Page 67 of Whispers of Ruin
Brokk ignoredthe fiend’s smile as he rushed forward. With a speed he hadn’t expected, the creature’s tongue whipped back toward its head. Before it retracted completely, it swung to the side and lashed out at him.
When Brokk ducked the appendage, it thunked off the tree behind him. Before the monster could retract it again, Brokk brought his sword down against the tentacle and sliced off the hideous member.
A scream that could rival a banshee’s pierced the air as what remained of the creature’s tongue sucked back into its head. The woman’s mouth didn’t shut as she continued her awful shrieking noise.
It took all he had not to slap his hands over his ears as it was almost too much to bear, and his eardrums vibrated until he was sure they would rupture. Kaylia cringed, her shoulders hunched, and pain etched her delicate features.
Her fingers worked, and her mouth moved, but he couldn’t hear what she said until a beautiful, deafening silence descended over him. Kaylia relaxed as relief washed over Ryker’s face.
The quiet was welcome but also dangerous, as they couldn’t hear if the others were approaching them. They had to end that spell soon.
Rushing forward, Brokk charged the creature. She snapped her jaws closed and lifted her clawed fingers as she lunged at him. He had no idea if her screaming had stopped and didn’t care as he sliced off the hands stretching for him.
The woman’s jaw opened again, but he wasn’t sure if she screamed as what remained of her tongue lashed out. With a wet thud, it hit him in the forehead at the same time he brought his sword down, cleaving it straight through the top of the woman’s head.
With her head split in two, the woman’s arms flailed as blood sprayed from her. A hot wave of it hit him when he yanked his blade free and swung at her neck, slicing her head from her shoulders.
When her head landed with a thud, he kicked it into the shadows as more of the monstrosities emerged from the jungle. They’d kept themselves mostly concealed and had only revealed a small fraction of their presence in the trees.
His heart sank as he spotted dozens, if not more, of them. The ground vibrated, and a swell of power radiated through his feet a second before lightning split the sky and hit the ground with a sizzling pop.
Kaylia must have released the silencing spell as that pop resonated in his ears while power emanated outward. His hair stood on end while three creatures fell beneath the onslaught of the lightning splitting open the sky and pummeling the earth.
Some of Ryker’s men and the witches poured out from within the bubble to help as more hideous beings emerged from the woods. Shouts of war, death, and thunder filled the air as the sides clashed.
Another one of the beasts screamed. By the time this ended, none of them would have any hearing left, but if Kaylia kept silencing the world around them, they’d all get killed. The best they could do was take out the screaming ones as soon as possible.
He looked back to discover Kaylia standing behind him with her sword at the ready and determination etching her features. Unease tugged at his heart as he resisted dragging her back to the safety of the barrier. He’d only succeed in pissing her off, and he couldn’t make her do it.
He had to be content knowing she was strong, powerful, and a good fighter, even if she’d prefer to live in peace. She’d survived the Lord’s war; she would survive this too, but he couldn’t shake his concern for her.
You better shake it, or you’ll end up dead.
Those truthful words spurred him into motion. Lifting his sword, he charged at one of the creatures as it emerged from the jungle.
Ducking low, he took out its legs. The second it hit the ground, and before the screaming could start, he severed its head from its shoulders.
A guttural shout pierced the air before being silenced. Brokk looked up at one of Ryker’s men. The man’s back bowed, and his hands spread out at his sides; his toes pointed down as he hovered a few inches over the ground.
Attached to the man’s neck, one of the tongues wiggled in the air as it sucked something from the guard. Brokk wasn’t sure if it was the man’s blood or something else as the man’s fingers and toes curled up, his face thinned, and his clothes grew baggy on his shriveling frame.
His veins and muscles stood starkly out against his pale skin. His mouth parted as if he were trying to scream, and his whole body spasmed so hard it looked like his bones would break.
It all happened so fast that Brokk barely had time to jump to his feet before the man’s skin wrinkled. His eyes rolled up into his head to reveal the yellowed decay underneath.
When the appendage unlocked from the guard’s neck, his body crumpled to the ground. Brokk didn’t have to get any closer to know the man had died a fast, agonizing death.
Brokk expected to discover the woman who slaughtered him filled with life, but she remained a revolting, shriveled beast… one who was still ravenous as her tongue shot at him.
“Fuck,” he muttered as he threw himself to the side.
The appendage glanced over his back as he rolled away from it. Kaylia rushed forward and drove her sword down, pinning it to the ground. The thing jerked, and blood spilled from it as it tried to pull itself free of her blade.
Leaping to his feet, Brokk lifted his sword and severed it. The beast’s scream blended with the rolling clap of thunder as more lightning pummeled the creatures.
The noise and flashing lights made things more chaotic as each flare illuminated the deeper recesses of the jungle and more creatures. Thankfully, the scream ended when Allegra decapitated the beast.
A startled cry drew his attention to Kaylia as she ducked an appendage, but another one lashed out of the night. Before it could hit her, Brokk dove forward and caught it. His momentum carried him to the ground as he rolled with the slimy tongue.
