“Fu dogs,” Puck mused as we approached the doors, hopping over shattered pill ars and crumbling archways. “You know, I met a Fu dog once in Beijing. Persistent bastard chased me all over the temple grounds. Seemed to think I was some kind of evil spirit.”
“Imagine that,” Grimalkin muttered, and the Wolf snorted with laughter. Puck f licked a pebble at him.
“These aren’t like the standard variety,” Puck continued, making a face at the stone guardians. “They’re bigger, for one. And older. Good thing they’re not real Fu dogs, eh? We’d be in big trouble if—” 198/387
And of course at that point, a loud grinding sound echoed through the room, as both statues turned their heads to stare at us.
I sighed. “You should know better by now, Goodfel ow.”
“I know. I just can’t help it.”
With snarling roars, the pair of massive stone guardians leaped from their bases, landing with deafening booms on the rocky f loor, shaking the ground. Their eyes burned with an emerald fire in their craggy faces, their paws crushed the stones beneath them and their bell owing voices filled the chamber. Grimalkin vanished, the Wolf added his own howling roar to the cacophony, and the Fu dogs lowered their heads and charged.
As one Fu dog barreled past, I vaulted aside, cutting at its f lank as it thundered by. My blade screeched off the stony hide, leaving a trail of frost and a shallow scratch, but the monster didn’t even notice. It plowed headfirst into a stone pill ar, smashing it to rubble, before it whirled around, completely unharmed, and lowered its head for another charge.
An ice arrow shattered off the broad muzzle as the Fu dog gall oped toward me, as Ariel a tried to catch its attention, but it didn’t slow the dog. I dodged as it roared by, plowing straight through a wall like a furious bull, showering itself with rocks. A quick glance showed Puck bound onto a pill ar to avoid the second statue, which simply rammed its head into the stone base to knock the pill ar down. Puck managed to hop onto a second column as the Wolf lunged at the Fu dog, fangs f lashing for its thick neck. He bounced off the stony hide with a yelp that was more anger than pain, and the Fu dog whirled around to attack.
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This wasn’t working. And we didn’t have time to play keep-away with a pair of murderous stone giants. “Retreat!” I called, ducking behind a headless statue to avoid being trampled by the first guardian, which grunted and spun around before hitting anything. “Puck, get to the doors, we don’t have time for this!”
“Oh sure, prince! You make it sound so easy!” The Fu dog attacking me rumbled a growl and stalked forward. Apparently it had given up blindly charging forward in the hopes of smashing me into paste. From the corner of my eye, I spotted Ariel a pulling back her bow for another shot, and waved her back without taking my attention from the dog.
“Ari, don’t worry about me. Just go.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes! Get to the doors—I’ll be right behind you.” Ariel a slipped behind a wall and out of sight. The Fu dog glanced her way, growling, but I hurled an ice dagger at its face, smashing it right between the eyes, bringing its attention back to me with a roar.
It lunged forward, teeth bared, claws raking deep gouges in the f loor.
As it pounced, I leaped up, vaulting off its snout and landing on its broad shoulders. For a split second, I saw a f lash of gold on its bright red collar, but then I was hurtling off its back and running toward the doors, where Puck and Ariel a waited for me.
The Wolf was keeping the other Fu dog busy, dancing around and snapping at its back feet as it whirled on him. As I bounded up the stairs, the guardian turned on me with a snarl, but the Wolf lunged forward and slammed his shoulder into it, rocking it back, keeping its 200/387
focus on him. I reached Puck and Ariel a, who looked grave as they turned to me.
“No good.” Puck frowned and punched the stone door, making a hollow thump. “The sucker won’t budge. I think there’s a key or something to open it. Look.”
He pointed to the doors, where two indentations side by side formed perfect half circles that met where the two doors came together, making a full sphere. A key of some sort, which probably meant it was lost or hidden somewhere in the room. With the two Fu dogs. I sighed in frustration.
“The collars, you fools.” Grimalkin appeared on one of the statue bases, ears back, lashing his tail. “Look at their collars. Must I do everything around here?” He vanished again, just as a Fu dog charged up the steps and lunged at us.
We dove aside, and the dog rammed into the doors with a boom that shook the ceiling. Shaking its head, it backed off, and I saw that same f lash of gold around its neck, like a tag. Or a globe that had been cut in half…
I glanced at Puck. “You take one, I’ll get the other?”
“You’re on, ice-boy.”