Before I could ask him what was up, a sharp pain stabbed right through my brain. I let go of the wheel to grab my head. I cursed and hissed. Shut my eyes as if it would help.
My eyes opened up on their own. The darkness that enveloped me tinged red. I could hear the sound of tearing flesh and gnashing teeth. Something was eating. My head twisted. I could feel something jabbed between my teeth. My jaw clenched.
Snap!
Bone cracked under the pressure.
I looked down to see a small, frail creature laid out on its side. It kicked one big hind leg at my head. Clawed at the ground with its hands. It stared up at me with glowing green eyes. It had no hope of escape. It knew its fate was sealed.
"Fenris?" I said. Or I thought I said it.
My head reared up. I could feel something wet and stringy hanging out of the side of my mouth.
Do not stray into the dark of the Abyss.
Who said that? It didn't sound like Fenris. It was a woman speaking. An angelic voice from somewhere out of sight.
Come back to the Cradle.
The voice sang.
My head bowed again to dig into the helpless creature below.
Look at the light!
I shut my eyes. The red went away. The darkness a normal black.
"Jack? Jack, are you all right?" Yaaranam held my shoulder tight and shook me.
I blinked several times and groaned.
"What the fuck was that?" She asked.
When my vision cleared, I looked down at my hands. I could hear the engine roaring.
"Your eyes were glowing red!" Nostradamus said. He was practically leaning into my lap.
I could actually taste the flesh and the blood. Metallic, but not that copper taste of human blood. It was like I licked a sheet of carbon steel, still coated in that protective oil to keep it from rusting.
I slowly came back to reality for the shock of having not been in control of the wheel for some duration. Nostradamus was holding the wheel and keeping us straight while Yaaranam shook me out of that trance.
“What happened?” I asked, snatching the wheel up with both of my hands.
“Your eyes started to glow, then you let go of the wheel. You spaced out.” Nostradamus said.
“I…” I took a deep breath to collect my thoughts. “I think I was looking through Fenris’ eyes. I think he’s eating.” My stomach twisted up. “Man...I’m starving. Could you pass me one of the MREs?”
FORTY-THREE
Fuck! What the hell was going on?! My life was normal. As normal as it could be. A good, loyal soldier. No debt. No obligations. Things were great for the most part. Now everything was getting turned upside down. What I thought I knew was wrong. Things should have been simple. Facts written in stone. It should have been as sure as gravity. That must have been where I was wrong. In reality, the only thing set in stone was the assurance of a chaotic nest of fabric we called reality.
I had no idea what was happening. I didn’t even know what to believe in anymore. I didn’t feel like myself. I was possessed. This voice was calling my name. I didn’t know that I had been following it this whole time. Not until that other voice spoke to me.
What did it mean?
Don’t stray into the Abyss.
There was no abyss here. There was nothing of the sort.
“Lieutenant Jackal,” Nostradamus said. “Are you listening?”
I blinked and looked over to him. I must have spaced out.
“I said the map just updated.”
“How long has it been?”
“Twenty minutes since the previous update.”
“By the Emperor…” Yaaranam gasped. “Look at those things!”
“So, we’re getting closer?” I looked out the window. Light was beginning to breach the horizon. The sky shifted from the black speckled cloak to royal purple and pink.
A series of long stalks broke through the colors, silhouetted against them.
I slowed to a stop at the top of the hill so we could see down into the valley below.
We watched the stalks as they moved from one side to the next. As more light breached the horizon, the stalks were lit up.
Massive necks, thirty some feet long with the tiniest head possible at the end. Their bodies were hidden among the trees that they towered over. Even at this distance we could see something metallic hanging over their backs.
“Christ…” I exhaled.
"What's that noise?" Yaaranam asked.
"What noise?"
She was focused on the sound whatever it was. I turned the engine off. It clicked a few times before falling silent.
Then I heard it.
A whale's song. A dozen of them singing back and forth. It must have been those long necked creatures.
"The map updated. The valley is fully drawn." Nostradamus announced.
"We must be close."
Yaaranam tapped on the roof of the truck. "Trees are moving. Something big is down there."
Sure enough. Those trees were shaking like a bulldozer was rolling through at high speed. The shaking made a path right for us.
The hair stood up on the back of my neck. Whatever it was, it came with the intent to kill.
As soon as we felt the ground shaking from the thumping feet, I turned the key.
Click-click-click.
Fuck.
I tried again.
Click-click-click.
"Come on, don't do this!" I hit the wheel with my palm.
Turned the key again.
It clicked again.
From the tree maybe a hundred meters ahead at the foot of the hill came a beast larger than life. A big head with conical teeth and a bite that could probably swallow half the truck in a single gulp.
It stopped briefly, crimson eyes glaring at us. Four...six eyes? Each with the lights from inside focused on the truck. It stomped on the ground with one of its three-toed feet. The dirt crumbled and cracked from the pressure. Its mouth fell agape, the lower jaw splitting in half with a thin sheet of flesh between them.
Its roar blended the marrow in my bones. I felt weak at the sound. Like a thousand souls screaming from the depths of hell.
The trees behind the theropod shook more. A grumble from out of sight.
I started to curse over and over again trying to get the truck to start.
Yaaranam shot at the creature, nailing it right in its fat nose. That only served to piss it off.
One more key turn. It clicked, then roared to life. The truck rumbled. I never felt so much comfort before in my entire life; that idle vibration of the bustling engine. I hit the gas. It whistled. We moved and thank god we did. Those insane jaws snapped shut right where we had been.
The creature hit the back end of the truck, making us bounce as we went down the hill the way it had come from.
Reversing wasn't an option. This truck had no speed rolling backwards.
We neared the trees, narrowly dodging the other beast that erupted out of the shadows.
I caught a glimpse of its head. Scarred and mangled, but nowhere near as bad as the first which was missing some eyes on one side.
"Wait! Wait! What are you doing?!" Yaaranam shouted.
"I'm getting us the fuck out of here!" I shouted back.
"Into the woods?! You're gonna kill me!"
"I hope your flexible then." I turned the wheel, taking a skidding turn around a boulder twice the size of the truck. I wanted in the trees where it would be hard for those giants to maneuver. They were right on our ass, keeping up with long strides.
That turn slowed them down. Their heavy weight kept them from turning too quick.
Still they could catch up. I couldn't go at top speed in here. The terrain was rough with bumps and pot holes. Dead trees and rocks littered the ground.
This ride was unpleasant. At some turns we were against the side of the truck. Yaaranam cursed, dodging branches. She tried to huddle against the hatch, but she was still stuck up there.
&n
bsp; "Hey," I glanced at Nostradamus. "Give her that tank back there."
"Ah! The flamethrower! That will scare them!" He slipped over the center console and into the backseat, lying beneath the gunner's seat. When he grabbed it he pulled on her foot and held the tank up against her.
"Fuck yeah! Give it!" She snatched up the tank, then the barrel. She handed him her rifle and positioned herself better in the seat.
Nostradamus took the rifle and sat back, clutching it to his chest. I heard him take a loud breath. He shoved the door open, held onto one of the handle bars and leaned out the side. Rifle in one hand, he fired it at the beasts still on our tail. They weren't as close now, but they were still closer to a top speed than we were.
I focused on dodging the trees and rocks. Warning them if I caught something that could potentially hit them.
What we didn't expect was the beasts to fire back at us.
Not from the rifles they had hanging at either of their sides. No, the lead one with the metallic, scarred face opened its mouth. I thought it was going to roar, but it answered fire with fire.
It spat out a burst of flames that enveloped the entire truck. Yaaranam fell out of her seat and crashed against the foot supports. All I saw was fire raging in front of us.
The temperature rose instantly and for once I wished this truck had air conditioning.
"They can breathe fire!" Nostradamus screamed, slamming the door shut.
"I never would have guessed!" I shouted.
We broke through the end of the inferno in time to crash through a rotten log, into the upper edge of a mound, and into the air.
The truck hit the ground hard on the other side. Something snapped underneath it. It kept going, a whine humming with the whistle now.
I hit the gas harder, took a turn through an opening between two large trees. We soared over another hill and crashed into a shallow river. We hit something in the water that made us come to an abrupt halt.
My head slammed against the steering wheel. I heard a loud thud from next to me.
"Fuck. Fuck. Fuck." Yaaranam wheezed and groaned.
Dazed, I slowly lifted my head from the wheel and laid against the back of the seat. Nostra was half crumpled against the dashboard, barely in his seat. I looked over my shoulder to check on the raven. She was tangled up in the supplies, awkwardly positioned in the back with her foot trapped in the supports for the gunner's seat hanging from the ceiling.
Holding the side of my head, I checked the rear view mirror attached to the side of my door. Those beasts were there, making their way down the hill.
"Shit. Guys, get up." I said.
"Fuck you." Yaaranam groaned.
Nostradamus pushed himself into his seat and felt around the floorboard for the rifle.
I revved up the engine, but the truck wasn't budging. I cursed. Threw the stick on the center console into reverse. Damned thing still didn't want to move. I slammed my foot against the pedal.
The truck's chassis twisted. Jumped backwards. The end of the tail gate smashed right into the ankle of the lead beast.
It snarled and reeled back, lifting its foot from the ground.
I shoved the stick back into drive and hit the gas.
"Let's go, girl! We gotta move!"
The truck rolled forward. I turned the wheel. Hit the gas harder. Water spat up from behind us, spraying the creatures in the face. It must have distracted them. Instead of chomping into the end of the truck, they turned their heads away.
The vehicle clambered out of the river and up the muddy bank to the other side.
Nostradamus opened the door and stood out of the side once again, rifle in hand.
A howl resonated over the landscape. It echoed making it impossible to tell where it was coming from. That otherworldly song never felt so comforting before.
I opened my door and stood on the frame. I held the bar on the roof.
Those giants stopped at the river bank. They looked to one another their jaws clattering. They growled and grumbled. The larger one snapped at its companion.
The howl sounded out again. I got the sense it was a warning. A broadcast of "I am here, leave my territory."
The larger beast circled in the river, the water crashing against its ankles.
Then it reared up, bowed and roared with its lower jaw splitting apart like before.
Another howl to answer. A dare.
The smaller beast nudged its side into the larger one. It bit into the gun and pulled. The scarred one snatched itself away and snapped its teeth against its face.
They grumbled and growled to one another. The smaller turned to walk back up the hill.
The bigger one eyed me. Looked straight at me with a gaze that hungered for death. Then it looked away towards the nearby mountain where a cloud of black smog blanketed a portion of the stone.
It, too, turned and headed back up the hill. They did not want to tangle with the howling monster.
"Yeah! That's right!" I shouted, a fist in the air. "Fenris! Fuck yeah!"
Nostradamus shoved both of his fists into the air and cheered as well.
I'm not sure what possessed me, but I turned towards the mountain and gave my best, loudest howl I could muster up. I called for Fenris as if my voice could travel as far as his.
I got no response, but that was probably because he couldn't hear me at all.
"That smoke up there," Nostra pointed. "That must be where he is!"
"Get in, let's go." I dropped back into the seat and shut the door.
Once his door was shut, I got the truck moving towards the smoke. It was a few miles away. By time we got there, most of it had been wafted away on the wind.
Yaaranam finally got her shit together and climbed back up into the gunner's seat. There she groaned about her aching bones and muscles and rested against the door.
"Next time can we bring a bigger gun?"
"We might need more." I leaned against the wheel. The smoke was everywhere.
Signs of a skirmish. Wolf prints. Two-toed prints. Either it was one against one in a quick paced battle, or it was one against a dozen. I decided it was the latter.
Pieces of Fenris' cloak were scattered around. A dismembered tail twitched in the dirt. There was a sheet of metal, the blackest black imaginable. Scarred. Covered in blood. Flesh still attached.
The smoke trailed further up the mountain, barely visible at this rate.
I pushed the truck forward slowly, following the trail. A good ways up, the mountainside shifted into cliffs. The truck barely fit. Yaaranam stayed poking out of the top, helping guide the way to ensure we didn't tip over the edge.
The path eventually widened. The cliff rolled down into a steep decline lined with sharp, black rocks and the spare tree here and there. I parked the truck here, ready to fly down the hill if necessary. The smoke disappeared at the mouth of a cave.
The rocks were shaped in such a way it looked like a creature had died and its carcass became the mountain. Blackened bones weathered away to give the appearance of rocks.
The mouth of the cave, was actually the skull of a colossal beast. Jagged teeth lined the sides of the jaws, leading the way inside. It almost looked like a planet sized snake.
Wind whistled from within. Drops of water echoed.
"Do you think he's in there?" Yaaranam asked.
I jumped out of the truck. Opened the back door and dug through one of the bags. I pulled out two half faced gas masks. Tossed one up to the raven and fit the other one over my nose and mouth.
"What's this for?" She asked.
"To protect you from that smoke. He uses it to protect small areas. It's a painful death if you breathe it in."
"Right." She fit the mask on.
FORTY-FOUR
Just as I suspected. The cave was littered with smoke. It covered the ground like a blanket making the air from the knees down feel cold as ice. The cave itself was already pretty chilled. Stalactites hung from the ceiling, water dripping from thei
r tips. The smoke acted like water, rippling at our motions. We each had our own flashlights and our own rifles. Yaaranam opted for the flamethrower and stayed at the rear.
"Will this smoke ignite?" She asked.
"Not sure." I answered.
"Do you know what happens when it is breathed in?" Nostra asked.
"You can't breathe. You suffocate. You bleed out of every orifice and pores. It's a slow death."
"I don't think I want to know how you found out." Yaaranam said, slowly turning on her heels to check for anything that could be sneaking up on them.
I had the sneaking suspicion that we wouldn't find any living eos here. They avoided the gas. They didn't dare hang around Fenris either.
The deeper we went, the quieter it got. The wind faded away, leaving us in stagnant air that wreaked of rotting flesh.
A soft cry sounded out from somewhere deeper in the cave. Something in pain.
"Fenris?" I breathed.
I instinctively picked up the pace, almost jogging into the darkness.
The tendrils of the shadows reached out towards me, wanting to grab hold and root themselves in my skin again. It wasn't something I focused on, or even thought about. They could grab me all they want. I was going in further and further until I found Fenris. If he was hurt, he needed help and nothing was going to stop me. Not a giant man eating monster, not some smelly cave, and sure as hell not the lack of light.
I could hear flesh tearing. Bones snapping. Another cry of agony. A grunt and a snap of teeth. The sounds got louder. Louder.
Finally, in the light of my flash light I saw smoke rolling down like a waterfall. A metallic arm, nearly twice my size was stretched out, gripping the far wall.
Our steps grew quiet. I could barely hear them over my breathing in the mask. I shined the light across the floor, following the arm back to where it attached. A furry frame, hunched over. A second arm had a long, stiff tail pinned to the stone floor. I spied ahead, much like that small theropod Reynolds had been examining. Big blue eyes, three or four on one side of its face gazed at me. It had a look of misery. Begged for help.
It hissed and gave a kick with one of its powerful legs nailing the creature that looked over it right in the jaw.
Its head reared up and to the side. Three sets of horns sprouted from the back of the creature's head. The upper most curved forwards like a ram's horns, pointing back at its cracked eyes. The other two sets bent down, then up growing backwards.
The Soul Eaters (The Thin Hex Line Book 1) Page 36