Page 34 of Akur

She was either going to piss herself out of fear or her heart was going to give out. “For someone who prefers to stand and fight, you run remarkably well,” she panted.

“For a non-violent human, you fight remarkably well,” he countered behind her, his voice almost lost to the sounds around them.

“Hey, I’m not non-violent.” She almost stumbled as one of the creature’s thick bodies slammed into her from the left. She was supported immediately as Akur came up beside her. A moment later, she heard a squelch as his blade found its mark. “Just…selectively violent.”

She was sure he laughed. A deep, rich sound that shouldn’t reach her ears so easily with the surrounding chaos.

The tunnel seemed endless. Endless darkness. Still so thick she couldn’t see. Only when Akur adjusted his stride, his body slightly ahead of hers as he led them now, did she realize he could definitely see much better than she could. Adjusting his grasp, he turned his hand so he was gripping hers instead.

A glance over her shoulder and she couldn’t see the pursuing vehicle. But she could hear it. See a light far off piercing the darkness. They were coming.

“Any chance these things are running toward something pleasant? Like a nice underground spa?”

Akur’s grunt might have been amusement or pain. “Your ability to joke while fleeing death is…concerning.”

“My therapist would have a field day with this. Oh wait, that’s me.”

The mechanical sounds grew louder, accompanied by shouted orders that echoed off the walls. They came down the tunnel as if the fiends were right behind them. Had the gator-guards spotted them already?

As if reading her mind, Akur answered. “They know we’re down here. They haven’t spotted us yet. These creatures are giving us cover.”

Constance swallowed hard. Nice, and what would happen when the creatures fled into whatever hole they came out of in the first place? They’d be left running in the open like ducks. “What are these things, anyway?”

“Tunnel dwellers. Ancient. Hungry.” He grunted, tugging her along. “Less talking. More running.”

She wanted to argue that talking helped her cope with terror, but she saved her breath. The tunnel curved sharply left, then right. The floor became treacherous—slick in some places, uneven in others. She stumbled once, but Akur’s steady grip kept her upright.

“Careful,” he growled. “I would love to, but I cannot carry you. Not yet.”

Right. He was barely alive. Not that she wanted him to carry her. She was barely making it, but she could do so on her own two feet.

“Wouldn’t dream of asking.” But she squeezed his hand in silent thanks.

The sounds behind them changed—metal striking stone, followed by inhuman shrieks cut short by weapon fire.

“They’re killing them.” She looked back the way they’d come, hardly able to see a thing except for the light from the vehicle illuminating behind a bend.

“Good. Let them fight each other.”

But even as he spoke, more creatures poured past them, forcing them closer to the wall. The tunnel was getting narrower; the ceiling lower. She was even sure Akur was ducking his head from how he moved.

“This is bad,” she whispered.

Akur grunted, a sound she assumed was the affirmative. “The creatures know these tunnels. They’re leading us somewhere.”

“Yeah, to dinner. Us being the main course.” She wanted to fire again, but she was sure if she did, it would be like sending a flare, telling the gator-guards exactly where they were. “We need another option.”

“I am open to suggestions.” Was that actual humor in his voice?

As they rounded another bend, the airflow changed immediately, and her heart sank.

“We have a choice to make. The tunnel divides. There are three paths ahead.”

And, from the feel of it, the creatures were pouring into the rightmost tunnel like water going down a drain.

“Left,” she decided instantly.

“Why?”

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