The Cruithne was bathed in sweat, his face twisted with determination. Suddenly the Fear Liath snarled and heaved its bulk on top of the Cruithne, bearing him to the ground with a crushing weight. Paedrin heard the sickening sound of snapping bones. A groan of agony came next and Paedrin blanched with horror. The Fear Liath’s jaws snapped at the Cruithne’s head, digging into the hair and bone.
Paedrin’s heart screamed in defiance. He hacked at the monster from above, trying to draw it away, but every slash was useless against its slippery hide.
The Fear Liath rose suddenly, slashing Paedrin across the middle. He felt the claws go through his skin, but he was beyond pain at that moment, too shocked to comprehend the damage that was possibly done.
He felt his life begin to leech out.
Phae gripped the object in her hand, not wanting to lose it, but also not wanting to squeeze it too tightly to activate its magic. She glanced down at her palm, saw the slender, carved stone with sigils carved into it.
“Phae!”
It was Shion’s voice.
She looked back, but only saw the mist. The sound of pain and dying came from the billowing folds. She could no longer see the Fear Liath, but she could hear its coughing bark and sensed it coming.
To my tree, Sister! Flee to the tree!
The lure of the Dryad was clear in her mind. The monster would not be stopped by Dryad magic; she knew that. But if she could climb into the branches a bit, perhaps that would save her from the Fear Liath. She wanted to break down into terrified sobs, but she couldn’t. Each step brought her closer to the tree.
The crooked branches appeared out of the mist ahead of her, a trunk large and gnarled, as if its entire frame were wracked with indescribable agony. There were no leaves, only thick clumps of mistletoe. The lower branches sagged to the forest floor. One had broken off, leaving a jagged wound in the trunk.
“Phae!” Shion called again.
She surged forward, closing the distance to the tree. After stuffing the stone into her pocket, she jumped over one of the low-hanging branches. Mist and sweat caused beads of moisture to trickle down her cheeks. Frosty breath came from her mouth as she gasped, feeling the cold even more pronounced.
This is its lair.
Phae swallowed with horror, seeing a darkened cave through the shroud of the mist.
Bond with my tree and I will save you from the Fear Liath. Release me, Sister, and you will escape.
Phae tried to close her mind to the insidious thoughts. She was not to bond with just any tree in the Scourgelands. How was she to know the right one?
She gazed up at the twisted limbs and quickly decided which ones to start on. She climbed and tried to keep steady as she approached the knotted trunk. Phae heard crunching in the leaves, the snuffling sound of the monster’s breathing. She heard the clicking noise again in its throat, and she shuddered.
The next rung of a bough was higher up, very wide, and she could tell it would be difficult to climb. She started up the trunk and her boots slid, scraping against the bark. She winced with frustration and fear, knowing she did not have long before it reached her. She grabbed the next limb and began pulling herself up.
A black muzzle appeared around the side of the tree, its fetid breath grunting with the exertion of moving something of its size.
Phae screamed and jumped at the branch, pulling herself higher. She made it to the second branch, but the Fear Liath rose to its full height, easily as tall as where she was. Her body jerked convulsively with fear and she leapt away from it to another branch, landing on her stomach with a painful gasp. She felt herself slipping and grasped the limb’s edge, her legs dangling. With her elbows she tried to pull herself up, but the tug of the ground beat her efforts.
She felt something grip her feet and it began pushing her up. Looking down, she saw Shion just below her, arms stretching up to catch her boots.
“Climb!”
He won’t save you, Sister. He murders Dryads. You are not safe with him. No one is safe with him. Be grateful his memories are stolen or he’d kill you now.
The pressure at her feet made it easier to find purchase with her arms. She swung her knee up and around the limb and began scooting toward the trunk.
“Higher!” Shion shouted.
A blur of gray-black fur engulfed him. She listened to the sound as the thing’s claws shredded Shion’s shirt. The roar came again, deafening her with fear. Shion struck back, without weapons, grabbing the beast’s tough hide, striking it from all sides ineffectually. He could not be killed by the Fear Liath, and neither could it kill him. But Shion was hopelessly insufficient to counter its brute strength. The Fear Liath sank its teeth into Shion’s side, making Phae shudder as she watched him thrown aside.
You will die, Sister. Let me save you. Bond with my tree!
Are you the Mother Tree of this land? Phae demanded. Where is the source?
You will never make it that far, child. You will die here, amidst my roots, unless you bond with my tree. I will show you how. Take the burden from me. Please!
Phae tried to rise but felt a sudden rush of vertigo and nearly fell. She pushed herself closer to the trunk.