A Maddening Pain

The thick tortoise beak disappears into Cane’s side, and a rupture of blood spurts down his side and onto the monster’s head.

“Cane!” I yell in fear for my friend.

Striding forward I slash down at its exposed neck, multiple neon lines of crimson mark my arcing slash through the air as the blade hits open space and thuds into the soft mossy ground. Faster than I could see, the beast had retracted its head back into a protective hole inside the bramble bush shell. A cloud of steam geysers from the ground as my Searing Blade evaporates the moisture in the blanket of moss and leaves. I leap backwards, the anticipated beak cracks forward like a chameleon's tongue and grazes the edge of my Ferrum shin greaves. The head reels back to safety as Cane bites down with his ivory tusks, he continues his charge and collides with the animal's outer shell. Pushing it backwards, he lifts his powerful jaws attempting to flip the creature onto its back.

“Come on Cane!” I scream encouragement as his thick legs and immense power teeter the beast to almost roll over. Its beak snaps, thick blood streams from Cane's mouth causing him to falter in his efforts. Sensing the hesitation, it twirls around in a continuous tornado of serrated whips that seem to extend out with every turn. Pink flesh and blood fill the air like a fine mist that wafts outwards, painting trees and bushes with my friend’s flesh. The metallic fluid covers my face, matting into my bear poncho and wetting my sword. My dwindling blade ignites from the fresh coating, setting a blaze in my heart to protect my companion. Cane retreats from the onslaught, his body raked to shreds across his face and down one side like he’d been caught in a piece of industrial machinery.

“Hold back!” I command, causing him to drop back a few more feet.

He’s panting hard now but doesn’t break eye contact with the bush of pain, ready to leap into the fray at my word. He is a Daemon hippo and a tank of muscle and sinew.

I wait for my opportunity, the Xiphos burning bright with a dense coating of blood dripping down to the handle and over my hand. As the creature spins, I see a flash of rusty metal, it stops and wavers. It’s facing away from us, stumbling from side to side like it’s lost its balance. The weaving brambles offer no obvious target from the rear, I stoop low for a weak point and spot the metal object. Attached to a girthy back leg is a large contraption, the immense jaws of a bear trap are sunk into festering meat. As the leg steps to support the unbalanced monster, pus squirts from the dirty metal teeth of the hunter's trap. This poor animal must be in excruciating pain, the creature is huge and weighs more than the biggest Guardian I have seen.

Finally recovering, we miss our opportunity as it turns to face us. The head sticks out momentarily to get a better view of our split party, assessing who poses the biggest threat. I see its intelligent green eyes watching, the injured animal ready to fight its would-be predators to the end. Green eyes, it’s one of Mother’s followers. The initial shock of the fight is over and I truly process this being of nature, the bramble bush on its back and the terrifying roars. But were they roars of aggression, or pain from a putrid wound? Piia told me about a creature with a bush on its back, she called it a Rubus and described them as docile passive animals.

A terrible plan comes to mind.

“Sorry about this Cane. Go that way.” I point to my left and the other side of the Rubus.

Cane immediately starts to circle around, the movement drawing its attention. Opening my inventory I withdrew the potion of Mushroom skin I had looted from the Tear. Expecting to find a glass bottle, the potion is in fact a glowing cyan truffle. I gobble it down quickly and wrench from the bitter taste. I hope this works.

The Rubus advances on Cane, wailing a ferocious cry that the hippo matches with his war cry. They clash at speed with a great thud of masses. The Rubus dips under Cane’s side and, using the flat horns at the front of its shell attempts to flip him over. I move to aid him when my Xiphos blinks out to cold metal, the blood drying up and the Chaotic Will with it.

I run the recently sharpened edge across my palm, nothing.

Pressing harder into my hand, trying to slice my flesh with no Uku. Rutting hell.

My skin had thickened and tinged a slight blue with a waxy sheen, my previously slit palm had swollen together and the blood dried. The potion is working perfectly well if your main goal isn’t wanting to bleed. The animals are locked onto each other, Cane’s tusks are sunk into the side of the Rubus’s body, while its beak is continuously tearing mouthfuls from his legs. His blood, a rich dark red, is now flowing freely from multiple wounds. My heart sinks from what I have to do, I’m sorry my friend.

“Hold on to it Cane.” I command.

Sprinting across the ground, my body feels hefty like I’m wearing a thick suit of latex. I slide next to him and shower my blade under the streams of his body fluid. The blade ignites, catching the eye of the Rubus, it withdraws like a loading cannon and shoots out and engulfs my left arm. The beak bites down, crunching and splintering the Ferrum wood, but the armour absorbs the strain. I feel the powerful jaws of the Rubus as the pressure on my arms builds, I scream in panic as the Ferrum cracks and then shatters in a spray of exploding wood. The tough mushroom skin feels the force of the beak when it suddenly stops. The pressure’s gone as Cane bites the Rubus’s exposed neck. It screams out in terror, trying to withdraw to the safety of its body, but the hippos' powerful maws hold tight.

“Don’t kill it, just hold on Cane.” I command again.

The Rubus tries to spin but can’t rotate without pulling its head off.

I dive along its side, the overflowing brambles scratching and tearing my poncho and armour plates, but my skin stays intake. Reaching underneath with the burning Xiphos, I poke into the bear trap, the metal instantly melting from the contact. I slide the blade slowly up and down, careful not to touch the Rubus’s leg. It continues to struggle against Cane’s strength, a lifetime of hard labour has turned his mass into pure power which he exhibits like a champion. Its stubby elephantine hind legs keep moving around, the stench of rotting meat overwhelms my nose causing me to puke. Another step brings it closer to me, a squirt of pus jets into my face, I chunder again.

Pieces of smouldering metal fall to the ground sizzling, the main frame of the trap collapses with each shifting step. I see the majority of the jagged teeth remain in place, buried deep in its scaly legs. I stab my sword towards the shard of metal, intending to cut it out. The Rubus squeals in alarm as the superheated blade touches sensitive flesh, its underside shakes violently. I roll away as it begins stamping around in a circle, attempting to kill whatever hurts its leg. If only it knew we wanted to help, I think as I roll away and onto my feet. Cane’s jaws are still clasped around the exposed neck, that isn’t going to help our argument.

The Rubus’s eyes speak of complete panic, any tortoise's worst nightmare is this exact situation, caught with its head out of its shell. Or their underside threatened. That explains why they have adapted those horns for flipping creatures, they must do it to rivals during the rutting season like warring beetles.

“Release it.” I command.

Cane’s jaws unlatch and he backs off to the Rubus’s delight. Exhausted and terrified it withdraws into its shell and steps backwards, its poor leg collapses under its weight. A heavy thud follows as the whole shell hits the ground.

I can’t just abandon this thing to die a slow painful death, this is the hunter's fault for using those disgusting barbaric traps. The resentment I hold for the humans of this world is growing with every interaction, every description and every event that includes them. This isn’t nature taking its course, it's the actions of a selfish sociopath, arrogantly abusing the world around them for their personal gain. We need more hands to help this creature, how on Silva am I going to remove the rest of the metal?

I search my inventory for any tools or muses.

I remove the Dice of multiplication, the identical marble cubes feel smooth in my hand. Each one has four blank sides, one side with a single dot and one side with two dots. The only guidance I have on these magic items is they will only work once, I throw them against Cane’s rump where they bounce off and roll on the ground.

Nothing happens.

“I knew I should have asked Livingston for more instructions.” I snarl at myself.

Returning them to my inventory space I consider alternatives. The Rubus, still motionless in its bramble fortress, will run away if I return to the Tribe. Also, the Voice and his Thorns aren’t going to let anyone help me. I could use the Tear’s whip and smack the giant bushy tortoise until it rolls over, no that’s cruel and stupid. I could give the whip to the Rubus and get it to whip me so that the absorption effect heals its wound. Kinda weird and won’t work because it's not going to wield the weapon properly.

What about my abilities?

I slap myself on the head, I can try my new one, Mirrored image. I acquired it from Chao’s spirit of replication, so I assume it requires a blood sacrifice. Using my hands, I collect a small pool of Cane’s blood. My hippo champion looks like one side of him got caught in a wood chipper, however he is staying tall and proud with inspiring vigour.

“I’m so sorry about this buddy.” I say while his blood overflows in my hands.

I am not sure how this power works, Searing Blade only requires my sword and a sacrifice of fluids, no words or funky hand gestures. I need to set time aside and learn how to use my Chaotic Will. If this fails at least I have a copious amount of blood to try again, unfortunately.

Mirrored Image, I think to myself while throwing the blood out.

It splats across the floor in a mess.

“Rutting hell!” I say out of frustration.

My body feels weightless, my head dips as I stumble to my knees. Each muscle draining of energy, refusing to work.

Cane shifts and looks away from the Rubus for the first time, sniffing me with concern.

“I’m good, just low sugar levels.” The feeling vanishes in a few deep breaths, that felt horrible.

The red ichor of his blood bubbles violently, I recoil in horror as a form rises from the puddle, a shape forms as if a 3D printer is creating an object. A reflection of Cane’s lower half grows in the congealing liquid, four thick legs form, connecting with his wide belly. The creation violently quivers and vibrates, then collapses back into the dirt.

That was disgusting. But why didn’t it work? Am I not strong enough to use these powers? Even if It had worked, a clone created from blood is going to be weak, a body needs muscles and tendons to create force.

What if the sacrifice requires a solid substance?

Flecks of pink-grey skin are blowing through the ferns from Cane’s wounds, I am not sure skin is enough. I can’t bring myself to cut a chunk of fresh flesh from my companion. A piece of metal catches my eye in the leaf litter, and sitting next to it is a small section of Rubus that I had accidentally cut off with my imprecise surgery.

I pick the scaly meat up, one side charred from the touch of my Searing Blade with a piece of bone jutting out, I throw it on the floor.

Mirrored Image.

Nada.

Last time the experiment had better results with only blood and all my Chaotic Will powers seem to require blood. I pick up the piece of Rubus, then bathe it under Cane’s wounds, which are beginning to slow down. I scratch his ears.

“We will finish this trial as soon as possible and then I’ll find you some healing salve.”

I chuck the lathered scaley meat into the air again.

Mirrored Image.

I blink mud from my eye, my neck struggling to hold my head out of the dirt. I suck in air like a competitor just finishing a 400-metre sprint. Each limb shook from the high-tempo heart rate that is pounding my arteries and veins. I command my arms to push me up, leaving behind a mould of my frame on the forest floor.

Did I just pass out?

Wet bubbling draws my attention to the bloody flesh next to me. The flesh writhes as it warps in shape and expands causing the scales to fall off. Circular trunk legs grow with the tissue exposed to the air, a white shell grows on top with a long snout protruding forward. The grotesque mass of pink muscles and webbing blood veins forms before me, a Rubus with a hippo. The sight of it makes me wrench, my stomach already empty from the puking earlier. I am level with the weird hippo head that stares at me with albino red eyes, they slowly pull away as the head retracts into its protective shell.

I tear my eyes away from my disturbing creation and point at the real Rubus.

“Blood image thing, flip him over.” The pink Rubus saunters over at a slow pace.

“Cane, get ready to charge.”

The flesh beast dips low, the two flat horns made of bone are wedged underneath the edges of its shell. It pivots the Rubus, lifting and creating a two-foot gap underneath. The real Rubus wails, its fortress's only weakness exposed.

“Now Cane, push it from underneath.” I command.

My hippo bounds forward and gets his head into the gap, they push together and tip the creature onto its side until it rolls over. A harrowing wail begins, its fat legs sticking to the sky and desperately kicking to right itself. Unsheathing my Xiphos and glazing it in Cane’s blood once again, I ignite the Searing Blade. Then squeamishly climb on top of my flesh monster’s boney shell and then onto the Rubus’s underbelly. Its legs kick with a manic effort to get me off, shaking its entire frame and almost causing me to unbalance and fall off.

“Hold it still, I’m doing surgery up here.” I yell at my flock.

The flesh Rubus’s whole body violently vibrates then collapses into the ground, its entire substance melts away into the soil leaving nothing behind.

“Bit dramatic, I wasn’t asking for that much. Was I Cane?” He answers by biting onto the side of the remaining Rubus’s shell, locking his jaws and holding it steady.

I focus on the task at hand, the operation is incredibly difficult under these circumstances. Balancing on a giant upended tortoise that is trying to kick me off while using an oversized red hot scalpel. I accidentally touch its leg a few times, creating a raucous from the animal. The smell of cooking flesh and gangrene adds to the equation to make my head swim with nausea. The final part of the trap finally falls out and I jump off.

“Flip him back over, please.” I command.

Cane releases his hold and pushes against the shell, the brambles now flowing down with gravity. The Rubus, sensing itself tipping, kicks to one side and soon rolls back onto its belly. Where it stays silent and hidden. I hope that counts as completing the trial, not saying I can interpret the desires of a Goddess, though I assume removing the trap is better than ending one of her followers' lives. There were tactics and methods to make it smoother and with more respect to her realm and inhabitants, not that my powers offer those routes. I take in my surroundings, the mix of bodily fluids dripping off ferns, fragments of flesh breaking up the greens and browns of nature. Very Chaotic.

I recover the remains of the trap and a small piece of the Rubus, storing them away. With a little relief, I turn to trek towards the village.

“Come on Cane, let's sort you…

A mystical emerald face floats before me.