Page 91 of Rising Out of the Darkness
A guttural growl came from behind us.
Declan’s faced blanched. My teeth sank straight into my bottom lip. Only one thing could make a sound that horrifying.
“Hells…a beast!” Liam shouted.
Chapter 35
Elena
“We do this together!” Declan commanded.
The mammoth beast stood about twelve feet away from us, snarling as it crouched down, preparing to attack. The captains rushed forward, flanking Declan and I on both sides in the narrow street.
Our hands still intertwined, he spun my body in the direction of the beast. All of us prepared for the battle in front of us as the beast raised its snout into the air and howled. It was low, deep, and rattled against my bones. As a group we extended our hands forward, waiting for Declan to give us the signal.
Growls echoed between the buildings, drawing our attention away from the beast in front of us. Two more foul beasts appeared from the side streets behind the first beast. Goosebumps rippled over my skin, and I began to tremble. Declan and I had barely survived one of these beasts last time.
How the Hells will we take down three?
Declan’s thumb stroked over the back of my hand. In that small second of calm, his commanding presence filled me with hope that we might be able to survive this.
Anchoring my feet firmly into the ground, I set my sights on the dark beasts in front of us. Once more, I dug down deep tomy well of dynamis, summoning it forth. In the corner of my eye, I could see that both Declan and I were glowing a faint violet shade. His hair whipped around wildly, as did mine.
“NOW!” he shouted.
Dynamis of all manner leapt forward towards the beasts. Screeching howls pierced through my ears, but our efforts didn’t halt their attack. We watched in horror as they clawed their way towards us.
Just like before, scraps of their dark, matted fur flew into the air as our violet light peeled away meaty layers of flesh. Sludgy, dark blood spilled over the cobblestones. Together, our power was doing far more damage than either of us on our own.
Nayla and Liam impaled the beasts with shards of stone and ice. Killian launched several daggers attached to him, conserving his power, just in case we might need to be zephyred out of here.
Declan took a step forward, as I did. More dynamis thrummed through our fingertips, striking the beasts. This time, their momentum did not slow. The sounds of our battle had summoned several people outside of their homes. Concern filled Declan’s face.
“We need time,” he panted between heavy breaths. “We need to get them away from the people.”
Roaring orders back to the captains, Declan pulled me down the next street toward the main square of the city. Two of the beasts clawed their way towards us. The captains fled down another alley, the third beast growling behind them.
As we ran, we took turns launching our dynamis towards the beasts. Each blow carved chunks out of the beasts’ flesh, but still they charged for us. Declan tugged my shoulder, pulling me down each alley and street that would lead us out of the city.
Elysians began to open their doors and flood the streets. “Get back inside! Now!” Declan yelled shoving others back into their open doors as we ran by. As we rounded another street, we heardthe screams of Elysians behind us, and I prayed to the gods that they got inside before the beasts reached them.
At the end of the street a little girl with bouncy blonde curls sobbed. Without hesitation, Declan bent down and wrapped her into his arms, ran to the nearest door and pounded. “Open now, I have a child!”
The door swung open, and he shoved the crying babe into a woman’s arms. The beasts’ howls were getting closer. My heart pounded against my chest.
“Close this door and hide!”
The woman slammed the door shut, while Declan grabbed my wrist and launched us back into a sprint. Claws scratched against the cobblestone, and I glanced over my shoulder to see that a beast was trailing behind us. Turn after turn, Declan helped us wind through the streets of the city that he knew by heart.
My breath rasped against my lungs. Every muscle in my legs burned. “I…I don’t know if I can keep up, Dec,” I panted, turning to blast another bit of dynamis towards the beast closest to me.
It lunged into the air and its teeth nipped my calf just as Declan shoved us around yet another corner. Warm, red liquid began to trickle into my boot. The pain throbbed with each step.
“Hold on!” We swung around another street. “Elena, just”—Declan gripped my hand tighter as we ran— “hold on, love.”
We rushed straight towards the opening of the alley, both turning to launch another assault of dynamis. My fingertips burned from the white light that tore through them. When we reached the opening, my eyes widened at the sight of the captains backed against the large fountain in the middle of the town square. We raced towards them, joining their side.
“This is it,” Declan shouted. “Use everything you have left!”
