Page 63 of Poseidon's Trident
“How are we going to kill this thing?” I ask.
I lean forward on my sword and try my best not to pull at the wounds on my back as I crawl to the best of my ability toward the constellation.
“Where the fuck do you think you’re going?” Greyson asks, gripping my good arm.
“We need to kill this thing.” I attempt to pull away from him but he’s too strong and I fall forward.
“You need to fucking heal.” Greyson glares at me, tugging me in the opposite direction.
The crab roars its fury and scuttles to the side. Pain explodes in my back and shoulder as Greyson covers me with his body and rolls us out of the way of the needle like feet directly in front of the crab.
A claw snaps down and I scream a warning, but Thad uses his water and washes us away from the monster just in time before the claw can snap down on us. I splutter and cough water from my lungs as Greyson and I lay panting on the ground ten feet away from the fight that’s still raging.
“What the fuck, Greyson. I have to get back in there.” I sit up way too fast and the torn skin on my back stretches and tears.
I blink back wetness as I grit my teeth to stop a scream from bubbling out. Blood seeps from the wounds in a hot trail down my back but I manage to crawl to my knees and stand with difficulty.
“You can’t fight like that, Beth. Let Adrian heal you,” Greyson growls.
“He can heal me after we defeat the crab.” I call my whip. “Jayden’s lost control. We need to help him.”
“You can barely move without wincing and your other arm is useless from the stabbing in your shoulder.” Greyson turns back to the fight.
Raven swings her ax at the creature as it swipes out at her. She jumps back and scans the beach. Her gaze lands on the wounds on my shoulder and back and she narrows her eyes.
“Don’t even think about it, B. We’ve got this.” Raven glares at the whip in my hand.
“Jayden lost control, Raven. He’s under that thing and has no control of himself.” I step toward the monster.
A claw snaps out, but shadow chains wrap around it before the claw gets anywhere near me. Jayden. How is he able to watch me and dodge the fucking monster’s movements? The crab scuttles to the side and I gasp, hoping Jayden doesn’t get caught the way I did.
Fuck this. I’m going in. I can’t let Jayden die at the claws and legs of this stupid crab monster. Fuck no.
The other claw snaps out and Greyson ducks, rolling away, giving me the perfect opening to race beneath the crab. I dart under it even as my friends all scream for me to stop. Fuck that. Jayden needs me.
I pump my good arm but every movement tears at the shredded skin at my back. I don’t stop and I don’t cry out even as tears form and my back and shoulder scream in agony. Adrenaline is the only thing that will keep me going. Jayden needs me and the thought of losing him forever is far more painful than a puncture wound and some shredded skin.
“Jayden,” I scream.
He’s on his knees, his shadows writhing around him and seeping into the sand, stretching out in every direction. His eyes are black pits as he turns his gaze to mine. There’s no hint of the glowing blue that I’m used to.
“You’re supposed to be safe,” Jayden growls in that same multilayered voice from before.
“You’ve lost control.” I narrow my eyes at him. “Do you even feel the slashes in your skin from the legs of this beast?”
He has gashes on both arms that are seeping shimmering red-gold blood. It must be the sand that’s making it gold. Did he roll through it the way I had?
“Get out of here, Beth.”
“No. I know how to kill it,” I say.
“I tried that. It didn’t work. All the monster did was kick me away.” Jayden shakes his head.
He moves from his knees into a crouch and grips his blade.
“Did you hit him in the right place?” I glance up, scanning the underbelly of the crab even as the sounds of battle continue to rage above us.
“The cancer constellation. Yes.”
