Chapter 2

The ground vibrated under Fallon's cheek. A low, rhythmic thumping that slowly pulled her back from the darkness.

She groaned, her head pounding like a drum. Her eyelids felt heavy, glued shut with exhaustion. She forced them open, blinking against the dim light filtering through the trees.

She lifted a heavy hand, wiping at the sticky wetness on her cheek. It came away dark red. Dried blood.

The smell hit her next. Raw, metallic, overwhelming. Her stomach heaved, and she gagged, turning her head to the side.

She pushed herself up on shaky arms, her muscles screaming in protest. As her vision cleared, she saw it. The beast. The monster that had tried to kill her.

It was lying a few feet away, completely still. Its neck was twisted at a grotesque angle, its tongue lolling out of its mouth. Dead.

Fallon sucked in a breath, her heart starting to race again. She had almost been that thing's dinner.

Then she heard it. A slow, heavy dragging sound. Scrape. Hiss. Scrape.

It came from behind the beast's corpse. The sound of scales rubbing against stone.

Fallon held her breath, her eyes locked on the shadows.

A head emerged. A snake head the size of an SUV's front end. It was covered in scales that shimmered with a cold, metallic sheen-silver mixed with black. They looked like armor plating.

A strangled gasp escaped Fallon's throat. Her fingers dug into the mud, her nails breaking.

The snake's eyes locked onto her. They were terrifying. One was a cold, icy silver. The other was a dark, blood red. Both had vertical slits for pupils, staring at her with an unblinking intensity.

A forked tongue flicked out, tasting the air. Tasting her.

Fallon's mind flashed to nature documentaries. Snakes did that to smell their prey. To see if it was worth eating.

She tried to move back, to put more distance between them, but her back was already against the tree. There was nowhere to go.

The giant serpent moved. Its massive body slithered around the beast's corpse, heading straight for her. The sound of its scales crushing the underbrush was deafening. Bushes snapped like twigs under its weight.

Fallon squeezed her eyes shut. Wake up. Wake up. This is just a nightmare.

Then, something cold touched her ankle.

Her eyes flew open. The snake's tail was wrapped around her leg. The scales were surprisingly smooth, but the grip was unbreakable. It was like being trapped in a vice made of ice.

The snake's head lowered, stopping inches from her face. She could see every individual scale, the way they overlapped perfectly. Its breath washed over her, smelling of raw meat and something ancient.

Those mismatched eyes stared into hers. In them, Fallon saw her own terrified face reflected back.

The snake tilted its head slightly. The motion was almost... curious. Like a dog seeing a new toy.

But Fallon didn't feel like a toy. She felt like a mouse trapped under the gaze of a hawk. The cold reality of her situation crashed over her. She was going to be eaten. This thing was just playing with its food.

Her mind snapped. The fear was too much. It was a physical pressure crushing her chest.

She opened her mouth to scream, to beg, but no sound came out. Her throat was closed tight. Black spots danced at the edge of her vision.

She didn't faint, but her body went completely limp, paralyzed by a primal shock. She squeezed her eyes shut, her breathing shallow and erratic. She was trapped in a waking nightmare, her muscles locked tight in a state of sheer, unadulterated terror as she felt the massive creature looming over her, waiting for the fatal strike.