#shriggy

For a while, he had heard rumours, of a beast of the forest. Taka had been hesitant to believe them, of course. When his people came to him, saying there was something in the forest, near the sight at which they had fallen… Taka didn’t believe them. They claimed it could see them. They claimed it had chased them, but Taka didn’t believe it. Nobody in this world could see them. They were spirits, alien to Earth. Unable to join its life force, unable to return home. Taka and his army were destined to wander Earth, spirits lost, for all eternity. He believed that, until he saw it with his own eyes. Or rather… evidence of it. A man of his race approached him, with a bloodied stump where his arm had once been. The creature had attacked, and claimed it. The blood was fresh, not taken by human weapons. This was… something else. Something that could see them. Something that could hurt them. “Don’t go in the woods, Sire.” A soldier warned… yet again. “It can kill us!” “How?” Taka spoke. “We aren’t part of this world.” He looked at the man. “Is it human?” “No.” the solider shook his head. “I… I don’t know what it is. But it can see us.” “… I see.”

He wasn’t afraid. He felt no urge to keep away. Instead, he felt drawn. To the forest, to that creature… it could set him free. That was all Taka could think. All he could believe. This thing… it would set him free. He nodded at the man, and placed a hand upon his shoulder. “Thank you, for coming here with me.” Taka said. “I am sorry I brought you here.” “Sire…”

The solider watched, baffled as Taka began to walk towards the forest, towards his certain death. “Sire! What are you doing?” He ran to the king, and attempted to pull him back. “It will kill you –” “How long have we been trapped on this world?” Taka growled, pushing him off. “If this thing can kill me?” He smirked, and watched the horror form on the soldier’s face. There must have been excitement in Taka’s eyes; there must have been such a keenness upon his lips… because he could feel the ecstasy filling his soul, and he made no effort to hide it. This was it… this was the thing that would end it. And in such a way… “I will enjoy the fight.”

The soldier tried to stop him, but Taka went all the same. Running towards the forest, without even looking back. He told his comrades they didn’t have to follow; he told them the choice was theirs and it was true. They could stay if they wanted, and he wouldn’t think less of them if they did. But him… he was done with this world. He was done with wandering, he was done with regretting. And he was… restless. So, so restless. His thirst for blood carried him into the darkness of the woods and he hoped the creature would show him no mercy. He was ready for a fight.

He ran through the trees, his senses alight. He listened, he smelt, he watched… he stopped to study his surroundings, and realised he was lost. He had kept track of his own movements; he should know exactly how to leave. But he didn’t. He couldn’t escape. And it excited him. The woods… had trapped him. It was… soothing. Taka exhaled, and allowed his eyes to close. He allowed the memories to flood his soul, memories of the last time he was trapped in a dark, cruel place, with nothing but his own fear to keep him company. The Hive… his home. He could feel it, in this place. He could feel it around him. The coldness of his room upon his torn skin, the hardness of the floor upon his bare, tired young feet. The smell of his own blood in the air, the feeling that he couldn’t fully sleep in case he was disturbed by someone who wanted to harm him. His own shaky breaths were his lullabies, the sound of his neighbours being beaten and bruised… … That place was the safest he had ever known. And he felt it now. It was… comforting.

Taka could hear breathing, though. He could sense he wasn’t alone; he could sense eyes on him. A faint snarl came from nearby, followed by sinister laughter. It was all around him, as impossible as it was. He wasn’t afraid. The creature would come for him… and he would let it.

He started to run. Not because he wanted to get away, but because he didn’t want it to be over so soon. He wanted to enjoy his death. He wanted to be pursued, by something besides the humans. Something that wasn’t sent by his gods. He wanted to die by the creature’s hand, and he wanted to revel in leaving the world. He wanted to remember what it was like to be a child; he wanted to relive the fear he’d only felt in the dark safety of that place. He could hear the laughter, he could hear the snarls. Drawing closer, although Taka ran fast. “Come here…” A voice echoed all around him, growing louder as it spoke. “You won’t get away…!” Closer… louder. Still, Taka ran. Then he threw his neck up, and jumped.

He grabbed hold of the web he had hurled from his mouth, onto a tree branch and he gazed down at his pursuer as he swung over its head. He had seen it coming. Of course he had seen it coming. It must be this place, or the fact that he was nearing the end of his life… but he felt once again in his youth. Having to flee, as fast as he could, from someone who wanted to kill him. His mother. So many times he had caught the vicious end of one of her moods – and so many times he had caused it. He’d run from her, because he didn’t have the authority to kill her first. He’d fought her as gently as he could, but she’d brought weapons to the fight. Guns, knives, flamethrowers, bombs. The woman was a lunatic, he wasn’t afraid to say that anymore. Her persistence knew no limits and if he didn’t dodge, he didn’t live. They had been terrifying times… but looking back, perhaps the best in his life.

He cut himself loose to drop down in front of the creature, and before it he stood his ground. It looked like nothing he had ever seen. Clothed, and shaped somewhat like him, and like a human… but in place of its head was a skull, a ram skull. A skull with hair, and eyes alight with excitement. It held a knife in its hand; it walked upon hooves. … What was this? “Why can you see me?” Taka asked. “I’m dead.” “Mmm…” The creature purred, its eyes glowing as it sneered at its prey. “Tasty one… so am I.”

It wanted him to run again, Taka could sense as much. He knew bloodlust when he saw it; even upon the face of a skull he could see its thoughts. He could smell its excitement; he could feel its keenness to hunt, and kill. Of course he knew it; he had it himself. He knew this creature wanted to chase him, and have its fun with him… But he wasn’t going to run. He wanted his fun with it as well. So, he charged.

He let out a snarl, and in battle they engaged. The creature was clumsy at first; clearly it had never had anybody fight it before. But fight back it did. Taka growled as they fought; blocking its attacks and throwing at it his own. It hurt him… even when he blocked its attack it hurt him; the strength of its arms shattered his bones. He relished in the pain. It reminded him of the beating he’d got from his father, when he’d impregnated his first wife. He hadn’t enjoyed that. He had hated that. But… it had been when he was young, and free. He missed being young and free…

Slash! Taka cried out, at the sharp pain of a knife in his body. He could feel it, greater than he’d ever felt anything before. Never had he felt pain like it! The fibres of his muscles burned around the blade, as if it were forged in the depths of hell itself, and still hot from its birth. He felt his blood spill from his being, faster than blood should run. He was dying… “Hahaha…” The creature snarled in excitement, joy within its eyes. Did it think it had killed him? Did it think it would be able to cut him again? No! Taka fought through his injury, as great as it was. He smacked the creature down, only for it to rise and do the same. He threw a fist into its skull and relished in the crack that followed. But the skull wasn’t broken, although Taka’s fist almost was. What was this thing…? Why couldn’t he damage it? It was like a god… and that soothed Taka even more. The last time he’d fought a god it had defeated him, and there was no shame in losing to a god. But, this god… this was the god he wanted to take his life. This wasn’t the Gaiamira. This wasn’t human. This god was worthy of him. “Ugh!” “Rrrrrra!” The creature howled when Taka pierced it with his claws, but its howl soon turned into laughed when it grabbed his hands and pulled. Taka gritted his teeth, hissing as it did exactly what he thought it would do. Yes… grab him. He could feel it breaking his fingers, his palms. He could hear the cracking of his bones echoing through the forest, and he relished in it. Because he wanted a challenge. He kicked against its body, and threw it to the ground. It pulled him down with him, and they wrestled against the mud. It struck him with its knife, time after time, but Taka struck it back. Bloodied and sliced he fought it, unable to do anything else, and he saw his brother in its eyes. The greatest fight he’d had with Thoit… the battle for the throne. For hours they had fought, to the death. It was supposed to be to the death. To win the crown, one brother had to slay the other, and to slay each other they had tried. With every cut the creature made, Taka relived his brother’s claws. With every strike Taka threw at it, he felt Thoit’s body against his hand. As he tore at the creature’s shirt he remembered Thoit’s bloodied clothes, shredded and spoiled as he bled underneath. Thoit could have died that day. Taka could have died that day. One of them should have. But Thoit… he hadn’t wanted to. He had sensed Taka would win, and he had known he was supposed to carry on fighting until Taka did… but Thoit didn’t. He didn’t carry on. He ended it, against his own pride, before Taka could kill him. Not because he wanted to live… but because he wanted to see his brother crowned. He’d wanted to witness it for himself, because he’d held in his soul pride… for Taka. More than for himself. … Fuck. Taka remembered that now. He remembered Thoit not wanting to kill him, in case he missed him. Damn… did Taka miss him.

He leapt to his feet and fought, to the death in Thoit’s name. He stood opposite the creature, his claws as sharp as its knife, his teeth as bared as the nakedness of its skull, his eyes as filled with bloodlust as its own. But… one of them would not be spared. Taka knew the creature had no intention of letting him go; it wanted to gut him too much. And Taka… he had no intention of living after he had been defeated. It was time now… it was time. As he stared the creature down, each of them trying to hold dominance over the other… Taka knew the next strike would be his end. He could feel on his clothes too much of his own blood. “Come, then!” Taka cried. “Finish it!”