Page 2 of Solan (Monsters & Mates #1)

CHAPTER

TWO

For over half an hour, we’ve raced over the unfamiliar plains. What I thought was sand is more like golden soil over a hard surface. A little like the land at home during a drought.

One thing’s for sure, there’s nothing remotely familiar about anything surrounding us.

I flick a glance over my shoulder, though the beast is no longer on our tail. It hasn’t been for the past ten minutes, but rather than filling me with relief, a ball of dread builds in my gut.

Where the hell is it?

“You think we lost it?”

I’m riding at Jamie’s side, so it’s easy to flick a glance at him. “Hopefully.”

He nods before peering over his own shoulder.

We’ve slowed the horses. They’re calmer, which I hope means they’re not sensing whatever creature was chasing after us. The melodic thud of their hooves gives me a moment to think and figure out what to do.

The one thing in our favour is that the sun is no longer setting. It’s high in the sky. I think. I can’t actually see the blazing ball of fire, but it’s bright out.

But still, even if Injune is where it should be, it’ll likely take us another six hours or so to get there by horseback. Given that the terrain under the horses’ hooves is so unfamiliar, I’ve got to be smart. That means no pushing them unless our lives depend on it.

The thought turns me cold.

We trek on, Jamie constantly looking around, his eyes wide with wonder.

Ahead, a cluster of arboreal structures resembling a forest emerges like an illusion in the distance. Turning to Jamie, I offer a tentative smile. “Well, kiddo,” I say with a light-hearted chuckle that I absolutely don’t feel, “looks like we stumbled into the set of a particularly bizarre episode of Stranger Things .”

He shoots me a dubious glance but manages a small grin in return, adjusting his grip on the reins. “If a gateway opens up overhead, I’m out of here.”

I snort. “Sounds like a good plan.” I stare back at the forest. “We best head for those trees,” I continue, gesturing towards the strange-looking woodland ahead. “It’ll be good to get out of the open and take stock.”

Just because we can’t see the six-legged horned creature in hot pursuit, it doesn’t mean it won’t catch up.

With a nod at each other, we urge our horses forwards; their hooves kick up strange iridescent dust as we approach the otherworldly forest. The closer we get, the more surreal the vegetation becomes. Towering trees shimmer with hues I’ve never seen before, and peculiar glowing vines twist and coil around their trunks like pythons crushing their prey.

After trekking further into the cooler canopy of wide leaves and reaching a cluster of boulders, we dismount. I have no idea if it’s safe to do so, but my pulse has yet to settle, and I’m pretty sure my blood pressure is sky-high.

“Let’s take fifteen minutes, yeah?” I pull out a water flask and hand it to Jamie.

While he takes it with a smile, he doesn’t stop peering around. “You think we’re okay here?”

I wince and shrug. “I wish I knew, Jamie.” I’m not prepared to lie or offer false promises. “Just take a breath for now, drink, and we’ll get on our way.”

Nodding, he presses the bottle to his lips. I’m grateful he doesn’t push and ask, “Get on our way to where exactly?” I press my back to one of the large off-yellow boulders. It’s hard against my back, grounding in a way I really need right now.

Beyond Jamie and the horses, the stone behind me is the only thing that feels real.

I’ve watched enough shows and movies to have a good idea about what could have happened, but it’s a struggle to believe any of the possibilities could happen in real life.

Were we sucked into a vortex, abducted by aliens, swallowed into some kind of black hole?

Knowing the truth will maybe help me get my head around what’s happening. At least that way, I can try to figure out if we should keep heading east, towards a town I suspect is not there. If not, do we go into survival mode? Maybe find other people?

Humans.

I swallow hard, the blood draining from my face as the word “human” pops into my mind.

“You want a drink?” Jamie holds the bottle out to me.

I reach out to take it, but the movement is abruptly interrupted by a distant rustling that quickly escalates into a cacophony of crashing foliage.

“Fuck, we’ve gotta move. Now.”

I scramble for the rifle as I latch onto Geralt’s reins and put my weight on one foot.

But it’s too late.

A ferocious roar rends the air. My whole body jerks as I reach for Jamie, urging him into his saddle.

A loud crunch of something heavy smashing against something hard, and I jolt, gaze snapping in that direction.

It’s here.

A deafening crash follows, echoing through the trees, shattering any semblance of safety I may have been foolish enough to believe existed. My heart leaps into my throat even as I manage to get Jamie up. If necessary, I’ll make sure he gets out of here. I’ll protect him with my life.

Purple horns come into view, emerging from the thick underbrush. They’re fucking huge. Monstrous.

“Holy shit,” Jamie gasps, and I swallow hard as a creature that’s the stuff of nightmares bursts fully into view, its six legs churning up the leaf-littered earth with each thunderous step.

Its grotesque form looms large, dwarfing everything in its path. Three gnarled purple horns jut menacingly from its twisted skull, gleaming with an otherworldly sheen in the dim light. Its eyes, burning with a hunger that makes me close to shitting myself, fix on me.

Fuck, fuck, fuck.

With a primal roar that shakes the ground beneath my feet and has the horses rearing, the creature charges forwards, its intent unmistakable. The bastard thing wants to devour us for a tasty treat. Like hell I’ll make it that easy.

With trembling fingers, I raise my rifle, ignoring the onslaught of fear crawling through my veins. I squeeze the trigger, the deafening blast of gunfire echoing through the forest as shot after shot tears through the air.

Each bullet hits its mark.

Fuck, it’s not working.

“Uncle Jack.”

I cast a glance at Jamie even as I release the final shot in my rifle. He thrusts the shotgun at me. I take it willingly, pushing the rifle into his outstretched hand.

A loud blast from the shotgun, and my heart stumbles when the creature roars louder.

Pain. At least I hope the thing can feel the lead tearing through it.

With each futile shot, it draws closer and closer, its massive form casting a long shadow over me.

I’m going to die. Fuck it all to hell.

“Jamie,” I holler, “get out of here.”

As the creature closes in, its jaws gape wide in anticipation. I hope the fucker chokes on me.

“Jamie,” I shout again, not daring to take my gaze off the creature that’s maybe ten metres away.

What the fuck are we doing still standing here?

Fuck. We need to retreat. Need to?—

The creature stumbles. I gasp for breath, trying to work out what I’m seeing and what’s happening.

A screech in the air and a thwack and my lips part, my mouth falling open. It swings its head around, roaring, and another arrow finds purchase in its throat. The fuck?

The stumble turns into a crash, and then I gasp as an arrow of fire explodes through the air, hitting the monster with a burst of flames. Its heavy form slams to the ground, creating a silence that leaves my ears ringing.

Three arrows protrude from the creature as flame and smoke curl around it. It’s still and, I hope to hell, dead. It’s gotta be, right? Flames like that seem like kiln levels of hot.

With ragged breaths, I reach out to Jamie, my shaky hand latching onto his leg.

“What happened?” he whispers.

I dare not take my attention off the purple creature. Who knows if those arrows have killed it or not? Jesus, its brain could be in its arse for all I know.

“Someone did us a solid and took it down.” I squint at the arrows, trying to get a better look at them. They don’t look like they’re made of carbon or even aluminium.

“Who?”

I shake my head and finally risk looking around. “I don’t?—”

“Come.” The gruff voice takes me by surprise. I don’t even have enough time to lift my shotgun before the raspy “There will be more. Klaustras hunt in packs. That will have been its scout” has me turning in circles, searching for the source.

A flicker of light in the shadows catches my eye. Movement follows, and then I freeze, gawping like a kangaroo who just spotted a dingo wearing a koala costume.

“You and the human child—come with me if you want to live.”

A bubble of amusement, completely inappropriate given the situation, clogs my throat. Did he really go all Arnie on me?

“Uncle Jack.”

I quickly turn to Jamie, and my humour dissipates. The colour has drained from his face, but fuck if the determination staring back at me doesn’t get me to move my arse.

This… person… creature… monster—who knows what the fuck he is, though I am sure it’s male—killed the klaus -thingy, which is the reason that Jamie and I are still breathing.

“We need to move.” He, the monster with pearlescent horns protruding from his head, looks at the destruction the six-legged creature left behind. His muscles tense, and fuck if there aren’t a shitload of those muscles on display beneath his deep red skin.

His gaze moves to mine, and I hold my breath. While I have no idea what this guy’s species is, he has two eyes, albeit large ones and with no eyebrows or lashes, and he’s humanoid—well, he is walking on two legs—and that means I need to make eye contact. I give myself the barest of seconds to meet his gaze and hope to God I can trust him.

Vibrant golden orbs peer back at me. They’re beautiful, incandescent. Whether that means he’s leading us into a trap or not, who the hell knows. But for now, the odds of us being safer with him are as good a bet as any.

“Okay.” I mount Geralt, finding comfort in settling on his saddle. That my horse isn’t freaking out and going wild at the red creature’s proximity has to mean something, too, right?

“Stay close,” I say to Jamie as I get Geralt moving.

We weave carefully through the trees, the almost-fiery strands floating from our rescuer’s head a beacon in the diminishing light. He’s moving fast, though, and easier than I could through the trees. And even faster than us on the horses.

We weave through strange-shaped plants and foliage and trees that I struggle to make sense of. We do so accompanied by nothing but the sound of our horses’ hooves on the sandy ground. I have no idea how long we’ve been moving, but the “Not far” makes me jolt. His unusually accented words drift behind him, catching on the breeze as we continue to follow. The sound sends a ripple over my skin, goose bumps following in its wake.

“You speak English,” I say, my voice rough with nerves when he slows his pace as we reach a point where it’s necessary for Jamie and me to dismount. With our feet now on the ground, we’re slower.

“Yes” drifts back to me, sending the small hairs on my skin into overdrive, but he doesn’t stop pushing through the dense trees.

He doesn’t offer more, and even without instruction, I figure he needs us to stay quiet.

A loud thud followed by a crash reaches us. The creature stills and raises his four-fingered hand. Jamie and I stop instantly, our breaths catching, though I rub soothing circles on Geralt’s neck, hoping to calm him—or me—while I reach for Jamie’s hand. It trembles in mine.

Fear tries to crawl up my throat, and it takes every semblance of control I have to swallow it down. I need to be strong for Jamie. The poor kid’s teeth are practically chattering despite his straight back and the way he’s lifted his chin.

A gravelled “Wait” has me swallowing hard as I watch the red-skinned creature walk away from us, his footfalls impossibly light for someone his size.

Tension vibrates through my limbs, and I’m tempted to ask where the hell he’s going while also feeling the need to plead for him not to abandon us. Out of my depth and beyond confused, I still need to protect Jamie, survive, and not freak out completely. I don’t think I can do this alone.

He drifts out of sight, his disappearance somehow making the air around us grow still.

“Uncle—”

“Shh,” I whisper softly, squeezing Jamie’s hand a little. A crack of a twig has me jerking my head to the left. It’s not coming from the way the bow-and-arrow-wielding creature left.

On high alert, I squeeze Jamie’s hand once more before gently releasing and slowly reaching for the rifle. Just as I’m about to make contact with the .22, a gruff “Stop” has my head jerking and my breath hitching.

The creature’s back, his large eyes studying me intently. Cautiously.

“I heard something,” I whisper and nod towards my right.

With a tilt of his head, he keeps his gaze steady on me, but there’s a shift in his focus. I have no idea how exactly I know this; maybe it’s something to do with his hair taking on a life of its own—almost like tentacles feeling the air around him.

Wide-eyed, I stare at his moving hair. It’s like the individual strands are doing a damn dance. Sure, it’s mesmerising, but more than that, it’s freaky as fuck.

“Why’s his hair doing that?” Jamie says, a little louder than a whisper.

Immediately, the strands drop, and the creature snaps his attention to Jamie. I straighten, shifting weight onto my right foot, ready to step in. To do what, exactly, I have no clue, but?—

“It was just a teringth ,” he says. At my blank stare, he adds, “A small creature, much like your rabies.”

Rabies?

He purses his lips, drawing my attention there as he then stretches them tight, two small fangs revealing themselves. “Not rabies?” He shakes his head. “Small animals that bounce.”

“Rabbits,” Jamie says.

And fuck me, a wide smile transforms the monster’s features. And yeah, he has fangs—twice as long as a human’s canines.

I’m sure the last thing I should be thinking is that I like his smile or that the fangs look kinda cute. Jesus, all I can do is blame the knock to my head and the truly fucked-up situation we’ve landed in.

“Yes, rabbits.” He appears thoroughly pleased with himself, sending Jamie a firm nod, his smile still in place. “In The Last Stand , the deputy thinks there is a predator, but it is a rabbit. Arnold is not in this scene.” He shakes his head forlornly. “Now come. It’s safe here. My home. Follow my footsteps.”

Honestly, it’s a struggle to catch up. What’s with the Arnold Schwarzenegger fixation? I huff out a breath, my brows high. Alrighty then. Into the unknown with the Arnie fan we go.