Although the boredom is about to drive me insane all on its own, even the eels have become boring. However, by judging my progress on the map I would say I have less than three hours to go. Then these useless tests will be over and I can finally deal with the temple of earth.

So for the next hour I just keep swimming, the only thing that happens is a few eels try and miss. My boredom has reached the point that I am actually thinking about random movie scenes from my world to pass the time. Then, all of a sudden, a huge area of the lava ahead of me erupts violently.

As the lava surges I can tell something is coming up from below, something big. Of course, it is directly in my path towards the goal, but I wait to see what it is before moving. When the lava flows away and reveals the thing I am finally able to get a good look at it.

To my surprise, it looks like a giant boar, with red fur that is producing flames. Normally, seeing a boar I would think food, but considering it is around fifty feet tall I find I am not hungry. As I watch it I stay very still, I don't plan to attract its attention if I can avoid it.

That is especially true once I notice that there are several eels dangling from the side of its mouth. Luckily my drake form isn't all that big, about the size of a sports car. So I should not be of much interest to something that big, as long as I don't piss it off.

Thinking of that I slowly let my body sink down into the lava until only my eyes and nostrils are above it. Then I stay perfectly still and pretend to be a log, just like alligators do. The big boar finishes its meal and then looks all around, it would seem it didn't notice me.

Just as I think my plan has worked and I will be able to get away the boar looks back towards me. At the same time I feel several tiny vibrations coming from the lava beneath me. Knowing something is coming I take off swimming at full speed, just in time to avoid an eel.

Seeing the boar start moving this way I turn and swim away from the eel as fast as I can. As I do I am hoping that the boar will go for the eel instead of coming for me. When the boar doesn't shift his path and keeps heading for where the eel attacked me I let out a sigh of relief.

Then I turn back to my original course and swim past the boar as it heads for the eel. As I pass the boar I notice its eye lock onto me and follow my movements. Seeing that I increase my speed as much as I can, I want to be well away before it finishes eating the eel.

Unfortunately, it doesn't take the boar long to eat the eel, and after finishing it turns in my direction. If we were the same size I would definitely be faster, but since it is so large it is actually faster. It only takes it a few huge strides to catch up to me and once it does it tries to eat me.

Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site.

Only by changing direction and swimming to the side am I able to avoid that huge mouth. However, the boar isn't willing to give up that easily and keeps trying to eat me. Having to dodge the boar constantly I am unable to get any distance away from it.

All I can do is keep dodging and hope that the boar gives up eventually. After all, I am not even a mouthful to it, it really isn't worth the amount of effort that the boar is using. Then again maybe it is just sick of eating eels all the time and sees me as a tasty treat.

After a particularly close call I swim between the boar's legs to buy myself some time. Since the boar has to move its legs to be able to try to eat me again I have a second to think. Since I am tired of just dodging I swim near its leg and try to take a bite.

Unfortunately, its fur is so thick that all I manage is to get a mouthful of fur. Still, I go ahead and rip the mouthful of fur out of its leg, hoping to cause it a little pain. The boar shows no sign of even noticing and continues to try and eat me.

However, since darting between its legs worked, I do it every time I can. After a couple of times I finally get the bright idea to climb up one of its legs instead of just swimming around. Like a flea I climb up its leg in its fur where it has trouble reaching me.

As I climb past the knee I reach an area where the boar cannot reach me with its mouth. At that point the boar starts stomping and shaking to try and dislodge me. Now that I am mostly safe I stop moving and take a good firm hold so it can't shake me off.

Once I am fairly sure it can't shake me off I finally have a chance to try and think. While it can't eat me now, I also can't make any progress towards the goal. Even if I were to find a way to kill this thing, it simply wouldn't be worth the effort.

So I am focused on a way to get away from the thing and continue towards the goal. With that in mind I decide to continue climbing up the boar's side. Once I reach the top of its back I face the direction of the goal and then take off running.

When I reach the end of the boar's back I jump as hard as I can and then spread my wings. Luckily, the boar hasn't noticed and is still looking for me on its leg. Thanks to my momentum I am able to glide a good distance away from the boar before I land back in the lava.

As soon as I am in the lava I set off swimming as fast as I can before the boar spots me. Even after gliding for as far as I could it would only take a dozen or so strides for the boar to catch up to me. Right now my best bet is to get away while it still thinks I am hiding in its fur.

This time my luck holds good and I leave the boar far behind, still searching its fur. Now that that is behind me I focus on making distance and do my best not to complain about being bored. Things quickly return to the old pattern, with me swimming along and the odd attack by an eel.

Just as I am relaxing and thinking that the end of the test is near I hear loud splashing behind me. When I crane my head around to look I see the boar is charging at me at full speed. I quickly swim to the side to get out of the way of its charge allowing it to go right past me.

The boar doesn't stop, and from what I can tell it doesn't even spot me. However, it is heading straight for the goal so I doubt this is the last I will see of it. After it runs out of my sight I resume my swim towards the goal.

After almost two hours of swimming I finally come within sight of the goal. The goal is placed on an island in the lava, and standing on the island is the boar. It would seem the boar is seriously intent on eating me and now it is standing in my way.