The nest.

Will’s eyelids were starting to fall. As they flew over the rocky mountain range, the adrenaline rush was beginning to settle down. Will’s tiredness, however, was not out of boredom, but due to having to maintain a constant state of strengthening on his body so the huge bird’s talons wouldn’t pierce through his stomach. That and being on the lookout for the bird’s nest while never seemingly arriving exhausted him even more.

‘Eyes open, soldier! Where do you think you’re trying to take a nap!?”

‘It’s not on purpose, dammit. Ugh…’

It was like that, during a long blink of an eye, that suddenly there was a giant bird nest over a bed of tall rocks pillars where before there was nothing. It was made of dried bushes, leaves and branches, and inside it were two smaller black birds, their feathers grown and sparkling yet they were only the size of an adult man. There was also… something else in there. Something Will would’ve guessed wasn’t supposed to be there.

Following the theme of giant creatures, there was a huge snake hissing as it towered over the baby birds. A huge snake the color of red earth with a head like that of a cobra’s, a long body… and with legs. Legs like those of a chameleon or an iguana, legs that allowed it to climb and hang on to the rock pillars.

The screech of the bird holding him pierced his ears, and without warning Will was in a free fall while mama or papa bird dove straight down to protect the helpless, crying little huge birds. Not that he had time to pay attention to any of that.

Below him were dozens of sharp and pointy rocks, and it looked like he was about to land right on top of a particularly nasty one while falling forward at high speed.

He was now wide awake, yet he had no time to think. In a split second, Will made a decision. Shoot the rocks below him with a blast of aether to break those spear-like ends and hope at least of a non-lethal landing. The fall, thankfully, was only ten meters. However, a regular, gunshot-like blast would, at best, shatter one of the rocks, and that’s if he managed to land the shot. He needed something bigger, something destructive in a large area. It didn’t have to be powerful enough to pierce through magic reinforcement like the regular shot, just powerful enough to break rocks.

Not at all a tall order.

‘Ishtar! With me!’

‘On it!’

It was instant, seamless coordination. A shared image. Will put both hands in front of him and focused his power there. Ishtar’s help made the process faster, yet nearly not fast enough. A ball of aether formed in Will’s hands, moving and shifting as if the energy was struggling to hold its shape. It was rough, ugly work, but it did the trick. Will let go of it, firing it with gritted teeth and even giving Will a small push back mid air.

The energy tore through rock and stone, leaving below a bed of sand and debris that, compared to the previous option, were a soft cushion to land on. Will fell and rolled on the ground, feeling pain in his arms, his shoulders, his sides and his legs both during impact and as he rolled over small rocks.

The attack broke his focus on his body strengthening. He landed without armor. A mistake that could’ve been fatal had the last-minute desperation move not worked this well. Aoi would surely chew him up for this if she had seen it, but what mattered was that Will was alive. In pain and with his heart beating worryingly fast, but alive. Also very dizzy and… tired. Exhausted.

Will tried to stand up, only to stumble back as his legs gave in. A quick look around made him notice that a few steps forward would’ve meant rolling down a cliff and into more deathly rocks.

‘Not safe yet, Will! What are those beasts doing?’

Shit! Right.

Will looked up and saw the giant bird flapping its wings and trying to fight the snake with its talons, but the predator already had one of the smaller birds in its mouth, fangs digging deep into one of its wings as it tried to drag it away.

It was the perfect moment to escape. The bird that wanted him to be food for its babies was busy fighting something else, and the even more dangerous predator already had its next meal in its mouth and only needed to get away. None of them would follow him.

…

But irrational human impulse struck.

A large monster trying to eat helpless baby birds while their parent desperately fought to protect them. The fact that he would’ve been their meal if things had played differently didn’t matter. The smart thing, maybe even the proper thing to do would be to let nature follow its course. Will wasn’t even in a position to help.

And yet he did.

Will’s hand barely crackled with power. It felt like scraping the bottom of the barrel for any leftovers of energy.

Heh. If he hadn’t avoided sex the last couple weeks, he would’ve been in much better shape. The multiple blasts against the Fire Rex, chasing the mirrorkin, the constant strengthening of his body to protect himself from the bird’s talons, that **** ball of aether… It all drained him before he could notice. He really was an amateur with too much power.

Will took aim, eyes locked on what he thought of as the neck of the snake, the long area between its head and its first pair of legs. His arm felt heavy, yet he shot.

The gunshot echoed along the mountain range and the blood of the snake splattered along the reddish brown rocks. Its mouth and fangs lost their grip on the big baby bird’s wing and its body rolled down the mountain until it landed on a flat edge.

Will’s vision blurred every other second. He sat there, head down and breathing heavy. A small smirk on his face.

‘Well, that was stupid. Why didn’t you stop me?’

‘...I wanted that snake dead, too. I wasn’t thinking, either.’

‘You’re supposed to be the voice of reason when I’m in control, you know?’

‘Really? Since when?’

‘Since I doomed us to be eaten by birds. I can’t move, Ishtar. Should I just roll down the mountain? I can’t muster any more aether to shield us.’

‘...You know, hold on a moment. Call it a hunch, but I think you actually just saved us.’

The huge bird looked straight down at Will. It tilted its neck as it appraised him, then flew down to where he was, creating a strong gust. It landed in front of him, leaned its head down… and grabbed him with its beak by the back of his clothes. It then flew up again, landing on its nest and gently setting him down.

Tired as he was and with his eyelid begging to be let down, Will’s eyes were wide open.