I sat rigidly atop a hill in the vast fields of the Tainted Plane, my tail
swung loosely behind me, brushing the brown, coarse grass with each back and
forth swing. It was a quiet evening, I remember that. Cocking my head backwards,
I saw a quick shadow fly over me and disappear into the graying clouds as
quickly as it had seemingly manifested. I flicked my serpentine tongue in an
agitated curiosity and followed the lithe shadow’s path, or what I had guessed
was its path.
I ran quicker and quicker, determined not to lose any more ground than I
already had on this elusive intruder. My talons were sharpened, dry with the
blood of an imp I had disciplined earlier for causing a riot near the Supreme
Master’s quarters â€" the imp was never the same afterwards. Again, the blur
across the sky flew, breaking in front of the clouds and swooping low to the
ground; that was my first view of it. A Wiccan, from one of the savage forests
that plagued the Basin with their presence, likely looking for a spot of fun had
intruded on the plains of Nil. I was keen to show her how the denizens of Nil
treated their intruders.
I lunged forward, letting out a feral snarl and lifted my claw ready to strike
down on my foe. I landed a hit, slashing across her midriff and leaving a
bleeding wound. Smugly I grinned as I turned on my heel to face her, hands at my
sides. I brought my hand that contacted with her skin up and shook the blood
from it. I launched myself again, and shouted, “Death to Nil’s Intruders!”
The Wiccan smirked and casually eluded the attack, stepping to the side and
watching as I landed on the grass where she had stood. Spitting a few blades of
the dead grass from my mouth I stood up, turning to face her…but she was no
longer there.
“Where are you?” I yelled a snarl built in my throat in my fury. My nose
wrinkled, sniffing at the homely smells, inspecting for any irregular scents.
There it was! It was close! I turned quickly on my heels, performing many
in-place revolutions, as I scanned my surroundings. A rustle of clothing came
from nearby and I ran at the sound, growling in angry anticipation. She was
close…I could smell her… I was eager to make her pay for intruding, for
desecrating this most holy place with her presence. There she was…I’d found
her.
I continued my charge, lowering myself into a crouch as I bounded. Launching
up, the soles of my feet left the ground and I let loose with a feral roar,
tackling her to the ground! I raised my claws and began to maul at my prey
beneath me. But, something felt wrong...Why was her flesh so easy to tear? Was
had there been no blood? My ferocious clawing came to a sudden halt as I
realized I had been made a fool of. In a torn mess of cloth beneath me lay the
Wiccan's robes.
"You blasted woman!," I shrieked into the air, furious at this disgusting
intruder. She dare step foot upon the soil of Nil and worse yet, shed her
clothing within my presence? She was walking around naked as a mortal babe,
mocking us of once-Shallamar ever so!
The hunt for the intruder drew onwards and onwards…mere moments began to feel
like days. Each step felt a hundred times greater. Now her scent had grown more
potent than before and I knew she was ever close! I sprinted up the hill and
looked out toward the horizon; and there she stood, her atrocious nature spirits
circled around her, gleeful and cheery. Their existence was a disgrace!
I attacked ruthlessly, my black claws dully shining in the sunlight. I slashed
at the wiccans back and she cried in anguish as I connected with her skin. My
eyes gleamed with a savage bloodlust and I came back around, tackling the Wiccan
to the ground and mauling at her face for moments on end. Oh the feeling of my
claws tearing into her bare skin and drawing her blood â€" a rush of adrenaline
surged with each cut left. But then…it ended…
Her fae all growled savagely and bounded for me, knocking me onto the ground.
So many small spirits, I felt like I was drowned under the sea of her entourage.
Something came from where the Wiccan â€" or where I thought she was located â€"
stood, and the fae returned. As I stood up a glowing pentagram had spilled
forward from her dagger, hitting me square in the chest and cutting deep; blood
had started trickling forth from the new cuts, and things were fading quickly.
Another glowing pentagram shot forth…and everything faded…I seemed
weightless as I hit a hard surface.
Everything blinked into existence periodically as it looked like I was being
carried. The face…the face of my prey who had bested me towered over me;
blurred as it was. I had failed the Demon Lords and the Great Engine. I deserved
this fate.
Another scene of life manifested in a blurred instance. The coarse grasses of
Nil and murky skies were replaced with a smattering of blue skies and…what
seemed like vibrant plant-life. Where had the Wiccan taken me? Was this the
Forest’s plane that we were told about? I tried, once more, to reach for the
Wiccan’s throat, but to no avail. My limbs had lost all feeling, I was losing
blood swiftly and my breath was shortened. It wouldn’t be long before I would
be nothing but a corpse. Then…just as I was coming to rest…I was submerged
in water.