Cycle of Ruin - Arrival: A LitRPG Series

Chapter 24

This is foolhardy and dangerous! Amira said in exasperation. Even if you did manage to establish a connection, you'd just be throwing away the life that Zeldorth spared!

"I owe it to him to at least give it a shot," Leo responded, hands held tight in determination.

Oh? And what happens when that monstrosity awakens famished and irritated? Amira retorted.

"Are you saying you can't outrun it?" Leo asked with a teasing smile.

Of course I can outrun it. I'm a Thunder Roc, she replied in indignation.

"Great! Then there's no problem with me trying!" He smiled back, trying to mask the unease. The truth was that even if the Creeping Horror was self-aware enough to communicate through his Beast Communication skill, and the monster didn't try to kill them outright, he had nothing to offer in trade for one of its Radiant Hearts.

Leo wiped his sweaty palms on his already-filthy trousers, trying to contain his anxiety as he stared out at the mass of deadly vines protecting his goal. His body couldn't help but shudder as his mind flashed back to the last time he had failed to secure a flower. The agonizing poison had slowly ruptured his veins, melted his organs and fried his nerves, all the while keeping his mind acutely awake for each unbearable second. The pain had been so all-consuming that he had pleaded for death to take him, begged for a release from the torment.

The idea of reliving that dreadful experience was almost enough to make him succumb to the thought of safety. It would be so much easier to just give Zeld a proper burial and carry on with his life, telling himself the old man would live on in his memory. Except, now he knew what awaited the souls of the departed. He had been to the abyss.

After going to the underworld, he could no longer romanticize Zeld's afterlife, believing the old man had finally become reunited with his wife and son. No, death here only led to an eternity of suffering, in a place that made most religions' hell look like heaven. He couldn't condemn someone he cared about to such an existence, not while he had a chance to save them.

Climb up then, Amira sighed in defeat, lowering her body and extending a massive wing for him to scale up. Leo walked up and reached out to grab a handful of her feathers. It was surprising to find that unlike the classic feathers on Sparky, Amira's yellow plumage was more akin to plasma given shape. He half-expected his hand to pass through the semi-transparent substance, or for his body to suddenly light up like a Christmas tree, but as his fingers curled around the soft matter, all he felt was the slightest tingle run up his arm.

He made the climb in seconds, the massive changes his body had undergone today allowing him to breeze up the awkward climb like a spider. He positioned himself at the base of her neck, the joints connecting to her wings forming a natural place for his legs to rest against.

As soon as he was in position, Amira rose to her full towering height, causing an unmanly yelp to escape his lips as he hurriedly grabbed two handfuls of feathers to keep from tumbling down her back.

You're no dragon but I suppose you'll do, Leo said with a large boyish grin after steadying himself, feeling the power and majesty that came with riding on such a fantastical creature. One of the bundles of feathers he was holding discharged a sudden shock, causing his hand to fling back in surprise. He flailed about for a desperate moment, heart hammering before he managed to resecure his grip.

You were saying? Amira questioned calmly.

"J-just how gorgeous your feathers are!" Leo hurriedly responded.

As I assumed. Now, order the hatchlings out of the cave. They will only be a hindrance if this comes to blows.

Pride practically bolted at the command. He could feel how terrified she was being so close to the horrific monster. Sparky fired off a bolt of lightning at Amira in a paltry attempt to prove her usefulness but was quickly dissuaded when the returning bolt fried even her feathers. The two would hunker down in the small entranceway he had first discovered to the garden.