I chase after Vormar with everything I have, like a person hell bent on revenge. And although it can turn around and kill me at any moment, it’s too afraid to think clearly.

If it was thinking clearly, then it’d notice the difference in our strength and I’d be dead already.

Whenever the distance between us grows too much, I teleport above it and swing at the spines. Vormar shakes me off and continues to run but it’s slowly running out of breathing room. I’ve worn one down that a couple more swings will take it off.

I wonder if I should corner it or keep this up and try for at least another spine.

“Ugh…”

I’m out of time.

The sharp pain in my chest decides for me. I teleport above Vormar, landing on its back, and hack away its weakened spine. It thrashes around like a bull nearly bucking me off but I hold on and cut off another spine. It roars for the hundredth time and rolls in the snow. I teleport away before it crushes me.

A short burst of coughing and weariness follow as I teleport. Vormar leaps at me. I roll away and it hits a tree. It uses the tree as a springboard and leaps toward me again. I throw up a quick barrier just feet away from my face. It claws at me but only manages a few cuts on the cheek. I got pretty lucky this time. Instead of trying to take his attacks head on with my less than amazing barriers, I predicted where Vormar would end up landing on top of me. My barrier presses against Vormar’s chest keeping me out of its reach.

However, its weight wears down my barrier. Cracks appear and my energy drains as I keep the barrier afloat while looking for other opportunities out of the mess that involves as little usage of my ability or magic as possible. Unfortunately, I can only afford to save on one.

I throw Vormar off with a stone pillar and roll onto my feet. It takes this chance and flees again. I take a deep breath, allowing the pain to spread.

When will this end?

When it dies.

I ignore the voice and chase Vormar. The beast takes refuge in a nearby cave. A hole in the side of a large hill. The place reeks of danger. From the Icicles hanging by entrance, more pointed than any knife or sword I own, to the now cornered bear inside, who’s somehow capable of brushing off bombardments of magic like it brushes off snow.

The flames of Vormar makes it easy to it inside of the light deprived cave. I follow it from a distance, wary of my decreasing option of escape routes.

I could leave but we wouldn’t have any money to live on… And, this monster has its shares of wrongdoing. I’m doing the world a favor by hunting it down. There’s no turning back. Keep going.

The deeper we go in, the brighter Vormar’s flames seem to glow. Whether because the sun’s light has been left behind me or Vormar’s growing stronger, nothing changes the fact that I’m solely focused on its light right now.

Shit.

I look around but, blinded by Vormar’s flames, I can’t see anything in the dark. If something happens, I can’t teleport away. I have to make sure to keep the cave’s entrance within a certain distance so I can use my ability.

However, as I follow the beast further, a purple glow illuminates part of the cave. Green and blue colors mix in as the cave curves left. Vormar seems drawn to it as if being in this cave has entirely erased my existence from its thoughts.

The lights attempt to steal my attention away but I’m focused solely on the wellbeing of everyone else. Supplies and shelter, all those things are riding on finishing this request. This monster is the ticket to finding my master.

Vormar and I enter a large space within the cave, an area in of itself. Glowing plant life envelops the ground, forming into circles split by color. A sequence of purple, green, and then blue with a few from each one scattered around. The tiniest bit of the sun’s light peeks through a hole in the rocks.

We’re close to the outside…

As Vormar gently treads over the colorful plant life going more towards the middle of the room, I move my hand down the grip of the hatchet. It’s time. I pick up a large rock, toss it to the other side and attack Vormar while its attention is split.

I wear down the next smallest spine with the largest one as my last goal. There’s no guarantee that cutting off all the spines will kill it or even stop it but I do know that chopping them off hurts it.

As I bring the hatchet in for another strike, the spines suddenly glow bright white, an indication of danger for me. However, despite knowing what happens when the spines emit white light, I bring the hatchet down again and again. The hatchet breaks in my hands. Heat surges from underneath my feet and I’m blasted off.

Vormar leaps on me so suddenly, as if never tired or hurt from having its spines being chopped off, that I barely manage to keep myself alive by throwing up my arms. Vormar sinks his teeth into them piercing the flesh and coating its teeth in crimson red. I send lightning through my arms and the monster reluctantly backs away.

My arms hang limp with new holes large enough to fit three fingers inside. I utter silent thanks to the training I underwent. Without the weak barriers I put around my arms, I would have lasted only another second or so, my arms acting as simple conductors for pain before my death.

Instead of finishing me off, Vormar stares with teeth bared, my fresh blood on them a different shade under the light of the glowing plants. Three spines remain on his back with one an inch thinner than the others. I flex the muscles in my arm with a weak first response but eventually, I can move my fingers. The hatchet lays a few feet away from me but it’s no use broken.

Vormar snaps forward grazing my feet with its teeth. I instinctively kick back and end up tapping its nose with the tip of my shoe. Vormar snorts and growls but keeps its distance. An odd air fills the room as things come to an unlikely stand still.

What’s it waiting for? I’m right here. Tired and vulnerable… Is it one to play with its food?

I’ll take care of this problem. Let me out for just a little bit...

An uncomfortable feeling in my back persists and I push myself up in order to get rid of it. Vormar takes this as an act of aggression and lashes out with magic. I throw all of my weight onto one side and let my body roll out of the way. The wall where I had rested now has a crater in it.

I push against the wall and the ground, ignoring the pain in my forearms, to stand up. Vormar’s mouth twitches, the remaining spines flicker like its flames. We stare at each other frozen like statues. The wind picks up outside and snow blows in through the hole, reminding me that time is still moving. The brings a certain chilliness to it, almost evil and wholly unworldly. The tingling in my back is almost too much to endure, my body teeters on the brink of spasming but I know that would mean another attack by Vormar.

I, with the slightest of movements, push the sword strapped to my back into a better, more comfortable position hoping it would take away the unbearable tingling. However, my fingers run across soft, thin cloth. It bunches up in my hand like trickling sand the further up I move. The chills I once had go from bad to worse.

The sheets… they’re falling off.

Vormar seizes the opening and charges forward. By now, I can already predict what it’s going to do. I easily dodge but make the mistake of not fully committing. Vormar throws its paw out and sideswipes my leg leaving it numb and bleeding. Caught unaware by its new strategy and immersed in the new pain spreading from my lower body, I fail in protecting against its follow-up attack. A force hits my head, a simple graze, but it knocks me over.

Vormar falls back down to all fours and advances upon me.

Use me. That evil voice shouts within my mind.

With no more time to think and afraid of unleashing it, I unravel the cloth around the sword and rip it from its scabbard. A terrible dread fills the air all at once. The floodgates open and memories pour in. I freeze as everything flashes by.

Vormar pins my left arm down and roars in my face. The potent, sour, smell of Vormar’s saliva shakes me from my delusions. Vormar comes in for the kill. I toss myself to the side and pain shoots up from my left shoulder. Vormar places its free leg onto my chest, knocking the air from my lungs. Breathing becomes nearly impossible and the bones forming a protective cage around my organs begins to crack.

The beast comes in for the finishing blow. I put all my strength behind my arm and swing with the sword. It cuts clean through Vormar’s fur. Vormar pulls back, perhaps startled by the sudden pain it feels by its neck. It shakes its head as if that would erase the injury or stop the blood. It doesn’t and Vormar goes into another rage-fueled frenzy. It jumps at me. I thrust forth the sword in one last attempt to stop it.

Vormar roars and its stomach rumbles. Its front legs weaken turning limp while its roars turn into sad little whimpers. Its snapping mouth comes to a near close and its thick head droops downward.

“I won,” I sigh.

I give Vormar a little push but can’t move it. I give another push and the same thing happens.

“Shit-”

Vormar springs back to life, its flames burning a fierce yellow so bright I close my eyes. I tuck in my head, pressing it against my chest as Vormar’s teeth grate against my skin. The sword in my hand turns with power I didn’t know I still had.

Eventually, Vormar stops. A breath reeking of raw meat and as thick as the snow outside while as warm as fire slowly engulfs my head. A deep pain resonates throughout my torso but is stifled by weighty flesh and unnatural warmth. The glow of the flowers weakens as blood drips onto their oddly shaped triangular petals.

I curl and uncurl my hand, testing my waning strength. I’m alive. I gaze up at Vormar and see nothing in its pure black eyes.

It’s dead.

I attempt to push the corpse off me but to no avail. I have nothing left in me. I won the battle but not the war. No one won. Here, in this cave, we’d both die. The body, no longer supported by hind legs, lays on me with its full weight. A crushing, killing weight. If my organs aren’t turned flat, then I’d suffocate… An irrational fear comes over me. I begin yelling out for help with the little breath I can still take. I moan and groan twisting and turning fruitlessly as I try to throw off the lifeless body. The yelling soon turns into conversational volume and then into quiet pleas.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

I knew that I might die chasing after this bear. I’m acting so stupidly. I should quit wasting my breath and figure a way out of this mess. But it’s too late. I used up too much calling out to no one. No one’s around. No one’s here to listen.

I gasp in air, filling my lungs for what I believe is the last time.

I’ll protect you. The voice in my head says. Use me. I’m all yours... Do you really want to die…? Are you wondering, again, why I want to help you? We’re one in the same. If you die, I’ll be forced right along. I promise you, I’ll help you. I’ll be there when you need me. Now let me out.

Faced with death and with the sword drawn from its sheath, I convince myself to take its offer of assistance.

If I die here, someone else might find this sword one day.

I close my eyes and ready to give myself to the demon. However, Vormar’s corpse shakes. The legs of the deceased monster shrink and shrivel while the teeth rot away, turning into particles much like the snow. However, it’s too late and I pass out.

                          ----------------------------------------

In a small little village on the outskirts of a province, I wander through looking for something. The children play their little games of kickball and hide and seek while the elderly watch and laugh. The parents are off on the daily routine, either chopping down wood to use as fuel or chatting with the person next door about how their day is going. Livestock huddle together while the younger, newly conceived, animals play around in the snow much like human children.

Clouds fly in the sky but drift by, not wishing to disturb the peace of the little village. Everyone knows that what looks clear now could turn ugly, fast. However, the sky is gentle and bright and rather than choose to fear for the future, they live entirely in the present. The sun smiles down on the little village as if approving of their attitudes.

A little further ahead and I realize there’s much more to what I thought was a small little village. In actuality, there are three little villages built so near to each other that one might mistake them for a single entity. The people across the three villages greet each other warmly, embracing in hugs and sharing in words.

Three old men stand in a circle with much younger, but well-made men, behind them. They speak in whispers often glancing over their shoulders at the peaceful villagers. I try to get closer to listen in but the men on the outside push me out.

I understand their actions and mind my own business. I’m here to look for something and that something only. What other people do is none of my concern.

As I continue through the village, the scentless air becomes contaminated. The foul stench of decaying bodies awkwardly combines with the weak metallic odor of fresh blood and comes from every side. The houses, neat and tidy despite the winter so far, begin splintering as if being taken down from the inside. Windows shatter, some so loud I flinch, while some so quiet I take a closer look to see if windows were ever there in the first place.

The warm and bright sky suddenly turns dark and cold. The once playful villagers going about their everyday lives start piling up in front of me as corpses. The men, women, elderly, and even the children, none are spared from whatever abhorrent evil came through. Some of those bodies lay dried up like prunes while others ooze blood as if freshly cut.

As I walk even further, my heart beats faster as I near my goal. The world cycles between one full of life and one where only death occupied the land as far as the eye could see. A black sword, planted in the middle of the villages, is accompanied by a person, a person who I seem to know. I slowly make my way over while calling out to the person but they never respond. Once I reach them, my breath halts.

What if I see something I don’t want to see?

I grab the person’s shoulder and turn them around.

Let me help you. Something whispers.

------------------------------------

I awake from my dreams with cold sweat streaming down my face and an unpleasant feeling in my hands. I tear the glowing plants from the ground and rub them on my hands, praying that the feeling would go away. Eventually, I calm myself enough to take in my surroundings.

Vormar’s corpse is nowhere to be seen. I light a flame between my fingers, which causes a slight headache, but see no remains. With a light already up, I explore the area despite my better judgment. A sparkle from the corner of my eye catches my attention. I kneel down and examine the odd purple crystal. It’s uneven in shape and seems to shine even without another light.

Intrigued, I pick it up. It burns my hand and I immediately let go.

“Ssffhh. Ahhh.”  

New sensations assault my hand but I ignore it as voices echo through the cave.

“Rainen? Rainen are you there?”

Picking up the black sword and burying it within its scabbard, I quickly wrap it in the cloth sheets. I tie it on my back and groan as I realize how damaged my left arm and shoulder are. My group appears at the entrance of the area with Elis lighting the way.

“Big brother!” Aisha tackles me sending pain throughout my whole body. “I was so worried.”

Istruan, though reluctant, convinces Aisha to get off me. He gives me a hand back up to my feet. “Did you do it?” he asks.

“I did.”

“Where’s the body?”

“I don’t know. Right before I fell unconscious, I saw it… scatter away.”

“Like snow? Or ash?”

“Yeah. Like snow or ash.”

Axel glances at all the blood stained flowers and looks at me, most likely comparing the blood. “Well, I believe you. There’s not much reason to lie. But the question is, will the village elder believe you?”

“He will,” Iris says, “After all we’ve been through, he will.”

Istruan nods, “I’ll make sure of it.”

I try to walk but nearly collapse. Istruan rushes to my aid.

“Are you okay?”

“Tired,” I respond. “Where are the others?”

“Oh, you mean Kat and Fia? I sent them back with Sio because they couldn’t use magic. Emile and I can’t either but we couldn’t just leave it to you guys.”

I nod.

Axel yawns, “Let’s get out of here shall we?”

The rest of the group turns to leave. As Istruan helps me out, I see Blue Hair reaching for the crystal.

“Stop. Don’t touch that!” But it’s too late, she already has it in her hand.

“S-sorry!” she stammers, dropping it. “I-I, I didn’t know I shouldn’t have touched it…” her gaze wanders off and the others in the group turn to look at me.

“What’s the big deal?” Elis asks, “It’s just a crystal, right?”

“R-right. I didn’t mean to yell…”

Blue Hair glances at me, “I-it’s alright. I understand.” She turns and begins walking away.

“Pick it up,” I tell her.

“W-what?”

“Pick it up.”

Elis shakes her head, “What are you trying to do?”

“Nothing,” I respond. “When I say pick it up, I’m not doing it to assert some sort of point if that’s what you mean. I’m fairly certain that crystal came from the beast.”

“Oh,” Elis nods, “If you just said it was a trophy I wouldn’t have snapped at you like that. I apologize.”

I stare at her for a moment before dismissing the matter entirely. Either she’s playing with me or she just doesn’t understand.

“Istruan, help me pick it up.”

He helps me over to the crystal and I use a piece of my torn clothing to pick it up. While down there, another thing catches my eye. As if some sort of mind reader, Istruan takes me to the middle of the room where I pick up one more thing.

Afterward, we leave the cave and make the trek back to the village. Istruan and Axel take turns helping me walk. Aisha offers to help as well but I turn her down. She complains saying I worry too much about her but I cite her slightly shorter stature as the reason why.

Once at the village, a couple of men come and take us over to the elder.

“You’ve defeated Vormar?”

I nod.

“How?”

“Its spines were its weak point. After learning that, all I had to do was cut them off one by one to kill it.” I lie.

The elder rubs his chin, “Thank you so very much. Here is the money I promised.” he drops the pouch of coins in Axel’s hand who goes through it.

“There’s extra,” Axel says.

“Yes. I was certain that Vormar would never be defeated. However, I still sent adventurers its way. I even sent you its way, even though I thought you were only three strong at the time. This is my way of apologizing. I was sending you off to your deaths and did little to stop you and for that I am sorry.”

The elder stands and bows to us. The men around us also bowed. “We are forever in your debt.”

We nod in return.

As we leave, the elder calls out to me one last time. “Vormar, the great beast. How was it when it died?”

“Strong,” I reply. “I thought I had killed it but it came back stronger one last time. Its flames were so bright I thought I’d go blind.”

“Ah… A flame burns its brightest just before it goes out. I see it is also true in the case of monsters.”

“Not always,” I say as we walk away.

                                            ---------------------------------------------

After a few healing sessions with Iris, Aisha, and Axel, they bandaged me up. With the extra money given to us by the elder, we were able to buy a couple of extra rooms. Axel and I still ended up sharing one and although the bed’s big enough to fit two people, he lays on the ground.

“You sure the ground is fine?” I ask. “This is the last time I’m asking.”

“No problem Rai. Besides, it’d be pretty bad if I accidentally hit you in the arm or something during the night. You’ve got some fractured bones and a dislocated shoulder. Be careful of what you do from now on.”

“It’s not like I need everyone to be worrying about me. I did take down that monster alone didn’t I?”

“Are you going to deny that we helped you?”

“Only if I’m treated as less than capable just because of a bum shoulder.”

Axel nods, “I see your point.”

“Glad,” I say, reaching into my pants pocket and pulling out a flower.

“Isn’t that the thing you picked up in the cave, aside from the crystal?”

“Yeah.”

“What is it?”

“Something to help me sleep. Good night.”