A blast of bright light engulfs the crawling entity, knocking down everything in its path. The people who survived through the continuous wave of creatures were now running. Gadaric promptly takes out a camera and snaps a photo of the beast.
"You sneaked in a camera?" Thomas shouted in his whispers.
Technology in Sasan was an impossible combination. With so many negative impacts, upon arriving here, all sorts of technology died. Normally, they would have turned into crisps at this point but somehow Gadaric's camera never budged.
Gadaric shook off Thomas's hold on his shoulder. Something was strange about this whole situation. It was a normal thing for there to be creatures from under but out here? On the outside? That wasn't right at all.
"Those things. They're afraid." Thomas pointed out.
The crawling entity seemed to ward off all of the other monsters that had broken into their camp. Gadaric had always assumed that those beasts would never attack one another as proven by countless studies, but this was different. Despite gaining nothing from killing other creatures, this entity was determined, fully dragging itself.
"What could be attracting that thing?" Gadaric questioned.
"Boss. We have to run!" Thomas urged.
He pulled onto Gadaric, attempting to get him to run together. Gadaric shifted his stance and merely continues to videotape the whole event. Thomas could only glance back and forth between his boss and the exit. He soon made up his mind and started getting up.
Whatever trials or bullshit Gadaric wanted to go through, he didn't want to stay to witness. Yet as he lifted the covers of the tent hiding them, a creature appeared in front of him, unaware of his presence. Scared, he held his hand over his mouth, hastily returning to Gadaric.
As Eagle's eyes go dark, he recognizes a familiar voice in the distance. It was the same voice that remained by his side for his whole life. The one that gave encouragement and comfort. The monster crawled slowly but consistently. In a trance, Eagle stepped towards it only to be halted by Aziel.
"It's not him." Aziel stated.
In his confused state, Eagle glanced down at the hand protecting him and silently broke down. The entity growled as it approached the two of them. Aziel breathes out and closes her white eyes. The veins that had been so apparent on her face slowly went back to normal size.
As she got closer to the beast, clouds of smoke emerged from behind her neck. They turned into silk-like cloths that slowly wrapped around Aziel's entire body. Eagle's eyebrows lifted as he realized it was the same smoke that had previously wrapped his entire being. This was strange.
"What?" Eagle asked.
The mutant's shattered leg developed into wings that linked to its back, allowing it to fly. Several bones erupted from its head, tightly wrapped around one another. It flew quickly towards Aziel, trying to devour her entire being.
It is the same.
Aziel whips the silk cloth around the neck of the monster, tightening it each second that passes. Bones erupt from its neck, severing the silk, which returns to its smoke form. As quick as it was destroyed the smoke returned to its silk like form.
Gadaric's pulse raced as he realized what he was experiencing. This was going to make history, and he couldn't take his eyes off of it.
He had initially thought this thirst he had was gone but it was still here. A little laugh escaped his mouth. Monsters fighting another despite having nothing to gain from the situation.
"Unless there was?" Gadaric went on.
"Was what?"
Thomas asked, closely keeping hold of Gadaric's arm. The two probably would be found out sooner or later if they remained here. Thomas wants to leave but it is too dangerous now to leave behind Gadaric.
Eagle stood there motionlessly, unsure of the situation that was unfolding before his own eyes. Aziel had moved in such a natural way that Eagle doubted this was her first time doing this. What was the cause of all of this?
Why has he turned into a monster? Wasn't he cursed? His uncle had repeatedly warned him not to succumb to the curse's tribulations. This was not a tribulation. So, what was all this supposed to be about?
Gadaric held his camera hard. There was an edge at the back of his mind that seemed to continuously disrupt his concentration. He'd seen this bizarre creature somewhere before. But where did it come from?
Eagle watched as the two repeatedly launched attacks at each other. The mutant uses its bones to attack or protect. With its bone piercing through each silk fabric, how will Aziel keep this whole thing going?
His mind becomes muddy from all of the confusing things thrown at him all at once. Despite meddling with his ability to think clearly, his heart remained full of emotions. The only reason he could keep on wanting to make it out of here was his uncle.
It was unfair how his uncle had died a horrible death. He was horrified by everything that he witnessed and managed to keep his vulnerabilities inside because of the anger he felt.
He wanted to kill those monsters for what they've done to his uncle. But most important of all, he wanted to kill those that had sent them down there.
"But what can I do? I've become them." He croaked as the tightness around his neck spread to his chest. The feeling grips and squeezes onto his heart, not allowing for him to breathe.
"What do I do?" He muttered.
Eagle knew of his role. He knew that his birth wasn't right, and he only survived due to his mother's strong mentality. He thought it better to remain to himself. Do nothing instead.
Everything is better if you keep your mouth shut. Don't interfere with any of the adults, instead don't get in the way. Don't be a burden. But what has he become from all of this? He had turned into a bystander.
Someone who observes without intervening. This was the reason his uncle died a horrible end. It was his responsibility that they were unable to escape together. He couldn't even muster the guts to help his dying uncle.
Why was he so pathetic?
The mutant shrieked loudly, causing everyone to fall backward. Eagle's stream of thinking was interrupted as he realized the beast had done something.
Aziel had barely held on to her silk as protection against the shriek. The entity appeared to have been unaffected, instead absorbing all of the energy from Aziel's silk cloth.
Here he was again being protected once more. He was the same burden that had caused the death of his uncle. Aziel glanced over at Eagle, as if encouraging him to get up from the ground. But he was a weakling, can he help her?
The scream had changed something in those creatures. They began to jump onto the giant entity, fusing themselves onto its skin and flesh.
Several additional creatures jumped from all directions, circling Aziel. Eagle faced the issue and took a quick look at the blades emerging from his flesh. Can he truly make it out of this pit? This hole that he dug himself into.
If he can, he wants to. He wanted to change. A rush of adrenaline rushed from him as he rushed towards the creatures.
"Have you held yourself firm?" She asked.
Eagle glanced at her. Again, that. From the beginning, she had been encouraging him. They barely knew each other yet she was placing her life and hopes with him.
Eagle wasn't certain before but now he was. He wanted to escape from this hell hole. He wanted to be useful.
Eagle nods as Aziel sighs and focuses her energy. She had closed her eyes as a mark showed on her palm before launching a burst of smoke. Despite being unfamiliar with his whole new being, Eagle referred to what he had seen previously.
"I can do this." He muttered nervously.
As the creatures lunged forward, Eagle held his arms to protect himself. He murks the creatures with his blade, dissolving their skin as they sink to the earth.
As he did so, blades appeared from his fingertips. It was much easier for him to strike these demons with his hands than with his arm.
"I did it." Eagle said with excitement in his eyes.
A beast pounces on him, but he avoids its attack, tumbling to the ground as a result. His hands had plunged into its stomach, melting away the flesh.
He closed his fist, extending the blades on his arm and cutting from the stomach to the end of its neck. It divides into two and eventually melts on the ground.
Gradually but surely, he wanted to be what he couldn't.
One leaps onto his back, biting down on his shoulder and ripping a portion of his flesh. He could feel the intense pain in his shoulder as he backed up slightly.
The beast swallowed the flesh and smiled. It looked as if it was enjoying eating it. Eagle breathes in to calm himself. He chose to utilize his wrath to exterminate the animals after remembering the moments his uncle had suffered.
The two ran at each other, Eagle stabbing at it as it tried to bite his arm. After successfully biting Eagle's hand, it attempts to sever his fingers and breaks them.
The blades, however, elongate and pierce the monster's jaws and head. It shook as its head dissolved into the ground. Eagle's breaths were loud as he stood there, looking at his fractured fingers, which quickly popped to their proper position.
As the creatures gathered around the two, Eagle felt compelled to consume them as they crashed towards him. What was this feeling like? He believed he was rational, but something was about to change that.
Was this what she had intended? Hold himself firm? Biting his tongue, he continued to battle the shrinking number of beasts. Whatever it was, he tried to keep it down.
Eagle found it difficult to remain sensible while the beasts attacked. The more he used these monster-like abilities, the more he appeared to be losing his sanity. However, he continues to hack at them. He must do this until every single one of them is gone, only in this way could he avenge his uncle.
On the other hand, Aziel resumes her assault on the mutant. She understands its vulnerability, therefore she'll take the life force. She will make certain that everything is fulfilled, nothing will change. She could feel the curse gently attempting to reclaim Eagle's awareness. But she refuses to let that happen.
Just as Eagle takes out the blades from the monster, he could feel himself losing consciousness. Something from behind him was tempting. Slowly turning his head towards the barrels of oil, he could sense some energy coming from there.
Thomas detects something odd with the situation and begins smacking Gadaric's arm repeatedly. With his gaze fixed on the camera and the fight between Aziel and the mutant, he doesn't care.
He knew something was wrong with Gadaric. When he was in observation mode, he didn't care what was going on in the world. As he continued shooting, something obscured his view. Thomas started shivering at what he saw in front of him.
"A…a…" Thomas nervously tried to scream.
Gadaric slowly raises his head from the camera.