Smolder

Chapter 23

Vivi ran in to find a scenery she'd have nightmares about for a long time.

The creature chasing around the large wolf who was supposedly Lupa resembled a spider, only from deeper pits of hell. It's skin was flesh colored, ripped with blood vessels and unknown black veins. It's limbs were long and slender, ending with large boney palms. It moved like a four legged spider. It's face...

Vivi stopped abruptly, her throat felt like gagging. Her feet felt like they had rooted themselves on the mushy ground. Her heart like someone dropped a boulder in it.

It was Russell.

The face was Russell's.

His jaw was opened inhumanely wide, his teeth were daggerlike. His eyes were absolutely pure black and his hair standing up like a porcupine. But Vivi would recognize that face anywhere, at any condition. Even when it was cut and torn into a monster.

She would've stood there in shock, if not somebody collided with her from behind. Elli and her combined Yelp sounded as she was thrust forward, falling on her stomach right in Russell's range.

Lupa immediately put herself between her and the looming Russell-headed spider thing, blue light under her fur, and let out a thundering roar. Frost spread out from her paws.

Russell swatted her aside like an annoying puppy.

Vivi watched in horror as he pulled his hands up, his boney talons glinting in the light of the evening, and shifted his body weight to bring them down. On her.

She rolled over just in time to have one finger embedded into her shoulder. Pain flared in the wound and across her whole body. Her vision doubled and threatened to darken. A wet and warm feeling travelled down her shoulder. Her heart jumped up and down in her chest, trying to escape the body before it dies. A shrill scream issued as Russell, too, let out out an inhuman screech.

Russell's face leaned close to her, his white daggerlike teeth glinted like some sort of torture device. Nothing but predatory numbness in his full black eyes.

Then, his form glitched. For a fleeting moment, his black eyes returned to usual ones. His mouth snapped shut and returned to normal. For one moment,the Russell she knew was looking at her, bruised, battered and very very afraid. He pried his finger off her shoulder.

Then it drowned back again, the creature jerked back into his frame, but Vivi took chance of the hesitation.

She jumped away from where she lay, getting right out of range as a bright Scarlet ball of fire hit Russell. He staggered back, his clothes charred and smoking. He let out another gurgling screech.

Vivi looked over to Elli and was suddenly confused who she should fear more.

Thin sheets of fire engulfed her, twirling and swirling around her, making her seem like a bright red rose. Balls of fire repeatedly ejected from it's coils and hurled towards Russell, who screeched and dodged them. Elli's hair was undone and it took a fiery orange glow in the red light. Her hands were to her sides, feeding the tornado. The burning concentration in her eyes reminded Vivi of a predating cat's.

Arron charged into battle with a cry almost as high as Vivi's scream. He swung his sword as he got closer and closer. The sword a burning blue rod, leaving translucent trails of hot air. It must've been hot. Because even though the sword didn't even touch Russell once, his skin seared and smoked whenever it came near him. Russell backed down whenever it happened. But Arron was relentless. He slashed vertically and horizontally, sending waves of heat rippling against Vivi.

Vivi gasped when one of Elli's fireballs hit Arron, but he seemed unaffected by it. Even his clothes were unharmed. Lupa circled the perimeter from a distance, possibly judging when she'd have to step in.

But Arron swung too hard. As his sword clattered to the ground, thrown over his shoulder by a slip of hand, Russell suddenly caught his hand and squeezed. Arron screamed. That should've brought him back for a second, but it didn't. Russell leaned forward to bite Arron's face off.

Then, something stranger happened. A blur of bright orange flame shot out of the forest and collided with Russell. It let out a earth trembling roar and swirled around him.

Russell tried to swat it away, but it kept on coming back, apparently trying to get inside his mouth. It jabbed on his shoulder, making him screech, and stormed in through his gaping mouth.

Russell's whole body visibly went limp. His head lolled and his knees gave away, his physical structure morphing during the fall. By the time he was sprawled on his belly on the ground, he was back to his usual scrawny self.

Now, this could've been a trap from whatever got into Russell, to get them closer, to get easy prey. But Vivi didn't care. Nor did she care about the sound of wings flapping tiredly behind her. Or about the sprain on her knee as she ran and sat next to Russell.

She rolled his body over. His clothes were tattered into rugs, the chainmail under his shirt was ripped into pieces. His skin bloody and torn from place to place.

She put her ear on his chest, listening closely and intently.

No heartbeat.