Twilight draped the Ancient Forest in bruised purples and muted golds. The jungle no longer felt familiar. Branches whispered strangely, vines shivered with a life of their own, and the air carried a sour tang of rot and decay. Even the breeze hesitated, as if the forest itself were watching.
High among the trunks, the Tobi Kadachi glided silently. Its wings stretched taut from elbow to ankle, muscles coiled for sudden bursts. Crimson eyes scanned the shadows; every movement, every flicker of leaf or glint of light set its instincts racing.
A faint vibration shuddered through the branches. The Tobi Kadachi froze, claws digging into bark. Somewhere below, the rustle of coordinated movement—Jagras, countless of them, bloated and grotesque—shifted through the undergrowth. They were hunting, and the forest itself seemed to bend to their will.
A vine lashed out, snaking along a trunk like a living whip. The Tobi‑Kadachi leapt aside, wings flaring. Membranes stretched, tail‑fan steering, claws scraping bark. Another vine shot up, snagging a talon. Pain flared as it tore free, leaving a smear of blood on the fibrous tendril.
From above, a shriek cut through the canopy. The Pukei Pukei dropped onto the branch ahead, maw gaping, tongue-tendrils lashing in thick, blackened arcs. The Tobi Kadachi twisted mid-air, narrowly avoiding a spatter of venom. Sparks of electricity crackled along its fur, jolting the Pukei Pukei back, but it did not retreat. The hive mind had refined its precision.
Below, the Jagras surged forward, leaping, snapping, forcing the Tobi Kadachi to weave through branches at impossible angles. Each missed strike was a lucky calculation,each narrow gap tested its endurance.
A distant rumble vibrated through the earth. The forest seemed to quake in anticipation. Somewhere beyond the shadows, the Anjanath was moving, drawn toward the cathedral like chrysalis hidden deep within the jungle. The Tobi Kadachi glimpsed it only fleetingly. massive form, jagged tendrils glistening, eyes glowing with a cold alien intelligence. The sight sent a surge of terror along its spine.
Vines burst from the ground, wrapping around roots and trunks, forcing the Tobi Kadachi higher into the canopy. The Pukei Pukei lunged again, venom glistening on its tongue. Jagras snapped beneath, their movements eerily synchronized, as if the they were nothing but the limbs of a creature much larger.
Heart hammering, wings straining, the Tobi Kadachi twisted and flared its tail fan, leaping to a higher limb. Every sense screamed danger. It could see the faint pulse of light deep in the undergrowth the chrysalis, distant but undeniable. It hung there like a dark sun, radiating a malevolent intelligence.
Another vine shot toward it, another Jagras lunged. The Tobi Kadachi yelped, twisting mid air, talons scraping the bark of a massive tree. The Pukei Pukei hissed, lunging with predatory precision. Electricity surged along its fur, hair standing on end, a desperate defense.
The forest had become a gauntlet of life and death, every step and glide guided by the hive mind. The Tobi Kadachi could only run, leap, and hope the shadows held paths yet unseen.
Far below, in the darkness, the chrysalis pulsed with stolen memories and energy, a beacon of the infection's growing power. The Anjanath's distant roar echoed through the canopy. The hunt was far from over.
The jungle wanted it and it would have it.