The air in the tunnel was thick with fear as the knights hastily regrouped, their plan to strike the Garon a second time teetering on the edge of chaos. Orders were shouted, shields were raised, and spears were leveled, but the tension was palpable. Kalem stood at the rear of the group, gripping his spear tightly. His mind raced, torn between the impulse to flee and the faint hope that the knights might somehow succeed in stopping the beast.
But hope was fleeting.
Without warning, the Garon erupted from the shadows, a blur of crimson scales and bony protrusions that seemed to materialize from the darkness itself. It moved with a speed that defied its massive size, crashing into the front lines with a force that shook the ground. The knights, so confident moments ago, were thrown aside like ragdolls.
The beast's claws sliced through armor with ease, leaving deep, jagged wounds in their wake. Its tail, a deadly club of bone, swung in wide arcs, smashing shields and breaking bones with every swing. Blood sprayed across the tunnel walls, and the anguished cries of the dying filled the air.
Kalem stood frozen, his body trembling as he watched the chaos unfold. The knights' shouts of "Hold the line!" were swallowed by the beast's deafening roar, a sound so primal and overwhelming that it seemed to shake the very walls of the tunnel.
The miners, positioned as a living barrier between the beast and the knights, were the first to fall. The Garon tore through them with merciless efficiency, its claws rending flesh and bone with every strike. Men screamed and stumbled, some dropping their weapons as they scrambled to escape.
The front lines disintegrated in seconds. The Garon leaped forward with terrifying speed, its bony tail sweeping through the knights like a scythe through wheat. The carefully planned formation collapsed, and panic rippled through the group like wildfire.
"Fall back!" someone yelled, their voice barely audible over the cacophony of battle.
But falling back was easier said than done. The narrow tunnel became a bottleneck of terrified men, all pushing and shoving in their desperation to escape. Kalem found himself swept up in the tide, his spear nearly wrenched from his grasp as he was jostled from all sides.
The Garon pursued, relentless in its assault. Its azure eyes glowed with an unnatural light, locking onto the fleeing men with predatory focus. It lunged forward, its claws ripping through those too slow to escape. Its bony tail smashed into the ground, sending shockwaves through the tunnel and knocking others off their feet.
Kalem ran, his breath coming in ragged gasps. His legs burned with exertion, but the adrenaline coursing through his veins pushed him onward. Around him, men stumbled and fell, their cries of pain lost in the chaos. The scent of blood and sweat filled the air, a sickening reminder of the carnage unfolding behind him.
The tunnel was a maze of flickering torchlight and shifting shadows, and Kalem struggled to keep his bearings. He could hear the Garon's guttural growls growing closer, its heavy footsteps reverberating through the ground.
A man ahead of him tripped, falling to the ground with a desperate cry. Kalem didn't stop. He couldn't stop. Survival was the only thing that mattered now.
As the group neared the exit, a faint glimmer of hope flickered in Kalem's chest. The light of the surface was just ahead—a beacon of safety in the suffocating darkness. But that hope was short-lived.
The Garon let out another ear-piercing roar, a sound that froze the blood in Kalem's veins. It leaped forward, landing in the middle of the fleeing men and cutting off their path. Its claws and teeth tore through flesh, leaving a trail of devastation in its wake.
Kalem stumbled, his heart pounding as he tried to find another way out. Around him, men screamed and scrambled, their terror palpable. The Garon's tail slammed into the ground inches from Kalem, sending a spray of dirt and rock into the air.
He ducked, narrowly avoiding the lethal swing, and darted to the side. His breath came in short, ragged gasps as he searched for an opening, any way to escape the beast's wrath.
The faint light of the surface grew brighter as more men pushed toward the exit, but salvation came at a cost. Arrows rained down from above, loosed by city guards stationed at the mouth of the tunnel. The officials had ordered a brutal measure to contain the Garon—eliminate everyone who tried to return to the city, ensuring the beast wouldn't follow.
Kalem watched in horror as the fleeing men were cut down, their bodies collapsing in a bloody heap just steps from freedom. The light of hope dimmed, replaced by the grim reality of their situation.
Death came from all sides—behind them, the Garon wreaked havoc, its claws and teeth tearing through flesh. Ahead, arrows fell like deadly rain, ensuring no one could escape.
Kalem's mind raced, his thoughts a jumbled mess of fear and despair. He felt the walls closing in around him, the weight of the situation threatening to crush him.
In that moment, Kalem's survival instincts took over. He darted toward a narrow side passage, his body moving on autopilot. The sounds of the slaughter faded into the background as he ran, his focus narrowing to the singular goal of escape.
The passage was dark and cramped, the walls pressing in on all sides. Kalem stumbled over loose rocks and debris, his breath coming in shallow gasps. His muscles burned, his legs threatening to give out, but he didn't stop.
When he finally emerged into a small, hidden alcove, he collapsed to the ground, his body trembling with exhaustion and fear. He leaned against the wall, his chest heaving as he tried to catch his breath.
The sounds of the Garon's rampage were distant now, muffled by the layers of rock between them. For the first time since the attack began, Kalem allowed himself to breathe.
But his relief was short-lived. The image of the beast's glowing eyes and the screams of his companions haunted him, a reminder that the nightmare was far from over.
Kalem sat in the darkness, his spear clutched tightly in his hands. He was alive—for now. But he knew the Garon would not stop, and neither would the cruelty of those who had sent them to die.
In the quiet of the alcove, Kalem felt the weight of the world pressing down on him. He wasn't sure what frightened him more: the beast that hunted them or the people who had abandoned them.