Evolution Island: Kill to Survive

A wounded predator

Once he was certain there were no enemies around, Aaron opened the digital map on his Z-band to get a better understanding of his current surroundings. So far, he had explored only a part of Zittorac forest and a portion of North Beach and he could already tell that things were a lot different than what he remembered.

The map showed the foggy path he had to take in order to reach Dewdale village. It was a narrow road leading from the forest all the way up to the village entrance. Since his Z-band hadn’t been upgraded yet, he couldn’t get information about the enemies in the region or the nearby landmarks. Right now, the device only served the basic game functions. With his HP close to hitting zero, Aaron had to be extra careful on his journey. The best option was to stay alert and avoid any close encounters with wild beasts and monsters.

As he began walking down the grassy road, he kept his eyes and ears open for any signs of approaching threats. The Pyro Scan of his surroundings revealed that there weren’t any enemies nearby. If he kept walking on the same path, he would reach the village in an hour.

After walking for a while, Aaron spotted a small rock cut shrine in the distance. He never remembered there being any roadside shrines in this game. The only shrines were supposed to be located inside human settlements. Even the Z-band didn’t show any information about this new landmark. With measured steps, Aaron approached the gray statue adorned with yellow flowers and candles. When he was just a few feet away from it, suddenly he heard a pained cry and someone dropped out of the sky and landed right at the foot of the statue.

“Zach? What happened?” Aaron rushed towards his friend, who was lying on the ground, bleeding from multiple fresh wounds. “Who did this to you?”

Zach turned to Aaron and opened his trembling lips to speak. “I was...attacked...by Hobgoblins. They ambushed me in the forest. It must’ve been....a pack. I used my Second Chance ability before they could finish me off... and it teleported me here.”

Hobgoblins were one of the most dangerous pack hunters in the game. An encounter with a pack of these savages was every solo player’s worst nightmare. Zach was lucky to have survived, but his wounds needed immediate attention. Only a high level potion or a healer could patch him up.

“Can you move?” Aaron asked, trying to support Zach on his arm. “We have to reach the village. The healer can fix you up. You have already lost too much blood.”

“I can...walk—”

Zach’s words were cut short by a ferocious growl in the distance. A pair of large yellow eyes gleamed behind the tree line, and then the predator emerged, leaping out of the foliage. It was a male Smilodon. The hungry carnivore had picked up the scent of human blood long ago and had stealthily made its way to its prey. It had been waiting to find the perfect opportunity to corner them. As soon as Aaron had let his guard down to talk to Zach, the beast knew it was time to strike.

Zach stared at the face of the hulking carnivore and shuddered in terror. It was an adult in the prime of its youth, with a strong muscular body and a large pair of dirty white fangs sticking out of its salivating mouth. This pre-historic predator didn’t belong in this game. Zach knew that this beast had never been a part of the original game. “Leave me and run!” he whispered, gasping for breath.

“I’m not leaving you to die!” Aaron shouted in reply.

The beast slowly inched closer, sizing up its prey. It could finish the injured one with one strike of its powerful claws, but it didn’t want to let the other one escape. Sniffing the fresh blood, it bared its teeth and approached Zach. Aaron immediately sprang to his feet and stepped between his friend and the beast.

“What the f**k are you doing? Get the hell away from it! You don’t even have a weapon. Just save yourself!”

“Shut up, Zach. I’ve never left you behind in any raids. Team mates stick together, no matter the odds.”

“f**k off, Aaron! This isn’t a game anymore! Please, leave me, bro!”

“No!” With that single word, Aaron made his intentions crystal clear and prepared to face the predator that was now just inches away from him.

The beast didn’t hesitate to attack. As soon as Aaron was in range, it leapt forward and pounced on him. Aaron had anticipated that jump from a mile away and rolled to his side just in the nick of time. The Smilodon came crashing down on the ground and set its eyes on Zach. There was not a second to be lost. Aaron quickly jumped back up and hit the carnivore with a rock to grab its attention. The beast growled and lunged at him with its claws ready to rip open his throat.

“Activate ability: One with the Wind!”

The Smilodon kept tearing at him with its sharp pointed claws, but Aaron dodged the attacks without breaking a sweat. As long as the ability was active, he could sidestep every single melee attack, no matter how powerful the enemy was. He waited for the beast to lunge at him again and then went on the offensive.

“It’s my turn now!” he shouted, ducking under the beast’s paws. “Fists of Fury!”

As soon as the beast missed its attack, Aaron got back up and activated his trump card! The martial arts ability immediately unleashed a flurry of hard-hitting punches on the beast, pummeling it with unstoppable power. Even with his low attack power, Aaron’s punches did enough damage to put out the beast’s left eye and disfigure its face. It had stepped in so close for the kill, that there was no way it could retreat now. Aaron made full use of this opportunity to break the beast’s bones and send it flying back into a rotten old tree trunk.

“That does it. Here, get up. It’s not safe here,” Aaron said, offering his hand to Zach.

“You really are a crazy son of a gun,” Zach muttered through his clamped teeth. “Damn, I thought we were gonna die for sure.”

“Can’t let you die so soon bro. You still need to pay off your student loan,” Aaron replied with a light chuckle.

“Aghh man, I’d rather be dead.” Zach took Aaron’s hand and got back up.

Just then, a low groaning sound caught their attention. They both instinctively looked towards the old tree. The Smilodon was already back on its trembling legs. Even though it had sustained critical injuries, it still had some fight left in it.

Aaron had hoped combining both his abilities would be enough to finish the beast, but he didn’t know that the Smilodon had far more health points than the normal carnivores on Solaris. With no weapons or offensive skills in his arsenal, he only had his wits to rely upon.

A wounded predator was always more dangerous than a hungry one, and this Smilodon was going to be no different. Though it had only a fraction of its HP left, it wasn't ready to back down. Hungry and bruised, it slowly approached the pair.

“Aqua Punch!”

Zach attacked the beast with his low level water attack, doing little damage to it, but making it even more furious.

If it had been any other predatory feline, it would have been dead by now, but the Smilodon was a far tougher opponent. Aaron’s life flashed before his eyes as he stared into the beast’s bloodied face. Trying to run away now would only make him an easier target for the Smilodon. Even in its injured condition, the beast could outrun him with ease. The only option left to Aaron, was to stand his ground and fight the beast with his bare hands.