My scream tore through the trees like it could split the sky.
The pain was unlike anything I had ever known. It was white-hot, like someone had poured molten iron straight into my veins. My body arched, jerked, my limbs flailing helplessly as the rogue's teeth sank into my arm.
I heard the sickening crunch of bone.
I felt the tear of muscle.
The scent of my own blood filled the air, thick and metallic, like rusting iron under rain. It soaked through my shirt, spilled across my skin in hot rivulets.
My vision blurred with tears as I slammed my fist weakly against the beast's head. But it didn't budge.
I couldn't breathe.
Couldn't move.
I was going to die.
The rogue let go suddenly, like something had startled it. I didn't see what. I didn't have the strength to turn my head. I collapsed onto the dirt like a puppet with its strings cut, limbs trembling uncontrollably. Every nerve in my body was screaming.
My heart thudded against my ribs like a war drum, uneven and frantic.
