pale, his hair wind-swept and eyes huge. Still conscious, but barely.She couldn’t help but laugh. “You alive back there?”He gave a tiny, helpless nod.
“Good.” “Barrel rolls?” she asked Yelena. Yelena's answering rumble was a resounding “yes,” if Sammy ever heard one. With a few powerful flaps, Yelena ascended again, slicing through the cold upper air like a dagger. The wind sang around them. Adam didn’t say anything this time. He just held on for dear life.
Then—without warning—Yelena dipped one wing and rolled. The world flipped. Sky became ground, ground became sky, and Sammy whooped with joy, her arms spread for balance. Adam, behind her, let out a small squeak before falling entirely silent. His grip was still tight, but his body had gone limp.
She turned her head.
“Adam?”
No response.
“Adam—?”
He was out cold. Eyes closed, face blank, head tilted against her shoulder.
Sammy barely had time to process before she felt the shift in balance—his weight slid off the saddle. Her heart leapt into her throat.
“Yelena, GO!”
Yelena dove.
The Sorhebi twisted her body into a lightning-fast descent, her eyes locked on the tiny figure tumbling through the air below. Sammy didn’t hesitate. She stood in the saddle, one hand gripping the reins, the other outstretched.Wind screamed past her ears. Her heart pounded.Closer. Closer.Adam jolted awake mid-fall, flailing wildly and letting out a panicked scream.“ADAM!” His eyes locked onto hers just as Yelena leveled out beneath him. Sammy lunged.She caught him with both arms—his weight slamming into her chest as her feet staggered back onto the saddle. Yelena held steady beneath them, gliding smoothly through the air. Sammy dropped to one knee, pulling Adam close against her to keep him from slipping again.“You alright?” she asked over the wind, her voice breathless but amused. Adam was trembling, face redder than ever, and clearly unsure if he should speak or cry. Sammy just laughed again and squeezed him gently. “Next time,” she said with a grin, “we’ll skip the barrel rolls.”Yelena chirped in agreement beneath them, wings gleaming as they glided smoothly across the sky.
Adam was shaking violently with some pre tears threatening to fall, Sammy gave him a sympathizing face and said “Sorry”, she felt bad for him and soon started to head towards the fishing pond where most sorhebi’s go to at this time. She sat down and Adam who was smaller than her remained in front of her, he was clinging onto her and she couldn’t help but chuckle. She looked down and enjoyed the view of the purple canopy below them, the adrenaline that was pumped into her as Adam fell, started to disappear and she started to calm down. Suddenly Yelena started sniffing downward, and said “Danger”.Sammy gave a concerned look and before she said anything a creature she knew all too well jumped up at them, it knocked Yelana off of her balance and they started to descend quite fast.
Sammy who started to feel angry, pulled up on the saddle helping the weight shift back so Yelana could find balance. Yelena opened her wings and caught some air, they slowed down but still hit the ground. Yelena landed on her feet but slid a little before stopping. Sammy started to hear the rustling and cries and growls, Yelena started to growl and Sammy who wanted to protect Adam and Yelena got off, adam still clung to her and she released his hands and picked him up. She put him on Yelena and told her “ Take care of Adam and get him far from here, I will take care of the fugato, meet you at the fishing pond”. Adam was shaking and was talking but she couldn’t understand him. She stopped him and pointed away from her in the direction of the fish pond. Yelena took off and she could hear Adam cry out before Yelana flew away. She angled her ears in the direction of the beast, it was feet away and she could hear it circling around her. She then saw two red eyes glowing out of the bushes, she spat “Come and get me”.
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Sammy’s boots skidded against the earth, loose gravel scattering as she braced herself. The Fugato’s red eyes blazed from the underbrush, the low rumble of its growl vibrating through the soles of her feet.She had no gun. No knife. Only her bare hands, her instincts — and the savage determination roaring in her chest.The Fugato sprang with a shriek that split the quiet forest. Sammy twisted just in time, narrowly avoiding the first swipe of its wicked claws. She felt the air tear past her cheek, and then the sting — shallow cuts burning across her face where the tips grazed her skin.She didn’t have time to cry out.The beast spun, faster than its size should have allowed, and lashed out with its tail. The heavy, ridged appendage cracked against her thigh, and Sammy’s knee buckled. She stumbled, falling hard against the rocky ground. Pain exploded in her leg — hot, sharp — and when she looked, she saw blood already soaking through the torn fabric of her brightly colored uniform. A deep gash ran across her thigh, pulsing blood with every frantic heartbeat.She gritted her teeth and dragged herself upright. Her uniform — once a vibrant collage of purples, teals, and orange — was now splattered with blood, hers and the Fugato’s. It clung wetly to her skin, sticky and heavy.The Fugato prowled closer, its body rippling, its nostrils flaring at the scent of fresh blood.Sammy staggered back, desperate for anything — any weapon. Her eyes landed on a thick, broken branch half-buried near the tree roots. Ignoring the screaming pain in her leg, she limped forward and snatched it up, holding it like a spear.The beast lunged again. Sammy yelled, meeting it head-on. She swung the branch with both hands, smashing it across the creature’s muzzle. The impact cracked the wood and sent a shower of splinters into the air. The Fugato reeled, dazed but not defeated.
Before it could recover, Sammy stabbed the broken end into its side, burying it deep into the gap between two ribs. The Fugato howled, flailing wildly, and one of its claws raked across her arm, slicing through the thin fabric of her sleeve and leaving shallow, burning cuts.
The branch snapped from the force of the struggle, and Sammy was thrown backwards, crashing against a tree trunk. Her breath left her in a gasp. Spots danced across her vision.
She blinked them away. She couldn’t stop now.Adam was counting on her. Yelena was counting on her.Dragging herself upright, she limped toward a jagged rock half-buried in the dirt. She barely managed to grasp it as the Fugato, blood gushing from its wound, stumbled toward her once more.Sammy didn’t hesitate. As it leapt, she pivoted and smashed the rock into its face, feeling the sickening crunch of bone and flesh. The creature shrieked in pain, and she struck again, this time aiming directly for its eye. The Fugato collapsed with a guttural wail, thrashing in the dirt. Sammy dropped the rock and staggered forward, slipping on the blood-soaked ground. She clambered onto the beast’s heaving back, gripped the broken branch still lodged in its side, and with a guttural roar, drove it in deeper, twisting until she felt the resistance break.
The Fugato gave a final convulsion — then went still.
Silence fell over the battered clearing, broken only by Sammy’s ragged breathing. Blood dripped from her leg, her face stung from her scratches, and every muscle in her body screamed in protest. She wiped her forehead with the sleeve of her ruined, vibrant jacket, smearing blood and dirt across the colorful patterns. The bright colors seemed almost mocking now against the grimness of the fight.Sammy stumbled back a step, then turned and found a rock to sit on. She didn't have anything on her so she improvised and toor off a peace of clothing to wrap around her wound. Her leg was screaming with pain, she tried to ignore it. Knowing she needed medical attion she started to limp in the direction of Base Mudashi, knowing yazmina she would have search parties out looking for her. She needed to make it easy for them so she started slowly treking through the forest.
