Blackfeather Woods [BWP] Numb.

Beneath him, a rumble that turned to violent tremors. Venamis stumbled, ebony tail tucked low, and as he attempted to regain balance he lost it entirely, dropping heavily to the unstable earth.

His elbow burned from the impact, but he scrambled upright at once and braced himself, alabaster eyes frantically searching for somewhere to go, somewhere to hide, but nowhere was safe. The boy's heart rate quickened as he acknowledged his vulnerability and stood, frozen to the spot, with no idea what to do.

Over the noise of thunder below, branches clashed above. The spiderling felt the tree roots shift and, swinging his muzzle toward the crack! of breaking wood, saw the tree trunk begin its fall toward him, but before he could even think to react he was buffeted roughly aside.

The tree, once solid and proud, collapsed onto the earth where Venamis previously stood - but someone else lay pinned beneath its weight.

The spiderling righted himself onto his belly as the quake began to subside, coughing and sputtering as the dust from the tree's fall gathered in the air, and through the haze he saw a dark figure, trapped. He gathered onto his paws, stepping tentatively over the ground, eager to better see the creature who'd prevented him from being crushed.

He recognised her as the twins' mother, and stopped at once when the metallic tang of fresh blood filled his nares. Venamis simply stared at Cassiopeia, flanks still heaving from the suddenness of all that had happened, his gaze watching the life seep from her own.

As hunters, death was something that they experienced on an almost daily basis. But to witness the demise of his own kind was entirely new to him. Venamis, not knowing what to do or how to deal with his very real fear, finally turned away and fled the scene in a desperate search for Maegi.