His Forsaken Luna-Chapter 132: Snowstorms & other Magicks. (3)

My body lurched forward as the carriage suddenly stopped. Alaric and the other guards’ horses had raced by, the hooves thudding into the snow. He turned his head, shouting after us. I looked at the guard, who was now slumped to the side, the reins falling from his armour-gloved fingers.

The carriage tilted slightly and I gripped the sides. It didn’t topple but the guard started to slip to the side. I grabbed his chest plate and opened the helmet and pulled back, wide-eyed. He was foaming at the mouth, his eyes blank and gradually went glassy.

My heart stuttered as the screeching grew louder, snapping me out of my daze. A shadow descended from, the sky, enormous and menacing. Its screech tore through the night. It was coming right for us.

Puffs of cold breath clouded in front of me, my breaths becoming uneven as I stared at the bat-like monstrosity, it’s wings leathery and tattered, its eyes glowing a bright red with malevolent hunger. Long fangs gleamed in the moonlight as it snarled, getting closer and closer.

Another creature swooped down from the side, this one targeting the guards on horseback. Its talons ripped into one man’s chest as his horse reared, and the others barely managed to avoid the same fate. The forest was filled with their screams and growls as they shifted into their wolf forms.

"Idalia!" Alaric shouted, trying to steer his horse away from the onslaught. I looked at him as I rose from my seat, adrenaline pumping in my blood, my wolf rousing from her deep sleep.

Alaric’s eyes widened as he reached his hand towards me from a distance. The sounds of wings flapping grew menacingly closer, the cold air whooshing my hair across my face.

"Ida!" He roared, jumping off his horse and running towards me. I followed his gaze back to the creature and my breath halted in terror.

The carriage jolted at the sudden weight landing on it, throwing me backward. The creature screeching in my face, my hair swept backwards before I followed it, tumbling off the carriage entirely. I hit the ground hard, the snow cushioning my fall but knocking the wind from my lungs.

The creature leapt with such power, the carriage toppled onto the side. Gasping, I pushed myself up, only to freeze as the creature dropped from the roof of the carriage and landed just feet away from me. Cohnal and Soren’s shouts became muffled from inside the carriage as I stared back at the monstrous creature, its focus unwavering, its glowing eyes locked onto mine.

My instincts screamed at me to run, I started to scramble back in panic as the creature stalked closer, using its wings to guide him forward as well as it’s legs, savouring its hunt. I knew once I got up and sprinted it would be on me in seconds, so I kept it in my line of sight.

My ears picked up on footfall getting rapidly closer to me then I saw Alaric charge at the creature, his sword slicing through the air with practised precision. The blade struck the creature’s side, drawing a spray of black ichor, but it didn’t even flinch. With a single swipe of its massive wing, it sent Alaric hurtling backward. He slammed into a tree with a sickening thud and crumpled to the ground, motionless.

"Alaric!" I cried, the sound torn from my throat. The creature’s gaze snapped back to me, its snarl deepening. Panic surged through me as I scrambled backward, the icy snow seeping through my gloves. The guards’ shouts echoed around me, but they seemed distant, muffled by the pounding of my own heartbeat.

Another scream pierced the night—a guard, lifted high into the air by the second creature. I watched it above, almost in a horror-struck daze. The guard’s struggles were futile against its strength, and my stomach churned as I saw it rip his throat out with its fangs. Blood sprayed in an arc, stark against the pale snow. The man’s axe slipped from his grasp, plummeting to the ground and landing dangerously close to where I sat.

The remaining guards rushed to my aid, their swords and spears glinting as they attacked the creature. It moved with terrifying speed, dodging and countering with savage efficiency. One by one, they fell, their cries of pain filling the air. My fingers closed around the handle of the axe. The weight of it was unfamiliar in my hands but I clung to it as though it were my lifeline.

The odds might be stacked against me right now but I wasn’t about to go down without a fight. Soren might have taught me to run but it was clear there was no way or nowhere to run. I had to fight.

The creature lunged at me, its wings spread wide, its claws reaching. Time seemed to slow as I swung the axe with every ounce of strength I could muster. Ask me a week before if I could hold an axe and I would have laughed, but my wolf’s strength helped with that.

The axe whizzed through the air. The blade caught its shoulder, and it screeched, the sound piercing and enraged. But it didn’t stop. One massive claw closed around my arm, lifting me from the ground as though I weighed nothing at all.

The world tilted as it carried me into the air, the ground shrinking below us. The wind whipped against my face, cold and unrelenting. At this height ice formed in my hair and on my eyelashes, cracking my lips.

I struggled against its grip, the axe still clutched in my hand. "Let me go!" I screamed, though the words were lost to the roar of the wind. The creature’s jaws snapped dangerously close to my head, its breath rancid and warm against my skin.

Desperation fuelled my movements as I swung the axe again, this time aiming for its wing. The blade bit deep, and the creature screeched in pain, its grip faltering. I seized the moment, twisting and kicking with all my might. The claw released me, and I plummeted toward the earth, the wind rushing past me in a deafening roar.

My breath whooshed out of my lungs on impact, and pain radiated through my body as I hit the snow. Dazed, I struggled to sit up, my vision swimming. My wolf remained silent, almost like she was watching me, observing my actions, gauging my worth like she did those guards. How cruel. It scoffed back at me.

A screech snapped my attention back to the sky. The creature was still above me, its flight uneven, blood dripping from its injured wing. It circled once before diving for me, its claws outstretched, red eyes gleaming.

’Idalia, move!’ Alaric’s voice cut through the haze in a mind link, and I turned to see him, battered but standing, his wolf roaring loudly. He charged towards the creature diving for me. I leapt out of the way as commanded.

I looked up as a body fell with a loud crack next to me. The other creature tossed another guard to the side and swooped towards Alaric. "Alaric!" I screamed, jumping to my feet, raising the axe and throwing it at the creature.

It missed.

I stared wide-eyed as the other creature tackled into Alaric. My breath halted as panic gripped at my chest. Then the world blurred around me and leathery black and brown wings surround me, the creature screeching as it took me again, it’s claws ripping into my sides.