WHO WAS PREY

LOCATION: STREETS OF ZENARLI,VENDERYA.

*In the Nether Realm, there is a band of girls born with trademark orange hair, who are able to defeat any demon with an inborn flame, called the Heavenly flames*

ADRIANA.

AFTER LEAVING ABADDON.

Damn you Anlai. Adriana cursed inwardly, she had been so close to the outer wall of Zenarli, and now this! A demon panther blocked her path, its velvety fur bristling with purple cinders in black fur. It let out a growl as Adriana came into view and it began to advance.

Exhaling heavily, Adriana inched back a pace as it advanced, her eyes not leaving the beast for a minute. She had no weapon to defend herself with, and a glance at her surroundings gave no solution to this problem.

She was defenseless.

Her intuition would have to serve her right now, she was too tired for any brawls, and most of her energy had been used in supporting Kali, who had insisted she go on without him. Adriana wasn't definitely not regretting the decision now. Imagine fighting a demon panther with a 'handicapped' friend at risk. It would have been dangerous.

Wait! Who said anything about fighting this thing?Adriana deadpanned inwardly.

Her breathing hurt with every ragged breath she took, sending sharp jolts of pain to her chest. Her every movement was lethargic but she could still feel the adrenaline rush in her veins.

The panther pounced forward unexpectedly swift, swifter than was possibly a normal animal. Its ferocious paws pushed Adriana to the ground, her posterior ached in protest.

Without giving space for thought, the panther began taking furious swipes at her face. Adriana had no time to wince as a slash caught her cheek, all her concentration was bent on avoiding the deathly paws that were concentrated on mauling her to death. With Adriana trying to repel the beast atop her, the dance of evading began. Sharp claws scratched at her skin, tearing fragments away. The attack caused blood to blossomfrom the cuts, and the sight of the blood sent the beast into a desperate frenzy.

Suddenly, the panther stopped its attempts at swiping and slashing, and immediately focused all its strength on bearing Adriana down. Its raging head was put to work, baring its fangs.

Oh, no you don't! Not the face. Adriana growled.

The demon panther was suddenly caught by a sharp right hook, sending its raging head to the side, and before it could swing back its head for a retaliatory chump, Adriana hastily pushed its body to the side. The panther lost its momentum and coordination over her body.

Imitating a barrel roll, Adriana rolled to the side, and hastily got up away from the panther. Adriana had barely reset her position when the panther got back on its feet(paws), it let out a feral earth-quake-inducing roar, that sent a blast of cold wind straight into Adriana.

The force of the windblast, lifted Adriana clean off her feet and back into a cart of cabbages, smashing both wood and cabbages to the ground.

"My cabbages!" A voice screeched from one of the buildings around.

 Adriana growled in pain, as she bent her back in a mild stretch on the cart, her eyes screwing shut for a moment. Another growl alerted Adriana to see the panther getting ready.

That's it! Adriana thought and let out a growl of her own, only it came out as a derisive cough. The panther stopped to look at her for a moment, its head tipping sideways.

Not bad Adi. She self-congratulated.

The panther let out an even louder roar that shook its furs. Its eyes glowed a deep blood red, fangs bared, and claws drawn, before launching itself forward for Adriana.

So much for that plan. Adriana thought, turning tail on impulse.

New plan. Run! She screamed the last wordat the top of her lungs. Adriana stumbled for a moment, her heart jamming wildly in her throat, before her legs hurriedly gained back momentum. She moved aside just in time for the panther to smash into where she had just been.

But the panther was not relenting and it immediately regained course and gave chase. Adriana's legs pumped up and down, reminding her of early morning workouts with the Uprising. Exhaustion tore at her muscles, her chest was a burning furnace, causing every breath to hurt more than the last.

The only thing that had kept Adriana going was sheer determination and hardened practice from her past life, but she could only take so much. Her bones were relenting, she was slowing down, she could hear the fast-paced breathing of the demon panther behind her in hot pursuit. It was drawing closer, excited to pounce on this orange-haired prey.

Adriana collapsed to the ground and the panther growled out an elated sound–A sound of victory no doubt.

This is the end. Adriana thought, falling face flat on the ground, her arms and legs sprawled all over. Her breath hitched out in short puffs of exhaustion and tire. Her eyes were tearing up slightly, due to accumulated sweat in her brows moving down into her eyes and tears at having her life about to be ended so fast.

It was all over now. It seemed the world was mocking her. Did you think you would escape death so soon? Why did you even try? They seemed to whisper all this, and all Adriana could do, was lie down and listen; exhausted, and waiting for the final strike, the coup de grace.

The demon panther closed the gap in a matter of seconds, and dug its sharp canines into Adriana's left foot. A scream tore out of Adriana's throat, as pain shook through her, her body convulsing fast, the scream draining away her energy the more. Black spots clouded her vision, threatening to drown her in blissful unconsciousness, but Adriana stubbornly held on, her whimpers mildly silenced by the throbbing of the blood gushing from her leg and the pain that accompanied each outward flow of blood.

The panther growled excitedly, as a crimson-coloured liquid gushed out of Adriana's leg and into his mouth. His tongue licked the thick, tangy copper taste of the blood in his mouth.

Moments passed before the demon panther suddenly raised its head from Adriana's leg, it could sense great vibration of magic coming at him.

But the panther sensed it too late. The blood lust had clouted its senses.

A sword cut through its head in one swipe.

The head and body of the panther immediately burst into flames, the panther and its excitement no more.

Abaddon swiftly rushed to where Adriana lay, her form wasn't moving.

Was she dead?  Was the first thought that crossed his mind.

"Hey, wake up" Abaddon called slowly. His hands lightly tapped at the side of Adriana's face. Her slightly tan face was flush with a pale pink colour and her lips parted open.

She wasn't responding. Abaddon realized with dread and immediately focused his magic on her body.

Fully aware that Anlai could come at any moment, he hastened his focus and directed his magic into her. Electric bolts of recovery magic snaked into her body, giving her body a blue halo glow, her hair stood on end, like a porcupine's.

"Come on," Abaddon urged, and the energy flowed faster, and the wound on Adriana's leg healed halfway, the blood spurting to a stop.

He was trying to rejuvenate her but he was short on energy and he needed every bit of the energy to battle Anlai and his supernatural forces.

Adriana jerked wide awake with the magic thrumming her awake, her body was vibrating with a throb of power, like an overdose of adrenaline, and she enjoyed it. Her eyes darted to the side as she propped herself halfway up, beside her was Abaddon staring at her with an interesting look on his face. His gaze on her face was intense in such a way that sent her blushing.

Abaddon glanced away when he regained composure of himself. He had just seen Adriana's eyes glow a faint orange color, the usual light browns seemed to brighten to a faint orange color. It looked beautiful and strange, like the power had activated hidden powers within her.

"Are you alright?" Abaddon asked as he helped her to her feet. His hands were on the small of her back, causing Adriana to flush a deep pink, the color spreading across her throat, barely noticeable.

Adriana grunted an affirmative in reply, not trusting herself to speak.

"Can you stand?" Abaddon asked her, a frown on his brows. Adriana nodded in reply.

Her body was still brimming with energy from Abaddon's magic healing powers, and for some reason, she felt alive, like she was just waking from bed, well-rested.

"You need to leave." Abaddon commanded, glancing at Adriana for her assent. Adriana's mind wandered to Kali and she prayed he was okay.

"Not yet," She replied.

"Why? He's just going to destroy you and you say not yet?" Abaddon retorted.

"I have to try," Adriana replied abruptly.

" Try what? He isn't even human" Abaddon groaned inwardly. This girl was as stubborn as a mule. What part of Anlai was not human did she not understand? Anlai was going to destroy her and she thinks she can just try?

If she were a demon, she might stand a chance.

Thunderstorms appeared some meters away from where they both stood and both of them needed no second telling to know who was there.

Anlai.

Sighing inwardly at Adriana's adamance, he conjured up a sword and threw it towards her and she glanced right back at him, her eyebrows furrowed in confusion. Then she looked at the sword on the ground and understood what it meant.

He was going to fight with her. They might as well end the fight with a blaze of glory and destroy Anlai... hopefully.

The thunderstorm disappeared in a crack of transparent light, leaving behind one of Adriana's nightmares.

Anlai.

"Adriana!" Was all Anlai growled as his eyes met hers? With an expression that could best be described as predator meets prey.

And Anlai was a predator.

Who was the prey?