Wild Tiger Chase | Book #2 (Complete)

17: I offer it to you

— Léon —

"What's taking him so long?" Léon muttered, supporting his hands on his waist. He looked around and tried to see anything through the dense curtain of cold mist around him.

It's been some time since Modraniht had walked away in search of the bridge they had seen earlier, while still on top of the hill surrounding Aíbetama Valley. More than once, when the wind blew past and thinned the mist, Léon thought he heard Modraniht's voice talking to someone, but he discarded the thought every time.

It just wouldn't be possible, would it? Modraniht had the phone with him, yes, but he would've told Léon if he had managed to fix it... right?

Phillip coughed and Léon pulled him closer. His coughing fit intensified.

"Easy... take deep breaths, Phil."

"Cold." Phillip hacked and his shoulders shook until a dense, black liquid escaped the corner of his lips. "Cold. Too cold, Leo."

"I know," Léon answered in a whisper. He cleaned the dark spit from Phillip's lips and huffed. "Let's continue walking. Modraniht will be back soon."

The words had barely left his lips when the sound of steps reached them. Modraniht's large body pierced the mist.

"There you are," he said. Modraniht rushed to Léon and pulled Phillip's free arm, lacing it behind his neck. "C'mon, I found a way through the chasm."

Léon followed him to the edge of the broken earth.

The view was breathtaking. The mist thinned here and there as a strong gale spread shivers on Léon's arms. Three twenty-meter-long cracks cut the terrain, showing the land's dark depths. Along their edges, several small rivers poured into the fissures, creating thin, foggy waterfalls surrounded by green.

Here, different than anywhere else Léon had visited, the trees were filled with life—little birds, insects, and small critters feeding on the fruits.

"That's curious," Modraniht murmured, his eyes set on a little monkey nibbling at a shock-pink fruit.

They stopped before a wide wooden bridge. It seemed sturdy enough, if only a bit old. Léon tested the planks with the tip of his foot before stepping on it. "Where exactly are we going, Modraniht?"

"To the center." He pointed at the thick layer of canopies ahead.

Léon and Modraniht crossed the bridge while Bonee scouted ahead. Pointy ceilings and square buildings sprouted from the trees, cloaked in vines. The forest was swallowing the city; it was taking back what belonged to it—but something was weird. In Léon's memories, this village was so colorful and full of life. It was so different from the swamp in front of him. It was also filled with two-story buildings, street posts, and low fences everywhere, but those were all empty. Léon looked around him. Why did everything look so... low? And couldn't he see entrance doors anywhere? As they walked through the deserted paths, goosebumps formed on his arms.

Léon gritted his teeth as memories washed over him.

Shit.

Images flashed in his mind. Léon watched those memories as if he was an astronaut out of orbit. He saw himself raising his hands and shaping his cosmic trace into the giant claws that had created the very canyons he had seen. He remembered how he had attacked Rob and Anhangá, and how the latter had done everything in his power to shield the village and its people.

Then, he remembered lying in Anhangá's arms, bloodied and drained, as the horned spirit caressed his cheek.

Don't you dare to die, sweet one. Take a piece of me and live; I offer it to you.