Heroes can fall in more ways than one.
Demigod Xaray is sent on a quest to kill after he massacred a whole town. Weakened by the strain, he falls prey to a haughty vampire and is cared for by a fellow prisoner, the nagi Vasa. Torn between his orders...
Wind whipped around Xaray's body as he freefell to the ground. His wings unfurled to their full length in response, turning his drop into a glide. Nigat's spiky tail let go of him as the green-scaled creature continued to fall. With a loud thump, it landed on the ground on all six.
The four bears looked up, eyes wide in surprise. Nigat gave no time to react before it crouched down and leapt at the closest bear, burying its fangs in its neck and its claws in its dirty, brown fur. The bear gave a strangled cry of pain as it bucked to get its attacker off.
Xaray hovered above, keeping his wingbeats soft to prevent attracting attention. The creature looked up and met his gaze, its yellow demanding one thing. Come down here and kill. The demigod was happy to oblige that command. He twirled his sword in his hand and looked for the best target.
One of the three remaining bears rose up, claw raised and ready to strike Nigat. Letting his wings close, Xaray dropped downwards, the sword between his two hands pointing towards the ground. Just as the bear was about to strike, the demigod impaled its head with his blade, letting the momentum push him through.
"Nice one, tadpole," Nigat complimented with a grin. Liquid drizzled down its muzzle where the mask used to be. When it hit the bear fur below, it sizzled and smoked. It let go of the dead bear, blood dripping from its claws. "We better get the last two before they run away."
Xaray yanked his sword out of the bear's skull and looked around. The two bears ran over a hill and disappeared from sight, into the woods. Nodding to Nigat, he leapt into the sky again as the scaled creature took off at full speed. Once again, wind rushed past him, but this time he was in control.
Staying just above the treetops, he beat his wings hard to catch up with the two running beasts. Nigat was a green blur on the ground, kicking up dirt behind it. The distance between them and their quarry shrunk by the second. The two ran as fast as they could, weaving between the trees with frantic fervor, but their pace was already slowing.
Xaray let himself fall through the tree canopy behind one of the bears, shooting towards it like an arrow released from a bow. As he passed just above the creature, he kept his sword below him, cleaving through the creature. It howled in pain and leapt away, but the damage had been done.
With a few backwards wingbeats, Xaray came to a stop on the ground. Behind him, the other bear let out a gurgling growl, followed by the vicious, bloodthirsty hisses of a predator tearing into its prey. The demigod turned around and almost took a step back.
Tufts of fur flew through the air as Nigat scratched away at the bear's side. Blood spurted out of the dozen different torn veins, bones and muscles bared to the air for all to see. Still, the scaled creature kept digging, a feverish look shining in its eyes. After a few seconds, Nigat reached the bear's ribcage and tore out its heart.
