The Crimson War: A Space Opera: Book Three of The Shadow Order by Michael Robertson

Author:Michael Robertson [Robertson, Michael]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Phalanx Press
Published: 2017-02-07T07:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Seb’s world remained in slow motion as he ran from the beast. The rush of the massive creature lifted the sewer water up onto the path behind him. If he slowed down, the flood of shitty waste would take his feet away.

Although he still had no idea which way would lead him from the tunnels, it seemed more important to turn now than ever. When Seb came to the next left, he took it.

The sudden sharp turn seemed too much for the beast; it overshot it and crashed into a wall. Bricks fell from the dark ceiling and rained down on the path around Seb. Fortunately, none hit him. The vibration shook the place so hard they must have felt it in the elevated city.

The monster gave chase again, drawing closer to Seb with every passing second.

The pathway narrowed up ahead and Seb took his chance to cross over to the other side. This time he turned right at the next tunnel.

Another loud crash as the creature collided with the wall again. The vibration would have registered on the Richter scale, but it did nothing to slow the creature down. In fact, it had already closed the gap on him.

By the time Seb made his next sharp turn, the creature had almost drawn level with him. A glance down at the water and he saw the black leather dome of its head break the surface, cutting a path through the river like a ship’s prow.

Another turn and the monster crashed into the wall again. Seb felt the spray of the filthy water against the side of his face. Because everything moved in slow motion, he had time to think about the reality of what coated him—one of the disadvantages of his gift.

As Seb ran, he wiped his face with his sleeve and looked ahead. A slight change in the light showed the ground highlighted with silver. Moonlight! The sewer’s exit sat just metres away.

Exhaustion threatened to turn Seb’s legs to jelly and his lungs burned, but he pushed on regardless. Clumsy as he moved, his torchlight swayed from side to side with his pumping arms.

The creature had pulled level again, almost as if it toyed with Seb, showing off its ability to destroy him whenever it pleased. It had lifted its head completely free from the water, and it looked at him again with its dark glare.

The black eye he’d seen beneath the murky water seemed even darker now—it looked even larger too. This creature didn’t belong on this plane. It looked like a denizen of hell.

Another look at the exit and Seb only had a few metres to go. When he turned back to look at the monster, he saw it had gone. But where?

Before Seb could think on it any further, a loud explosion accompanied the huge domed black head of the beast rising from the water between him and his way out of there. It filled the tunnel, shutting out any sliver of moonlight. It had the same strands of torn, black skin hanging down in front of its mouth like the other one had.

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