Total pages in book: 92
Estimated words: 87731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87731 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 439(@200wpm)___ 351(@250wpm)___ 292(@300wpm)
In the Dark Night
Creatures Roam
Bria stood perfectly still, every muscle tightening as the little creature trembled harder against her chest. The forest beyond the dying fire remained thick with darkness, the towering trunks allowing little moonlight to reach the ground, yet she knew she had seen movement.
Large movement.
“Kaelan?” she called again, softer this time, fear tightening her throat.
Still, no answer came.
The little fellow gave another low growl that ended in a frightened whimper before burying his face tightly beneath her arm.
Bria’s pulse pounded painfully now. She should remain where she was. Kaelan would expect that of her. And yet the thought of sitting alone beside the dying fire while something unseen moved through the darkness around her proved impossible to bear.
Carefully, she gathered her courage and took a slow step away from the sheltering roots.
The forest greeted her with silence that did not feel at all natural.
Bria moved cautiously between the trees, her eyes straining against the darkness while the little creature remained rigid in her arms. Every snapping twig beneath her boots sounded far too loud. Every shifting shadow made her heart lurch harder.
“Kaelan,” she called once more, barely above a whisper now.
Silence was the only response she got.
The little creature suddenly lifted his head, growled, and then whimpered softly in the same breath.
Bria stopped instantly. A strange sensation crawled slowly across the back of her neck.
She was no longer alone.
The realization struck so sharply she almost turned at once. Almost. Something stopped her. Instinct perhaps or fear.
Slowly, Bria looked over her shoulder and froze.
The beast stood only several feet behind her.
Massive white fur blended almost ghostlike into the darkness surrounding the trees, though its pale gold eyes remained fixed steadily upon her. Even standing still, the creature radiated enormous strength, its great shoulders towering above her while its breath drifted visibly through the cold night air.
Bria could not move. Fear rooted her completely where she stood.
The little creature made a tiny, fearful sound and buried himself tighter against her.
Still, the beast did not attack. It simply watched her.
Bria scarcely dared breathe.
Slowly, the creature stepped closer. One heavy paw moved soundlessly across the forest floor. Then another.
Her heart pounded so violently she was certain the beast must hear it.
The creature lowered its massive head slightly. Sniffing her. Warm breath brushed softly across her face.
Bria shivered hard.
Its thick fur grazed lightly against her cheek as it moved nearer still, the strange softness of it startling against the terror racing through her body.
Yet even now… it did not harm her.
The beast paused suddenly. Its head lifted and a low growl rumbled deep within its chest.
Before Bria could even begin to understand what had changed, the beast spun sharply and vanished into the darkness between the trees with astonishing speed.
The forest fell silent once more.
Bria remained frozen where she stood, scarcely able to breathe.
Her heart pounded violently against her ribs while the little creature trembled hard enough in her arms that she feared the poor thing might leap free entirely.
Slowly, feeling returned to her legs.
The beast had stood close enough to tear her apart. Close enough that its breath had warmed her skin. And still…
It had not harmed her.
Why?
The question refused to loosen its grip on her thoughts.
Fear still lingered fiercely within her, yet beneath it stirred something else now, curiosity.
The creature had not looked at her with hunger. Nor rage. If anything, its strange eyes had held something far more unsettling.
Awareness.
Bria swallowed hard, her fingers tightening gently through the little creature’s soft fur.
If only she had possessed the courage to touch it.
The thought startled her even as it formed.
Had she touched the beast, perhaps she could have sensed what lay within it. Fear, rage, or possibly loneliness? Whatever emotions drove such a creature to roam Driochmor.
The possibility sent another shiver through her.
At last Bria forced herself to move, hurrying back through the dark forest toward the faint glow of dying embers still visible between the trees ahead.
Relief loosened slightly within her chest when the sheltering roots finally came into view. Then tightened again instantly.
Kaelan still was not there.
Bria stopped near the dying fire, her gaze searching the darkness surrounding their small camp while unease slowly settled over her once more. The little creature remained pressed tightly against her, though his trembling had eased some now that they had returned.
Where had Kaelan gone? Why hadn’t he woken her?
Her thoughts returned suddenly to something he had said earlier.
I lost the creature’s trail… but I picked up another.
And later…
I can sense them.
Bria looked uneasily toward the forest.
Perhaps he had caught the beast’s scent again and gone after it. The thought alone made her stomach tighten. She had seen the creature up close twice now, had felt the sheer size and power of it standing near enough that its breath warmed her skin.
Yet still she could not shake the strange certainty that it had never intended her harm.