[Mission Objective: Defeat your first opponent as a team!
Reward: ???
Failure: DEATH]
"What....?"
HAV0C stares at the man-or beast-infront of them. The hoodie failed to hide the body rippling with muscle. The fabric stretching and ripping with every step.
We have to beat THAT!?
"Hey." Catnip catches HAV0C's attention with a harsh whisper. "Should we run?"
Run? Could we out-run this guy?
The man snarls, drool flowing from his mouth and dripping unto the forest floor. The two don't need to be close to catch the scent of death reeking from his body. His hand twitches, coated dark with blood.
"Aghh.....enemies.....meat......"
HAV0C and Catnip tense up. Did he just say....meat?
[fErAL uses skill!]
"What the fuck-?"
[Predator's Howl!]
fErAL roars, a fearsome tremor that shudders through HAV0C's and Catnip's very being. Their limbs turn to stone.
[HAV0C and Catnip are temporarily stunned!]
"!?"
Stunned!?
fErAL cackles, his drunk demeanor replaced with a wild hunger as he lunges forward, claws glinting in the sunlight.
"HEHEHEHAHAHA!!!! MEAT!!!!"
What the fuck, what the fuck-
The two struggle to move, limbs trembling but remaining rigid. Sweat rolls down their brows.
Come on, move. MOVE!!!
Their limbs finally shake and with a heave, they break free of the paralysis and scatter to either side just as the man comes upon them, claws slicing through the air.
And HAV0C's shirt.
"Motherfucker-"
"Hah...." fErAL skids to a halt using his hands and feet, body low to the ground. "You broke free? Impressive...." He straightens up and smiles at them, revealing long sharp canines.
"This dream I'm having....is so much fun!!!"
Dream?
Catnip and HAV0c glance at each other. This guy thinks he's in a dream!
Catnip speaks up. "Hey....this isn't a dream. This is real! The people you've killed-"
He freezes. The people you've killed....
How many has he killed thinking it's a dream!?
"This isn't a dream....?" fErAL laughs, charging forward. "BULLSHIT!!!"
[fErAL uses Skill!]
He zips forward, claws scraping Catnip's cheek as he just manages to dodge, his limbs feeling heavy and sluggish. A notification appears in front of him.
[You're still under the effect of Predator's Howl! Movement lowered by 20%!]
"THAT'S BULLSHIT-"
The cut on his cheek glows red, burning into his skin. "W-what the-?"
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
fErAL cackles. His silver eyes glow as his body becomes even more visible through his clothes, muscles bulging.
[Predator's Mark!
fErAL's stats have increased!]
Another notification for Catnip.
[You've been marked!]
Marked!?
"In this dream....I'm the top of the food chain. I decide who lives, and who dies." fErAL seems to simply disappear, moving so fast Catnip'ss eyes can't keep up. His feet leaves small craters in the dirt as he pounces unto him, slamming Catnip into the ground. He snarls, grey eyes resembling that of a wolf.
"Isn't this so much fun!?"
He receives a jab to the face as a reply. "Not really."
fErAL blinks, then sighs in disappointment. "Was THAT your best shot-?"
A tree branch smacks into his face, knocking him off of Catnip. HAV0C stands between the two of them, wielding the branch like a bat.
"No, it isn't."
fErAL gets up, blood dripping from his now busted lip. His tongue slips out, smearing the blood across his bottom lip."Hehehe....you two are a tenacious prey, I'll give you that."
Catnip gets to his feet behind HAV0C, his cheek wound still glowing blood red. "The guy marked me."
"Yeah, I saw. It said something about a skill....?"
Skills? This is sounding like an RPG.
"It isn't poison or anything, is it?"
"How would I know!?"
"Enough of this!" fErAL grins and rushes forward, teeth red with his own blood. "I wonder how you both will taste like!!!"
Of course he eats people. Of course-
The mere speed fErAL possesses makes it practically impossible for HAV0C to react, snapping the branch into two with a huge swing with of his claw.
"Shit-" HAV0C stumbles back, eyes wide as fErAL takes another swipe at him, this time nicking his coat.
He's too fast! And with that weird debuff, I'm slower than normal. Not that I was really that fast to begin with....
fErAL swipes again, roaring. "I WONT BE DENIED MY PREY!!!"
This time the strike lands true, just grazing his torso. But its enough.
HAV0C grunts as his back slams into the notification window as it appears behind him, clutching his wound.
[HAV0C has been marked!]
"No fucking shit-" He swears as the wound glows red, steam rising into the air.
"HAV0C-!"
"I'm fine!" He barks out, trying his hardest not to show the agony he's in right now.
"Yeah....the pain of the mark increases with the size and severity. Makes sense, if you think about it." fErAL barely looks human anymore, his hoodie and jeans finally giving up, turning into loose rags as his muscles rip through them like it's nothing.
[fErAL's stats have significantly increased!]
"Hahaha...this power is just too awesome!"
He looks like he's on steroids....
Catnip attempts to persuade fErAL one last time. "This isn't a dream, you fucking idiot! You're killing people, REAL PEOPLE-!"
"So?"
The response makes Catnip stop in his tracks. ".....what?"
"So what if this isn't a dream? So what if I've killed real people?" fErAL flexes his arms, veins rippling and bulging out of his biceps. "They died to me because they were weak, just like you. They died and became my strength!"
Catnip takes a horrified step backwards. The implication was all too clear.
He ate them. He actually.....
fErAL smiles, relishing the look of of terror on Catnip's face.
"Don't be afraid. It's a great honor to be killed and devoured by someone like myself. I promise to make it quick."
"Shut up."
Both turn their attention to HAV0C, still standing his ground between the two of them. His forehead is dotted in sweat. fErAL looks at him in contempt.
"You're in no place to tell me what to do." His voice is a low growl.
"Yeah?" HAV0C shakily raises a middle finger at him as a reply, grinning. "Well, I just did."
fErAL clenches his fists so tightly his nails dig into his palms. Veins throb definitively on his head and neck.
Why? I'm far stronger than him, so why isn't he giving me the respect I deserve!?
This is MY dream, MY safe haven! I'm the apex predator, and anyone who rebels-
[fErAL uses Skill! Predator's Roar!]
With a howl he lunges at HAV0C, arms outstretched, planning to snap his neck like that of a chicken. The roar turns HAV0C's limbs to stone.
[HAV0C has been stunned!]
DIES!
HAV0C doesn't attempt to move, to dodge out of the way. With the debuff and wound, it would be a useless effort anyway. He closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath. He silently prays Catnip has ran away.
If this works....
"Open...."
fErAL leaps, mouth agape and lined with numerous white fangs as sharp as kitchen knives. HAV0C shouts out with all of the breath in his lungs.
"OPEN MENU!"
A notification window pops up, effectively uppercutting fErAL right in the face. Bloodied fangs fly into the air. "Bwargh-!?"
He hits the ground, dazed and absolutely confused. What was that? Some kind of skill?
WAS HE PRETENDING TO BE WEAK THIS WHOLE TIME!?
With a snarl he raises his head, silver eyes glowing with rage. "YOU BASTARD-"
Catnip stands over him, the notification window held high over his head. Something dangerous glints in his eye as he brings it down, over and over again, smashing fErAL's head into the dirt.
He stops, sweat running down his face. fErAL's head lies nested in the mud, complete with a noticeable dent.
The notification window in Catnip's hands disappears, replaced with a golden one that hovers in front of him and HAV0C. Fanfare music plays.
[Quest Complete! You have leveled up!]
[Would you like to receive your rewards?]