The Lur'drake snarled at the group, it's tail raised above its head, ready to strike. 

"Run" screamed Fennyr, baring his claws for battle. The others obliged, turning and sprinting away from the monster. But before they could get very far, two more creatures fell from the heavens and stopped them in their tracks. 

The group was surrounded. The two Lur'drake looked the same as the first but with variations in their fur and scales.

Fennyr's heart sank. He hadn't heard of anyone defeating one Lur'drake, let alone three. Nonetheless, Fennyr refused to go down without a fight. Talons outstretched, he leapt at the first Lur'drake, roaring. The creature easily dodged the attack. Surprisingly agile for something with only two forearms, it doubled back and attacked with it's tail. Fennyr ducked the poisonous stinger, then struck at the beast's underbelly, just as he did to Dulkrn in the arena. To his great surprise, his talons bounced off the hard exoskeleton, not even leaving a scratch. Although no damage was made, the Lur'drake screeched with anger and swung it's tail at him once more.

The fact that the creature led with the same attack twice in a row, so Fennyr implied, showed that the Lur'drake's military intelligence was very low. 

Now expecting the attack, Fennyr ducked once more. The stinger continued it's path above his head and embedded itself in the bark of the oak tree behind the monster. The Lur'drake screeched again. The shriek was an unearthly cacophony of many sounds at once; the dry scraping of talons on stone, the low growl of a wolf in the undertones, and, worst of all, the tortured scream of a dragon. 

His opponent now delayed, Fennyr turned to the others. They were faring pretty well under the circumstances, but as Fennyr watched, it was clear to him that his friends were losing. 

I have to protect them. He internally yelled. He ran to the battle.

As he sprinted, it seemed as if everything was slowing down in time. Fennyr saw the poisonous stinger aiming at Pyria. He saw her terrified face as the tail arced nearer and nearer. He saw his own forearm as it reached towards the deadly syringe. As he felt the pain of the impact as the base of the stinger connected with his arm, stopping the tail in it's tracks. 

The beast howled, it's muzzle a tail-length away from Fennyr's own and he answered it's rage with a fireball to its wolf-like head. It wailed and raised it's dragon forepaws to it's furry face to put out the flame. The fire still smoldering, it bared it's teeth and growled at Fennyr. A tongue of flame had landed in it's open eye and was slowly burning away the scarlet orb. 

The creature held back from attacking Fennyr again. It's hesitancy surprised Fennyr who thought the Lur'drake devoid of pain or fear. 

"Fennyr! LOOK OUT!" Pyria's voice cut through the fight. He turned slightly to see what danger she was in and caught a glimpse of movement in the corner of his eye. Reacting more on instinct than conscious thought, Fennyr ducked away from the movement, just in time to duck the fang of the third Lur'drake as it dove at him. He ran a short way away from the creature and turned around to fight. 

It was then that he looked down at his forearm and he knew that he had not escaped unscathed. A black substance bubbled at his scales. Fennyr felt the pain, pain that he had never felt before, pain that seemed to rock him at the very center of his being. Pain like that seemed not of this world but of some other demonic land.

Fennyr screamed with agony and fell to the ground. Get up! His thoughts shrieked at him. You have to protect them!  But his body refused to obey his demands. 

Fennyr lay prone as the Lur'drake circled ever closer to the group. The first creature finally ripped free of the tree that it's tail was impaled in, reducing the trunk to splinters. The beasts lazily strode toward them, all hurry gone, sure of a kill.

Fennyr watched in a daze, all thought consumed by pain. 

Suddenly, the Lur'drake backed away and simultaneously snarled at the trees. A dark figure leapt out of the branches above, brandishing a dagger. 

For an instant, everything went black. Slowly, Fennyr fought his way back to consciousness. When he opened his eyes, the Lur'drake were gone. The stranger was standing there, his blade coated with the same black substance that was on Fennyr's forearm. 

"Who....Who are you?" He heard his own voice croak. 

The stranger turned and grinned, a carefree smirk that was both likable and arrogant at once. His forearm that held the knife had a coil of gold around it. 

The last thing Fennyr heard before void took control and dragged him under was his savior's answer.

"Auhek." The stranger answered.