Thud! Thud! Thud!
Huff! Huff! Huff!
Heavy boots pounded through the gnarled forest. A boy no older than sixteen ran through the dry trees, each gasping breath tearing at his lungs. His jet black hair clung to his sweat slick face, and his dark eyes flashed wildly, searching for an escape route.
The cold wind rushed past him whistling, revealing his sharp and youthful features.
Whoosh!
A claw suddenly swiped past him from behind, but before it could scratch the boy, he twisted to the side, his sword raised, barely deflecting the blow.
Clank!-
The clash of steel and claw rang out, sharp and piercing.
His hands trembled slightly from the impact. The beast growled low, its six glowing eyes glaring hungrily. The beast's body was like a bull's, rippling with muscles, but its head seemed to be like that of a hound twisted unnaturally. It had two tails, each lashing the air with uncontained fury.
Growl!!
More of them emerged from the shadows cast by the creepy forest. A whole pack of five, twice the size of the boy was closing in fast.
The boy gritted his teeth as he ran. "How the hell did I even end up here?!?"
His feet maneuvering through the forest, carrying him forward, sometimes dodging. Branches snapped under his feet occasionally, his heart thumping, like it could break out of the cage and land in front of him any second!
He tried to recall how this nightmare of his started.
The banquet.
His family.
The attack.
One moment he was surrounded by music and laughter, his parents and his sister nearby. The next moment, chaos erupted as some men dressed in black attacked the grand hall. Some of those attackers held powers that could buy some time against the clan leaders! And amidst the chaos they created, someone from their side stealthy opened a portal to the Abyss and pushed him into it, that too right under the nose of his father, the head of Lunastre clan, and the other six clan heads!
'And as I was getting pulled deeper into the portal, my instincts kicked in and I tried to reach out to something, anything, desperately to stop myself getting dragged into it further. Just then out of the corner of my eyes, I saw her, a girl about my age, her face frozen in shock and fear as she ran towards me, her hands outstretched, she called out to me- "LUCIAN!!!"'
"She even attempted to throw some objects to stagger my fall into the portal but that proved to be futile. She ran as fast as she could, even throwing away one of the pistols she held. She didn't give up and tried to take a hold of my hand.'
'For a fleeting moment, I thought I could escape from that as our hands almost touched. But the pull from the portal intensified. My fingers slipped from hers, and the swirling portal consumed me.'
The last image was burned into Lucian's mind, the girl's face, her expression as he got consumed by the portal.
"After my surroundings became a blur. I felt like I was floating endlessly in the dark, suffocating expanse, my mind teetering at the edge of madness. Then the next thing I knew, I was here….in this damned Abyss!'
'But I knew panicking wouldn't do me any good so I started to look for a safe place to hide until the rescue team came. But oh boy, that was my greatest mistake, cause of my foolishness back then, here I am being chased by these ugly creatures!'
If it had just been one or two of these ugly creatures, Lucian might have stood a chance against them. But against a whole pack? Heck nah!
'And how is an initiate like me supposed to take on a whole pack of aberrant ranked creatures?!?' Lucian's inner monologue continued as he dodged another clawed swipe.
Snap!
Twitch!
A branch broke just beside him, snapping him back to reality. Another beast lunged, its claws raking the air. He ducked, the wind created due to the force of the attack grazing his cheeks slightly.
"Shit". He hissed, stumbling as his foot caught on a root. Despite that he kept moving, slicing through vines and branches with his blade to slow the beasts behind him.
Huff. Huff.
Sweat poured down his face, stinging his eyes. His breath came in shallow gasps. His mana reserves were nearly gone, drained from the earlier battle.
'Think Lucian think. How do I deal with this situation?!? How would my sister deal with this situation? Only if brother was still here he could have-
No this isn't the time to ponder over what ifs Lucian! Think. Think how would you survive!' He thought bitterly again. His hands trembled as he clutched his sword tighter.
Boom!
A tree to his left exploded as one of the creatures charged through it, shards of wood flying everywhere. He dove to the side, rolling awkwardly before scrambling to his feet. Pain flared in his shoulder, a reminder of the grazes he had accumulated.
'Those ugly bastards will soon catch up.'
Lucian's mind raced. He couldn't outrun them forever. But he couldn't fight them head on, not with his mana running low and his body bruised.
"No choice huh?" he muttered under his breath.
Taking a deep breath, he channeled the last scrap of his mana into his blade. A faint mint glow coated the blade. His arms were steady as he raised the sword and slashed horizontally towards the chasing beasts and the nearby trees.
Whoosh!
A wave of energy shot out, slicing through the trees, The beasts howled as it struck, leaving shallow gashes on their thick hides. More importantly, the attack felled several trees, creating a barrier between him and the pack.
Crash!
The beasts growled in frustration, struggling to maneuver around the fallen trunks. Lucian used the opportunity to put more distance between them, his legs burning as he sprinted forward.