Beyond the brackish stream was a long stretch of sandy dunes. The mangrove swamp continued on the left side, stretching farther and farther inland until the cliffs beyond looked far distant. The ocean continued on the right side, dark green waves gently rolling in as the partial sunlight sparkled here and there on the crests of the waves.
Not long after he had left the crab's body behind, Xerephon could hear sea birds swooping in to peck at the remains, squawking to each other to pass along the message of free food. It was unlikely any meat would still be there when he returned, but there was little Xerephon could do about it, as even the legs were as bulky to carry as his sword, and his two hands could only hold one thing or the other at any given time.
Up ahead along the beach, it looked like a pair of animals were moving between the dunes. By the size of them and the way they were moving, they looked like either wild dogs or wild cats; dingos or bobcats, perhaps, or wolves or jaguars. It was hard to fit them into one specific category. They were too far away to make out any more detail, other than that they were dark in appearance and there were two of them, padding along at a leisurely pace, and they were headed this way, perhaps attracted by the way the birds were flocking, which told them there was fresh meat somewhere.
