Praetorian Rising, стр. 91
The venom started to rage through Phillip's veins, and he shook violently as though he was having a seizure. His body bucked and jerked beneath Camille's hand, red oozing from his mouth and nose as though his body was rejecting his own blood.
"No, please, no!" Charlie begged as Theo yanked her back. "You can't do this!"
Camille handed Vesyon the blade and stood, moving closer to the wall of putrid, stinking Chimera flesh to get away from what she was about to witness. Neeko growled from above, his warning loud and clear: The Equestrians were coming.
"I'll go!" Camille shouted. "Take Phillip with you and leave me. You could make it to White Wall—once the King Regent has me, this will all end."
"Yes," Charlie said in a manic rush of hope, her amber eyes sharp like a hawk searching for prey.
"No!" Theo and Vesyon said in unison.
"You will not hand yourself over to the King Regent! Not now. Not ever," Vesyon said sharply. "It wouldn't do anything to end this war, I promise you." He put his hand out to keep Camille back, his eyes forcing her feet to remain solidly where she stood.
Phillip lay before them in a pool of his own blood, drowning in a mountain of venom and about to die at Vesyon's hand. Camille watched as Vesyon grasped Phillip's hand tightly, their eyes connecting for a long moment.
"Forgive me, my friend," Vesyon murmured.
Phillip's voice was gone, but he blinked several times as if to say, please end this torture.
Vesyon lifted the knife up, angling it for the swiftest and least painful death. Camille couldn't avert her eyes and inhaled a shaky breath, filling her nose with the metallic tang of blood and slain beasts as Vesyon drove the dagger into Phillip's heart.
Without warning, a crushing weight slammed against Camille’s back and she shot forward into the mud. She landed on her left side as sharp fangs clamped down on her right shoulder, arm, and abdomen. A violent scream burst from her lips as searing pain invaded her every cell, wrenching, tearing, and destroying until she saw only blackness.
Chapter Nineteen
White Wall
Vesyon was in motion the second the Chimera pounced on top of Camille, but he was too slow to save her from the beast’s piercing bites. Her scream penetrated the silence as Theo rushed forward, slashing the Chimera's throat in one fluid motion.
"Cam! Oh, Ma'Nada!" Theo shoved manically at the gigantic animal as Vesyon managed to pull her free from underneath it.
The Chimera had bitten her, it's venom now coursing through her body. Together they assessed the damage and saw that it went clean to the bone, far worse than the wounds Phillip had endured.
"Camille, damn it! You don't get to die on me, you hear?!" Vesyon said in a rush. Each puncture was deathly black against her alabaster skin blood seeping from them staining her clothes.
Neeko growled loudly, racing back and forth from his lookout spot.
"We need to move!" Vesyon said, glancing over his shoulder to see Charlie still sprawled over her father's body. "Charlie, come on!"
Another explosion rang out as they quickly made their way over the pile of dead Chimera and down the hill. With the thankful protection of cloud and smoke cover, Vesyon's small group made their way east of the village grounds, and he silently thanked Phillip for allowing him to complete the plan they'd formulated. They'd held off the Chimera and Equestrians as long as they could, and it was far past the time to flee.
"They infiltrated the compound just like you predicted," Theo huffed beside Vesyon, dragging a sobbing Charlie along. "What now?"
"We'll make our way to White Wall," Vesyon said, readjusting Camille's limp and feverish body in his arms before bounding through the underbrush.
Neeko sprinted in front of Vesyon and bobbed his head around, pointing his snout in the direction of impending danger.
"Damn it!" Vesyon cursed, catching a whiff of that horrendous, floral scent at their backs. The Night Rave was coming, and judging by the multitude of footsteps, the woman in red had brought some friends.
Vesyon found the spot he'd prepared the previous evening, where several sturdy grey mares stood in waiting for them. "You must get her to the White Wall. No exceptions!" Vesyon said as Theo hopped onto the first horse and reached out for Camille.
"What's that strange smell?" Theo asked furtively, arranging a now somewhat conscious Camille behind him on the saddle. Vesyon moved to secure her while keeping an eye out over his shoulder for an incoming invasion.
"LeMarc's new regiment—Night Raves. I only saw the one but, there must be more. Theo, don't waste any time. Head west through the flatlands and keep a good distance from Dwaa. You must cross the Syene River and get Camille to Langhorn."
Vesyon mounted his own horse, adjusting his postion to face what sounded like a herd of Chimera charging through the forest toward himself, Charlie, and Neeko. Turning back to Theo, his face appeared like a ghost from the shadows. "You can lose them beyond the bridge past Syene. I'll join you when I can," Vesyon said, yanking Charlie up behind him on his horse.
Theo dug his heels in, and his mare shot forward, Camille's long copper tresses like a flag of fire in the wind.
There was little light so far from the fire of the compound. Darkness spread around them like a shroud, their last mode of protection giving them mere hours to the breaking of dawn.
Lifting his face to the swollen, rain-filled clouds hanging over his head like malevolent gods, he felt a tremor of hope. Camille would make it to White Wall, she would live, and the war for their freedom would continue.
***
Theo sped off through the trees on his mare, Jolie, while urging Camille to hold on tight. The