[IP] Hurry

“Shit, shit, shit!”

The water-topped marsh floor beneath my boots threatened to swallow my feet with every step, forcing me to expend more energy than I would have liked to continue my sprint. Fiery balls flew through the air, exploding left and right, never quite able to reach the walls that towered ahead in the distance. And there, right in the direction I was headed, I could see the crowd gathered around the slowly closing Doors.

A blast behind me sent me flying forward, landing on my front in the shallow waters. The ache in my back was the least of my worries, though, as I felt the sharp pain of something clamping its jaw down onto my leg. Letting out a cry, I turned over, only to see one of the horrific quadrupedal horned beasts successfully tearing through my armor. Before I could even react to it, though, an arrow struck its eye, and with a spurt of blood, it ceased all motion.

Frantically, I pulled the beast from my leg before standing, and turning back, I saw the Goddess on the other side, gesturing for her people to return. With the shrill, borderline unnatural howl of the beasts behind me, I began my sprint anew with a limp. Now, though, my leg burned with near the same heat my throat did, though it stemmed from more than just the scorching air around me.

As I continued to pull my legs through the water, I could soon enough feel the weight of my armor slowing me down. In an act of desperation, I pulled out my knife, and began cutting away at the straps from my arm pieces, tossing them to the ground before attempting to remove the top pieces from my uninjured leg.

Hearing the sound of splashing water behind me, I looked around just in time to see another of the beasts near me, red energy flicking about it’s spiky mane. With a quick dodge to the left, I just barely managed to avoid the resulting blast. After slowing down slightly, I struck my knife right into the top of its skull, before pulling away and continuing to the gates.

With Her figure and the walls growing ever larger ahead, I could just make out the sounds of cries in the distance. Shouts from men and women alike as the crowd finally began to thin in the ever-shrinking gap. Near the back of the crowd, I could see those standing and looking out, and among them, a few familiar faces. One of them waved their arms and appeared to be shouting, but I couldn’t make out what they were saying until I got a little closer. The other, all the while, appeared to have a crossbow at the ready.

“Duck!” I finally made out, and only just managed to drop to my knees before I heard a snarl behind me, followed shortly after by a pained cry, a thump, and then a splash.

“Come on! Come on!” they shouted, motivating me to pull myself back to my feet despite my screaming legs and arms. In what seemed like an instant, I went from running, to being carried between the two of them through the gates as more blasts shook the ground beneath us.

“I’m…” I began to try and choke out.

“We made it!” he cried. “You’re going to be fine, we’re gonna get you checked out!”

“No… one of them… bit me…”

They both slowed to a stop just as the booming sound of the shutting gates filled the air.

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r/IUniven