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In an eyeblink, the abomination curled in on itself, serrated fangs working as it sought to destroy the iylvahn now trapped

beneath it. For a second, it was directly below me, head bent as it scuttled in circles trying to get to Raithe. It was horrifically

quick, its movements frantic as it pursued its prey. Once more, I had a split second to make a decision.

I let go of the insect rider’s hand.

She gave a dismayed shout as I fell, the enormous, hairy body of the abomination rushing up at me. I hit the monster’s head

with a thump and instantly felt the creature respond. One long jointed leg came up, raking at its head. I felt the bristly hairs of its

legs brush my shoulder as it passed. The other appendage did the same, swiping at the intruder who had hitched a ride, barely

missing me. I flatted myself against the monster’s carapace, ignoring the hairs that pricked my skin, knowing that if I fell

or was scraped off, I would be chewed into pieces.

Heart racing, I reached to my belt, curled shaking fingers around the hilt of a dagger, and pulled it free.

I could see the monster’s eyes, shiny with fury as they glared at me from atop its head.

The legs continued to flail; one bristly hair caught in my clothes, pulling me down a few inches and making my heart stop.

No time to think, Sparrow. Just do it.

I aimed for one of those bulbous eyes, still glaring at me like pods from hell, and plunged my dagger straight down, sinking

the blade in as far as I could. The eye burst, black ichor spattering my face and staining my hands, and the abomination went

crazy, screaming, hissing, all its legs flailing at me. I closed my eyes, shoved the dagger down even farther, and clung to

the hilt for dear life.

I lost track of time, or maybe I passed out for a split second, because when I regained my senses, things seemed calm. My

eyes were closed, and I was too scared to open them, though I could feel my dagger under my fingers, something warm and slick

covering the hilt and my skin. Beneath me, the abomination was quiet, swaying gently with the rocking of the strider, but

I still kept my eyes tightly shut, as if everything would shatter into chaos if I opened them.

I felt a touch on my shoulder and instinctively flinched away.

“It’s all right.” Raithe’s voice, low and breathless, nearly made me sob with relief. “It’s safe, Sparrow. It’s dead. You

killed it.”

Cautiously, I opened my eyes. My dagger, sunk to the hilt in the monster’s head, was smeared with black, as were my hands.

Raithe knelt beside me on the dead abomination, looking haggard and spent himself.

But his pale blue eyes, fixed on my face, were shadowed with concern, relief, and.

.. something I couldn’t put my finger on.

Awe? No, that was silly; nothing about me was awe-inspiring.

Most likely, it was surprise that I was still here.

That I hadn’t gotten myself eaten by a giant spider abomination. Truthfully, I was shocked myself.

“Are you hurt?”

I shook my head, not trusting my voice just yet. Raithe held out a hand, and I unclenched my fingers from their death grip

on the dagger. I reached for the offered hand but then hesitated, seeing the filth that stained my skin, not wanting to get

it all over the iylvahn.

Raithe reached out and curled his long fingers over mine. The contact sent a shiver all the way from my spine to the bottom

of my toes. His grip was steady as he helped me off the dead abomination, holding me up as my legs shook on the wobbly network

of rope and canvas. The monster hung lifelessly in the web, legs dangling through the gaps. Its terrible serrated jaws were

open in one last, silent scream.

I dropped to the deck and nearly fell, my legs threatening to give out, but Halek was already there, arms around me, pulling

me close. I felt the roar of his heartbeat through his shirt, felt him shaking against me, and let myself relax. Halek and

Raithe, at least, were safe. And the monster was dead.

“Goddess, you scared me,” he whispered as we pulled back. “I thought you had lost your mind for a second. And when you fell,

I thought it was over.” He paused, and that faint, familiar grin crept across his face once more. “That was recklessly, stupidly

heroic, and that’s coming from me . Are you sure you’re not a Fatechaser?”

“Positive,” I choked out, and managed a weak, shaky smile. “I’m not heroic,” I told him, as Raithe and the insect rider stepped forward to join us. “I was terrified the whole time.”

“We all were.” Kysa had stripped off her helmet again and was regarding me with dark, appraising eyes. “Bravery isn’t having

no fear,” she said, as Rhyne huffed and shoved his massive, blocky head against her side. “It is being afraid and doing something

regardless.” She nodded at me solemnly. “Today, you’ve earned this warrior’s respect.”

I dropped my gaze, unable to meet her eyes. “What was that thing, anyway?” I asked no one in particular. Glancing at the dead

abomination, hanging lifelessly amid the rope and canvas, I shuddered. In death, it looked no smaller or less horrifying than

it had in life. “There’s always been tales of monsters on the Dust Sea,” I went on, “giant serpents and sand sharks, but everyone

knows they’re just sailor stories. Raithe, you said this thing was extinct.”

“It should be,” the iylvahn replied grimly. “Its kind haven’t been seen since the age of the Deathless Kings.”

Halek drew in a sharp breath. “You don’t think... ,” he began, and stopped. We all looked at him curiously, and he grimaced.

“You don’t think... it was sent , for us?”

Raithe and I stiffened. The insect rider frowned. “Why would something like this be sent after you?” she wondered aloud. “And

who could harness such an abomination?”

“The Deathless King,” I whispered.

A piercing scream interrupted anything the others were going to say.

The door to the lower decks had opened, and a small group of people stood staring up at the dead monster in horror.

One woman, her face ashen and her eyes huge, opened her mouth and screamed again, before they all turned and fled back down the stairwell.

Everyone, including me, winced at nearly the same time. “Weaver’s mercy,” the insect rider sighed, and shoved the helmet over

her face again. “Things are about to get chaotic. We need to find Captain Gahmil’s second-in-command and explain what has

happened before this turns into a full-blown panic.”

I cringed inside. Talking to figures of authority, particularly when they had the power to detain me or toss me in a cell,

was something I tried to avoid at all costs. “You won’t need me for that,” I said, intending to slip down to the lower decks

and lose myself in the crowds and shadows.

Unfortunately, both Halek and Raithe moved up on either side, stopping me from fleeing. “Oh no,” Halek said, putting a hand

against my back. “You can’t run away now, Sparrow. You’re the hero of this story, after all.”

“I’m not,” I protested. “The three of you were fighting it, not me. My plan was to sneak up and stab it in the back while

it was distracted.”

“You saved my life,” Raithe said, very softly. Heart pounding, I glanced up at the iylvahn, who regarded me with an unreadable

look on his face. “I didn’t think I would survive that encounter,” he said. “If you hadn’t killed it when you did, I wouldn’t

be here.”

That ended the argument, though I still wasn’t keen to talk to the second-in-command about it.

In my experience, even if we weren’t somehow blamed for the attack and the death of the captain, it was still attention on me—attention that I didn’t want.

I was a thief. It was very hard to be a thief and do thief-y things when everyone recognized you.

“I know the second-in-command,” Kysa said as we all started back toward the door. I could still hear screams and shouting

somewhere below us, and my stomach turned. “He’s a reasonable d’wevryn. With any luck, we can have this whole thing sorted

and be on our way back to the city of Damassi before nightfall.”

One last time, I glanced back at the body tangled in the ropes, and felt a fresh prickle of fear as Halek’s words echoed in

my mind. It was sent, for us. The abomination was dead, but if the Deathless King had sent it for us—for me—what else might still be coming?