CLANG!

I burst awake and immediately rose to my feet and poked my head through the entryway of my sleeping cave; Mission day. My tail lashed back and forth as I fully emerged from the box.

"MISSION DAY," a Master's voice echoed through the room, "OBJECTIVE: DESTROY." A swirling black portal with grey specks appeared between me and the door to my cell.

I instinctively lunged and dove through the swirling magic disk. I couldn't see in the portal except for tiny flashes that sparked in the corner of my eyes. After a brief moment where I felt suspended in the air as I traveled through the portal, my paws landed on solid ground.

Firstly, I summoned my armor, then took to the skies, then looked down at my surroundings. Stone and wood structures littered the landscape, many of which were on fire. Stellans and Master's monsters littered the ground, but it seemed like the monsters outnumbered the cloaked hominoids.

The densely forested land on the edges of town looked so calm and green compared to both the settlement and the island I had spent most of my life on. A line of rippling blue-green water passed through the town and smelled fresher than the salty water of the ocean I had never seen, only smelled and heard.

A small part of me longed to splash and play in the waves and explore the vast forest without barriers.

NO. I suppressed that side of me with a growl and refocused on the black and red town. Monsters flawlessly obey Master's orders. We do not go off and freely wander forests and swim in rivers. Monsters complete the mission. Before that small part of me could argue again, I added, I am a monster. Monsters complete missions and do not ask questions.

If there is one thing I know for sure, it is the fact that I am a monster. I was born a monster, and I will always be a monster.

With a grin on my face, I blasted a bit of magic towards one of the massive wooden structures and caused it to explode into pieces and satisfyingly collapse into a pile of rubble. Shrapnel flew into the surrounding area and impaled everything in range of the blast, Stellan, object, and monster alike.

Much to my delight, things screamed in pain as they were impaled or crushed by debris. All the while, I was completely safe from my aerial view.

I gleefully laughed as I circled the chaotic town along with a few other flying beings. Pained screams and ferocious roars from below filled my ears. I flexed my paws, itching to cause more destruction. I took a deep breath of the smoky air and exhaled with a grin. It smells like destruction; I love it.

A strange object whistled by my ear, barely missing the spiked armor that covered my entire form. I growled and glared at the ground as I circled, scanning the town for the one who had shot the object at my head.

Another whistling object narrowly missed my wing. However, this time, I spotted the origin of the attack: a cloaked Stellan man in the window of one of the wood structures.

Destroy Everything." Master's voice rang through the entire town and reverberated through my mind like a spell.

Destroy. I released a gravelly growl and dove towards the window with my front paws outstretched and magic-enhanced claws ready to kill my enemy.

An arrow deflected off of my armor-covered forehead, and the Stellan's eyes widened. He fled from the open window seconds before I crashed through the wall in an explosion of stone and glass.

My assailant futilely attempted to shield his from the debris with an arm, but the sharp shrapnel sliced through his clothing, and cuts appeared on any exposed skin. Then, my claws slashed into him, shortly followed by my full weight.

The cloaked Stellan crumpled under my weight with a chorus of cracking sounds and never moved again.

Something large and pink shattered against the side of my face, harmlessly breaking against my armor.

I growled and whipped my head towards my new assailant, then glared at the woman who had thrown the object. I mindlessly growled as

I dropped into a crouch with my head low and flat ears.

She froze beneath my gaze. I towered over her by a few feet. For a few moments, we remained still. Her wide silver eyes stared at me from beneath a few strands of dark pink hair.

Destroy destroy destroy. I made the first move and stepped over the shards of opaque glass towards the Stellan woman. 

She attempted to step back and stumbled slightly.

I lunged and collided with the woman and grabbed her neck in my jaws. My weight crushed her, and a metallic taste filled my mouth. Once I was sure she was dead, I released the Stellan from my grasp and laughed darkly down to the limp humanoid shape. Master will be so proud.

A tiny squeak reached my ears from in front of me, quickly followed by a cascade of footsteps.

My focus immediately whipped away from the woman and towards the origin of the sounds. After I released a growl, I mindlessly stalked after the creator of the prey-like sounds. I squeezed through the narrow doorway, then listened for more signs of the last living creature in the building.

Hiccuping sounds lead me down a short hallway and towards a room filled with wooden structures and seemingly random objects I didn't recognize. Here. I forced my way into the room and approached the source of the whimpers.

A growl reverberated in my throat as I stalked the rectangular object that hid my new prey. The wooden box was thick on the sides and top, but the bars that protected the entrance seemed flimsy in comparison to the rest of the container.

The sound ceased as I further neared the cage with colorful clutter all over the top. I still saw a tiny bit of movement behind the brown bars, and I swiped the blockade away with a swipe of my paw.

Pathetic. The wood splintered; pieces catered noisy to the floor a few feet in the direction I had knocked them and at the base of the entrance to the enclosure. Too easy. I darkly chuckled.

The identity of the being in the dark space was a tiny Stellan less than half the size of the two I had just killed. Her white cloak offered her little in ways of protection, despite her attempts to wrap herself in the material.

Easy. I grinned darkly at my prey as silver eyes peeked over her shoulder and trembled in fear. I jumped forward, my magic-enhanced claws poised to strike and fulfill Master's order. Destroy.

Suddenly, before I even touched my prey, a bright silver light flooded my vision; my face slammed into the top of the cubical recess. My mind flooded with white upon impact. I squeezed my eyes shut and stumbled backward, in massive pain, but a majority of it was not from the blow to the head.

No, my entire being hurt, inside and out. I could not decide which feeling felt worse: the physical pain or the strange internal pain. I have no idea how I remained on my feet as nausea engulfed me.

My armor faltered, then failed as I shook my head and tried to remain on my wobbling feet, my eyes still closed to the world.

I couldn't think straight.

What was I doing?

Why was I doing it?

Why do I feel this way?

What is this feeling?

Why does it hurt?

Something is wrong.

After several moments, I managed to stabilize myself and slowly opened my eyes to see the same terrified face. The hood of the white and pink cloak moved with each of my pain-induced heavy exhales.

She was still trembling. "H-help me, please." A weak, strained voice squeaked from the tiny Stellan.

The internal pain worsened to an almost unbearable degree.

I have to get her out of here, to somewhere safe.

I paused. Why do I need to do that? Does it matter? She needs to be taken to a safe place away from the chaos.

Slowly, the throbbing pain in my stomach subsided. However, I continued to breathe heavily. My muscles still trembled. My mind came up blank, but I couldn't explain why. I just knew I needed to save her.

I slowly stepped forward and grabbed the edge of her cloak in my teeth, then pulled her out from beneath the object she had hidden beneath. My teeth tore the fabric a bit, but not enough to completely tear apart.

I released and gazed down at the trembling figure as my breath slowly calmed. A light pink pattern of shapes I did not recognize dotted the edges of her now-partially shredded white cloak. Unlike some of the other Stellans, she didn't wear a scarf. Also, a bit of her white hair poked out from beneath her hood.

How am I going to save her?

BOOM!

Before I could come up with a proper answer, the house erupted into tremors. I barely remained on my paws, and I heard part of the building collapse. Thankfully, the section of the structure we were in was stable, for now.

I have to get her out of here. My mind went to the thick forest and stream just outside of town. There. That is where I will take her.

I pulled my lips over my sharp teeth and gently grabbed the small Stellan in my jaws, then gently lifted her off of the ground and dropped her onto my back. I returned my head and faced forward. Hopefully, she's smart enough to hang on.

Before I could take a few steps forward, I felt the weight on my back shift and something wrapped around my neck. In response, I tensed and glanced back, only to see fearful silver eyes staring back at me. Her arms laid around my neck, at least as wide as she could reach around my thick neck.

I blinked, then forced myself to look away and began to walk towards the doorway. I broke my way through the doorframe, then paused as I noticed a gaping hole down the hall to my right.

Exit. Instead of forcing my way out through another doorway, I ran down the hall and jumped through the hole. A squeak erupted from my cargo as I snapped my wings open, then flapped them to gain altitude.

My muscles screamed, but I flew.

The town was barely more than rubble; smoke consumed the air. I sped through the plumes of black air; my heart beat loud in my ears. Through the haze, I could see the green shapes of a mat of bushy trees.

Screams and roars filled my ears with the sound of my heart beating against my chest. I heard another building collapse but did not look to see which building it was. There was no time to care.

My magical sixth sense warned me of the approach of another flying monster before it revealed itself with a scream. Though it hurt, I managed to summon enough magic to blast the feathered being out of the sky.

I paused as my breath caught in my throat. What am I doing? Did I just do that? Why did I do that?

I descended towards the trees; my mind lost in thought. The world around me was blurry compared to the turmoil in my mind.

Suddenly, I crashed into the treetops and snapped out of my pensive trance. The middle of my outer left wing knocked up against something hard; pain erupted from the spot. Eventually, I landed on the leaf-covered ground, my rider barely still hanging onto my back.

What did I just do?

Author Notes!

What did Hoshiryu just do?