Read Online Valkeryn 2: The Dark Lands by Greig Beck - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Greig Beck
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moon came back out from the behind the clouds, revealing the riverbank in a silvery illumination. In the shafts of light, Arn saw the huge jaws dropping open in anticipation of the feast. Rows of teeth crowded the mouth, curving backwards – more like a shark than a snake.
The inward-curving white blades were designed for gripping and holding on – once the creature bit down on something, there would be no pulling away without a massive chunk of whatever it held being separated from the body. Arn guessed the powerful predator was des igned for attacking far larger and more formidable prey than them. They wouldn’t stand a chance.
The moonlight shot a jolt of lightning-like power through his limbs, and he leapt, flying ten feet to one side, taking the unconscious Grimson with him, his small body whipping like a loose doll in his arms.
The creature’s head smashed into the riverbank where they had just been standing, gouging a deep furrow. It recoiled as more of its enormous scaled body slid from the water.
Arn’s mouth dropped open in awe – the thing kept on coming, foot after foot, piling high, and yet still more of it trailed into the water. The coils smelled fishy, and dead, like a beached whale carcass, its body coated in some sort of slime. The most unsettling aspect of all was that the giant reptile never made a sound, other than the noise its plate-sized scales made as they ground against the soil of the riverbank.
Arn rolled, and came back to his feet, leaping again, as the thing exploded at him once more. He reached down to snatch up a tree branch and throw it over his shoulder as he kept running. The small log bounced off the scaled head, causing the thing to pull back momentarily, but it did no real damage.
Arn slid to a halt. ‘Oh no.’
He had managed to run blindly into a dead-end in the darkness. He found himself ringed by a dense wall of some sort of bamboo, its stems so closely grown together it created a line of prison bars. He felt he could break through, but he’d need to put Grim down, and turning his back on the creature would be suicide.
Arn eased the young Wolfen down at his feet, and turned back to the creature sliding along the wet grass of the bank, most of its body now exposed and shining wetly in the moonlight. The yellow glowing eyes were unblinking in their concentration on its prey and Arn was mesmerized – he just stood and stared, momentarily becoming lost in their glow. He shook his head. This is what snakes do , he remembered – they hypnotize their prey. He stepped in front of the Wolfen, and pulled his blade free, still coated with the blood of the bat-like creature he had fought only hours before. Welcome to Hell , he thought.
He opened his arms wide and allowed the moon to bathe his sweat soaked body.
‘Okay then, kicizapi wicate – a fight to the death, and I won’t be so easy to swallow.’
The thing raised itself up, and as Arn watched, he felt the few brave words of his grandfather’s language start to shrivel in his throat. The thing was now twice his height, and a even more formidable than he had expected.
‘Well, looks like just a fight to my death then.’ He took a step forward: his only wish was that the thing would be satisfied with him, and would leave Grimson alone… at least until he regained consciousness. And if it didn’t, then he hoped the youth never regained his consciousness.
‘He-yeeagh.’ He slashed the blade back and forth in the air, and the thing started to draw back slightly, but Arn guessed it was in preparation of the next attack. Arn knew this time it would strike him – it had to, because if he leapt away, its strike would be upon Grimson.
Arn sucked in a huge breath, and drew his arm back. The massive head shot forward. Arn slashed down, and connected with… nothing. There was a thump that shook the ground beneath Arn’s feet as the head of the giant reptile slammed to the ground not three feet in front of
The inward-curving white blades were designed for gripping and holding on – once the creature bit down on something, there would be no pulling away without a massive chunk of whatever it held being separated from the body. Arn guessed the powerful predator was des igned for attacking far larger and more formidable prey than them. They wouldn’t stand a chance.
The moonlight shot a jolt of lightning-like power through his limbs, and he leapt, flying ten feet to one side, taking the unconscious Grimson with him, his small body whipping like a loose doll in his arms.
The creature’s head smashed into the riverbank where they had just been standing, gouging a deep furrow. It recoiled as more of its enormous scaled body slid from the water.
Arn’s mouth dropped open in awe – the thing kept on coming, foot after foot, piling high, and yet still more of it trailed into the water. The coils smelled fishy, and dead, like a beached whale carcass, its body coated in some sort of slime. The most unsettling aspect of all was that the giant reptile never made a sound, other than the noise its plate-sized scales made as they ground against the soil of the riverbank.
Arn rolled, and came back to his feet, leaping again, as the thing exploded at him once more. He reached down to snatch up a tree branch and throw it over his shoulder as he kept running. The small log bounced off the scaled head, causing the thing to pull back momentarily, but it did no real damage.
Arn slid to a halt. ‘Oh no.’
He had managed to run blindly into a dead-end in the darkness. He found himself ringed by a dense wall of some sort of bamboo, its stems so closely grown together it created a line of prison bars. He felt he could break through, but he’d need to put Grim down, and turning his back on the creature would be suicide.
Arn eased the young Wolfen down at his feet, and turned back to the creature sliding along the wet grass of the bank, most of its body now exposed and shining wetly in the moonlight. The yellow glowing eyes were unblinking in their concentration on its prey and Arn was mesmerized – he just stood and stared, momentarily becoming lost in their glow. He shook his head. This is what snakes do , he remembered – they hypnotize their prey. He stepped in front of the Wolfen, and pulled his blade free, still coated with the blood of the bat-like creature he had fought only hours before. Welcome to Hell , he thought.
He opened his arms wide and allowed the moon to bathe his sweat soaked body.
‘Okay then, kicizapi wicate – a fight to the death, and I won’t be so easy to swallow.’
The thing raised itself up, and as Arn watched, he felt the few brave words of his grandfather’s language start to shrivel in his throat. The thing was now twice his height, and a even more formidable than he had expected.
‘Well, looks like just a fight to my death then.’ He took a step forward: his only wish was that the thing would be satisfied with him, and would leave Grimson alone… at least until he regained consciousness. And if it didn’t, then he hoped the youth never regained his consciousness.
‘He-yeeagh.’ He slashed the blade back and forth in the air, and the thing started to draw back slightly, but Arn guessed it was in preparation of the next attack. Arn knew this time it would strike him – it had to, because if he leapt away, its strike would be upon Grimson.
Arn sucked in a huge breath, and drew his arm back. The massive head shot forward. Arn slashed down, and connected with… nothing. There was a thump that shook the ground beneath Arn’s feet as the head of the giant reptile slammed to the ground not three feet in front of
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