Abyss and Rage

Staring at what was his would-be attacker, Mathew's thoughts were in a stir. What exactly could he do to take advantage of this reprieve? He weighed his options carefully: he could either stay put or hope the creature didn't notice him and run, leaving the cowering woman as a distraction. 

Neither were very good ideas.

Did he have no choice but to intervene then? But what could a weak human like him do against a Voidspawn? He might as well just walk up to the beast and ask it to eat him.

Desperate for anything that could give him even the slightest chance of survival his attention was drawn to the hole by his feet by another gust of cold wind. He stared into the void within, feeling drawn to it like a well of gravity was pulling him in.

'A well of gravity?' An idea instantly sparked in his mind. 

'Alright... that just might work.'

With its maw wide open, saliva and blood pouring through the gaps in its serrated teeth, the beast circled them. It sauntered at a slow, methodical pace. Inching ever closer, seemingly reveling in its prey's despair.

But unlike the woman who practically radiated fear, Matthew felt a flicker of gratitude for the beast's ignorance.

He watched the beast's every movement with unwavering focus. Cataloging every subtle shift in its massive form. Almost as if he were a predator, and the voidspawn, was the prey. He wouldn't have to wait long.

The creature paused, crouching low to the ground. Suddenly the air felt tense and time slowed to a crawl. With adrenaline coursing through his veins, Mathew could feel the weight of its predatory intent.

Out of the corner of his eye, Mathew saw the woman shifting nervously and slowly leaned forward. Knowing instinctual that the next moment would determine their fate.

The woman flinched, but before she could act her instincts, the beast lunged forward with a sudden burst of energy. With no time to think, Mathew grit his teeth and seized the woman's arm, timing his move with precision.

With its shadow now looming over him, in a single swift movement, he yanked the woman away then pivoted and drove his foot down with all his strength. Stomping onto a gap between the loose cobblestone bricks.

The sound of his stomp resonated through the passageway. Echoing like the thunderous boom of a canon. Then Mathew glanced up at the treeifying monster, it was only a meter away. He pulled the woman close and leaped back, narrowly avoiding one of the creature's tentacled mandibles.

The beast landed and shaped to charge once more, but the ground shifted and groaned beneath it. The ground gave way instantly. The cobblestone bricks fell through, revealing a gaping hole that swallowed the beast.

Adrenaline surged through him and he leaned back and fell to the floor, narrowly escaping the beast's thrashing claws as it disappeared into the abyss.

Seconds passed, and Mathew's eye followed the beast's descent into the chasm. The faint wails rang in his ears until suddenly an eerie silence hung in the air.

He strained to hear the faintest sound of impact. But no noise arose from the depths, leaving the unsettling realization of how impossibly deep the chasm truly was. Finally, a loud thud echoed from the depths of the abyss, followed by a whimper, then silence once more.

'Guess it stuck the landing... eventually.'

Shaking off the unease, Mathew stared at the roof of the passageway, trying to regain his composure. Just then, the now familiar voice of the codex spoke.

[You have slain a Voidspawn- Feral beast- Gila.]

Mathew lay sprawled on the ground, a sly smirk tugged at his lips and he muttered to himself.

"I killed an actual Void Born."

Well, that wasn't entirely accurate. It was more in the vein of causing the beast's death instead of actually killing it. After all, he didn't lay a hand on the beast and just stomped on a few loose bricks.

But in that moment, he didn't really care about the specifics, all he cared about were the results.

He sat up and pushed himself to his feet, brushed off the dirt and sweat off his palms then took one last look back at the chasm. A shiver ran down his spine. The abyss almost seemed to swallow all the light that surrounded it.

As he stood there gawking at the hole, a presence appeared at his side. He turned and saw the figure of the earlier beauty of a woman rise to her feet, dust herself, and walk up to his side.

She stood there, gazing intently into the chasm.

Mathew stared at her for a moment. During his entire life living on the outskirts, he had never seen such a beautiful woman. In fact, he didn't think such people existed apart from in comics.

Completely forgetting about his exhaustion, he froze for a few moments. Her appearance made him feel self-conscious and somewhat awkward. Bereft of an idea about how to react, he shifted away, glancing at her from the corner of his eye.

For several tense seconds, he remained in this precarious position, grappling with the stark divide between their appearances. Within the next few moments though, his thoughts drifted painfully. Directed to the one person who tethered him to that hell called Earth.

The image of her lifeless body was forever burned into his memories and played on repeat like a broken record.

Each time it replayed, an unfamiliar feeling welled up inside him. Was it love? The pain of watching her death? No this was something more intense. Something more consuming. The memory of her murderer's emotionless expression sent Mathew's heartbeat racing. Every muscle in his body tensed, and the world around him blurred.

What was this feeling? It caused adrenaline to flow and his blood to boil. It consumed his every thought. His eyes radiated a burning intensity. and his nails bit into his palm. The darkness of the chasm felt like it was crawling up to him, ready to devour his very being.

Suddenly, his mind calmed. And his focus narrowed, falling on a single, unrelenting thought that dominated his mind.

'Ah! So that was what it was.'

His eyes widened. The emotions he was feeling weren't something fleeting like love or pain. It was something more substantial. An insatiable desire that can almost never be satisfied.

It was a burning need to kill. Rage in its purest form.