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And there it was, a dust cloud forming from beyond the marker.
I started to dart down the slope after her, but the Universa grabbed my arm, halting my forward movement with a jerk.
“I have to help her,” I growled back at him, struggling in his firm grip.
“No.” His answer was unyielding. “Watch her. Yes, she is impulsive, but she knows what to do.”
I studied the scene in front of me and caught the moment my sister realized others were coming.
She flattened her body, rushing for the box and snatching it up by a handle I hadn’t seen from here. She dropped to the ground and rolled quickly, muting her gray coat more. Standing, she peed near the spot, darting to another further away to pee once again.
What the hell was she doing?
The attackers will realize she is female and will waste time sniffing her scent. Renth almost chuckled, pleased with her tactics.
Lexi made a few figure eights in the sand and then bolted back for our cave, the box still hanging from her jaws. This time, though, it wasn’t in a straight line. She zigzagged over the ground, pausing to urinate in some places, rolling in others.
How did she have so much urine?
She is marking. Like a cat would do to define its territory or to show its displeasure.
Huh. I dug my fingers deeper into Renth's scruff, absently scratching his skin.
The creatures rushed out of the dust cloud before pausing at the spot where the box had appeared. They milled around, with several going to the places where my sister had peed.
I raised my eyebrows when a few of them dropped to roll in those spots, their mouths snapping at their brethren who got too close.
What the hell?
One of the largest of them—the leader?—turned, its nose in the air, and took off after Lexi. The pack, realizing what was happening and not willing to be left out of the hunt, followed behind it. Many of them tracked her scent, moving to the sides as she had. But the leader was smarter. It must have figured out where she was going and went right for her, its legs carrying it rapidly over the surface.
Lexi was now struggling as she raced for the rocky slope. She had lost ground to that one creature, who was traveling fast. I got ready to shift once she was closer, since she seemed to need some help.
The creature was enormous, with six appendages similar to a spider and feet with splayed out toes that allowed it to glide over the sandy terrain. I would have described it as something like a cross between a hyena and a gigantic spider. There was no doubt it was a predator, though, since it was fixated on hunting my sister.
I shivered. What did this place have with spiders? Why did so many creatures with those aspects evolve here?
As I started to reach for my wolf, Renth suddenly bounded forward, moving towards my sister. My head snapped up to gaze at him as Tamerin's grip tightened before releasing me.
“Help her.” My whisper followed him.
He didn’t answer.
“Fire.” Tamerin murmured, jolting me.
Right. I was a witch. I can do something as well. And while fire was an new element for me, it would work best in this situation.
Tapping into my magic for the first time since I had met my familiar, I realized my well of power had grown threefold. Well, fuck. Was this what it meant to have a familiar?
With no time to explore this, I lifted one finger and pointed it at the frontmost beast, who was only a few lengths behind Lexi.
And I called fire.
Fire blasted out towards the beast with a roar, soaring over Lexi's head. The creature was quick; I had to admit. The flames didn’t hit it in the chest like I had planned. Instead, it hit its hindquarters, burning the short fur it had there. Spinning around in surprise, it howled before it tried to bite at the flames. Showing it wasn't unintelligent, It rolled on the ground, putting the flames out.
Holding up one of its hind legs, it glared at Lexi, who had made it to the rocky slope and was now climbing up it towards us, her body trembling with exhaustion.
Renth passed her, placing himself between her and her pursuers while he glared down at the leader. As its pack joined it, none of them moved closer, their frustration with seeing the lecanifer standing in their way clear in their movements.
