Page 51 of Scorched By Fate

“Stay behind me,” Vyne growled. His body coiled, every muscle taut and ready.

I didn’t argue. There wasn’t time. Instead, I eased my stance, gripping the knife tighter in one hand while keeping my pack secured against my back with the other.

The first Ignarath launched himself at Vyne, claws outstretched. Vyne met him head-on, his strike brutal and precise, claws tearing at scales with surgical precision. Their impact echoed off the rocks, shaking the ground beneath me.

But as I tracked their fight, movement from the second Ignarath snapped my focus back. His eyes locked onto me. My stomach tightened. Big. Fast. Dangerous.

He lunged.

I dove low, heart hammering as his claws swiped just over my head. My blade sliced upward as I turned, grazing his flank. He let out a sharp snarl, twisting quickly to face me again. He was angry now—his tail snapping violently behind him, his gaze predatory and locked.

He swiped again, claws fast. I twisted, throwing awkward steps backward, barely keeping ahead of his momentum. Each move scratched away at whatever sandpaper-thin margin of survival I had left.

Focus. Keep moving.

His claws slashed wide, too fast for me to dodge. I threw myself sideways, the motion wrenching at my shoulders and sending me skidding on loose volcanic rock. Pain flared sharp along my ribs as I found my footing.

The bastard in front of me lunged again, claws slashing. I ducked, my knees scraping rock as I drove my blade upward.The edge of his wing caught my knife, tearing webbing and sending him reeling back with a guttural snarl.

The Ignarath growled. He was gauging me now—he hadn’t expected resistance. His arrogance was personal. If I could exploit it, even for a moment …

Footsteps.

No—pounding claws. Heavy, fast, closing in.

I turned sharply to see the second Ignarath, the blue-scaled brute, barreling toward Reika. Her scream sliced the air just as he reached her, his fangs bared and gaze alight with cruel intention.

Damn it.

“Reika!” I yelled, my heart slamming into my ribs. My body reacted, moving before my thoughts could catch up, muscles burning as I sprinted toward her. She was defenseless, frozen. I?—

No. She wasn’t.

She gripped a wickedly sharp piece of volcanic rock, her hands trembling. Her wide, panic-stricken gaze locked on the blue-scaled Ignarath, but there was a shift in the air. A thread of something wild sparked in her movements, shaky but there. Her terror turned sharp, desperate—but not paralyzed.

As his claws reached for her, Reika lashed out with the shard, the wide swing catching him clean across his forearm. Dark blood sprayed hot and fast against the stone, and the Ignarath’s snarl turned to a roar of pain.

“Reika, get down!” I barked. She stumbled backward, the shard still clutched in white-knuckled hands.

The Ignarath recoiled, his fury radiating off him in near-tangible waves. He swiped again, and I barely had time to react, my body twisting sharply as he crashed into the ridge beside us.

My hands tightened around my knife as I maneuvered between Reika and the advancing Ignarath.

Fight. Survive. Protect.

That was all I could focus on now.

The Ignarath stalked closer, slow and steady now. He knew I was trapped. I could see it in the sharp curl of his lips, the evil grin that split his scaled face. His claws flexed, mocking, as if savoring the kill before he delivered it.

We were losing ground fast. I glanced past the Ignarath, trying to track Vyne, but I couldn't see him. The Ignarath snarled, his hand snapping out. A claw skimmed over my shoulder—not enough to tear flesh, but close enough to send me stumbling. Pain shot down my arm.

The bastard wasn’t letting up. His massive wings folded to gain tighter control as his claws flexed and struck again. This time, I couldn’t dodge fast enough. His hand clipped the side of my pack, dragging the weight of it hard against my ribs and knocking the air from my lungs.

The ridge around us felt alive—unstable rock shifting and groaning beneath the pressure of his sheer brutal force. My footing wavered as I stumbled farther back, the fissures widening behind me. He followed every step with relentless precision, cutting off any paths of escape with calculated strikes. This close, his size was overwhelming, his shadow swallowing the light as he pressed forward.

I just needed an opening. Anything.

A sharper sound cut through the air above us—a sudden rush of air displaced by powerful wings. My pulse kicked hard as I shifted my focus upward to the hulking shadow descending fast from above.

---