Eislyn stared at her village burning in front of her, tears rapidly drying from the blazing flames and hot smoke. Her legs wouldn’t work for her as she stumbled towards the village gate, falling over and over again. Her body, covered in cuts and burns, wasn’t holding up anymore. Eislyn’s mind had no thoughts in its panic, only a blind desire to leave in its place.

  “Che che che, it’s always best to leave the tastiest for last.” A cacophony of clattering greeted Eislyn’s ears, loud enough to send them ringing with tinnitus as her nightmare returned. “A delicacy like no other, a magical egg just for me!” The voice made Eislyn’s skin crawl as she curled into a ball on the ground and covered her ears, her panic fully taking over.

  An enormous beast loomed over Eislyn, its magical pressure enough to let Eislyn know she would die here. The great spirit centipede eclipsed the sky, its body far larger than the little village Eislyn had lived in for her six years of life. Its mouthparts clattered when it “spoke”, little more than an illusion as the voice was a projection of magical power, not a physical phenomena. Eislyn peered at the awful beast through squinting eyes, unwilling to fully take in the awesome sight of its twisting demonic flesh.

  “Ah, there you are, little egg.” The clattering slowed to a stop, the pressure on Eislyn’s body suddenly increasing tenfold. An excited chittering started from a single point directly above her, as Eislyn felt like she was being pressed into the ground. Drops of burning liquid landed on her skin, the great centipede drooling on her.

  Eislyn began to pray under the burning pain, praying that this nightmare would just go away. She thought of her grandparents, and the elders of the village hall. She remembered the kids stealing her things and bullying her, only to be scolded by the nice lady who cooked soup. She remembered when she made her first friend. Eislyn was filled with a feeling of regret, body felt like it was about to explode from the pressure of the approaching head. At that moment, Eislyn heard the voice of what must’ve been her dad.

  “You can do it, Eislyn. I believe in you.” It felt like a warm hand patted her head as the words faded in her mind. Eislyn did not want to die with regret. She had known love and joy, and she wanted more. A small light burned in Eislyn’s chest, a small light which grew larger and more luminescent until its existence burned with the heat of a star.

  SKREEEEEEE! A magnificent screech tore through the sky, the great spirit centipede screamed in agony as the light burned its sensitive body hairs and delicate antenna, rendering it blind. It writhed and failed with a shocking destructive force, sending burning buildings flying into the surrounding forest. Ruts were carved into the ground from its body gouging out the land.

  Eislyn stared in a daze, her body still in the fetal position but her head raised enough to see the scene of horror. She could still remember the feeling of the light she released, the warm hand on her head and the release of all her negative emotions. She slowly rose to her feet, her brain telling her she still needs to get out of this place. She took one last glance at the burning, crushed remains of her home and then turned away, walking towards the dark forest.

  The sound of whooshing air suddenly tickled Eislyn’s ears, her attention turning upwards. The huge segmented body of the centipede slammed down right next to her, only a couple feet from her. The impact sent her flying, her body picked up and tossed a few feet from the massive weight slamming the ground. The wind was knocked completely from Eislyn’s lungs, tears forming in her eyes as she wheezed and gasped.

  Eislyn grabbed her throat, choking and coughing as her lungs filled back up. She stumbled while getting back up, falling to the ground and further covering herself in dirt and ash. The dust cloud filled her lungs, causing more coughing. The six year old Eislyn was hit with panic, her lungs spasming while contaminants filled them. Eislyn was caught between hyperventilating and coughing, black spittle falling from her mouth. She held her throat as her panicked brain raced.

  “I’m going to die here! I’m going to die! I don’t want to die!” Eislyn’s brain screamed at her to run but her legs refused the order, her breath still coming in ragged gasps. The giant centipede was finally slowing down, the pain of losing its sensory hairs lessening with time.

  SKsssssssskikiki~ The hiss and skittering of the centipede’s mouthparts moved near Eislyn again.

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  “Little egg, oh little egg. You are cruel.” With those words, a horrible rush of air could be heard. Eislyn squinted her eyes and prayed for a quick death.

  The moment of truth passed as a great thud resounded inches away from Eislyn.

  “Damn, late again.” Beyond the tinnitus in her ears, Eislyn could hear a man’s voice clearly. She decided to take a peek through her squinting eyes. Right next to her stood a behemoth of a man, at least double her size, towering over her. A drop of liquid hit her cheek, and she wiped it off.

  “Blood?” Eislyn thought to herself. As she looked closer, she noticed the man was holding the centipede’s mouth open with his hands.

  “Glad to see you again, Kirkayak. Don’t even think about leaving this time.” The man spoke with magic, just like the great spirit centipede had. It seemed to fill the air all around Eislyn, like a thousand mouths speaking in unison. This voice calmed her, filling her with a sense of comfort unlike the shrill clattering of the centipede.

  “GRAAAAAAAAAAH!” He opened his mouth and yelled with his actual voice as he pulled, his muscles rippling and bulging all over. With a mighty rip, one of the centipede’s fangs came free of its face, eliciting a great screech from the beast.

  SKIIIIIIIIKAAAAAAAAA! It roared as it raised its head to the sky in obvious pain. Its head shook back and forth in an almost hypnotizing pattern, slowly coming back to stare at the man holding its fang, still dripping venom.

  “Su! Su! What are you doing, interrupting my ascension!? You beast! You hypocrite! Taking advantage of my weakness! Coward!” The centipede continued to berate and roar in its anger, legs skittering as it surrounded Su and Eislyn. “Today I will end this grudge! I will eat the egg and ascend!”

  “...” Su looked at the angrily writhing creature with no emotion. “You’re crazy, Kirkayak. You know I’d never let you do that. And you know ascension is a fairytale. How many years have you lived now?” Su sighed and stated with his magic, moving towards the beast and dropping its toxic pincer.

  “The egg! The egg sits right behind you and you have the nerve to say that?! Die!” Kirkayak’s head thrust straight at Su with an unbelievable speed, but at the last second curved his trajectory. His head flew straight at Eislyn while his tail whipped around, slamming into Su and creating a natural barrier between him and Eisyln. Eislyn didn’t even have time to close her eyes as the head flew at her again.

  “No!” Su shouted, one arm catching the huge wall of bug that just hit him while the other stretched towards Eislyn. “Push!” He commanded the mana in the air.

  Eislyn felt a heavy force hit her body, shoving her far from her current position.

  “Oof!” Eislyn’s back smacked into a hard object, knocking the wind from her lungs for a second time. She sputtered as tears came to her eyes, but her eyes suddenly widened as she realized what happened.

  The centipede's face was buried in her previous location, its legs disgustingly squirming as it struggled to break free of the deep pit. Su growled and started to glow with a white light, taking the opportunity to end this.

  “Hell will be friendly to you, Kirkayak.” Su growled as his hands dug into the hard carapace, cracking the surface with the force. Kirkayak’s legs squirmed with renewed fervor, its life in question. Su growled and pulled with his full force, the white glow around him exploding with renewed luminescence.

  CREEEEEAAAAK! The carapace made a great noise as it ripped in half, like pieces of metal scraping against each other. Su tore with great force, pulling the centipede apart almost at its direct center.

  SKREEEEEE! Kirkayak screamed loud enough to deafen Eislyn, even with its head underground. The back half off the body slammed against the ground with extreme violence, whatever remained of the village completely flattening under its death throes.

  “Goodbye, Kirkayak.” Su approached the buried head and stabbed his hands into the carapace as close to the dirt as he could. Once again, with great force he ripped the tough bug into two pieces, dropping them to the ground.

  Eislyn watched all this happen while catching her breath, her eyes wide with adrenaline. The nightmare was dead, albeit still twitching and ruining the rest of the beautiful area. The fire was essentially out, the centipede’s violent thrashing crushing any blazes.

  Eislyn watched the man named Su with little apprehension. Her exhaustion was getting the best of her as he turned to look at her. He had a strange expression on his face, looking puzzled and confused as he stared at her. Eislyn’s eyes were heavy, too heavy, and she couldn’t think straight anymore. As he started walking towards her, his eyes widened as she fell forward and blacked out.