Page 231 of Red Ruin

Jaws snap from a blurry patch of air. Hot, fishy breath blows back my hair.

Its pointed snout whips sideways, ready to bite.

That’s a lot of teeth.

Suddenly, shadows muzzle its jaw, forcing its jaws tosnapshut again. Steam pours from its nostrils. I retreat while the monster flails and finally see what we’re up against.

The monster rears on its hind legs, flapping stretched wings pocked with holes. The huge, armless pseudo-dragon is covered in blue-black scales.

Zombie wyvern.

I shudder.

The monsters are getting stronger.

That means we’re getting closer to the king.

Vhex dives onto the Wyvern’s back ready to ride the bull. Hellish pink flames duel with dragon-fire, melting the ground into a volcanic bowl.

Vhex’s magic rages.

He’s burning, rotting,screaming?—

Fire and death roil in my gut, but his pain dulls with every breath.

Not because I’m helping.

Because we’re losing the connections between our silks.

Remy too.

He feels dark and distant, winking in and out. Every shadow blade he shoots claws at my heart.

My silks aren’t enough.

We need skin.

We need touch.

We need time that we don’t have.

The wyvern’s thrashing tilts the battle, driving me away from Vhex. Tan and Simms are dragged in on his side of the fight. As Simms manipulates the ground to make the Wyvern stumble, a wave of sand pushes me out of the fray.

I land closer to Remy, with only skeletons blocking between us.

Dusting them, I rush forward, stretching out my silks, trying to reach out before the shadows overtake him.

His psychic pain bites sharper than the lich king’s magic.

As our silks fray apart, fewer fireballs flare to defend me. My shadow armor thins.

The monsters sense the change.

Kobolds and lizard-men swarm.

I strain, using every inch of my glaive’s reach to keep their fangs away.

I can hold my own if the enemies are staggered.

---