Then it shrieked into the howling wind.
Savannah clutched her ears and doubled over in agony, and as my
eardrums burst, I felt a warm trickle of blood seeping down the side of my
neck.
Gritting my teeth against the pain, I ran and leapt into Neve’s torrent of
wind and sailed through the air. The second I landed on the demon’s back, I
sank my claws into its segmented carapace. The thing was momentarily
shocked by the impact, but then it let out another shriek, and its body
thrashed.
I dug my claws deeper and began tearing off pieces of its hard
exoskeleton. It screeched louder and bucked, and one of its hairy legs reached
up and gripped my calf. I snarled as its claws tore into my muscles. My grip
loosened, and I was thrown sideways. I slashed one of the beast’s wings
before I hit the ground hard, my shoulder screaming.
The demon tilted its head back and opened its razor-lined mouth, but its
shriek was cut short.
“You guys go! I’ll take care of this thing!” Neve roared. Her voice shook
the air like a thunderclap, and her eyes burned with fury. Her hand stretched
toward the demon, whose neck was throbbing and spasming. She slammed
the beast down onto the ground, and it clawed at the sand and rocks with its
legs and tail.
She was suffocating the thing with her magic.
Savannah gaped in horror. I grabbed her hand and towed her into the cave
after Sam.
Darkness enveloped us.
44
Savannah
My ears rang, and I shook with fright at what I’d just witnessed.
Between Neve and the demon, I didn’t know which terrified me more.
Kahanov.