Fifteen minutes earlier, an exhausted Cyrus, holding a spear slicked in sweat, tore through the underbrush. His legs soon crawled to a stop as he forced himself for a momentary break, raggedly breathing as he chugged a health vial.

Crash

Shuddering, Cyrus snapped his gaze toward the unmistakable noise of a tree falling onto the floor. Then, he saw several limbs breaking from the fog and heading straight toward him. Cyrus broke into another sprint into a thicket of trees. Once he stared into that thing's beady little eyes, overwhelming terror struck him, and he ran.

Another gut-wrenching howl. One that screamed hunger trailed behind as the skittering of legs and crashing trees came from behind. It was drawing near. But Cyrus tried to ignore it and ran. With his sights set straight, he hoped, he pleaded for something, anything, to divert from the death that awaited him.

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. The words echoed in Cyrus' mind as despair flooded his body as a second weight to his growing fatigue. Be it a spear, flame, or light—nothing was effective. Then came the intrusive thoughts that wormed unbidden into his mind. Is Latriaen dead?!

Cyrus nearly stumbled as he leaped onto a small ledge in a bid to climb over it. Once up, he struggled into a run again. His strength had drained empty long ago, now on fumes and dwindling hope, desperately scrambling for a plan.

No—stop. You have to reach him. He's still alive! He has to be!

But how? Cyrus had long lost the path to the hamlet. How was he supposed to send out a signal?

Think. Think!

Make a fire? That could work. But would it spread fast enough to catch the Ork's attention from this distance?

Not fast enough. Not close enough. The sudden image of Latriaen's searing, disapproving gaze came into view. It was always bright, always flaring—The flare gun!

His hope revitalized, Cyrus' gaze snapped upward at the sight of a thick canopy barrier greeting him. The sight crushed his hopes. He needed a clear view of the skies, or everything would be for naught.

Regardless, Cyrus reached into his pouch and drew it out alongside a mana crystal and another health vial. All he needed was one opening.

Another crash drew his attention toward the left, followed by the roar of The Maw as it tore out of the fog. It reached out with its spindly legs and slammed down to skewer him.

Cyrus reacted by floundering to the side; the sudden drop saved him from three shadowy limbs rushing above. Quickly, he staggered up and moved beside the trees before slipping into a small holloway of trees. He kept running, ignoring the sudden crash and roaring from behind.

Ten seconds. Twenty.

Only when the roaring grew soft did Cyrus stop and fall to his knees against the thick, foggy dirt, dropping his spear. While gasping for air, his gaze shifted around, searching for gaps to sift through. But it was like a wall of bark and wood blocked his path. Moreover, the canopy above was as thick as a ceiling. Which meant the only path was forward or backward. But the sudden respite was welcomed. And Cyrus used the moment to drink potions and absorb mana crystals to refill his near-empty mana pool. Good thing, too. His lightvision was about to flicker out.

"Bird, are you ok? Listen to me!" A heaving Cyrus hastily opened his inner coat pocket. "Go—Fly or something! Far away!"

The trembling canary simply stared at him. This wasn't the first time it had ignored his orders during the chase. But now was the perfect time for them to split up. Why wasn't it escaping?

Frustrated, Cyrus covered his face with his hands. His body shook as he took deep breaths. But Cyrus couldn't waste any more time. Slowly, he stood up and hugged the wall, leaning on it as he passed through the sunken lane. Maybe escape was possible on the other side.

Cyrus could only hope so. He couldn't keep running forever. Soon, the exit appeared before him, forcing Cyrus to pause. He took the time to recover and drink another potion. Now, Cyrus was ready. Slowly, he glanced beyond and saw vast open spaces with trees with trunks meters thick. Their high and thick canopies blocked him from using his flare. The sight made Cyrus feel restless. But something in his mind told him the dangers of staying put. And the longer he remained, the longer it would take him to send a flare out.

Gritting his teeth, Cyrus broke into a sprint, the forest duff surrendering to the weight of his boots. However, no sooner than ten seconds of running did the fog around him suddenly thicken into a wall! Quickly, Cyrus turned around for the safety of the holloway but soon found himself entrapped by fog.

There was no escape!

As if brought back to life, the fog coiled and coalesced before him, bubbling into a large mound. It grew and grew, forcing Cyrus a few steps back. Then several spindly legs sprang forth from within the clump and stabbed the ground. Together, they slowly lifted a misshapen torso from the froth.

Slowly, it locked eyes with the frozen Cyrus. It shambled closer, spittle dripping onto the ground. The look in its gaze told Cyrus how it wished to devour him and savor his flesh and soul.

With a trembling arm, Cyrus weakly lifted his spear toward it. "Stay back!"

Meanwhile, his mana surged through his light runes. The light could save him, no? It was the opposite of dark, right?! Stepping back, Cyrus felt a desperate plan forming. He had never tried this, but it was either this or nothing.

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Quickly, he applied pull and push intent on his light.

But The Maw was quick to move. It skittered and stomped just before Cyrus, mouth wide open, revealing a hole of darkness in its stomach. Panicking, Cyrus stretched outwards as it lunged for him. At that moment, he was shot backward as radiance blasted from his palm onto its face. Then, Cyrus tumbled to the ground. He expected to be immediately struck, but the creature's howling was like music to his ears.

It worked! It truly worked! His gaze landed on the collapsed creature as it slammed and thrashed its steaming, sizzling, beady eyes on the dirt. Its eyes were its weakness! And a new, desperate plan appeared in his mind!

"This is stupid!" Cyrus quickly stumbled up. I'm going to die. Slowly, he took a step. Then another while returning his spear into his pouch. "This is stupid!" He broke into a bolt, moving faster and faster toward the proned creature.

"This is the stupid!" Cyrus yelled with all his might as he jumped on top the monsters head! And a moment later, he was sprung far into the air as The Maw jerked its head upward! Shouting at the top of his lungs, Cyrus watched the sprawling canopy draw closer as he channeled mana through his fire runes. And just when he was to crash into it, Cyrus used tension.

Flames exploded from his palm. It instantly tore through the barrier and incinerated a large hole in the leafy ceiling. But that wasn't all. The branches quickly caught in a fiery blaze, spreading rapidly to the trees. The flames illuminated the forest floor in a searing glow. Meanwhile, the blast from Cyrus' attack sent him hurtling downward. And directly toward The Maw.

But he didn't panic. His gaze remained transfixed on the wraith, seemingly unhurt from his earlier attack, as its gaunt arms stretched its gaping mouth wide open for a free meal. Sprawled out like a starfish, Cyrus free-fell as he applied tension to an arm and leg.

But The Maw didn't remain idle; it formed and launched several foggy hands, swiftly reaching toward him.

One second. Two.

At that moment, time seemed to slow between the two. Above was a young man; the inferno above painted his scraggy hair and beard red while a pair of golden eyes hid between his locks. And below, hungry darkness, given life, sprang up to grasp at him and bring him down into the abyss.

There was only one goal—one single focus: survival.

Now. Cyrus struck. His arm shot downwards and unleashed another ray, striking the creature's eyes again. He watched it howl and recoil again as the limbs momentarily trembled and paused before resuming their chase. But that brief moment was enough for him. Cyrus straightened himself and released his tension. Like an arrow, the flames from his sole shot him forward, evading the shadowy tendrils.

But there was still a lot of air between him and the ground. With his dwindling mana, Cyrus prepared for another tension while reaching into his pocket and tossing the startled Bird into the air before it took flight.

With the canary's safety during the fall no longer in question, Cyrus waited for the right moment. Just as he was about to crash onto the ground, he released tension again, using its force to counteract his fall and soften his landing.

But it still hurt. Ignoring the pain and the creature's howling, Cyrus rolled into a stand, quickly scrambling to his feet. Without hesitation, he took off into the forest ahead, whistling for Bird to follow him. As he ran, he thought of his next steps. Draw The Maw out and return once the flames burn through the canopy. In the meantime, light the forest on fire for another gamble. With that in mind, Cyrus channeled mana for a hungry ember. He then tossed them out as they came onto the canopy and trees, setting the world in a crimson glow. His fire runes slowly tuned themselves more and more to his wishes.

Meanwhile, he kept his gaze on the fog. Any sign of movement would drive him to a different location as he circled around the planned site. However, more shadows moved to impede him. And both he and Bird were forced to move closer into the flames.

By now, the flames had already reached the ground and torched the brush and druff. And the sight of it forced Bird to a stop.

"We don't have time for this!" Cyrus pleaded.

But the canary refused to listen. The flames were too frightening, yet the canary chose not to fly away.

"Bird, pleas—" Cyrus forced himself calm and opened his coat pocket. "Get inside. Now."

Bird complied without hesitation. Once it flew inside, Cyrus diverted his fire runes around his person and channeled mana into them. Then, he sprinted into the flames and smog, using push intent to make a path. Behind was the pursuing shadow claws, chasing him despite the ever-growing inferno. Cyrus moved from one flaming tree to another as cover, drawing out time as he outpaced the abomination.

Slowly, surely, he moved toward the center, draining health vials and mana crystals in the meantime as he pushed the flames away from him. There was one last wall of fire that blocked him from his goals. With all Cyrus' fire runes working in unison, he pushed through. There it was. The sight of the black and gray skies brought a smile to Cyrus' face as he drew his flare gun.

Bang

Excitedly, he watched the round shoot upwards before exploding beautifully. Now, for part two. After clearing the ground fire around him, Cyrus sent out his mana sense and attuned himself to the world around him.

It was hot. Very, very hot. And with it came—Chirp!

Cyrus twisted to the call. He looked around, shifting his gaze for any signs of attack. But in this inferno, flame and shadow dance as companions. The brights were too bright for his lightvision, while the darks were too dark to discover what lurked within.

A sudden shriek drew his attention. Yet it was a distraction from the ambush as two arms broke through the fires and latched onto his arms and legs!

He was caught!

Gaze narrowing, Cyrus struggled to pull away as it gripped him tightly. And his expression fell fast at the sight of his Wayfarer's outfit shimmering momentarily as a black liquid seeped into the brick.

It was too powerful. The fabric blackened and deteriorated under the claw's corrosive touch. And once it crumpled into shreds, there was nothing but Cyrus' skin to latch onto. Paralyzing agony shot through him as he witnessed his arm and leg blacken. And for a split moment, Cyrus wished for it all to end. But he bit his tongue to keep himself sane. Then, Cyrus pulled from their grip. He pulled and pulled until the melted chunk tore off from his limbs.

Nothing could have prepared him for this. He was left choking as the tendrils pulled back into the flames. Behind the crackling of the fire, grotesque squelching and chewing soon followed. A moment later, The Maw broke through the walls of conflagration. It then howled, fog drooling from its twin mouths as it charged for the escaping Cyrus, intending to swallow him whole. Meanwhile, Cyrus was wasting away. He dared not stare at his wounds, but the spreading pain informed him of what was happening to his flesh. It was only a matter of time until his limbs would fall off.

But all he could do was allocate life runes around the wound as The Maw headed straight for him!

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