Eodum's eyes widened but quickly narrowed once more. Why was Kali out here? It could be inferred that because of the attack on her village, she ran away to live another day, but Eodum couldn't but be suspicious. After all, Eodum only really trusted Henry and Sheila, and with them being gone, Eodum was on edge around everyone. A low and quiet growl rumbled from Eodum's throat unwittingly, and Kali's head whipped around.
Her eyes frantically looked around, but easily found her mark on Eodum. Sparkling light blinked over Eodum's bottomless black coat, and white, narrowed eyes watched her in return. A squeak of fear also escaped her own body at the sight of the being that she found the most fear in.
Even though this being was the one that saved her and Nomed from Ksilisab, because of the sight of how easily it managed to slaughter the beast, an overwhelming, natural - primal - fear resounded in her core. The most recent rampage from Eodum, aimed towards her, only served to reinforce her unease. She shivered in the face of the being that plagued her most recent nightmares, and her body refused to answer her internal screams, frozen like a deer in the headlights.
Eodum also froze, but for the reason of that of a predator instead of those of the prey. Legs tightened in anticipation. Jaws widened, ready to snap shut if given a reason. Bright, shining eyes locked on Kali's trembling form, narrowed because of focus.
Eodum's eyes, despite being locked on Kali, darted around to the ignorance of Kali. No one else was in Eodum's line of sight, only a lone Kali. Muscles relaxed and jaws came together. Eyes softened a bit, losing their previous ferocity. Vocal chords and anatomy shifted, becoming capable of speech. The now speech-able Eodum interrogated, "Kali, what are you doing here?"
She whimpered slightly, answering, "I-I ran here with my family, but… the u-undead got to them first. I ran b-because there was nothing left for me to do. There w-were too many of them, and by the time I saw the bodies, they were a-already…" She cut off there, sobbing quietly at the memory of her lost family. While another being might have had some pity and empathy for her, Eodum was only looking for whether it was the truth.
Eodum didn't think she would need a reason to lie, but she could have also been sent by the demon army to keep an eye on Eodum. At the moment, Eodum couldn't say, but the unwarranted slaughter of innocents couldn't help. For now, Eodum would just need to keep an eye on her and act afterwards. With a distrustful eye, Eodum continued questioning, "Did you see anyone before you came here?"
"W-what?" She blubbered out in between her heavy sobs.
"Did you see anyone before you came here?" Eodum repeated.
She weeped a little more, albeit lessened because of the conversation, "N-no, I don't think so."
Eodum watched her facial features, determining she wasn't lying, or she was just very good at it. From what little Eodum learned about Kali, she was an ex-pure silver adventurer. She was known for her red, flaming gauntlets that contrasted her bluish skin. She could launch out flaming fists made of her aura, and she was quite the formidable opponent. Of course, she retired from that life, so she weakened, albeit only a little. Even at full strength however, it's doubtful whether she was capable of fighting off the demon army. If others were even a quarter of the strength of the lizardman, Eodum had the feeling Kali wouldn't last more than a second.
The rat's eyes softened, barely, and it warily approached her. She kept on weeping and whimpering until she saw Eodum's slowly approaching shape. She let out a small, high-pitched cry of fear. While she was quite strong herself, maybe on par or more capable than Eodum, her fears made Eodum seem like an insurmountable obstacle that she could never win against.
Stepping closer and closer, she shrunk further away. Eodum's body rippled and distorted, stretched and twisted, and finally, Eodum appeared in its human form. A small portal opened and Eodum's rope-like tail pulled clothes out from the void. Its body shifted into the clothes, finally ending up as the form Eodum had first met Kali without the wrappings covering its dark, furred skin.
She watched the whole thing in awe and terror, forgetting that she was in front of a deadly predator. Eodum reached out to her, palm up, and softly said with feigned empathy, "Stand up. Sitting there won't do you any good."
She vigilantly studied the hand and its sharpened tips. Eodum was the cause of her fear, but really, it hadn't done anything to hurt her. She knew this, deep down, but her mind ran off of instincts at the moment. Terror raddled her mind, and all she wanted to do was runaway. The helpful hand passed to her looked like a menacing talon, waiting for prey to fall in its grasp.
She wanted to run.
She ran.
Turning to legs from her cowering position in practiced efficiency, she bounded away with all her might. Muscles of those of a minotaur wrapped tightly around rigid bones to create the slim figure of a dellich. Still though, she found herself taller than most, if not all, dellich, therefore, her gait was much larger than that of her dellich peers. The muscles of a minotaur, the flexible and agile frame of a dellich, and the trained power of a veteran adventurer. These things all made her a formidable opponent in multiple fields… including fleeing.
Eodum ran after, using its shape shifting abilities to avoid obstacles, and with the enhanced body from multiple skills and stat boosts, Eodum sprinted close behind. Still, she was faster however, and it seemed she was gaining ground from Eodum.
As they wound up in an open field surrounded by the trees of the forest of Kraude. There, in the middle of the opening in the forest, were two beings battling. One, was a giant worm: a normal worm, but large enough to swallow a house, with leathery skin, and a huge, gaping mouth full of razor sharp teeth. The other was a being of legends: a gray dragon with stone intertwined with skin.