The Soul Eaters (The Thin Hex Line Book 1) by Gwyndolyn Russell (e reader txt) 📕

one in a quick paced battle, or it was one against a dozen. I decided it was the latter.

Pieces of Fenris' cloak were scattered around. A dismembered tail twitched in the dirt. There was a sheet of metal, the blackest black imaginable. Scarred. Covered in blood. Flesh still attached.

The smoke trailed further up the mountain, barely visible at this rate.

I pushed the truck forward slowly, following the trail. A good ways up, the mountainside shifted into cliffs. The truck barely fit. Yaaranam stayed poking out of the top, helping guide the way to ensure we didn't tip over the edge.

The path eventually widened. The cliff rolled down into a steep decline lined with sharp, black rocks and the spare tree here and there. I parked the truck here, ready to fly down the hill if necessary. The smoke disappeared at the mouth of a cave.

The rocks were shaped in such a way it looked like a creature had died and its carcass became the mountain. Blackened bones weathered away to give the appearance of rocks.

The mouth of the cave, was actually the skull of a colossal beast. Jagged teeth lined the sides of the jaws, leading the way inside. It almost looked like a planet sized snake.

Wind whistled from within. Drops of water echoed.

"Do you think he's in there?" Yaaranam asked.

I jumped out of the truck. Opened the back door and dug through one of the bags. I pulled out two half faced gas masks. Tossed one up to the raven and fit the other one over my nose and mouth.

"What's this for?" She asked.

"To protect you from that smoke. He uses it to protect small areas. It's a painful death if you breathe it in."

"Right." She fit the mask on.

FORTY-FOUR

Just as I suspected. The cave was littered with smoke. It covered the ground like a blanket making the air from the knees down feel cold as ice. The cave itself was already pretty chilled. Stalactites hung from the ceiling, water dripping from their tips. The smoke acted like water, rippling at our motions. We each had our own flashlights and our own rifles. Yaaranam opted for the flamethrower and stayed at the rear.

"Will this smoke ignite?" She asked.

"Not sure." I answered.

"Do you know what happens when it is breathed in?" Nostra asked.

"You can't breathe. You suffocate. You bleed out of every orifice and pores. It's a slow death."

"I don't think I want to know how you found out." Yaaranam said, slowly turning on her heels to check for anything that could be sneaking up on them.

I had the sneaking suspicion that we wouldn't find any living eos here. They avoided the gas. They didn't dare hang around Fenris either.

The deeper we went, the quieter it got. The wind faded away, leaving us in stagnant air that wreaked of rotting flesh.

A soft cry sounded out from somewhere deeper in the cave. Something in pain.

"Fenris?" I breathed.

I instinctively picked up the pace, almost jogging into the darkness.

The tendrils of the shadows reached out towards me, wanting to grab hold and root themselves in my skin again. It wasn't something I focused on, or even thought about. They could grab me all they want. I was going in further and further until I found Fenris. If he was hurt, he needed help and nothing was going to stop me. Not a giant man eating monster, not some smelly cave, and sure as hell not the lack of light.

I could hear flesh tearing. Bones snapping. Another cry of agony. A grunt and a snap of teeth. The sounds got louder. Louder.

Finally, in the light of my flash light I saw smoke rolling down like a waterfall. A metallic arm, nearly twice my size was stretched out, gripping the far wall.

Our steps grew quiet. I could barely hear them over my breathing in the mask. I shined the light across the floor, following the arm back to where it attached. A furry frame, hunched over. A second arm had a long, stiff tail pinned to the stone floor. I spied ahead, much like that small theropod Reynolds had been examining. Big blue eyes, three or four on one side of its face gazed at me. It had a look of misery. Begged for help.

It hissed and gave a kick with one of its powerful legs nailing the creature that looked over it right in the jaw.

Its head reared up and to the side. Three sets of horns sprouted from the back of the creature's head. The upper most curved forwards like a ram's horns, pointing back at its cracked eyes. The other two sets bent down, then up growing backwards.

I knew those eyes. Those horns.

The creature snarled, a sound that made blood curdle in my veins.

It snapped its jaws into the gut of the smaller creature.

"Fenris." I said.

No answer. It was too busy eating.

"Fenris!" I said a bit louder.

Nostradamus stood a few feet behind me, ready to slip back behind Yaaranam if this thing turned out not to be our Fenris.

In the blink of an eye, the creature spun on its toes and launched into the air. Those enormous arms, way too large for its body, dug their claws into either side of the cave and lifted it up nearly to the ceiling.

Its jaws snapped a few times and it let out a bloodthirsty roar that caused loose rocks to fall from the ceiling.

It almost looked like its body was set aflame in a black fire that poured down to the floor.

Sure enough, it had another pair of arms properly proportioned to its body which it used to display those razor sharp claws.

Red lights lined its frame, pulsing in and out upwards with each breath it took.

"It's all right!" I said, dropping my rifle so it hung against my chest. I held both of my hands up.

The creature lowered itself to the floor, those wolfish metal feet thumping under its weight. It stood barely a foot in front of me. It growled in