Wit was a dire comrade in this battle
The beast's assault had failed?
Though unprecedented, it wasn't unexpected. The number of beasts that were able to perform such similar feats were in excess within the crimson plains. But that wasn't the problem — it was the fact its prey had a means of sensing & blocking its ambush.
That was a problem.
Regaining its bearing from the sudden shock, the bird-like creature contemplated its options.
A, the most reasonable, would be to simply run. Yeah, it may miss out on such game in the short term, but at least it would be able to leave unscathed.
Its hunger was not dire. It was an addiction, or instinctual habit coded into its being.
The hunger it felt was not a sensation born of necessity. Beings within the Fourth Destination no longer needed common substance to live. Food in small portions was not enough to satiate the minimum energy requirement to drive such beings.
It took a whole lot of energy to run one of those monsters, and the most fuel-efficient source was the CCW— or the Common Density of Will within the atmosphere. While reliable, it wouldn't help expedite a being to the higher destinations.
Forcibly stealing Will from others was the most reliable catalyst to help preserve conventional energy levels.
Thus, this instinct was born.
This was the second option. It was high risk—high reward. It was enticing. The beast could use this chance to temper its own Will with this higher-level opponent.
Of course, at the risk of its life…
The beast chose the ladder.
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Rue sensed the beast's resolve, and the beast felt Rue's.
This was no longer a hunt: it was a duel.
The two remained silent for several seconds, both sizing the other, each readying for the perfect opportunity to strike.
Their instincts both flared to a zenith, pleading with their hosts to run or hide — lick, dumbass, why are you risking your life over something so stupid?!
These were quickly suppressed.
Tightening his grip on his weapon.
He no longer laminated. He no longer retreated.
He didn't have such a luxury anymore.
His opponent's abilities were undetermined. From the little information he gathered from the beast's initial strike, it seemed to be more of an offensive—speed-oriented beast. That first strike would have killed him immediately if it weren't for his superior instincts and advanced spatial awareness.
Likely that beast aimed in such a way as to immediately pick him off.
Clearly this beast lacked the tools for a war of attrition, but in the short term it was a force to be reckoned with.
Its speed was its magnum.
—BANNNG!...
Hitting the ground with his superior raptor-like legs, Rue charged forward his bone blades ablaze.
With its opponent's sudden rush, the beast sidestepped frantically.
Slice!
Seeing as his blade met nothing, Rue back-stepped, compressing the mussels of what would be thigh and calf.
The inquisitor gathered the strength and expedited the potential energy within his compressed mussels.
Then he exploded forward towards the bird.
Dual wielding his bone blades over head, Rue targeted the birds' assumed vitals.
Kagagagak!
The bird desperately maneuvered past each of Rue's slashes— it was becoming increasingly difficult to do this.
Hawking several more balls of the acidic white-substance from its beak, the beast readied its emergency subsidiary.
Rue was now forced into the defensive.
With a nimble dance, he was able to barely maneuver past the hellish torrent of whizzing acid.
Each movement was more of a prediction of its disposition; none of his maneuvering was done with confidence but with absolute sincerity.With the bird's beak he would eye the directions and angles of the bird's vertex, that it would use to release its fire, and via some simple mental trigonometric calculation, he was able to determine the rough scope of the pellets and move freely out of their range.
Charging his bone sword by his side, Rue slashed in a parabolic and hyperbolic manner, his goal was to essentially trap the beast by forcing it into the defensive.
The beast lacked natural defenses, so why not exploit them?
'Fuck!'
The beast's internal dialogue was filled with curses shunning the world, but the bird smothered such thoughts.
It needed every ounce of its brain's exertion, its opponent was reining the battle with superior strength and technique. But the incentive it held was as clear as day: its opponent was attempting to make use of its flaw, its defenses.
This was a mistake,
~~CAWWW!~~
With a quick rush a hundred feet away from its opponent, the beast burrowed his legs into the soil, from its feet a black excrement spiderwebbed into the soul in order to increase its structural integrity.
Aggressively shaking its body, the bird ruffled its feathers as it stared down its foe.
The beast's coat of feathers began to harden, and countless of its feathers began to spire forward. Each of its feathers were now roughly the size of a combat knife—each equally razor sharp due to the beast's residual will coating them.
Narrowing his eyes, Rue couldn't help but express a grin.
This beast was clever— exceptionally so. It had seen through most of his ploys, tactics, and quick manual dexterity.
Only thirty seconds had passed since the battle's initiation.
With a smirk Rue mumbled, 'Bloody clever bastard, huh? But it seems you lack foresight.'
It basically made itself into the perfect target.
Rue put all of his strength into his shoulder, triceps and biceps alike. Resting his body's weight onto the tips of his toes, Rue— with his brandished Radius in his right hand, jumped forward, throwing his bone like a javelin.
Both differed of course, but in essence a javelin was basically a more lengthy spear while his radius was just a smaller version of a spear, albeit the structural differences.
But with a few minor adjustments to his anatomy, Rue resolved the problem.
Swoosh!!
Wizzing through the air like a missile, the bone lodged itself into the bird's chest cavity before it could react.
A sudden rush of warmth enveloped the bird-like creature.
Pain— the beast was well acquainted with pain, but this was a different type of pain… It hurt like shit!
It nearly fucking died right there!
This wasn't physical pain, it was fear, sure—it had been in hundreds of other situations where it faced near peril, but those were different. They were always able to escape!
With a 'coo' from the pain searing its chest, the bird braced itself.
It still had its attack.