Neena looked down the rocky spire at the fawn's mutilated remains. Fear coursed through her, as she said, "The blood looks fresh. My guess is that the Abomination killed the fawn this morning."
Kai nodded gravely.
"I think it was related to the Rydeer," she added.
"What do you mean?" Kai asked.
Neena quietly told the story of the game she'd almost caught, until the sandstorm surprised her. She told how she had spared the fawn's life, fearing it would die without its mother. Of course, that didn't matter now.
Even from their high perch, Neena saw the thick cloud of flies swarming and descending, laying their eggs. More scavenging animals besides birds wouldn't be far behind. In a land so desolate, no creature refused an easy meal.
Looking at the ground, she pictured the enormous Abomination bursting up, bashing through the ledge on which they stood, and knocking them into its mouth.
Kai's words about his hunting party came back to her.
I heard the screams. I saw the creature swallow them whole, as it erupted from the ground.
Neena stared south, in the direction of her colony. Red Rock was still two full days' travel away. Thinking of her colony reminded her of the hunters she'd seen on a hilltop two days ago. Those men were probably close to home by now. After a sandstorm as bad as this one, they would've cut their trips short to check on their families.
Or maybe they were food for the monster.
A shiver of dread ran through her. The next mangled body they found might be one of her colonists. The other hunters might not respect her, but she didn't wish a death like that on anyone.
They drank their water sparingly, waiting in silence for a long while, shifting positions occasionally, when their legs grew tired. The perch was wide enough to fit them adequately, but not comfortably. More than once, Neena caught her balance so she wouldn't fall.
The desert held an eerie silence.
It felt as if the landscape was holding its breath.
Neena saw no sign of rats, or even the squawking birds that had left earlier.
She couldn't imagine how Kai had spent days like this, living in a constant state of dread. The toll was evident in the circles beneath his eyes, and in his dirty, ripped clothes. She could hear it in his voice, after the days and nights he'd spent in the desert.
Something rumbled.
Neena gripped the wall tightly.
She looked at Kai.
Fear awakened in his eyes as he scanned from east to west.
The rumble came again—faint, but loudly enough that they knew they had heard it. Neena clutched her knife in a sweaty hand. Her heart beat like a trip hammer as she searched the legions of brown dunes. The sun's obscuring rays turned the desert into a mirage; any of those sand hills could actually be a monster, coming to eat them.
Below them, the stream trickled faintly.
The dark holes were entrances to some dark, horrific world.
They waited several tense moments, not moving, not breathing.
Slowly, Kai raised his hand to point toward the desert. He'd found something. Neena followed his finger to the source of his attention: a small, moving dot in the distance going east to west. It was some sort of animal, though it was impossible to tell the species. The animal was small and far enough away that it appeared to be going slowly, but she could tell it was going fast. Another Rydeer, perhaps, or a wolf.
The dot picked up speed, heading behind one of the distant dunes.
She lost sight of it.
Neena adjusted on the ledge, trying to see past the giant mount of sand. Slowly, she and Kai shuffled.
A boom echoed across the desert.
A spray of sand shot up from behind the dune.
A long, piercing screech echoed across the landscape, cutting short in a squeal of agony. Neena's hand flew to her mouth, trapping in a cry she'd never let out.
The sand rained back to the ground, settling behind the dune.
Kai mouthed words she didn't need him to speak. Stay put, stay put…