Tempest Rise (Treborel) - By Alaina Stanford Page 0,16
the darkness of the woods, toward the clearing. As they moved deeper into the trees, Cap handed Kendra the light and allowed her to precede him. Cap smiled in admiration as he watched Kendra’s slender silhouette glide through the darkness. Cap stiffened, as she turned back to him with a look of alarm. Moving quickly to her side, he glanced around seeing nothing.
"A Sraeb.” She whispered, as a shadow flittered across her eyes. She pointed off to the right. A few meters distant he could see the large, sleeping creature, nestled in the tall grass of the small clearing they had been looking for.
"Did you bring your knife?" Cap asked quickly, reaching for the crossbow on his back.
"What?" Kendra stared at him in disbelief.
He smiled mischievously and said, "I thought you might like to show me how well you can defend yourself."
"Alright, Woodsman. If you're so skilled with these creatures, then how about fetching me the herbs it's sleeping so comfortably on." She answered, insulted by his smart reply.
Following her gaze, Cap squinted in the windy blackness. Spying the patch of herbs, he berated himself for his foolish teasing and headed for the clearing.
"No, wait!" Kendra whispered urgently. She had not really expected him to obey her command. Kendra fought back the vision of what would happen if the sraeb awoke. Not allowing the growing fear to rise any further, she bit her lip and watched.
Glancing back, Cap motioned for her to stay still. Moving around the edge of the clearing to where the sraeb slept under a large evergreen, he pulled his laser pistol from his belt and stepped forward. Gazing across the clearing to Kendra's shadowed form, he flashed a wicked smile. Cursing him under her breath, she prayed that the fool didn't get himself killed. Kneeling down on one knee, his pistol ready, Cap snatched a handful of the leafy herb and stuffed it inside the front of his shirt. Not sure of how much Kendra needed, he repeated the process several times. As he started to rise he noticed a small thin object protruding from the back of the beast's shoulder, a crossbow bolt.
Realizing that an injured sraeb was ten times more likely to attack a slow moving human over the quick Elk it normally ate, he leveled the pistol at the creature's skull. At this distance, the beast would die instantly. As his finger squeezed on the trigger, Cap noticed a slight movement. Jumping back quickly, expecting the massive animal to rise, Cap waited. When the animal remained still, he realized the movement had come from three small forms nestled against the sraeb. Cubs!
If he killed their mother, they would starve or fall prey to another sraeb. Hesitating, Cap knew there was no possibility of raising the cubs in captivity. Sraebs grew crazed in the first few hours; even in specialized surroundings they would throw themselves against the walls of the confinement over and over again choosing death over imprisonment. The answer was clear. He would have to kill them all. He cursed the idiot that had attacked the female and with a crossbow no less. Only a fool would shoot a large female at this time of the year before checking for offspring.
Glancing over the sraeb to where Kendra nervously waited, he hated to do this in front of her. She would most probably hate him for it. Then it occurred to him, perhaps she could help. Motioning for her to come forward he waited silently as she approached. One glance at the wounded sraeb and Kendra motioned for him to move back. Unsure whether he had made the right decision; Cap slowly did as she asked his weapon ready. Bending over the large creature, Kendra gently dug her fingers into the thick, dark, gray fur at the base of its neck.
Then she slowly placed her other hand lightly on the top of the beast's head. The animal reared instantly, roaring with alarm. Cap shouted for Kendra to run as he desperately tried to locate her in the darkness. The cubs screamed in fear and disappeared into the turbulent forest. Holding on with all her might, Kendra called upon her 'strength' to calm the animal. In one swift movement, the creature fell silently at Cap's feet. Climbing off the beast, Kendra sighed with relief.
Cap appeared next to her, and asked urgently, “Are you alright?"
"Yes, I'm fine." Kendra answered, casually turning to examine the beast.
"Did you know that was going to happen?" Cap demanded, grabbing