning even more thunderous. "What in the name of Vorag are you doing here?"

Taken aback by his anger, I lowered the hand I had lifted to check on his wounds. "I… um… I…" He wasn't mad about me accidentally hurting him with the spear, was he? "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

Uncomprehendingly, he stared at me, and then he growled, "That was you?"

"Um…"

I didn't get a chance to explain, because Del-Khet and Mak-Thar also came forward, clapping him on the shoulder, saying something in Vandruk.

With impossible speed, Khadahr turned on them. He wasn't yelling, but even though I didn't understand his words, his voice sounded deadly enraged. In between a rush of words, he pointed at me, and the two Vandruk warriors blanched, taking a step back.

"Thank you for coming to our aid, but we had everything under control." Boyd joined us, oblivious to Khadahr's already enraged state.

"The only thing you had under control was your bladder. I congratulate you on that," Khadahr pressed out toward Boyd without taking his eyes off the Vandruk warriors, who looked cowed.

More Vandruks arrived, oohing and aahing over the dead creature. Among them was Szun-Var, and I realized they, too, must have stood off to the side, watching the horror unfold. I tried to glare at Szun-Var, but he wouldn't meet my eyes.

"Waro?" I asked one of them and was handed a flask.

Equipped with that and a piece of cloth I had ripped off my shirt, I approached Khadahr once again. He had moved to the dead beast to inspect it with the others while Boyd stared daggers into his back .

"Let me clean your wounds before—"

I didn't get to finish. With a snarl, Khadahr turned on me, pushing the skin of water from my hand. He called something in Vandruk over his shoulder.

Confused, I stared at him. What had I done now? Why was he so furious with me?