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FREYDIS

I was accustomed to running for my life—in the literal and figurative sense.

But this time was… different.

Ever since I ran from those raiders, several days ago now, killed one of them in my escape, and then sensed something watching and tracking me, I’d only slowed to rest and eat. Because whatever stalked me hadn’t made itself known, yet it hadn’t harmed me.

I told myself it was probably to give me a false sense of safety and security, so I should keep alert.

I’d been moving for hours, deep in the thick woods that spanned this magnificent land. I could continue walking it for days, weeks, probably in any direction, and I’d only get deeper within its tangled limbs and suffocating darkness.

I sat on a small boulder and stared at the large creek that was before me, dipping my toes in the calmness of it. The water was cold, a sharp bite against my bare skin, but I welcomed it. It had been a couple of days since I had the luxury of washing off the dirt and sweat of survival.

Although I knew better than to let my guard down, I couldn’t resist the pull of the water. The world was cruel, this place unrecognizable, so when I could take the smallest amount of pleasure for myself, I grabbed onto it.

I hadn’t felt the monster nearby for at least a day, and it allowed me to actually breathe. I stood, stripped out of my tattered and filthy clothes, and stepped into the frigid creek. The water slicked over my skin until I dunked myself fully, submerging my body and allowing myself to be weightless for a moment.

I grabbed a handful of soft sand from the creek bed and scrubbed at the dirt embedded in my skin, relishing the feel of finally bathing. After washing away the grime, my skin tingling and raw from the sand, I laid back, spread my arms wide, and let myself just float as I stared up at the treetops. For just a moment, I pretended I was somewhere safe. Somewhere untouched by all the evil, darkness, and ruin.

I’d only had a few seconds of peace, it seemed, before I felt it.

A shiver crawled down my spine, and it wasn’t the cold water that chilled me. It was the unmistakable weight of being watched. Again.

I sank deeper into the water, so everything below my ears and nose was submerged, and I scanned the treeline, my breath slow and controlled. The wind barely stirred the leaves, the silence pressing in.

Unease coiled tighter in my gut. My instincts had kept me alive this long. I wouldn’t ignore them now.

Then, the air shifted.

A shadow passed over the creek, massive and swift. My heart slammed against my ribs as I tilted my head to follow its path, and that’s when I saw it.

A scream lodged in my throat, and I covered my mouth with my hand to keep from making a sound.

Staring at me from high in the trees was a monster in every sense of the word. The creature hovered above me, wings stretched wide, blotting out the pale, dying sun.

I sucked in a sharp breath, my body locking up. Although the monster resembled a man in many ways, it wasn’t human. Not even close.

This deep rumble came from it in the most frightening growl I'd ever heard, and then I blinked, and it swooped down until it stood just feet from the creek’s edge.

It was seven feet tall—maybe more—and built of solid muscle. He was naked—and yes, he was a he, which I could tell out of my peripheral vision—but I refused to lower my gaze and look at… that .

His skin gleamed like polished silver, smooth, which made it look unnatural. He had claws at the end of his fingers, curling and black, fangs that hooked over his bottom lip, and wings. Not feathery like a bird’s, but dark and membranous, like something out of a nightmare.

The worst of it though were his eyes.

Glowing. Focused. And locked onto me like I was his .

I barely had time to suck in a breath before he crouched and grinned, flashing a mouthful of sharp teeth that threatened to tear me apart.

And that’s when I finally screamed.