ORIGIN

This thing was definitely not a normal gembound. He'd head a crack, he knew it had to be in pain, but Yuma wasn't showing any signs of distraction. Xireidi had called him a demon metaphorically but could it be?

The attack came swiftly but the worn wolf was prepared, sidestepping the brunt of the attack and taking only a small scratch to the right side of his chest.

"I will not allow you to continue these atrocities!" Xireidi called out, keeping his stance low and waiting for the creature to jump again. "I know your master, and I have sworn to stop it."

Just one more leap and he'd have an opening...

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away

The smallest of grins found its way on Yuma's face as his opponent seemed to be getting into the spirit of the game. Obviously a being of void and flames didn't really exist, but the fact that this wolf was pretending it did show that he was a good sport.

"And what shall I call this hero who defies the inevitable?" Yuma asked as sparks began to form between his claw tips.

Without waiting for an answer he leapt forward again, planning on shocking his opponent while their guard was down answering the banter.

The little demon tried to catch him off guard, but he was prepared. As soon as Yuma was in range Xireidi snapped his jaw forward, catching the attacker in the stomach and further exasperating the injury in its ribs.

Unfortunately Yuma's entire body held an electrical charge, which on one hand caused his jaws to clamp down tighter and on the other meant it wouldn't be a good idea to hold on for long. As soon as the charge died down slightly the wolf flung Yuma away toward a pile of decayed flesh and bones.

"I am Xireidi," he declared, "and I will see to it that these caves remain safe."

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away

Yuma felt another wave of pain as he ungracefully crashed into the skull of a long dead cave deer. Without a second of delay he hopped back up, but something was wrong.

The wind inside him was acting funny, and the sensation of pain in his side had gone from intriguing and new to an intensity he hadn't ever felt before this point. it was beginning to make the rest of his movements uncooperative.

Perhaps he would be the one to die? That would be an interesting experience, he'd never done that before. Even so, as much as his curiosity was for what actually existed beyond the void of death he knew that he likely wouldn't be able to have fun with anyone else if he was gone.

It was unfortunate but he'd have to end the game for now. Perhaps they con continue it another day though?

"Well then, Xireidi." he spoke behind with a blank gaze, "I will see to it that my master hears of you. Watch your back."

There, now they could definitely do more later. Xireidi would get to continue pretending to be a hero and he could play the part of the powerful villain. It would be great!

Now he just had to make a clean get away.

Xireidi was burnt, bleeding, and twitching from the battle, but it was obvious that Yuma's internal injuries were much worse. He wasn't about to let this end. Even if he had never taken a greater gembound's life he wasn't about to let this creature go and make more victims like Gratia.

As Yuma began to retreat Xireidi dashed after. This couldn't end, he couldn't let these atrocities go unpunished.

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away

The 'hero' gave chase as he scurried away, but even in this state with his injuries messing with his movement Yuma was too quick for him. He'd seen how the wolf had slid on the bone pile before and used that to his advantage. Thanks to his small size he had no problem ascending the large pile and running along the top, leaving the wolf slipping and sliding behind him. In almost no time Yuma made it to one of his hiding crevices and jumped in.

It was a dead end, but the wolf would have no way to know that. From the outside it looked like it tunneled into the wall and led to a different part of the cave. Hopefully Xireidi would fall for it and leave to continue the game another day.

Xireidi's body failed him as the little creature was much too quick for him, even in its weakened state. He tried to follow along, but even if he had been at full strength it would have been a difficult task to keep up.

Eventually Xireidi came to a stop as his quarry slipped into a tunnel. Even when he was a pup he would have had a difficult time following Yuma in there, and at this point he was probably even larger than the other wolf he had met in these caves.

The wolf waited there for hours, waiting for any sign that Yuma would emerge again. It was in vain though. There was never any sign of the creature, which now after having plenty of time to contemplate he recognized as an aye aye.

Eventually the lack of food started to gnaw at Xireidi. He wasn't about to eat the cursed meat that had been offered to him before, so he had no choice but to go out into the caves again and leave Yuma behind.

Gratia was gone... he knew it for sure now. He wished he could put aside the carnivorous nature that had led him to lose her in the first place, but sadly that was impossible. For now all he could do was make sure whatever lesser gembounds he hunted died as humanely as possible.

"The words I speak"
The thoughts I hold
And the self I keep hidden away