Old Man Dragon - Chapter 3 Survival

As his mind went into overdrive at the sight of a massive wolf, Luis quickly realized that the wolf probably wasn’t actually massive, just big in comparison to his current form. It was likely the size of a normal wolf. This meaningless small comfort left him the second the wolf charged.

Paralyzed with instinctual fear, Luis did nothing except watch as the wolf ran towards his position, panting loudly. Only when the wolf reached the egg did he finally regain control of his body. Unfortunately, it was already much too late.

Luis tried to dodge to his left, but the wolf easily managed to snag his right limb with its jaws, which just so happened to be the one that had been broken. The bite broke right through the protective scales and tore right into the skin.

Pain like he had never felt before spread throughout his entire body like fire in his veins, eliciting an uncontrollable yelp that sounded like a dog being strangled. The pain was so intense that the only thing keeping Luis from slipping into unconsciousness was the adrenaline, the natural instinct to live, to survive. Right after grabbing hold, the wolf began thrashing, which was a tragic outcome for Luis.

Being only half the size of the wolf, he was unable to resist as he was tossed around like a rag-doll. He desperately tried to free himself, using his “hands” to scratch against the beast. Sadly, the wolf was undeterred, and its jaws were like vice grips. The thrashing continued until Luis felt a tear in his limb.

Schlick!

Luis’ limb was torn from his body at the base, sending him flying a few feet away where he landed with a thud. The subsequent pain was something akin to having molten lava poured onto your shoulder, having it melt all the way through.

Uncontrollably growling, he started limping away, desperate to escape. Still being unused to his new form, he found it extraordinarily difficult.

It only took a second or two for the wolf to realize there was far less weight than before as it was thrashing. Dropping the limb, the wolf sniffed it before turning its attention to find what it had been originally attached too.

Meanwhile, Luis had been desperately trying to get to a specific tree in the distance, one that had been slightly overturned in the earlier earthquake. I might be able to hide in the roots at the base… He greatly hoped.

As he ran, bitter thoughts flashed in his mind. What have I done to deserve such suffering? I do not wish to be eaten only moments after regaining my freedom… Bitterness radiated from Luis’ entire being.

Hearing the growls of the wolf getting closer, all thoughts were disbursed as he pushed his little body beyond its limits, bleeding profusely from his wound as he did so. He was almost to the roots of the tree, when he felt teeth clamp down on his new tail.

Dammit! No… Luis felt himself being dragged away from the tree. On impulse, he twisted around and slashed his claw across the face of the wolf, crippling one of its eyes. It was a lucky hit born from desperation. The wolf yelped and let go of his tail, allowing Luis to make it the final few feet where he dove through the thick roots into a small pit.

The wolf immediately tried to follow, but found that he was too big to fit through the gaps, snarling at the lizard that was almost within reach. Growling angrily, the wolf began pacing around the entrance. There was no other way out for Luis anyway, and the wolf was smart enough to understand this.

Luis collapsed as soon as he was safe in the pit. He had successfully escaped… for now, but he still had a problem. The bleeding wasn’t stopping. Shivering from the pain and blood loss, he could do nothing but focus on his wound, trying with little success to slow the flow of blood. Getting back up onto his haunches, he attempted to cover the wound with his good claw, which only slightly helped.

Was this how I am to die once again? Cold? Alone? In great pain? Eaten by some damned wolf? Anger coursed through Luis as he once again questioned everything that happened. Death wasn’t supposed to be like this… He thought as he sat there, trying to not bleed out.

His anger festered as his energy dwindled. Eventually he would pass out and that would be the end of him. There was nothing he could do. I am done for… Luis lay upon his back. He was unwilling to die so meaninglessly, but seeing no other options, he prepared himself to embrace death once again…

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…What? Luis suddenly felt a stirring in his center. Sitting up, he focused on what felt like a warm current flowing in his chest cavity. With no prompting from him, the warm current in his chest began to circulate around his body, alleviating soreness and pain wherever it went. Eventually it coalesced into the area where his limb had been ripped off.

The pain faded away and Luis felt a crazy amount of itching coming from the hole where his limb used to be. Lifting his claw off the wound, he watched as the skin and scales reformed over the wound, eventually leaving nothing but a scar.

What kind of miracle was that? After the warm feeling faded, he suddenly felt very tired… thud! Luis passed out, his body hitting the dirt floor with a thump.

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Sometime later, he awoke to beams of sunlight entering his eyes through the roots of the tilted tree. Shaking off the dirt as he sat up, Luis looked down at the base of his former limb.

So it wasn’t a dream… He confirmed when he saw the pinkish scar contrasting against his white skin and scales. He had no way of explaining what had occurred and it only raised more questions, but he had other issues to deal with at the moment.

Hearing a chewing sound, Luis put his musings on hold and braved a peak through the tree roots. The wolf was still there guarding the entrance, and it was eating… something. With a shudder, he realized that it was the limb it had ripped off his body.

That could have been me yesterday… Luis grimaced as he examined his surroundings. Scratch that, it likely will be me… He lamented after again realizing there was still no way out.

Two days passed this way, with Luis cowering in the pit protected by the thick roots, while the wolf continued to stalk him. During this time, he tried once again to feel for the strange power that had saved his life days prior.

Maybe it can provide me with another miracle…Were his thoughts as he grew hungrier and thirstier every hour. He didn’t know how long his current form could survive without food or water, but he assumed it wasn’t much longer than a regular person.

During the two days, Luis closely investigated his new body. The only new discoveries he made were that his teeth were now sharp, like shark’s teeth, and that he only had four digits instead of five on his claw ending in razor sharp points.

Although his teeth and claws were now certified weapons, they were of limited use against the much larger predator.

At the end of the second day, after once again futilely struggling to activate that strange power that saved his life, Luis awoke to a terrifying sound.

The sound of paws digging.

The wolf seemed to have lost its patience with Luis, who was cowering in the roots, and was now attempting to widen a path through. What do I do? What do I do… Luis tried to think of something, anything, to survive his predicament.

In the darkness of the night, he could only hear the wolf digging, but couldn’t see its progress, heightening the terror he felt. He crept back as far as he could, his back touching the back of the pit.

After a couple of minutes, an eerie green light illuminated the inside of the pit. On the forehead of the wolf, there was a glowing patch of fur in the shape of a diamond. The wolf had managed to fit its head underneath the roots, illuminating the space and Luis who had his back against the wall.

Upon seeing the glowing forehead of the wolf, Luis couldn’t help but feel dread. This wolf must also have a similar strange power… He realized in despair.

As the wolf continued to dig, it managed to get more and more of its body through the roots, and now Luis could clearly see that his claw strike from the first day was almost fully healed, which should have been impossible in such a short amount of time. Just like my wound… Luis was not encouraged by this.

The wolf was inching closer, growling and yipping as it forced its burly frame through the widened gap. Not willing to wait succumb to a gruesome fate, Luis proactively attempted to attack the wolf while it squeezed through, but he found that its skin was suddenly much tougher than it had been before.

It was then that he understood the wolf wasn’t simply using the unnatural glow from its forehead to light the darkness.

It must be strengthening its skin somehow… Luis felt his slim chances grow even more hopeless at this realization. Despite that, he continued to strike at its face and retreat before being bitten. Unfortunately, he only succeeded in irritating the beast further.

Before long, the wolf had half its body squeezed through the opening, and he was only inches away from grabbing Luis by the hind leg. Despite having no effect, he continued to swipe at the face of the wolf with his one good claw. It was to no avail.

With one final push, the wolf lunged and managed to grasp Luis’ left hind leg, breaking through the scales on his reptilian skin.

“Gah!” Luis let out a strangled cry as he felt himself being yanked towards the opening. Right away, he knew once he was pulled out into the open, the wolf would finish the job. A grim determination filled Luis.

NO! I REFUSE TO DIE LIKE THIS!

An animal fights hardest when backed into a corner. Seizing the initiative, Luis ignored the pain in his left hind leg and pushed off the ground with his right, grappling the wolf with his one left limb and chomped down on the scruff of its neck with his teeth.

A metallic taste entered his mouth. He had managed to break the reinforced skin of the wolf with his powerful bite, but it was nowhere near enough.

The wolf, surprised by the sudden assault, tried to backtrack quickly so it could pull the lizard into the open, but it ran into a problem.

Because Luis was wrapped around its scruff, it could no longer fit through the opening. The added size was pinning him. It did the only thing it could do, bite harder on the lizard’s leg.

Luis’s roars of pain were muffled through the scruff of the wolf. They were now locked in a grudge match to the death. He needed to keep the wolf pinned, for he knew that once he let go, he was finished. He only wished he could bite harder so that he could actually injure the damn wolf.

The stalemate continued. The wolf tried to use its limited range of motion to shake the lizard off while Luis continuously adjusted himself to minimize damage and keep himself locked on.

Luis was doing everything he could to bite harder, but he was only managing to draw a little blood. He began to feel indignant.

Damned wolf, why won’t you leave me alone? Luis bit down harder. Why are you trying so hard to kill me? He bit down even harder. In this critical moment, Luis drew strength from all the pain and suffering the wolf had subjected him to. Why did you rip off my arm!

Fury began to well up inside him. He felt a pressure in the back of his throat. Fury turned to wrath and he felt it surge through his entire being. His mind began to grow foggy while his vision started turning red

Something stirred in Luis’ chest. As Luis lost his mind to his wrath. Primal instincts of unknown origin kicked in. The warm current in his chest started to flow up.

Die you bastard wolf! Luis felt like his jaw was breaking from how hard he was biting.

The warm current combined with the pressure that was building up in his throat.

Just die already!

The pressure built to an unbearable degree.

DIE!

The pressure was released. A continuous and magnificent beam of light shot out of Luis’ mouth, straight into the scruff of the wolf that he had been biting down on and started to burn through its skin.

The wolf, feeling the pain from the heat, began to spasm, letting go of Luis hind leg and doing everything in its power to escape. However, there was no way Luis would let it go so easily.

Even with his mind in a survival muddled state, Luis could sense that he was hurting the wolf, and he just needed to hold on. He continued to fire the beam of light which continued to burn through the skin of the wolf, the green glow from its forehead doing little to minimize damage of this nature. The light broke through the skin and started to scorch the fat and muscle underneath.

The wolf released panicked cries and doubled its efforts to escape the grasp of the lizard, completely abandoning all intentions of hunting it. However, it could not shake Luis off, who held him in a death grip.

Eventually, the struggles and cries of the wolf began to cease as the light burned its way past the muscle and into the bone and eventually completely through the neck of the wolf. The death match was over, the wolf was dead.

At long last, Luis ran out of steam. Whatever power he used to produce that beam of light ran completely dry. Only when he was completely sure the wolf was deceased did he release his grasp.

The smell of cooked meat and burnt fur wafted from the corpse of the wolf that now lay still. Struggling to catch his breath, he felt a bone deep soreness throughout his new form.

Luis vaguely understood that using such an unknown power must have come at a price, and after stumbling around the pit trying to orient himself, his body simply gave out. Luis collapsed into complete unconsciousness, not knowing if he would ever wake up again.