Daughters of the Night

Chapter 8

The warm babe snuggled in my arms and smelled of honey and milk. His skin was soft and gathered in excess around his thighs and belly. I felt this fierce need to protect him. His mother, Rebecca, smiled at me in understanding.

"Do you want to know his name?" She whispered. Sweat trickled down the side of her face, and her chest rose and fell with great labor. But in her fatigued state, she looked strong. I thought of my own mother who gave birth to me alone in the forest and how frightening that must have been for her. 

I smiled at Rebecca. "Of course." My mind raced through all the common names in Kerberos, which left me unprepared for her answer.

"Juriah, after your brother. I know he was not perfect, but he understood your worth. Perhaps this child will pick up where your brother left off and one day, men and women can live in harmony."

My breath caught for several moments. I looked down at baby Juriah and couldn't prevent the sob of joy that arose from that dark and lonely place when I thought of my brother. An unnecessary panic arose. "Are you sure?"

Rebecca nodded with fierce finality. "He will be raised in only goodness."

I was reminded of my brother's last words. Looking down into the eyes of baby Juriah, I whispered, "You are good, Juriah." The words wrapped around him like his tiny hand wrapped around my finger.

I walked around the cavern to proudly show off little Juriah while his mother rested. Maia also slept, exhausted from delivering the baby. A soft smile on her lips.

The peace within the cavern diminished slowly. A creeping uneasiness surfaced. I placed baby Juriah back in his mother's arms before grabbing my sword to survey outside the cavern's widest opening. I often checked our surroundings for signs of intruders, but this time was different. The women did not notice my sudden departure.

Once outside, I peered through the darkness. Frustrated with my lack of vision, I closed my eyes to listen. There was only a rustle of leaves from the breeze and a slight dripping sound coming from inside the cavern. Besides that, all was silent.

But my shoulders remained tense. Someone or something was watching us.

A low, disturbing growl disrupted the silence. Its unearthly sound entirely foreign to my ears. I assumed the creature crossed our boarders like the Egals that flew by just the day before.

The sound was coming to my right – or maybe to my left? It was impossible to tell because the growl seemed to enter my head as if we were one.

Then the beast lunged forward with legs like a panther and talons like a hawk. I screamed before turning and ducking to avoid the worst of its momentum. Its back leg knocked into my shoulder, and I fell to my knees. Despite the pain from my knees hitting the ground, I swung around and held my blade firm, hoping to impale the beast with the next leap. But it just watched with yellow eyes that glowed and expanded in the fine mist.

Footsteps filled the cavern. "Rhea, are you – " Alasia took a sharp inhale. "What the hell is that?" She whispered.

I held eye contact with the beast and spoke softly. "If you don't have a bow, go inside."

Alasia matched my tone. "I do."

I concentrated on the beast's build to find signs of weakness. Its fur was sleek and looked like someone wiped it down with oils or tar. When it leapt at me, it did so gracefully and almost entirely without sound. Then there were those eyes that glowed and found me in the darkness. I mentally crossed out agility, strength, and sight from its weaknesses.

The talons helped propel the beast forward when it leapt, but I wondered if they prevented speed. Maybe I could run it into the woods and find a way to trip it up, but I couldn't see in the night. I cursed my luck.