Horns ✖

The Storm

There was a rumble in the air.

A tremendous roar from the heavens above rocked the surface world, echoing into the bleeding soil, between the green foliage, and throughout the emptiness of this sacred valley. I felt it too, a quiet vibration beneath my toes as I stood before the mighty brewing storm yet to come. But no matter how much I trembled at the thought of a rather uncomfortable downpour, my eyes were fixated on a much dire threat: Predators.

I could smell all three of them slithering about in the undergrowth before me. I longed to see them, to snuff them out of range, and out of my life, but their feathery dark scales and tinted flesh proved almost impossible to see.

I knew that they were there, waiting in the shadows. I knew what they were after.

And I knew why.

Those swollen charcoal clouds began to stir up a rather dark-grey complexion, one that would make any quarry rock proud. All that blackness, all that energy, it was almost certain that mother nature was in a fit of rage. Throughout the valley a violent wind came about, pounding against the waves of grassy strands that swished to and fro. It stirred up a storm of its own, tossing about loose dust into the sky and thin soil fragments that had broken free of her confinement. This newborn wind was cold to touch, dampened, and condensed of this dirty soot that plagued my sensitive snout. I could feel the air shift quickly, howling to life as the positioning sky growled, watching intently as a carnivore would to his prey. Only this time, it was a moment quite rare in this era, only magnified by the beauty setting over us all.

I took careful note of the incoming blackness, courtesy of a bolt of lightning in the distance, but once more my eyes returned to the danger before me, to those inconspicuous beasts that reeked of desperation, and hungered for murder. A quick shift of their motions forced me to limp sideways, my frilled skull tilting to the right away as a reflex. Their methods were smart, their tactics unquestionable. I knew that fact by heart, not by mind. Alas, a fight was inevitable, but a death by their hand became my deepest concern. I couldn't afford to lose everything, not while I stood firm tonight.

"Where are you..." I hissed softly, my amber eyes narrowing as I took another pained step back. A powerful boom rolled across the valley, rippling the ground beneath me once more. It was during these short spurts of noise when the predators would change position, forcing me to take a completely new stance. I could hear the clacking of their jaws, the splats of their claws, and their hisses of delight over their newfound delicacy.

I flinched slightly when the rustle of grass came from behind me, and with a slight shift of my weight I spun forest-bound to face my hindquarters.

Nothing was there.

"Show yourself!" I growled louder, tilting my head when the rustles appeared on my right, then jolted left as another came from the side. But, in spite of my warnings, my adversaries didn't seem to acknowledge me as a threat. More of a fresh find in this vast land, ripe for the picking.

Snorting with annoyance, I let out a mocking roar, slamming my good foot down to shake the earth beneath their claws. All at once, all three souls paused, their beady eyes wide and panted breaths falling still. Had they not been warned they would've had the upper hand already. They could've cut me off, attacked upon command, done anything in fact to subdue me. But I knew well, because no sane creature could ever back down from a challenge.

And so, the bravest soul that had stalked me stepped forth into the fading light.

I inhaled sharply as the first cold droplets began to fall, looking down with utter disapproval at the peculiar raptor before me. Peculiar indeed, because he just stood there. The male was drenched in ruffled black feathers from head to toe, with only the scales beneath his eyes and the jutted bone of his snout to retain exposure. His sleek body glimmered like a thousand stars under the dying light, but what lied within his visage was a cold and dark void. He looked desperate.