STAIN (The Centre of Magical Affairs Book 5) by DM Gilmore

Author:DM Gilmore [Gilmore, DM]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2023-06-30T16:00:00+00:00

24

Asher struggled to maintain a grip on the plant as he climbed his way up to the next pod. The trunk was slick and waxy, which made it difficult for him to maintain his grip, even with his claws. It was almost like the plant was specifically designed in a way to hunt drakes. As that thought hit Asher's head, he had to shove it aside, lest he dwell on it longer than was safe. He could worry about the peculiar adaptations of the predatory plant later. For now, he still had two teammates to rescue.

With Damian dealing with the drone flowers down below, it at least gave Asher some breathing room up above. The drones were far too occupied dealing with the drake currently shooting them their equivalent of snack pellets to bother defending the larger body from the assailant presently climbing up its trunk. However, that didn't mean the larger flower was defenceless.

Far from it. As Asher continued to climb, the flower continued to fight back. Everything from vines thrown his way to waxy sap pouring down its side, the foul foliage was pouring out every trick it had in its arsenal to stop Asher from reaching the second pod. None of it was enough to slow him down.

Asher idly noticed that his shield didn't cut through the truck of the plant in the same way that it sliced through the vines or the pods, but he chalked that up to variable mana sensitivity. The vines were essentially sensory organs and therefore had to be significantly more sensitive to mana than the main body. As a result, something as mundane as a shield could effortlessly slice through them. The pods were of similar makeup. If Asher's assumptions were right, the pods were essentially stomachs through which the plant absorbed its victim's mana. Because of this, the pods were more like vines than the main trunk and much more vulnerable to attacks.

As Asher neared the second pod, he considered cutting it at the base, as he had Damian's. He quickly reconsidered that notion, though, when he realized how high up they were. If Rosa was inside, she was liable to get hurt if he sliced her down. Cluj might be able to endure the fall, but Asher couldn't tell who was in the pod at a glance. Gritting his teeth from the effort, Asher climbed a few more feet up the side of the plant before activating his shield again.

As before, the shield sliced cleanly through the pod, and the severed half fell away with a gush of purple bile. As it tumbled away, Asher noticed Cluj tightly squeezed in the space. The larger drake let out a gasp for air, breathing deep as his eyes snapped open furiously.

Then, he looked down.

Asher could honestly say he never expected such a scream to come out of Cluj's mouth, even as the larger man clung to the side of the tree for dear life, with one foot still firmly wedged inside the pod.

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