Charlie couldn't see over the cliffs high walls, but he didn't need to, whatever was happening, was powerful enough to feel it's vibrations even from here. With his ears still ruptured, Charlie had no way of knowing, but thunderous booms and terrifying sounds echoed from some distant clash, and the monstrous calamity was certainly at its epicenter.

Still shocked and dazed, Charlie found it difficult to calm himself down. His stupid plan didn't have a chance to work, and the only reason he lived was because the creature found something more interesting than the lonely serpent.

Better them than me...

The canyon fell silent, not even the most curious creature had dared to peek it's head out yet. Charlie couldn't blame them, he wished to be hidden away too, deep in some crevice - away from this nightmarish scene. The peace was cut by powerful rumbles once in a while, the distant battle was either coming to a close or the creature had gotten bored. Charlie couldn't imagine even the humans with their Magic having a chance against that being.

Still, horrifying monstrosity straight out of his nightmares or not, Charlie needed to leave. He needed to leave the dreadful canyon and never return. He'll take his chances with the humans if he must, but there was no way he would stay any longer.

Charlie looked up at the steep walls, and found that they were much more suitable for climbing than before. Large and ugly cracks had formed from the creatures rampage, creating new ledges and crevices for Charlie to traverse.

His underbelly had been cut pretty badly, and the sand was being slowly soaked through, and pushed out, by his blood. It throbbed with a deep heat, but it wouldn't kill him. At least not right now, anyway.

The night could always get worse, it seemed.

The ascent was rather short, if not just frustratingly painful, and Charlie found himself standing by the cliffs edge - overlooking the vast expanse of the desert canyon. Now that he had been to its basin, Charlie could truly appreciate it's size. It was so much deeper, so much larger than it looked from up here.

Charlie turned into the comforting embrace of the still terrified forest, and searched for a place to spend the night.

The forest was usually quiet at night, but there would normally still be some signs of life if one listened carefully. A creature or two would scuffle, some bird would rudely bawk and wake it's neighbours - there was always something that would pierce the silence.

Yet the forest stood still.

It seemed like even the wind did not dare to sway the leaves. Even the cockiest bird held its breath.

Charlie would have understood if he had heard the silence - if he had not been at the center of it all, he too would have been hidden in some hovel, scared out of his wits. He still was, scared, but he also knew that for now, everything was as safe as it could be.

Which, turned out to be a pointless statement. If a creature of that size and power was allowed to exist, how was anyone safe? Were there more of them? Of creatures that could turn the land beneath the feet of men into dust? How were the humans still alive?

The more he thought about it, the more it felt like Charlie was drowning. No matter where he went, what he did or what he learned - he was at the mercy of those stronger than him.

In the event that Charlie would one day be able to take on a human in a fair fight, what hope was there to ever reaching that thing?

Charlie dove into a deep brush bathed in shadow and sighed. He couldn't allow himself to think like that. If the humans survived, it meant that there was a chance for him to survive as well. He couldn't allow himself to fall into a pit of despair, especially now that he had escaped the desert canyon in one piece.

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That was right, there was still a lot of room for Charlie to grow and learn. Even if he couldn't take the monster on, he would certainly find a way to escape it's calamitous wrath.

With the final promise to himself, the weight of Charlie's burdens felt a little lighter. Of course he'd find a way to triumph, for Charlie was anything but vengeful.

Feeling better, Charlie continued in his search for a place to spend the night. It went a lot smoother than before, utilising his still developing Mana sense, Charlie was able to root out the two little creatures that had made underground shovels their home.

Descending onto the meek inhabitants, Charlie brutally tore their lives apart. Without sparing the previous inhabitants a second thought, Charlie took over the underground tunnels and took refuge for the night.

Charlie first swallowed the corpses whole and felt a familiar stuffed sensation bring him some sense of joy. Not only was he not weighed down by a literal rock, but he was finally free from the pains of his whingy stomach. With everything going on, Charlie had completely ignored the wails and protests of his body.

After shifting the earth and blocking the entrance, Charlie collapsed, sapped of energy and will. His body had yet to recover, still needing days before he was even remotely close to his previously healthy form. Now, he was even further away - the cuts, tears and bruises would take even longer to heal.

It felt like Charlie was getting more and more exhausted each day. If this continued, Charlie wouldn't.

Unable to hold on to his consciousness, Charlie faded away into a blissfully deep sleep.

Upon waking up, Charlie was once again proven wrong. Now he felt like his body was dragged through mud, thrown into a blender and buried under concrete. He wished to feel as good as his last morning, that was the pinnacle of health in comparison.

Fuck it. I'm not getting up...

Charlie was truly spent, forced to endure well beyond his limits and for far too long. He was allowed to indulge in some good-for-nothing behaviour, and simply slept through the day.

Charlie slept through the night, too. In fact, the only reason Charlie woke up was due to his stomach throwing a tantrum.

'What's your problem... We just ate...' he thought, barely capable of constructing full sentences.

Charlie's groggy mind slowly returned from the deep slumber, and he was already angry. Pockets of numbness, deep aches and pains slowly crept up from the background and made themselves known with every new movement.

Damn... I can't believe I'm this stiff... How long did I sleep?

Charlie stretched deeply and, slowly, feeling returned to his still-sleeping body - which was then followed by the familiar tingling and static-like sensation of limbs waking up from a long slumber.

It was funny, that something like this, was shared by both his first human life and the second. Humour quickly turned to discomfort, as Charlie felt like he was assaulted by static fire and was frozen to where he lay - a single movement felt like torture.

Eventually, feeling returned to his body, and Charlie was able to assess the damage. Surprisingly, he looked way better than before. Still a bag of bones, of course, but he could actually see some of his muscle returning!

Just how long was I out for??

Whether it was a day, or two, Charlie didn't really care. He had finally gotten a proper rest and his mind had felt clearer than it had in days, and even his body, while still achy and stiff, was much more limber than before.

So far, so good, at least.

Charlie quickly turned his focus inward and connected with the Mana around him, checking for any signatures outside of the hovels entrance before taking his morning stroll. The connection to the ambient Mana was a lot quicker than before, and didn't take anywhere near as much concentration to establish. Charlie didn't know why there was such a sudden improvement, but chalked it up to finally getting a good night's rest. He had to remind himself to do that more, really.

Chuckling at his own little joke, Charlie's mood had improved tremendously. The sleep had done a lot more than simply remove some of the brain fog, it seemed. The burdens that burned their way into his heart felt light and inconsequential for once.

Confidently removing the dirt from the entrance, Charlie made his way into to forest in search of another meal. The sights, scents and sounds were vibrant - the fear and terror that permeated the forest so deeply was nowhere to be seen now.

Charlie also noticed that he could actually hear now, which meant that his ears had healed in the time spent asleep. It was incredibly pleasant, and with how much energy the birds chirped with, it was like the calamitous monster never existed in the first place.

To them, it might as well not have. It was so far beyond their existence that it no longer mattered to them, they could only, and simply, get on with their lives.

And so would Charlie. If the nightmare-made-real showed up again, so be it. There was simply no point in worrying about a what-if scenario if there was nothing he could do to change it.

As his stomach rumbled, Charlie focused on what he could change - what was for dinner.