The sound of waves crashing against the hull of the ship reached Talon's ears.
Right after that, the burning in his chest reminded him how he'd been discarded by his captain.
The hot liquid spilled out with no intention of stopping, and slowly, his life slipped away.
Finally, his blurry eyes saw a stormy sky and smoke clouds covering the wooden deck where he was lying.
"What the hell is going on?" Talon's thoughts were clouded by searing pain.
"What a waste... You should die in no more than five minutes, mortal." Talon's mind couldn't grasp where that grotesque voice was echoing from, but the air around him trembled with every word.
"Who are y–" blood began rising in his throat, cutting him off. The metallic taste mixed with stomach acid dulled his mind even more.
"Who I am doesn't matter, mortal... What matters is, do you wish to live?" The air vibrated even more and the few flames burning on the ship went out, leaving Talon bathed in moonlight fighting through the storm clouds to light the deck.
"I– I want to live, I need to tear a certain woman apart!" Talon began choking, the air leaving his lungs on the final syllables of hate.
Yo-hohoho
A laugh made Talon's bloodied lips tremble and his head drop to the side. As his vision faded, he could still make out dozens of tentacles dragging him toward a massive mouth filled with thousands of sharp teeth.
That was the last thing Talon saw before blacking out for the second time.
Squawk squawk squawk
The sound of seagulls woke him. The feeling of sand slipping through his fingers and the burning on his skin added just enough discomfort for Talon to force himself up.
As his eyes opened, he realized he was on the shore of some beach, just at dawn. The sun could be seen rising on the horizon.
"What a weird dream... I was–" his eyes widened and he ran a hand over his chest, just to feel his muscles and the hot sand sliding over them.
"What the fuck?"
Beep!
A flood of information being dumped into the former sailor's mind was driving him crazy. When he looked at his forearm, he saw a silver metal bracelet and remembered how close he'd been to dying.
"Some fucking voice and a silver orb saved me? What the hell was that dream?" Talon had too many questions, but a small holographic screen appeared above the bracelet, and his confusion multiplied.
[Name: Talon Thorne]
[Realm: Mortal]
[Path: Tyrant of the Seas]
[Affinity: Water, Ice, and Darkness]
[Initialization: Survive 24hrs on the Isle of Whispers]
[Stage 1 / 3]
"Was I transported into some kind of sick game? Or did that orb bring me here for other reasons?" Talon was as confused as anyone would be in that situation, but slowly, his military mind began to adjust.
"Okay, this has to be better than getting eaten by a bunch of sharks. First step, drinkable water."
Looking around, sharp rocks were scattered all over the shoreline. He started crawling through the sand, his body still bothered by something he couldn't quite place, but he shoved the thought aside.
The first few hours walking were uneventful, until he realized how completely unproductive they were. All he saw was sand, sea, and the forest on his right, which he was doing his best to avoid entering.
"Shit, there's probably some drinkable water in there. I saw several tracks heading that way, but this place gives off a hell of a bad vibe."
Drawing in a breath and building up courage, he stepped through the tall leaves and wild vegetation.
In many movies and even several military lectures Talon had attended, people always said how tough it was to survive without technological comforts. Maybe only one nation underestimated the jungle, but Talon wasn't one of them.
His sharp eyes scanned the moss-covered trees, the brightly colored animals he avoided like the plague, and he still had to watch the terrain. One wrong step and a broken bone could mean game over for the ex-soldier.
Of course, all that was his concern until just a few moments ago.
Because now, a damn Cero cub nearly two meters tall was charging at him, smashing everything in its path and scaring off any animal with half a brain.
"Son of a bitch! Bro, I just wanted the fruit on that tree, there's no need for this much rage over a fucking fruit!" Talon screamed in panic, throwing stealth to the wind.
How do you stay hidden when a half-ton Beast is chasing your ass?
"I need to find a way out... This little devil, who's not little at all, is gonna use me as a soccer ball." Talon looked around desperately for a solution.
Then his eyes saw an opening. The Cero was too heavy to make sharp turns, so he took advantage of a vine connecting two trees and swung like a proper man of the jungle.
His body cut through the air and slammed into another tree, but the Cero... crashed headfirst into the trunk of a massive tree.
Its horns, barely grown, were the size of short swords, but probably not mature enough to shatter a trunk that thick completely.
The sound of wood splintering and bones breaking echoed for hundreds of meters.
With his body aching from the impact, Talon stood up and stared at the scene.
The tree had split in half.
The strength of that little demon was far beyond what Talon had expected, but luck was on his side.
The trunk had fallen on top of the Cero, crushing its hindquarters and pinning it down.
Talon laughed like a demon and slowly approached the creature that should've been extinct. On the way, he looked for a slightly sharp rock.
"You know... Don't look at me like that. You made me run like a lunatic over some random fruit, and now you wanna play the victim?" Talon could see the Cero's blue pupils dilating.
"Well... I guess we really are back to the beginning. Just like Abel did to Cain... or was it the other way around? I always skipped religious classes." Fear slowly took over the young Cero's eyes.
The rock rose high, and finally...
Blood sprayed.