DAJ: Ch 3 Nightmare

Aesthre proceeded on trying to get as much distance between him and that bull creature. The wound on his cheek had shut thanks to his fast healing that came natural to all classes of deities. He noticed something odd, everything was clearer and his range of vision had increased to about 30 feet. Was it getting brighter or was he getting used to this dark world. He looked up to find no comfort in a sky with out a sun. Nothing had dared to attack him again, and the only creatures he had seen were the elusive birds. Now that he had time to think what could he call these beings? He pondered the question as he stepped over some roots. ‘They weren’t demons, they were magical, and they weren’t natural either. Abominations, that’s what they were. Not meant to exist and thrown into a plane of torment to suffer for their existence.’
   A sound tore him from his thoughts. Clattering and scraping like from those smaller fiends began in front of him. His sword was already in hand so he awaited the beings, ready to fend off any that dare strike at him. However the sounds continued to his sides and past him, a few moved through his view but none stopped to try their luck. Asethre stood confused as last batch made their way past him. Thump, thump, thump, Crash! Another one of those bull things had been chasing them. Aesthre looked to his sides for any kind of protection, but only frail trees were in sight. He rolled towards a wall of the canyon as the beast charged into his view. He scrambled onto his feet as the beast wheeled around to charge again. The beast thundered towards him as he spun to face it, with his back to the wall. ‘If I couldn’t trap it or out run it,’ he thought smiling ‘then I’ll just have to cripple it.’ Aesthre loved fighting things larger than he was, bringing them down with a crash was so invigorating. He rolled out of its way as it smashed into the wall. It roared as the sharpened razors of the turning wheel grinded against the wall. Aesthre ran just behind it hacking open a wound on the beast’s hip. It whirled around attempting to hit him with its massive spikes impacting a nearby tree.
Aesthre moved away as the beast grinded its obstruction and charged at him. He dove past another tree as the beast tore past almost knocking it down onto him. The beast turned to face him again, where he now stood at the wall again. It charged with all its fury only to crash into the wall a second time not hitting its prey. Aesthre righted himself and moved to cut another wound in the beast’s other hip, but he fell to the ground. He looked back to see a root had brought him to the floor. The beast spun forcing Aesthre to flip onto his back to not get caught on its side horns. He rolled back as it brought its massive crusher down where he had been. As he stood up he found it hard to stand as something was pulling at his neck. Quickly looking back he found that his cape was now caught in the beast’s razors. He swung his blade up cutting him loose, but had not time to dodge its rush. The impact sent him flying back across the canyon hitting the branches of a tree and landing face down on the dirt. His armor had saved him from being impaled but the blunt force was stunning. Aesthre stood up disoriented to see the beast coming straight for him. He rolled aside landing close to the wall, and was about to stand when the beast dropped its barbed front down just past his feet with a crash. Aesthre tried to stab it in the face when he realized his sword was no longer in his hand. He must have dropped it, but there was no time to try and get it. The beast pushed its spines up towards him as he got to his feet. He backed up as it flung its sharp blades from side to side. It burst forward forcing him to stop it with his bare left hand. He screamed in pain as a spike penetrated his palm. The force knocked him back into an outcropping of the wall and the beast charged again. Aesthre looked to his right to find a gap big enough for him, but not it. He rolled into the crevice just as it collided with the wall. He lay on his back holding his hand to his chest as the beast slammed against the canyon walls in vain.
   In safety Aesthre checked himself over for injuries. He didn’t have any broken bones and his armor had prevented him from being impaled anywhere else. His hand had been the only point of injury and he tore off the last bit of his cape to wrap around it. He pulled the cloth tight and brought his mind elsewhere to drown out the pain. He had been injured before for an exercise, where Arolas had to help him bind the wound. It was practice for his brother but the injury had been really inflicted by the Spirit. He knew it was an exercise but why hadn’t he done the same to Arolas? He held the cloth tight as the blood soaked it red. His thoughts floated back to this plane as he gazed at its colorful sky. ‘What was this place? And where would he find something to tell him of its origin?’ he thought. He wouldn’t leave until he had finished his mission or died trying. No he wouldn’t die… he would get back out to see Arolas again. His vision blurred for a moment and he became dizzy. He shook his head to try and clear his thoughts but his sight darkened. A breeze drifted past his face as his vision completely faded. He thought there was whispering and quiet laughter as his consciousness drifted to sleep.
   His eyes opened to see only darkness. All around him was a black void of nothing and he was sitting on some flat surface that emitted no light. He felt completely alone, but almost felt like it was better this way. There was something in his hand, a strange sword. It looked like it had been broken but it was still intact. He tried to touch it with his left hand causing pain in him. He woke suddenly to see that nothing around him had changed. The dark sky still loomed above and the crevice which had saved his life still held him. Aesthre looked at his bandage covered in dried blood and gauged how long he had been out. Had it been hours? His hand still hurt even though his fast healing had probably stopped the bleeding. Removing it while it still hurt wasn’t a good idea so he got onto his feet. He stepped to the opening which had luckily been there to save him. Thump, thump, thump. The beast that had attacked him came into view. His sword was somewhere out there but he couldn’t risk fighting that thing with an injury. Aesthre stepped back to see that the crevice he was in also led to another valley. He looked out to see more of those twisted trees and a smaller route into the plane. ‘Maybe it would be better if he kept moving’ he thought as he stepped out into the new canyon. He glanced back and hoped he could find his way home after this was all done.