Page 52 of Keldori By Daybreak

I sipped at my Skal as I ran, ignoring that some of the liquid spilled down my chin. Any magick of mine was available to him, and maybe that was just what he needed to survive.

A ripple in the lake surface up ahead brought me to a staggering, disbelieving halt. Something moved across the water, though I was too far to see what it might be.

Maybe it was an animal, or maybe…

I took up my sprint again, not daring to call out Ciarán’s name, not when Ferrin might have soldiers out searching for us already. We’d be easy to find now that it was day, and the only shelters were the rocky outcroppings that jutted into the lake.

The disturbance on the lake disappeared behind one of these outcroppings, and I ignored the ulcer pains in my stomach to speed up and clamber over dew-stricken stone.

My heart lodged in my throat when I looked down at the beach below. Ciarán lay on his back with his head rolled to the side and water-logged hair stuck to his face, but as worried as I was about how limp and lifeless he looked, I only had eyes for the monster standing over him.

It had a face like a fox and a wolfish body and tail, but its coat was a soft, desaturated green that made it difficult to see against the backdrop of gray lakeshore. The jade fur of its front legs gave way to rough gray scales, and massive talons kneaded at the rocks next to Ciarán where paws should have been.

“Get away from him!” A blue flail appeared in hand as I charged down the sloping rock.

The beast skittered backwards, sending up a spray of pebbles, but then stopped and pawed at the ground again. A soft whine whistled through its long snout, and its head bobbed between me and Ciarán where he lay beneath me.

I dropped to my knees, letting my flail turn to steam.

“Ciarán?” I shook him by his shoulders. When he remained unresponsive, the fox-wolf-bird monster gave another whine. “Come on, Ciarán, don’t do this to me.”

I bent over his lips, trying unsuccessfully to feel and listen for breathing. I tried to listen for him in my mind too, but the blood rushing in my ears was too loud.

Or maybe there was nothing left of Ciarán for me to hear. I tapped on his face. His head lolled to the side as his mouth hung open.

“Not again!” I hissed. “You can’t die again!”

I knew CPR. I’d learned it in Sports Medicine class. I’d never done it on a real person, just the dummy the instructor had dragged out of the supply closet, but how different could it be?

They’d told us to start with rescue breaths when the victim had drowned. Right. Just breathe directly into his mouth.

I could do that.

I held Ciarán’s nose closed with one shaking hand and used the other to angle his chin upwards and ensure a clear airway. I gave the monster one last glance, took a deep breath, and then bent in towards Ciarán to lock my mouth over his cold lips. His chest expanded under my elbow as I exhaled and—

Ciarán’s body heaved, and sour, regurgitated water forced its way down my throat. Ciarán gagged as he shoved me off him, still expelling lake water. I scrambled away, retching on Ciarán’s vomit until my own stomach heaved to add its content to the foul mix.

“What the hell, Wren!” Ciarán choked. His low Skal supply had left his eyes amber and white, and they glared at me through the hair that hung in his face.

“I thought you were dead!”

“So you kissed me?” His voice was a horrified hiss.

Mortification brought heat surging to my face.

“It was CPR! It was supposed to revive you!” I spit into the rocks, still unable to get rid of the taste of Ciarán’s bile.

“Oh, I’m certainly revived.” He gagged again, and his arms shook as he tried to hold himself up, but then his jaw went slack and his eyes wide. If he’d had any color left in his face, I was sure his cheeks would’ve drained of it.

“Get behind me.” Ciarán pushed forward on his knees in a feeble attempt to put himself between me and the beast that continued to watch us. His body spasmed, and I caught him before he landed in the rocks.

“It’s fine. I think,” I whispered, lowering Ciarán to his back but watching the monster. “It’s what dragged you out of the water, and it hasn’t eaten us yet.”

Ciarán’s eyes flitted from the monster to me, and something about the way the tether between us twinged told me he’d only just realized I was no longer in my Nightmare form.

The creature whined again, still pawing at the ground.

“It’s an onchú,” Ciarán explained.