"What were you thinking Zaxl?!" Jethro shouted as we ran in the opposite direction of the scorpion.
"I wasn't," he admitted.
"You have a death wish, huh?" Jethro asked with a smirk.
"I have a couple," he chuckled.
"Now is not the time for jokes!" I shouted irately.
The scorpion swung one of its pincers at us, and Zaxl tackled us to the ground to prevent flying fifty feet in the air. The pincer knocked down an oak tree, and the beast was blocked by it for a brief moment.
"Find higher ground, now!" Zaxl shouted.
"Why, though?" Jethro asked stupidly.
"If it gets high up, I can push it off the ledge and flip it on its back. It'll be much slower going up the hill."
"Insects are useless on their back!" I beamed.
"Affirmative!" Zaxl quickly spoke, grabbing us and leading us up another hill near the trail entrance. The scorpion got fed up with the oak tree and snapped it in half, screeching like a banshee. It threw the tree at us, and I saw the tree's shadow above our heads. We ducked and narrowly avoided getting turned into flapjacks. The oak came crashing down a few feet to the side, and the scorpion was enraged that we were still alive. It let out a shriek so loud that my ears rang. As we ran up the hill, the vexflayer grabbed Zaxl's leg with one of its pincers and attempted to pull him towards it.
"Not today, old pal!" he shouted, smiting it off. It screamed in agony and attempted to sting him. I guess it forgot it didn't have a stinger anymore. Zaxl ducked and unclamped the amputated pincer, throwing it back towards the scorpion.
"You can have it back, you foul git!" he screamed. We proceeded to run up the hill, fighting against exhaustion and noticed that it was having great difficulty keeping up with us. The steep incline slowed the vexflayer slow down to a crawl. Nonetheless, it did not give up; it wanted us dead no matter the cost. We got to the top of the hill, and Zaxl told us to stay behind him.
"I'm going to kill this thing myself. Nobody takes my tail!" he shouted.
"Let us help you!" I begged.
"Fine, just don't do anything stupid," he replied with a sigh.
The jet-black beast reared its ugly head, and Zaxl cast his wind spell, sending it flying at a hundred miles an hour. It landed on its back and struggled to flip over, wriggling its legs pathetically. We ran down the hill and walked towards its legs. Zaxl raised his scythe and began chanting an unfamiliar scripture.
"The world shall know of the beauty I brought," he quoted, slicing off the vexflayer's leg. He walked over to the rest of its legs and raised his scythe again.
"Blessed be those who create hope." He sliced off the second leg, and the scorpion shrieked in pain.
"In my weakest moments, you give me strength." Three legs down.
"The wicked shall suffer, but the righteous shall prevail."
Don't stop, Zaxl! Make it suffer!
"May your suffering be worse than mine." Halfway there now.
"I have seen the joy life brings; wherefore, do ye seek to take mine away?!" he exclaimed, cutting off the remaining three legs. The scorpion was now powerless against us.
"Arthur and Jethro, I will allow you to perform the coup de grâce," he beamed. We walked over to the monster and cast Blazeburn over its thorax. The smell was putrid, but we were filled with exceeding joy when we witnessed that it had stopped squirming.
"What do we do now?" I asked curiously.
"Now, we get something to eat. I've worked up a mighty appetite killing that thing..."
YOU ARE READING
The Amethyst Flame
FantasyThe village of Colmer is devastated by a plague. Its only hope is two brothers divided by their beliefs in magic. When Jethro ventures into the depths of the forest to find a wizard who can heal the village, Arthur is forced to find his brother befo...
