Selena
In my dreams I watched Ravenos kill the small deer in the woods. It was worse than if he'd been hunting me. There was something so innocent about the creature, her elegant beauty and quiet nature.
As I munched on a dry bagel in the morning - my writhing stomach not feeling up to much else - I found myself watching the other girls. None of us were innocent. We had all done something terrible, perhaps many things. Most of us were killers, so perhaps being here was some poetic justice.
My gaze eventually settled on Cass. Cass the arsonist. Though she'd said her ex hadn't been killed in the fire she'd set. Surely that wouldn't have landed her in a maximum security prison?
A hand dropped onto my shoulder and I jumped out of my seat, electricity crackling in my veins. Twisting around, I found Varick there, silent as ever.
“You should wear bells or something!” I gestured to his body in general. Damn V, sneaking up on me.
There was no amusement in his expression, only darkness. “Get dressed. Be ready to run today.” He gave me a small nod, cementing the strange alliance we were forming and I was left feeling too sick to finish my bagel.
Christ, what had I gotten myself into taking him on as an ally? If that's what I could call him. Perhaps his sole interest in my survival was so he could get his own teeth into my veins. If I was as much of a delicacy as he said I was, perhaps that was his intention all along.
For now, I had to cling to the small advantages he was giving me and deal with the consequences later. I tried to reach my black dress before Angelina got there today, but found her already twirling around in it in the bathroom - the room no more than a twelve foot metal locker.
Suddenly, I'd had enough. Storming toward her, I started unknotting the laced-up back. She shrieked, turning and slashing out at me with her palm.
I snatched her slim wrist, squeezing tightly and glaring at her. “I think the least you owe me is my dress.”
Some of the other girls halted putting on their own gowns, watching us with interest.
Angelina squealed from the tight hold I had on her. Something had changed in me. Or perhaps it had been there all along and only now my killer instincts were rising to the surface.
“Don't you think?” I pressed and Angelina screwed up her eyes.
“Fine,” she huffed.
“And remember, I don't die that easily. So the next time you consider leaving me in a pool of my own blood, I'd have serious second thoughts. Because I won't be so forgiving in future.”
Angelina nodded, biting her lip from the pain.
I released her, folded my arms and waited for her to strip. Cass caught my eye over her shoulder, grinning from ear to ear. I fought a smile in return, satisfaction spreading through me. If I was going to die today, I was going to do it on my own terms. Starting with this bitch.
Angelina threw the dress at me and I span on my heel, marching into a toilet cubicle where I changed into it. Her body had already warmed the material which was an added benefit for me. Behind the toilet door, I let myself really smile.
As usual, Varick was waiting for us in front of a projected map of the island. The mountain I'd seen last night was highlighted on the new section with a seemingly endless forest on the other side of it.
I sat in the back row between Marie and Cass, watching his presentation with a fierce determination. That was, until his next words.
“You will spend three days out on the island. The checkpoint will not be open until the third day.”
Chaos broke out in the form of angry shouts and muttering.
“Quiet!” Varick roared, his eyes flaring. “You are about to face your first real test. As well as the Vs, you will need to consider how you are going to find food, water, shelter-”
“You aren't giving us any food?” a girl I think was called Sakura, cried out. Her hair was streaked with pink and purple, the dye having faded drastically since we'd arrived.
“No,” Varick said simply and my pulse rose. No food, no water? It was bad enough evading the Vs without having to worry about such things.
“There are sources on the island, you only need look for them,” Varick encouraged, but no one seemed particularly comforted. He picked up packs from the table behind him, passing them out. When I received mine, I tugged it open, like everyone else around me was doing. There was a large bottle inside – empty –, a knife, a flare, a single match and some kindling bound together with twine.
A tense silence fell on the room and as Varick passed out the stakes, no one said a word. I was certain we were all thinking the same thing: a lot of us were going to die in this round.
Varick led us to the ladder we'd ascended last night, but I felt nothing of the brief moment of freedom I'd felt then. More than ever, I felt like a prisoner, being marched into a firing line.
“I don't want to die,” I heard Marie whisper.
“Suffering is worse than death,” Varick muttered to himself.
A murmur of disquiet ran through the group. Varick certainly wasn't adept at comforting people.
“One at a time,” he commanded. “Wait at the top of the ladder. If you move before the horn sounds, the capsule in your head will detonate.”
Yes, comforting people definitely wasn't his forte.
I moved into line behind Cass, gazing up the shaft so icy raindrops peppered my cheeks. Sakura was the first up the ladder and we followed, one by one, after her. As I climbed, amongst the last to go, I shot a glance over my shoulder at Varick. His Adam's apple bobbed as he fixed his attention on me. A silent goodbye passed between us, because the chances were, I wouldn't survive this round.
Rain battered me as I reached the top, sweeping across the island in great sheets of grey.
I stood, shoulder to shoulder with the remaining twelve girls, waiting for the horn to announce the beginning of round four. I tapped my cuff, finding the checkpoint on the other side of the mountain. Zooming in, a cave system became clear within it. It was the most direct route to the checkpoint, but perhaps the most treacherous, too.
The horn sounded through the howling wind and rain, seeming more distant than it had before. It was the first time a round hadn't started in an outright sprint.
The girls divided into groups, some splitting off singularly and picking their way across the stream in the direction of the mountain.
Briony, Marie and Cass kept close and I nodded toward the direction Sakura was taking, following the path Varick had shown me last night.
Tugging up our hoods, we followed her, keeping our stakes drawn and our communication short.
“Over or under?” I muttered, tapping my cuff.
They knew what I meant. The route over the mountain would be exposed, perhaps more dangerous in terms of the elements. No one was keen to return underground, but my gut told me it was the quickest way.
“There'll be water, shelter...” I reasoned.
“And probably a hundred Vs cornering us in the dark again.” Marie shook her head. “Yesterday was bad enough.”
“Cass?” I turned to her, spying raindrops sailing over her cheeks.
“I'm not a fan of the rain. If this storm gets worse, we'll wish we took the underground pass.”
Briony took Marie's hand. “We'll take the long road.”
I didn't like to split up again, but it made sense. There was no point sticking together if we didn't agree on the same strategy.
“Alright.” I nodded, hugging each of them in turn. “We'll see you on the other side.”
They gave stiff smiles that said neither of them were sure we'd ever see each other again, but none of us said it. It was easier to say goodbye if we pretended it wasn't forever.
“Good luck!” I called as Briony and Marie took a path that led up the mountain.
Sakura had increased her pace ahead, and though we hadn't spoken during the whole game, I increased my own pace, keeping her colourful hair in sight.
“How are we going to find food underground?” Cass voiced my own concerns. One of which we didn't mention; the fact we hadn't been gifted with torches in our packs. Would the route below ground be entirely dark? If so, we might have to rethink things. I wasn't sure I could face the pitch black again.
Without warning, a V burst from the trees, knocking Sakura to the ground, the skirt of her dark mauve dress snagged around her ankles.
I shouted out, already running toward her with my stake raised. I kicked the grey-haired V who had her on the ground. Thinking of Varick's advice, I aimed the tip of my stake at the base of his skull and brought it down with force.
The second the stake pierced skin, the V reared away, screaming, flailing on the ground. Liquid silver poured from his eyes, his nose, the corners of his mouth. With a sudden jerk, he died and Sakura gasped her relief, scrambling to her feet.
“What the hell?” Cass reached my side, gazing at the V.
“Guess they have a kill switch in the back of their heads, too,” I panted, covering for the fact that Varick had tipped me off. If the Helsings were watching, I didn't want them to think I'd been cheating.
Miraculously, Sakura was unharmed. Her eyes fell on me and the bloody stake in my hand. “Thanks.” She brushed down her dress. “Reckon I could have managed myself though.”
“I bet you could,” Cass drawled, marching past her.
I moved to follow, but Sakura caught my arm. “You're the one Varick likes.” Her eyes flitted between mine and I noticed she had one blue eye and one green. With her wild, colourful locks, it somehow suited her.
“He doesn't like me,” I snapped, overly defensive, but unsure why.
Sakura tongued her cheek. “Whatever. I'm sticking with you. Maybe he has some insider tip about who's most likely to survive.”
I shrugged, heading onwards. “Suit yourself. But I'm no different than anyone else.”
“Tell that to that Vampire who keeps staring at you. It's like he's high or something.”
“He doesn't stare at me,” I insisted, my cheeks flushing hot as I became aware of the hidden cameras feeding all of this back to the spectators and the Helsings. I didn't want Varick to get in trouble.
“Er- yeah he does. Like constantly.” Sakura suddenly ducked low, picking berries off a bush. “Blackberries.”
I raised my brows, dropping down to help her gather them, glad of the distraction from our topic of conversation. Like a fool, I would have walked right past them. Maybe our new ally was a useful one to have.
Cass found another bush and started making her own pile. Ripping off some of the material on our dresses, we packed them up and carefully placed them in our bags. The more food we could acquire now, the better.
The persistent rain made for a miserable journey as we walked on through damp bushes and low-hanging leaves on the surrounding trees. My cloak was soon soaked through and I decided, dark or not, cutting through the caves had to be the better option.
According to the map, there were several entrances to the underground passages. We headed for the furthest one, figuring the other girls would seek shelter as soon as possible. And that could draw the Vs away from the other cave entrances.
The rain washed away the last of the snow. The world was sapped of all colour until we were left in a monotone landscape, drudging on for what felt like an eternity.
I thought of the sun, picturing a summer's day, lazing on the small garden lawn outside my home, sipping lemonade with Mum, enjoying the few safe hours we'd had whilst Elijah was at work.
I craved daylight, and it made me think of Varick and the hundreds of years he'd spent in darkness. Perhaps immortality wasn't all it was cracked up to be.
Cass found the cave entrance first, hidden behind a mass of vines. We'd managed to gather a fairly decent amount of food, hopefully enough to see us through the pass. Our horde mostly consisted of berries, but Sakura had dug up a couple of roots she said were edible.
Pushing past the vines, we tentatively made our way inside. As I'd hoped, fresh water trickled down the cave walls and we spent some time filling our bottles from the small rivulets.
Sakura took the knife from her bag, cut the metal boning from the upper part of her dress and tugged it free. She bent a small piece of the metal, tucked one end under her cuff and pressed the other atop it. The map sprang to life and remained in place when she removed her finger from the cuff.
“Light,” she announced brightly, heading into the cave.
“How'd you do that?” I asked, wishing I'd known of such a technique back in the bunker yesterday.
“The metal makes a circuit between your skin and the receptor. Simple really.” Sakura twisted the remaining metal in her hand until it broke into pieces and she passed bits to Cass and I.
Copying her, I arranged the metal in place and was proud when it worked. Sakura definitely seemed handy to have around.
As we headed into the cave, the ceiling became lost high above into the darkness. Every step seemed to echo on for miles, making me cringe over and over. A Vampire would hear us a mile off, but taking our boots off on the wet ground didn't seem like an appealing idea.
Thankfully, the cave soon grew narrower and we made less noise as we progressed, winding into the depths of the mountain. None of us spoke. The only sound was the persistent dripping from the cave roof, the sound tenfold as it echoed through the caverns.
Sakura cursed from up ahead and as I caught her up, I found out why. The trail we'd followed dropped away into a dark abyss, the sheer edge before us stopping us from progressing. On the other side of the cavernous space, I could just make out a passage through the light thrown from our cuffs.
“How the hell do we get over there?” I asked.
A horrible, screeching noise sounded behind us and fear flashed through me.
I looked left and right for a way across, certain this couldn't be it. Cass reached into her bag, took out her flare and snapped it, chucking it into the empty space before us.
We watched in silence as it span away, the glowing red flames lighting up the pit as it hit the rocks below. It illuminated one other thing: a natural bridge of rock just a few feet below us, perhaps half a foot wide.
“Great,” Cass muttered.
Sakura shrugged. “No point whining. I'd rather walk across that than wait for a V to catch us.” With swift skill, Sakura dropped down onto the ledge below. She was graceful in her movements, raising her arms either side of her like a gymnast on a balance beam, making her way across.
I steeled myself before following, dropping with much less grace onto the bridge of rock and planting my feet.
Cass watched from above, her pale face illuminated in the hazy blue glow of her cuff.
“You can do it,” I encouraged and she nodded, taking my hand as I helped her down. We wobbled precariously and I immediately let go of her, crouching down and finding my balance. Carefully turning, I spotted Sakura almost at the other side already.
“Damn show off,” Cass muttered and I broke a shaky laugh.
As I stood on trembling legs, I thought of my stake, and how it would be near impossible to take on a V here without falling.
As I moved, one step at a time, I focused on the ledge that Sakura was scrambling up to. My breaths came in small pants, my heart faltering with every movement I made.
A rush of air was the only warning I had of the V that landed before me, having jumped from the ledge above. With a shout of alarm, I acted instinctively, shoving hard against the V's chest. She was slimmer than me and smaller in height, but as she tumbled from the ledge, she grabbed my arm, dragging me after her.
“No!” Cass cried out.
My arms flailed as I plummeted off of the bridge, my heart in my throat, my vision a blur of blue and red.
The V clawed into the rock with its free hand to halt her fall and I grabbed her other arm, saving myself. Suddenly, the Vampire was my only chance of survival and I desperately gripped her wrist with both hands.
I kicked at the rocks, trying to find purchase on the side of the bridge, but they were slick with water and made me swing precariously from the V's arm.
“Selena!” Cass called.
“I'm here!” I choked.
The V snarled and snapped at me, but I couldn't escape. She seemed barely human, her face skull-like and her eyes sunken. She dragged me up with her free arm, bringing my neck to her mouth. I dug the stake into a crevice for support as she clutched me to her skeletal body, ripping at my cloak with her teeth. Fear juddered through me as I desperately tried not to fall and equally to keep away from the ravenous Vampire.
“Cass, pull me up!” I begged, shaking off the V's hold on my arm and reaching upwards.
My fingers grazed the top of the bridge and a cold hand clamped down on them.
The V scrambled upwards, biting deep into my neck and I fought back a scream, a pained groan passing my lips instead.
“Up, up,” I begged as Cass's grip tightened on me.
I tried to jerk out of the V's grip, but it was no good. Despite her emaciated condition, she was still stronger than me.
As Cass took my weight, I managed to pull the stake free of the rock. Before Cass could pull me up, I twisted my arm between the V and I, and pushed the tip as hard as I could against her.
With a roar of anger, she shoved me back against the rock, knocking my head against it. My vision blurred and my grip loosened on the stake.
Another hand joined Cass's and suddenly I was yanked upwards.
A foot flew threw the air, smashing into the V's shoulder. She lost her grip on me and tumbled backwards with a screech of rage, a distant smack sounding her impact.
I gasped my relief as Sakura and Cass dragged me up onto the bridge. Blood dripped from my neck, streaming over the rocks.
“Oh hell, Selena.” Cass pressed her hands to my neck, stemming the blood flow.
“I'm alright. Just go.” I managed to crawl toward the ledge and Sakura helped me up onto it.
As Cass joined us, she ripped a large swathe of material from her dress and held it to my neck, absorbing the blood.
I panted my thanks, dropping my head back onto the rocks as I caught my breath.
“Here.” Sakura brought my stake to my lips and I grimaced as I licked the blood off it. After a few moments, the pain in my neck and head eased and I felt ready to move again.
Cass helped me to my feet and we journeyed on, huddling together through the narrow passage leading away from the canyon. The metal wire had come loose from my cuff, but as we rounded a corner, I discovered I no longer needed the light.
Glow worms illuminated the cave roof, like stars in the night sky.
Cass and Sakura extinguished the holograms on their cuffs and we followed the silver trail above us deeper into the cave system. Soon, we reached a dark pool of water where the twinkling lights reflected in its inky surface.
“We have to go through,” I said, pointing to the passage on the other side.
“Take your cloaks off, put them in your bags,” Sakura suggested, shedding her own and tucking it away.
We moved into the pool, holding our packs above our heads. The water was numbingly cold and I was soon up to my waist in it. I tried not to think of the monsters I imagined living in the depths of this pool, but every splash made me jump. By the time we made it to the other side, we were shivering and our teeth were chattering violently.
“H-here, we'll start a f-fire,” Cass said, moving to higher ground where the floor was dry. Taking her kindling from her bag, she arranged it in a neat pile before striking the single match she had. The flames took and we worked quickly to encourage the fire, ripping small slithers of material off of our dry cloaks to burn. The fire burned low, but it was enough to warm us up and, within a couple of hours, we were dry enough to stop our persistent shivering. Eating a handful of berries each, we resolved to continue on, following the map into the belly of the mountain.
As the hours ticked by, I grew worried about the lack of Vs we'd come across. “Where are they all?”
“Maybe they're chasing the other girls,” Cass replied.
“Hope so,” Sakura remarked without remorse.
I shot her a glare and she rolled her eyes.
“What? You'd rather it was you they were hunting?”
I remained silent, taking the lead as guilt tugged at my gut. I wanted to be good enough that I didn't think that way. But I knew Sakura was right. I'd rather the Vs were off hunting someone other than us.
We reached a sheer wall, blocking our way. Milky white stalactites hung from the roof, so sharp they looked as though they'd be lethal if they fell on us.
“Where now?” I asked, turning back to the others.
A pool of water lay at the base of the rock and Cass splashed through it, following it along the wall. “This water has to go somewhere.”
The rushing sound of an underground river confirmed her theory. Sakura perched on a rock, taking a drink whilst we hunted for a way out.
The further Cass moved into the pool, the deeper it got and she was soon submerged up to her chest. She gasped then dropped under the water.
“Cass!” I cried, splashing through the pool after her.
Her cuff illuminated beneath the water and disappeared into the darkness. I gazed left and right, the cold water making me panic.
The blue glow of her cuff reappeared and Cass resurfaced, dragging down a lungful of air. “There's a way through.”
Relief spilled through me.
“I am not going down there,” Sakura said from her rock, shaking her head.
“Suit yourself,” Cass said, turning to me. “Come on. It's not that far.”
I nodded, taking her hand and readying myself mentally for what I was about to do. Before we disappeared under the rocks, Sakura sprang to her feet.
“Wait! I'm coming.”
“Hurry up about it, then,” Cass urged, huffing her frustration.
Sakura waded into the pool, reaching for my hand. I clasped my fingers with hers, finding them trembling.
“It'll be fine,” I said and she nodded, not looking convinced.
“Follow me,” Cass said, gulping down some air and diving under again.
I took out the flare in my bag, snapping it and letting it sink to the bottom of the pool, illuminating the way in a red flow. I dragged Sakura after me as I dove under, squinting through the dark pool and following the light. Sakura's hold on me was vice-like, making it difficult for me to swim. But I couldn't deny, I was reassured by her presence, too.
I kicked as hard as I could, pressing my hand to the rock above my head as I moved through a large hole beneath it. The light of Cass's cuff disappeared and I swam harder, panicking as I lost sight of her.
There was nothing I could do but swim on. My lungs burned for air, my chest compressing with the cold.
Dark thoughts crept into my mind. I wasn't going to make it. The water was weighing me down like a tonne of bricks. I kicked out violently, desperate to find air.
I needed to get out.
I had to reach the surface.
Despite my flailing, Sakura never let go of my hand and, somehow, my head breached the water. I threw my head back, gasping down as much oxygen as I could.
In a heartbeat, I knew something was wrong.
Cass's light shimmered on the roof as she flailed on the rocks at the edge of the pool, battling against an emaciated V. I couldn't tell if it was male or female, its body so thin it was practically bones.
The snapping of its jaw sounded through the cave as Cass fought it off with all her might.
I shook off Sakura's hand, scrambling toward the edge of the pool. The rocks were slippery as I tried to drag myself out, digging my fingers into the cracks, desperate to reach Cass.
The V's head snapped around and all I saw was a tangle of matted hair and sharp teeth as it lunged toward me.
I reared backwards, but the V never made contact. Cass appeared above it, slamming her stake between its ribs. The V died with a jerk and a grunt and bluish blood poured into the water around me.
Sakura cursed loudly, swimming to my side.
Together, we crawled out of the pool. Cass stood there, breathing heavily, clutching her neck.
“It bit me,” she whispered and I tugged at her arm to the see wound.
“It's alright,” I encouraged. It wasn't deep. The V had barely gotten its fangs into her.
“Why did it stop feeding on me?” Cass breathed.
“You.” Sakura gazed at me with a look of dismay. “It went after you.”
A chill ran through me and I tried to shrug off the comment. “Don't be ridiculous.” But my conversation with Varick filled my mind. If I really did have more desirable blood than the others, it was a miracle I'd gotten this far.
The chances of me getting through this round seemed to dim before my eyes.
“I'm not going to turn into one of them, am I?” Cass thankfully changed the subject, giving me a wide-eyed look of horror.
I quickly shook my head. “No. I don't think it works like that.” Of course, I didn't really know what I was talking about. I'd never thought to ask Varick how someone became a Vampire. But I'd been bitten before and hadn't felt any strange effects from it, even if I had been healed shortly after.
“Think you have to die first, then you'll change,” Sakura said, wringing the water from her skirt.
“After you've been bitten?” Cass asked in horror.
Sakura shrugged. “I heard one of the girls talking to Varick about it.” She stood up straight, flicking her hair back which looked as dark a purple as her dress now that it was wet. “He's kind of hot, isn't he? In a psycho sort of way.”
I wasn't sure what to say to that. And the knowledge that Varick was almost certainly watching us right now made me blush. What the hell kind of a reaction was that? I just prayed the dark and the blue lights on our cuffs had hidden my response.
“He's a V, Sakura,” Cass spat. “How can you even look at him that way?”
I busied myself by starting to search for an exit to the cave, pretending to be entirely uninterested in their conversation.
“I'm just saying. Guy like that was probably model hot before he died. Now he's like, a super Vampire.”
“I don't care what he looks like,” Cass snarled. “If any Vampire comes near me, they all get the same treatment. A stake through the heart.”
“Can we drop this?” I said as lightly as I could. “I'd like to get out of this cave, today.”
“Well this was your great plan, Red, now where do we go?” Sakura folded her arms, lifting a brow at Cass. Cass looked ready to punch her.
“How about you make a suggestion for once?” Cass barked. “This was our plan, why not go make your own?”
Their voices were raising and it was making me nervous. “Guys, please. Can you shut up and help me here?”
I moved along the cave wall, shining my light around the space, searching desperately for a way forward. Their arguing continued, both of them completely ignoring me.
I sighed, shuffling along a narrow edge beside the water. I didn't want to get back into it any time soon. My core temperature had plummeted and the sooner we got somewhere dry, the better.
My heart juddered as I found a way out: a tiny crawl space at my feet, just big enough for us to squeeze through. Maybe.
When I turned back to the others, who were shouting at the top of their lungs, I lost it.
“Shut the hell up!” I barked and they fell silent. I lowered my voice to a whisper. “You wanna bring every V in these caves down on our heads?”
They shifted guiltily in front of me.
I sighed, pointing to the gap in the rock. “This is our way out.”
Cass marched away from Sakura, joining my side. A blood-curdling shriek sounded from across the room and we all swung our lights in that direction. On the other side of the pool, high up on the wall was a dark hole that led out of the cave we were in. And something was shuffling its way through it.
“Go,” Sakura hissed, waving her hands at us to head through the hole at my feet. Before we could duck into the space, Sakura dived ahead of us, wriggling through head first on her belly.
Cass looked like she was about to stake her, when I pressed a hand to her arm.
“Calm down. We're all going to get out of here.”
Cass went next, slipping into the tiny space with more grace than I knew I would manage.
I dropped to the floor, flattening myself and wriggling forward as fast as I could. After a bone-squeezing minute, the tunnel widened just enough that I could crawl, but the walls still pressed down heavily on my shoulders. I tried not to think about the fact the weight of an entire mountain was resting above me and continued moving, following Cass's feet ahead.
The blue light of my cuff kept blinding me as I moved my wrists and I soon had to turn it off, focusing solely on Cass's light which was filtering around her.
A snuffling, grunting sounded behind me and my heart raced into top gear.
“Go,” I begged and Cass sped up. I shuffled after her as fast as I could, panic setting in. My knees tore against the rocks and my palms were rubbed raw. I tried not to think about the fact I was leaving patches of blood behind me, probably alerting more Vs to our whereabouts.
Cass suddenly stopped and I was crawling so fast I nearly ran into her.
“What are you doing? Move!” I begged, the hairs on the back of my neck standing up.
“I'm stuck!” Sakura cried and Cass grunted with effort as she tried to move her.
“Oh god,” I breathed, the rasping sound of a Vampire's breath rattling its way behind me. I tried to turn my head to look, but the space was too narrow. I tucked in my knees, squashing up as close to Cass as I could.
“Push her!” I practically shrieked.
“I am – she won't budge!” Cass cried.
Claws sank into my ankle.
I screamed as I was dragged backwards, rolling onto my spine as I did so. The position gave me enough room to kick out and I felt my heel connect with bone.
The V made a horrible, screeching noise and I wriggled backwards as fast I could, my head knocking against Cass's boots.
“If we die because of you, Sakura, I'm going to kill you,” Cass said in a strained voice, evidently still shoving her.
The V launched at me again and I scrambled for the stake tucked into my dress. I drew it out, but there was no way I could get near the V to defend myself.
I kicked my legs wildly, trying to evade its hold, but its fingernails dug into me again, dragging me toward it.
I screamed as its jagged teeth sunk into my leg, and with a forceful stomp, my boot connected with its face.
“Selena – move!” Cass's voice reached to me.
In the brief second I had whilst the V recovered from the blow, I moved. Using my elbows, I scrambled backwards as fast as I could, dripping blood in a trail. There was hardly any light for me to see by now, but the dark shadow of the V was moving toward me. Closer and Closer.
Being smaller than the other two gave me some advantage, and I managed to squeeze through the tiny gap that Sakura had evidently been stuck in without stopping.
Hands grabbed my shoulders and I was wrenched out into a wide cave, the V snapping at my heels.
As it darted out of the hole on all fours, Sakura took action, kicking it onto its back and slamming her stake into its heart.
I lay, panting and quivering, my hand clamped so tightly around my stake, it hurt.
I had only a moment to recover as another snarl sounded from the tiny passage.
Cass dragged me to my feet and I hobbled on after them. The cave we'd emerged in was wide and light was filtering into it from up ahead.
“There! It's a way out!” Sakura announced, rushing toward the moonlight.
We sprinted across the loose stones, rising and rising, the promising smell of pine trees washing over me. I could almost taste the fresh air as we clambered upwards, forced to climb on our hands and knees toward the waning moon.
As we emerged from the cave, we crashed down a steep ridge, bursting into the foliage as damp, prickly under-brush tore at my dress. I skidded to a halt in the mud with Cass and Sakura in a heap on either side of me. A laugh of relief escaped me, but it was swiftly silenced by our surroundings. A thick forest surrounded us and a blanket of fog filtered through the boughs.
But it wasn't that that frightened me. It was the dark shapes approaching through the grey mist, emerging, one by one. There had to a thirty of them, or perhaps it only seemed that way because of the tree trunks that swayed and moved too, tricking my mind.
The first of the Vs loomed from the mist, my blood soaked knees and ankles giving us away to them.
It occurred to me that the Vs were here on purpose; they probably knew every cave exit across the entire mountain. And why waste energy hunting us beneath ground? When we'd all eventually end up here, walking straight into their waiting jaws.
Heading the mass was a face that had haunted my dreams last night. I should have known I'd meet with him eventually. And Ravenos looked delighted by our reunion.