silvanus of this territory,” he stated hoarsely. “The wyrm killed him and took over. We are in very real danger. We must run while the crocotta protect our backs for as long as they can.”
Diana shot him a panicked look. She had to shout to be heard over the chaotic warbling of the Keena, Keech, and Dagani between their vicious snarls. “I thought silvani are immortal!”
Raskyuil growled as he ran, dragging her behind him. “They have long lives and don’t age, but they can be destroyed. It takes considerable effort, but not as much as going against one of the greater spirits, or the lucomo himself. If this thing killed a silvanus, we are utterly without protection. We are fucked—do you get that, human?”
The tail of the wyrm smashed through the trees, ripping Diana’s attention back to the monster, her scream at the unexpected action catching in a painful gurgle in her throat. Her fingers tightened around the hilt of her blade as she drew it and swiped defensively at the flesh as they ducked away from its reach.
The wyrm’s shriek was closer as trees rattled and snapped overhead. Diana felt her heart surge within her breast and her stomach twist. The overpowering foul scent wafted from it as it broke through. Raskyuil growled and shoved her away as he raised his sword against the creature. He stabbed his blade shallowly into its neck as it plucked him from the ground in its powerful jaws. She could hear him bellow in pain, his blood falling upon her.
Tears of terror streaking down her face, she charged forward to slash through the skin of its thick neck with her blade. The blood that splattered her burned her skin, but she ignored it as she continued to drive her blade deep.
The wyrm let out a keening howl of pain as it dropped its prey, its body thrashing, ripping her sword from her grip as the wyrm tore away from her, wrenching her arm painfully. Diana cried out as Raskyuil hit the ground hard, his shattering moan of pain almost inaudible beneath the noise of the wyrm. Tears blinded her as she clutched her arm to her chest. When her vision cleared, she was relieved to see her blade was still buried within its flesh and that, despite all its flailing, the wyrm could not dislodge it.
With the creature weakened, the crocotta didn’t hesitate to descend upon it, their massive, powerful jaws opening wide as they tore large chunks of flesh from the creature’s body. Enraged with pain, it whipped its torso, shaking the crocotta loose and sending them flying into the trees, yelps ringing through the air. The wyrm swung its attention to her, its mouth opening wide in a screech as it slid its huge girth toward her.
An angry roar cut through the air, like that of lion with an overtone of an eagle’s righteous cry. Jerking her head up, she saw a white griffin drop through the trees like a missile, claws digging into the wyrm’s huge face in fierce assault.
Diana crawled over to Raskyuil. He was alive, though he was bleeding copiously from several places. He grimaced as she leaned over him.
“I’m okay,” he grumbled. “Don’t go looking all teary over me, female.” He pushed himself to his feet. He stumbled before regaining his balance as he pulled a smaller sword free from his belt. “The one time I remove my ax is the time I end up missing it the most.”
Diana unsheathed two long daggers. She definitely shared that sentiment as her mind strayed to her bow that was lying within feet of his ax in the small clearing of their camp, and her sword that was lost to the wyrm. All she had left were her smaller blades, but she would be damned if she would be an easy meal.
She would help Silvas in any way she could to defeat the creature.
Chapter 15
The shriek of an enormous wyrm shook Silvas. Many ages had passed since he last heard the ravenous sounds of a wyrm awoken from the depths of the earth, and even now he could not tolerate the presence of the creatures in the Eternal Forest. There were all manner of serpentine beings and spirits that inhabited the worlds, many of them blessed and powerful, some of them terrible, but the wyrm was the foulest of all.
And it was heading straight for the camp where he had left Diana and Raskyuil.