That was all the more prompting Sheik needed to intervene. In a flash, she leapt from her treetop perch and landed squarely on the creature's spine with enough force to make it stumble. Another split second, and the blade of her long knife flashed in the dim light. The monster howled and writhed, and she leapt again, this time landing in an impossibly low crouch behind it. But it didn't seem to notice her, focused more immediately on the stump where one of its legs had just been.