Hive Knight: A Dark Fantasy LitRPG (Trinity of the Hive Book 1) Grayson Sinclair (book recommendations website .TXT) 📖

A thin line of blood snaked from my bicep down to my hand, a tear in my shirt told me I’d snagged my arm on something.

My heart froze in my chest. The ghoul could smell the fresh blood. It knew we were here and was taking its time hunting us. Micah was unaware of this, still crying into his hands, but I knew it was only a matter of time, and I had to make a move. Sitting here would get us both killed.

I was the one injured, and it would follow my scent. I had to get away from Micah, or he would die along with me.

“Micah, listen to me,” I said, shaking him to get his attention. “There's a ghoul up ahead.”

He looked up at me with tears streaming down his face. “Sammy, I’m scared.”

I brushed his hair back the way Mom always did with us. “I know you are. I am too. But I need you to be brave for me right now, can you do that?”

He gave me the barest half nod. “I’ll try.”

“Good. Now when I give you the signal, I’m going to jump out and lead the ghoul away from here, and when I do, I want you to run as fast as you can. Go straight ahead. In about two miles, there’s a camp. Hide somewhere close and wait until sunrise.”

“Don’t leave me!” Micah sobbed.

“No choice, bud, I’m bleeding. It’s already got my scent, so I can’t get away,” I hugged him tight, one last time. “All right, get ready.”

I released him and crept around the car. The ghoul was closer now, maybe fifteen feet away. If I time this wrong, I’m dead. A few shards of taillight littered the ground beside me, and I snatched them up, ignoring the pain as they sliced into my skin, and tossed them in front of me. They scattered in the air, turning the moonlight into a bloody kaleidoscope and pinged off a row of cars in front of me.

The ghoul turned its head at the sound, and I took off at a dead sprint hollering at the top of my lungs, waiting for it to chase me. I made it to the other side of the road before I realized the ghoul wasn’t coming after me.

I stopped and turned back to see it in the same position, not moving a muscle. It’s neon blue eyes glowed bright as it stared at me, opening its mouth wide. Thousands upon thousands of sliver needles formed a grim smile, and I realized I’d been played.

Two more ghouls dropped down from one of the buildings nearby. Right next to Micah. He hadn’t moved from the car, and they were right on top of him.

“Micah, run!” I yelled and ran as fast as I could, trying to reach him before they did.

I didn’t make it.

One of them lunged at Micah as he ran. He threw himself to the side, almost dodging it…almost.

The ghoul wrapped its teeth around his arm, taking it clean off in one bite. Blood fountained from his stump, but his eyes glazed, he was in shock, I could tell he didn’t even feel it. He fell to his knees and looked straight at me.

“Sammy—”

The other ghouls swarmed him.

The last sight of my brother was him staring at me with tears in his eyes. Waiting for me to save him.

Micah died, waiting for me to save him.

I didn’t remember the next few minutes. My mind refused to process anything. When I came back to myself, I ran—ran as fast as I could, away from my dead family—trying to outrun my failures. I ran until I couldn’t anymore.

My body wouldn’t respond to me, and I crashed to the asphalt, lying amid the dead and ruined city, waiting for it to be my turn.

How I didn’t die right there is a mystery. I lay in that street for hours, as night waned and the sun rose over the burned-out skyscrapers. When the sun reached the road, I knew it was safe for me to move, but I couldn’t. I lay there as the sun continued to bake overhead, burning what exposed skin I had. I let it, and I welcomed the pain, the burning concrete, and my bone-dry lips and mouth.

If the ghouls wouldn’t take my life, then the beating sun would. I stayed there, waiting for my life to end so that I could be with my family.

Fate had other plans, as I eventually heard footsteps approaching me. I ignored them, hoping they would leave me to my end. They didn’t and crept closer and closer. Eventually, they stood over me, shielding me from the sun for the first time in hours.

“Another poor soul. Decent pair of shoes, though. Strip him, and let’s move on. We’re burning daylight.”

I was roughly turned over, and the harsh light of the sun blinded me, forcing me to cover my eyes.

“By the abandoned god. He’s alive. Quick, get him some water,” someone said.

Another set of rapidly approaching feet. A canteen of water was brought to my lips, and soothing water dripped, which I drank greedily.

“Easy there, don’t drink too much too fast.”

I opened my eyes to stare at an unfamiliar face. It was a girl with a kind smile who grinned even wider when I opened my eyes. “Heya there, I’m Sophia. Nice to meet you!”

She was the first person who showed kindness to me, and that kindness never wavered. She was too kind for that broken world, and she was too kind for this world as well. And I let her die.

I didn’t want to think about that anymore, didn’t want to remember them. It only brought pain. Eris didn’t mean to throw open that door, but she had, and it was always hard to close it again.