Hellwalkers

Running With The Hellbeasts

Just so you know, guys, I'm not exactly following the original movie's chronological order and the story occurs in a far longer period of time, so Moxxie's adventures as a hellbeast won't happen only for one night.

—*HB*—

Moxxie followed Striker and Jake out of the cave and into the ravine. The little hellbeast was skipping all the way outside, talking about how being a hellbeast was way better. Moxxie didn't have the heart to tell him to shut up, especially since Striker wouldn't take it kindly.

They came to a stop on the cliff, right next to the small pond. Striker sat down and looked at Moxxie.

"First of all, what do ye know about hellbeasts?"

"I thought we were gonna—"

"Answer the question." Geez, what a genius.

"Hellbeasts are predatory, reptilian animals native to Wrath. They're nocturnal and tend to live in packs up to fifty individuals—"

"Forget it," Striker interrupted. "Forget everythin' ye know about hellbeasts 'cause that's only town imp propaganda. I'm gonna teach ya how to be a hellbeast, but for that, we need to start from scratch."

Moxxie swallowed hard. "Okay."

"We'll start with somethin' simple: yer senses. Close yer eyes."

"Why?"

"Just do it." Reluctantly, Moxxie did as told. "Now concentrate on the smells around ya."

Moxxie opened up his nostrils and inhaled deeply. Even though his eyes were closed, he could see Striker's scent shaping into the Hellwalker's form. Striker smirked.

"Ye don't need yer eyes to see. And ye can also hear everythin' that moves."

"Neat, isn't it? Even yer paws can hear through the earth!"Jake chirped. Moxxie frowned.

"You mean, like a snake?"

"That's right, vermin. Now pay attention to the sounds and the vibrations on the ground and describe what ye see."

Again, Moxxie did as told. This time, the scents didn't just take a shape. He could hear them and tell how far apart they were from the intensity of the vibrations on the ground.

"There's a mouse moving in those bushes... Wait, there's also a rabbit a few meters away. It doesn't seem to notice we're here... Nevermind, it just ran off in the opposite direction." Moxxie's ears twitched involuntarily at the sounds of nature around him. "I think there's a... Oh, crumbs, that's a crimson jaybird! They're very hard to spot!"

"Not bad for yer first time, vermin. It usually takes a few days to get a hand of smellin'."

"Uncle Brash once said that dad ran into a skunk the first time he tried to track a rabbit." Jake laughed.

"In case he didn't clarify, that particular incident happened because of a prank of his." Striker retorted, his mane bristling. "Anyhow, it's time for yer next lesson: movin' around."

"Ooh, can I teach him this one, dad? Please, please, please!" Striker rolled his eyes with a grin.

"Fine, pup."

Jake's tail wagged happily as he circled Moxxie. "Ye have four legs now, so ye can run really fast and jump so high!" the impling made a quick lap around Moxxie and jumped off one of the nearby rocks for emphasis. "See? Easy breezy!"