Chapter 10.

  Rematch

  Theodren made his way down the hill, once again lost in thought. He pondered Vitae, his, and that of the creatures and plant life surrounding the dusty road.Vitae was everywhere. It was in every blade of grass that danced in the morning breeze. It was certainly in the bees that flit from every flower to bush and tree of the countryside.

  As he watched he was amazed at the flow of it all. Vitae seemed to spring from the very earth itself. It flowed through the plants and into insects that relied upon them. The insects were merely carriers themselves. Delivering glorious life to the birds and even other insects that preyed upon them. He watched it flow through the ecosystem around him. So lost in its splendor he almost missed the massive ball of Vitae observing him from the brush up ahead.

  He froze. He had almost forgotten the bear that had ruined his shovel and one of his few shirts months prior. His artifact leapt to his hand, forming herself into a hammer. He was surprised at her speed and the form she took. It was true he had always preferred hammers, but this was a preference left unsaid. Especially around his fathers weapon masters who spoke of swords with words of poetry, and hammers with words of disdain.

  And yet, if he could have requested a hammer from his fathers many smiths, it would have looked much like the one his new artifact had made for him. From flared pommel to engraved head it would stand exactly even with his navel. The handle possessed grooves that fit his fingers comfortably without restricting his ability to shift positions. The length of it seemed to be covered in wicked thorns that would prevent an enemy from grabbing it mid melee. The head itself was two sided with the flat stud covered face of a maul on one end and a curved spike on the other. Both served exceptionally at their respective tasks of crushing and piercing armor. Atop the hammer sat a large spike meant for thrusting and keeping distance when needs be. He took a moment to admire its new form with eyebrows raised nearly to his hairline. An experimental swing of the hammer confirmed that she was incredibly well balanced. Certainly more than the shovel was at his last encounter with the bear.

  He peered down the road to where the large ball of vitae was rooting around in the brush. He knew that most bears emerged from winter hungry and in poor spirits and he doubted this one would be any exception. He continued down the road step by measured step, his weapon gripped tightly in his hand. He reached his other hand up toward the top of the shaft. The thorns adorning the handle receded into the wood at his touch. Gratitude toward the hammer filled his mind as he pressed on.

  The bear paused. a familiar annoying scent filled its nose as it raised its shaggy head. There through the bushes was the human with the painful stick from seasons ago. It’s nose had taken many months to heal properly, and as the mother bear recalled the pain, she had enough sense to stay in her patch of brush. Unfortunately, her son had not.

  ROOOOOAAAARRR! Theodren whirled around as a second ball of fur and vitae barreled out of the trees behind him. Full of fire and a need to prove itself the bear charged the man with the stick.

  Nearly as big as its mother it swung a meaty paw at Theodren. Wielding his new hammer, he batted the paw away, allowing the momentum of the hammer to carry through into a second swing for the bear’s ribs. A wet crack filled the air as they broke beneath the head of his maul.

  The young bear dropped back down to all fours blood dripping from its mouth as it let loose a gurgling growl of pain. Ribs pulverized and head swimming in pain, it glared at Theodren. Unbowed and unwilling to give up the fight, it charged once more, slower this time as it sought to gore the man with the painful stick.

  Theodren barked a laugh as he brandished his hammer at it. The joy he felt in combat was unbecoming of a priest, but he relished it all the same. His vitae, his very soul sang at the challenge. His might against another. The strength of his arm and the depth of his skill ruled the moment. His troubles were far away. All that was before him was instinct and triumph, should he seize it.

  The bear's swings came slower and slower. It’s mighty roar now a groaning whine. Theodren parried, blocked and smashed his way through the bear’s assault.

  The bear swung down at him with rage and gravity behind its meaty paw. Theodren sidestepped the blow, bringing the spike of his hammer down on the paw pinning it to the dirt below. Roaring fury at the priest, the bear snapped his jaws at Theodren.

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  He leaned back narrowly avoiding yellow and pointed teeth. Yanking his hammer free he jabbed with the top point of Creatia as he hopped backwards, scoring only a shallow wound above an eye. Theodren’s laughter boomed to the trees and bush beside the road where the mother bear, unable to watch any longer charged into the fray.

  The mother bear shouldered past a confused and wary Theodren who stumbled into a guard. Mother bear positioned herself between the man with the painful stick and her foolish cub. Growling at the man she stood her ground.

  Theodren sensed something in the mother bear. Her Vitae perplexed him. As he focused on the bears life force, it began to take on whisps of color he had not noticed before. Flecks of yellow and red danced over the pool of green he was accustomed to seeing. The bear’s face was unreadable, but her soul swam with rage and a healthy amount of fear.

  Theodren’s blood cooled rapidly. Faced as he was with the fear of a mother for her child he found that his taste for this battle was gone. The vineling unraveled from her form to slither back up his wrist and bind herself to his arm.

  As the hammer disappeared from sight the adrenaline the young bear was using to stay on his paws disappeared as well. Slumping to the ground with a groan, blood poured from his mouth to mix with the dust of the road to create a cruel puddle of mud.

  Theodren observed his handiwork with a growing sense of unease. He felt no regret at defending himself, but watching the mother bear keen over the form of her unconscious son unsettled him.

  “Dammit! Do NOT eat me you understand?” He jabbed a finger at the mother bear who looked up at him incredulously. Yellow and purple appearing at the edges of her vitae. Confusion perhaps? He thought as he inched closer to the downed bear.

  The mother bear growled at him but made no move of her own as he placed a hand on the coarse fur of the bears head. He reached deep with his vitae. The stream of life force flowed from his hand into the bear like water from a spigot.

  Suddenly he was bombarded with information. He groaned as his head was filled with the sensory information of the wounded bear. Broken ribs, a punctured lung, a broken paw and several other smaller but no less painful fractures, ruptures and contusions. He allowed himself a moment of reluctant pride amidst the cacophony of pain that flooded his senses.

  His mind railed against the pain. Unsure and untrained he had no solution but to push back the pain with the only resource he had. Vitae. He pushed his store of vitae at the connection between him and the bear hoping to distance himself from the creature's pain. When it started to work he pushed further. Regaining his concentration he pushed the vitae into the bear. Shepherding it towards its many injuries. Desperate to be free of the pain and to complete his task he pushed with all his soul until he felt the vitae begin its work on the injured organs.

  His shoulders slumped as he began to allow himself the feeling of triumph over his task. He watched as the ribs began repairing themselves and the damaged cells of the bears lungs began to regrow, and then continued to grow. And then overgrow there bounds, spilling over previous confines of the lung.

  “SHIT!” Theodren sprang back into action. He had fed too much vitae to the bear’s wounds and now the cells had become cancerous. Consuming their neighbors at a rapid pace.

  Mentally kicking himself, Theodren reached for the vitae desperate to drag it back into himself. It came quickly, fleeing the corrupted cells as they withered almost instantly, but where one died more grew. He cursed as he fought to find every rapidly growing cell in the enormous body. He pulled and pulled for what felt like hours. Frantically clawing back his mistake.

  By the end of it the sun was high in the sky as the late spring air chilled his body now drenched in sweat. Crouched down on the balls of his feet. He rocked back onto his heels before sitting down in the dirt.

  He had spent what seemed to be hours teetering back and forth between too much and not enough Vitae for the bear. By now he was as sure as he could be that he had stomped out every greedy cell that he could find without outright destroying the organs the bear relied upon.

  The result was a young bear that was only mostly dead. Its organs were fragile and raw but they would recover.

  Theodren jumped as the young bear groaned. He scrambled to his feet panting and looking around for the mother bear who was opposite his position nudging her son with her snout. The young bear groaned louder as it struggled to get up.

  Theodren let out a sigh as the bear swayed on its feet. “Serves you right, you angry bastard.” The young bear's vitae was a similar color of confusion and fear his mother was displaying in the hours prior. He looked to her now to see flares of blue and emerald amidst her vitae.

  “Hope that means happy.” Theodren mumbled. Hearing him both bears turned their attention on the priest.

  “Whoa. Hey now. Don’t make me do that again.” He took a step back remembering that these were in fact wild animals. The mother bear approached slowly, head slightly tilted.

  Theodren looked for any signs of the red he associated with anger in her vitae but found none. Approaching his chest she sniffed at the scar, faded though it was, she had left him with before. Letting out a huff she turned.

  He watched as the mother bear once again herded her large cub back into the brush. Leaving Theodren exhausted and confused in the middle of the road.

  After a moment of reflection over the odd encounter. He shook himself and turned back toward town. Elleina would never believe this.