"My Head... what... what happened?" Standing, the sharpness of the cold ground acted as potently as a jolt of lightning, shattering exhaustion and bringing the world around him into perfect clarity. "Wow... how did I end up here?" For miles and miles, the visage of cold barren mountain filled the world. Snow and frost covered everything, even air itself, giving the world an ethereal glimmer that he could not help but appreciate. A smile made it's way across his face, his eyes following the delicate crystals in the air. "Beautiful."
Though he knew that he had spoken, the potent winds obscured his voice entirely, filling his mouth with cold and ears with a wail. Odd as it was, it amazed his simple mind.
'Simple... why would I call myself simple? Why would I call myself anything... who am I?' Pain exploded in his temples, his hands recoiling to embrace his aching head, only to meet something crusted onto his skin. Somehow he knew the answer. "Blood... I... blood... what happened to me?'
Shaking, and not from the cold, he whipped around, desperate to take in the world around him. To search for someone, anyone, who may have the answers he sought so desperately. There was no one in sight, he was alone on the mountain, unsure and terrified.
"Alone... " he whispered, like a prayer, desperate for anyone to help him, for him not to be alone. "Alone... "
He would have, could have stood there for countless hours, however the cold and winds picked up. Painful beyond reason, they ravaged his body, leaving him almost breathless. It was only then that he realized that he was nearly naked, with only something that could barely pass for leggings covering up his decency. Not even boots or shoes covered his feet. In such weather, as he was, he would freeze and become food for any predator around.
"Shelter, I need shelter... and food and fire...Can I even make fire?" He trotted away, even as he spoke, slow and weak like an old man. His joints ached with an unfamiliar infirm not unlike a rheumatic. His extremities tingled, as if they did not have enough heat or blood. His skull still pounded with a terrible fury, a fury that doubled with each terrible step he took across the solid ground of the mountain.
What felt like an eternity passed for him before he found a cave, new blood dripped from his face and fell onto the stones beneath him. Wind and crystal had carved shapes upon his brow leaving him in even greater agony then before and yet he felt hopeful. The cave was considerably warmer then the outside, though still frigid in it's own right. Shaking, he hurried to the most distant part of the cave, barely able to bend his knees enough to painfully land on the ground.
"Please, don't be winter." Groaning, he curled inward, and focused on his breathing, trying to conserve his waning heat and strength. A seemingly impossible task, but one he was dedicated to. 'By the gods, it's like trying to catch water with a sack. No matter how much I tie the bag, it is always leaking.'
Sensation faded from his limbs, and blotches of black and purple appeared around his vision.
Tears made their ways into his eyes and he burrowed further into his own chest. 'I am going to die... alone... cold... without my memories... or even a name... what a way to go... what god did I offend to be cursed with such a fate? Ha... Whomever I angered... I am sorry and hope that you will relent... or if not I hope that whatever I did was worth this suffering...'
Like the setting sun, gone in a flash into the waiting night sky, so too did his consciousness fade into the shadows of sleep and cold.
::::
"What it is?" Gruff and cold, like a boar given the power of speech, a voice echoed in the void of shadow. It stirred the Nameless, giving him purpose and an anchor, something to perch upon and pull himself slowly back into consciousness out of sheer instinct. "Human? It smells dead." A strange huffing sound rummaged around the void, wet and rugged. "Mmm... it smells almost rotten. Do you think it is good to eat?"
'What accent is that? Is it even human... no... no human sounds like that...' Somehow, the Nameless child managed to pry open it's eyes, an agonizing process as ice had made a home across his face, forged from his own blood. Still, no sound escaped his lips, such a thing would take too much energy, energy he lacked. 'It sounds like a boar, or a goat... '
Focusing hard, he realized that he could feel the beasts approaching him, a thunderous pounding of their massive bodies against the frozen earth. They radiated so much warmth that he felt it... tasted it even.
'Strange... the air it now tastes...like heat, sunshine... ' A new shiver washed through his body, one ruled by something vastly unlike the col. He did not have words to describe the sensation, only that it was setting a change in his body, something primal. Something... inhuman.
Rough hands, radiating even greater heat, grasped him roughly, yanking him into the air with a distinct lack of mercy. "Yes, human, though runty. Could make for a meal." Breath, stinking of rot and that same heat washed over his face.
Energy returned in bounds, too much, his muscles tightened with want.
"I need it." He whispered, a sound haunting and cold, far too animalistic for comfort. His eyes cleared and strange light covered the beasts before him, the brightest of which lay around the heart. The strange light made it hard to tell what they were but that mattered little, he knew what he wanted. "I want your warmth... give it me." With all he was, all he had, he threw himself out of the beast's grasp and latched onto it, holding onto with impossible strength. The sound of shattering ribs filled his ears, even as blood filled his mouth.
At some point, he had bitten the beast. It felt natural, right, and with the influx of blood and heat, clarity became a moot point. All that mattered was the hunt, the feed, the delicious blood flooding his body.
'It tastes like copper, salt and meat... ' Like purest power, the might of the gods themselves, he felt himself gain in strength. His limbs were limber, his joints loose, the muscles strong. The need to breathe was the only thing stronger then the desire to drink, and so he eventually pulled away, in time to fly across the cave as a harsh food slammed into his side.
"Demon!" The voice was harsh, guttural and it drew his attention. The light from before had faded slightly, and so he could see the beast better. It was tall, taller then he was by far, with horns and grey skin. It's teeth was crooked and yellow, but more then that it was filled with a fear that was as exciting as the heat and blood had been.
Twisting his head downwards, towards his previous meal, the nameless boy realized that it was of the same ilk as the beast. The beasts was not breathing, it's eyes were glossy and blood seeped from the wound on it's neck as well as from it's twisted lips. He expected that such a sight would invoke pity, fear, or hate in him... all that came was satisfaction.
And Hunger.
Rising from his crouch position, the Nameless boy tipped towards the other beast, unable to stop a smirk as it stepped back in fear. Words did not tempt their way out of his throat, instead a sound more like a cat came, a predatory purr that did not match his small form.
"Why is it, that you a beast nearly thrice my size, looks so afraid... you were going to eat me just a moment before?" He looked up, genuinely curious, hopeful for some kind of response. "Do you know what I am? Who I am? I don't... can you help me?"
The beast took another step back, snarling. "Your a demon, unnatural, a beast of magics." It spat at him, sneering. "You reek of something far worse then any human rat."
"Why do you speak the Human tongue... Urgal… that's... that's what you are... I remember... " Kneeling lightly, feeling terrible power filled his calves, the Nameless boy gave a smile. "Thank you, had you and your friend not come here... I … I would have died... I think... so... from the heart, I thank you for this service, I will never forget this blessing... "
The world blurred around him as he launched towards the beast, It flailed and attempted to bat him away, but such a move was pointless, he had aimed low in his launch and landed on it's groin where a bright patch of warmth existed, a patch that he somehow knew would give him that heat he needed, he craved. His teeth found perch and the beast bellowed, even as it collapsed on it's rump. Be it from pain or the force of his body, the Nameless boy did not know or care.
Several blows crashed against the boy's skull, each weaker then the last as the Urgal began to die. Despite the pain, he held on and fed and fed, the pleasure of the delicious liquid heat too great to be overcome. Soon enough, the beast stopped hitting him and collapsed, twitching and breathing heavily. Soon, the beast died and that was when the Nameless boy pulled away, heavy with consumed blood, satiated and warm enough.
Absently, he grabbed the beasts legs and pulled it further into the cave, setting it next to it's fallen brethren. The Nameless boy kneeled down, pressing a kiss to each forehead.
"It might mean little to you, but I meant what I said... thank you for this gift. I thought I was going to die... and now... now I have hope." A sense of mourning, respect and honor overcame him, even as he rummaged over the bodies. From their corpses, he managed to take a dagger form from some kind of horn, a strange pouch made of something leathery, a massive bow, their massive boots, and of course their loincloths... even if he had bitten through one of them.
Slowly, he wrapped the loin clothes around himself, thankful for his small form, for it allowed him to create some kind of vestments. A cowl and a scarf that would, or so he hoped, conserve his heat and strength in the cold. The boots took some more effort, but thankfully they were laced and he was able to steal the laces from one set of boots, making the boots as tight as he could make them. It wasn't a perfect fit, but it would do well enough. Thankfully both Urgals had socks, made of some kind of wool, and wearing both sets at once filled some of the gap, lessening the chance for blisters.
Or, so he hoped.
"I wish I knew your names... for I would take them for myself, to honor you for your gift of life, a gift I will not waste... pity... I still need a name... perhaps I will get one... " Smiling, he stood and marched towards the mouth of the cave, where the weather had eased considerably. It was day time, meaning he had only been sleeping for a short time... or that he had slept for at least a day. "I have at least one goal, now... that is better then before... I wish to find out who I am, what I am... but... first, I must find a village. Perhaps I may find some answers there, or at least more comfort... " Smiling despite the grim crawl before him, he turned his gaze towards the ground, seeing prints of his own newly stolen boots tracing a path on the snow. "And now I am not lost... I really do owe you thanks..."
Knowing he had only so long until the beasts returned, the Nameless boy marched on the path of his most recent meal, knowing somehow that they might be his last meal for some time. Other beasts might not be so fearful of him, and thus it would be that much harder to kill them and easier for them to kill him. They would be looking for him, like all beasts filled with hunger and a will to live searched for prey.
Absently, as he traveled down, a strange thought came to him, one so potent he almost fell from the cliff side.
'Look for me... what do I even look like? Would I look like food? Would I look like prey? Am I even human... or...'
The lack of an answer speed his movements, and he knew that beyond anything else other then shelter and food, he wanted to find a mirror or something reflective. Minor though it might seem, he wanted to know what he looked like.
He wanted to know what he was as much as he wanted to know who he was. After all, no human could do what he just did...
'Nor could Elf or Dwarf... I think...'
Chapter end, tell me what you think in the reviews.
I am actually really proud of this, it is interesting and fun and different from any of my other works. He is inspired from many characters, including Saphira yes...
I hope you can see some of the inspiration but also understand his motives and such.
Love, your Ninja Overlord,
Mika.