The giant creature’s grip tightened.
The monster that had protected Elena since the first night writhed in its hand, claws scraping uselessly against the towering being’s long fingers.
Bones cracked.
“Elena...” the creature groaned weakly.
Her heart pounded violently.
“Let him go!” she shouted.
The giant tilted its head slowly, studying her.
Its ancient red eyes flickered with strange curiosity.
“...voice...” it murmured.
The creature squeezed again.
The monster under the bed howled in pain.
“Elena... run...”
But Elena stepped forward instead.
“I said let him go!”
The basent shook again as sothing enormous moved outside the building. The distant hunter’s howl echoed through the city, louder now.
Closer.
The giant monster’s attention shifted briefly toward the ceiling.
It listened.
Then its gaze returned to Elena.
“...hunter cos...” it rumbled.
Behind it, dozens of red eyes continued opening inside the darkness of the sealed room.
More creatures were waking.
Elena’s voice trembled.
“What are you?”
The towering being leaned down closer to her.
The sll of decay and ancient dust poured from its mouth as it spoke.
“...older... than dead...”
The creature in its grip struggled again.
“Lies...” it snarled weakly.
The giant’s red eyes flickered with irritation.
“...guardian still fights...”
Its hand began tightening again.
Elena felt sothing burning suddenly against her chest.
She gasped and grabbed her shirt.
Under the fabric, the crooked eye symbol was glowing through her skin.
The sa mark from the door.
It had sohow burned itself into her body.
The giant creature noticed imdiately.
Its red eyes widened slightly.
“...yes...”
It slowly lowered the injured monster until it dangled near Elena’s face.
“...guardian protects the marked...”
The creature coughed weakly but managed to growl.
“Not... yours...”
The giant studied Elena again.
“...not yet.”
Behind it, one of the other red-eyed shapes began crawling out of the dark chamber. Its long arms dragged across the floor as it slowly erged.
Then another.
And another.
The room was filling with them.
Elena backed away in horror.
“How many are there?”
The creature under the bed whispered painfully.
“Too many...”
Another massive crash ca from outside.
The basent ceiling cracked.
Dust poured down in thick clouds.
The distant hunter had reached the building.
The giant creature lifted its head slightly, listening.
“...hunter fears us...”
A deafening roar erupted from outside the building walls.
The sound was monstrous—deep and furious.
Even the red-eyed creatures paused.
For the first ti, the towering being looked uncertain.
Elena stared toward the ceiling.
“What is that?”
The creature beside her managed a weak smile despite the pain.
“Hunter.”
The giant monster slowly turned toward the stairwell.
“...early...”
Another roar blasted through the city.
The building shook violently.
Pieces of the basent wall collapsed inward as sothing enormous slamd into the outside of the structure.
Daylight briefly flashed through the cracks.
A massive shadow moved outside.
Elena caught a glimpse of it.
Sothing towering over the street.
Sothing with jaws large enough to swallow cars.
The hunter had arrived.
The giant red-eyed creature turned back toward Elena one final ti.
“...war begins...”
Then it dropped the injured guardian creature to the floor.
Elena rushed forward to catch it as the basent filled with the sounds of roaring monsters above.
The building trembled between two ancient predators.
One that had been sleeping beneath the city.
And one that had co to destroy it.
And sohow...
Elena Voss stood between them both.
Still marked.
Still alive.
And suddenly far more important than she ever wanted to be.
User Comments
0 comments from readers