Vigil was curious to test himself against the creature, the bat's words about power resounded on his mind as he looked towards his own hands. The nails were long and sharp, he wondered if it would be enough.
The battle he was about to face, was not only to test to his new body but of survival, he needed blood.
He slowly approached the creature, every step careful. Vigil didn't want to interrupt the creature's feast too soon. As he got close, he was finally able to observe it.
The creature had a strong wide back with a few long spikes sticking out from his skin. Its long furry arms were holding the remains of an animal while his sharp teeth were buried deep in its meat.
Vigil had seen many things as a member of the king knight guards, but this was different, the beast looked corrupted and vile, a far cry from creatures he had fought before. His hands trembled with concern as he gazed towards its familiar.
'Rune bear' said the bat while analysing the creature 'The mana flowing through its veins will provide you with a good meal'.
The bat's voice echoed in Vigil's mind, surprising vigil at first, the familiar was communicating with him through telepathy.
'But I have to defeat him first' he said, his red sharp eyes shining in the dark as he took the final approach to the rune bear's back.
Vigil dashed forward, with both his hands he slashed the creature' back, the skin offering little resistance to his sharp nails, leaving 5 deep gashes in its wake. A small smile escaped the corner of his lips, he was capable of wounding the bear.
The bear roared in pain; his body flinched forward as it felt the wound cursing through its back. Dropping the remains from its mouth, the bear turned around swiftly while aiming one of his arms towards vigil, taking him by surprise, the creature was nimble despite its large figure.
He dashed backwards; the bear's arm inches away from scratching his chest. They were now looking directly at each other. The beast was furious, its pride wounded from being caught in a surprise attack. Digging his claws deep into the ground as it prepared for another lunge.
The smell of blood lingered in the air, singing towards vigil, almost like it was calling him. His body reacted almost instantly. It was an exhilarating feeling, addictive, his nails grew sharper, and his legs flexed in anticipation.
Vigil dashed towards the bear while relaying a quick order to his familiar, "Distract him!" his voice filled with excitement.
The bear raised his chest while lunging towards him with both of his claws in an attempt to crush him, but the bat rallied towards its head, the wings scratching his face, blocking his vision.
Seizing the opportunity, vigil dashed beneath him, slashing is underbelly, but this time it felt different, a surge of electricity drifted from the bear's body through vigil's hands like it was a defence mechanism.
Vigil crashed towards the ground his whole body paralyzed, he screamed in protest as the energy slowly dissipated outwards.
The rune bear finally freed himself from the annoying bat, it shook his head while slashing the bat. Vigil saw everything from afar and gasped has he saw his familiar suddenly disappearing as it hit the cavern walls.
Vigil quickly scouted the cavern for a way out as he weighed his options when he was interrupted by a high pitch voice in his mind.
'I lost my physical form but I'm still here master. I apologize for not being of much help' the bat's voice was low and dejected.
For just a moment, the corner of Vigil's lips curved upwards, a quiet smile vanished as quickly as it appeared.
'You're pretty tough for a bat' he replied.
The bear roared forcing him back to focus. The bear massive figure rushed towards him with frightening speed, the ground sook with each running step, Vigil body was still sluggish from the electricity and failed to react in time.
The beast rammed against Vigil's chest, launching him towards the cavern walls, he gasped for air as his back slammed hard against the cavern walls. The cavern trembled with impact, small pieces of rock collapsing from the ceiling.
Vigil tried to recover from the impact, but the rune bear gave him no breathing time, it lunged again, its massive claws slashing through his body. The first strike tore across his shoulder, leaving a deep gash behind. Another blow followed, then another, a relentless barrage of attacks that left him staggered.
The cavern walls around vigil looked like a painting made from blood, he remained still almost like he was waiting for the final hit. The bear paused, slowing gasping for air, his deep blue eyes looked satisfied, vindicated from the surprise attack he was subjected to.
With a loud roar, he prepared the final slash, aiming to finally terminate his prey's life when he noticed a small flicker of light coming from Vigil's dark red eyes, but it was too late.
When the rune bear slashed forward, vigil ducked his head, the claws narrowing missing his scalp. He moved closer to the rune bear, his fingers coming together in a unified point like a rapier and lunged forward.
Driving his nails like a blade into the rune bear's chest. His fingers pierced through fur, flesh and bone, finding its mark with deadly precision. The beast roared and his body shivered as Vigil's hand reached its heart.
For a moment everything seemed to stand still, the beast eyes were wide in shock as Vigil looked directly at him with a vicious victorious smile. He retracted his hand, and the rune bear fell towards the ground with a small thud.
Vigil fell on his knees, his body finally releasing the tension of the fight. His chest burned heavily, and his left arm was offering resistance to move. He had decided to risk and wait for a room of opportunity to finish the fight. The risk was high, and his body was truly put to the test of survival.
Despite his injuries, he remained awake, the smell of blood coming from the rune's bear body made sure of that. Vigil snapped out from its strong pull when a familiar voice resounded in his mind again.
"You risked too much master". The bat's voice carried a sense of urgency, "Please hurry and drink, I fear your body won't hold much longer".
Vigil tried to fight the urge to drink blood, but his body screamed for it like it was demanding water. Primal and crude.
He crawled towards the rune bear's neck, his fangs waiting anxiously in anticipation.
With a low growl, Vigil sank his fangs deep into the thick fur, piercing an artery beneath. Warm blood flowed towards his mouth, it felt sweet and addictive almost like it was gods' nectar, his body trembled as it drained the rune bear's vitality.
The feeling was short-lived when a sudden sharp persistent pain appeared on Vigil's chest, he screamed in protest, his hands scratching the floor as he tried to fight back the pain…