Roar!!!
The beast roared from the pain of the tooth in its shoulder.
"Oh so you can also screa-"
Boom!!!
Eric felt like the air was knocked out of his body. A loud explosive sound filled the night as the three living beings crashed from the sky.
Silence came after the explosion.
"Ahh!! That hurts!!! That forsaken beast actually tore my wings off." The abomination looked around the huge area of dust caused by their fall.
"Where's the kid? Did he die? Hey kid!!"
"Shut up and stop screaming; you'll blow my ears out!!!"
Leaning on a tree completely covered in blood was Eric, still clenching the sharp tooth.
"How are you still alive?" The abomination shape-shifted into a horse.
"Don't ask me," Eric muttered. His torn flesh and bones soon began healing at a fast pace. The abomination stepped back in shock.
"What the?! You! Are you even human?! I knew there was no way humans would have that kind of insane speed. You're a monster in disguise, aren't you?"
"Be quiet, you moron. The phantom is still alive."
Eric groaned as the last of his bones straightened up. He bent down slowly and slowly started walking towards the middle of the crater.
"Hey, what are you doing?! I don't know how we fell, but that is the likeliest place the phantom beast will be." The abomination whispered, following closely behind Eric.
"I know. That's why I'm heading there."
"What?! Why?!"
Eric stopped and face the abomination "Why else? I'm going to kill it."
The abomination was dazed. It stared at the back of Eric, who had already begun moving again "Are you drunk?! Kill it?! The only reason it's not crushing our bones right now is probably because it also got injured from that fall and it's just healing."
"If it can be hurt, it can be killed."
"Yes, but not by you. We should leave." The abomination used its teeth and grabbed the back of Eric's shirt, pulling him back.
"We? Since when were the both of us a 'we'?"
"We both just escaped the claws of a phantom beast and a sixty-foot drop into oblivion; we're basically partners now."
Eric was dumbfounded. "You tried to eat me about thirty minutes ago!"
"Well, I'm not trying to eat you anymore, am I? Besides, now I know you're not human.
"I'm human."
"Yeah, right. Humans can now survive sixty-foot drops and heal broken bones at a fast rate." Eric shook his head, not ready to argue with the monster.
'It's better this way; at least now I don't have to worry about it trying to eat me anymore.' Eric thought. "I'm still going to kill it."
"Look, kid. I don't know what kind of monster you are, but I'm guessing you must be young. The phantom beast is not like other monsters. If you think fancy regeneration gives you a chance, you're mistaken. Why do you think this forest, with eighty percent of the monsters having regenerative abilities, still fears the phantoms? The phantom beast negates healing abilities. One bite and you're done. No second chances, kid."
Eric stared at the abomination for a while, then said. "I've fought a phantom beast before."
"What?"
"I've fought one before." Eric repeated showing the large tooth in his hand. The abomination went silent. "How did you not die?" It finally asked.
"I don't know," Eric replied. He noticed that the abomination's demeanor had shifted. "It trashed me so bad. I couldn't move for a whole week."
"Yet you could still heal? That's impossible. The phantom beast can even kill ghosts and wraiths."
"I've been chased by ghosts; they're supposed to be untouchable."
"Exactly! Yet a phantom can kill them. How can you not be affected?"
"I guess I'm built different." Eric shrugged and started moving again.
The abomination slowly followed him. "Why are you still following me?" Eric asked.
The monster ignored him and asked. "So is this like a revenge kind of thing?"
"No, this is not the one that mutilated me."
"So why?" "No reason, I just really want to kill it."
"You bastard, I knew there was no way you were human. That's a monster attitude right there."
Growl!!
Eric and the abomination crouched instantly. In the dust clouds, the source of the sound slowly got up. There was the sound of sniffing. Eric and the abomination held their breaths. The sniffing continued for a while, then it suddenly stopped.
"Shit! Run, kid. It got our scent!"
Boom!!!
Eric couldn't even react. Before he could even register the abomination's words, the monster that was at least 8 feet in front of him had already sunk its fangs into his shoulder and was dragging him through the forest at an unimaginable speed. He was once again reminded why this monster was at the top of the food chain.
"Argghh!!" Eric shouted. He forcefully lifted up his other hand with the tooth and stabbed the beast's eyes.
Roar!!!
The phantom beast roared in pain and flung Eric aside. Eric groaned in pain as he stood, clenching his injured shoulder. He looked at the phantom beast that was thrashing around in pain.
'Its wounds are not healing. I guess the tooth still retained the ability to cancel out regeneration, Eric thought.
"Come on, you brute, we are not done." He shouted with a smile. The phantom beast turned towards Eric. It's one remaining eye, burning red with rage.
Eric raised the tooth, his injury already healing. "Let's go again."
Both Eric and the beast slowly took a stance, watching each other closely. The phantom, seemingly aware that Eric had a means to hurt it, was not in a hurry to attack again.
"I say, the cat wins." A nonchalant man's voice sounded.
Eric froze as he heard the voice.
"Obviously. The other one looks malnourished."
Snapping his head towards the source of the sound. Eric's eyes widened.
'Humans!!!' The thought echoed like a bell in his head.
Eric had spent three years in this place, and not once had he seen anything that led him to believe that humans had been here. It even came as a surprise to him when the abomination seemed to know what a human was, but here before him now were two young men. They looked similar in every way except the color of their hair and clothes.
They were both dressed in suits. The one standing on the branch of a tree wore a black suit with a large coat hanging on his shoulders; on his suit was a silver cross-shaped brooch. His hair was black. The other one was sitting on the branch. In contrast to the other one, his hair and suit were white.
They reminded Eric of priests.
"Priests," Eric muttered.
The priest in black raised a brow. "This one is intelligent. It can talk."
'It can talk? Wait, do they think I'm a monster?" Eric thought.
"Wait, I'm not a—" Eric was interrupted by a sharp growl. He faced the Phantom beast again.
The monster pressed itself on the floor and spread its legs. Eric recognized this stance. It was the same one it had made when it launched itself into the sky to catch him and the abomination.
Eric's face paled. If it flew at him with that much power, forget about counterattacking; he would definitely be insta-killed.
"Help me! I'm not a monst—"
Boom!!!
Eric's brain couldn't process what he had just seen, but the scene in front of him told him he had seen right. Directly in front of him was the phantom beast with a bloodied head. Its skull was crushed with a hole the shape of a man's hand on it. It was dead. Standing beside it without a care in the world was the black-clothed priest staring right at him.
"Hoi, kid. You're human?"