Extraordinary Zoology Read Online Free PDF Page B

roof. Her broad snout, somewhere between feline and porcine, glistened with stinky saliva, and the long, tangled fur of her mane was matted with mud and blood. She blinked against the daylight, reached for the pup with one hairy arm, and snorted, catching new scents.
    She looked at Pendrake and growled, a low belly-growl that seemed to say “I hate you” and “I want to eat you” at the same time.
    Pendrake backed away slowly. “Do as I do,” he whispered, his left hand low, his lucky bow also low in his right hand. Horgash began backing up as well, his carbine held the same way. As nonthreateningly as possible.
    Lynus also stepped backward, and his boot squish-crunched in the mud and thatch—the loudest possible step he could have taken. He looked down to check his next step and saw a boot-sized muddy clump of fur right next to his foot.
    Morrow preserve me. Another pup.
    It opened a pair of wet black eyes, stared up at Lynus, and let out a low growl.
    He looked at mama gorax. She pulled herself the rest of the way out of the burrow and snorted again. She stood, drawing herself up to nine feet of mud, stink, and fur, and swung her low-slung head side to side, snorting.
    Edrea took a deep breath to Lynus’ left. Had she seen the pup?
    “Professor,” he said, his voice cracking between whisper and whimper, “there’s a second pup between my feet.”
    Horgash flashed Lynus an incredulous, furious glance.
    “On three, run hard to your right,” said Pendrake.
    Mama gorax took a step forward, still snorting, still searching.
    “One.”
    She drew a deep breath and stared at Lynus.
    “Two.”
    Her yellow gaze tracked down between his feet, and her eyes widened.
    “Three.”
    Lynus froze. He was supposed to jump, supposed to run, but mama gorax . . .
    “THREE, LYNUS!” shouted Pendrake.
    Lynus jumped to his left, and mama gorax roared. Then he remembered he was supposed to go to his right, but it was too late for that now. Mama gorax was coming, and Lynus could only hope she was having as much trouble running in this mud as he was. The Radcliffe that had seemed so comforting a few minutes ago was suddenly terribly heavy.
    A sizzling whistle ended in a meaty thump not far behind him, and the gorax roared, her breath hot and rank. Lynus screamed and threw his rifle. Was it shiny enough to distract an angry—
    Two rifles boomed and the gorax screamed in pain, spittle and stink splattering the back of Lynus’ head. Morrow, it was close enough to bite, he could expect teeth or claws any moment.
    A huge hand came at him from his right. Before he could dodge, he realized it was in a sleeve.
    Kinik!
    She grabbed his right arm and yanked him hard to the right. He flung his hands out to break his fall, but he still hit the broken turf so hard his teeth rattled.
    The gorax roared again. He heard a heavy, splashing thump and a horrible crunch.
    Silence.
    Lynus rolled over and sat up.
    Pendrake’s bola was wrapped around the gorax’s feet, and an arrow sprouted from its shoulder. A vicious gash spanned the creature’s back. Kinik stood over the fallen gorax, polearm in her left hand, right hand on her hip. She looked back at him.
    “More than three steps,” she said. “I am lucky to have a polearm and big blades.” Her blade certainly was big, and blood-spattered. That must have been the finishing stroke.
    Lynus blew out a breath and turned toward the others, who were running his way.
    “Brilliantly bungled,” said Pendrake, shaking his head. “Mama turned to follow you, but the angle was wrong.”
    “You still managed to put an arrow into it and your bola around it, old friend,” Horgash said. “Though I think we all know it was my bullet to the heart that felled—“
    Another roar, muffled, rose from the burrow. Everybody turned to look.
    A wall from one of the flattened homes burst upward as another gorax, this one a full-maned male, emerged with a frenzied roar. It bounded up and into the clearing, then