Chapter 22
TWENTY-TWO
LUPE
I t had only been a few hours since Z had disappeared with Killian, but it felt like an eternity. What made everything even worse was that I had no idea if Z had returned yet.
And I wouldn’t, not until I returned to camp.
She would kill me, of that I had no doubt, but I had to do this. For her. For my brothers. For the humans who relied on us.
I lumbered through the forest in my bear form, sniffing the air, the wind bringing with it the acrid scent of piss and unwashed bodies.
We were getting close.
I jerked my huge, furry head in the direction of the smell and then took off in a run. I didn’t need to look to know that Ryland followed. The shadows were thicker here, more potent.
Tiny animals raced out of my way with cries of fear, but I paid them no mind. They weren’t my target.
The farther I traveled, the stronger the smell became, until it felt as if I was choking on it. Disgust percolated low in my stomach.
And then, in the distance, I heard the sound of twigs snapping and leaves crackling.
We were here.
Without preamble, I shifted back into my human form, and Ryland materialized beside me, a bag slung over his shoulder. He tossed me a pair of jeans that I quickly threw on.
The two of us remained silent as we moved through the forest, using the trees for cover. I wasn’t sure if Ryland could also sense the tension in the air, but I certainly could. Every instinct I had screamed at me to get the fuck out of here.
As a bear, it was rare that I wasn’t the king of the forest, but I knew with unwavering certainty we were about to face a bigger threat. A more dangerous one.
A shiver rippled through me.
Then, through the tree branches, I saw them.
My breath left my body, and I quickly lowered myself to a crouch, feeling more than hearing Ryland do the same beside me. Wordlessly, I held out a hand, and Ryland passed me my glasses and the bestiary.
There were hundreds, if not thousands, of these creatures walking in perfect rows of four towards the capital. They moved in eerie synchronization, not a step out of place, their russet eyes glazed over.
I took in their appearance quickly, cataloging everything that was left out of the descriptions I was given.
On closer inspection, I saw that green tinged their skin, with tiny yellow spots scattered throughout. Their eyes were abnormally large and had a solid red iris, not a pupil to be seen. Instead of a nose, they had two holes in the center of their faces, both of them so long that they reached the top of their mouths. They weren’t smiling, but they didn’t need to be for me to see their teeth—nearly the size of my thumb, and all of them carved into serrated edges.
Remaining silent, I began to flip through the book rapidly, searching for anything that would tell me what this creature was and how to stop them.
Maybe…no.
No.
Definitely not.
No. Not that.
Perhaps…wait, no.
No.
No.
Frustration built in my chest as I glanced at the passing army once more.
All of the creatures stood shorter than an average human and wore threadbare clothes that did very little to cover their frames. They had hats on their heads, but even they didn’t hide their long, curved ears.
The army continued to pass, and I paid attention to their movements, their confident strides, the way their arms swung.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No—
I paused on the current page of the book, my eyes widening.
Green and yellow skin…
Serrated teeth…
Curved ears…
Excitement filled me as I glanced at the top of the page, where the creature’s name was listed in boxy letters.
Goblins.
We were dealing with goblins.
I waved my hand to garner Ryland’s attention and then pointed towards the page in question. He hovered behind me, his feet not touching the ground, and began to read.
Now that I knew for sure what we were dealing with, I quickly darted my attention to the bottom, where the book detailed ways to kill the various creatures. My stomach plummeted at the words I found there.
Goblins are known to travel in groups of at least twenty, which they call a family unit. The leader of each family unit is called the monarch. Some believe that goblins have what researchers call a “hive mind,” meaning they all share the same thoughts. Since goblins
And that was it. The rest of the words were nothing but faded ink and smudge lines.
Fuck!
I scanned the passage yet again, searching for something, anything, that would help us.
Monarch.
Family unit.
Hive mind.
I slowly lifted my gaze from the book, intent on studying the creatures once more, only to find one of the goblins turned in my direction, its head canted to the side. It stared at me, its abnormally wide eyes as red as blood, before it opened its mouth wide. There weren’t merely two rows of teeth in its mouth, but four, maybe five. Row after row of deadly looking teeth.
The goblin released a high-pitched scream that shook the forest.
The rest of the goblins froze in mid-step—literally froze, one of their feet lifted as they prepared to take a step. Then, as one, they all repeated that same eerie scream. The trees began to shake, a bird cawed, and stone-cold fear instilled itself deep in my chest.
“Fucking hell,” Ryland whispered.
Fucking hell indeed.
Because every goblin in the army had turned to stare at the two of us.
I shoved the book into Ryland’s hands.
“Run,” I rasped out. “We need to run.”
Even as I thought that, my body shifted and distorted, a fur pelt sprouting on my arms.
Now as a bear, I pushed myself onto my hind legs and roared.
The goblins continued to stare at me.
Waiting.
Waiting.
Waiting.
Then the one near the very front of the army opened its mouth and released a husky series of sounds.
The goblins rushed towards Ryland and me without a second thought.
Oh fuck…
Z was going to kill me.
If the goblins didn’t kill me themselves.