Tessa never expected what followed next, because complete chaos descended in an instant.
Zephyr lunged first. Zane charged after him. Valen followed too, yelling something that sounded heroic but was mostly panic. Tessa, not wanting to witness the horrifying result of her men being turned into minced meat, screamed at the top of her lungs.
"It's looking at me, guys! And I'm not even seasoned meat yet!"
Then, in her attempt to retreat dramatically, she tripped off the stump she had been sitting on and rolled across the ground like a worm sprinkled with salt.
Dust flew everywhere as she flailed helplessly. Somehow, while rolling, she still had enough sense to crawl toward a huge rock nearby and hide behind it like her life depended on it.
Actually, her life really did depend on it, because Tessa had no intention of becoming roasted barbecue for some oversized forest monster.
Minutes later, the struggle ended.
