Dzar-Ghan (Alien Barbarians of Vandruk #3)

15. Chapter 15

I felt like a newborn. I had never been this exhilarated in my entire life. The shaking of the ground and the sight of that herd of animals stampeding by us called an adrenaline rush in me that compared to nothing I had ever experienced before. The wildness and force of it called to every one of my primal instincts. I wasn’t afraid for a second, which in hindsight I should have, but my trust in Dzar-Ghan to keep me safe was uncanny and unexplainable. Instinctively, I was certain that nothing could happen to me with him by my side. I wasn’t even aware of his closeness to me, the way he had me wedged into the small opening, which normally, having a body squeeze against mine like this would have made me run screaming.

After the herd passed and the air was still humming with the sound of thousands of hooves thundering over it, I made out other noises. Whooping laughter made me look up to see some of the Vandruk warriors high up on thick leaves, holding on to them as if riding the world’s craziest roller coaster.

The wind whipped the heavy leaves this way and that, while the men clung to them like a raft going down rapids. A wave of strange jealousy ran through me at the sight, which was funny because I had never been a roller coaster type of girl. The merry-go-round made me sick as hell. But this? Here? Hell yeah.

Large, thick lightning split the sky, larger than I had ever seen anywhere on Earth. It was mesmerizing in its brutal beauty. On some level, I realized that being hit by one of them would not be fun and probably would be the end of all fun. Still, seeing Mother Nature’s fury—was this still Mother Nature even on an alien planet?—unleashed was a sight to behold.

It took me a moment to realize that something was pushing against my legs and that my feet were getting soaking wet despite the waterproof boots I wore. When I looked down, I discovered the culprit. I was standing in water, reaching half of my calves, climbing steadily, and what was pressing against my legs were my backpacks being washed out.

“Dzar-Ghan!” I called, grabbing the first of the backpacks and tossing it at him.

“Leave!” he commanded.

Stubbornly, I shook my head. I could not leave any of these backpacks. One contained the explosives I might need, another my glasses and contacts, and the third my equipment and samples I had already collected. Ignoring him, I tossed a second backpack at him, shouldering the third. Thankfully, they were airtight and waterproof.

For a moment, I feared Dzar-Ghan would ignore my wishes and toss the packs out of the crevice we were hiding in, but with a resigned, annoyed glance at me, he stepped out, shouldering both.

He heaved me up one of the twisted trees with leaves, and within seconds, I was wetter than a cat. Still, I tried to climb up higher as Dzar-Ghan ascended below me. It seemed like I would get my wish to ride one of the leaves after all. Being soaked, loaded with a backpack, and out in the open didn’t sound that appealing any longer, though.

I dared a look down. The rain had already turned the place we had camped into a raging river, slowly rising above the boulders that had hidden Dzar-Ghan and me from the herd of buffalo-like beasts. They had been much bigger than buffalo, and I could have sworn they had six legs, but they had run by so quickly that it had been hard to count. The water was still rising, making me wonder if we would be safe on these trees despite their formidable size.

Dzar-Ghan indicated for me to climb on one of the leaves.

“Hell no!” I yelled over the sound of rain, wind, and thunder.

“Jenna!” he yelled back.

Incredulously, I watched him jump at one of the leaves, holding on with one hand. He sat down on it, straddling it with his humongous legs and curling his finger for me to follow.

Wide-eyed, I shook my head. I would rather cling to this tree for the rest of my life than jump out onto the leaf. Besides, I wouldn’t be able to jump that far, not with the backpack on my back, which made me think of Dzar-Ghan, his weight and the packs on his back. Yeah, no.

The leaf swayed in the wind, but not as hard as it had before the rain gained intensity, effectively turning the wind down a few notches.

My shaking arms were the first indication that I wouldn’t be able to cling to this tree for the rest of my life. Next came a small cramp in my feet from standing on the narrow groove.

Below me was a nasty, dirty-looking, frenzied river that now encircled our tree and several others. Below were the boulders somewhere, only visible because white foam was created by the now submerged rocks.

I summoned up my courage, cheering myself that if I missed the leaf, I would land in water. I could swim. I would stand a chance. A minuscule one, but it was a chance.

Can’t hang out here forever, McKenzie , I cheered myself.

Dzar-Ghan was watching me intently as I maneuvered myself so that I was facing him now with my back to the tree, holding on with one shaky arm. Here goes nothing , I thought, pushing myself off the tree toward the leaf. Just like I had feared, I didn’t make it far enough. Dzar-Ghan’s outstretched hand grabbed into thin air as I flailed down the tree, hitting my shoulder against it, which gave me more momentum than my jump. Before I had time to prepare myself, I hit the water. The current swept me instantly away, making me feel like a leaf now.