His feet seemed to be rooted to the ground when Finn saw the hunched back of a creature. It was almost half his height, but that didn't make it any less frightening. Sparse tufts of hair on its head were interspersed with bald patches covered in dried blue blood. The only hint of clothing was a dirty rag around its hips, leaving most of its body exposed. The creature's skin resembled rough stone, gray and coarse.
Panic overwhelmed his mind, and Finn began to frantically back away towards the saving crawl. His trembling legs stumbled over a stone, creating a noise that echoed through the cave. The creature froze, and then slowly, with a wet crunch, began to turn.
What Finn saw made his blood run cold. The creature's eyes, unnaturally bulging, seemed about to pop out of their sockets. They were cloudy, with dilated pupils that occupied almost the entire iris. Where a nose should have been, two black holes gaped, twitching damply with each of the creature's breaths.
But the most terrifying thing was its mouth. It began to open slowly, wider and wider, until it reached an impossible angle. The creature's jaws stretched like a snake's, revealing rows of yellow, dirt-covered teeth. Some were broken, others covered in some dark substance, but all of them looked razor-sharp.
The light of the tulwar reflected in the saliva dripping down these teeth, creating a disgusting gleam. The creature's throat was visible in this gaping maw – a dark abyss ready to swallow anything that came too close. The smell of rot and decay hit his nostrils with such force that nausea rose in his throat.
The creature made a sound – something between a hiss and a wet gurgle. Its eyes seemed to study Finn, like a predator studies its prey. The creature slowly shifted its weight from foot to foot, its clawed fingers scratching the stone, leaving deep furrows.
Finn felt his back press against the cold wall. The crawl was slightly to the right, but to reach it, he would have to move along the wall, without taking his eyes off the monster. The tulwar in his hands trembled, casting uneven shadows that seemed to amuse the creature.
The creature tilted its head to the side at an unnatural angle, as if trying to get a better look at its victim. Its mouth began to close slowly, but not completely – the teeth were still visible in a grotesque parody of a smile. The blue blood on its skin looked almost black in the golden light of the sword.
The creature took another step, and suddenly the air was filled with a whistle – the creature lunged forward with incredible speed. Finn barely had time to react, his body instinctively recoiling to the side, obeying ancient self-preservation instincts. He felt the monster's claws slice through the air millimeters from his face, leaving behind a damp trail of saliva.
The creature's blow hit the wall, knocking out stone chips and leaving deep furrows. But the creature didn't hesitate – turning with unnatural flexibility, it lunged at the boy again. This time, Finn didn't manage to dodge completely. The creature's massive body slammed into him, knocking the air out of his lungs and sending them both to the cold stone floor.
The tulwar flew out of his hand, clattering against the stones and rolling away. Its golden glow seemed to dim, leaving them in semi-darkness. Finn found himself pinned to the ground by the monster's weight, feeling its sharp claws dig into his shoulders. The creature loomed over him, its jaws slowly opening, revealing endless rows of yellow teeth.
The fetid breath hit his face, causing a wave of nausea. Finn raised his hands, bracing them against the creature's upper and lower jaws, desperately trying to keep the nightmarish maw away from his face. The creature's muscles tensed, trying to overcome his resistance. Saliva dripped onto the boy's chest, burning through the fabric of his clothes.
His hands trembled with exertion, sweat pouring into his eyes. Every second of this struggle felt like an eternity. The monster pressed harder, its jaws slowly but relentlessly approaching Finn's face. The boy felt his strength waning, his muscles beginning to give way under the monstrous pressure.
In desperation, he cast his eyes sideways, trying to find the tulwar. A golden glint caught his attention – the sword lay very close, almost within arm's reach. The creature, focused on trying to reach his throat, seemed to notice nothing around it.
Finn understood – he would have only one chance. While holding its neck with his left hand, he sharply threw his right hand towards the sword. His fingers slid over the cold stone, barely touching the hilt. The creature sensed the change in resistance and pressed harder, its teeth now mere centimeters from his face.
In a final, desperate lunge, Finn reached the sword. The moment his fingers closed around the hilt, something incredible happened – the tulwar flared with a blinding light, its blade enveloped in golden flame. The heat was so intense that the boy felt it even through the hilt.
Without giving himself time to think, he poured all his remaining strength into the strike. The flaming blade entered the creature's side as if it were butter. The creature let out a piercing shriek that seemed to make the cave walls tremble. The fire that enveloped the sword poured into the wound, spreading through the monster's body from within.
The creature twitched, trying to pull away, but it was too late. Golden flames erupted from its maw and nostrils, turning the blue blood into steam. The beast thrashed in convulsions, its claws scratching at the stone and Finn's body, leaving deep gouges. The heat intensified until finally the monster froze, its body still glowing from within by the fire consuming it.
Finn released the hilt of his sword and rolled aside, breathing heavily. His hands trembled, and his ears rang from the creature's death cry. The tulwar still stuck out of the monster's body, its flame slowly dying down, returning to its usual golden glow.
The creature's body began to collapse, turning into gray ash that slowly crumbled onto the cave floor. In a few moments, only a handful of dust remained of the creature, slowly dispersed by the draft. The tulwar fell onto the stones with a dull clang, its blade as clean as if it had never touched the monster's flesh.
Finn struggled to his feet, every muscle in his body screaming from the strain. Grabbing the tulwar, he leaned against the wall, trying to regain his breath. The golden glow of the sword now seemed like the only anchor in this nightmare.
Suddenly, a scream echoed from deep within the cave – the same as the killed creature, but more distant. The echo distorted the sound, turning it into a chilling cacophony. Finn froze, listening to the darkness. A second scream joined the first, then a third, as if calling to each other.
The sounds grew louder, multiplied, reflecting off the walls and merging into a single chorus of horror. They came from everywhere – from side passages, from above, it seemed even from beneath the ground. The creatures' screams grew closer, more furious, like a pack of predators sensing blood.