189 Fearsome Beast!

Caw! Caw!

[Is it dead?]

Caw! Caw!

[It hasn't moved for hours!]

Caw! Caw!

[Why does it look so ugly?]

Dark shadowy figures continues to fly high above a certain spot as several eyes stared intensely at the corpse laying down on the ground.

These flying creatures known as the Creae were scavengers who travelled from place to place looking for leftover carcasses or hunting small animals. 

The Creae's bodies were long and sinewy like a serpent with two large transparent wings attached to their backs. 

Their faces were covered in wrinkles and the four pairs of eyes located at the front, middle and sides of the head allowed the creatures to have a full view of their surroundings with no blind spots.

Living on a mostly aquatic planet meant that the sides of their necks had developed gills in order to hunt underwater for brief periods of time.

The large beaks lined with razor sharp teeth were perfect for ripping and tearing the flesh off the bones of their prey.

However, they were a cautious species by nature and would often hover over a body for several hours to ensure that no predators were nearby.

The corpse was of a strange looking animal that the creatures had never seen before. 

It was humanoid with two arms, two long slender legs and four blade- like appendages attached to its back.

The leader of the flock was initially reluctant to consume the flesh of an unknown species, but his children had not eaten for days and were very hungry.

Caw! Caw!

[Go down and take a bite!]

The leader ordered his youngest child to land on the body and begin the feeding process. 

Creae would often send the smallest member of the flock to take an initial bite and also act as a scout. 

A baby Creae broke away from the flock and swopped down. 

Its body was still covered in soft down feathers and its teeth had not fully grown out yet.

The little Creae landed on the ground with a graceful pose and slowly approached the corpse with great caution.

One step….

The corpse showed no reaction.

Two steps…. 

Nothing.

Three steps….

The Creae gained more confidence at the apparent lack of reaction and hurriedly rushed forward with great excitement.

Two big mountains of flesh in particular seemed to be full of meat so the little Creae opened its beak wide to take a bite.

Suddenly the eyes of the corpse snapped open and the last thing the Creae saw were two crimson red pupils staring at it in confusion.

Stab!

A long blade-like appendage shot straight through the poor scavenger's heart and it fell to the ground lifeless.

Caw! Caw!

Sophie groaned slightly as she tried to stand up with no success. 

The blazing sun continued to beat down harshly on her body while the cries of the scavengers rang out in her ears.

She had no idea what had happened after she ate the heart of the rainbow-coloured insect queen. 

One moment she had triumphantly killed and wiped out an entire hive of enemies and the next thing she knew….

She was laying down on the sand with some freaking monster trying to bite her breasts!

That was Cleo's job!

Sophie clenched her fists tightly and tried to move her exhausted body towards the shade of a nearby tree.

Her vision blurred and swam constantly as waves of exhaustion continued to crash down. 

Standing up was proving to be too difficult so Sophie was forced to crawl on the ground like a worm.

"Just a little bit closer," Sophie groaned as she slowly moved her hands and feet towards the dark shade of the tree.

Every passing minute seemed like an eternity but eventually Sophie made it to under the shady protection of a sturdy tree.

This was much better.

Without the harsh light of the sun beating on her face, Sophie could feel her body start to cool down and recover.

The strange energy flowing through her body had seemingly disappeared, but Sophie could vaguely sense that some changes had occurred.

The bladed tips of her spider appendages were now more pointed, and their golden colour seemed more prominent. 

Sophie rested for a few minutes and contemplated the changes happening to her body. 

She was unsure if these changes would have happened naturally over time or was the Spider Whisper Art somehow enhancing the process.

There were clear physiological differences between an ordinary Arachnais member and a hybrid like herself.

But would her body eventually morph into that of a fully blood Arachnais? 

Sophie had no idea.

Well, it made no sense to worry about it now. 

As the first offspring between a human and an Arachnais there was really no one she could turn to for help who had experience on the matter.

Strength gradually returned to her limbs, so Sophie attempted to stand up and continue searching for water.

All that fighting and laying under the sun had left her feeling thirsty.

Wait…. wasn't there a fresh supply of thirst-quenching liquid just in front of her.

Sophie approached the corpse of the Creae scavenger and split open its stomach with a quick slice of her nails.

Entrails and fresh blood spilled out and the pungent odour caused Sophie to frown slightly.

She really didn't want to drink the blood but who knows how long it would take for her to find fresh water.

With hidden dangers scattered around the island, it was important to remain in peak fighting condition.

Sophie kneeled down and sank her fangs into the flesh of the creature. 

The green blood of the young Creae tasted slightly salty and warm but Sophie drank it down with relish.

She could feel a warm current of energy rolling around her stomach with every mouthful and knew that this blood was beneficial. 

Corpses tended to rapidly decompose when exposed to open air, so Sophie hurriedly ate as quickly as possible.

The Creae flying high in the sky could not believe what they were seeing.

It should be noted that the blood of a young Creae contained a fearsome toxin and foul odour that repelled most predators.

And yet the humanoid animal below them was eating the body without hesitation!

A shiver ran down the back of the leader's spine and he quickly motioned for the rest of the flock to leave immediately and travel to another island.

Who would want to deal with such a fearsome beast!