SHADOWS OF THE BEASTS ( SENTIGINX ONE)

Chapter Twenty Two

Andrew's heart pounded in his chest as adrenaline coursed through his veins. He gripped the rough,
gnarled branch tightly, the bark biting into his calloused palms.
With a sharp intake of breath, he rose to his feet, muscles tensed and ready to strike.

"That's our last chance..." he muttered through gritted teeth, his voice a low growl laced with determination.

His gaze locked onto the hulking alpha, the beast's maw slick with frothy saliva, fangs bared in a vicious snarl.
Andrew could smell the musky scent of the creature, could hear its ragged breaths ripping through flared nostrils. This was it - kill or be killed in the harsh, unforgiving wilderness.

"Let me finish it," Andrew declared,
Andrew's fingers curled tightly around the rough, weathered bark of the massive fallen branch lying at his feet.
It was as thick as his forearm and easily twice his height - a formidable weapon if wielded properly. He bent down, muscles straining, and wrapped his hands around the gnarled wood, picking it up with a grunt of exertion.

The solid heft of the makeshift club sent a tremor up his arms as he straightened, holding it aloft like a battering ram. The air felt thick with tension,
the silence of the forest shattered only by his own ragged breaths. With slow, purposeful steps, Andrew advanced on the snarling alpha predator blocking his path. 

Every instinct screamed at him to run, to flee from this apex beast that could tear him to shreds without breaking a sweat. But there was no more running - it was him or the alpha.
Only one of them would survive this encounter.

Adrenaline lent Andrew's tired arms a surge of strength as he raised the massive branch high overhead, balancing the weight. His jaw clenched, teeth grinding together as he steadied his aim. One shot, one opportunity to bring the alpha's reign to a brutal end.

"This is it," he growled under his breath, glaring straight into the animal's feral eyes. "Time to die, you bastard."

With every ounce of his being poured into the swing,
Andrew brought the club arcing down with a defiant bellow. If his aim was true, if his desperation-fueled power was enough, the blow could crush the alpha's skull like an overripe melon.
This was his chance to survive, to live another day in this harsh, unforgiving wilderness.

"No, let me do it," Cindi's voice  rang out, steady and resolute.

Her eyes - those eyes shone with an otherworldly golden light that made his breath catch in his throat. She leveled her gaze at the snarling beast, undaunted by its vicious snarls and gnashing fangs.

Those luminous irises seemed to flare brighter for just an instant. The alpha, a creature of such feral might and savagery, froze instantly in its tracks as if turned to solid stone. Its growls fell silent, muscles locking rigidly in place mid-lunge. The forest seemed to hold its breath, awaiting her next move.

With a subtle twitch of her fingers, fine tremors rippled through the air around the immobilized predator. Invisible tendrils of power danced and wove, binding the alpha in an inescapable grip. A faint whistling built to a shrill whine as the unseen forces constricted. 

Andrew could only gape as jagged cracks began spreading across the beast's statuesque form like creeping vines of ice. What sorcery was this? He watched, awestruck, as the fissures multiplied with exponential speed until the alpha's entire body fragmented into a thousand crystalline shards.

The deafening shatter of its petrification rang out like the snapping of a million bones. Razor-edged splinters scattered in a blinding flurry, raining down all around in a glittering hail. When it finally settled, all that remained was a pile of winking fragments amidst the stillness of the forest.