The cave's chill air was a sharp slap that woke Fang. He rolled off the rough stone floor, muscles protesting after another uncomfortable night. His gaze immediately went to the spot where Smoke had been guarding him.
Empty.
Worry spiked. Fang sat up, eyes scanning the dark space. The smoke rabbit was gone. In its place lay a small, dark stone, emitting a faint, dim violet light.
"What the hell?" Fang muttered, crawling closer and grabbing the stone. It was cold, and an uneasy feeling spread in his body.
'I guess the mana wasn't enough for a whole night. I guess my mana capacity is too low for now.'
Fang realized the constraints of his mana and focused on his mana.
As his thumb brushed the stone, something echoed inside him.
An odd sense of familiarity.
He focused his energy, guiding a thin string of mana into the stone.
The reaction was instant.
A soft, dark mist flew out from his palm, swirling around his wrist and reforming into the familiar shape of Smoke.
Fang blinked; his grip tightened as the mist solidified into the ghostly rabbit, its glowing violet orbs glancing up at him.
Smoke rubbed against Fang's hand with his nose as Fang sat back against the cave wall, processing what had just happened.
"Hey little buddy, I guess you just needed to eat something to come back.
So, this stone is your home."
Fang looked at Smoke with a faint smile, still processing how amazing magic can be.
"I will make sure to carry it in my pocket for you."
"Looks like you eat mana for breakfast." Fang mused, scratching his head.
"Well. If I need to recharge it constantly, I will need to learn to see its mana capacity.
I got so much more learning to do."
He hoped he could hunt another pig, but he was practical.
'The first one was obviously tired and weak, but the next one could be much stronger.'
While pondering his next hunt, he washed his face in the little pond at the entrance to the cave.
"Alright, breakfast first," he said, heading out to find something that is breathing, hoping to make it his next meal.
As he moved through the forest, a thought came to his mind.
'What would happen if I reanimated something bigger, something more powerful? Would it also need to be charged like Smoke? One rabbit is enough to drain me considerably.
And what is the origin of those stones?'
He pushed the thoughts aside, focusing on food for now. As he picked his way through the underbrush, he couldn't help but feel a little better knowing he wasn't completely on his own anymore.
Smoke was by his side, hopping along intensely to catch up to Fang.
They walked for a while, Fang's mind rambling as he considered their next move.
Smoke seemed to be staying close, following Fang's every step.
The silence of the forest was broken only by the loud chirping voices and the occasional tree branch breaking that he stepped on.
Fang's eyes scanned the trees, searching for movement. 'A pig, maybe?'
His attention was quickly pulled to a rustling noise ahead of them.
His sharp golden eyes locked onto the wild pig just a few meters away, grazing lazily.
It was bigger than the last one, its thick black fur full of scars and burn marks.
Fang smiled to himself, adjusting the knife made of bones in his hand. He crafted it last night using the bones of the pig carcass he butchered a few days ago.
He ripped out some of the ribs to sharpen them up for a makeshift knife after his stone knife was dulling out.
He crouched, preparing to move in for the kill.
But just as he was about to make his move, a loud growl was heard.
Fang's instincts flared, and he turned around to see another boar charging straight at him. It was fast, way too fast for Fang.
Its ivory tusks were the scariest thing Fang saw after Asu, and it was headed straight for him.
Fang's eyes widened. There was no way he could get out of the way in time. Damn it!
Fang rolled to the side, barely evading the tusks but still getting hit by the boar's body.
The boar spun around quickly and prepared another charge.
Fang, still on the ground, tried to rile his magic, but the boar was just too fast for it.
The boar was 3 meters from him, but then something hopped out of the bush near Fang.
Just before the boar could reach him, something strange happened. A thick cloud of smoke erupted from beside him. Fang felt a gust of air whip around him, and the charging boar screeched to a halt, its eyes wide with panic.
The creature stepped back, confused and thrashing against the smoke.
It snorted and charged again, but the smoke didn't fade.
It enveloped itself around the boar's head, filling its nose, and choked the creature's breath. The pig began thrashing with no restraint, its desperate grunts turning into panicked squeals. It tried to turn, to escape, but the smoke was relentless, suffocating it in a tight grip.
Eventually, the boar managed to break out of the smoke screen and ran with the last of his dying breaths in his lungs.
Fang's eyes widened in shock. "Smoke!" he shouted.
Fang watched as the boar tried to sprint away, and he looked for the first boar, but he was nowhere to be seen.
"Smoke!" Fang repeated, shaking off the shock as he dropped to one knee, his hand stretched toward the dissipating mist.
The little smoke rabbit materialized beside him with a soft puff of violet smoke, looking completely unbothered by the chaos it had just caused. It twitched its ears and nuzzled against Fang's hand, as if it had done nothing more than chase a squirrel.
"You." Fang could not find his words, still in disbelief. "You just… did that?"
Smoke tilted his head, those violet eyes blinking slowly as if to say, "Of course."
It seemed like Smoke was more than just a companion.
'Did he really make him run away? And how much mana did it just cost?'
'Show mana'
{120/230}
Seeing a slight increase in his mana capacity, he was internally happy. However, this trick of Smoke cost him around 80 points of mana, which was not much considering his life was saved by a dead rabbit
"Alright," Fang muttered, still processing. "This is insane."
He stood up, brushing himself off.
"Thank you buddy, you're a lifesaver. Next time, tell me in advance so I can join in."
Smoke gave a low, rumbling sound, which Fang could only guess was a form of agreement. Or perhaps just an excuse to get more of Fang's attention.
'How can I be mad at this cutie patootie?'
"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Fang said with a wide grin.
His hand moved to the back of his neck, his thoughts circling. If Smoke could do that to a boar, what else could it do?
Fang took a deep breath, gathering his resolve.
He was new to dealing with the unknown, But he had to adapt.
"Alright, let's get that pig," he said, looking forward to scouting again for the pig from before.
"Stay close, Smoke," he murmured, eyeing the shadows of the trees.
The little smoke rabbit hopped beside him, its small paws hardly making a sound on the forest floor, blending with the shadows of nearby trees.
Fang kept his senses sharp as he moved forward, very keen on eating meat today.
He could feel Smoke's presence beside him. unseen, but always there.
It was reassuring, and yet... strange. Was Smoke more than just an extension of his power now? He could feel the mana presence of Smoke with his own body.
A few minutes later, A soft grunt broke his concentration, and Fang's eyes snapped to the left.
There it was, the boar from before, grazing near a small cluster of bushes.
This time, the boar was more alert, its tusks gleaming in the sunlight, but still, it didn't seem aware of Fang's presence yet.
Fang nodded to Smoke, signaling the plan. He'd get the first strike, but Smoke would need to keep the boar distracted long enough for him to get in close.
Without a sound, Fang crouched low, his bone knife ready. Smoke, sensing the moment, darted ahead.
A thick cloud of violet smoke erupted from the little rabbit, swirling in the air, blinding the boar. The creature snorted and pawed at the ground in confusion, trying to push through the smoke but only getting more disoriented.
The boar grunted, thrashing around in panic, its tusks jabbing into the air. Smoke's smoky form danced around the creature, staying just out of reach, leading it deeper into the confusion.
Fang grinned.
'Perfect.'
With the boar thoroughly distracted, Fang moved quickly, closing the distance. He felt the familiar, dark surge of energy from within him, his mana pooling into his hands.
His fingers curled, and tendrils of darkness shot out from his fingers, snaking on the ground toward the boar.
The tendrils wrapped around the boar's legs, dragging it down into the dirt with terrifying speed. The creature's voice erupted in surprise, struggling to free itself, but the tendrils tightened, holding it in place. It tried to thrash against the black smoke, but its efforts were in vain.
Fang's heart beat faster, the sensation of power rushing through him. He could feel the creature's life force draining into the tendrils, its body weakening as the death mana consumed it.
With a final squeal, the boar perished.
Smoke, having finished its spell around the boar, hopped back to Fang's side, watching with passive violet eyes as the boar finished his time on this land.
Fang stood over the dead boar, his tendrils returning to his palms.
He let out a long breath, feeling the relief of the kill. "Well, that was easier than I thought. Thanks to you, smoke."
He said while wiping his hand on his pants. Smoke rubbed his nose against Fang's leg, giving a little hop, as if proud of their work.
Fang looked down at the boar with a mix of satisfaction and hunger. "Not bad, Smoke. You were a great distraction.
And me, well, I guess I'm getting the hang of this whole 'death magic' thing.
Though this is quite disgusting."
'It's weird how easy it became for me to kill, like it isn't even a big deal.'
"Well, time to get to work. The sun is going to sleep soon."