Excerpt: Goblins- Book Two

The howling of the Gruegs carried far on the chill night air, Druzill could see her breath in the wind as the fear spread through her shaking limbs. The branches of thick forest trees scratched at her face as she ran through them heading for the shore.
Tripping over a log, Druzill landed in a pile of damp leaves. Getting up and running once again, she could tell the Gruegs were getting closer. Druzill began to whimper as she ran. She was trying to move quietly, but she knew now she was beyond hiding. All she had wanted was the Stone.
She knew the Gruegs were the protectors of Trumble Island, everyone knew they were. Five hundred years of waiting and still no one had come close to getting the Toulou Stone. Whatever she'd thought about taking on this brave venture, she now regretted. However she had wanted to help her own kind, she now knew it was a fool's errand, as it was for those who had tried before her.
Coming to a trampled strip of grass, Druzill began running more freely. The howls of the Gruegs were close enough to make her panic, she had no time to second guess her path to the beach. If she could just reach the boat she may be safe. Coming around a corner and leaping into the sand, Druzill let a smile pass onto her lips, she was going to make it, she knew she was. As she sped across the beach toward the small boat she rowed to the island, Druzill could hear the Gruegs break through the trees. Their howling and barking eclipsed the sound of the waves rolling angrily into the beach. Jumping through the water, Druzill pushed at the small dingy, moving it away from the shore. The night ocean was against her though, and wave after wave crested into her.
Just as she started to crawl into the boat, a paddle in one hand, something latched onto her ankle. The pain was overwhelming. Druzill could feel the venom of the Grueg creeping up her leg almost instantly. It was a waking nightmare, she already knew what this meant. She would pass into sleep and be a meal for the beasts. Their spit was a powerful drug against other beings. Druzill began to cry as she realized the extremity of her situation. Looking to the moon as the beasts surrounded the tiny boat, Druzill offered up a short plea, “Let my life not be wasted”.
Druzill passed into sleep as the dog-like animals crowded through the water, climbing into the boat. As they tore into her warm flesh, a star shot across the late night sky, signaling the coming of a new dawn.