Chapter 3 --3 . Giant beasts.
One of the vultures suddenly veered off-course and slammed into another. Wings collided mid-air with a violent snap, and the calm, calculated circling broke. A jagged line split the sky between them as they dove and twisted, beaks snapping, talons flailing.
Kaya narrowed her eyes.
They weren’t coming for her.
No...
They were after something else—another body, maybe. Another feast. But even that didn’t feel right. Only two vultures were locked in combat. The others kept circling as if the fight didn’t concern them.
Then her gaze caught on something.
In the claw of one of the vultures... something small. Feathered. Struggling. It wasn’t clear from this distance, but it looked like a small bird—alive, or barely. Her stomach twisted. What were they doing?
The two vultures dove at each other again, this time with a fury that made her wince. It wasn’t scavenging. It was personal. One struck the other hard, sending it spiraling downward, wings flailing before it crashed into the dirt with a heavy, bone-crunching thud.
Then—
The victorious vulture looked up.
Right at her.