Legend Of The Flame Warrior

Chapter 3: Curious

Beneath the two glowing moons in the sky, two figures were seen running in this dangerous forest. The one in front is a little boy who should not be older than ten years old, while the one chasing him is a shadowy being whose physical features were covered in a thick layer of smoke. Except for its dark green eyes, and its bared fangs, other parts of its body were encased in the smoke.

Despite the shouts and screams from the little boy being chased by the humanoid shadow, no help came his way and the shadowy beast didn’t stop chasing after him.

“Help! Help!!”

Charlie was running frantically as he shouted for help, maybe the totem warriors in front could hear him and come to his aid. Not long after, he began to lose his stamina as the mark on the red moon increased.

Knowing that he’ll soon be devoid of any strength, he took a sharp turn to the right and continued down the path. He did this a few more times but he couldn’t shake the beast off his back.

About ten minutes after the cat and dog chase, Charlie was exhausted once again, so he took another turn and ran into a thick Bush without caring for the scratches on his body. He quickly lay down in the bush and tried every means to control his rapidly beating heart. Five seconds after, the shadow being came and starts to look around the forest, searching for its lost prey.

Then, the thick bush rustled and Charlie’s location was exposed. The beast quickly picked up the sound and starts to rush toward the source of the sound.

Who should I tell that I was caught by this monster just because I scratched an itch?

No need to scratch my itch anymore, my flesh is no longer mine.

…

A pair of emerald eyes were now looking at Charlie six feet from where he was hiding, the fearsome monster roared to the sky before pouncing on him.

“Roar”

But the shadow beast was snatched in midair and its flight direction was changed by a powerful kick. It flew like a paper plane as it crashed into a tree.

A seven feet tall gorilla was standing before the monster enclosed in smoke. The gorilla's fur was pure white like snow, from head to toe. By this time, the smoke on his body had already dispersed and the true body of that monster was seen by Charlie. The physique of that monster looked exactly like that of a human, except for the black fur on every part of its body and the sharp nails on each of his fingers.

The shadow monster spat out a mouthful of blood before getting in position to fight the giant gorilla that was now taunting him by using both hands to beat its chest, roaring to the sky.

The shadow being was engulfed by the dark smoke once again as he leaped into the air… then, it disappeared. Charlie looked round the forest but couldn’t find the shadowy being, not until it mysteriously appeared behind the big ape and bit hard on its neck.

The big ape swung it's its left hand backward and the shadow beast was flung to a tree. The big ape didn’t stop there, it moved back a little bit and rammed the shadow being who was struggling to get up to the tree.

The shadow quickly got up and did his smoke magic once again. Before the big ape could reach him, he jumped up and disappeared.

The big ape collided with the tree and the tree broke off from the stem and the ape staggered back a little before it could stabilize itself. The invincible smoke beast quickly made use of this opportunity to jump on the ape's back once again and starts to suck its blood.

The giant ape took him by the head and jerked him off its back. This time the ape didn’t throw him off, but it slammed him on the ground instead.

Charlie watched on curiously as the two beasts fought. His original plan was to sneak off the battlefield while both beasts were engrossed in the fight, but something in his mind was compelling him to stay and watch the fight till the end. He was having a feeling that he’ll be losing out on a great opportunity if he left the place.

My dear golden tree! Can you please let me off this time?

The story has just begun and you’re already planning to kill off the main character?!

I know you’re up there, please release me!!

Charlie tried to communicate with the golden tree in his mind. He tried leaving the scene, but the feeling rushed back again when he turned back to leave… so… he stayed.

…

The big ape lifted its leg and stumped on the shadow being that was now struggling to get off. The shadow beast could no longer play any tricks; the monkey was still holding him by the head. The big ape stumped him a few more times before using its other hand to hold the shadow by the neck and used a powerful force to wring the shadow's head off its neck.

Black blood gushed out of the shadow's headless body endlessly as it lay in a pool of black blood.

The big ape roared before it ran headfirst into a tree. Its giant body twitched a few times before it stopped moving.

After observing for a few minutes and nothing happened, Charlie got out of the bush and approached the fight scene. He saw the big ape but didn’t go near it.

He moved closer to the shadow being and kicked him hard in his crotch.

“Fuck you!! What sins have I committed against you for you to chase me as if I killed your parent?”

“in what ways have I offended you!? Go and rot in Hell” Charlie kicked one more time and turned back to check the other corpse on the ground but he slipped on the shadow beast's blood and fell inside the pool of blood.

Immediately after falling, golden tendrils shot out from his left arm and planted themselves on the ground in the middle of the black pool. The tendrils then start to slowly suck on the blood.

Minutes after the blood on the ground was sucked dry ( the shadow's corpse was not left behind either) the tendrils extended and penetrated the shadow beast's corpse through its wound. The corpse was now dry as dry can be, but the golden tree was not satisfied, it still wants to eat the white ape.

Charlie moved closer to the white ape and touched it with his left hand but nothing happened. he moved his hand around the white ape's body but still, nothing happened- not until his left hand reached the gaping wound on the white ape's body did the golden tendrils reacts. They shot out from his hand and licked the wound clean.

Then a strange feeling overcame his mind, urging him to split the beast open and search for something; it was like an instinct.

He took out the small knife that was strapped to his waist and undefeated it. he moved closer to the beast and cut open its stomach. he rummaged through the open stomach and brought out something that looked like a white pebble out of the beast. The pebble was pulsating as if there was breath in it.

"Is this the legendary monster core?" Charlie looked at the glowing stone in his hand with great joy.

monster cores are rare treasures in their village, only the beasts that have gained sentience develops monster core in their stomach. the beasts are called level 3 beasts or beast warriors and they can only be hunted by seasoned totem warriors (the yellow-ranked warriors).

Charlie was busy observing the cracked monster core when the strange feeling came back to urge him.

The tendrils slowly snaked out of his left hand and tried to snatch the monster core from him. The tendrils were fast but he was faster. he doesn't know if it's by reflex or frustration, so he quickly threw the core into his mouth.

he planned to control the wild tree in his mind; he later remove it from his mouth. The core is too expensive for the tree to swallow. if we're to calculate, it's worth ten years of his monthly wages.

but immediately the core entered his mouth, it melted.

The core tasted like milk tea when he chewed it in his mouth.

suddenly!!!

his stomach rumbled, his whole body became jot all of a sudden.

Great pain coursed through his veins with each passing second, it was as if he was being injected with boiling water. The hairs on his body stood on end and he felt as if his body was a pot of boiling water. Steam was coming out from every pore in his body.

“Aaaaarhhgg”