Jonah Hellion Rubeous, fourth son of Jonah Killion Rubeous the Third, had been born with a silver spoon—and a burden. His bloodline had ruled the prosperous city of Blackmere since his great-great-grandfather slew the Dragon God Vorgen and saved the kingdom of Samillia.
From his first breath, Jonah was trained as a Hunter. Every day of his life had been spent chasing the legacy of his forefathers, striving to become a protector of the realm. It was the privilege he was born into—and the duty that consumed him.
Now, even as blood poured from the wound in his side, Jonah moved. He moved because he had to. Because the weight of his name would not let him fall. His team was scattered, their strength crushed, their healer torn apart—and still, he refused to stop.
He slashed—step, twist. Steel sang. A near miss. A heartbeat. He slipped past, his blade flashing as it met claw. The clash rang out, sharp and final. Jonah staggered back, teeth clenched against the monster's overwhelming strength.
Pain blurred his thoughts. The world swam, his skull still rattling from the last blow. They had only come to scout the edges of Ashwood Forest. They had not expected this.
Juliana was dead. Kendra and Doren had been swatted aside. And now Jonah stood alone.
He gripped his sword until his knuckles bled, his chest heaving. His blade gleamed wet with the creature's blood. He stepped forward, thrust—parry—kick. Boot met maw. The beast staggered. Jonah pressed in.
Then claws raked his ribs. Flesh tore. Blood spilled hot into the mud. His vision blurred, his thoughts thick with fog.
No. He would not break. He. Would. Not. Die.
"I shall not fall!" he roared, voice raw with defiance.
A breath, then move. He set his feet, raised his blade, then engaged. Thrust, metal scraping scales, a step back - parry - kick. Boot met maw, face snapping back. It staggered, he pressed. He lunged, blade twisted deep into flesh, the creature shrieked and lashed out, claws raking Jonah's ribs. Flesh torn, blood spilling to the mud, consciousness fading.
The exchanges were swift, lasting only moments. Despite his determination, Jonah was failing, his arms growing tired. No matter how skilled he was, being a full rank below his opponent and then some was an insurmountable wall. The creature he had found himself clashing against was a large humanoid figure. It was tall, standing a full head above Jonah, black scales wrapping its form and its massive maw gaping open exposing its rows of razor-sharp teeth. Its legs were long, ending in a foot of four claws, and its arms were its primary method of attack, an entire body length of reach that ended with a single sword-like claw. A Devourer.
Jonah stepped firmly, slashing in an upward arc. The muddy ground gave out. As he slipped, the creature reacted with a predatory grin, its dark maw glistening with saliva. Its long arm lashed out, slashing Jonah's wrist. Blood splattered to the ground, the thick red liquid staining the mud a dirty crimson. He screamed. White hot pain burned through his body as his sword dropped to the ground, his hand still grasping the hilt. His body collapsed in pain, but the monster did not let him fall.
Its scaly claw grasped the human's neck, raising him into the air. Jonah wreathed in pain, screaming as he gripped the monster's arm with his remaining hand, desperately trying to pry it away. He was far too weak. The creature stared into his eyes as it brought him closer, its soulless eyes smiling, its hot breath on Jonah's face. His nails raked on the cold scaly flesh of the monster, his eyes blazing in resilience as his painful screams turned to roars of resilience. He would not fall here! He would kill this creature! He would! All he had to do was break loose and he would…
"Jonah!" A female voice screamed in horror finally having recovered from the earlier blow to the head she had suffered.
The scram came at the same moment of a sickening crunch. Jonah's body which had burned so bright with determination and drive died out, his last embers of struggle turning to smoke and drifting away. The ashen forest grew silent briefly, the flurry of battle pausing completely. Thick red liquid poured to the ground spilling out from the body as the Devourer chewed on the head of the young hero. The head crushed between the jaws, the head exploded like a watermelon, the mixture of flesh, blood, and brains blending as the creature chewed.
Kendra watched, too shocked to move, her eyes wide and brow furrowed in fear and disgust. The demonic monster with its black scales and demonic maw of teeth covered in the blood and ichor that had spilled out from the inside of her friend's body.
The creature reveled in the glory of its kill. The sweet taste of its prey sending euphoric bursts of pleasure through its body. It was incredible. As it ate, ripping into the corpse teeth crunching through bone, it could feel its body morphing, changing. It hummed in pleasure, the familiar feeling of growth pulsating through its body. This was much better than the horrible meat of the other monsters it had been preying on. It had gained so little from its earlier prey, so little growth it was almost negligible. Now, it could feel the changes surging throughout its entire body!
As it ate, the creature suddenly paused. Kendra watched on, her body shaking, her mind spiraling out of control, and her mind becoming possessed by fear and despair.
The more it had eaten of the human, the more it had become wary of the delicious feast. As it stood, staring at the corpse, it could feel it. It could feel Jonah. His will burns through the creature's mind.
It stumbled away from the corpse, its eyes widening in emotions it had never known it possessed. Fear? With every passing moment, it could feel the will of Jonah burning through it. Jonah? How did it know the food's name? What was happening? He could feel the burning passion of Jonah ripping through its mind. The creature stumbled and roared out, twisting and shuddering as mana began to overflow from its body.
Kendra stared at the mana erupting from the creature. It erupted in a dark aura exploding from the horror, but the darkness slowly began to be consumed by a new aura. It burned bright green, wrapping around the black and attempting to consume it. She recognized this aura as she had seen it hundreds of times during her travels with her comrades.
The aura was Jonah's.
The creature instinctively lashed out at the emotions and feelings flooding into it, attempting to kill the immaterial things with bloodthirst and fury. Nothing worked. As the two auras clashed and danced, twisting around the creature, the changes finally began to settle in.
Jonah's will had refused to die with its body, and the Devourer's unique ability had been the catalyst in which it returned. Drawing at the innate power of its prey the devourer had absorbed much of Jonah, resulting in a change completely unlike anything it had experienced before.
Their spirits intertwined, auras clashing and merging within the creature, twisting and shifting as they metamorphosed into something entirely new. The fear and panic that once gripped the beast slowly faded as understanding dawned—it was not being erased. No, he was evolving.
Jonah was already gone. This was no struggle for dominance, no battle to claim a soul. Instead, it was a transformation—an awakening. He was not consuming Jonah's essence; he was becoming something greater, forged by the burning will of his fallen prey.
As the soul shifted, so too did the body. Magic energy swirled around him, warping his monstrous form. His hunched posture straightened, his hulking limbs refined. Muscles tightened, bones reformed, and his towering bulk compacted into a leaner, deadlier shape. His face, his torso, his limbs—they all grew eerily human, yet unmistakably inhuman. His gaping maw shrank into a more structured mouth, lined with razor-sharp teeth.
His skin remained ashen, his body still layered in thick scales, but now, he no longer resembled a mindless beast. He stood as something new—something ancient. A demonic figure, his presence akin to the dreaded vampires of old.
The aura faded and the magical energy dissipated into the sky, leaving behind the newly created monster. He stood, staring out over the forest that lay sprawled out before him. For the first time, a thought crossed through its mind. It was the first ever thought that had nothing to do with hunting, eating, or sleeping. It was his first thought that had no reason or purpose behind it.
'The forest—is beautiful'
The creature was no longer concerned with the corpse nor the other two humans, one of whom was still unconscious. Instead, it stared out over the forest.
The ground was damp with morning dew, sunlight catching on the droplets, scattering light across the forest in a mesmerizing display. Rolling fields of lush silver grass stretched endlessly, giving way to towering trees with ashen trunks that loomed high above. Their sprawling branches, adorned with a cascade of purple and lavender leaves, shimmered as beams of light filtered through the canopy, setting the forest aglow in a dreamlike radiance.
He was enamored with the world, gazing out as if seeing it for the first time. If not for the destruction caused by the battle, the forest would be truly flawless.
The moment slowly passed and the monster's gaze fell upon the girl who stared up at him with wide eyes, frozen. She was a beautiful human girl with long copper hair, pale skin, and soft chestnut eyes. He began to approach her, moving slowly when she spoke, her voice a soft stutter.
"J-Jonah?"
Kendra stared at the monster, its form having completely changed. It was not the same, but the face, hair, and build were all Jonah's. However many features were not. The long majestic horns that acted like a crown, the silver hair, and the ashen skin made the differences between the two clear.
"Jonah… Is dead." The monster spoke, its words soft but firm.
The hope Kendra had been desperately clinging to died. She had thought that maybe… But no. Only the monster remained. She should have been afraid, but rather she felt fury burning beneath the surface.
"How dare you wear his face?" She spat her voice pure venom.
The monster paused, looking at her with a look of curiosity. Memories flashed through its mind. Memories of the girl who struggled to her feet, meekly pointing her short sword towards him. These were not his memories. Yet he still felt a strange compassion towards the woman.
Strangely enough, he did not wish to eat her.
"Kendra. Jonah is dead, but I am him. He is not me, but he is." He said, his tone soft as if trying to work out exactly who he was.
He did not know. He was not the monster he had once been, nor was he Jonah whose memories he had inherited. He felt lost.
She lunged at him, thrusting the shortsword towards his face. He moved, swiftly dodging the blow before chopping his hand down on the back of her neck. Kendra crumpled to the ground, her mind fading and darkness overtaking her consciousness. In the final moments, she heard the monster speak again.
"I… Will not eat Kendra."