8 Awakening

My eyes shot open and caught the reflection of the sun on the rocky cave entrance. The entrance was smaller than my head now, and I couldn't move an inch. My metamorphosed, massive body was completely curled up inside the cave, not leaving enough space for even a fly. The cracking stone walls rumbled in protest as I tried to free my right arm from under my enormous girth.

I reached outside the hole with my right arm. The entrance, which had been a bit bigger than my body, was now half the size of my claws. I freed my left arm, and it joined my right outside the cave. Both of my claws faced opposite directions as they grabbed onto the primitive entrance.

I pulled inward with all my strength trying to pull myself free. The stone entrance cracked under the force of my weight. As my exit slowly broke open, I scoot my body forward. The cave became wide enough for me to stick my head through and push with my hind legs. Rocks crumbled and fell to the ground as I pushed my upper body out of the cave.

Fully outside, I assessed my surroundings. The bright blue sky was peppered with fluffy white clouds. A happy sun peeked over the horizon. The forest was the same as when I entered my slumber, and the trees I'd cut still rested where they fell.

I unfurled my wings and stretched downward dog style. Cracks sounded as my joints popped into place. My renewed bones trembled with strength, and my refined muscles brimmed with energy. My stomach sent jolts of pain through my body reminding me I hadn't eaten in years!

I ran to where I killed the bear and came to see that its bones had grown flowers and moss over the ten years' rest. I crawled up one of the nearest trees to gain vision of the forest; my body was only a bit shorter than the tree. I used my claws to stab into it. When I was at the first branches, the tree started shaking as if to rid itself of my presence.

"Drahhhgoonn… You nooowww come baack?"

'Oh shit, It's him!' I thought as I looked down to see two glowing holes staring up at me. I stabbed my claws deeper into its bark and tried to think of what to do. The Treant uprooted itself once again, tossing dirt aside and casting away the ten years of forest growth.

When the Treant fully stood, I realized I could not get away. If I fell to the ground it would kill me before I could recover, and if I stayed it would get rid of me eventually. There was only one thing I could think to do, kill it.

I released my grip and slid down the trunk, scraping the bark in my path. I reached the face of the magical being and tore at it with my rear claw, my frontal claws stabbing into the bark for stability.

"ARGH DRAHHGONNN! YOU LEAAVEE NOOOOWW!" The Treant shouted while trying to use it's tentacle legs to run itself into face-first into another tree.

With such short legs, the Treant could not build up enough momentum to kill me in one blow. I let it happen while I continuously clawed at its right eye with both rear claws.

The Treant slammed his face into the tree. Gripping onto the Treants' face, I took the most damage from the impact. I fought through the pain and continued to claw at its eye. I slid down the massive trunk coming to a stop at its mangled eye. Kicking my rear claws deep into the tree, I used my frontal claws to open the hole as wide as I could.

Once one eye socket was almost big enough to touch the other, I punched towards the other eye, bursting the ocular membrane.

I climbed through the ocular cavity, which could now fit my entire body, and saw the big glowing orb that provided the light beaming through the beast's eyes.

"DRAGON! YOU HAVE GONE TOO FAR! YOU MUST DIE NOW AHHHHGGGH!" the Treant said. The pain seemed to have normalized its speech.

I ignored it and grabbed the orb with my right claw. The orb was connected to an internal branch within the tree; it fed mystical energy to the rest of its body like a phloem. I got a good grip and tore it from the clasping hand-like branch.

The glow of the tree's thick vein faded and with it the Treant's movements.

"Drahgon… Whyyy must you have come…?" The Treant said within its dying breath.

As I jumped from the Treants eye, I swallowed the still-glowing orb and put it in my second stomach to hold. I scraped my way down to the forest floor. Upon reaching the bottom, I turned back to face the deceased Treant.

"Because I am Scourge. I do whatever I want to, whenever I want to."