Inside the left Citadel.
One of two larger wolfthrall hit Hide like a vehicle.
It came in low, the chains on its shackled legs trailing behind it like iron streamers, four thick limbs driving off the flagstones with the kind of force that came from something that weighed as much as a man's wardrobe.
Hide had half a second of warning from the sound, the chain rattle separating from the pack noise, growing louder and he threw himself sideways.
But, not far enough.
The beast's shoulder caught him across the hip and sent him spinning two full rotations before he hit the floor and rolled. The Carapace took the stone impact, growing all over his body, tearing his cloths to shreds and everything he had along with it.
The two cards, and his communicator hit the ground.
His back scraped the flagstones hard and he was already rising before the roll finished, the Abyssal Flame surging up his forearms in automatic response to the damage input.
The hall filled his vision.
