The moonlight bled red across the forest, shadows twisting as the dark miasma rose higher, coiling into the air. The sprout unfurled like a grotesque flower basking in the crimson glow, its tendrils stretching skyward. At its heart, energy gathered, bulging and pulsing as if something monstrous clawed to be born. Even the wild beasts shrank back, retreating into the depths of the forest in terror.
But there was no escape for Garm and Cher.
Dragging his daughter through the brush, Garm fought to outpace their pursuer, behind them, Reg'gel strode forward, his massive frame outlined by moonlight, his jagged grin carved with cruelty. Raising his colossal blade, he swung once, and the ground itself split, a thunderous shockwave hurling Cher aside.
Garm threw himself between her and their pursuer, sword raised. Step by step, Reg'gel loomed closer, his towering frame blotting out the moonlight, with a shout, Garm lunged, "Hyaaa!", driving his blade forward with a downward strike, but Reg'gel caught it with one hand, snapping the steel in two as if it were a soft mineral, then his fist sank into Garm's gut, the brutal blow launching him across the ground, he landed hard, coughing, vision blurring and his strength failing him.
"Father!" she cried, scrambling to his side. Garm staggered to his feet, sword in hand, and charged with a roar. His strike was swift, desperate, yet Reg'gel caught the blade in one hand and snapped it like brittle wood. His other fist slammed into Garm's gut, sending him crashing across the dirt, coughing blood.
"Run…" Garm wheezed, clutching his side. "Cher, run!"
But she clung to him, shaking, tears streaming down her face. "No, Father. I… I'm going to do it, I have to."
His eyes widened in alarm. "No! Don't! Your body can't take it anymore!"
Cher pressed her palm to her chest, where her rune pulsed with light. It flared, pink and white, searing her skin as her body changing, her muscles tightened, fangs piercing her lips, her aura thickening like storm clouds, her eyes blazed with unnatural fire, like that of a Veyrith's, standing tall.
Reg'gel's grin widened. "So, the little human... Good… Show me what you've got!"
With a feral cry, Cher lunged, the earth cracked beneath her feet as she drove a punch into his chest, launching the towering warrior back in a spray of dirt and stone. She did not relent, she was already upon him, stomping down, striking, clawing, kicking in a relentless chain of blows. The forest trembled under her fury, each strike echoing like thunder as she fought to end the battle before her strength burned away.
Cher stood over Reg'gel, her chest heaving, blood dripping from her lips. She staggered back a step, then fell to her knees, coughing violently.
"Ch… Cher…" Garm rasped, forcing himself up on one elbow, his face pale with concern.
But Reg'gel only laughed, sitting upright with a cruel grin. "Is that all you've got?"
Before Cher could react, his massive hand clamped around her throat. With a single motion, he slammed her into the earth, the impact carving a crater, she cried out, "Urk!" as his foot pressed down mercilessly on her abdomen.
With no pause, Reg'gel seized her leg, lifting her like a ragdoll, and smashed her against the ground again and again until the she almost passed out. At last, he flung her limp body beside her father.
Licking the blood from his hand, he sneered. "If that's all… then die."
He retrieved his massive sword, stepping toward them menacingly, Garm forced himself upright, dragging Cher into his arms while her body fumes, her form reverting back.
Raising his sword up high, he thinks it's all too easy, so he puts his sword down and planted it on the ground, spoke to Garm's mind, "I will spare you for now, run as fast as you can if you think you can outrun me, run as far then my hunt begins!" Garm wasted no time as he dragged himself up carrying Cher with him who is half conscious walking away while Reg'gel just stared wearing his usual sinister grin.
Cher struggled to her feet, shaking off her father's grip. Her legs wavered, but she steadied herself.
"Don't push yourself," Garm warned, catching her arm.
"I'm okay," she replied, forcing a faint smile.
Together, they pressed on, climbing the jagged rise of a hill before descending into the shadows of a dense forest. The air grew damp and heavy, the silence broken only by the crunch of leaves underfoot, Garm scattered fine powder across their tracks It shimmered faintly in the moonlight before vanishing into the soil.
Here and there, he rigged simple snares and pitfalls, slowing his pace only to ensure each one was hidden well, Cher watched quietly.
"I still have so much to learn from you…" she thought, stealing a glance at him.
They pressed deeper into the forest, exhaustion tugging at their bodies, but neither dared stop, tirelessly, they pushed forward into the dark to their escape.
The ground trembled with a low rumble, Garm momentarily froze,observing, the sound grew heavier and closer, a herd of beasts burst from the treeline, tearing at the earth as they stampeded straight toward them.
"This is bad. They're onto us!" Garm hissed, pulling Cher toward the underbrush.
But before they could hide, Cher stumbled, her knees giving way. "Ah!" She fell hard.
"Cher!" Garm rushed back, throwing himself over her, ready to shield her from the oncoming charge.
The beasts stormed past, massive bodies brushed by them, but none struck, they didn't even look their way, instead, they fled, fleeing into the dark as if running away from something that terrifies them.
Garm's heart pounded, he lifted his daughter quickly, gripping her arm. "On your feet, we move now."
He cast a glance back through the thinning trees, "what could drive such wild creatures to panic…" he thought.
"Were near, hang in there Cher." Garm smiled faintly, his daughter had pushed beyond her limits more than he could.
They broke through the tree line into a moonlit clearing, for a moment, the air was calm, then a distant howl split the night.
"Hide, quickly!" Garm urged, Cher's body moved on pure adrenaline, staggering but refusing to stop.
Then they saw it, up ahead, the dark bloom writhed, tendrils squirming, miasma spilling upward like flames, the bulging flower pulsing with grotesque energy.
"What is that thing…?" Garm thought, unsettled by the sheer wrongness of it.
"Father!" Cher cried, her beastly eyes widening as she caught sight of movement, Reg'gel. He was barreling through the forest, ignoring every trap, every obstacle, hunger and madness twisting his expression, his guttural growls tore through the silence.
"It can't be…" Cher whispered, trembling.
They turned to flee, but before they could take a step, a shadow slammed down behind them.
Reg'gel.
Only now he was worse, his body had twisted, fur as black as midnight spreading across his hulking frame, claws glinting, drool dripping from his snarling maw. The clouds shifted, revealing the full moon above, and the light seemed to ignite his monstrous form.
Garm and Cher froze, sweat trailing down their necks.
Cher shoved her father aside, gritted her teeth, desperately trying to force another transformation, but her body failed her, the strain too much.
Garm knelt at her side, he tapped on her shoulder then he shook his head. "No, Cher, you've done enough."
Then he rose, stepping in front of her, weaponless and met the beast's burning eyes.
Trying to reasons with the beast
"I would offer myself to you, could you spare my daughter, I will do everything you ask me to even if it meant death"
Cher clutched her father's arm with wide eyes. "No, father, don't!"
But the beast did not listen, smoke curled from Reg'gel's snarling mouth as he lunged forward in a blur, his claws pierced Garm's chest, blood spraying into the moonlit air, with one brutal heave, Reg'gel lifted him and flung him aside like broken prey.
"Father!" Cher screamed, scrambling to his side, his breaths were shallow, blood staining her trembling hands, she looked up with beastly eyes blazing with fury.
Reg'gel's grin widened, her anger thrilled him. "Yes… that's it. Burn in rage, come at me, little one!"
He stepped closer, savoring her despair, until a faint voice carried through the clearing.
"Ma… master… is that you? Please… help us…"
Reg'gel's ears twitched, he turned his gaze towards the sound, not far ahead, a Veyrith soldier lay broken, reaching toward him, the writhing dark anomaly looming ahead.
"Ecrea? No… this is different."
His excitement shifted, he ignored Cher, confident she could be hunted later.
"Father, no… please don't die!" Cher sobbed, cradling Garm, trying desperately to keep him awake.
Reg'gel approached the wounded soldier and slowly knelt, the man's voice quavered.
"Master… I can't… it hurts…"
For a brief moment, something flickered in Reg'gel's beastly eyes, pity, he raised his hand gently… then snapped the soldier's neck in a single swift motion.
He bowed his head in respect, before laying him down to rest.
But as his eyes lifted to the anomaly, around it lay shattered weapons and mangled armor pieces, the tendrils pulsed eerily, rage surged inside him.
Reg'gel growled. "How could you!"
He rose to his feet and strode toward the anomaly, flexing his arm before swinging wide, sizing his foe. The blow cracked the air, unleashing an invisible force sharp enough to cleave stone, yet the tendrils reacted instantly, intercepting the strike as if anticipating it, Reg'gel's clicked his tongue.
With a beastly resolve, he charged, brandishing his colossal sword. Each leap displaced the air with thunderous shockwaves as his blade carved arcs of destruction right, left, up, down, striking again and again. But the anomaly remained unscathed, his eyes locked on the bulging core at its center, convinced it must be the weak point. He poured everything into each swing, the wind howling around him, while behind, Cher shielded her father, pressing against his wound.
"What is that thing? Even a high ranking Veyrith struggles against it…" she whispered, eyes carefully watching the fight while putting pressure in his father's chest.
Then Reg'gel halted, his gaze fixed on the ground, he noticed the black miasma pooling beneath the growth, the tendrils never extended beyond it, then an idea struck.
Throwing his head back, he howled, his body shifting back into its full beastly form, gripping his massive blade, he raised and called forth a red aura that blazed across his body, ancient runes along the steel ignited, with each pulsing with power similar to Cher's, her eyes widened in shock.
The weapon dissolved, fusing with his flesh, metal and muscle, his arm transformed into living steel, his frame reinforced by jagged plates, a helm of sharp edges forming over his face, his eyes glowed like burning coals as his monstrous silhouette stood even larger than before.
Even his presence is suffocating as Cher, resist to vomit, with teary eyes she wishes everything will be over soon, crying "Father, father" while looking at Garm's unconscious body.
A gentle wind-swept past, heavy with the scent of deat, Reg'gel struck without restraint, his blade smashing tendrils aside yet this time, one strike slipped through, grazing the core, a faint scar marked its surface, he froze for an instant, then grinned.
Relentless, he unleashed a storm of blows, each swing faster, harder, carving through the darkness, the growth twitched, writhing in pain, with a guttural roar, he leapt back and channeled power into his arms, at point-blank range, he slashed a crimson X-shaped arc of pure force, the explosion ripped through the bud, splitting it wide, severed tendrils falling limp to the earth.
The core lay exposed, pulsing, Reg'gel's smile widened as he clamped his clawed arm around it. "Die and rot in the pit you crawled from".
But then he froze, his heart sank, an instinct screaming within him, the air thickened with dread, his body felt like it was being torn apart just by standing there, was this… fear? For the first time, he hesitated.
A silent heartbeat throbbed across the field, not heard but felt through the skin, vibrating the bones. The core swelled, inflating grotesquely, glowing crimson as black liquid seeped from its seams, the clouds drifted over the moon, smothering the light, then, with a heavy thud, something dropped to the ground.
The stench of rot splattered outward as the clouds parted, revealing the creature.
Small, humanoid in shape yet hideously creature, its flesh a soft, glistening exoskeleton with six limbs twitched weakly. Mandibles clicked as a long-barbed tail dragged behind, and jagged spines protruded along its back, it writhed like a newborn, barely able to stand.
Reg'gel's lips curled, this was prey, he lunged, crossing the distance in a blink of an eye, his claws cleaving downward to crush it, but impossibly, the creature twisted aside, the strike shattered the ground, missing by inches.
Still feeble, it crawled behind its broken core, Reg'gel grinned wider, hunger traced in his eyes.
Throwing his head back, he howled, a surge of energy burst from him, winds so sharp they shredded the remaining tendrils clinging to the core. Dust and miasma swirled as the newborn abomination clung to the earth, trembling but alive.
At last, Reg'gel seized the newborn abomination, his claws closing like a vice around its frail body, slowly, deliberately, he squeezed.
"Feel the pain of my fallen soldiers," he growled, his grin twisted with malice, the creature writhed helplessly as its soft exoskeleton cracked under the pressure, purple ichor spilled from its mandibles, a screech tearing from its throat, its agony only fueled Reg'gel's delight he relished every moment, savoring the sound of breaking flesh.
But then…
The limp tail stealthily, in a blur, it coiled and slashed upward, the razor tip sliced clean through his left arm as if it were paper.
For a breathless instant, he stared in disbelief as his severed limb fell to the miasma, still clutching the creature.
"Gaaah!" Reg'gel staggered back, rage boiling to the limit, blood spraying in heavy arcs. Snarling, he forced his muscles to contract, veins constricting until the bleeding slowed.
"You… pest!" he roared.
Reg'gel's severed arm fell on the ground, then, horrifyingly, the miasma swallowed it whole, dragging it down like an endless pit, the newborn creature twitched, its body convulsed, then began to change.
Its limbs bulged, shell hardened into jagged plates, mandibles sharpened to gleaming points, and its tail extended like a barbed spear, with a piercing screech, it rose taller, stronger, more terrible than before.
Reg'gel's instincts screamed, he cast aside every shred of reason, hurling himself at the monster with raw, feral fury, no form, no technique, only pure rage and brute strength, blow after blow rained down, but this time the creature withstood everything, turning aside his strikes with ease, inflicting deep wounds, the tide had shifted.
Snarling, Reg'gel leapt back. "This thing, it evolves rapidly… he's a threat to us, no, this entire world." The creature lunged, but when its clawed limb touched the ground, it withered, sizzles as though burned, the creature screeched and recoiled in agony, Reg'gel smirked through blood-streaked teeth.
He needed strength to finish it off here and now, he needed flesh, his hungry gaze fell on Cher, saliva dripped from his maw as he staggered toward her.
Cher pressed trembling hands against her father's wound, tears streaming, unable to move. She closed her eyes, bracing for the inevitable as the shadow loomed over her.
Then, a hiss…
Something struck Reg'gel's back, searing him with a burst of acid, his flesh blistered and peeled away as he recoiled in agony, stumbling forward. He glanced back, acid hissed on the soil, leaving scorched trails, Cher's eyes snapped open, the monster had learned spitting its burning bile like a weapon.
Desperate, Reg'gel lunged at her again.
But Garm jolted awake, bloodied, half-conscious, mustered every ounce of his strength, he snatched the bone dagger from Cher's waist and drove it deep into Reg'gel's chest, straight to the heart.
The beast reeled back, thrashing, choking on its own blood, screaming like a dying animal as it collapsed into the dirt, what happens next terrifies them all, the creature stepped out of the miasma as it tries to evolve once more enduring the immense pain.
Reg'gel looked at it with terrified expression, "No, it can't be! This is not happening!"
The creature walks towards them, firmly… steadily.