Page 23 of Kingdom of Chaos (Creatures of Chaos #2)

The swamp shudders with a deep, rolling vibration that ripples through the murky water.

Birds explode from the trees in a flurry of wings, and small animals dart for cover.

A low, splintering crack splits the air, and trees sway violently, their branches snapping like brittle bones, bending under the weight of something massive and unseen.

“Keep looking for the gate!” Talon shouts. “The monster’s awakening. It has to be close!”

I stumble forward, my footing unsteady like I’m walking on a water balloon. The earth shudders again, more violently this time, nearly toppling me. Then, suddenly, everything stills.

Silence falls like a blanket, eerie and absolute.

Where moments ago the swamp teemed with croaking frogs, buzzing insects, and chirping birds, now there’s just heavy, unnatural quiet.

Heart hammering, I scan the area. Everyone’s still, wide-eyed and motionless, exchanging uneasy glances. We should be searching, or running, but instead we stand frozen, like prey sensing a predator we can’t yet see.

Maybe that was it? Maybe the monster guarding the gate decided not to show itself?

A heavy pressure lingers in the air, thick with tension. This is the calm before the storm. I can feel it.

I snap into motion, unwilling to waste another second. Wading back into the swamp waters, I push forward, sloshing through muck that clings to my legs like glue. I’m halfway to another patch of land when the world detonates behind me.

A deafening explosion tears through the swamp.

Dirt. Water. Mud.

All of it rockets skyward as something erupts from the ground. The shockwave hits me like a wall, hurling me forward. I crash into the grassy patch ahead and roll twice before coming to a stop.

Before I can even lift my head, Talon is there.

“Are you all right?” Talon asks, his gaze snapping down my body and back up again.

I push myself upright, about to say I’m fine when I catch movement behind him—the dense trees and vines trembling, swaying.

Once.

Then again.

Like the swamp itself is shuddering under the weight of a colossal force.

Talon turns, muscles bunching as he readies himself, every line of his body taut with tension. Whatever’s coming, it’s big. And close.

Ensley’s voice cuts through the thick air. “I think I found it!”

I twist around and spot her a couple dozen feet away, kneeling on a raised patch of land encircled by trees. She’s digging furiously in the damp soil.

Talon and I scramble to our feet and start toward her, but a deep, guttural growl rips through the swamp. It vibrates in my chest like a bass drum, stopping us in our tracks.

I spin back around, bracing myself for whatever monstrous creature is crashing through the undergrowth. A prehistoric alligator? A multi-headed snake spewing acid? A jaguar with scales instead of fur and claws like machetes?

The last row of trees snaps like twigs.

And what steps out is not what I expected.

It’s huge, roughly the size of an elephant, with elongated ears, powerful hind legs, and enormous brown eyes. Its body is covered in downy brown fur that stirs gently in the breeze. It blinks slowly, watching us.

My brain stalls.

Because while it looks oddly familiar, like an enchanted creature out of a children’s storybook, there’s something deeply unsettling about seeing it here, towering over us in the middle of the swamp, so wildly out of place. But then my thoughts scatter because?—

It. Is. So. Cute.

Standing less than a bus length in front of me is the largest, most adorable, absurdly fluffy bunny I’ve ever seen. I have to lock my knees to stop myself from running over and giving it a cuddle.

I fall in love instantly. I want to name it, take it home, make it my pet.

“What is that?” Imogen asks, her face a mix of horror and awe as she stares up at the oversized bunny.

“I think it’s a marsh rabbit,” Titus says slowly, as if trying to convince himself as much as the rest of us.

“You guys, this is it!” Ensley calls. “I really found the gate!”

I ignore her. All I can think about is whether that fur is as soft as it looks. I take a step toward the giant floof, one hand outstretched.

Monster? Please. This creature couldn’t be more adorable. With its twitching nose and wide, innocent eyes, it’s clearly not here to eat us.

It just wants love. It just wants cuddles.

And lucky for it, I happen to be an expert in floofy-animal snuggles.

All my fear and trepidation melt away. There’s no rush now. We can take our time finding the gate. I’ll just distract the “monster” with belly rubs and baby talk.

“I’m going to call you Fluffy,” I say, taking another step forward, fully intending to ask if it wants to be my pet-slash-best friend.

The giant rabbit might be a little big for our apartment, but maybe I can convince Ensley and Becks’ parents to let me keep it in the stables behind their house.

It pays to have rich friends. Then I could visit every day and take care of it.

I didn’t know I had a bunny-shaped hole in my heart until this exact moment, and only this adorable nugget can fill it.

Before I can take another step, Talon grabs my arm and yanks me back against his chest. “No, Locklyn!” he snaps.

I glance over my shoulder at him, chuckling as I shrug out of his grip. “What are you so afraid of? It’s just a?—”

A roar splits the air, so loud I have to slap my hands over my ears. The deafening cry fades, leaving only a high-pitched ringing, but when I turn back to my new best friend, the horror hits.

Its mouth is open wide, wider than should be possible.

Parts of its muzzle curl back, revealing long, dagger-like fangs—two on top, two on the bottom—flanked by rows of serrated shark-like teeth.

A second later, jagged spikes erupt through its downy fur, forming a grotesque mohawk of barbs down its spine.

It lifts one massive front paw, each of its five toes tipped with blood-red talons, and slams it into the marshy ground. The earth quakes beneath us. “Fluffy, no,” I whisper, heart dropping as the monster’s gaze locks on me. In an instant, my adorable new best friend becomes a nightmare beast.

Its once-soft brown eyes glow a demonic red, and fear slices through me, sharpening everything. I stumble backward as it lumbers forward, the ground trembling with each step.

Oh crap .

Its jaw stretches impossibly wide, like a snake preparing to devour its prey whole. At the back of its throat, a spark flares.

That’s the only warning I get before a column of fire blasts straight toward me.

Talon shouts my name, and a second later a body slams into me, knocking us into the shallow swamp water. The fire tears overhead, lighting up the murk around us with flickering orange light.

I fight toward the surface, desperate for air, but arms wrap around me and hold me down. I thrash, panic exploding through my chest. I can’t move. I can’t breathe.

Swamp water surges into my nose. I choke and instinctively inhale, sucking in more sludge. My lungs burn. I gag, vision spinning and darkening at the edges.

Then the fire fades.

The arms wrapped around me shift, dragging me upward. We break the surface and I gasp for air, collapsing into a violent coughing fit, spitting out swamp water. Talon hauls me to my feet, both of us dripping and slick with black sludge.

“Come on!” he yells, urgency in every line of his body.

I stumble after him, still wheezing. “You didn’t have to hold me under so long,” I rasp, coughing again.

His eyes cut to me, intense. “I was trying to keep you from getting roasted.”

“I know,” I mutter, my voice softer this time. “Just, maybe next time give me a warning?”

He huffs, half a laugh and half exasperation. “I think what you mean to say is, ‘Thank you for saving my life.’”

Despite everything, a reluctant smile tugs at my lips as he all but drags me toward where Ensley, and now Imogen, are standing.

Another roar splits the air. I glance over my shoulder as we stumble-run toward the gate and spot Titus locked in battle with Fluffy. Thank the Creator he still has my pendant, as he’s using his magic to bind the monster with vines, dodging fireballs as he goes.

When we reach Ensley and Imogen, I whip back toward the fight just in time to see Titus misjudge one of the beast’s attacks. A fireball slams into his shoulder, sending him cartwheeling through the air. He crashes into a tree and collapses into the water with a splash.

The monster bellows in rage and thrashes, tearing at the vines holding it down.

“Help him!” Ensley cries. Her face is pale with terror as Titus struggles to rise.

“Stay here and be ready,” Talon says, sprinting toward him.

He reaches the white-haired fae just as the monster breaks free. With a screech, it lunges and swipes. Talon and Titus barely dodge the claws, and break into a sprint, racing toward us and the gate.

It’s like a nightmare unfolding in slow motion. The rabbit’s mouth opens, fangs glinting as it lunges again. This time, it strikes. Talon jerks mid-stride, his body jolting from the impact. His face twists in pain, and he stumbles, one hand flying back?—

But there’s no blood.

The beast’s claws tears through his backpack, shredding fabric and supplies; the gear taking the worst of it. He staggers, and falls to one knee.

The monster coils to pounce again, and Titus throws a wild burst of magic. Vines erupt from the ground, snaring its legs and yanking it backward. It howls, thrashing against the hold, buying them precious seconds to escape.

Titus reaches down for Talon, but he waves him off and staggers upright, shouting at him to get the lunacite pendant to us.

Titus hesitates for only a heartbeat before sprinting toward the knoll.

He reaches us, and he, Ensley, and Imogen fumble to find the right spot to insert the lunacite to awaken the gate. But I can’t help. I can’t tear my gaze away from Talon.

He’s still too far. And the monster is free again, barreling toward him.

A sudden flare of white light erupts around the four of us, shooting straight up into the sky as the gate comes to life.

The beast screeches, furious, seeing its chance slipping away.

Talon’s not running straight for us, he’s zigzagging, dodging through muck and brush to keep the monster occupied. It’s right on his heels.

Our eyes meet through the shimmering wall of light, and something shifts in his expression. Something that looks a lot like grim resignation. My stomach drops.

He’s not going to make it.

He knows it. And he’s planning to hold the beast off so we can get away.

“No,” I whisper.

The monster rears back, its jaw splitting wide as fire flickers in the depths of its throat.

Fluffy is about to roast him alive.

“No!” I scream, and bolt from the circle of light.

My heart pounds like a war drum as I race toward him, fear clawing up my throat.

Talon turns to the beast and throws out a hand.

A faint spark of magic ignites at his fingertips, but it fizzles, weak and unfocused.

He tries again, but maybe because he’s injured and exhausted, he isn’t strong enough to stop the monster closing in.

He’s going to die. And I’m going to have to watch.

But then the shadows come.

A wave of darkness rolls out from every direction, sweeping across the swamp like a living tide.

In an instant, they swallow the beast. Tendrils of inky black wrap around its limbs, its face, its twitching nose.

Within seconds, the monstrous bunny is blanketed in swirling shadows and mist, vanishing beneath the onslaught.

With the beast momentarily contained, Talon spins toward us.

“Run!” I scream.

He doesn’t need to be told twice.

He sprints the last few yards and grabs me, hauling us both into the glowing circle with the others. I stumble in after him, breath ragged, heart still lodged in my throat.

But I can’t stop staring.

Outside the protective light, the rabbit-monster thrashes and roars, its fury muted beneath the shroud of darkness. The shadows twist and pulse, holding it back.

“Now!” Talon yells.

Titus, or maybe one of the others, must activate the gate, because in the next heartbeat the world erupts in blinding light.

It’s so bright I squeeze my eyes shut, but the brilliance cuts straight through my eyelids, stabbing into my skull like hot needles. I drop to my knees and slap my hands over my face. It’s like the light is burrowing into my brain, expanding, until it feels like my head might shatter.

Is this supposed to happen? Or has something gone horribly wrong?

Just as panic claws its way up my throat, arms wrap around me. I’m pulled against a cool, solid chest, and I know without looking it’s Talon.

“Just hang on!” he shouts, pressing my face into his shirt, shielding me from the worst of it.

The wind hits next, rising in a howling vortex. It tears at my clothes and yanks my hair in all directions. The roar drowns out everything until all I can feel are Talon’s arms, his heartbeat hammering against my cheek.

And then . . . everything goes still and there’s nothing more.