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Atop the creature's head was a thicket of black, stiff-
standing hair. Its mouth opened slightly and revealed upper
and lower rows of pointed, needle-sharp teeth. Above its
mouth, extending more like a tree limb than a nasal aper-
ture, was the creature's long, pointed nose.
It was this sensitive proboscis that had caused the mon-
ster to awaken, and now it probed the air, sniffing and snuf-
fling for clues. What was that tantalizing scent? Where did it
come from?
The creature's lair was a cave, and a slight breeze wafted
into the cave mouth from the valley below. The source of
the scent, obviously, was outside the lair.
Moving through the dingy cave, the monster passed nu-
merous scattered, well-gnawed bones of previous meals.
Skulls of deer, bear, hobgoblin, human, and other victims
stood along the wall of the cave, making a crude trophy
mound. But now the creature ignored all of these memen-
tos, moving toward the fresh air in search of new food, per-
haps a new skull.
The creature emerged to discover twilight settling over
the high valley. The spoor came more clearly now, and the
great beast licked its lips with a black, moist tongue
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