The Shattered Land_ The Dreaming Dark - Keith Baker [104]
Just like a dog, Lei thought. Her mind was almost blank with shock from what she had just seen. The displacer beasts had died in an instant, and their corpses could barely be recognized. She’d thought of Harmattan as a ghost earlier, but now she wondered—How can you fight something like that?
Indigo leapt out of the jungle, her adamantine blades extended. Pierce appeared behind her, an arrow to his bow. He glanced around the battlefield, studying the carnage.
“Excellent work,” Hydra hissed, four voices speaking at once. “Without your skills, we should certainly have been destroyed.”
“I am certain your role in this battle was exactly as significant as mine,” Indigo replied. Harmattan rustled, and she inclined her head toward him as her blades slid back into their sheaths. “My apologies to you. Pierce and I should not have let this go undetected.”
Pierce was keeping his eyes down on the ground, examining one of the devastated corpses. His bow was lowered. He’s … embarrassed, Lei realized, and it certainly wasn’t like him to let a threat slip by.
It is done, Harmattan said, but it seems we need more eyes in the darkness. We are close, and we cannot afford to miss the door. Hydra. Spread out. Three point search, serpent spread. His glowing eyes turned toward Lei. I think that I can watch our little cousin.
Indigo and three of the Hydras scattered into the jungle. Pierce paused for a moment and glanced at Lei, but he followed Indigo without speaking.
Lei shivered. Harmattan was deadlier than she’d thought possible, but right now … right now, it was Pierce that frightened her.
I knew we couldn’t trust you!”
Gerrion was lying on the ground, and blood from his earlier wound was running into his eyes, but even with his hands bound behind his back, Gerrion was not to be underestimated. He twisted to the side just in time to avoid the blow, and Daine’s club dug a furrow in the earth. Daine had put too much strength behind the attack, and as he recovered, Gerrion launched a sweeping kick at Daine’s knees. As quick as he was, the half-elf wasn’t fast enough, and Daine darted back out of the way.
“Get up,” Daine growled. “I want to knock you down again.”
Gerrion slowly rose to his feet. His jaws worked around his gag, but all he could manage were unintelligible grunts. Daine had already broken a few of Gerrion’s ribs, and there was a faint froth of blood around the gag. Gerrion had a pleading look in his pale eyes, and he shook his head frantically, but Daine couldn’t decide if this was a protestation of innocence or a simple plea to end the pain.
On consideration, he decided that he didn’t care.
“What’s that? Something’s wrong?” He took a step closer to the wounded half-elf.
Desperate nodding.
“It’s not what it seems?”
Gerrion shook his head, blood slowly trickling down his cheek.
“Tell that to Lei, you gray bastard!” Daine smashed the club into the side of Gerrion’s face, and he felt a cheekbone give way.
Gerrion staggered, but he was tougher than Daine had anticipated. He took a step back, but instead of falling he lashed out with a foot, moving with surprising speed given his condition. This time, Daine wasn’t his target; he struck with his left foot, and even as Daine stepped back, Gerrion looped the trailing vine around the club, pulling it from Daine’s grip and sending it flying.
It was a valiant effort, but Gerrion could barely stand—while Daine was driven by pure fury. An instant later, Daine slammed into Gerrion with his shoulder, sending the half-elf tumbling back to the earth.
“I said I’d kill you!” he shouted.
He aimed a savage kick at Gerrion’s broken ribs, and the half-elf jerked in pain. Reaching