Chapter 6: The First Kill

When the unicorn finally stopped walking, Alexander found himself starring at a patch of grassland. Surrounded by trees, this little patch of meadow was filled with flowing grass and little plains-flowers, providing a quaint little reprieve from the repetitive blur of wood and leaf.

It took him a moment, but Alexander eventually noticed the green mass shifting occasionally, courtesy of some unknown creature running through it. What it was he did not know, but he found himself stalking towards it. Knife at the ready, his knees pushed through the rough grass stalks at he followed the trail of movement. It paused occasionally, likely hearing his approach, but it did not appear to be all that fast.

Hoping to catch it unawares, he paused his movement. What was fairly apparent to him is that the creature he was tracking was of decent size. Around the size of a medium-sized dog, maybe a bit larger. But based on the fact it hadn’t popped its head up; it was not tall enough to see his approach.

He felt pretty confident that so long as it wasn’t venomous, he would be ok. The movement trail started again, heading toward away from him at first before it suddenly changed direction again. And again. And against before heading in his direction. Perfect.

As soon as it was in range Alexander leaped as far as he could, diving blade fist so he could stab at whatever was underneath him. Hearing an ugly squeal that reminded him of a pig, it didn’t take him long for his torso to come into contact with something that was hairy and bulky. Then before he knew it, he was being pulled, with the rough grass whipping at his eyes and face.

Gripping his puny dagger for dear life, Alexander didn’t open his eyes as he was dragged across the field, his legs coming into uncomfortable contact with rocks, ambient twigs, and other debris as he was transported at a decently high speed.

He didn’t open his eyes until he experienced two full seconds of nothing but air on his face. But by the time he did, he had completely lost track of where of he was. They were still in a grassland, for sure, but the plant life was considerably shorter here.

He didn’t have much time to think before he felt himself going towards the air, his face coming into painful contact with something that felt like mixture between wire and fur. Then before he had time to get a grip on that, he was being pulled down again. He went up and down, and up and down, until he finally slid off the side and found himself staring at green pelt with accents of muddy brown.

He still had a grip on his dagger, but whatever it was that he had stabbed was not going to let him get his bearings. Feeling a sharp but short pain at his side, he finally lost his grip and landed in the dirt, allowing him to see the face of what appeared to be a green boar. One with a frantic look in its eyes and a set of sturdy-looking tusks. They were not especially large, but it enough to cause him considerable pain. Especially since it seemed they were unable to puncture his armor. It didn’t spare him a glance at it ran away, completely uncaring that it had a knife still embedded in its semi-prickly hide.

Alexander felt panic run through him as he realized it was heading back toward the tall grass. Rushing to his feet, he winced as he realized that the attack from before granted him a bruise. A minor inconvenience. He made a mad dash to catch up to the cowardly pig, his legs trying to carry him as fast as his body would allow.

Unfortunately, it had already gained a considerable distance before he even got up, easily reaching the grass in question by the time he had taken a few steps. Which is why he found himself running desperately, even as a familiar unicorn sped onto the field. Deliberately imposing itself in the boar’s path, it caused the giant swine to almost trip on its own feet and change direction in an effort to get around. But regardless of where it tried to run, it would often get intercepted by a pair of giant hooves. It was almost comical. If the unicorn wasn’t outrunning the little porker, then he was deliberately pouncing in front of him. Even when the boar cleverly took a sharp turn, something that even unicorns can’t do on short notice, it only took a turnabout and a bound for it to be blocked again.

It was clear the unicorn’s maneuverability for exceeded that of his quarry. Making one last leap into the tall grass, Alexander saw the shifting grass turn back towards him as the boar leaped from its preferred coverage, opting instead to take its chances with the injured human.

Coming close enough for him to potentially reach, Alexander lunged at with every intent to get his hands around it. But the boar taking initiative was not something he was expecting. Taking a headbutt to his chest, Alexnader found himself nearly being shoved to the ground, with only his frantic grabbing giving him purchase on the creature’s hide.

Now he was being dragged again, with Alexander trying to fight the momentum and pull himself closer to the pig’s head. He did so after a few seconds of effort, eagerly pulling the knife out of a bleeding wound and promptly spearing it into its shoulder.

The wailing creature fell onto its side when it made contact, and desperate not to let it get away a second time, he gripped it by the scruff and immediately stabbed inwards at the neck juncture. If his aim was right, this should hit its heart or some other major organ. But just to be sure, he found himself stabbing the creature in its head. With the last blow dealt, the creature finally ceased its panicked movement.

When it finally stopped moving, a feeling of exhilaration ran through him. The warm liquid that leaked out of the carcass was not red like he expected, but clear and giving off a green sheen in the light. But it was still sickeningly tepid, and unlike water it maintained its disturbing thickness. Wiping his hand on the nearby grass, he contemplated how to cut it up.

He would have to gut it first, right? But did it even have guts?! The unicorn pranced up to him, looking on placidly before it bent his head to chew on a patch of grass. It didn’t seem the least bit concerned with the remnants of violence, making no sign of distress or unease as it went about eating its own meal.

Alexander looked at the pooling wetness, his exhilaration dimming as the grotesqueness of his task began to set in. It was while he was in this line of thought that he spotted a tell-tale shimmer dancing in the boar’s water-colored essence, resulting the appearance of numbers and letters once again.

The information presented was not incredibly useful. The “Parts of Interest” were listed. Meat, tusks, hide, and eyes. But it did pique his curiosity when he looked at its stats. STR: 3, DEF: 4, SPD: 4...His eyes wandered to the part that said “SPECIES”. In a feeling of wry amusement, the words “GRASSLAND RIDGEBACK” stared back at him, and it didn’t take him long to find that its level was meager 3.

If he was having trouble with this little thing, then he best make sure that he didn’t encounter something of an even great level. But just as importantly, he made a mental note to carry reflective surface on him. The water, a mirror, and now blood....it seemed any reflective surface could show him stat information so long as he wondered about it. Although if Janesca’s mirror was any indication, there were certain limitations to this...technique? Skill? World Feature? Whatever it was, it was useful.

Resolving to ignore ideas of gangly intestines spilling on his hands, he poised his knife near the base of the corpse’s belly, only pausing when he noticed the unicorn’s head popping up expectedly. Its ears straight at attention, signaling that something behind him was deserving of his notice.