TST (53 page)

“Bah, this is what’s stinking all right,” he told his group as he pulled his head back.

The dwarf leaned in and touched the thick fibrous petals then let out a loud muffled shout as the flower suddenly closed upon his arm with surprising firmness. Borik tugged hard and withdrew his arm from the carnivorous plant.

“That is called a cadaver plant. It snaps up any small animals or large insects that poke their heads inside thinking to find carrion. You are lucky you were wearing armor. The thick fibers inside the flower are very rigid and point backwards, digging into the skin of the animal inside so that it cannot get out. The plant secretes an enzyme that can dissolve the flesh from a small animal in an hour, the bones in just a couple days.”

“Bah, dwarf-eating plants, poisonous blood sucking roses, and killer lizards. Is there anything in this cursed jungle that doesn’t try to kill you?” Borik demanded.

“Not much,” Kar’Rok replied.

“So what is the most deadly thing in the jungle?” Malek asked their guide. “What will kill you the fastest?”

“Your own stupidity,” the elf replied without hesitation and began moving forward once more.

“You think he was talking about me?” Borik asked.

Malek shrugged his shoulders. “I think he was talking about all of us. Look at your beard.”

Borik looked down at his beard and cursed. It was now a good six inches shorter now, the end having been dissolved by the pungent caustic liquid inside the cadaver plant.

“Great, a year’s worth of growth gone. I hate this stupid jungle,” he muttered and fell in step behind the others.

Kar’Rok pointed out other various plants that could kill if ingested, hanging vines that would strangle anything that brushed against them, and once had to guide them far around a tall earthen chimney that Maude thought was a termite mound but turned out to be a haven of aggressive stinging insects. The wasps inside were as long as a human finger and were extremely territorial.

“We will have to detour at least a hundred yards around them or risk them swarming us,” Kar’Rok informed them. “They will chase down any animal that comes near their hive, even hovering over water for hours if you try to seek refuge beneath its surface. As soon as you come up for air they attack without hesitation.”

Just as the sun was setting, Kar’Rok suddenly held up his hand signaling everyone to stop. He peered into the thick foliage for the source of the slight movement that had caught his eye. The minute shifting of a large body betrayed a second glimpse of a creature twenty yards away watching them.

“Fleshreaver,” the elf hissed and drew back his powerful bow.

“It’s a good thing you saw it, I never would have realized it was there,” Maude whispered.

“It wanted us to see it. The real attack will come from behind. Get your wizard between us and watch our backs.”

Maude barely had time to follow the orders before the large reptile burst towards the party. Kar’Rok released his broad-bladed arrow the second it moved, putting two more of the meter long shafts into the creature’s scaly hide before it broke into the clearing where they stood with their weapons drawn.

It took all of their discipline not to turn about and face the source of attack as a shout from Kar’Rok ordered them to focus their attention the other way as he dropped his bow and swung his strange two bladed staff off his shoulder. Tarth cast multiple illusory images of himself as soon as he heard the fleshreaver crashing through the woods. Seconds after the first reptilian creature charged through the foliage, three more bounded over fallen logs and burst through the massive ferns that had concealed them.

The lizards looked a little like small two legged dragons but more similar to wingless wyverns with short necks. They moved with incredible speed and grace, leaping any obstacles in their path with ease. Their rough pebbly hide was a mottled mixture of brown and green with thick black stripes that allowed them to blend in with their surroundings. Large long heads held keen eyes like those of a bird of prey and a mouth that was only a little shorter than an alligator’s but wider and sported at least as many teeth if not more.

Maude swung her mighty two-handed sword in a vicious arc that caught the savage reptile on its left shoulder just above one of the short skinny arms, cutting it deeply. The attack failed to slow the creature and it used its considerable bulk to bowl the swordswoman over and used its long claws to try to rake the flesh from its prone prey.

Hard claws squealed against forged steel. She thrust her arm up and felt the predator’s sharp teeth grate against her armored forearm as it lunged forward with its snapping jaws. Unable bring her honed blade against her attacker with any real force, she swung her fist as hard as she could and punched out at the huge triangular head repeatedly in an attempt to force it to let go.

Seeing Maude trampled and raked by the fleshreaver, Malek chose to dive to the side instead of challenging its greater weight in a head on clash. The cleric dove away at the last second and quickly rolled back to his feet. The fleshreaver dug its long clawed toes into the soft soil bringing it to an almost immediate stop and spun, instantly tracking onto its prey. Malek brought his shield around at the same time he rolled to his feet and slammed it into the side of giant lizard’s head. The blow made a bell-like clang as it knocked the snapping, tooth-filled maw to the side.

The cleric followed up his shield bash with a hard swing from his war hammer. With cat-like reflexes, the fleshreaver swung its head away from the potentially lethal blow and caught the brunt of the attack on its long thick neck. The heavy steel hammer rebounded off the tough hide but the hiss the creature let out showed that it had still taken a notable wound.

The third creature charged just on the heels of its brethren before breaking right and bearing down on the short prey just ahead of it. Borik stood on his toes in an attempt to make himself appear as large as possible.

At the last possible second, he ducked his head and dropped to one knee as the flesh-rending jaws snapped just above him, missing by a hair. He brought his keen-bladed battleaxe around in a lethal arc, cutting deeply into the fleshreaver’s well-muscled thigh. Bright red blood covered the shining steel axe head and splashed against his armor as the monster crashed past him.

The fleshreaver tried to stop its forward momentum and spin about as its pack mate had but its injured leg collapsed beneath it and it fell heavily onto its side. Before the creature could regain its feet, Borik charged forward and chopped at the flailing beast as it struggled to right itself. The sharp axe cut deeply into the flesh beneath the tough outer covering of scales and sent more blood spraying with each swing.

“Take that, you foul, dwarf-eatin’, wingless, over-grown, scaly-hided chicken!” Borik yelled with each powerful stroke of his axe.

Borik laid into the beast with a fury, looking more like a deranged lumberjack chopping wood than a dwarf fighting for his life against a savage predator.

Seeing Maude in trouble, Tarth waved his arms and uttered an incantation that sent a brilliant fiery arrow streaking into the killer lizard’s mottled hide. The magical arrow buried itself deep within the creature’s flesh and continued to burn. The creature shrieked loudly as its tender flesh was cooked by the white-hot radiant arrow.

Maude struck the fleshreaver one more time and caught it in its large vulnerable eye with the heavy pommel of her sword. The monster reptile leapt away, snapping at the magical arrow that continued to burn in its side.

Kar’Rok braced himself for the fleshreaver’s charge and leapt sideways at the last moment, lashing out with his double bladed staff, scoring a long deep line along the creature’s side and right hip. The monster swiftly spun about despite the wound and the arrows sticking out of its flesh. Kar’Rok spun the staff in his hands, making wide swiping motions in an attempt to distract the killer predator. The fleshreaver advanced more cautiously, feeling its multiple wounds but not letting it slow it down in the least.

The large reptile stepped forward with its head held low and far back on its long neck. It made several feints toward the elf in an attempt to get him to lash out and make himself vulnerable before snapping its head forward with the speed of a striking serpent. Kar’Rok leapt back with a speed and grace that belied his muscular form but the frontal attack had been just another feint.

Before his feet touched the ground, the fleshreaver took two swift strides forward, whipping its tail around and catching the elf hard in the chest. Kar’Rok felt the air forced from his lungs by the powerful tale slap and was hurled through the air by the force of the impact to land out of sight in the dense foliage.

Tarth heard the powerful slap behind him and turned just in time to see their guide go sailing into the bushes. The wizard locked gazes with the intelligent eyes of the predator that stood just a few yards away from him. The wizard felt himself almost mesmerized by the hypnotic stare of the raptor-like gaze. He quickly returned to his senses, such as they were, as the fleshreaver took a step towards the seemingly helpless prey. It had nearly no time to realize its fatal mistake as the wizard released a blast of violet lightning straight into the creature’s broad chest.

The powerful blast dropped the creature in its tracks while the clap of thunder that accompanied it distracted the two remaining reptilian raptors for a brief moment, giving their adversaries time to set themselves for another attack.

Maude got her feet under her again and charged the distracted fleshreaver, swinging her huge sword in a low arc, and cutting deeply into the beast’s chest. The creature leapt away only to feel the deep bite of the dwarf’s axe in its left thigh. It whipped its head around in rage and pain and snapped at the creature that had just wounded it. Borik ducked under the swift bite once again as Maude brought her sword down with a shout of exertion, decapitating the creature with a powerful overhand chop.

The fleshreaver facing Malek decided to try a different tactic. Instead of charging the human, it leapt high into the air, covering the fifteen feet that separated it from its prey in a single bound. Malek tried to leap away but the creature struck out to the side with its long hind leg and bore him to the ground. The cleric’s hammer went spinning out of his hand as the fleshreaver slammed him brutally down and trapped him under its powerful hindquarters. He screamed in pain as the monster’s long rear claw penetrated the mail just under his breastplate and pierced his tender flesh.

Malek felt his hot blood streaming from his ghastly wound and pour down his side. He whipped his head to the side and narrowly avoided the fleshreaver’s snapping jaws. The cleric looked up, expecting to see his death in the form of razor-sharp yellowed teeth tearing his throat out. He uttered a brief prayer to Solarian but instead of seeing his imminent death, he saw an avenging form dropping seemingly from the heavens.

Kar’Rok pulled in his breath and struggled back to his feet. He ran out between two massive ferns and quickly took in the battle before him. The wizard was just turning around after having just killed the fleshreaver that had sent him flying into the bushes. Another of the reptiles lay dead from numerous deep blows that looked to have been caused by the dwarf’s axe. The woman and the dwarf looked to be seconds away from putting an end to a third one of the cunning ferocious creatures.

As he scanned the battlefield, he turned just in time to see the other human born to the ground and severely injured by the fourth creature. Without hesitation, Kar’Rok sprinted towards the fallen cleric and leapt impossibly high into the air. Using all his considerable strength and his downward inertia, he plunged his blade deep into the base of the fleshreaver’s neck, just between its narrow shoulders. The blade sank deeply into the brute’s muscle but Kar’Rok managed to yank his weapon free before his feet struck the ground.

The fleshreaver raised its head and hissed in pain. The elven warrior slashed the sharp blades of his staff twice across the monster’s throat in the blink of an eye. Hot blood jetted from the lethal wounds as Malek rolled away with a groan of pain before the creature fell on top of him.

Maude ran over to where Malek lay and began stripping off his armor. “Malek, are you all right?”

Her only answer was a shake of the head and a gasp of pain as she unbuckled the straps and pulled his breastplate off. Maude could see the large rent in the bloody mail underneath and pressed her lips into a tight line when she saw the deep wound. The cleric let out another gasp of pain and gritted his teeth as Maude pushed the torn mail up further, exposing the wound.