The new world
Alex groaned as he opened his eyes to stare up at the stone ceiling over him. Sitting up he brought a hand to his head as he took in his surroundings. Before his eyes could take in what was around him a screen popped up in his vision.
<table width="423">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Name
</td>
<td width="141">
Xane
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Age
</td>
<td width="141">
6
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Level
</td>
<td width="141">
0
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Hp
</td>
<td width="141">
200
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Strength
</td>
<td width="141">
10
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Agility
</td>
<td width="141">
10
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Dex
</td>
<td width="141">
10
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Intelligence
</td>
<td width="141">
15
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Wisdom
</td>
<td width="141">
15
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Constitution
</td>
<td width="141">
10
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Defense
</td>
<td width="141">
0
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana
</td>
<td width="141">
100
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana regeneration
</td>
<td width="141">
5pts per sec
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Skills
</td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Compacted Mass
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Crafting
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Double Dip
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Healing lvl1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Identify lvl1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Boons/Blessings
</td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
Amora''s enchanced blessing
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
“Huh, in this world I’m a kid named Xane and I’m… six years old!” He said with a shake of the head. Noticing the screen followed the motion of his head to constantly block his view, he explored he screen while thinking about closing it. Surprisingly it closed with just the thought. Letting out a sigh of relief he started to take in his surroundings when another screen popped up to block his vision once again.
New Skills found
Double Dip: All stats and stat gains are doubled
Compacted Mass: Instead of increasing in size with the addition to strength and constitution stats. Your muscles and bones will become denser, allowing you to keep a smaller frame. While active you receive an addition bonus to defense equal to ten percent of strength.
Crafting: Holders of this skill will receive a percentage based on level of crafting to any crafting check made. Current percentage ten percent
Healing: Unlike standard practitioners of the healing arts, holders of the Healing skill can channel healing energy directly through their bodies or into the bodies of others.
Identify: This skill allows you to Identify both living beings and inanimate objects. If your level of Identify is higher than another with the same skill, they will not be able to use the skill on you.
Before he could fully process the screen another popped up in front of him.
New Boon found
Amora’s enhanced blessing: You have been blessed by the Goddess Amora. With this blessing, any stat boosting skills you possess are double in effectiveness. In addition you have been granted an additional skill.
New skill found
Inventory: Inventory allows user to store items in a dimensional space that cannot be accessed by any being other than you. All items stored will be placed in a state not affected by time or the elements. Warning: living beings cannot be placed inside inventory.
Closing out the screens, Xane was starting to stand when pain racked his tiny body as he felt it swell then shrink on in on itself. After what seemed like hours, but most likely no more than a few seconds the pain faded away, leaving him curled up on the floor. Letting out heaving breaths he opened his character sheet to see what happened.
<table width="423">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Name
</td>
<td width="141">
Xane
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Age
</td>
<td width="141">
6
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Level
</td>
<td width="141">
0
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Hp
</td>
<td width="141">
6000
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Strength
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Agility
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Dex
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Intelligence
</td>
<td width="141">
45
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Wisdom
</td>
<td width="141">
45
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Constatution
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Defense
</td>
<td width="141">
3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana
</td>
<td width="141">
450
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana regeneration
</td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
45pts per sec
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Skills
</td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Compacted Mass
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Crafting
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Double Dip
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Healing lvl1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Identify lvl1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Boons/Blessings
</td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
Amora''s enchanced blessing
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
Going over the sheet, he didn’t see anything at first until he looked back over his stats for the fifth time. All his stats had tripled from when he first saw them, as he tried to figure out what happened he realized what happened. The Goddess’s blessing had combined with the double dip giving him a boost bigger than what he initially thought. The only question left was how his stats stacked up against others in the world.
Sitting back up he pulled off the loose rough linen shirt he wore. Looking down at his child-sized body he could see the chiseled abs he never managed to attain in his life as Alex. A small laugh escaped his lips as he thought he must look like that kid dubbed little Shawazenegger a few years back. That’s when he noticed his small body was free of the scars that covered his old one. Smiling he pulled the shirt back on as he stood to his feet.
Taking in his surrounds Xane found himself in a cave that someone had turned into a home. The bed he woke up on was made of animal pelts and placed in the back of the cave. Not far from where he sat he could see wooden shelves filled with books, stacks of papers, and a few jars of what looked like herbs. More searching uncovered a stash of dried beans and some cooking gear tucked away in a crate. More rummaging around awarded him with a short bow and a quiver of arrows along with a skinning knife and sheath attached to a belt.
“Well, its not much but at least its something.” Xane said to himself after finishing his search. From what he found he could only guess that the previous occupant was either a hunter or a hermit considering the lack of possessions the small cave contained. Lost in thought about what to do, he was brought out of it by the growling of his stomach.
Digging through the crate, Xane pulled out the jar of beans and a pot before looking around again. Over by the cave opening was a small ringed firepit with a grate hanging from a tripod and open barrel only feet way. Setting down the jar by the firepit Xane took one look at the barrel that rose above his head. A small scowl crossed his face until his eyes landed on the lone chair sitting beside a rough wooden table. Dragging the chair over, he clambered up happy to see it was filled with water. Reaching out with the pot in hand he paused to take in his new self.
Stolen novel; please report.
A small boys face covered in dirt and framed by long shaggy light brown hair, thin cheeks barely containing any fat sat under a pair of sunken green eyes. Xane could only shake his head at his disappointing appearance. If he was honest with himself, he looked a corpse that came back to life and forced to dig its way out of the grave. Dunking the pot into the water broke up his reflection long enough for him to get the needed water.
Setting the filled pot on the grate, Xane let out a groan of frustration as he saw only ash remained. Not seeing any wood to use at hand, he strapped the belt and skinning knife before slinging the bow and quiver over his shoulder. Turning back to the mouth of the cave he took a deep breath and started moving forward.
Pausing briefly, Xane took in the sight before him. Outside the cave sat a rocky outcropping before the ground slopped downward in a gentle slope telling him he was on a large hill or mountain. A veritable sea of trees expanded outwards from his point of view in a sight that brought back memories of hunting in the forests of Oregon’s Elkhorn mountains. Not seeing anything suitable to use as firewood close by, Xane took a deep breath before taking his first step out into the world.
The coolness of the air and the way the sun hung just over the tops of the trees told him it was most likely midmorning. Turning his eyes to the sky, Xane’s jaw fell open as he saw the three moons that hung in the sky. One was a sphere of pale white, while the other two were smaller spheres of red. Blinking away his surprise he looked around for anything he could use.
Nearing the edge of the flat rock of the outcropping Xane found a small trail leading away from its edge into the tree line a short distance away. Adjusting his quiver, he took one last look to note his location against the sun, he took one last breath before set out from his new home.
Following the narrow trail, Xane was grateful for the leather wrap shoes and coarse breeches he woke up wearing as he moved over small stones and through prickly grass. Though once well used, Xane could tell by how overgrown the path was it hadn’t been trodden upon in years. That thought brought a bit of comfort to Xane knowing the cave he was calling home was his. That thought led him to thinking about who the previous owner was and how he had come to be there. Was Xane the owner and died and Alex was stuff inside his corpse or was this an entirely new body. Remembering the sight of the dirt cake face and sunken green eyes, made him certain Xane had died.
Coming to a stop at the clearing he looked back up to the mouth of the cave that was now a dark shadow against the side of a much higher mountain. Shouldering his bow and bringing his hands together he bowed his head and sent off a prayer wishing Xane a better next life.
Turning back to the trees he steeled his resolve and stepped into the shadowy underbrush. Having gone hunting in his previous life, Alex took up a familiar grip on the bow with an arrow knocked as he moved slowly through the woods. While his main goal was to find some wood to gather, Alex knew to always keep an eye out for threats in unfamiliar areas. Having walked just a few yards in he came across a few dead trees that had fallen recently with plenty of easily gather wood laying about.
“Wood, check.” He said trying to distract himself from the thoughts he was taking over a dead child’s life. Reslinging the bow he started to pick up the broken and dried branches stopping to think about what he was going to do if he was attacked while unarmed.
“Duh, I’ve got an inventory now.” He said chiding himself as he wondered how to use it. Deciding to give a shot, he sucked in a breath and said “Inventory”
On command a screen popped up in his vision filled with an empty grid. Scrunching his brows in consternation as he looked at the unhelpful screen. Moving the gathered budle of wood from his side to the screen did nothing. Looking at the screen and the wood, he thought about all the inventories he wrote about in his books. Normally the protagonists always had an instinctual understanding of how to use the damned skill or had some kind of help file. That last though brought an idea to him as he tried calling up a help screen and got nothing in response. Looking around to see if anyone was near him, he shrugged and gave it a go.
“Wood no baka.” He said hopeful as he was reminded of a certain mayor and his badger companion. Looking down and seeing the bundle of wood in his hands, Xane could only shake his head. “Yeah, figured that wouldn’t work.” He said to himself. Xane was about to sit down and figure out how to use the skill, until the growling of his stomach reminded him that he needed food.
Letting out another sigh, he adjusted the position of the bow before making his way back to the cave. Stepping out of the line of tree he swept his eyes over the clearing. Seeing nothing had changed while he was in the forest, he continued along the overgrown path to his home.
Dropping the bundle of wood by the firepit, Xane leaned the bow and quiver of arrows against the wall. Squatting down by the firepit with the skinning knife in his hand, he picked up the first piece of wood and began shaving the dried bark off in thin strips. Once he had enough of the dried bark piled up, he stopped and looked around the pit. A smile played across his tiny lips finding the familiar dark gray of flint. Picking up the stone he struck it with the knife getting the sparks he was hoping for. After a few more strikes sent sparks flying onto the tinder pile causing a small plume of smoke to rise. Stooping down and finding the glowing ember, Xane gently blew air across it. Flames bloomed from the small ember and began to consume the rest of the tinder. Moving quickly yet careful not to put out the small flame, he quickly fed more branches and wood into the growing fire.
With the fire building to a comfortable level, he double checked the pot confirming it still had water. Satisfied, he dumped a small handful of dried beans into the water before placing the top back on the jar. Standing he moved to put it back and look for something to stir with when he noticed a folded parchment at the bottom of the dusty crate. Moving the contents aside, Xane fished out the dusty paper and took it to the mouth of the cave. Squatting down and unfolding the paper, his eyes lit with excitement as he stared down at the detailed map.
The system notification that popped up suddenly caught him by surprise, causing him to lose his balance and fall on his butt.
Map? He thought before a map of the area popped into view. The smile he had before the notification returned, knowing he now had a way to make sure he didn’t get lost. The smell of burning beans brought him out of his momentary reverie.
“Oh shit, it’s burning!” he cried out grabbing a mostly clean stick and rushed to save his lunch.
Xane sat in silence, eating the semi burnt beans and distracting himself by going over the holographic map. While going over it he learned a few things about how the map worked. With a thought he could zoom in and out as well as move the map around. He could even add notations and icons as needed. The one thing that disappointed him was the shadowy darkness that covered anything beyond what the paper map showed him. The portion that was revealed showed the mountain he lived on along with the forest, a river, and a town about a days travel through the woods. With a thought he closed out the map when he was struck with an idea.
Setting down the pot, Xane picked up a chunk of the wood he brought back from his earlier trip. Looking at the thick branch that was only about a foot in length, he concentrated on what he wanted. With a audible pop the branch disappeared from his grasp. Opening his sheet Xane found the inventory tab off to the side. Giving it a mental click, a smile grew on his lips as it opened with a small log icon taking up one of the open grids. Looking at the icon, Xane scratched at his chin while lost in his thoughts. Clicking on the icon caused the branch to reappear. With a bit of experimentation Xane learned he didn’t need the screen to call an item from the dimensional pocket. All it took was just to think about the item he wanted, and he confirmed it by storing rocks, more sticks, the pot, then calling them out one by one.
Moving through the shadows, Xane couched by the gnarled roots of a nearby tree. Overhead birds sang their songs while his eyes scanned the underbrush. Having already grown tired of beans, he had decided to see if he could get some meat. Catching the movement of a bush in the distance, Xane knocked an arrow and drew back the string to sight down the arrow. Seconds passed as he stood still as a statue while he waited, from under the bush a rabbit that was almost as big as a medium sized dog emerged. Letting out his breath slowly, Xane lined up his shot, and loosed the arrow as the last of the air left his lungs. A meaty thunk was heard as the arrow found the rabbit’s heart killing it instantly.
New Skill Unlocked
Archery: The archery skill allows you to make accurate ranged attacks with bows. Each level of Archery after the first increases range by 10 ft. Current range: base 60 ft.
“Huh, that was… easy.” Xane said as he closed out the notification having expected to need more than a few shots before he picked up the archery skill. Shrugging those thoughts to the side Xane was about to go collect his kill, when another notification interrupted him.
For landing a critical hit while using a bow for the first time you have been awarded +1 to luck.
One of his brows rose in surprise at the notification. Closing it out he opened his character sheet to check the changes.
<table width="423">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Name+A1:B29
</td>
<td width="141">
Xane
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Age
</td>
<td width="141">
6
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Level
</td>
<td width="141">
0
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Hp
</td>
<td width="141">
6000
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Strength
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Agility
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Dex
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Intelligence
</td>
<td width="141">
45
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Wisdom
</td>
<td width="141">
45
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Constitution
</td>
<td width="141">
30
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Defense
</td>
<td width="141">
3
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Luck
</td>
<td width="141">
2
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana
</td>
<td width="141">
450
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Mana regeneration
</td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
45pts per sec
</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Skills
</td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Archery lvl 1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Compacted Mass
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Crafting
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Double Dip
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Healing lvl1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141">
Identify lvl1
</td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211">
Boons/Blessings
</td>
<td width="141"> </td>
<td width="71"> </td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td width="211"> </td>
<td colspan="2" width="212">
Amora''s enhanced blessing
</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
“Why wasn’t luck listed before? Was it because it was at zero before meaning I didn’t have any luck?” he thought as he confirmed the changes. Choosing to contemplate such things later, he collected his arrow happy it was intact. Placing the arrow in the quiver and dropping the rabbit into his inventory, Xane opened his map. Finding the green marker that showed his position he searched the immediate area for anything of note. Looking closely, he could see part of the river branched off and became a small pond that was just a few hundred yards away.
After orienting himself in the right direction, he minimized the map to only take up a small portion in the upper right of his vision and started moving. Roughly fifteen yards away from where he shot the rabbit, he found a game trail heading in the same direction. Minutes later he was standing at the edge of the small pond filled with crystal clear water. Hurriedly he sent his gear into his inventory as he started stripping off his meager clothes. In less than thirty seconds he was stark naked and splashing in the shallow pond.
“Man, I haven’t been swimming in years.” Xane said to himself as he floated on his back staring up into the sky. Even as he said it in the voice of Xane his mind went back to his days as Alex. Him and Angie had been married for less than a year when one of her girl friends had invited them over to a pool party. He cringed remembering the fight that ensued because she thought he was looking at the other women too closely. In truth he stayed off to the side talking games with a buddy of his that had been at the party and would take any opportunity to point out the girls he had the hots for. Even though Alex never glanced their way Angie still took her anger out on him for the next few days. After that he never visited a pool while she was with him. Even if she hadn’t gotten violent with him at that time it would have been eye opening for anyone else. For Alex who had received even worse treatment from his own mother didn’t know any better at the time.
“To hell with her, I’m finally free!” He shouted in his child’s voice as he floated in the water. Deciding he had wasted enough time, Xane figured it was time to finish cleaning up and head back to his cave.
Once clean and dressed he resummoned his bow, quiver, and skinning knife from his inventory. Checking his map, Xane oriented himself and started walking back into the woods. Walking through the shadows cast by the overhead canopy, he listened to the song of the hidden birds and insects as he traveled. Minutes later as he walked, Xane noticed it had fallen silent around him. Stopping he went into a low crouch as he knocked another arrow. Looking around he scanned the underbrush, as he kept his ears open for any sound.
The rustle of leaves caused him to spin around to the source of the noise. Behind him creeping low to the ground was a strange animal that looked to be a large feline with six legs and a pair of burning crimson eyes. Activating his identify brought up the creatures information
Hell Cat (juvenille)
Level 5
Hp 150
Str 65
Int 5
Wis 5
Defense 50
Agility 75
Con 25
Hell cats are carnivorious six legged felines said to come from the pits of hell. This particular specimen is considered a juvenile and has yet to unlock its special attacks.
Whipping his bow up, Xane pulled back and loosed the arrow in one fluid motion. The hell cat dodged to the side as it let out a loud hiss of anger. Pulling a second arrow, Xane got it knocked right as the beast prepared to pounce. Just as the beast leaped toward him, Xane pulled back on the bow string with all his strength. Just as he reached the full draw a resounding crack echoed off the trees as the bow snapped in two. Throwing the useless weapon at his attacker as he threw his body to the side. An angry feline roar was heard as the broken bow met the snarling beast, throwing off its trajectory.
Pain bloomed in Xane’s side as the hell cat’s claws came at him leaving three deep gashes in his side. Screaming in pain as he came to a stop against the trunk of a tree, he could only grit his teeth as he scrabbled to pull the skinning knife free of his belt. Standing to his feet, he watched as the hell cat ripped the broken bow free of from where it had wrapped around its foreleg and body. Now free it locked its hate filled eyes on its prey as its ears flattened back and it let out a screeching hiss.
Holding the skinning knife out in front of him, Xane clutched his wounded side with his free hand as he shakily stood to his feet. The hell cat kept low as it started to circle him waiting for the right time. Xane though unsteady from the wound on his side, he continued to keep the beast in front of him with the skinning knife between them. Tears of pain blurred Xane’s vision as he stared the creature down. Blinking his vision clear, Xane barely caught the hell cat’s muscles tense right before it sprang at him.
Pain flared in his side as he ducked low and lunged forward. Feeling the razor sharp claws tear at the fabric of the back of his tunic as it passed overhead. Desperately Xane Stabbed upwards feeling the sharp blade cut into flesh. The beast let out a yowl of pain, as the blade split its stomach open and drenched Xane in a shower of blood and intestines.
Pulled off his feet when a section of intestine looped over his shoulder, he crashed to the ground feet away from the wounded beast. Crying out in pain as his vision swam when the back of his head collided with a tree root, just feet from the struggling creature. Clarity returned to his mind and vision a moment later when he began to hack through the bloody rope like mass that had dragged him down. With a final slice he was free and shakily standing, when he heard the hell cat let out one last pitiful cry as its life ended in a pool of blood and viscera.