Aziel slipped into the cave entrance, moving without a sound.
He gave the Crazy Beast a head start, wanting to maintain a safe distance, ensuring the creature remained unaware of his presence following it.
The air inside the cave was instantly cooler and carried the same sickeningly sweet, metallic tang of blood and decay he'd smelled outside, only much stronger here. The light from the entrance faded quickly, plunging the cave into a murky gloom. It wasn't pitch black — faint, ambient light filtered in from unseen cracks or reflected off damp surfaces, enough for Aziel's eyes to slowly adjust.
The cave wasn't that large, but it wasn't cramped either. The ceiling arched overhead, lost in shadow, and the width allowed for easy movement, though the uneven floor littered with loose rocks demanded careful footing. Stalactites, like stony teeth, dripped moisture occasionally, the sound echoing softly in the enclosed space.
Straight ahead, the cave seemed to end, but a distinct passage curved away sharply to the left, disappearing around a bend.
From that direction, around the unseen corner, came the disturbing sounds Aziel had dreaded.
He heard the Crazy Beast's bizarre, high-pitched laughter, mixed with deep mumbling that couldn't be understood.
Then came the sharp, sickening crack of what sounded disturbingly like bone snapping, followed swiftly by two heavy thuds. The noises sent a shiver down Aziel's spine, increasing his fears about Dr. Hana and Jonas's fate.
Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Aziel began to move forward.
He placed each foot with deliberate care, testing the ground before putting his full weight down, avoiding loose pebbles that might skitter and exposed his presence.
His senses were on high alert, straining to catch any further sound, any sign of movement ahead.
The echoes from the bend continued.
He advanced slowly, cautiously, towards the leftward bend, knowing danger surely awaited just around the corner.
He paused, listening intently.
From the space just beyond his sight, a manic voice now shrieked, much louder, "My toy! My toy!" It broke into happy and strange laughter, "Gigitty gigitty!"
At the same time, the nasty smell of rot and dried blood hit Aziel, almost too strong to take.
Taking a slow, silent breath, Aziel carefully peered around the corner.
The passage opened into a larger chamber. Its full dimensions swallowed by the deep shadows clinging to the walls and ceiling. The ambient light here was even dimmer than in the entry passage, making details hard to discern immediately.
What little light existed seemed to catch on pale, scattered objects littering the floor — bones.
Bones of various sizes, some bleached white with age, others still disturbingly fresh-looking, lay all over the uneven ground. The source of the awful smell was undeniable now; this was the creature's lair.
His eyes scanned the chamber, adjusting to the low light, trying to make sense of the scene.
Then he saw him.
Jonas.
The large man lay slumped on the floor, near the edge of the visible space. He was completely still in a horrible way, clearly unconscious.
One look confirmed Aziel's grim interpretation of the sounds he'd heard earlier.
Both of Jonas's legs were bent at unnatural angles, the bones likely shattered. His large hands were pinned beneath big stones, effectively trapping him. A dark, wet patch stained the rock behind his head, matching the injury Aziel had witnessed from the clifftop.
Then, his eyes darted to a spot not far from Jonas.
Standing with its back turned towards Aziel was the Crazy Beast. It seemed completely absorbed in something in front of it.
The creature made a gurgling sound.
Then, with startling speed, it bent down and scooped something limp off the floor. For an instant, Aziel couldn't process what he was seeing.
The beast straightened up, holding the form aloft in one of its massive, hairy hands. With a sudden, violent motion, it hurled the shape upwards.
There was a dull, wet thud as the form hit the cave ceiling high above. It then plummeted back down, landing with a sickening impact on the stony floor.
It was Dr. Hana.
Her body was ragdoll-limp, covered in dirt and dark, spreading stains of blood. Her limbs were positioned awkwardly, hinting at injuries similar to, or worse, than Jonas's, though Aziel couldn't see the details clearly from his position.
She showed no signs of consciousness.
The Crazy Beast watched her fall, tilted its head, and then let out another delighted laugh.
It shuffled closer to her still form, nudging her torso roughly with one of its insect-like feet, treating her like a toy to be tossed and broken without a shred of empathy.
Hidden around the corner, observing the horrific scene, Aziel felt a surge of cold fury mix with urgency. There was no more time for observation. He had to act now.
Focusing his will, Aziel reached inward, calling upon one of the arms in his collection. He pictured the arm taken from the Crazy Beast he'd accidently slain in the Elysian Forest — the Papa arm.
Almost instantly, the limb materialized beside him in the dim cave light, and falling to the ground.
It was about 2 meters long, looking pale. with bony fingers ending in wickedly sharp claws.
Following Aziel's silent command, the Papa arm snapped rigid, straightening like an iron bar. The fingers slammed together, the knuckles cracking audibly, and the already sharp claws grinding against each other until they fused into a single, brutal point at the arm's tip.
Aziel then picked up and grabbed the arm, holding its base.
With a grunt, he flung it forward with massive force, like he was throwing a spear.
The Papa arm shot across the chamber, a dark blur against the gloom, aimed squarely at the Crazy Beast's back — specifically, the vulnerable, segmented abdomen resembling an ant's.
SHLUK!
The arm-spear struck true, piercing through the creature's tough exoskeleton with a sickening squelch. It embedded itself deep within the beast's torso.
"SKREEEEEEE!" The Crazy Beast shrieked.
It whirled around, its human face contorted in pain and surprise, trying to reach the offending limb stuck in its back.
This was Aziel's chance.
While the beast was momentarily stunned and distracted, he burst out from his hiding spot.
Sprinting across the uneven, bone-littered floor towards Jonas, Aziel simultaneously summoned his other arm's collection — the Samurai arm. It appeared beside him as he ran, and he grabbed it above the elbow.
As Aziel skidded to a halt beside Jonas's motionless body, the Samurai arm darted down, its fingers nimbly gripped and unsheathing the sword strapped to Jonas's waist.
The Crazy Beast, despite the Papa arm jutting from its back, locked its eyes onto Aziel. The pain seemed to vanish from its expression, replaced by a disturbing, gleeful excitement.
"Yay! A new toy!" it shrieked, its voice dripping with mad delight.
Ignoring the impaled arm, the creature reached down with one of its gorilla-like arms and clamped onto Dr. Hana's limp leg.
With horrifying strength, it swung her unconscious body off the ground, preparing to use her as a makeshift club.
It lurched towards Aziel, raising Dr. Hana high for a devastating blow.
Reacting purely on instinct, Aziel shoved the Samurai arm forward, launching it through the air directly towards the Crazy Beast's arm that held Hana.
Simultaneously, he braced himself, arms outstretched, ready to intercept Hana's body.
The Crazy Beast swung down.
Just as Hana's body hurtled towards him, Aziel caught her, absorbing the impact, his muscles straining to cushion the momentum and prevent further injury.
At the exact same moment, the flying Samurai arm, wielding Jonas's sword in a blur of motion, sliced cleanly through the Crazy Beast's thick gorilla wrist.
"GAAARGH!" The Crazy Beast bellowed again, stumbling back as its severed hand, still gripping Hana's ankle, fell to the ground. Dark fluid sprayed from the stump.
Aziel gently lowered Dr. Hana to the cave floor beside Jonas, ensuring she was out of the immediate path of danger.
His eyes flickered towards the Samurai arm as it landed near the severed hand.
No time to waste. Aziel immediately shifted his focus back to the Papa arm, still half-embedded in the Crazy Beast.
He sent a mental command: Rip! Tear!
Inside the creature's body, the Papa arm obeyed. Its sharpened, fused claws began to thrash violently, shredding muscle, organs, and chitin from within.
"SKREEEEEEEEEEEEECH!"
The Crazy Beast buckled, staggering wildly, clutching at its abdomen as its insides were torn apart.
Seizing the moment, Aziel dashed forward, scooped up the Samurai arm and the sword it had dropped.
Gripping the limb firmly, he closed the distance to the Crazy Beast.
With it momentarily debilitated by the internal assault, Aziel directed the Samurai arm. It raised the sword high, and brought it down in a swift, precise arc.
SHINK!
The blade sliced through sinew and bone at the base of the creature's neck.
The creepy human head tumbled from its shoulders, rolling across the cave floor with a dull thud before coming to rest face-up. Its expression frozen in a final rictus of pain and madness. Its body swayed for a second, then collapsed heavily on the floor.
Silence descended upon the cave, broken only by Aziel's heavy breathing and the slow, steady drip of water from the ceiling.
The Crazy Beast was dead.