Chapter 9 #2
Within a few minutes, the generally lumpy ground gave way to something sharper, more hard-cut edges than natural rolling lava formation. It forced me to slow and cautiously pick my way across the jagged ground.
Ahead was a sheer cliff, and I had a feeling I’d be scaling it, with this deadly terrain my landing pad if I fell.
“I’m not fucking having that,” I muttered, annoyed by how much slower I was moving as another howl lashed my ears, this time closer.
“Just keep moving forward.”
Great, I’d been here maybe twenty minutes, and I was already talking to myself. And I’d thought the swamp was supposed to be the challenge that could drive me insane.
Apparently, the fae enjoyed playing with psychosis. Bastards.
When I reached the cliff, I craned my neck to look for any sign of a handhold. It was at least forty feet, and the stone was smoother, almost glassy compared to what was under my feet.
There were a few potential spots to grab, but spread far apart and minuscule. My thick-soled boots would be a hindrance with handholds that small. But a long glance left and right showed there was no way around this cliff. It appeared to be a sheer downward drop on both sides. Although…
I worked sideways along the cliff wall, peering down, down, down into the ravine. I couldn’t see the bottom, which was disconcerting.
Whipping back, I pressed my spine firmly against the cliff wall, giving my head a second to stop swimming. More slowly, I looked again, this time focusing on the side of the cliff.
There.
It wasn’t quite a ladder, but there were small, six-inch ledges etched into the stone that led all the way to the top, which meant I had a choice.
I could stay above the jagged rock ground, where a fall would surely break my bones and slice me to shreds.
Even if I made it to the top, I’d have to leave my boots behind, and who knew what the terrain at the top looked like?
Or, I could lean out into the unknown for an easier climb.
At least I’d be able to fit the toes of my boots into those ledges.
But I’d looked down, and I had no idea where—or if—that ravine ended. There would be zero chance of surviving that fall.
I swallowed hard and called on my wolf. Her presence in my mind was a comfort, slowing my breath and making me feel less alone.
You should use the handholds. I will be of no help to you in this, so you must give your human self the best chance.
She was right. There was no safe path, and that was the point. But making it to the top with my boots was an advantage.
“Okay. Let’s do it. Stay with me?” I asked aloud, though the question was directed inward.
Always. We are one.
One last deep breath, and I leaned out over the edge, one hand pressed flat against the cliff wall as I reached with a toe for the first step.
I kept my eyes trained forward, pretending there was nothing below but a soft, fluffy mattress. Or a swimming pool. Heck, one of those big air pillow thingies they used on cop shows would work. Anything but a bottomless chasm.
My toe slotted into the ledge, and I exhaled.
One step down, only… a hundred or so more to go.
This next move was the tricky part, though. I had to make it around the corner and get the next foothold with barely anything to grip. Stretching up my hand, I found a notch just overhead I could anchor to, and then I went for it.
For one brief, terrifying moment, I hung over the abyss, in limbo.
Then I found my next hold with my free hand. My pulse pounded in my ears as I began to climb, eyes fixed upward and pretending nothing else existed.
Hand over hand, step by step, the top drew nearer.
Tiny bits of pulverized stone were falling, peppering my face and making me squint as I climbed, but it wasn’t until I’d heaved myself over the top edge and collapsed backward in relief that I realized I’d shifted my hands, using my wolf’s claws as insurance against a faulty grip.
I lay there until my pulse was beating at a normal rhythm, then stood, eager to get away from the edge.
Until I wasn’t.
A sickly green beast more than fifteen feet tall loitered only a few dozen yards away, staring up at the red sun, sniffing the air. Its back was turned my way, but even from this angle, the creature was terrifying.
Four legs as thick as tree trunks, wrinkled green skin, and spikes running from a short, stubby tail up its spine and out of sight.
When it lifted its head and released that otherworldly howl, I caught sight of reddish eyes and a maw like nothing I’d ever seen, even in my worst nightmares.
It was misshapen and hideous, with protruding teeth several inches long and wider than my thumb. Spikes sprouted from its face, and these dripped with viscous green goo, which was probably either poisoned or acidic, given my luck with these damn trials.
My mind reeled as I tried to come up with a plan.
There was no going back, and now that I’d reached the top of the cliff, it was clear I was being funneled toward the end of this obstacle course.
The cliff walls stayed sheer, but this was far too straight a path to be anything but intentional. It seemed plenty wide, but it wasn’t endless. I should be able to skirt the beast quietly without straying dangerously close to the edge.
Shift.
My wolf tugged at me, pulling at my focus.
Shift!
Her urgency caught me by surprise, and I released my control, feeling her burst from my skin just as the beast turned and pinned me with a demonic gaze.
My shift was fast, but despite the creature’s massive size, it was faster. By the time I landed on four paws, it had halved the distance between us, the ground shaking beneath my paws with every lumbering step.
Thankfully, my wolf was ready. She bolted, threading the needle between the oncoming attacker and the cliff’s edge with a predator’s survival instincts.
The beast was hot on my heels, even at a flat-out run. My wolf pushed even harder, stretching out nose to tail to buy us an extra few inches of breathing room.
I looked out through her eyes, and a bright, shining light aimed down at a blackened pedestal caught my attention up ahead.
The stone fragment! We found it!
But her ground-eating strides led to a brand-new problem. A great canyon stretched beyond the end of this little rock runway I’d been led to. It was so wide, there was no way we’d cross it without plummeting into the rocky abyss below.
Panic surged in my gut as I felt the lumbering beast’s hot breath as it snapped its disgusting jaws an inch from our tail.
I reeled for a solution as time ran out.
This was a fae challenge, a fae trial… and the fae had wings.
They came in endless shapes, sizes, and colors, but one thing held true. All the greater fae had wings.
We have no wings, my wolf said, interrupting my train of thought. We have to go back.
She was right, we didn’t have wings, not yet. But what about my true form, the one my mother had told me would grant Dirge’s immortality?
Did I have wings hidden somewhere inside?
Another snap from the vile creature, and another yard of the dwindling ground remaining was eaten away under our paws in one great stride. Time was well and truly running out.
It was now or never.
Jump.