Kael didn’t move.

His breathing was shallow, controlled. His muscles tensed as he listened to the faint, deliberate steps approaching below. Whatever was moving was big.

The sound of shifting weight, the subtle crunch of leaves, and the heavy drag of something thick across the ground sent a chill up his spine.

Then, silence.

Kael remained still, straining his ears. Whatever was down there had stopped moving.

For a long moment, he debated whether to look. If it sensed him, would he be giving himself away?

But in the end his curiosity won out. Slowly, he inched forward, keeping his body low and balanced on the thick tree branch.

He tilted his head, carefully peering down between the thick leaves.

And then, he saw it.

The creature standing beneath the tree was unlike anything Kael had ever seen.

At first glance, it looked like some twisted abomination of nature, a beast that shouldn’t exist.

Its body was heavily armored, covered in overlapping plates like a pangolin, but they were thicker, bulkier, giving it a monstrous, tank-like appearance. The plates were dark green, almost blending with the moss and vegetation that had grown over its back.

Its legs were powerful, thick with muscles, ending in sharp claws that dug into the earth.

But its head that was the worst part.

It had a long, tubular snout, like that of an anteater, but larger—easily the size of Kael’s torso. The mouth at the end of the snout was lined with serrated teeth, capable of clamping down and crushing bones.

But what made Kael’s stomach churn was the tongue.

A long, forked appendage flicked out from its maw, wet and glistening in the faint moonlight. The barbed tips looked sharp enough to hook and tear flesh.

Kael’s vision flickered, and a prompt appeared.

[Venom Maw – Level 5]

Kael stared, his pulse pounding in his ears.

Level 5. That was higher than the Wildhorn, looked stronger, and deadlier than it too.

And it was right below him.

His heartbeat quickened as he tried to remain completely motionless.

Then, before he could react, something else moved.

A flicker of gray in the underbrush.

A small, humanoid figure darted between the trees.

Kael barely had a moment to process what he was seeing before a second prompt appeared.

[ Gloomkin – Level 1 ]

A goblin-like creature, but different.

It was short and thin, with dark gray skin that blended into the shadows. Its eyes were pure black, hollow pits that reflected no light. Its mouth was filled with sharp yellow teeth, curled into a perpetual snarl.

It moved fast, ducking and weaving through the foliage.

It’s running.

Kael barely had time to think what was going on, before the Venom Maw struck.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

Its tongue shot out a blur of movement in the dim light.

The barbed tip hooked into the Gloomkin’s chest before it could react and evade.

The small creature let out a shriek, struggling violently, but it was already too late.

The tongue retracted, dragging the helpless creature back toward the gaping maw.

Kael barely caught a glimpse of its terrified expression before the Venom Maw’s teeth clamped down. A wet crunch. Just like that it was gone. Kael clenched his jaw, horrified.

The Venom Maw chewed slowly, its armored body shifting as it swallowed. The remains of the Gloomkin’s blood pooled on the ground beneath it, the dark liquid seeping into the dirt.

Kael remained completely still; he hadn’t dared move for fear of being next.

If that thing has a good sense of smell, and it smells me up here, I’m dead, and it won’t be pretty.

He didn’t know how good the monsters in the forest’s sense of smell was either. But it didn’t take a genius to know that, after what just happened, the noise of the little monster made when it was dying. Coupled with the blood that he himself could smell from here, yeah, he wasn’t willing to risk it.

His thoughts drifted back to himself and his own scent.

He had been sweating the entire day from running to climbing, as well as being covered in dried blood from the Wildhorn, and now that he thought about it he hadn’t showered this morning.

Fantastic. I probably smell horrible.

Not exactly ideal for avoiding predators, with most likely enhanced senses.

As soon as the Venom Maw lumbered off, Kael made his decision.

I need to get the hell out of this tree. There was no chance he was getting a peaceful rest here.

Slowly, carefully, Kael lowered himself down the tree, using the rough bark to keep his footing steady. Every movement was controlled, every breath shallow. Luckly, he hadn’t climbed too far up. So, it didn’t take long for him to go down. Spesily with the help of the downed tree.

Once his feet touched the ground, he moved low and fast, sticking to the bushes, avoiding open terrain.

His heart pounded with every rustle, every whisper of wind through the branches.

Then he heard it.

The faint rush of running water.

A river, and from the sound of it, it was not small.

Relief flooded through him. Fresh water. A way to clean himself up. If there are no animals or monsters, then that would be fantastic.

He quickened his pace, he finally saw the river, it was in a clearing, going from, what appeared to him north to south. Splitting the forest in two.

A blur of movement in the darkness.

Pain ripped through his shoulder.

Kael staggered to the side, barely catching himself before he collapsed. Something had slashed him. Aiming for his neck but hitting his shoulder instead. It had barely missed because he was in the middle of standing up. He could have died just now, and he wouldn’t have known it. A could shiver ran down his spine, just thinking about it.

His vision blurred, but as he turned his head, he saw what had attacked him.

A black-furred beast crouched low to the ground, its body sleek and silent, its eyes locked onto him.

It made no noise.

No growl. No warning.

Just pure, calculated aggression.

A prompt appeared.

[ Duskfang Stalker – Level 8 ]

Kael’s blood ran cold.

Level 8.

Then, before the beast could attack again

Something else moved from the corner of his eye.

The thing lunged from the foliage.

A massive snake, its scales dark like polished stone, its fangs the size of Kael’s forearm.

It struck the Stalker.

The two monsters collided in a blur of teeth, claws, and muscles.

Kael’s primal instincts screamed followed by his brain. The message was clear.

Kael didn’t hesitate any longer. He sprinted toward the river.

The clearing was bathed in different colored light, the moons casting an otherworldly glow over the water.

He didn’t stop.

He threw himself into the Lukewarm current, the shock of the landing punching the air from his lungs.

The current pulled at him, dragging him downstream, but he fought against it, kicking, swimming, forcing himself toward the other side. He struggled with his right shoulder, feeling the burning pain as he used it, but still he kept going. Gritting his teeth through it.

His muscles burned, his lungs screamed, but he kept moving.

Finally, he reached the shore.

Coughing, and in pain, he hauled himself onto the bank.

Gasping for air to rush in, he turned back

The Duskfang Stalker and the snake were still fighting.

Another prompt appeared.

[ Titanfang Serpent – Level 8 ]

Kael let out a shaky breath.

He did not have time to fully process that thing earlier.

It was massive easily the size of a small car, its body thick with brutal muscle, its fangs curved like daggers of bone.

Kael didn’t stick around. He turned and ran into the trees. He was getting very good at doing that lately.

After what felt like forever, he finally slowed.

His shoulder throbbed, the wound stinging.

Like an apology gift for all the trouble he went through today, he saw it.

A shabby treehouse, barely holding together on a smaller tree. A rope ladder dangled from its side.

Kael didn’t think twice.

He climbed up, using for the most part his good arm. Reaching the small wooden platform. He realized that It was cramped, but surprisingly sturdy.

Safe finally.

Pain pulsed through his arm. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a small emergency bandage.

"Breaking my damn leg once on a hike was one too many. That was good way to hammer in the lesson, bandage can spare you a lot of pain."

Ever since then, he carried with him a small bandage when he went out for a hike or hunting. He wrapped the wound, hissing as the fabric tightened. Lucky the bandage was dry being in a airtight bag helped.

His clothes were soaked, but inside the enclosed space, he wasn’t in immediate danger of the night, it was chili night but nothing too cold, he would survive. Not comfortable but survive.

Exhaustion hit him like a sledgehammer. He leaned back against the wooden wall. Then, finally like food to a starving individual, Keal let it all go, and passed out.