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Then she noticed the rumble in the ground. Her eyes snapped back to the specialist who was still crossing.

Dakii were coming.

The specialist hadn’t sensed them yet, though he was still crossing. There was nowhere for them to hide, she realized, as she scanned the figure’s surroundings. She tried telling Pyetar they had to help, but his gloved hand was still muffling her words.

“If we help, we will die too,” Pyetar whispered against her ear.

She didn’t want to believe it.

There was a small gap, letting her peer between the rocky overhang and the mound of snow Pyetar had made. She wished she couldn’t see at all, but she couldn’t tear her eyes away.

The rumbling had grown louder, and the specialist finally seemed to realize. They froze, a lone figure unmoving in the snow. And then they started running back toward the trees.

Dakii rounded the bend farther down and started pouring into the field. There were so many of them. Dozens after dozens of gray-blue beasts pounded through the snow. And they’d sensed the specialist, aiming right toward them.

Pyetar removed his hand from her mouth, but he held her close. She clung to him, hands clenched so tightly around his arm she was sure it would bruise.

The figure was running so fast through the snow she could hardly believe it, but the dakii were faster. They weren’t going to make it.

The specialist seemed to realize it too, stopping and turning to face the oncoming horde.

A purple beast spear formed in their hand and they took a readied stance. They were going to go down fighting.

She swallowed a shaky breath. Iryana was about to watch this person die. And she was going to do nothing about it. Her stomach roiled and her skin prickled like little bugs were dancing across her flesh.

The specialist took down two dakii before they were knocked down.

A dakya pounced, body arching over the snow, black-toothed maw gaping wide. Iryana flinched.

A bloodcurdling scream ripped across the snowy landscape before abruptly cutting out.

She pressed her hands over her ears to block out the sounds of the dakii ripping the soldier’s body apart. Eventually, they calmed down, devouring the specialist. But the danger wasn’t over. The pack would finish crossing the field.

She was breathing so quickly she was starting to get lightheaded, and she could hear Pyetar’s own rapid breathing.

“Let me hold the shield,” Pyetar said, voice low and barely audible as he curled over her.

Iryana realized he was already holding his own shield out, the mostly transparent white magic near impossible to see against the snow.

The dakii moved on, continuing their race across the snowy field. Running directly toward where Iryana and Pyetar hid.

They curled around each other, pressing against the boulder and burying their heads down. Iryana could only see a sliver of Pyetar’s face in the dim light from the gap he’d left. His eyes were wide as moons, holding her gaze in a sort of trance. Don’t look away and we’ll be fine, those eyes seemed to say. Iryana didn’t dare look away.

It was like thunder moving through the ground. Like an earthquake making her teeth chatter. The dakii grew closer and closer until Iryana was holding her breath. They passed so close, splitting around the boulder and flinging up so much snow that the small gap was quickly covered. Their hiding place went dark.

Please don’t smell us. Please don’t hear us, she begged.

She stared at Pyetar’s face, even though she could hardly see it. Held her breath until her lungs burned and she had to suck in air as quietly as she could. Clung to Pyetar as she tried not to think too hard about dakii suddenly ripping Pyetar away from her.

Then the dakii were past.

Iryana slumped.

Long after the dakii had moved on, they finally climbed out from under the boulder.

“We have to keep going,” Iryana croaked, blinking at the bright sun reflecting off the white.

Pyetar nodded and swallowed.