"Don't be stupid, Jess."
He scoffed as he returned to sawing on the belt. "Brains don't exactly run in my family. Suicidal lunacy, on the other hand..."
"Runs thick?"
He grinned at her. "Move back."
The metal whined a warning to them as the belt finally snapped.
Jess caught her against him and took a second to savor the feeling of her there before he kissed her temple, then pulled her from the wreckage.
They barely cleared the Bronco before it exploded into one impressive display of pyrotechnics. Fire shot up to the dark sky while pieces of the truck rained down all over them. Jess snatched Abigail under him to protect her from the shrapnel.
Abigail couldn't breathe with his heavy weight pressing down on her. But she was grateful to have him as her shield. Her only hope was that nothing hit him.
Jess froze the moment their eyes met, and he caught the full force of the adoration in her gaze. It stole his breath. She lifted her hand and laid it gently against his cheek. The warmth of her hand set him on fire.
Suddenly, the sound of a loud dragonesque call caught his attention and shattered the spell.
Abigail turned her head in synch with Jess. She gaped at the sight of Choo Co La Tah, Ren, and Sasha embroiled in a bitter fight with the most hideous thing she'd seen since Kurt's attempt to cut Hannah's hair when they were kids.
Solid black, it was extremely tall and thin with spidery limbs that twisted out like living tendrils. Whatever it was, it could sling its arm out like a whip and crack it against their friends. It moved so fast, it was hard to follow, and it said a lot about their fighting skills that they were able to stand toe to toe with these new creatures.
Jess pushed himself off her and ran to join the fight.
Rolling over, Abigail got up, intending to join them in battle. But before she could move or Jess reached the fight, Ren appeared in front of him.
"Get back."
Jess shook his head. "We can't let Choo Co La Tah get hurt."
"He's expendable, Jess. You and Abigail aren't."
That news floored her.
Jess scowled. "What?"
"Do what he says!" Choo Co La Tah shouted as he drove one of the creatures back while another one moved forward to fight him. "Both of you have to live."
Jess would argue, but honestly he wanted to protect her. Fine. He would trust them.
"What are these things?" she asked him as he returned to her side.
"A good fable gone bad."
"What?"
Ren kicked the one he was fighting away from him. "They're tsi-nooks."
He said that like she should understand it. "Gibberish is not my native tongue, Ren. What's a tsi-nook?"
No one answered, as they were a little occupied by fighting them, and while they were getting in some good blows, they didn't appear to be winning.
Abigail hated the feeling of being so vulnerable. She had no idea what she was up against or if she should poke out their eyes or kick them in the knees. Though to be honest, she wasn't sure they had either one. "Okay, I don't care what they are. How do we kill them?"
"With great skill, my girl. With great skill." Choo Co La Tah uncoiled his feathered bracelet from his arm. As he unwound it, it grew into a staff almost as tall as he was. One that expanded so that he could attack the tsi-nook nearest him.
But that didn't work. It seemed to only upset the beast. The tsi-nook fell on the ground. On its back. At least that's what she thought was its back. Their forms were so twisted, it was hard to tell for sure.