Creature of darkness

Something stirred in the darkness, something that seem to embody the very essence of darkness itself. If not for Lucius's keen senses, he wouldn't have even found out about the existence of this creature which had blended so well in the darkness that eyes would fail to see it. 

Not only that, it didn't even produce any sound as well which further made it extremely difficult to locate its presence.

Despite noticing its presence, even Lucius could barely make out its form— it was like a creature made up of shadow, its features indistinct and constantly shifting. 

Encountering such a bizarre creature, even Lucius felt his heart palpitating. Trying his best to erase his presence, Lucius held his breathe as he stood still at his place like a statue. 

Slowly it moved towards Lucius— a blur of blackness that seemed to blend seamlessly with the darkness around it. 

Still despite the creature moving towards him, Lucius tried to remain as calm as humanely possible. His whole body alerted him to pull away but he knew that moving right now was akin to giving away his presence. 

And who knows what it'll do to him after finding him. 

As it stepped out of the darkness and the luminous glow of the moon fell on its massive body, some changes started taking place in its body as its body suddenly started becoming visible. 

Previously its body had fully blended with the darkness when it was moving along the darkness. But the moment the luminous glow of the moonlight fell on its massive body, its feature became visible. 

Sharp fangs protruding from its mouth, its unkempt hair cascading down his head was similar to a lion's mane, a towering tall height of almost 4 meters accompanied by a muscular robust body, it stood on its two limbs just like a human yet it was no human. 

And the most intriguing and intimidating feature of its monstrous face was the presence of a vertical third eye on its forehead which right now was closed unlike its two other eyes which were looking towards his direction. 

As this bizarre creature drew closer, something in the air shifted. Suddenly Lucius started feeling pressed down as if the very air was thick with malevolent energy. 

At this moment, Lucius knew that he had no other way to escape. If this creature in front of him decided to act, he could do nothing at all. 

He was totally helpless like a chicken on the chopping board. One could even say that his life was at this creature's mercy. 

Surviving death one after other, Lucius at this moment felt like he was mocked by his very own fate. It was like no matter where he went, death would follow him like his shadow. 

Treading its way without even touching the ground, it was like it was walking in the air. 

Silently as it approached closer to Lucius, it started looming over Lucius, sniffing and observing him. At this moment Lucius was scared out of his wits and he was sweating profusely. 

Yet even so, he didn't show a single fear in his eyes and tried to remain as calm as possible. 

The creature which was silent until now, suddenly let out a low, menacing growl as it glared at Lucius in the eyes. Experiencing this horrifying creature's menacing growl, Lucius's heart skipped a beat. 

But still he didn't give away to his emotions and instead glared back at the creature, challenging it. 

Even if death was the only ending, Lucius still wouldn't go down without putting a fight. He was just that tenacious and adamant. 

And by remaining calm despite it trying to intimidate him and glaring back at the creature, Lucius made his resolve clear. 

For a moment, the two stood facing each other, locked in a silent battle of wills. 

Then with a sudden burst of movement, the creature lunged forward, its massive sharp claws aimed towards his heart. 

Sacrificing his other arm, Lucius dodged its attack as he put some distance from the creature or so he was intending to do. 

But things took a negative turn as that creature's sharp claws penetrated deep within his skin, almost reaching his heart. If not for his ribcage's protection that creature would have easily penetrated his heart and ended his life in one fell swoop. 

"Argh!!"

As blood gushed out of the wound which he had sustained right now, Lucius let out a muffled cry.

The agonizing pain coursed through his body at a rapid pace. But before he could even cry out loud that creature reached its claws to his heart. 

Plop!!

No sooner had it struck its ominous claws to his heart, it squeezed his tiny heart and killed Lucius on the spot without even letting him scream or struggle. 

As life seeped out of his miserable body, Lucius's head dropped towards his chest while his eyes lost the vitality it had within it. 

From his open wound, blood flowed out continuously, dyeing his already bloodied body in deep red. A puddle of blood created beneath his feet. 

The monster then was about to scoop his heart out of his body. 

But just as he was about to scoop his heart out of Luciu's lifeless body, suddenly he felt a strong pull which was pulling it towards him. 

Its two large eyes became frantic as it sensed this strange pull that was sucking its vitality out of its body. The creature became extremely startled as it desperately tried to pull its claws out of the body of Lucius. 

If it didn't act quick, it would lose all its vitality and turn into a mummified corpse. 

Sensing danger, it used its other arm to push away the lifeless body of Lucius while at the same time pulled its arm that was stuck in Lucius's chest. 

Its appearance wasn't the only thing that resembled human. Its intelligence was also similar to human although a bit primitive as compared to humans but it knew when to advance and when to retreat. 

Desperately trying to free its arm, it continued to push and pull with all its might. But no matter how much it tried, it wasn't being able to pull its arm out. 

Only after trying for a while did it came to a realization. All along not only was it trying to pull its arms out but it was also trying to pull the heart of Lucius out of his body.