Chapter 146

ALEK REACHED FOR THE DAGGER sheathed to his calf then gingerly began to slice into the bottom of the sack, trying to touch it as little as possible. It was tougher than it looked, and he had to saw at it. Then the weight of the body inside ripped through and dropped to the ground with a loud splat. An awful stench wafted up, and he heard someone gagging.

Bet that's Sabyn, he thought. He really can't handle smells. Alek turned to look at the girls. The three of them stared in horror at the mess that was once someone.

YOU COULD BARELY IDENTIFY IT, even as a species. The limbs were black and softened, like the bones within had liquefied. I felt bile rise and hastily turned away, retching. After I stood, wiping my mouth, I realized that sacks like this one hung from as many trees as I could see. Hundreds of lives, young and old, had been taken by the revolting creatures; now left to rot, hanging like grotesque ornaments in this grim forest.

I looked at Loi and whispered, 'Does the for