The Beast Off The Leash
Camila clanged heavily On Raine's leg as she stared fearfully at the beast that had replaced one of her caregivers. Raine felt the human shaking in fear at the beast but couldn't do anything to comfort her, not when the beast was coming to its senses.
The owl beast shook its head once, blinked, and then looked around. When it spotted Raine and Camila, it let out a sharp screech and lunged at the Bard. Raine grabbed Camila and jumped to the right, barely missing a swing from the Owl Beast's claws.
Raine put Camila behind them and summoned their violin. The Owl Beast turned and faced Raine, Eda's face grinning at the bard as it got ready to lunge again. Suddenly, bands of magic erupted from the ground around the beast.
Raine watched as the bands tied around the beast's limbs and held it in place. One final band burst from the ground at the beast's neck, tied around it, and forced the transformed witch to the ground. The beast thrust about wildly, trying to break free, but the magic holding it was strong.
Raine looked to their left and saw Gwen spinning a spell circle and cautiously stepping towards her daughter. The bard saw the junk necklace in the old beast-keeper's free hand and couldn't help but growl slightly.
"GWEN!" Raine screamed commandingly. "Forget that piece of junk, and give Eda one of her elixirs!"
The elder Clawthorne didn't listen to Raine. Instead, she got close to her daughter and kneeled. She recoiled slightly when the beast suddenly thrust but still couldn't break the bonds that held it.
She ran a hand lovingly over the beast's claw and looked at the beast with sympathy. She sighed and slipped the necklace on its limb.
Gwen smiled as she straightened up and stepped back. Raine's kept their violin ready, just in case something went wrong. Camila peeked out from behind Raine, still afraid but curious to see what would happen.
Unfortunately, a few minutes passed, and nothing happened, which caused Gwen to frown. She remembered when the sage used the artifact, it glowed a brilliant blue. Did she do something wrong, she wondered.
But this sudden turn of events was all the Owl Beast needed; It broke free with a flex of its entire body, knocking Gwen off her feet with its wing.
The beast quickly shook its wrist, knocking the hunk of junk off, and glared at the witch. Gwen was still too shocked to move when the beast raised a claw and took a swing. The bard saw what was about to happen and rushed the elder witch.
"GWEN!" Raine screamed, pushing their girlfriend's mother out of the way just as the beast's claw came down. "AAHHHH!"
"Raine!" Camila screamed as she watched the green-haired bard drop to the ground.
Unfortunately, the human's scream got the attention of the Owl Beast. It looked at the human with a hungry gleam, and Camila panicked. With another scream, she bolted into the thick of the trees. The Owl Beast let a cry and gave chase.
"Camila…" Rain moaned weakly, trying to get up.
The bard didn't have the strength, and they fell to the ground, losing consciousness before their head hit.
(SC)
Camila ran blindly through the woods, the noises of the Owl beast telling the human it wasn't far behind her. She heard a noise behind her and dared a little over her shoulder. She stopped when she saw the beast was no longer chasing her.
Camila was panting, and she placed a hand on her chest, trying to will her beating heart to calm down. She began backing up, keeping her eyes sharp as she looked around. Her hands shook as she opened the porches her glyph cards were in.
She was getting the feeling she might need to use them soon.
Information was suddenly flooding the human, and she remembered that owls hunt best from parches. Camila might have wondered where she learned this if a noise coming from all directions didn't get her attention.
She snapped her head to her left and saw nothing. She heard another noise and spun around, once more seeing nothing. She heard another noise, unsure where it was coming this time, and began frantically looking around.
Suddenly, she heard a cry and looked up. Camila's eyes snapped open when she saw the beast descending upon her. With a short cry, she dove to her right, crying louder when her arm scraped against a tree branch.
Camila landed hard on her stomach, knocking the wind out of her. She grasped her wounded arm as she fought to get air back into her lungs. She tried to move, but when she felt a shadow looming over her.
Breathlessly, she turned around and found herself under the owl beast, its hungry eyes staring at her. It leaned down, opening its mouth wide, ready to bite the human girl's head clean off.
The beast suddenly stopped, nostrils flaring as it sniffed. Its eyes looked at the wound on Camila's arm, gold appearing in the creature's black eye. The beast violently shook its head, the gold in its eyes flickering in and out.
The beast started to trill and snarl, the gold in its eyes becoming more visible. If Camila didn't know any better, it sounded like the beast was fighting with itself.
The owl Beast suddenly looked at the human, golden eyes fully visible in its black sclera. Camila looked deeply into the beast's eyes and noticed it seemed to recognize her.
Cautiously, the human reached out with her uninjured arm. She hesitated when she saw the beast recoil slightly. Camila gently touched the beast on the cheek, and she was surprised when it leaned into the touch.
"...Eda," Camila said slowly. "Are you in there?"
The beast smiled gently and started cooing. Camila smiled at this and reached for the beast's ear.
The beast suddenly screeched as it was hit by a bullet of compressed air in her left side. Camila gasped as more air bullets hit Eda and nearly knocked her to the ground. The beast shook its head and looked in the direction the bullets came from, eyes black once more.
The beast dodged another air bullet, shrieked, and rushed in the direction the attack came from.
"Eda!" Camila called, giving chase, her fear completely forgotten.
(A Few minutes earlier)
Hidden under an illusion, a four-man squad of cultists watched as events unfolded with the makeshift family. The squad leader narrowed his eyes as he watched the wild witch turn into the owl beast, soon turning its attention to their target.
"Sir?" one of the squad members asked, uncertain. "What do we do now?"
The squad leader watched as the human darted into the forest, the cursed witch hot on her heels. The squad leader stood up and looked at their teammates.
"For now, we follow," the squad leader instructed.
The squad members nodded and stood up. The group then followed after the human and cursed witch. The four-man unit watched as Camila tried to escape the Owl Beast but stopped when the beast flew into the air.
The squad leader frowned as they watched the human reach for the porches on her waist. Before the child could do anything, the beast dropped to the ground, causing the human to dive away and slightly cut an arm.
The leader scowled as they watched the beast loom over their target.
"We are attacking the beast," the leader commanded, addressing their men.
The others in the unit looked at their commanding officer like he had gone crazy. The squad leader didn't miss this.
"If the beast kills the subject, then all of Supreme Commander Aphla's work would be for nothing," The leader said calmly. "Also, if information on the Owl Lady's curse is accurate, once the beast is exhausted, it will revert to its host, and the exhaustion will carry over."
The other members of the unit exchanged uncertain looks, but they trusted their commanding officer. They looked at them, and though their faces were hidden, the leader knew their men were with them.
The leader smiled slightly and then looked back at the beast. "We will use the Shadow Air Formation to exhaust the beast and take back the subject," the leader proclaimed, thrusting a fist into the air. "FOR THE ISLES!"
"FOR THE ISLES!" the other repeated, thrusting their fists into the air.
The unit spread out as they inch closer to the beast and the human. Once everyone was in position, the squad leader gave the single.
Two of the cultists made spell circles and compressed air into them. One of the cultists made a gun-firing gesture and shot off their air bullets. They watched as the bullet hit the side of the beast, and it screeched. Another cultist fired their air bullets, hit the beast, and nearly knocked it to the ground.
The beast recovered quicker than expected and looked in the direction the bullets came from, surprising the squad leader slightly. The leader nearly gasped when the beast dodged another air bullet and charged in the squad's direction.
"Everyone!" the leader called to their men. "Put your illusion and odor-dampen spells back up!"
The cultists immediately went to work, making spell circles. The four disappeared as a near-invisible mist covered the area each cultist was standing in.
The Owl Beast reached the area a few seconds later and began searching it. It brought its nose to the ground and sniffed. It got close to a tree, where a cultist was, and its face was mere inches from the witch's legs.
The cultist watched with held breath as the beast continued to sniff around him, trying very hard not to move an inch. The beast moved on when it didn't find anything, and the cultist slowly exhaled.
Suddenly, the Owl Best spanned around and took a swing with its claw. The cultist barely had time to duck as the beast's claw went over his head and through the tree. The cultist became visible as the tree behind him fell, making a loud thud.
"Everyone!" the squad's leader shouted, making themselves visible and with a spell at the ready. "Fight with everything you got, and wear the beast down!"
The other squad members appeared, launching air bullets and fire arrows at the Owl Beast. The transformed witch screamed as it was assaulted from all ends. It tried to dash to one of the cultists attacking it, but the witch switched spells.
A stone wall suddenly jumped up in front of the cultist, and the beast ran into it, barely shifting its body so its shoulder took the brunt of the impact. The beast shrieked from the sudden pain, and the cultist acted; behind his wall, he made another spell circle and slammed it to the ground.
An abomination rose up behind the Owl Beast and wrapped its hand around its lower half. The beast cried and tried to throw off the Abomination, but the golem's hold was too strong. The beast quickly realized it was wasting energy and changed its tactic.
The beast beat its wings and tried to get airborne, kicking its legs. The Abomination held fast, now aided by vines that covered its feet. Still, the beast continued to ascend, beating its' wings with everything it had.
The cultist using the spells began to grunt as they felt the strain the beast was putting on them. Still, like the beast they were fighting, they refused to give an inch to the beast.
The beast suddenly dropped, bringing its full weight onto the abomination. Unprepared for such a move, the cultist couldn't act, and the beast's weight crushed their abomination.
The four-man squad was too shocked by this sudden turn of events to move. The owl Beast used this opening to try to flee. The beast beat its wings again, but the noise knocked the squad's leader out of their stupor.
The Owl Beast was a few feet off the ground when the squad leader cast their spell. A massive stone pillar shot from the ground and struck the Owl Beast's right wing at the joint. The beast shrieked as it fell to the ground, landing on its injured wing and causing more damage.
The beast tried to shrug off the pain, stumbled to its feet, and ran. Unfortunately, the cultists circled it, aiming spells at it. The beast snarled and took a swing at the cultist nearest to it. The cultist responded by bringing out a stone wall at least three feet thick.
The Beast screeched when its claw bashed against it. It didn't have time for much else as the wall was reshaped, forming around the beast's claws and dragging it down to the ground.
The cultist grinned at their accomplishment, only to scream when the beast lunged at them, snapping its jaws. Thankful, a ribbon of magic wrapped around the beast's neck and pulled it away.
The beast continued to snap its jaws as the cultists made more ribbons to hold it in place.
"Sir," one of the cultists said to their leader, "How much longer until the beast is worn dowNNNAAAH!"
While the cultist was distracted while talking to their leader, the Owl Beast tried to free the leg the cultist held. They stumbled slightly but managed to stay on their feet and regain their balance. With a slight growl, they pulled hard on their ribbon and pulled the beast's leg out from under it.
The Owl Beast fell to the ground, and the squad leader frowned under their hood. They watched as the beast continued struggling to free itself, showing no signs of fatigue.
"...I don't know," the leader replied after a moment of thought. "The data never gave anything beyond base stats."
The leader looked around and felt their squad's doubts. They looked back at the beast and tightened their hold on their ribbon.
"For now, we hold fast," the leader instructed, "The beast should tire itself out quick enough if it continues to struggle. Then we could go and retrieve the target."
The squad members nodded without looking at their leader and tightened their hold on their ribbons. It didn't take much longer; the Owl Beast finally began to tire itself out from its struggling and was soon panting.
The leader smiled at this, and they guessed it would be only a few more minutes before the beast was completely exhausted and would change back to the Owl Lady.
Suddenly, a shard of ice rocketed past the cultist, startling them. They looked to their right and saw the human.
Camila, trying to be brave, held one of her ice glyphs in her right hand. The squad noticed how shaky the human's hands were, but they were more curious about the paper in Camila's hands.
"S-Stay a-away from h-her," Camila stammered out, tapping the glyph on the paper.
The group watched as black lightning came from the human's fingertip, and the paper disintegrated. Camila took the ice that formed from the glyph and clumsily threw it. The squad was more curious than afraid by this turn of events, but they didn't stop one of them from forming a circle and blocking the incoming attack with a stone wall.
The cultist brought down the wall and made another spell circle, summoning an abomination.
"Abomination," the cultist commanded, "Capture!"
The abomination roared as it surged at Camila. The human lost whatever courage she felt and screamed as she tried to run. The abomination, however, was too fast and was on the girl instantly, getting her in a bear hug.
The leader watched as the abomination grabbed the human, who was still screaming. Suddenly, they were pulled forward and looked at the creature. The Owl Beast resumed its struggle for freedom with renowned vigor.
No, the squad leader realized, somehow the beast seemed stronger than a moment ago; the stone structure that encased its claw was showing signs of breaking. The leader gritted their teeth and tightened their grip on their magic ribbon.
"Where is this coming from?" one of the cultists asked, struggling to keep themselves from being pulled off their feet.
Suddenly, with a mighty roar, the beast flexed its entire body and broke free from its restraints. The cultists nearly fell onto their backs from the sudden move, and the owl beast ran at the abomination that held Camila. It brought its claw down, squashed the abomination, and caused the human girl to drop to the ground.
The Owl Beast got in front of Camila and snarled as the cultists came to their senses, glaring at them with black and gold eyes.
(G Corner)
I have always thought Eda gained control over her curse form during the episode where her mother debuted because the curse was weakened by Lilith sharing it with her sister and some lingering effects from Belos's spell.