Talk - " "
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"AVA, WATCH OUT!" Liam's hand shot forward, desperate to grasp hers, but he caught only air. His heart pounded as he watched the love of his life vanish into the tall grass, leaving behind nothing but a pale, fresh hand and a bloodstained trail.
For a brief moment, amidst the chaos, his gaze locked onto the creature's blood-red eyes. They gleamed with cruel delight as its jaws clamped down on Ava. Fear crashed into Liam as his eyes went pinpoint.
The world blurred. None of the shouts of his friends and the distant cries of terror reached him. His mind fixated on that single, bloodied hand. Even Ajax, his best friend, stood frozen.
His own sister had just been dragged away, yet all he could do was let silent tears fall before turning and running like the coward he was. Liam was alone, yet just as he built up the courage to move as rage filled his body. An arrow was released somewhere in the darkness and pierced his head. Causing his body to land directly on top of the bloody hand.
Meanwhile, several men sprinted through the tall grass, their only guide was the pale glow of the moon. Their breaths came in ragged gasps as they pushed their bodies to the limit, desperate to reach their horses.
What had started as a routine bounty mission, a job they had done countless times before, had turned into a nightmare. Tracking and capturing runaway slaves, returning them dead or alive, was supposed to be simple. Yet this time, they were the ones being hunted.
Their group of fourteen had been whittled down to eight in seconds. The black beast had struck with terrifying precision, catching them off guard and tearing through their ranks.
Olsen, their leader, had been the first to turn and flee the moment the creature let out its bone-shaking roar. Those nearest to him followed without hesitation, but not everyone was so lucky.
Two men, caught too close to the deafening roar, froze in terror. Their minds went blank as their skulls rattled from the sheer force of the sound, and before they could even think to run, the black beast trampled them. Its massive claws crushed their heads with sickening ease, their bodies left forgotten in its wake.
The creature never even glanced at the lives it had just ended. Its focus was locked on a man thrusting a spear at a small, trembling child.
With a deafening snarl, it charged at full speed, ignoring an arrow that buried itself deep into its side. Its powerful frame slammed into the man, sending him sprawling, and before he could even scream, the beast's serrated teeth sank into his flesh. Bone crunched, blood sprayed, and in seconds, he was gone.
Another arrow, this time glowing with a blue aura, tore cleanly through the beast's arm, but it barely reacted.
The child, a little catkin girl, had been spared. Aside from a deep gash on her shoulder, one that would likely scar, she was alive. With wide, tear-filled eyes, she turned and ran, weaving through the chaos, desperate to find her brother.
All the while, Tyrant, our favorite little monster, was having the time of his life. His first hunt. His first real hunt.
Excitement and fury surged through his body as he tracked the scent of the one who dared to fire those glowing arrows. His blood burned with the thrill of the chase, his instincts screaming for more. But he wouldn't fail his mother's orders. He wouldn't let these weak, pathetic humans harm the children.
Even if the little ones annoyed him. Honestly, they should be food, Tyrant thought. Small, noisy, and fragile. Yet… something strange stirred in him when he saw them. A feeling he couldn't quite place. It wasn't hunger, nor was it the instinct of killing he felt toward prey. It was different.
He liked when they clung to his feathers, even when they pulled too hard. He liked when they tried to climb him, even when they slipped and fell. It made him feel… warm. But the moment was shattered as another blue-glowing arrow buried itself deep into his leg.
A sharp snarl tore from his throat, more irritation than pain. Blood poured from the wound, then stopped within seconds, his body already clotting up the wound and even started to slowly heal.
His red eyes snapped toward the source. A man on horseback, bow drawn, another arrow glowing at its tip. Tyrant could see the glow, bright and obvious in the dim light. He could sense the man's fear, tens of yards away.
But before he could rush towards the man on the horse, the snap of a branch and the scent of sweat, steel, and rage, hit him from behind. Another one. A woman, this time. Twin axes gleamed in her hands as she charged straight at him, her eyes full of reckless fury as she jumped up and slashed down.
Tyrant bared his teeth, his mind already working through his next move. The woman was fast, but he was faster.
In a low crouch, he pushed off the ground with all his strength, launching himself to the left just in time to avoid the woman's axes. The blades sliced through the air, grazing his tail, and leaving two thin, shallow slashes. But Tyrant wasn't done.
With the momentum from his pounce, he spun his entire body, snapping his tail out like a whip. It struck the woman's stomach with bone-shattering force, sending her flying through the air, blood spraying from her mouth as she crashed onto the ground.
She hadn't even hit the earth before Tyrant was already on the move again, his massive legs carrying him full speed toward the woman, still rolling to recover.
Without hesitation, he leaped. His enormous weight crashed down onto her, his full mass crushing her ribs with a sickening crack. The air was forced from her lungs in a desperate gasp, but it was drowned out by the explosion of flesh and viscera beneath his feet. Her insides splattered against the dirt and grass, a gruesome sight that excited him.
Tyrant's blood-red eyes flickered with satisfaction as the woman's death settled into his bones. But that satisfaction was short-lived. Something sharp flashed across his vision, a dagger. It was stabbed directly into his left eye with a sickening squelch.
Pain exploded through his skull, as he became blind in that eye, as the wound spilled hot blood down his face in torrents. The pain was intense, but it only made him more vexed. He roared in fury, shaking his massive body violently, using his claws to swipe at whoever attacked him. His grip closed around something, but the attacker slipped free, the sound of fabric tearing the only reward for his efforts.
He whirled around, expecting to find the assailant, but the space behind him was empty.
A growl rumbled deep in his chest as confusion set in, but he quickly inhaled deeply, trying to catch the scent of his attacker. His nostrils flared, but all he could smell was the stench of blood, his own and the woman's, mixed with the fresh, earthy scent of the grass around him.
Nothing.
His instincts screamed that something was near, but the pain started to cloud his mind. The arrows embedded in his side seemed to dull his senses. He felt… woozy.
And then, the rustling of the grass. Barely perceptible, but Tyrant's ears twitched, his body tensing in response.
Behind him, a figure, cloaked in black, slowly crept closer, silent and carefully. The man's movements were calculated, but Tyrant's senses weren't dull enough to miss it.
The assassin aimed both daggers, poised to strike at the base of Tyrant's feet. His goal was simple: cripple the beast by disabling its legs, and let his friends deal the final blows.
But before the assassin could move, a crack of a blow landed from behind. A tiger demi-human wielding a heavy mace had snuck up on the cloaked figure, striking him across the head with brutal force.
Tyrant's head snapped toward the sound, instinctively growing as the cracking surprised him, but relaxed when he saw who it was.
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