A Visitor from Below (5)

"Splash!" Someone shouted, and an actual splash of water soon followed their words just as a massive creature appeared before them.

It was a lion, with a pair of feathery wings. And it was completely black. And it was also very angry, because that water splashed on it just as it began to roar. The creature coughed once to get the water out of its throat, then shook itself and got rid of the water droplets on its majestic mane.

"That may not have been such a bright idea." Lord Ladran said with a grin as the lion growled and stretched its wings. "Well then, try and take care of it." He stepped aside, leaving Aether and the remaining four to fend for themselves.

"What?" One of the students shouted in shock. "No, we'll all die!"

"Dart!" Someone else shouted. His spell hit the creature's forehead, making it flinch and take a step back.

"Aim for the eyes," Aether spoke in a low voice, then dashed ahead, towards the creature. "Light!" He shouted again just as he shoved his hand – and the orb of light that formed in his palm – in the creature's face.

Blinded by the light, the creature reared its head and tried to back off.

"Shoot it!" Aether shouted at the other four.

"Dart!" Their voices rose in unison as four darts flew past Aether's hand and buried themselves in the creature's soft, silky fur.

"Ooh, that's a good plan." Lord Ladran commented as the creature finally pulled its head back. It reared on its hind legs and let out a deafening roar.

As the birds flew from their nests in a panic, the leaves shuffled around them. Aether looked up at the creature towering before him. "Fuck!" He whispered as the creature's sharp claws descended on him.

"Dart!" "Splash!" Shouts echoed as aether threw himself aside. He gritted his teeth and grabbed the nearest tree to pull himself back on his feet as the creature's claws dug into the earth behind him.

"Scatter, don't stand there!" He shouted, then quickly moved to put the tree between himself and the creature. Something hit the tree with such a force that a deafening crack sounded. Aether, startled by the loud noise, looked up only to see the top half of the tree come crashing down.

"Oh – fuck." He exclaimed as he threw himself aside again. He felt the splinters of the broken tree fall all around him. He covered his eyes with his arm and endured the scratches and stings. As soon as things stopped falling from the sky, he pushed himself up and once again came face to face with the lion.

"By the chaos realms, leave me be!" He shouted as he leapt over the broken tree and ducked behind the log. A pair of claws crushed the sturdy wood, once again sending wood splinters flying everywhere. "Are you four going to just stand there and watch?" He shouted. Where the hell had they even gone to?

He heard no response. No dart spells were thrown at the creature, no chanting sounded. "Fuck this academy!" He hissed as he crawled under the log as the massive, winged lion put his front pawn on the fallen log and reached over to sniff the spot Aether was hiding in moments ago. He held his breath as he found himself staring at the creatures hind legs.

He reached down and removed his stat bracelet, then rolled out from under the log. Startled, the creature tried to face him, but the log beneath its front paws finally gave out with a loud crack.

The creature beat its wings once and leapt back, then roared into Aether's face. It's disgusting breath made his stomach turn. He held his breath and dashed forward as he whispered. "Blade of Darkness!"

He swung his empty hand like he was holding a blade. A wave of darkness, just barely visible to the human eyes, spread from his motion, cutting the creature's roar short. It yelped as its two now useless wings dangled. It hissed, showcasing its sharp, deadly teeth, but Aether wasn't frightened by the slightest. He swung his arm again, this time with a piercing motion. The wave of darkness spread forth again, and the creature made an odd gurgling sound before falling to the ground.

Aether let go of the spell, then put his bracelet back on. "Dart." He said, pointing at the open wound of the creature. The dart, slightly stronger than the ones he shot before, pierced the creature's heart. Or, where its heart would have normally been, had this been a natural being.

"Blade of Darkness, huh?" A voice sounded from behind the young man. "So that's who you are." Lord Ladran's ice cold voice would have scared anyone else. "What is something like you even doing here?"

Aether turned his back to the creature's disappearing body as a beep sounded from his stat bracelet. "What did you do to the kids?"

"I sent them back to the Professor."

"Good. It would have been unfortunate otherwise." His expression darkened as he pushed his hair away, revealing his glowing eyes. "Very unfortunate." He added as his lips lowly curled up with a wicked smile.

Silence followed his words as both mages glared at each other.

It was Lord Ladran who broke the silence after a short while. "Why are you here?"

Aether smirked. "I was tasked to protect Lady Iris." He replied without reservation. "What about you?" He asked. "Does your task happen to be relevant to mine?"

Lord Ladran sighed. "No, it's not. Not in the slightest." He almost seemed relieved.

Aether's wicked expression disappeared. "Good." He turned his back on the middle-aged man and looked deeper into the forest. "Then shall we hurry along? This forest will not fix itself."

Iris sighed. A few minutes ago, she had gotten this horrible, terrible feeling stuck in her heart. Worried, she gazed down from the mountain, towards the lush green forests.

"What is it, Iris?" Seth asked. He hadn't left her side since they set off, and he was slowly getting on Iris' nerves.

"I hope the others are ok."

Seth's lips formed a thin line. "You mean Aether, don't you?" He asked with a catch in his voice. "I get that you're worried about your brother, but-"

"He's not my br-" She stopped herself. "Aether is not the only one I'm worried about." She shook his hand off of her shoulder and hurried ahead. Stay near Lady Iris, Aether had told her, and she intended to do just that.