Page 254 of Bonds of Hercules
I was lying on my side.
Nyx moaned miserably as she shifted around my leg.
A Titan lay limp beside me—a crimson rod was protruding from its open stomach; black blood was everywhere. I was covered in it.
I rolled onto my side, clawing at the sand. I pushed and heaved, fighting gravity.
Thud.
Fluffy Jr. landed beside me.
In a blur of white, he ripped off the Titan’s head—bones crunched and snapped—he tossed it in the air and swallowed it whole.
“Good doggie,” I whispered, digging my fingers deeper into the sand and grabbing my bloody rod with both hands—I yanked it out of the downed Titan.
Hunched over, gripping my side, I barely stood upright.
Agony was a living, throbbing beast.
The arena was spinning.
Fluffy Jr. tipped his head back and howled. The muffling in my ears split; the loud sound filtered in.
The world snapped back into motion.
I scanned the arena with my sliver of vision. Both Titans lay decapitated, organs strewn across the sand.
Nyx moaned in pain.
Her scales were freezing cold around my leg.
Please God, please heal her.
“You’re going to be okay,” I whispered, willing it into existence as I gently pulled her off my leg, holding her in one hand, and the rod in the other.
Dark scales shimmered into existence. A long slice mark had split her body almost in two. She was covered in blood.
I gasped and Fluffy Jr. whimpered beside me.
“Love you … kid,” Nyx hissed weakly.
“No.” Tears poured down my face as I bowed my head and prayed, clutching her to me, waiting for someone to save her.
Scales grew colder against my skin.
My fingers tingled.
The pain in my heart was worse than anything I’d ever experienced when I’d activated my powers. I sank to my knees. Sobbing.
I brought my rod next to my heart beside Nyx, bowed my head lower, and prayed harder, cradling them both.
The tingling in my hands intensified—sharp pain skewered my sternum.
A familiar bright light emanated from my fingers, and the scarlet rod also lit up with a golden glow. It warmed beneath my touch, the circular end shining brighter than the sun.
Scales vibrated where they touched the rod.
Snake skin slowly knit itself back together.
