This love is like a curse (43)
Pushing through soldiers with weapons, rushing around in panic, Thalia moved forward step by step. Mangled, as if crushed, bodies flashed between the fallen tents. My stomach clenched painfully with horror. But the thought that Barkas could also find himself in such a state did not allow her to stop.
The girl, without even noticing how, began to rush through the camp littered with all sorts of rubbish, trying to catch up with Longboat, who had already gone far ahead.
At that moment, a dull roar was heard.
Thalia turned pale, turning her head towards the sound. A wyvern landed nearby and swallowed a soldier whole. With every movement of the monstrous mouth, streams of blood flooded the black jaw.
It was too surreal to even be afraid of. With trembling legs, she stepped back - and suddenly, among the soldiers running with spears, she noticed Longboat.
She screamed at the top of her lungs:
- Longboat! Longboat!
Like a child who saw her parents in a noisy market, she rushed to him. He was ordering something to the knights, but turned around when he heard her voice. Their gazes met - his eyes widened for a moment, and then narrowed. He seemed angry that Thalia disobeyed orders.
A chill ran down her spine, but Thalia didn't stop. There was only one thought in my head: “We must go to a safe place together.” That was all that mattered.
Don't fight. Leave this to your subordinates. You should be by my side.
Incoherent, almost childish pleas mixed with intermittent breathing. Despite the fact that amid all this chaos he could not hear a sound, Longboat approached her with quick steps, as if he had heard her. Thalia reached out to him.
And at that moment a thin cry was heard:
- Longboat!
He immediately turned around. Thalia followed his gaze and saw Ayla standing alone in the middle of all the chaos. Apparently, she broke away from the guards. A black shadow hung over her head. Seeing this, Barkas rushed towards her without hesitation.
Talia was dumbfounded. In an instant he found himself far from her. A plaintive whisper escaped from his clenched throat:
“Don't go. Not to her..."
A hot wave of sobs burned my throat.
He rushed to Ayla, grabbed her and rolled to the side with her, almost being hit by the monster. The wyvern, having lost its prey at the last moment, roared furiously and scraped its claws along the ground.
Longboat stood between Ayla and the monster, drawing his sword. But the creature was not going to re-attack a target that had already failed. The huge head turned, its nostrils flared - and suddenly its red eyes stared at Thalia.
She froze, looking into the scarlet, shining eyes. The wyvern's pupils dilated - she was clearly excited when she saw her new victim. The next moment, a massive body rushed towards her like a snake slithering through water.
Thalia didn't even have time to scream. Hooked claws dug into her, lifting her into the air.
The girl looked down in horror at the rapidly receding ground. The soldiers seemed small, like ants. She was seized by panic, she frantically moved her arms and legs, but her grip only grew stronger. It seemed as if the claws were about to pierce the skin and tear it in half.
Thalia looked up at the monster holding her. With tears in her eyes she screamed:
- Po... help! Someone...!
But even to herself the voice seemed too weak. She took a hard breath, trying to scream again.
And suddenly - a flash, like lightning, cut through the darkness. Then the hot wind burned my face.
Thalia let out a scream. The creature that grabbed her growled and began to shake violently. A strong pain pierced my chest - everything seemed to turn white before my eyes. A strong feeling of powerlessness gripped her waist, and her arms and legs sagged limply. The next moment, her body soared into the air, and then began to rapidly fall somewhere down.
Only a few seconds passed before a heavy blow hit the body, and everything was plunged into darkness.
She did not understand whether she was conscious or had already lost it. Even the thought that perhaps she had died flashed through her head. But almost immediately this feeling was refuted by a wave of unbearable pain that rolled in with all its might.
Talia, like an animal before a slaughter, convulsively gasped for air and moaned.
Hurt. It hurts unbearably. But she couldn’t even understand where exactly it hurt.
- Hh... hryy...
Thalia, clutching the ground with her fingers, crawled, trying to escape from under something heavy that was crushing her. But the growing pain became unbearable - and she, helpless, buried her forehead in the cold earth. An acrid smell filled her nose, and Thalia raised her head with difficulty.
In the darkness, the massive body of a wyvern blurred before my eyes. The sobs that had escaped her in fear suddenly stopped, and she blinked in confusion as she realized that the monster was dead.
His wings, as if caught in a fire, were half charred and shriveled. On the powerful hind leg, devoid of scales, coals were still smoldering.
Thalia stared blankly at the sight before leaning on the ground and raising her body with difficulty.
Now she noticed a huge boulder with a pile of earth crushing one of her legs. It looks like she was thrown down the slope when she fell.
“We need to get out of here...”
Talia struggled to get out from under the rubble. Wild pain gripped her body: her legs under the stones, her chest, shoulders and arms. She went limp, unable to move. There wasn't a single place left where it didn't hurt.
What if all her bones are broken?..
This could very well be true. However, she didn’t even understand how she remained alive. Or maybe... maybe she's just dying slowly.
In fear, she looked around.
Impenetrable darkness had already thickened around. Is this really how it feels to be buried alive? It was becoming increasingly difficult for her to breathe.
She wanted to lose consciousness, but, strangely, her mind became clearer and clearer. When the pain became so intense that it became unbearable, Talia strangledly scraped the ground with her broken nails. Tears kept rolling down from my eyes.
- It hurts... it hurts so much... Longboat...
Why she whispered this name, she herself did not know. The image of him came to mind - running away, towards Ayla, without looking back.
She was never important to Barkas. For him, there were always only Ayla and Gareth - those whom he was obliged to protect, no matter what.
Hot tears burned my cheeks.
- No... he still... he will definitely come for me...
As if trying to convince herself, Thalia whispered it out loud. She is also the daughter of the emperor. He is a man of duty - he will probably try to find at least her body... He will not leave her here like this...
She clung to this thought like a life-anchor and gazed steadily into the gathering darkness.
Soon even the last embers that smoldered on the monster’s skin died out, and the world finally drowned in darkness.
No matter how long she waited, no one came. Then, with a dry, almost cracked throat, she tried to squeeze out a little louder:
- Everything is fine. Everything is fine. He'll come soon. Coming soon...
But the voice was drowned out by sobs.
Talia sank her teeth into her lip and closed her mouth with trembling fingers. She didn't want to cry.
If she starts, it will be recognition. Recognizing that no one is looking for her.
She suppressed bitter tears mixed with pain and despair, and whispered again:
“You just need to wait a little. The longboat will definitely come. And one day, as he once pulled me out of the mud, he will save me.”
Necessarily. Necessarily…