The demonic wolf glared at the young man, its horrifying growl shattering his courage. After everything I did, it still tracked me, he thought in despair. Only the narrow river separated them now. "I have to move," he whispered. "The water is shallow, but it might buy me a few seconds."
He turned and sprinted for his life into the dense forest, desperate for a high tree or any place to shelter him. He ran until his lungs burned, but the heavy thud of paws behind him grew louder with every second. Panicked and gasping for air, he ignored the branches scratching his skin and the throbbing pain of a torn fingernail dripping with blood.
I'm doomed, he thought. One hit from those claws and it's over. He imagined a gruesome death, using that fear as fuel to force his legs to move faster.
Through the thicket, he spotted a giant tree. It was partially hidden by smaller plants, but the sight gave him a flicker of hope. However, as he burst through the brush, he froze in horror. Standing in his path was a flock of "Blast-Beaks", the same giant birds that had exploded in front of him before. There were fifteen of them this time, each larger and more terrifying than the last.
A blue system message flickered in his vision:
[BLAST-BEAK - USER STAGE - 10% PROFICIENCY]
His mind raced. He was trapped. The birds blocked his path, and the wolf was closing in from behind.
Tick. Tick. Tick. The birds began to emit a rhythmic clicking sound as they watched him. He remembered the last encounter: there was a tiny window of time between the ticking and the explosion. The giant tree was just past the flock.
"I have two choices," he muttered, fire returning to his eyes. "Either I die peacefully in an explosion, or I risk it all to pass through."
With a final burst of strength, he lunged forward. He darted through the flock, even kicking the last bird aside as the ticking reached a frantic pace. He cleared the area just as the wolf reached the center of the flock.
BOOM.
A chain of massive explosions ripped through the air. The shockwave sent the young man flying, slamming him hard into the trunk of the giant tree. He looked back at the wall of fire. The beast was right in the middle of that hellish heat.
"That... that has to be the end of it," he coughed, standing up unsteadily. Blood dripped from a wound on his forehead, but he let out a weak, triumphant laugh. "I told you I'd kill you someday!"
He turned his back on the flames and began to limp away, holding his injured head. "That was too clos...."
Whoosh!
A long, muscular tongue whipped past his torso with incredible speed, shredding his clothes and slicing his skin. The tongue buried itself deep into the tree trunk next to him.
"It's still alive?" he gasped, his face pale with disbelief.
Out of the smoke emerged the wolf. It was a nightmare: its head was split open, its fur was burned away, and one eye was missing. Terrified, the young man scrambled up the giant tree. He reached the first branch and lunged for a higher one, desperate to get out of the wolf's reach.
He grabbed a thick, black branch and pulled himself up, but his heart stopped. The branch wasn't solid wood—it was cold and scaly.
Hssssssss.
"No... this isn't a branch," he whispered.
Above him, a massive serpent uncoiled. Its scales were deep black, and its eyes were cold vertical slits. It hung from the tree like a heavy iron chain.
[USER STAGE - THE GREAT SERPENT - 35% PROFICIENCY]
The snake lowered its head until it was inches from his face, its tongue flickering. Below, the mutilated wolf waited at the base of the tree.
"A beast below and a serpent above," he whimpered. "Is this how it ends?"
His foot slipped. Losing his balance, he began to tumble toward the wolf's waiting fangs. In a final act of desperation, he reached out and grabbed the serpent's tail, dragging the massive snake down with him.
He opened his eyes to see the serpent's fangs right in front of him, while feeling the hot, bloody breath of the wolf against his back.