Chapter 17: Explosive

“Alicia!” Adriana cried again. She reversed course and charged the creature.

“Adriana, no!” Davos’ voice trailed off as she left him behind.

She wasn’t the kind of woman to worry about how her actions affected others, but this was her fault. She and Davos had allowed a child to lead them there instead of just searching on their own, and now…Her heart wrenched.

The hydra swallowed, and a visible lump went down the long throat and into the body. No doubt it would cough up her bones later. The thought set her off and she screamed as she flung more Smoldersap the creature’s way. Black slime clung to the hydra’s scales, burning and causing pain but she didn’t see how it could possibly damage the monster.

Not like that, at least. Adriana followed it up with the strongest Flamespitter she could. The edges of the fire brushed up against the Smoldersap, and the sap expanded and spread over the hydra’s belly.

“What’re you doing? We can’t save her,” Davos pleaded from closer now, but still too far away to make a difference. She wanted to fling fire his way too. If they’d committed to attacking instead of falling back, this wouldn’t have happened.

The hydra thrashed, and she kept the fire up until the smoldersap was an uneven six foot wide circle in the center of its mass. The flames sputtered out. She’d pushed herself hard and fast, and now the reservoir of energy inside her dimmed, gone by almost half. She panted and looked up grimly. The center head seemed to be in the most pain, but the heads that had regrown blew another noxious breath her way.

The green gas billowed along the ground, coming her way. Adriana sucked in a breath and charged forward with her sword. Immediately, her eyes watered but she pressed on until she drove her sword in the center of the smoldersap. The blade stuck, the hydra thrashed, and then one of the heads retaliated.

Adriana was swept up in its mouth and scooped off the ground. She found her footing on either side of its forked tongue. Fangs pressed against her ankles and her shoulders as it fought to swallow her, the way it had Alicia. This prey was too big, too strong, and too pissed off to be eaten. She locked her feet in place and pushed with all her might, fighting against the crushing power of the hydra’s jaws.

“Adriana,” Davos called. “Can you be ready to use your fire as soon as you’re free?”

“I can try,” she said as she fought to keep the mouth open. Her arms quivered as she struggled, but she managed to pry the jaws open. She chanced peeking over her shoulder.

Davos lightened himself and Gusted against the ground, right over two snapping heads of the hydra. He twisted in the air, hanging for a second before all his weight returned and he brought his sword down on the monster’s neck. He didn’t have Adriana’s strength, but he knew what he was doing.

The hydra hissed in pain and surprised, and then Adriana fell fifteen feet to the ground, where she tumbled backwards out of the mouth.

“Now!” Davos barked. “Burn the stump, quick!”

Adriana rolled to her feet. Her muscles screamed in distress, but that just meant she was alive and pushing herself. She almost smiled as she brought her hands together. The Flamespitter came out as its usual cone and engulfed the stump. A second later another hand crashed into her sideways. She braced herself and slid sideways, but stayed on her feet.

“No!” Davos groaned.

Adriana felt more than saw the head come back for another try. She pivoted in place as she gathered Smoldersap in her right hand. Her heart sang in brutal joy as she slammed her fist into the hydra’s snout. The head stopped in place and then went reeling back. Now its face was on fire, but the damage was done.

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Two more heads emerged from the neck Davos cut to save her life. They were up to five heads now, and the creature was enraged. It charged their direction, and this time Adriana didn’t need to be told to run. Davos led the way, blazing by her in the time it took her to decide to move. The hydra wasn’t the fastest creature ever, but the swamp wouldn’t hinder it the way it would them.

They ran as far as they could splash through the mud and muck, and the hydra followed. Trees splinted as it burst through them, and entire logs crunched under its bulk. It hissed in warning before belching green gas at them.

Davos managed to outrun it, but the edges caught Adriana and she found herself coughing again. Her burning lungs hadn’t recovered yet, and she slowed. She whirled around, fear and anger screaming at her to do something. The hydra still burned brightly, but if the Smoldersap was doing damage, it wasn’t apparent. That left one attack that might do something, if she tried.

The hydra slowed as well, cornering its coughing prey. It had already eaten once, but rage and greed made her a good target. Well, Adriana wasn’t about to complain. She grinned grimly as she gathered the remaining power inside her and produced a handful of Flashfire. The five heads waved in the air, like it was trying to decide which of them to attack her with.

She didn’t give it a chance. She hurled the blue fireball right at the center of its body, where the huge pile of sap waited. Maybe it would burn a hole through, and the Smoldersap could burn it from the inside out if it got in.

A head dipped down and intercepted the fire with its face. The fire flashed a blueish-white and there was a smoking hole in the hydra’s forehead. It crashed to the ground, limp. The rest of the hydra screeched in pain and anger.

“Well, shit,” said Adriana as she huffed and puffed. She didn’t have much left, but that had worked, at least. If she had enough left in her for the other heads, it might have even mattered. Now, she had maybe enough for one more, and four heads to go. All of them looked at her with open, slavering mouths. Two of them came down for her.

Davos Gusted her from behind and she went sprawling forward under the snapping jaws. She got a face full of swamp water before she picked herself up. The hydra was only a few feet away, close enough for the Smoldersap to radiate heat enough for her to notice. Well, maybe she could burn right through it after all.

Adriana raised a trembling hand. She gave it everything she had, and a smaller than normal blue ember flickered in her palm. It would have to do. She lobbed it at the burning sap. It arced in the air.

She expected a flash of light, maybe not even that with how battered she was, and then to die horribly. Instead, the flame connected with the Smoldersap, and the entire front of the hydra exploded. The sap ignited, then detonated in a spectacular fireball. The blast sent Adriana rolling backwards.

Davos was at her side in an instant, pulling her head up out of the water. She gasped and looked up at the hydra. The entire front of it was gone, with only a gaping hole to remind them that there had been something there. The heads wavered, then all crashed into the water. The body glowed, and then disappeared. Something dropped into the water with a splash.

Several somethings. Bestia rained from where its heart had been, but so did a small form.

“Alicia?” Adriana felt on the verge of passing out, but excitement gripped her. She tried to take a few steps but faltered. Davos ran past her and scooped up Alicia’s fallen form out of the water. She hung limply in his arms.

“Is she alive? Gods, please tell me she’s alive,” Adriana groaned.

Davos dipped his head down. After a few seconds he said, “She’s alive. For now. She’s burned, some of them pretty bad. Alicia? Alicia, you with us?” He gave her girl a little shake.

When she coughed and sputtered, Adriana let out a breath she hadn’t known she’d been holding. She crashed into Davos and Alicia and squeezed them both with all her remaining strength.

“Ow,” Alicia complained, which made her let up a little.

“We did it,” said Adriana. Then, with a manic laugh she said it again. “We did it! What was that about not being able to take it?”

Davos wasn’t amused. “Did you know you could do that?” he asked.

Adriana’s enthusiasm faltered. “No…not exactly.”

“Hmph. Then we got lucky. Double lucky. You see that?” He nodded at the water. “Looks like we aren’t coming back empty handed.”

Nearly a dozen Bestia orbs floated on the surface in a ring, glowing different colors with malevolent energy. In the center was a black orb that could only be Maw Divinity.

Adriana took a deep breath, trying not to get too excited. “At least when we get to Hessiopolis, we won’t be broke. But Davos?”

“Yeah?” He sighed, knowing what was coming.

“We did it!”