The Howling Delve - Jaleigh Johnson [109]
He awoke vomiting water.
Talal heard Morgan cursing and felt the big man's arm supporting his chest as he emptied the river from his body.
When he could breathe again, Talal looked around. They were in another tunnel, but he could hear the river somewhere behind him. Morgan must have carried his body a short distance before reviving him; Talal had thought himself dead. He shivered violently at the memory of his near-drowning.
Laerin offered a hand to pull him to his feet. "We can't linger here. The creature will follow the river and fence us in again if we don't keep moving."
They moved off down yet another tunnel, but Talal trailed behind. His legs felt rubbery, and his lungs still ached. The only thing that kept him moving was the presence of the demon's frightening aura, steadily building behind them. Every time they came to an intersection, Laerin changed their direction and increased his speed. Soon they wete running again. Behind them, the sound of rain echoed in the tunnels, drawing closer.
"Keep turning!" Laerin shouted as they ran. "Out-maneuvering is the only way. If it catches us, thete won't be any toom to fight. We'll be tunning through a forest of razors."
Laerin skidded down a short, steep incline. At the end of the slide was a vast chamber that opened wide and dipped into a crater. Stalagmites, arranged like a maze, rose from the floor like ttees, forming dense clusters throughout the room. Two paths led from one side of the chamber to the other.
"Help me," said Morgan, grabbing Talal by the waist.
"Let go!" Talal kicked air in a futile attempt to win loose, but Morgan's grip was solid. Laerin came up on his other side, snagging his foot. The half-elf went to one knee and hauled upward, tossing Talal bodily into the air. He landed hard on his stomach on one of the higher platforms. The breath whooshed out of his lungs.
"Stay there!" Morgan hollered when he rolled to the edge. The echo of another roar-so damn close!-and the sound of claws raking stone reached Talal's ears. He fought the uige to curl into a ball.
"Not enough," said Laetin. "The demon will smell him before it gets into the room."
"Suggestions welcome," Morgan growled. "Stand or run?"
Laerin regarded the two pathways through the chamber. Each led to a separate exit. "Split up," he said finally. "We'll each take a path. The boy can run along the top. With luck, it'll only be able to chase one of us. Talal can follow the other into the tunnel and hopefully find Kail."
"Awful lot of luck and hope in that plan," said Morgan, his face white.
Laerin smiled grimly. "We work with what we have," he said. He looked up. "Do you understand what we're going to do, Talal?"
Talal swallowed. "I got it," he whispered.
Laerin met Morgan's gaze steadily. "One more bet," he challenged softly. "Let it be a race."
Morgan grunted, but his grip faltered as he reached in his pouch and dropped two gold coins on the ground. "A race, then."
"Two danters?" Laerin whistled. "Heavy price." "Seemed appropriate."
A deafening crash sounded nearby, but they felt the demon's approach long before they heard his claws again. Morgan jerked his head. "Go."
Talal crouched near the wall, ready to jump to the next stalagmite cluster. He watched Morgan and Laerin take off at a sprint down their separate corridors. He glanced at the far tunnels, willing the pair to reach them before the demon caught up. He could feel the demon coming closer. Brimstone scent crawled over his skin, into his clothes.
"Run," he whispered, "run, oh run, oh run." He chanted it like a prayer, the closest he'd ever come in his life to crying out for divine intervention. But to whom would he implore? There were no gods left that he hadn't blasphemed. None of them would believe an abrupt conversion to the faith. Talal almost smiled at that, but he was too deeply sunk in despair and the horror of the demon's aura.
Talal suppressed a whimper when the beast entered the chamber. For a long, terrible