Chapter 7: A Beast’s Welcome

She had no weapon. None of them did, really. Sid had a knife, Sydney had brass knuckles, and Lee—God knew what Lee had. If he even had anything.

Not that it mattered. They had to work with what they had.

The beast's nostrils flared, its attention zeroing in on them as its body coiled, preparing to charge.

"Move!" Erica barked, pushing Sydney just as the beast lunged. They scattered, its hulking mass slamming into the spot they had just occupied, dirt flying in every direction.

Sydney was the first to recover, eyes gleaming with something Erica could only describe as pure, reckless excitement.

"I'll bait it," she declared, already taking off in a sprint before anyone could argue.

Erica swore under her breath. "That little—fine! Just don't get yourself killed! Sid, stay close, wait for an opening. Lee, do… something!"

"What does that mean?!" Lee shouted back, but Erica ignored him, already running along the treeline, scanning for anything they could use.

Sydney was doing her job a little too well. The beast charged after her with single-minded aggression, each stomp of its feet shaking the earth beneath them. Sydney, to her credit, was fast—dipping between trees, using her smaller frame to her advantage. But she was burning energy fast, and when she miscalculated a turn, nearly tripping over an exposed root, Erica felt her stomach drop.

"Sydney, left! Get it to the mud!"

Sydney didn't hesitate, shifting direction toward the swampy area nearby. The beast followed, slower this time, its massive weight sinking slightly into the wet terrain. It let out a furious roar, momentarily struggling to adjust.

That was their chance.

"Sid—now!"

Sid didn't need to be told twice. His usually hesitant demeanor vanished as he moved, knife glinting in the slivers of moonlight filtering through the trees. With the beast's movement slowed, he had just enough time to close the distance, sliding in low and aiming for the beast's exposed side.

The knife plunged in, and the beast screamed.

But it wasn't enough. The wound wasn't deep enough. And now it was angry.

It twisted with terrifying speed, its massive maw snapping dangerously close to Sid's arm. He barely rolled away in time, panting hard, frustration flickering across his face.

"Gotta go deeper!" he snarled, voice dark with something that made even Erica shudder. He wanted to hurt it now. That was the danger with Sid—once he got like this, he didn't hold back.

"Lee!" Erica turned, hoping—praying—that their most useless party member had something of value.

And to her utter surprise, Lee was already in motion.

From the inside of his coat, he pulled out a whip—because of course the conman carried a whip—and with a snap of his wrist, it cracked against the beast's already wounded side. It wasn't enough to do real damage, but it was enough to distract it, its head snapping toward him instead of Sid.

Which was all Sydney needed.

With the last of her strength, she launched herself forward, brass-knuckled fists smashing into the beast's already bloodied eye. It screeched in agony, momentarily blinded and disoriented.

"SID—FINISH IT!"

Sid was already moving. He didn't hesitate. He climbed onto the beast's massive back, finding leverage where its fur was thickest, and with a sickening crunch, he drove his knife deep—this time right into its throat.

The beast let out a gurgled cry, buckling under its own weight. It twitched, spasmed, and finally, with one last shuddering breath—went still.

For a long moment, no one moved. The only sound was their ragged breathing, the distant hum of the forest.

And then Lee collapsed onto the ground with a dramatic sigh. "I would just like to say," he wheezed, "I hate this."

Sydney, still catching her breath, let out a breathless laugh. "You're welcome to leave now."

Lee groaned. "And let you all die without me?"

Erica rolled her eyes but didn't argue. Instead, she turned to Sid, who was still crouched beside the beast's corpse, hands covered in blood, shoulders shaking with adrenaline.

"You good?" she asked.

Sid exhaled heavily, standing up and shaking the blood from his fingers. He turned to look at her, the darkness in his eyes already fading, replaced by something softer. He nodded.

"Yeah," he said simply. "I'm good."

Erica let out a breath, running a hand through her hair. "Well. That was horrible."

Sydney grinned. "And fun!"

Erica just sighed. She had a feeling this was only the beginning of many, many more horrible decisions.