We quickly wake everyone up, light every lantern we have, and draw our weapons. Backs are pressed against rock walls, and each second seems to turn into eternity. For some of the most feared warriors in all of the known universe; I see fear on every face. Copaie are known to run straight into battle, win or lose. "You can't fight what you can't see." Amancia told me that one. No one knows much about what is making the scratching noise. The Copaie call it Furbos, or simply Fear. You never see much of it, but you do see its destruction. A few of its victims become food but most seem to be killed for the sake of killing. They are like a Copaie without morals.

             We are all waiting for the General's word on what to do. Apparently, making a run for it would mean certain death. For now, we stand at the ready, weapons held high. Soon we are surrounded by the sounds of the scratching and skittering noises, and then, all at once, everything grows silent. Not a sound is heard but the heavy breathing of fifty Copaie. Maybe the Furbos have left. Maybe they decided not to attack? I look around at everyone, seeing no signs of relaxation. Every muscle on everybody is tense. Or maybe it's just wishful thinking, that they went away.

             A noise that I have never heard before, starts out quiet and grows louder and louder, echoing off the rock walls. It's a cross between, a growl, a scream, and a roar. And then mayhem erupts all around me. I catch flashes of movement in the lantern light. Something large and green darts around us. The light reflects off of large teeth and sharp claws. I hear the sounds of metal blades occasionally hitting rock, screams of pain from both Copaie and Furbos.

             "To Minerva!" the General yells. "We will take our chances getting there!"

            It becomes a mad scramble of yellow skin and green scales, as everyone flees. I follow behind, surrounded on all sides by Copaie, Amancia running beside me. I lose track of time as I run. Seconds turn into minutes which turns into hours. The dim light from the lanterns barely lights the path in front of us. Colors run together and become blurs as we pass trees, flowers, and vines. The sounds of screaming fill my ears until I'm sure that I will never be able to hear anything else. I see Copaie after Copaie fall, and occasionally see green clawed hands reach out and slash someone new. And then I feel that Amancia is no longer running beside me. I look back to find her on the ground, having tripped over a large tree root.

            "Amancia!" I shout, as I stop and turn back. I run back in her direction and see something large with a long muzzle grab hold of her leg and pull her back towards the cave. "No!" I shout, pushing myself to run faster. The General turns and sees his daughter's predicament. He turns and races her direction as well. He reaches her first and swings his raptor blade at the Furbos biting her leg. A large cut opens on the creature's face. The Furbos lets go, and screams at him, giving Amancia enough time to turn and ram her blade into its chest. It screams again and swipes its claws, cutting the nearby vines in half. I make it to Amancia and help her up. She throws an arm over my shoulder, and the General offers his shoulder on her other side. We move as fast as we can, with her in between us. Another flash of green and sharp claws appears to my right, and the General goes down. I slow down and prop Amancia up against a nearby tree, turning to see what I can do to help.

             "No!" the General shouts, his blade cutting the Furbos again and again. "Get my daughter out of here!"

            I hesitate momentarily and see a few other Copaie running to help their leader. I turn back towards Amancia, prop my left shoulder under her arm and continue back in the direction we were running. I don't see the attack coming this time, instead feeling the sharpness of teeth in my right arm. I am jerked to the right and see Amancia hitting the ground. I am caught unarmed, having lost my blade at some point while fleeing. I am drug over roots and vines, in the opposite direction of where I need to be going. Branches slap me in the face, cutting my face, my neck, and my body. I am drug over a dead body, and I grab the blade, with my free hand, laying nearby. I turn and slash the Furbos's eye. Blood runs down its face and into its eyes, causing it to let go of me.

            That's all I needed. I take off back in the right direction, the screams of the Furbos echoing around me. There's only one problem, I don't see any signs of anyone else. Where did they go? Fear fuels my body and I run faster than I ever have before. I whip my head from side to side, looking for anyone, but seeing no one. I can hear one of the Furbos getting closer. I run for a while, but I can feel my body starting to slow down. I can't run forever; I have run longer than most could ever hope of doing. But still, exhaustion is creeping up on me. I will eventually run out of energy and will be eaten. But I won't go down without a fight. I will take as many down with me as I can. I take a deep breath, stop, and turn around to face my inevitable death. I want to face my death head on like a true warrior. I don't want to die running like a coward. I back myself up against a tree and wait.

           The Furbos chasing me must also sense my end, because it too slows down. It's walking on two, muscular back legs, and soon two more appear beside of it.

            "Bring it on!" I shout at them. And bring it they do. One jumps at me and my blade slices across its stomach, spilling guts everywhere. It falls over with a heavy thud, dead. Lucky hit. Maybe I can bring one more down before they end me. The next one slashes at me with its claws, and I drop the blade as I duck and cover my face with my hands. It grabs my blade in its mouth and runs off. "Hey! Bring that back!" I shout, heading for the creature. The other Furbos screams and heads my way, and I back towards the tree again. I press both hands against the tree as the creature jumps. The tree gives way behind me, and I stumble backwards into the empty space. I see a door slide shut behind and then darkness as I black out.