The stampeding birds were called struthins, and some cultures used them as mounts. They were most similar to ostriches or emus from Earth, though they had certain similarities with reptiles. Their skin was a hodgepodge of both reptilian scales and avian feathers. To me, the struthin looked like a creature that was in the midpoint of evolving from bird to reptile or vice versa.
Most of the struthins had bright yellow plumage, though a few had black feathers. As they ran, their curved talons and sharp beaks flashed in the bright light of midday. Their thin legs and hard beaks were a bright orange color, and the green scales covering their backs contrasted starkly with the bird’s other tropical colors.
Each one must have weighed two hundred kilograms, and they were charging toward me at a full gallop. The struthins had so much momentum that one running into me could deal significant damage, and that’s to say nothing of their natural weapons.
A mote of Hellfire appeared in my hand once it was made clear that a few of the struthins would run into me. They were packed in so tightly that the struthins in the center could not avoid me. Then, I killed for the first time.
One after another, I threw motes of Hellfire at the center of the stampede. Just as the motes reached the large bipedal birds, I forced the Hellfire spark to expand significantly. The orbs of Hellfire detonated like fireworks, creating powerful shockwaves that instantly rendered several of the struthins into gore and viscera. Within seconds, four struthins were dead on the ground, and several more had been wounded by the attack.
The stampede rushed past me. The struthins that would have crashed into me fell a few meters before they reached my position, so I was completely untouched by the charging creatures. I did not give the struthins a sidelong glance as they rushed by me; my gaze remained unflinchingly on the tree line. I was still waiting for the great beast that the struthins were fleeing from.
With a bellowing roar, my target came galloping out of the tree line. The creature was easily the size of an elephant, but it moved with the speed and mobility of a horse. It was quadrupedal, and its skin appeared to be entirely made of stone. Where its eyes should have been was a large stony ridge that curved upward like a large, flat horn. The creature was called a talpa, better known as a sand shark.
This creature, however, was on the larger size of talpas. The creature in front of me had been alive for at least a century, and it had been growing that entire time. On Ferrum, creatures could accumulate mana and grow larger than they would on Earth. This creature was called a “great talpa” due to its size.
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The appearance of the great talpa caused several more struthins to retreat from the large creature and charge toward me. I blasted three more with Hellfire, burning their feathered bodies to cinders, but two struthins were able to reach me before I could halt their advance.
I had no choice but to roll out of the way of the charging bird. As I rolled, I conjured a Wind Knife and took the head off one of the struthins. I felt a slight pain in my back as something scraped against it. Whatever caused the pain didn’t hurt me enough to stop me from moving, so I jumped back up to my feet and turned my head towards my target.
The great talpa suddenly slowed its momentum once it perceived me. It didn’t have eyes, so I assumed its perception was based on sound. My movement must have caught its attention. The creature came to a thunderous stop that caused much of the dirt nearby to fly up into the air.
I kept my stance low and my wand gripped tightly in my hand as I stared down the talpa. Once the creature came to a complete stop, it took a few slow, steady steps toward me. I remained completely still, preparing to reach for my magical arsenal at a moment’s notice.
After taking a few steps, the great talpa nudged one of the fallen struthins with one of its hooves. Recognizing that the struthin was dead, the talpa leaned down and grabbed the large bird’s corpse in its unnervingly human teeth. It picked the struthin up and began the process of swallowing it whole. The great talpa leaned its head back and started forcing the horse-sized bird down its gullet.
I let out a quiet sigh of relief. The great talpa hadn’t perceived me; it had just sensed that a struthin had fallen to the ground. It didn’t know I was there, so I immediately took advantage of the opening.
My wand flashed silver and four long shards of ice appeared next to my upper body. They were suspended by some unseen force, and they pointed directly at the great talpa with malicious intent.
One of the ice shards sharpened and condensed before I sent it flying into one of the great talpa’s unarmored feet. There was a terrible squelching sound as the icy spear stabbed through the sand shark’s hand, pinning it to the dirt.
The great talpa let out a deafening, animalistic scream. It spat the struthin’s corpse out of its mouth and tried to reach for the shard of ice piercing its hand.
My spell was faster than its grasping hand, and a second ice spear stabbed through the great talpa’s other strangely human hand. The talpa had several clawed digits to dig through the ground, and it looked strange on a creature the size of an elephant.
The moment my spear of ice pierced the great talpa’s second hand, a message appeared in my eye.
Congratulations! Your class has changed to Mage!