Page 41 of Wings of Betrayal

Finlay takes a pause from fighting, having watched the whole thing, and stares at me with wide eyes.

What the fuck was that?he asks.

I have no idea,I reply.

A lost one charges him, and he’s caught up in a tussle.

In my brief moment of reprieve, I survey the battle taking place before me, and it appears we’re winning. That’s something, at least. There’s only a dozen lost ones left, but several Zelons are injured. We still have the advantage, though.

A strained grunt snaps me back to the situation at hand. Finlay is being overwhelmed by lost ones.

I charge toward him, and a lost one tackles me to the ground. It snaps at my face, spraying me with green saliva that smells worse than death. I blast it off, giving myself enough time to get up before it charges again.

I build my powers once more and blast them into the lost one in a powerful stream of white light, but nothing happens. It keeps charging.

Oh shoot. How the hell did I kill that one before?

Zarla!

I glance over as Finlay battles with three lost ones, and then two Zelons dive at them and knock them out of the way.

Come on, Zarla, you can do this.

I close my eyes, which may or may not be a stupid idea, and build my powers in my palms to the point where I’m straining and feeling lightheaded. I then scream as I snap my eyes open and blast the lost one.

It works. Its skin cracks, and light bursts from within it, exploding it into pieces.

There are only a few lost ones left now, but the Zelons take care of them quickly. I hurry over to help Finlay to his feet, and he’s staring at me like I have something stuck in my teeth.

“What?” I ask as he dusts off his leathers.

“It’s just… How did you do that? When I used my powers on them, it didn’t do that.”

I scan the area where lost ones lay ripped apart, their limbs scattered around them. My stomach turns at the sight, and Ihave to mentally prompt myself to breathe through my mouth only. The stench is unlike anything I have experienced before.

Several Zelons are injured with deep gashes in their bodies. One is dead.

I hurry over to the deceased Zelon and run my hand along the smooth skin of its body. Poor creature.

But then it shakes, its body wracking back and forth as if it’s possessed. Its eyes snap open. They’re milky white, just like the lost ones. It opens its mouth and lets out an awful screech as I leap back.

Gods above, what’s happening?

Zarla…Finlay’s concerned voice sounds in my head.Back away slowly.

I don’t dare to blink as I take small, slow steps backward, away from the Zelon. It climbs onto all fours, stumbling a little as if it’s drunk. It sniffs the air and then tilts its head in my direction.

My heart pounds as I stand frozen in place, staring at the creature.

Shit. It’s turned into one of them.

“Zarla, run!”

CHAPTER TEN

The Zelon, or whatever the heck it is now, bares its teeth at me. It lets out a deep, throaty growl that sounds much more dangerous than a regular Zelon.

I continue to back away.

---