I had finished explaining my plan to the other two, and with less than six minutes left, we didn't have the luxury of debating whether it was a good or bad idea.
"Now"
Following Krax, we split from Kaelen, who kept walking toward the exit, while we leaped down, running like madmen.
Krax let me know what they were: Carbivores, creatures that hunt by detecting the amount of carbon dioxide emanating from their prey.
That's an incredibly terrifying hunting mechanism. Basically, the more panicked the prey is and the faster it breathes, the brighter it glows on these creatures' "radar." It's a very evolutionary and visceral concept. Especially in this place where you have to constantly head toward the exit if you don't want to get lost for good.
And it's even worse for us, since we're already at the limit of what we can endure; that caused us to release enough carbon dioxide for them to take the risk of entering another predator's territory.
That boldness would be what got us out of this.
Following Krax, we hopped from one path to another; he was the only one of the three who knew the place well enough to keep us from getting lost in the process.
"How are you feeling?"
I said as I looked behind me to see if they were following us; I still couldn't see them—were they even following us?
"I haven't fully recovered from the previous fight yet"
"Well, you're going to have to try harder if you're still complaining"
I handed him his sword and the boy's, keeping only the dagger for myself. We ran around in circles like mad for another two minutes; I was already doubting my plan. He had at most four minutes left before Kaelen reached the other one.
"There isn't much time left… WATCH OUT!!!"
The sudden appearance of a Carbivore in front of us was the signal we'd been waiting for; it wasn't hard for Krax to push it out of the way.
"Okay, let's move on to the second stage of the plan."
I said, gasping for air.
We started running again, but this time in the same direction toward the exit. This time, we could see the Carbivoros behind us; they were thin and somewhat gray, with plate-like structures on their bodies, but the most chilling part was their foreheads—bald, with a mouth and multiple black dots that must have been their sensors. They didn't have anything we could define as eyes per se.
The worst part is that, for some reason, his attacks were mostly directed at me—what bad luck I have.
They were getting closer and closer as we neared the exit.
"We're going to hit a wall if we keep going, and going back down isn't an option."
"Haha, —he sighed— you're going to have to carry the team; show off some of your skills."
Krax smiled at my words, nodding at me and unsheathing his dark sword.
Thanks to his fencing skills, we managed to take out some of the ones that were too close, which stabilized our path until we reached a wall.
"We can't go any further. Can you keep fighting?"
"Not for much longer."
Krax was already coming out of a fight, and we hadn't stopped moving back and forth—even he must have been at his limit by now.
—Krax and Oberon were trapped between the Cabovoros and the wall, exhausted, worn out, and at their mental limit; their last hope would arrive like a kite crashing to the ground.
Oberon and Krax were surprised by what they'd seen fall, but Oberon quickly regained his composure in the face of their situation—
"Don't forget the plan; you don't have to wear yourself out anymore."
"Yes, now we must go up."
—Oberon and Krax were about to leave, but the terrifying pressure emanating from that creature that had fallen from the sky was so intense it paralyzed them.
Rising as if time meant nothing to it, showing Oberon just how terrifying the beasts living in the tower could be, that creature —if we can still call it that— bore no resemblance to anything Obi had ever seen in his life; it was an enormous being, twice as large as he was, covered in thick, dark fur, only its four legs, its tail, and the many eyes on its forehead were visible.
That creature had managed to reawaken the young hunter's prey instincts—.
"We can't stay here."
"No, really? What made you think that?
"Go to hell."
—Krax and Obi were in a precarious situation where whether that great beast decided to attack first would increase or decrease their chances of survival, but Obi made a huge mistake in his plan; instead of attacking the beast head-on, the Carbivores were retreating. Obi was growing desperate; you could see him sweating profusely, his vision blurring. He had underestimated the intelligence and caution of those creatures, who were already leaving, creating an even bigger problem in a situation where no one could fight anymore—.