Chương 64: The Colossal Bat

Tim - A few moments earlier Tim sheltered his eyes with his arm as blood splattered down from the air. The Creature launched the guard over the wall, trailing some drips of blood backwards towards his party. He wiped the drips of blood off his bare chest with the back of his hand. The blood was still warm, not that he cared. He felt like he should have been scared, or shocked, but all he could think about was how much energy was running through his body.

It felt like fire ran through his veins, burning him from the inside. His body felt light. It was such an unfamiliar sensation to not feel so weak. He had ached for every moment of every day for as long as he could remember. It was freeing to be rid of it, even if it was only temporary. He could feel the curse still within him, eating away at his strength, but whatever had happened to him had left him with power beyond anything he'd experienced.

There were screams of agony from Thomas' two remaining men in front of him, and there was some commotion off to the side between Aaron and Thomas, but he was confident that Thomas would be no threat with Paige's help. His brother had come so far in the past weeks and was resourceful and strong. The world around him was a blur. He looked down at his hands, turning them slowly from front to back a few times. His nails were replaced by small claws.

They were off-white with a black base and curved round into sharp tips at the end. His skin had a subtle grey undertone with patterns which resembled scales. He dragged a claw gently across the back of his arm, then tapped it a few times, testing the sharp points. He could barely feel the claw touching him as it made a clanging sound akin to bone smacking bone. Rage grew inside of him again, simmering like a boiling cauldron. He was furious at Thomas for betraying Aaron. He wanted to test out his claws on his face.

It would be so satisfying to watch him pay for what he'd done to them. For dragging Aaron down into a deal with a corrupt noble. Tim took a couple of deep breaths and acknowledged his thoughts. He didn't like Thomas for sure, but he didn't want to hurt anyone. Not unless he needed to. His heart raced in his chest, and everything in the room came into sharp focus. The colours became more vivid and sounded louder and more crisp. He felt hungry for air, and his breathing sped up.

His legs itched underneath him like he wanted to run. Thoughts of their time in the city flooded his mind. He was so mad at Aaron for taking him on this trip and lying to him. He didn't want to be here. In fact, Aaron was selfish for the way he acted. He acted out of guilt, and it had nothing to do with acting like brothers. Tim tightened his fists. His claws pinched into his palm, but drew no blood. If his skin was normal, it would have definitely damaged it. He wanted it to hurt.

His rage was overwhelming, and he would have taken any distraction.

"Tim?" Alex said. He looked over at the bard, who backed away slightly. He was so cowardly. Tim looked down at him. They were usually the same height, but now it would be so easy to squash him to the floor with a fist. Tim closed his eyes and shook his head, trying to escape the anger. Alex was his friend. He'd looked out for him since they picked him up in the town. Although he was tracking them for Harrold. Who knows whether or not he tipped them off, and that's why they were in this mess? He couldn't be trusted.

Alex put a hand out towards Tim's wrist. He had psychic magic, which was helpful in keeping him calm before, but how could he know for sure he wasn't trying to manipulate him?

"Get off me!" Tim shouted. He batted Alex's hand away with a swift backhand. The blow was fierce and sent Alex spinning. Tim retreated a step and looked down at his hands as if they weren't his own. His claws were now talons, and his arms stretched down to his knees.

"Tim, get back," Giddeon shouted, throwing a gust of wind into his chest. It thumped him hard enough to wind him briefly. A cold, raspy voice spoke from inside his head. Each word resonated in such a frequency that it was painful to listen to, like it was rattling inside his skull.

"See how your friends treat you? Defend yourself before it's too late."

"NO!" Tim shouted, holding his ears. He knew what was happening, but the rage inside of him was visceral and consuming. He felt himself slipping. As Tim refused, the pain in his mind worsened. It was like daggers were stabbing into his eyes from within. He clenched his jaw and clamped his eyes in pain. Alex grabbed his arm, and he felt the anger ease slightly. He could think slightly more clearly, as a faint light guided him out of the dark. But the pain was unbearable, and it quickly snuffed out.

Tim reached into his pocket for the pendant. It was risky, but he was desperate. He pinched the chain between his claws with both hands and placed it around his neck. He felt its mana disperse and cover him, like a veil. The rage was gone. Tim opened his eyes and flexed his jaw. It was stiff from where he had been gritting his teeth so hard. The muscles in his face throbbed as he relaxed them. He unclenched his fists. Love what you're reading?

Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. Giddeon was facing him, with one foot forward in a battle ready stance and Alex was holding his wrist. He was towering over them now, perhaps a foot taller than he was a moment ago.

"Tim, talk to him before he tries to blow your head off," Alex said. Tim was calm. He felt nothing.

"I'm fine, you can stop." He spoke plainly and in a monotone. Perhaps he should have felt scared, or exhilarated, or anything really. He looked at his talons and his hulking long arms but felt nothing. He saw them for what they were—A tool. He knew he should have been worried that the curse was worsening, or he would be stuck in this mutated form, but the emotion just wasn't there. He looked at the humanoid bat creature.

It was hoovering just high enough that its long talons were draping backwards against the floor. One of the guards swung their sword in an arc towards its flank, but it buzzed backwards avoiding the blow. In quick retaliation, it poked out one finger and slashed across the man's neck. Jets of blood spurted forwards onto the belly of the beast and the guard collapsed on his front. The second man panicked. He turned as fast as he could in his full plate gear and waddled away with his legs out wide.

The plate mail clanked together as he shuffled away. A talon burst through his chest. He let out an excruciating breath and froze in place. The claw had pierced through the back of his armour, travelled all the way through his chest and out the front. Blood dripped off the curved end of the talon, down the front of the chest plate. The claw retracted, and he slumped face down on the floor, unmoving. Tim marched towards the beast with his hands draped down by his sides, his claws barely hanging above the floor.

The beast had to die. It was the best next step to secure their safety, and he had strength from the curse surging through him. He was the person best suited to taking it down. Marching over the corpses of the bat's victims, he raised his arms up and faced his hands forwards, ready to block. The beast buzzed forward with one leg outstretched, punching its claw towards Tim's eyes. Tim ducked to the side with unnaturally fast reactions and slashed the back of its leg.

He felt his claws sink into its tough skin and lock in place as he pulled back. Like a dart, the second leg shot towards him, but his instincts were sharp. He weaved underneath and ran to the side of the room, pulling its leg with him. The beast resisted, flapping its wings hard, whipping up a cloud of dust. Tim felt it rise with his hand still attached. A series of bangs echoed around the pit as Giddeon fired several arrow-like bolts of wind into its wings. The airflow must have disrupted its flight.

Its force weakened, and it dropped a few feet as he yanked. Tim gripped hard, sinking his claws deeper into its leg. He ran as fast as he could, but it was like trying to pull a loaded cart. The creature lost some power in its flight and drooped down towards the floor as it dragged behind him. He spun around in a circle, completely pulling it out of its flight, whipping the creature like a lasso. He acted fast before it inevitably regained control. At the apex of his swing, he launched it towards the door.

It didn't hit the floor, but it buzzed its wings and spun out of control. Tim understood its wings were its main advantage. It had the strength to fly with three fully armoured men hanging onto it, and it had full use of both arms and feet in the air. He had to ground it to even the odds. The beast hit the wall with a crack and bounced off. It was buzzing its wings frantically to regain height and was facing away from Tim. Before it could turn, he ran and launched himself onto its back.

He used his claws to rip into the creature's leathery wings and rend them. Bits of black flesh flapped off the sides as it beat its wings. Ribbons of bloodied black skin fell to the floor as he shredded them apart. The creature threw its arms back and screeched, but its anatomy wouldn't allow it to reach Tim. It started to drop to the floor and had no other choice but to use its legs to stand up. It thrashed and spun, trying to shake him off.

It ran backwards and threw itself back, slamming Tim into the wall with its full weight behind it. The wood cracked from the impact, but he felt no pain. The amulet was working perfectly… Maybe too perfectly. Tim remembered Aaron's warning; a lack of pain is not always a good thing. It can make you overreach and not notice injuries. He had to finish the fight soon. Tim wedged his back against the wall and pushed the creature away with his feet.

He hung from the wood by digging his hands into the wall above his head. The bat turned around and slashed its talons towards his head. Tim let go and dropped to the floor, barely ducking underneath the attack. It geared up to swipe again, but stopped and let out a blood-curdling scream. It felt loud enough to damage his eardrums, but of course it didn't hurt. It turned erratically and flailed its arms. Its elbow hit Giddeon in the shoulder, sending him flying three paces backwards onto the floor.

His crystal green glowing dagger was embedded into its back, and black blood trickled down beneath it. It flapped its wings frantically. It was fleeing. The beast rose up a few inches into the air, but the ascent was slow and difficult. It was whipping up a vortex of dust beneath it which spanned pretty much around the entire pit, but it barely moved. The holes in its wings were debilitating. Tim jumped with all of his strength, catapulting himself above the bat.

He hadn't realised he was strong enough to jump so high. But he hadn't overshot it enough to matter. He landed down on its shoulders and sunk the claws of both hands deep into its head. His weight was too much to bear. The creature fell to the floor with Tim on top of it. They landed in a heap with the bat face down. Tim gripped his claws harder to fight the flailing creature's movement.

"Go for its heart!" Giddeon shouted. Tim dug one hand into the back of its head and pressed it into the stone floor below. It thrashed its arms and wings around, but Tim held on. He raised a finger on the free hand and stabbed into the creature's back, between two ribs. The skin was tough, and its chest was shielded by thick muscle, but he managed to push through with sheer force. He wiggled and twisted his talon to break through the flesh and sinew, then curled it round into the direction of the beast's heart.

It writhed and screamed the whole time. Tim felt his finger pulse with the beat of his heart, and then he knew it was over. He gave one final push and felt all resistance fade as his claw entered the heart. The struggling stopped, and it went limp on the floor. He pulled his finger out and looked at the bloodied talon. He looked down at his chest, which was covered in scrapes and blood. But he felt nothing. For a moment, he thought about taking the pendant off, remembering Giddeon's warnings about corrupted magic.

But if he took it off, all the pain would surge through him at once. And the voice in his head and rage might come back. He was undecided whether the magic in the amulet was good or bad, but it was giving him some kind of protection from going insane with rage. He turned to look at his friends, expecting them to be looking on in horror, but they weren't even facing him. They were looking at the relic. Where the staff was cut at the side, mana had been seeping out into a puddle below.

He thought that was a good thing at first, but the mana was taking on a form. It had become a man!