Page 13 of Releasing Darkness

When he again didn’t say anything, I nodded once, then strode out of the cave with a wet and bedraggled looking Max following on my heels. I stopped in the shade of the rocks guarding the entrance and looked out in the direction we had come from. I couldn’t see any movement, and straining my hearing didn’t bring the sounds of shouting or any horns blaring the alarm.

Once satisfied we were safe for the moment, I strode further away from the cave with my sword resting in my tight grip. I loosened my wrist and took a couple practice swings, circling the sword in front of me in a figure eight motion. I looked down at Max, who flicked his tail and moved his large, round ears in different directions.

“Alright, you’re the expert here. Where am I going to find dinner? The big guy in there needs to eat, so it needs to be a lot bigger than you.”

Max trilled at me and then began walking further along the rocky ground at the base of the mountains where we had settled down for shelter. Without any other bright ideas, I followed thecreature, hoping he wasn’t going to lead me anywhere too crazy or dangerous.

I was unsure of how far we walked when Max’s ears suddenly twitched and then flattened against the back of his head. It was such an unexpected sight that I immediately went on high alert, freezing with my sword held out and ready. Max scurried to hide behind my boots. As brave and aggressive as he had been in the past, whatever he caught sight or sound of must have been something much too large for him to handle.

Cautiously, I crept forward, trying to strain for any sound. I didn’t need to be ambushed and have my entrails turned into out-trails by being too cocky. I may have been born in the realm, but the truth was, I had hardly left the dwelling I was born in. The only experience I had in the wilds of the Underworld was in the few days I spent wandering through the forest while trying to find the portal. Whatever deadly creatures made the realm their home were new to me.

I came up to a tree and used it as a shield, even as small and twisted as the trunk was, and peeked around the gnarled black wood. There, several yards away, was a creature that I could only describe as something a grizzly bear and an alligator would have had as a love child.

Its back was covered in dense brown fur, while its arms were covered in muddy brown scales. It had a long, scaly snout, with small, beady eyes and short, round ears sitting on each side of its head. Its body was massively large, hunched over with a long, broad, scaly tail at the base, tapering off to a point at the end. There were ridges running up the tail and into the brown fur along its back. I got the impression that the thing would be able to stand up on two legs, much like an Earth realm bear could. Likely very well, with the tail acting as balance. Standing up on two legs would give the monster plenty of opportunity to usethose three-inch daggerlike claws as it towered over me. It had to be at least ten feet tall when it stood.

If this was the type of creature I’d have to fight in the hunt for food, I’d have to second guess my sanity. I should have just grabbed the body of the vipreth that we’d encountered on the way to the cave.

I was about to back away slowly until we were far enough away to scurry back to our temporary home and just try to rustle up a couple more snakes with feet, when the ground trembled from behind me. I closed my eyes and clenched my jaw.Motherfucker. It was like that scene in that dinosaur movie from the 1990s when the guy was hunting one dinosaur only to realize he was actually the one being hunted by the whole pack.

I blew out a slow breath and steeled myself for what was to come. There was no escaping it. I doubted the beasts had lured me into a trap, but they were most assuredly going to take advantage of the situation.

I slowly turned around, careful to keep the tree trunk to my back. That was when I realized that whatever was behind me in the clearing wasn’t an adult. It was probably this creature’s baby, and momma was seriously pissed off.

The thing was standing on her hind legs and towering above me. If I had to judge distance, I would have to say it stood at least fifteen feet tall.

“Shit. I swear I had no idea that was your baby. I don’t want to hurt either of you. All I want is some nice, small furry creature that can feed one very hungry demon who hasn’t eaten in probably a year or two.” I didn’t know why I was rambling to the vicious murdery gator-bear. Maybe it was nerves, but I sincerely didn’t want to tangle with the mother or the baby. “I’d really like to leave now.”

My eyes darted up and down the gator-bear’s body, looking for weaknesses, and found absolutely zero. It was covered inthick, scaly hide that I was certain even my sharpest blade wouldn’t be able to penetrate. Literally, the only possible soft spot would be the eyes that were nearly three times my height. I was fucked.

From behind me came what sounded like a distressed call that was high pitched growl and sounded very urgent. When the mom’s head turned to look, I chanced a glance over my shoulder. A ferocious roar shook literally everything around me, including my brain. I couldn’t blame her because I was incensed as well, and it wasn’t even my baby.

While mom and I had been having our little standoff, a six-pack of what resembled hyenas with horns had crept up on the baby gator-bear, and it looked like they were about to attack en masse. The ground shook as dirt and other forest debris went flying through the air as the momma charged past me and into the small clearing. With another ear shattering roar, she swiped her giant claws at the nearest horned monster, sending it flying until it hit a tree with a resounding crack. I wasn’t sure if the sound was from the tree breaking or the creature, but I was rooting for the tree to still be standing.

With teeth, claws, and even its tail, the momma gator-bear tore through the pack of horned hyenas as they screeched in anger and pain. But they were nothing if not determined, continuously going back for more. Their fighting had moved them several feet away from where the baby lay curled in a protective ball. I was glad to see it wasn’t in any danger from the fierce battle until movement caught my eye.

Creeping slowly through the vegetation on its belly was the horned hyena that had been tossed into the tree trunk, and its bright red eyes were trained right on the cowering baby.

“Oh, hell no,” I growled. I ran forward, ready to defend the baby. The monster must have been so focused on its prey that it didn’t hear me approaching from the side. I might not have beenable to use my sword against the gator-bear’s defensive armor, but there was no such protection for the horned hyena.

Just as the monster pounced, I brought my sword up in an arc while it was still midair. It landed on the baby, making it squeal in fright as it scrambled desperately to get free. As soon as it was clear, it took off in the direction of its mother. It may have been covered in the blood and guts of the creature that was about to attack, but it was completely unharmed.

Another roar that shook the world around me had me freezing in place. The momma gator-bear had finished dispatching the remaining horned hyenas and was back to glaring at me.

I kicked over the heavy creature, showing the wound on the belly. “I swear I was only protecting your, ah, cub. I still don’t want to fight. I only wanted to help. See?” I gestured to the dead creature at my feet. The momma looked down at her baby, then at the dead creature, then finally back at me.

I held my breath as she dropped down to all fours, still taller than me by a good five to six feet, then turned and walked away from the carnage. I was so relieved that I escaped becoming gator-bear poop that I dropped to my ass, not caring I was sitting in a pool of warm blood.

A trilling sound came from the trees, and I glanced over to see Max hesitantly edging closer, his eyes darting wildly around as if expecting another ambush.

“Enjoy the show?” I asked with a raised eyebrow. I ruffled his soft black fur when he climbed into my lap. “You know what, I don’t blame you one bit for taking off. That shit was scary.”

Chapter

Eight

SASHA

Iwas breathing like I’d run a marathon up a mountain by the time I made it back to the cave. I entered the stone room, pulling the horned hyena creature behind me, and ignored the presence of the male sitting against the wall in silent judgment.Fuck him.I crossed realms, traveled to the one place on any fucking planet, realm, or solar system I didn’t want to be, and I did it all for him. The least he could do was tell me his goddamn name.

---