Chereads / The Vampire Begins / Chapter 13 - Chapter 13 - Options?

Chapter 13 - Chapter 13 - Options?

Zura "quickly" made his way away from the scene of battle, doing far better than he had initially assumed. Given his diminutive stature, his legs were really moving. He went back around the corner and tried to find a place to check his status and come up with a plan, seeing as how he had just lost his greatest advantage, however how could a dungeon really be so easy?

He had made it no more than 30 feet when he heard the sound of something slicing through the air in the distance. He stopped and crouched down, ready to evade. Then, with no hesitation, he unleashed [echolocation]. Only this time he did not use the system prompt. He had already internalized the feeling of using it in the air the first time and replicated the action. The result was slightly less amplified, however it got the job done and he felt a greater level of control over the ability. Far ahead of him, up near the ceiling, slicing between stalactites, similar to himself in his glory days, was a beast that resembled a falcon in almost every way. The only differences were the claws that protruded from its four appendages and the razor sharp teeth that seemed to glisten even without the reflection of light in the cave. The claws looked to be about the size of one of his arms and each of the teeth, larger than his head. Let's not mention the wings that seemed to literally cut the wind. Zura felt a surge of apprehension bubbling up from within his stomach, but then quickly buried it. Fear is a limiter. He knew he couldn't outrun it, so he could only focus on how to best it.

'I could do another sonic blast.' Zura thought to himself, letting his subconscious mind flow at a speed that left the bird seeing an afterimage.

'However, that would mean that I once again lose out on possible strength, which I desperately need currently.'

{System, information on the bird, text form. Show me}

Zura knew that he did not have time to listen to that robotic voice tell him one thing after another. It was much faster to see it, process, and analyze it himself.

[Adult Winged Condor: Tier 2. Characteristics: Enhanced flight maneuverability, Wind cutter, Steel Claws. Gender: Female.]

Zura looked past the text at the condor starting its dive straight for him. He could imagine that in it's eyes he looked like a ready made meal.

'I cannot run from it. Dodging its initial dive would be difficult but not impossible. Likeliest option of walking away unscathed would be the sonic blast. Preferable option would be for me to get close enough to engage [blood drain] but how?' At this moment, it had been 3 seconds since Zura used echolocation to spot the condor. Tension started to form between his brows as he pushed his mind.

'No time to overthink, Zura. An action needs to be taken if you're going to avoid…wait a minute.'

*Ding* A lightbulb just lit over Zura's head.

A calm look passed over his previously resolute face. His features relaxed, he stood up straight, and he waited.

The Condor dove straight for Zura and perhaps it was the fact that the little bat was staring right at it in a relaxed manner, or it was due to the bat not taking the expected course of running away, but for whatever reason, the condor halted its dive no more that 5 feet from Zura and stared at him. He continued to stand there, watching. A very human-like expression of contemplation appeared on the face of the predator and after a second it seemed to have reached an understanding. When Zura saw the frown he felt uncertainly creeping in, however upon seeing the look of certainty appear on the condor's face, he once again felt no need to move. In the next second, the condor flapped its wings once and then quickly lowered down, scooping Zura up in its talons, before flying them both up into the air. Now, all Zura could do was wait some more to see if he was right or wrong and whether he would live or die.