Page 5 of The Songs of Fate (War of Fate)

Chapter Two

Dust and Blood

I dug my toes deeper into the auburn dust, tackling the steep rocky incline. Sweat burned my eyes and soaked through my blue tank top as I neared the hardest part of the trail.

I still couldn’t escape last night. The screams were a sound I couldn’t shake. Nor the taste of tar that coated my tongue all night. The howls were so painful. Nothing animal or human made that sound in nature.

I got four total hours of sleep before waking up to the sun streaming through my windows. Opting out of reading, I drove two hours west to a new trail. I’d never been here before, but it seemed to be calling my name when I was scrolling the various websites. Since it was Saturday, and I wanted to ignore every strange part of last night, I abandoned home. Now, I was four miles into the glorious desert mountainside.

The sun heated the rocks, and the weather made for a perfect day in southern California. The early morning haze had burned off, and now late in the afternoon, I could see the distinct juts of mountains in the distance. The trail would eventually lead through a valley, but right now, the hillside became sheer crimson, soaring into the heavens.

I unzipped my backpack and withdrew one of the bottles of water. Drawing small sips from the top, I paused to look over the ledge. Panting, I quickly stepped away and veered my eyes back to the opposing mountains in the distance.

I stowed the water in my pack and began munching on a protein bar as the trail winded upwards. After a few more miles, hiking groups and couples disappeared altogether. Most people seemed to have turned around after a few miles out and doubled back. However, my plan was to continue until it looped back around. The hike was only supposed to be eight miles total. I could do that, hopefully.

Except, if the website was right, I should be starting to loop back around now. Peering down at my watch, I hit the screen a few times. “Are you sure you’re right, little guy?” I whispered into my wrist. A few more weeks, and I would have enough money to buy the top-of-the-line GPS watch I’d been researching. It was way better than the version I had now, especially if my current version wasn’t calculating my mileage correctly.

Well, I guessed a few extra miles wouldn’t hurt. If I for sure wasn’t looping around in another mile, then I would turn around.

Skirting over a few overgrown shrubs, I slipped over a stray pebble, caught myself, then decided it was obviously time to turn around. I grabbed another bag of peanuts and started my descent back toward my car.

After another hour, my legs began quaking as I squatted, climbing over boulders down the mountainside. I didn’t remember the terrain being this difficult on the way up. Wiping my dirt-encrusted hands over my shirt, the air stiffened.

I swallowed and peeked behind me.

Various forms of cactus and a few massive burnt rocks stood behind me.

Turning, I pivoted and crouched closer to the heart of the hillside. The tinge of acid burned my throat.

I smelled decaying flesh as a mass struck my shoulder, tossing me to the ground. The serrated rocks sliced into my arms. My head cracked onto the earth with so much force, my teeth clacked together.

Razors sliced into my skin with such ferocity, I couldn’t breathe.

The light inside me rippled, streaking across my fingertips.

I whipped my head up, flailing at the pain streaking into my leg. The creature looked half-man, half-wild animal, on its hands and knees. It sank its serrated teeth viciously into my leg. Dark black tar spilled from its mouth. The creature latched itself onto my thigh and clenched into the muscle beneath my fragile skin.

Its skin was a sickly gray, with blood-red tattoos swirling over its face.

Sticky syrup blurred my vision. The teeth bore deeper into my flesh. It burned like wildfire.

A scream erupted from my chest, searing my raw throat. “Get it off! Get it off of me!”

The strange lightning surged forth, crackling down my legs, giving them strength.

Kicking my legs uncontrollably, I made contact and thrust again. I repeated my kicks in the same place. I couldn’t see where I was striking. I just prayed each blow would deter the animal.

I wiped at my eyes and tried to see where I was kicking. I panted, continuing to lash against the teeth sinking deeper into my leg. The light surging from deep inside me fed my adrenaline, increasing with every kick.

The screams weren’t mine now. They were coming from the thing attacking me. The howls weren’t of pain, but of growing rage. It didn’t wince or crane back as if affected by my strikes. They only egged it into a heightened frenzy. The creature shook its head with my leg in its jaws.

My hands swiped my eyes once more and then punched at the creature on top of me. My fist hit leather-like skin thinly stretched over a sharp skull.

Blinking my eyes, they watered, clearing the dirt and blood out.

I seized my chance to look at the image in front of me. The animal wasn’t an animal at all, but something else. Its teeth were tiny daggers, sharpened into bloody knives. Its eyes were a void, solid black, not a speck of white surrounding the darkness. They radiated fury without any recognition of pain, and yet I continued to strike its skull.

My fingertips brushed a long, serrated rock at my side and gripped it, plunging it into one of the black eyes devouring me. The creature hissed, baring even more deadly teeth, while recoiling backwards.

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