Break free

A startled Dayrue failed to pull her left hand trapped in the mouth of the camouflaging monster that snuck up beside her. With all her strength she reached for a dagger and began stabbing at its mouth over and over again.

It spat her hand out and slammed its snout into her body sending her rolling across the sand. It went back for her.

Before she could push her aching body up, a sword spun through the air like a razor disk to zip through the space between her and the beast while decapitating its head. It wiggled wildly before its lifeless body dropped onto the ground and the sword got lodged into a tree.

It was Skinner who had glimpsed back from fighting a monster to notice her struggle. He rushed over digging his knees into the sand to stop close to her. His voice still had not returned and so he had to sign.

He helped her to her feet before she rushed away from him with one sword and a wounded arm, to release her anger at more creatures. Not long did she began overusing her telekinesis to control her sword like a flying needle through the air, piercing through one creature to the next while she maintained one position.

Skinner knew it was pointless trying to stop her and so went on to pursue more monsters while he and Cronan dodged the flying sword bullet that went zipping through the air separating limbs, tails, horns, and entire heads at the same time.

When the two rafts were finally done, the bright yellow sunset had started to dilute into dark blues. They were both large and sturdy enough to carry the six of them and their rattlers.

Rue used her patient charm to get three rattlers onto each raft before Ezra and Roshar began to push them to a great distance from the shore.

She turned away from them to head off in the opposite direction to alert the others to retreat and head for the waters as the rafts were ready.

While her eyes searched the blood-stained sand with fallen trees and large lifeless beast bodies, a creature that was hidden under its grey sheet near the shore that had been watching them build the raft, saw her break away from her comrades. She was alone and now easy prey.

Rue whistled at the top of her breath trying to get the signal to the others. The creature popped up from beneath the sand that slid off its body like water and crawled on four legs on both its sides to dart at her.

Roshar and Ezra saw when the large creature rose but they were too far a distance to do anything. Ezra moved to leave the raft and swim to her rescue when Roshar forbade him.

"She's the chief's daughter, that thing is no match for her. What do you expect to do?"

They both watched helplessly from a distance as the beast scurried wildly towards her.

She saw it and seemed to have frozen as her eyes searched its skull-like face with dark holes for its eyes and nose. Her hands trembled as she rushed to pull out both her swords. The second she held both in the air she hardened her grip around each handle and charged at the creature.

Its wide flat snout ripped apart to an upper and lower jaw lined with sharp teeth. At her stage, it was difficult locking onto a large moving target with her telekinesis and so only managed to force down the upper jaw slightly. It was enough for Rue to avoid its sharp teeth as she leaped above it and stabbed both her swords into its head until every inch of silver disappeared beneath its skin.

The creature shook itself wildly but Rue held her grip with her two swords secured deep into its skull. Its long barbed tail slammed into her trying to knock her off, but she fought back the pain and waited long until the red poison reached its brain for it to get still.

When it was over, she leaned up from its still surface and used her sore arms to pull both swords out. Her whole body pained. Everything moved in circles and she could not walk straight. The thought of snatching something from it to add to her coronet never crossed her mind.

By then, Cronan and Skinner had found Dayrue's body. The stress from her telekinesis overuse caused a nerve in her head to burst squirting out blood. Both her red-filled eyes squinted painfully in wait for any monster that could attack.

Once she saw both their faces after stooping down to her level she knew she was safe. She completely shut down. Cronan carried her in his arms and they headed towards the shore.

A wide smile melted Rue's anxious face at the sight of her father approaching with Skinner behind. An uneasy feeling rose after seeing Dayrue's state. Soon their feet made splashes into the water as they headed further from the sandy shore and towards the rafts.

"Grab my hand!" yelled Ezra to Rue as she neared him.

He pulled her up so hard he fell backward into the raft with her on top of him. Both their foreheads collided painfully before she lifted her head to stare back into his large dark brown eyes. She blinked away to break the awkwardness and rolled herself off to one side and laid there.

Once Cronan helped to lay Dayrue onto the raft with Roshar and Skinner, he settled on top of the one with Ezra and Rue on the other end not to disrupt its equilibrium.

Skinner from the other raft threw him one of the two long webbed limbs he had detached from a creature.

"What in tarnation?" remarked Ezra.

"It's for paddling," Cronan told him.

Ezra slapped one hand onto his forehead so hard it got red. "We forgot to make those, didn't we? You are one smart chief."

He insisted on taking over the paddling to allow him to rest, and a grateful Cronan gave him the paddle so he could lay down along with an aching Rue.

Skinner steered the other raft as Roshar attended to Dayrue's head and injured arm with material from the load.

The further away from the beach they got, the more glowing eyes from new creatures they saw above the rising and dropping waves. The sunset had completely died out. They were lucky they left when they did.

Skinner, who remembered to snap his finger before gesturing, asked, "When are we going to eat?"

A stronger snap frightened him before he looked in its direction.

"The dead don't eat," signed a weak Dayrue who had regained her consciousness and leaned up. "Worry about the creatures that may pop up from the water instead."

They had to keep watch for anything that may arise from the deep blue beneath. They agreed to take short naps while two of them kept their eyes alert on each raft.