“What is that?” I quickly sit up.
Despite my accelerated heart rate, there’s a wave of ease that washes over me seeing Ryder crouched against the tree’s interior. I half expected him not to be here when I woke up.
“Slyvirs,” he answers, looking up at me. “They magnify their cries to make it sound like there are a hundred of them. In reality, there are probably only four or five perched somewhere above.”
“They’re birds?”
“Birds only your nightmares could dream up.”
“Yeah, I can’t wait to get out of this place and never come back.”
He huffs out a half-hearted laugh as he breaks a twig into smaller pieces, tossing them on the ground. This time, the sound we hear has Ryder jumping to his feet.
“Stay here.” He turns around and adds, “I’m not leaving you. I’m just going to go check things out, and I’ll be right back.”
He waits for me to acknowledge his promise before stepping beyond the threshold. Minutes feel like hours as I wait for him to return. I know he’d want me to stay here, but what if he’s in trouble? I fight the urge to go after him for as long as I can.Eventually, when he doesn’t show, I convince myself something bad happened. I’m not even a full three steps outside of the tree when I’m thrown against the side of its twisted trunk.
The creature towering over me looks like it’s made up of roots and branches. They wrap around one another, forming a lean body with three long sections extending from the arms like fingers. I hold my breath as its face leans down to meet mine. Where the eyes should be, there are only dark pits. Unlike the beast from before, there is no mouth full of sharp teeth ready to rip my head off. In fact, there isn’t much of a face at all.
Slowly, the creature lifts my chin with one of its extended roots. There’s a deep humming sound coming from its throat, almost as if it’s trying to figure me out. A noise draws the rooted-being’s attention to the right, and when it turns its head, I see stiff branches sticking out like hair blowing in the wind.
After a few seconds, it turns back to me and drops the finger-like root from my chin. I’m about to reach for the dagger strapped to my thigh, but stop when the creature takes a step back, putting space between us.
Half a breath later, I spot Ryder launching his shadows at the creature, and my fiery shield bursts from my hands in retaliation. His shadows push against my shield for a moment before they retreat. The shocked look on Ryder’s face might match the creature’s if it had one. I can’t explain it, but there’sa silent understanding between the tall, dark figure and me. I finally release the hold on my shield and Ryder immediately appears by my side. Before he can make a move, I step in-between the two of them, stopping Ryder with my hand.
“It wasn’t going to hurt me.” I look behind me, and the creature takes a cautious step back. "I know it sounds crazy and I can’t explain it, but it won’t harm us.”
Ryder only takes his eyes off the figure long enough to look me in the eye.
“Go,” he orders and the twisted body retreats into the fog. “What happened to staying put?”
“I thought you might be in trouble and need my help.” The laugh he lets out ignites my rage. “Is it so hard to believe that I would be able to help?” I fold my arms, trying to stop my fire from breaking through the surface.
“No. You’ve been trained well, and your power is one many should fear.”
“So why did you laugh then?” I demand as he towers over me like the Grim Reaper himself.
“You thought I needed saving.” He drops his smile, and his eyes go dark as they peer down through his long black lashes. “There is no monster within these woods more deadly than the one standing in front of you.” He leans in closer so that his lips brush against my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. “Never forget that.”
Chapter 13
As soon as the sun turns the Dread Woods from black to a hazy grey, we continue on our way. Guided by my blood’s link to the Oracle, we make our way through the nightmarish forest.
“I don’t understand why that thing didn’t tear you apart last night,” Ryder says out of nowhere.
“Maybe not every creature here is a murderous beast thirsting for blood,” I offer.
“Yeah. I doubt that,” he says dismissively.
I stop walking. “You of all people should know what it’s like to have people believe that you’re something you’re not, simply because they were told so.”
It takes a second for him to fight his egobefore he admits I have a point.
“You’re annoyingly wise for your age,” he mumbles as he starts to walk down the path again.
“Okay, grandpa,” I snicker.
“For that comment, you’re doing extra push-ups when we get back.”
