He glances at me out of corner of his eye, but turns away and stares straight ahead. “That’s not important,” he repeats. I’m getting really tired of that line. “The important thing is that I have to help you get back.”
“What if I don’t want to go back?”
“You have to. This isn’t where you belong.”
“You don’t understand. You don’t know what it is like. I don’t want to go back home. My life is boring. I have no family. I have no friends. I have nothing. At least this place is exciting.” My mouth speaks the words, but my mind is telling me otherwise. I don’t like this place. It freaks me out, but there is a part of me that doesn’t want to leave yet.
His face transforms. Instead of a hard calculating look, a look of pity crosses his features. Pity is one expression I’m completely tired of. I’ve seen too much of it lately. As he opens his mouth to respond, the sky begins to darken again. The clearing transforms from a peaceful and serene spot, to something out of a horror movie. For the hundredth time today, the wind increases its speed as dark gray clouds loom overhead and the familiar sound of thunder rolls through the sky. Liam looks up and his body tenses, as if anticipating an impending threat. Instinctually, I move closer to him, gripping onto his arm for support.
A large winged beast descends from behind the clouds, heading for where we are standing. Its dark and scaled body blends in with the sky. The length of its tail is covered with sharp, blade like spikes. It has curved red horns and deep purple spots on its back while two large pointed incisors poke out of the mouth. Huge round eyes peer at us, daring us to make a move. Liam stands up and hands me the knife he used against the Gorgoth earlier and takes out another weapon. It looks like a long dagger. Liam starts speaking in a language I don’t recognize and the blade begins to glow. Before my eyes, it begins to transform into a long and sharp, pointed sword.
Noticing my shocked look, he shrugs his shoulders and says, “It comes in handy.” He begins to turn in circles assessing our surroundings. The beast lands on the ground and stares at both Liam and me, only pausing for a second, before moving towards us. Liam takes a step forward and moves in front of me, pushing me behind him like he did earlier in the forest.
He takes off towards the beast with his blade pointing forward. Knowing what he is going to do, the beast turns around, attempting to hit him with his tale. He ducks at the last second, avoiding the bladed appendage. The beast turns back toward Liam when he realizes he wasn’t hit. This time, his tail connects with Liam’s torso sending him flying towards the nearest tree.
With effort, Liam gets to his feet and silently walks towards the beast as it steps closer to me. I stare at it as it closes the distance between us. I attempt to back up, but I can’t. Why does this always happen to me in life or death situations?
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Liam bring his weapon over his head and thrust it into the beast’s back. About a foot away from me, the beast howls in pain. Saliva spews out of its mouth, soaking my clothes with its putrid spit. It quickly turns around and gives its attention back to Liam. He and the beast circle each other waiting for the other to make a move. It is bleeding profusely, but doesn’t appear affected by it. Liam, on the other hand, appears sluggish and quickly tiring.
The beast lunges forward, hitting Liam in an attempt to knock him backwards. He momentarily loses his balance, but catches his footing. He swings his sword over his head and thrusts it towards the beast’s chest, but misses him as it moves backwards. With a scream, it stops moving and begins to flap its wings with such force that it knocks the sword out of Liam’s hand. The wind from the wings of the beast combined with my fear becomes so strong that it causes Liam to fall to the ground. Already down, I stare in shock, not knowing what to do to help.
As it begins to move towards weaponless Liam, I know that I have