A mysterious past, an unrequited love, and a desperate need to find himself, fifteen-year-old Kalyn has enough to occupy him without being on the verge of a massive societal upheaval. Join Kalyn and his friends as they explore what it means to come...
The beast stands over me, and I make my peace with what deities I can in the few seconds that are certainly left of my life. My ears are split with its roaring, my nose full of its animal stench. Its dark eyes have no pity for me, no guilt in the face of survival.
Is anyone near enough to hear? I feel too breathless to scream. They would be too late to save me regardless.
The desperate thudding of my heart robs the oxygen from my very lungs. I am utterly out of control. Not just of the situation, but of my own body. Fear has claimed even my free will. The muscles of my arms quiver, straining to hold me as I face my fate.
I will never see my parents. I will never tell Ohna I love her. I will never have the chance to thank Enos. I will never be able to explain to the twins that what I did, I did for them. I will never see Corsa reunited with her Incarnate. Anyone who has ever dared to hope for me will be destined for disappointment. I made so many promises that will never be fulfilled.
Strangely, I think of Avi. Was she this unprepared or had she come to terms with her end? Is there an end? Vaguely, I wonder if I will come back in some other form, or if I will haunt this forest, a wistful spirit.
The bear starts to topple toward me, gleaming jaws open in anticipation. The wind whistles, and I hear a collision. Rather than the tearing of teeth, I feel nothing. Blinking, I right myself.
Yards from where I sit, Wart scrabbles with the beast. They are nearly equal in size. Outstretched wings block my view, but there is an awful cacophony of screeches and roars as each wrestles for dominance. They seem matched.
Rather than sit idly, I grab what I can, pelting stones and branches at the creature, though it seems to make no difference. I fear that Wart will lose, or, at the very least, be injured in the process. I am ready to thrust myself into fight, a thoughtless action with no hope of ending well for me, when a human voice is heard above the rumble.
"Oi! Cut it out, Jas!"
The bear goes limp, and Wart tumbles backward, as confused by the development as I am. Jas, (as I am assuming the wild animal is pet-named) lumbers toward the tree line, head low with shame at the scolding. My mouth is agape at the sight.
"Sorry about that," a stranger tells me. The easy apology seems out of place. Insufficient. What is there to do, though, but accept it? I take the proffered hand and struggle to remember how to speak.
"Jas gets a little territorial, but you're clearly not a threat." The man seems to be talking to the animal more than me, and the bear lowers its massive head in a show of contrition.
"Yeah," I manage. "He is a little territorial, isn't he?"
The man looks me over, and I can see reflected in his calm demeanor that I will survive. In fact, there is hardly a scratch on me. It is for Wart that I worry.
"Woah, is that a dragon?"
I bristle at the man's casual recovery from nearly killing us.
"Yes," I hiss. "His name is Wart."
"Mine is Braugh. This here is Jas."
It occurs to me for the first time that this is another Incarnate. I haven't seen one outside of our party since we left Balai. My anger is forgotten.
"Have you come from the south?"
"Mm," the man concedes as he eyes Wart with amazement.
"From Balai?"
"Originally, yes."
"But now you're here."
"Clearly."
"Because of Dager."
The man's eyes narrow on me.
"What do you know of Dager?"
"I left with his daughter."
"Mab? She's here?"
"Not any more."
"What do you mean? Where has she gone?"
"Back to Balai."
"No!" The shout shocks my still startled nerves.
"Yes! She has! Why not?" I am beginning to grow impatient of this stranger and his lack of explanation. He may be from Balai, but I have never seen him. The town is not large enough for a bear to have escaped my notice. Whoever he is, he has not lived there in some time. Yet he knows Mab and her father. If he has any concerns regarding her return, he needs to tell me now. Before it is too late.
I tamp down my emotions in order to start again.
"Who are you?"
"I'm her brother."
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