The night was still dark as the moon had yet to make an appearance but the stars were doing a good job in making sure that the skies were still lit up. Only a few clouds would occasionally block the stars making a dark sky.
The forest was dark and not even the crickets made a noise which gave an ominous feel. Dark trees loomed tall with stretched branches that intertwined with those of other trees.
The grass below had given into the darkness and even the nocturnal creatures did not move. One thing, the grass was hard as though it was freezing.
A yellow light struck out in the darkness and as one got closer, it was easier to hear the crackling of the burning wood.
It was as one got closer that they could feel the change in temperature and a dark figure seemed to be seated by the fire and meat seemed to be burning on top of the fire. The aroma of roast meat filled one's nostrils.
The dark figure that one could only see an empty back was not that tall but the shadow it cast was huge. Every now and then, the person would throw a small fireball into the fire and flames would rise but in a controlled manner.
As one got closer, the one thing that struck out from the seated person was his white hair. A sword was lying next to him and he was seated on a log. Several important items rested on the ground to his left. There were a pair of huge horns and several hooves.
The person obviously Lyren who had decided that he was not going to suffer from the extreme cold that was coupled with his hunger.
He had hunted a beast and he had just finished slaughtering it and he had made a fire. He was yet to recover and he could not yet open his mind's eyes as it still hurt.
That was a huge blow but he had to recover and he ended up swinging his sword and scaring many of the beasts.
He could not even read the scroll left by the Sect Mistress as he could only read with the mind's eye.
A while later, the meat was well cooked and even though there was no seasoning, he still made a good cook as his mom had made sure that he could cook as soon as he could move.
The warmth from the fire really was helpful. The previous night he had ended up using his flames to keep himself warm through the night or he was sure that he could have frozen. He felt sleepy and he wanted to climb on top of a tree but he waited a while longer.
He kept adding more fire but he was yet to learn more about the woods. He had done a very great job being a good cook but there were a pair of eyes that seemed too be staring at him from a distance.
Several things had attracted the creature and the obvious one was not even the aroma but the fire.
The creature blended well in the darkness and it crawled slowly not making a sound. Only its red eyes seemed to stand out in the darkness.
A few minutes ago, several beasts had been attracted but they were scared off by this one. Its aura did not stand out much but the other beasts were sort of familiar with it.
The wood had turned to charcoal and Lyren was just disturbing the fire with a stick and heat would be easily released. As it darkened, so did the creature get closer.
It reached a point where it was only ten meters away from Lyren and only one pounce and it could easily land on him. Lyren yawned and picked the sword and his haul from the bull which he had tied with a string and put it on his waist.
He looked at the closest tree and stood at its base. He was just about to jump when he felt a tingle on his spine and he quickly jumped to the side and rolled several times.
He stood up quickly and looked around but apart from the already dying embers, there was nothing else he could see. His grip on his sword tightened and he dropped the horns and hooves.
He looked around wearily but what was he expecting to see in the darkness? He could only grit his teeth as he raised his vigilance.
His ears perked up and his eyes tried to adapt to the darkness as the fire had obviously affected him. His main focus was on his feet as they were his greatest reliance in order to escape.
A few seconds passed and he had not yet heard anything. His instinct was not reacting and he could not see a thing.
Suddenly, he was alarmed and his heart pounded in his chest. Goosebumps appeared all over his body as a chill he never felt before assaulted him.
He wanted to jump away but he was a step slow as he felt something tear in his back as claws sliced him in the back.
He managed to jumped and avoid more damage but his body was yet to register the pain which was great for a short time but when the pain assaulted him, he couldn't stop himself from screaming.
He could feel blood trickle on his back and his hands shook. He looked around but there was nothing to see yet.
Whatever was hunting him down had been able to approach him from behind and even swipe its claws on his back.
This left him alarmed because there was no telling where it was going to come from. He felt shivers as his blood trickled and he tried to ignore the pain that assaulted him. He remembered the pills and he swallowed them all not caring for their inadequacy.
The looming threat was busy taking its time but it had just given him a moment to give first aid to himself.
The pain quickly died down but he could still feel shivers as he was dealing with a hunter who had chosen him as prey. To make matters worse, it was able to see in the darkness which he couldn't.
It was hard for his mind to think about a strategy yet but his major problem was his blindness.
He quickly made several fireballs which he threw to the ground and when he turned back, his heart almost stopped as he came into contact with whatever was hunting him.
The thing that scared him were the red eyes that stared at him and to make matters worse, he could not tell its stage.
The fireball in his hand illuminated the beast and it was black. It had whiskers and a pink tongue that was out and sharp teeth.
It had been trying to lick his blood!
Lyren fell backwards as this saved him from another claw that was aimed at his chest now. For the first time, he felt that death was close.
He let go of the fireball and the creature had disappeared again. Lyren swallowed hard as he was being toyed with which he deserved. Still, he made the fireballs and made them surround him.
The grass below caught fire and thank goodness it did not burn fast. Lyren stood there as he did not bother to look around.
He was going to focus on the shadow. It appeared that both of them were very patient and the grass burned and Lyren cursed.
This was one hell of a smart beast. It was stronger than him and he had been denied access of his mind's eye which meant that no arrays for him.
He was not even able to form the first fireball as he felt a wind extinguish his flames and also the ones on the ground.
It was then it dawned to his that it was a wind elemental beast which explained its speed and also vigilance. This was a huge disadvantage for him because the wind could blow his flames and off them.
Again, he was caught in the darkness and he could not create fireballs because they were all getting extinguished.
But he was not ready to die…