Gawain stood on his chest. She planted one foot on his ribcage, the other on his diaphragm. Mouse involuntarily let out all his air under her weight. Laboring for breath, he gasped and shoved at Gawain, but she didn't notice. From somewhere in her underclothes she yanked a three-pronged leather strip. Heavy-weighted claws curled at the ends of each of the prongs.
He craned his neck to get a better look. What kind of contraption is that?
She whirled the thing above her head, digging yellowed toenails into Mouse for stability. “Alright, big boy. Think you’re so cool being big?”
Mouse grimaced, red-faced. “Gawain, I can’t… can’t breathe…”
Putting a finger to her lips, she raised her free hand to aim at Sidd. Hefting the leather bolo around her head one last time, she let it fly.
The bolo whirled through the air and whipped around Sidd’s legs. The beastfolk crashed to the floor with a mighty thud.
They slid to a halt, throwing up dust. Gawain jumped off Mouse and punched the air. “That’s how you do it!”
Heaving a breath, Mouse stared at the sky, momentarily stunned. We stopped him. Finally, he's down. Now Eleda can... All at once, he jumped up and kicked Gawain to the side. “Eleda, now!”
Eleda opened her eyes. Sunlight blazed from her eyes, too bright to look at. White-hot light blasted from her open palm and burned into Sidd’s torso.
Unwinding the rope from his arm, Mouse sat up and squinted at Sidd, eyes narrowed to cat-slits. Through the bright light, Sidd was only a blob, an amorphous shape.
The light faded. Eleda sagged, panting. “Did we get him?”
Mouse and Cel approached Sidd from either side. He laid still, limbs splayed, head cocked at an angle. A hole big enough to fit both Mouse’s fists punched through his left chest. Flesh bubbled, scorched hot. Blood spilled over blackened flesh, soaking into the dirt. Sidd’s black eye stared blankly at the sky.
Mouse inched closer. Cel put out her hand to hold him back, but he pushed her out of the way. Carefully, he crouched down, then slowly extended his shortsword. He prodded Sidd in the ear.
Sidd’s ear twitched.
Mouse jumped back. Mid-jump, a huge hand closed around his ankle and dragged him back to earth. His sore shoulders slammed into the earth, then his head. Stars sparkled before his eyes as the ultra-bright world darkened at the corners.
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Sidd raised his hand and peered at Mouse, bringing him close to his face. Already dazed, blood rushed to Mouse’s head and left him dizzy and disoriented. A wet nose snuffled, then snorted out, stirring his hair. Rancid air rushed over Mouse, and he flinched away, eyes squeezed shut.
“Mouse!” Cel shouted. She charged for him, sword raised high.
Casually, Sidd backhanded her. Cel flew backward and smashed into the stone platform. She bounced, head knocked back, sword knocked free of her hand, and went still.
“Cel!” Mouse slashed at Sidd’s hand. Black blood spilled down Sidd’s fingers.
Annoyed, Sidd shook him. The world rattled around Mouse. His brain smacked around in his skull, and his vision darkened again. His limbs went slack, and his sword began to slip through his fingers.
No! Adrenaline shot through his veins. He snatched the sword back before it could fall. When Sidd’s shaking brought the beastfolk’s tawny flank into view, Mouse lunged for it.
His sword stuck in Sidd’s side. Roaring, Sidd shook him again, harder. Banging around, world going muddy around him, Mouse lost track of everything. Bile welled up in his throat. He choked on it, forcing it back down.
At last, Sidd stopped shaking him. Dazed, Mouse blinked at the world. His hand clenched on nothing. He turned, slowly, and found it empty. Sidd dropped him back to the ground, and he whizzed past his sword, still stuck in Sidd’s side, then hit the ground with a dull thud.
When the stars cleared and the world settled, Mouse found a dark eye gazing down at him. Sidd’s side stained red, then black, blood darkening as it flowed. Black seeped down his face, painting over the red mess where his eye had been.
Black blood? A high darkfoe? Mouse sucked in a breath. High darkfoes rarely appeared. Only when a blighted or darkfoe accumulated enough blight, or killed enough innocents, did they have the chance to evolve into a high darkfoe. Usually the army killed them before they descended that far.
We’re in trouble.
Sidd’s mouth moved. Nonsense syllables spilled out. They almost had the cadence of a language, but a language that Mouse had never heard before, a language that tongues should not be able to speak.
He fell silent and looked at Mouse expectantly.
Dangling from his ankle, sword gone, skirt hanging around his ears, Mouse stared back. A darkfoe that speaks?
Sidd’s expression collapsed, disappointed. He muttered something incomprehensible but dismissive and reached for Mouse with his other hand.
Mouse struggled. He swung out of Sidd’s grab, batting him away. “Don’t you dare!”
Sidd clenched harder. Mouse’s ankle creaked, sending a jolt of pain up his leg. He bit his lip and barely stifled a scream.
Twang! An arrow struck Sidd’s hand and knocked it off course. Sidd staggered back as another half-dozen arrows stuck in his chest. Distracted, he touched them, then looked up at Eleda, standing at the top of the stands. Mouse drooped to the ground, half-forgotten, head cocked against the dirt.
“Eleda, run!” Mouse shouted.
Eleda drew another arrow and fired. Sidd charged, dragging Mouse after him. Mouse bumped over the ground. The stairs loomed up, sharp edges and flat planes. Mouse braced himself, covering his head with his arms. What a way to go.
“Stop!”