Jake didn’t like them much either.

“What do we do?” Marika said.

Both Nefertiti and Shaduf answered at the same time … though their responses were vastly different.

“We fight,” Nefertiti said, and lifted a spear.

“We run,” Shaduf cautioned, and pointed.

The decision was made for them.

Jake spotted a flicker as something shot past overhead. He might have missed it, but it wafted straight through the smoke of his torch. He swung around, searching for it, but couldn’t find it.

Had he imagined it?

Before he could decide, a warbling screech rose from all directions. A mass of saurians burst from the surrounding chutes, tunnels, and canyons. The creatures ran on two legs, hissing and shouldering into one another. Each bore a sickle-shaped claw poking from the back of its ankle.

Jake recognized them like old friends.

Velociraptors.

Only these specimens were gangly, twisted and starved versions of the pack that had greeted them in Deshret. And there was something else about them, a shine of a malignant cunning in their eyes. Shaduf had warned that the creatures here were affected by living in the shadow of Ankh Tawy.

A chaotic battle ensued. Jake and his friends got backed against a wall, but the people of Deshret had lived for ages among such beasts. Spears, swords, and clubs fended off the first attack.

A larger bellow rose from another canyon. It trumpeted its anger. Heavy running footfalls headed their way.

The velociraptors scattered like a flock of frightened birds.

Nefertiti and Shaduf shared a look. This time they were in agreement.

“RUN!” they both shouted.

Unfortunately, they didn’t say where.

The group fled in all directions. Jake sprinted with his torch, following Nefertiti and Marika. Bach’uuk and Pindor kept close behind.

Again Jake felt something brush through the air, grazing the top of his head. Startled, he ducked to the side, expecting to hit rock, but found only shadow—and a pit. He fell headlong, sliding down a steep open chute. Rocks and sand followed.

“Jake!” Marika yelled.

After a breathless fall, he landed in a cavern and skidded across the floor atop a wash of sand. He rolled quickly to his feet. He had managed to keep hold of his torch and held it toward the hole. Way above, he saw a shadowed face.

“Marika!”

“Are you all right?” she shouted.

He took inventory. He had all of his parts. “Yes! But there’s no way I can climb back up. It’s too steep.”

“We’ll find a rope!” Pindor hollered.

Unfortunately, all their yelling did not go unnoticed. A roaring scream echoed down from above. It sounded close—and closing in.

“Go!” he called to them. “I’ll find a way to join up with you!”

To make sure they didn’t stay and attempt a rescue, Jake retreated across the cavern to a dark tunnel. He pointed his torch ahead of him, lighting the way, and set off.

He sought a tunnel that headed up, but the passageway he was in kept going deeper. Each step dribbled more sweat down his back. His ears strained for any sign of threat, any hint where the others had gone.