Grudge Match - Deviljho TF

The beast let out a pained roar as you slashed at it once more, making it stumble for a little bit before it looked directly at you, its eyes fiery with murderous intent. The fight had been going on for hours, both you and the wyvern exchanging blows that, you both thought, should have killed. And yet, here you both stood, circling the other. You, with your blade still drawn despite your body screaming for a break. And the Bazelgeuse, its wings outstretched to make itself more intimidating despite how injured it was. You had been sent here in order to investigate a particularly irritated wyvern who had chased off a group of researchers who were investigating the presence of a stream of liquid bioenergy, a phenomenon that had never been encountered before and was thus of the highest importance. However, the wyvern had proven itself to be particularly territorial and kept a watchful eye on its turf. As such, you had been sent down to get rid of it. The monster was a formidable opponent, even more so when you were on your own : it had been hours, and despite the numerous injuries it had suffered, its rage had yet to be extinguished. You had grown impatient, and you wanted this to be over with, lest you’d tire yourself out even more.

Breathing in, you took a step forward before breaking into a full sprint. The wyvern answered with a brief roar and darted towards you, its steps making the ground shake as it accelerated. You smiled. As you ducked at the last second, the monster missed its attack, and you took this opportunity to slash once more, but this time at its legs. A cry of pain sounded out, followed by a loud crashing sound. You turned around only to see the Bazelgeuse on the ground, struggling to get up as it laid on its belly. Smiling, you sheathed your weapon before standing up, quickly running over to your foe : despite the state it was in, the battle was not over until the finishing blow was dealt, and you wanted to see to this as quickly as possible. The wyvern glared at you with eyes full of this primal hate you had seen so many times before, the kind of hate reserved only to those who threatened a being’s place in the food chain. It then stopped moving, seemingly giving up. You let out a sigh of relief, searching in your pouch to find a potion : popping the lid open, you raised your head, gulping on it hungrily as you already felt it coursing through your body and alleviating the numerous wounds and burns inflicted by your foe. Looking down at the Bazelgeuse, you could’ve sworn you saw it smile : it slowly rolled over and a loud hiss echoed as its explosive scales turned from black to a bright yellow, before a great detonation filled your eyesight. You flew in the air, blown away by the strength of the blast, and instead of landing on the ground like you fought, a great splash welcomed you as you found yourself in a raging river of blue-ish liquid. All sound was muffled, and all you could hear was the roar of the flow carrying you Gog knew where. Trying to breathe and struggle against the current, you managed to rise to the surface for a bit before being taken underwater again, gulping down what you now realized to be liquid bioenergy by the mouthful. The flow grew stronger and stronger, and your aching body could barely muster the energy to struggle. Your only consolation before you blacked out was that if you died here, maybe you’d be of use to the life of the New World.

When you woke up, what was bioenergy was now normal water, and it was flowing around you as you slowly stood up, taking in your surroundings. You were on the bank of a river bordered by a thick jungle, and your vague knowledge of the region gave you comfort : you were close to civilization. Standing up, you felt your stomach aching. Were you really this hungry before ? Looking at your hands, you noticed your veins : they were bulging, and were shining with a bright, red hue. Before you could even worry about this, a burning heat flared from your chest. Hurrying to take off your armor and clothes, you could only see a bright red light on your torso before a wave of green, thick scales started emerging from it, running all over your body. You let out a cry, feeling your muscles growing and strengthening themselves. Your body heat became almost intolerable, and your last pieces of clothing almost exploded as you kept growing and growing. Your arms shrunk visibly, becoming small and weak and disappearing from your view as you felt your legs changing their shape. A pain like none you ever felt before exploded in your brain as a new, thick muscle formed itself behind you, covering itself with rows of bone spikes. Finally, as your skull elongated itself to become a deadly maw from which burst out two rows of fangs, you let out a thunderous roar that resonated through the trees, silencing everything around you.

It had been a few weeks since the transformation, and you had successfully managed to topple the food chain of the forest in your advantage. Starting with the small fry and working your way up to the wyverns that inhabited the canopy, you had become the apex of this place. However, the hunger was always present and burned your body, filling it with a rage that was only sated by the feeling of fresh meat being torn away from the bones of your most recent prey. Your humanity, however, was mostly intact, as was your grudge for the wyvern that caused this change. And now, it was standing in front of you, growling, its body illuminated by red hot scales that was burning the ground around it. You had spent days tracking it down, wishing for nothing but revenge. And now, you couldn’t wait to feast on its remains.