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Once we had set up the traps, Axanar pulled me aside and we ducked down behind some leafy fronds.
“What do we do now?” I asked in a hushed whisper.
“Now we wait,” he said. The silence hung around us, growing heavier. A silent clock ticked as we awaited the rise of Gonshu.
“Could we not go into the cave and kill him while he’s sleeping?” I asked.
Axanar wore a faint smile. “Only a fool would enter Gonshu’s lair. It is pitch black, and would mean certain death. We can only kill him when we bring him out to the light,” Axanar said. I nodded in understanding. There was still so much of this world that was new to me. I had never faced anything like this in the old world, but perhaps if I had, then I might have been able to withstand the attack of the Night Fangs better. Maybe Axanar’s way of doing things was right.
The ground shook and rumbled slightly. The tremors reverberated through me.
“Gonshu wakes,” Axanar said, and drew his sword. I pulled out my bow and nocked an arrow, focusing it on the mouth of the cave. As the ground shook, so did my hand tremble, and I had to focus on keeping my aim steady. I breathed calmly, just as Volkan had taught me, and waited. In mere moments, Gonshu appeared, and my mouth dropped open. It was a terrible, huge spider. A hundred eyes blinked at the same time, each one a small red bead that burned with anger and fury. Its long furry legs reached out and pulled itself out of the cave, revealing a thick abdomen that was covered in dark hair. There were spikes protruding from each of its legs, and its mouth was surrounded by sharp fangs that clicked and dripped poison. A lump appeared in my throat. My instinct told me to turn tail and run from this behemoth, for it towered above us and if we had not already been in darkness, then this thing would have blotted out the sun.
As it rose from its slumber and crawled out of its lair, the traps snapped into action, the thick ropes clamping around Gonshu’s legs, spikes digging into them. Gonshu howled in pain. It was a terrible sound that was burned into my mind. Axanar cried to attack as he rushed in, the blade of his sword sharp and gleaming. He sprinted towards the spider and slashed away, making shallow gashes that spilled black blood upon the jungle floor. I hesitated a moment, but then remembered that I had a bow in my hands. I loosed my arrows in quick succession, one after the other in a flurry of shots that all peppered the beast’s hide. Some of them bounced off the carapace, while others were lodged against flesh, but Gonshu did not seem too bothered by it all.
He reared his head and wrenched his legs from the ground, bringing the traps with them. He shook them off and the traps fell to the ground, broken and smashed. Blood continued to pour from Gonshu’s wounds, but he seemed to have plenty of it. Axanar ran like a dervish and appeared to want to fell Gonshu by a thousand cuts, but Gonshu turned. He leaned back and from his rear he shot out a glob of thick webbing. It narrowly missed Axanar and hissed as it hit the cave behind him. Gonshu made another horrible sound and twisted, his long legs covering the jungle before us. I continued firing my arrows, pushing through the ache in my arms, although it didn’t seem as though I was making any difference at all.
I watched as Gonshu reared back and brought its front two legs crashing down to the ground, two heavy spikes that cracked the earth. Axanar narrowly avoided the blow. He then swung his sword with such force that he was able to sever one of Gonshu’s legs. The spider screamed in pain, and I thought the battle was going to be won soon, but of course, the spider had seven other legs, and now it was in a frenzy of anger. With blood dripping from one limb, it swung another in the direction of Axanar and caught him, sending him spiraling off balance. Axanar only just managed to hold onto his sword, but Gonshu was towering over him. Its mouth bubbled with poisonous breath, and I wasn’t sure Axanar would be able to escape quickly enough.
“Over here!” I yelled, and fired another burst of arrows. Some of them fell harmlessly to the ground, but Gonshu was beginning to look like a pin cushion. I just wished there was some sign that these arrows were doing any good.
Gonshu turned. The eyes looked at me and I was frozen by the stare of this monster. When it gazed at me, it seemed as though all the horrors of the world were staring into my soul, and it was ready to bleed.
“Kara!” Axanar yelled, and this broke the trance. I quickly darted away, but I wasn’t quick enough. A jet of webbing had been fired and while I had avoided being caught by it completely, it had stuck my foot to the ground. I turned and cried out, trying to pull the webbing away. It was thick and viscous and sticky, and it clung to my boot. A shadow fell upon me, and I saw Gonshu coming to tower over me. It raised its two front limbs again, one of which was a stump that was still flowing with blood.
“Kara!” Axanar yelled again. I saw him sprinting towards me with his sword in his hand. He leaped forward and slashed his sword, not at Gonshu, but at my foot and the webbing that bound it. He cut through the silver threads and my foot was free. He tumbled forward though. I scrambled out of the way as Axanar crashed down on the ground. For a terrible moment, I thought that he was going to be spiked by Gonshu’s leg, but then he let go of his sword and caught the leg with his hands. Every muscle was tensed, and he shook with the effort it took to hold this creature at bay. I watched then as the air shimmered and he shifted into a lion, his grunts turning into growls, his body becoming even more formidable, and I saw Gonshu being pushed back. I had never seen a display of strength like this, and I could well see why Axanar was the Alpha. I couldn’t help but be impressed.
I was still in human form, so I let the arrows fly until I ran out, and then I shifted into lion form as well. Now this spider had two lions circling it, darting in between its legs, swiping and biting. Axanar managed to wound another leg. It was a mangled mess and Gonshu was brought down a little bit more. I focused on another. When it crashed down, I held it into the ground and Gonshu stumbled, losing its balance. It quickly righted itself, but the moment gave Axanar and I another opportunity to cause some damage. We worked well together, slaloming between the legs and somehow, we seemed to know exactly what the other needed to do even though we could not communicate with words.
But the battle was not over yet, and although we had damaged a few of its legs, Gonshu was still standing. I was focused on the rear, and I could see Axanar trying to damage the other front limb. Gonshu struggled and then he kicked out, forcing me away. I landed on my back and quickly rolled over, afraid that I might be the target of another web attack, but Gonshu was preoccupied with Axanar. He was so focused on the leg that he hadn’t realized Gonshu’s mouth was wide open. I roared in the hope of warning him, but it was too late.
A spray of green poison burst into Axanar’s face. He went reeling back, staggering, momentarily blinded by the attack. He ran his paws along his face, his fur stained emerald. Gonshu then pressed the advantage and stabbed the ground with its front leg, driving Axanar back. Axanar, still blinded, eventually stumbled and lost his footing. Time seemed to move in slow motion, and all I knew in that moment is that I didn’t want Axanar to be dead. I surged forward, summoning all my strength and swiftness. Every muscle in my body stretched taut, every sinew screamed. My pride had been destroyed. The fate of my parents was unknown to me, and I was not willing to endure yet another defeat.
I passed an arrow and plucked it from the ground, holding it between my teeth. I then leapt upon Gonshu’s back. My paws slipped against the smooth surface, but there was just enough purchase to allow me to run over it. I passed all the arrows I had shot at it and saw the puckers of blood that sat at the point of impact, staining its dark body. It didn’t seem to care that I was there, focusing only on Axanar. I almost lost my balance as it brought its leg up to make the final blow. I strained to get to its head. When I reached it, I shifted back into my human form, taking the arrow into my hands. I then used all my momentum to come crashing down at the base of its neck, where the skin was soft and fleshy. I drove the arrow in. It went so deep that I could feel the warmth of its blood over my hands. Gonshu creaked and writhed in pain. Its legs tried to reach me, but although they were long, they could not bend in my direction. Gonshu teetered and then rolled back to try and shake me off. I fell and shifted in midair, landing on my paws, and I roared at it. It had been maimed, it was peppered with arrows, and blood fell like rain from its open wounds. It staggered back and, although it hissed with anger, it knew it had been defeated and it slunk back into its cave, driven back for another season.
The great hunt was complete, but at what cost?
I shifted back into human form and turned to Axanar, who looked weak and pale. He twitched and his mouth had a deathly green shade.
“Axanar, what do I do? How do I save you?” I asked, looking over him because I was so worried. It wasn’t supposed to end like this. He wasn’t supposed to be dead. He groaned weakly and then he pulled me close and whispered something into my ear. I nodded, and then screamed into the air.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Volkan
It had been agony, waiting for Axanar and Kara to return. I paced throughout the tower and outside, taking any vantage point I could in the hope that I would see them returning. The heart of the jungle had them now though, and there was nothing I could do. Even though I knew Axanar was the strongest lion there was, Gonshu was still Gonshu. Every great hunt was fraught with tension, and just because he had returned from all the others did not mean that he was going to return from this one. I had a sick feeling in my stomach, and I could not sleep. Tania tried to calm me, and the other lions were telling tales of Axanar’s other triumphs, but I was still worried.
Perhaps it was because Kara was out there as well. She shouldn’t have meant so much to me, but something about her plight had touched me. She was unlike anyone I had ever met before. There was so much fire in her blood, and so much pain in her soul. I wanted to be close to her, I wanted to share so much with her. Maybe it was wrong of me because she was the enemy, and she clearly didn’t want to be here. I was having another foolish dream, as Axanar would have put it, but then again, I had to remind myself that we weren’t meant to live through this life alone.
It was coming onto evening when I finally saw movement on the horizon. At first, I wasn’t sure whether it really was them or whether my mind was merely conjuring things in grim hope, but the shadowy movements came into focus and my heart rejoiced. Cries ran out with excitement as people announced the return of the Alpha, and the end of the great hunt. Gonshu had been driven back for another season. The tide of terror would not overwhelm us on this day.
But as they came closer, I could see that something was wrong. I rushed out to meet them. Kara was standing tall, but Axanar was limping alongside her, his arm draped over her shoulder, and she was supporting him. I ran to them and helped her, taking his weight upon my shoulders too.
“What happened?” I asked. Axanar looked groggy. His eyes were glazed over, and there was a dark shadow across his lips.
“It was Gonshu. We drove him back into his cave, but not before he poisoned Axanar. He… he saved me, and I couldn’t stop Gonshu from getting him. He’s been getting weaker ever since then. I don’t know… there has to be a cure. Please tell me that there’s a cure,” Kara said, her voice cracking with emotion.
“Let’s get him inside. Tania will know,” I said. Kara seemed relieved to be able to share the weight. I noticed that her quiver was empty. It must have been a hell of a battle, although I wasn’t ready to ask her this yet. I needed to look after Axanar. Today was not going to be the day when the Alpha fell.
