The Black Dog appeared in the Four Corners of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, and Arizona. It was expecting me. As soon as I got there, it charged at me. I dodged and threw a fireball at it.. It vanished into the God's Way, and appeared behind me. It turned around in time to deflect its fangs with my sword. At least it wasn't running away. It snarled and tried to bite me again. I used the god's Way and appeared on its back. I grabbed it around the neck in an attempt to subdue it. Then a canine head sprouted from its shoulder and chomped at me.
I rolled off of its back as a smaller dog branched off from the main one. Then three more dogs sprouted from it. Five against one, with the odds against me. The smaller dogs charged at me all at once. I dodged between them and slashed one across the throat. One of them turned and jumped at me. I ducked under it and cut in open from underneath. The remaining two came at me from the sides. I jumped backwards, and they turned to attack me from the front. I charged up my mana and consumed them both in a column of fire.
With the miniature dogs dead, I turned back to the Black Dog. Then a pair of arms grabbed me from behind and attempted to put me in a sleeper hold. I surrounded myself with fire, and he released me. I turned to face the man.
"Not bad," he said, staring into my eyes with his crimson ones. "I don't see other mana users very often." A prowler. I could tell by his red eyes and jet black hair. And the fact that he was hanging out with the Black Dog.
"You can use mana too?" I asked.
"That's right," he said, and flames danced around his fingertips. "My senses are keen as a hound's. I can find entrances to the second layer easily."
"I don't have time for this," I said, turning around to charge at the dog again, but he was quick enough to get in front of me before I could.
The dog was starting to release more copies. If I didn't hurry up and get through the Prowler, there would be enough small dogs to ravage the world. I couldn't let that happen. I fought him. We both started throwing fireballs and lightning at each other. I was beginning to overuse my mana. I could my self control slipping away. I was consumed with a hunger. I wanted to beat him, no matter what. I started using the God's Way to get an edge in our fight. He dodged my sneak attack and grabbed me by the throat. His hand burned my skin. I grabbed his hand and channeled coldness into it. His grip loosened some, and I took the chance to knock it away and grabbed him by the throat with one hand and I grabbed his face with the other. I pumped his entire body full of cold mana, then I stepped back and hit him a fireball that shattered his frigid body into pieces.
I turned my attention back to the dog. There were at least a hundred now, and they were all snarling at me. The insanity I was feeling a minute before was replaced by terror. There was no way I could beat them all.
Of course, someone else decided to join the party. Something began shooting through the crowds of dogs, so fast I couldn't keep up. Hounds were dropping dead in mutilated heaps left and right. It wasn't until all the smaller dogs were dead that the newcomer slowed to a halt between me and the Black Dog. It was the Rake. I had no idea it could move that fast.
The Rake and the Black Dog. Two of the most brutal Fears, about to square off. They attacked each other. It was the freakiest thing I had ever seen. Fangs and claws, scratching and biting all over the place. One minute the Rake had the upper hand, the next minute the Black Dog was on top.
I stood there, trying to decide what to do. I could try firing a lightning bolt, but I was afraid I might hurt the Rake if I did that. Then I realized "Wait a minute, I don't like either of these guys, I should just blast them both". So I did. The Black Dog fled. The Rake stood up, crawled toward me on all fours, and whisper harshly "Never do that again" and then vanished.
4 down, 6 to go. I have to deal with the Newborn next.
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