Blood Will Tell

II

A flurry of thoughts flooded Edin's mind as he witnessed the beast racing towards Irien. He would stand no chance. The creature's claws would cut him up before the tip of his blade could reach its skin. Though he did not remember most of his life, he certainly did not want to lose it.

But more lives would be lost if he did not step in.

Edin outstretched his arm and summoned his sword. He sprang from behind the rock and sprinted. This was it. This was what Arden had been preparing him for. It was only a matter of time before he would fight his maiden fray.

Although, he wished it would have arrived later.

He narrowed his eyes as he ran. A cloud of dust formed as the beast galloped toward the town. Edin lifted his forearm; some dust was getting into his eyes. He panted as he chased it. It was pulling away from him. Half the townsfolk would be dead by the time he arrived.

He lifted his left arm, palm facing his back, and leaned forward. He thrust.

Fwoosh. Blue fire blazed from his palm and soles and propelled him across the soil. He peered at the town. The monster was dangerously near the settlement. If he could just be a little faster, he could stop it before it penetrated the outskirts. He strained his left arm as he propelled more fire. He was closing in. His heartbeat raced; in seconds, they would clash.

The beast was within striking distance. Edin fed lightning into his blade and thrust it.

Crack!

A patch of burnt soil marked the spot where his lightning bolt struck. Fear spiked in him—he missed!

He stared at the beast. The creature had halted and reared its head to the source of the sound. It snarled at him as it lengthened the claws of its forepaws.

Edin stopped in his tracks. Held his sword with both hands. Narrowed his eyes into slits. He was ready. Two years of rigorous training had groomed him for this.

The ground quaked as the monster bolted in his direction. A long and sharp tongue shot from its snout.

Edin sidestepped. Changed his grip. Sliced through the monster's tongue. Blood sprayed.

Upon the first drop of crimson, Edin saw nothing but red.

The beast reeled in its bleeding tongue just before he could cut through it.

Edin sprinted towards it. Lightning flowed into his blade. He thrust. Crack! The beast fell to the ground, wriggling from electric shock.

He gashed its abdomen. The creature flailed its legs as it tried to claw at him. He parried each limb. Severed its paws. Then its ankles. Then its knees.

It wailed in agony. He cut its cries with a slice of its throat.

Then he tortured it. Hacking. Slashing. Slicing. Stabbing. The beast's howls morphed into pleading whimpers as he butchered its every body part. Its cries sparked savagery in him instead of sympathy. Every gush of blood heightened his thirst. He lifted his sword up high, aimed at the heart, and brought it down.

A wet cracking sound could be heard as the blade pierced through its ribs and stabbed its heart. Its body became still at once.

Edin stared at the monster's carcass—or a sum of its parts, rather, for he had hashed it beyond recognition. A thick pool of blood surrounded the mass, leaking from the parts where he cleaved and lacerated it. He then gazed at his sword. The same crimson color coated his blade and dripped from its edge. He looked down at himself. He was covered in red stains from top to bottom. He stood still as he let the situation sink in.