Ren dragged himself across the floor, one arm stretched forward like a man crawling from a grave. The stone rasped beneath his fingernails, slick with blood—his blood.
"That sword...I have to-"
The wolf thrashed behind him, blind in one eye, screaming in volcanic agony.
The blade gleamed faintly where it fell near the stairs—dull, battered, soaked in dried blood—but somehow radiant, like it was calling out to him.
Eva coughed nearby on the ground, her body trembling from the impact of the fall. She watched Ren crawl, watched the beast shake itself into focus.
But at that moment, Ren's right hand reached the sword.
His fingers locked around the worn leather grip, slick with dried blood.
He stood.
Just with his one arm.
Just with this one chance.
The blade was heavier than it should've been. It pulled at his shoulder, at his spine. But he gritted his teeth and dragged it up, letting the tip scrape stone as he turned to face it.
The wolf had stopped screaming in pain. Its single, bloodied eye locked onto him. A foaming black gore frothed from its mangled jaw as it lowered itself into a charging stance.
His whole body was on the verge of giving out—
But he didn't step back.
He stepped forward.
One step.
Then another.
"Keep moving...Don't stop, not yet."
The wolf let out a low growl, its bulk shifting, muscles coiling with tension.
And it lunged forward.
And so did he.
He broke into a sprint, dragging the sword behind him for only two steps before his body remembered how to run.
He saw it. The monster, massive and unstoppable, stampeding toward him.
And yet, his own heartbeat was louder.
The beast struck, its jaws opening wide, rows of black teeth descending in a blur of motion.
Ren threw himself backward and slid beneath the creature, stumbling in the rush of movement.
Clamp
Its mouth snapped shut just inches above his head.
He held the sword tight against his chest and let his momentum carry him. The moment he cleared the rear of the beast, he twisted his body sideways and slammed the blade into the ground. It sparked violently against the stone, biting deep enough to halt his slide.
The wolf was already skidding to a stop, its claws gouging trenches through the floor to pivot, dragging its bulk around to finish what it started.
But he was already moving, throwing himself forward, sword in hand, and sprinting for the beast's hind leg. He stumbled once, but momentum carried him forward.
Ren reached the hind leg—its surface a shifting tapestry of cracked flesh, streaks of blood, and patches of jagged stone plating. His boots slammed into it hard, knees jolting as he leapt, kicking off the inner joint onto its hip.
The wolf bucked—an earthquake beneath him, nearly losing both his footing and his blade. But he crouched low and continued up his hardened stone onto its back.
The wolf roared, a seismic bellow that shook its whole body. Its massive shoulders rolled, spine twisting with sudden violence as it tried to shake him loose. Ren dropped flat on his stomach, throwing one arm around a curved ridge of stone fused to the monster's spine, like holding on to a boulder during an avalanche.
The sword nearly slid from his hand, but he tightened his grip and pulled it close.
Another buck. Another twist. Ren's body whiplashed against the beast's back, jaw slamming against bone hard enough to draw blood. The beast's movements were relentless, but he stood and sprinted up the slope of its shoulder blades. His boots hit smoother stone, less jagged now, closer to the neck.
"Keep going...Keep going! If I fail here..." He looked down at Eva coughing for a slight moment before turning back. "She'll die..."
Once he finally reached the neck, suddenly, in a moment's notice, the wolf snapped its head upward, the momentum launching Ren high into the air.
His body flew, flailing as blood trailed behind him like ribbons.
Spinning backward, weightless for a moment. The sword slipped from his grip, torn away by momentum, flipping end over end above him.
In that moment—
Ren reached out.
With his left arm, the one that no longer existed.
His heart dropped.
Ren's mind flashed with fragments, like his life flashing before his eyes.
The softness of Eva's voice.
The comfort of his mother's presence.
All his reasons to keep going on.
Just beneath him, the beast reared back on its hind legs, open maw snarling, one eye burning with primal fury.
Then—agony.
Ren's left shoulder detonated. Now, bone erupted forward like lightning, spiraling out of the ragged shoulder socket with terrifying speed. Before muscles, nerves, or tendons could even regenerate, his skeletal fingers had already closed around the hilt of the blade.
Clack
The bare, white bones of his hand locked onto the leather grip, still blood-slick and hot.
His other hand snapped forward a beat later, completing the hold, gripping the hilt with both hands. Ren twisted in the air, arms drawn high overhead to strike.
The moment stretched.
Gravity grabbed hold of him once again, and he came down like a meteor.
Then—
Impact
The sword slammed down, plunging into the top of the wolf's skull.
Crack
Bone and stone shattered beneath the force, a gout of dark blood spewing upward. The creature shrieked—a deafening, bone-vibrating howl of pure agony.
The creature's limbs flailed, then seized. Its body spasmed, a death rattle that shook the ground. Then slowly, it collapsed to the ground, its eye rolling into the back of its skull.
Ren, breathing hard, knelt atop its skull, sword buried deep in its brain.
Ren stared down at his hands.
His fingers were still shaking.
Both hands, vibrating against the leather-wrapped hilt, knuckles white.
He breathed, shallow and hoarse.
"Still shaking. Guess it doesn't end just because they're dead." He whispered aloud to no one.
The wolf was dead.
He was whole again.
The fight was over.
And yet—
His arms wouldn't stop.
He didn't have an answer, dismissing the question.
"Oh well, guess it doesn't matter anymore..."
Ren exhaled slowly and stood.
The sword groaned slightly as he pulled it from the skull.
Eva stood just a few feet away, staring up at him in awe.
Ren looked down at her, sword hanging in one hand, the other still glistening red and skeletal. And he smiled. Just a little.
"We did it, Eva." His voice broke halfway through.