No. My gaze slanted to the deceased Sentinel. If that were the case, she wouldn’t have appeared now. Not with so many threats around. Slowly, I offered her the back of my hand. She sniffed it once, her whiskers just grazing my knuckles, then huffed.
Shouting erupted from the other two Sentinels, and her head snapped in their direction. Hackles standing on end, she let out a low, terrifying hiss. Something sharp and furious raced through her eyes.
“Leena. Are we in danger?” Kost asked, voice hushed.
“I don’t think so.” Still, I wasn’t eager to make any sudden movements. “Just stay where you are.”
The two men were closing in. Swords drawn, they cautiously moved toward us. The Nix Ikari let out a guttural yowl. Vibrant orchid light exploded from her spots, and she angled her head down, pointing her horns directly at the approaching men. Every muscle in her body went taut.
“I wouldn’t come any closer if I were you,” I said to the men. Everything about the Nix Ikari’s stance screamed danger. Why she had chosen to protect us, I didn’t know. But I did know that there was no need for more death. And deathwouldhappen if she decided to strike.
The first man shook his head. “You’re coming with us, by order of King Varek.”
And then he made the mistake of extending his sword outward in the direction of the Nix Ikari.
She winked out of existence before I could blink.
Reappearing behind him, she struck as she had with the first Sentinel. Except this time, only two of her nails tore through the armor, leaving the man wounded instead of dead. He tumbled to the ground and dragged himself a few feet away. His comrade leapt to his aid, striking the Nix Ikari’s shoulder. Her hide split open, and she let out a yowl that threatened to start an avalanche. But the sweeping arc of the Sentinel’s attack had left him open in other places, and the Nix Ikari didn’t hesitate. She sank her massive canines into the soldier’s side. The metal armor caved with ease beneath her bite, and the man went down in a spray of blood.
Before the first Sentinel could prepare himself, she turned back to him. And lunged. She snared the man’s head between her teeth. It gave with a sickening crunch, and the body went limp in her maw. Shaking her head, as if in disgust, she backed away from the soldier and sauntered back toward us. She plopped on her haunches and began to meticulously clean her wound.
Relief rushed over me, and I sank to the ground as the last of my strength left me. “Thank goodness they didn’t kill you.”
She paused midlick to give me a bored look. I nearly laughed. Oz and Kost moved to join me, wary gazes locked on the beast before us. She tilted her head their direction for a moment before returning to her cleaning.
“Is it safe?” Oz asked.
“Yeah, I think so. We’d be dead already if it weren’t.” Maybe I was riding a high from escaping the Sentinels, but this time, I did chuckle. My nerves were fried. We still had so many problems, so manyurgentproblems, but I couldn’t help myself. My body trembled as my adrenaline subsided.
Oz crouched beside me, brows raised. “Okay, then. Let’s take a look at that ankle before the rest of them show up.”
“Quickly,” Kost said, voice tight. “We have no way of knowing when they’ll appear.” After a moment, his gaze slanted to the Nix Ikari. “Why is she still here?”
“I don’t know.” I glanced up at the beast. Her eyes were trained on Oz’s hands as they assessed my ankle. I let out a groan when he stretched it to the left, and her ears stood at attention. Slowly, she leaned forward so her wet nose could kiss my cheek. Rosewood light fractured from my hand and showered us in a soft glow. Connected. The tether surged between us, and a soft purr started in the back of her throat.
My mouth fell open. “What? Why?”
She licked my neck. Right where the Sentinel’s blade had nicked my skin. I didn’t know anything about the taming process for a Nix Ikari. No other Council member had one, and they were so scarce that I’d only heard of the beast in passing. My brow furrowed. I’d provided her easy prey in a desolate landscape with the Azad. Had that been it? No. She would’ve bonded with me then. Other than that, all I did was stop her from attacking Felicks. She’d sunk her fangs into my shoulder and held steady, waiting to see what I’d do.
Something warm sparked in my core. The Sentinel had held his sword against my neck too, and threatened my life. My family’s life. And I’d stood up for them. That was when the Nix Ikari had appeared andchosento defend me. Just as I had defended Felicks.
“She’s chosen me.” I let out a weak smile.
At that moment, Kost’s expression lit up. Bright eyes raced over the Nix Ikari, and then he turned his gaze to me. “Can she teleport us?”
I nearly kicked Oz from excitement as I jolted in place. “Maybe. I mean, I hope so. Let me send her back to the realm so she can heal and my bestiary will update.” Flexing my hand, I channeled my power and opened the beast realm. She went willingly, and I quickly closed the door behind her. Touching my finger to my pendant, I opened my bestiary and immediately flipped to her entry.
My heart swelled as the script bled to life against the night sky. “Yes. Yes, she can.” My eyes flew over the text. “Normally, she only teleports in short bursts, but it says here that she can travel great distances, though it expends all her energy. She’ll have to recuperate for some time before she can travel more than a few yards again.”
Oz braced his hands on his knees, finished with his work on my ankle. “This will be sore for a while. Once we get our things from Tok, I can wrap it.”
“There’s no need.” Rolling it side to side, I winced. “I can manage. We have to get to Noc. The Fabric Spinner likes to take her time with her prey, but there’s no telling exactly when she’ll attempt to make a meal out of him.”
“Not to mention the Sentinels still hanging around here somewhere.” Oz stood and scoured the horizon. There were no signs of life, but that meant little when it came to Sentinels. Their blinding, magical columns of light could appear at a moment’s notice.
“Where, though?” Uncertainty rolled through my gut. The Nix Ikari only had enough power to transport us once. Wasting it by traveling to the wrong location could jeopardize Noc. I rubbed my temples and tried in vain to piece together a plan. “We know the Fabric Spinner was tamed, so a Charmermustbe involved… I think Raven somehow found out we were here and ambushed us.”
“So Hireath?” Kost asked.
