It had no name that she knew of, no title except in the superstitions of those who avoided these lands. They called it \"The Howl Beneath Flesh.\u201d Naya had first thought it a story meant to keep fools like herself away from treasures long buried. Now, after seeing the iridescent eyes that glimmered like lanterns in the dark and the sinuous, sinewy, not-quite-human figure that seemed more shadow than flesh, she knew better.<\/p>\n
The ground trembled beneath her boots. She didn\u2019t dare look back; she\u2019d made that mistake before. The beast thrived on fear, growing larger, faster, more relentless with every ounce of it she exuded. She gritted her teeth and pushed forward as the canyon narrowed, the walls closing in around her. If this path failed, she'd have nowhere to go. Just rock, sky, and the hunger she could feel licking at her heels.<\/p>\n
The image of Eryx\u2019s face, stern and weathered from years of guiding desperate fools like her across the desert, flashed unbidden in her mind. \u201cThe Wailing Canyons will eat you alive,\u201d he had said over a dinner of roasted cactus. His thick mustache twitched as he added, \u201cNo man or woman smart enough to listen walks into them without a damn good reason.\u201d<\/p>\n
Her reason had been more than good. It had been holy, or at least that\u2019s what she had told her companions in the caravan. The artifact could save lives. Heal her sick brother back in Sonora. Protect entire villages from drought with the rains it could summon. Eryx didn\u2019t believe her, and neither had anyone else in the caravan, but Naya had money and determination. They couldn\u2019t argue with that.<\/p>\n
What few companions she had convinced to follow her had already paid the price: Lirio had been the first, snatched in the night when even the fire they had built couldn\u2019t hold the shadows at bay. Mako had turned on her just before dawn, claiming the artifact belonged to him, drawing his knife and lunging before the beast found him, spitting him out in pieces. Naya had been the last to leave the camp, and now, she was the only one left to outrun the scrape of clawed feet in the darkness.<\/p>\n
Her legs burned, her lungs clawing for air, but she reached the thin ledge that rose at the canyon wall\u2019s dead end. The cliff face tilted upward, treacherous and barely scalable, but it was the single path left to her. The artifact hummed louder now, vibrating against her ribs like the pulse of something alive. Did it mock her, this thing she had spilled innocent blood for? Or was it guiding her? Drawing her somewhere? Toward salvation? Or annihilation?<\/p>\n
She yanked the satchel off her shoulder and slammed it against the rock, her voice breaking as she whispered through gritted teeth, \u201cWhat... do you want?!\u201d The only answer was the haunting wail of the wind.<\/p>\n
Behind her, the shadows coalesced, alive and watching. The beast stepped into the dying light, towering, slick, and gleaming like oil made flesh. Its eyes, twin lanterns of blue fire, pinned her in place as if daring her to make her move. Her hand jerked toward the satchel instinctively, fingers curling around its strap.<\/p>\n
Naya\u2019s knees trembled, but she met the beast\u2019s stare. Her voice was raw but firm. \u201cYou don\u2019t decide what I\u2019m worth.\u201d The words felt stolen from somewhere deep inside her, a memory or a hope she no longer recognized. She threw the satchel against the cliffside. The artifact tumbled out, its glow intensifying, flooding the canyon in an almost blinding wash of light. The beast howled, a keening, primal sound that shook the air around them.<\/p>\n
She didn\u2019t expect to feel hope; maybe she didn\u2019t even deserve it. But as the artifact\u2019s light engulfed her\u2014a surge of power not her own tugging her forward\u2014Naya leapt, higher than the canyon walls, higher than fear, higher than the claws she could feel scraping a hair\u2019s breadth below her boot.<\/p>\n
The Wailing Canyons devoured everything in their depths. But not her. Not that day.<\/p>\n
Dark Fantasy<\/p>\n
The Source<\/strong>...check out the great article that inspired this amazing short story: THIS is how you can finally stop criticizing yourself<\/a><\/p>\n
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