The Smiling Death

"Arrrghh!" he screamed in pain. His vision blurred as he nearly lost consciousness.

Thud!

He fell on the floor with a thud. His back leaned against the black wall. Amon shook his head to remain conscious. But his instincts screamed at him.

Something moved toward him at blinding speed. Just like before. But this time, Amon forced himself to move. He instantly slid to his right side.

BOOM!

A fist landed on the wall where his face had been just a few seconds ago. A huge spiderweb-like crack appeared on the wall.

Amon saw the hand. But before he could see the face of the man.

But just then the wall behind him shattered.

"What—?!"

Amon, who was still leaning against the wall for support, lost his balance.

"Fuck!"

Amon fell from the top floor of the tower. From the broken wall.

His body fell down, tearing through the air. The air pressure clashed against his back.

Amon panicked.

"No! No! Fuck, this is too tall! I will fucking die from this height!"

His hands clawed at the air, trying to grab something, anything but there was nothing. Only empty air.

His heart pounded so hard it felt like it would explode. He could not die after coming so close to their goal.

He started to think about any method or trick he could use to save himself. The top of the tower was getting smaller as he fell further down.

'Think, Amon! Think! You need to survive.'

His black clothes flapped wildly against the air. Suddenly, a thought came to him.

"Damn! I have no choice but to try it out!"

Amon gritted his teeth as the wind roared past him. His body twisted mid-air.

Now he was facing downward. The ground below rushed closer with terrifying speed, growing larger every second. The sharp air slammed against his face, making it hard to even keep his eyes open.

"Calm down… calm down…" he muttered to himself through clenched teeth.

His heart was pounding wildly, but he forced his breathing to steady. Panic would only kill him faster.

'Think… don't lose focus…'

The distance between him and the ground was still great, but not great enough to waste time.

His shadow began to move.

At first, it clung to his feet, stretched thin by the falling motion. Then it suddenly surged upward, crawling along his legs, his torso, and then coming to his back.

The shadow gathered more densely behind him, like a thick mass of liquid darkness. Then it started to change.

It stretched outward.

Two large extensions began to form from his back, spreading to both sides. They were uneven at first, unstable, constantly shifting like smoke being pulled apart by the wind.

"Hold… together…" Amon growled.

His head throbbed. But it was bearable. Controlling this much shadow at once… shaping it… was hard. But not impossible.

Darkness began to seep into the shadow.

It wrapped around the spreading mass, reinforcing it. The unstable edges started to stabilize slightly. Slowly… very slowly… a structure began to form.

Two wing-like structures formed on his back. They were not perfect. Not even close.

They were rough, jagged, and unnatural. The edges were uneven, and parts of them flickered like they might fall apart at any moment.

The leading edges of the wings were made hard as bone, while the membrane remained fluid enough to catch the wind.

Amon's breathing grew heavier.

"Haa… haa…"

The wings extended wider, catching more of the rushing air. The moment they fully spread.

WHOOOOSH!

The air resistance hit. Amon felt his body jerk violently as the falling speed slightly decreased.

"Gah—!"

The sudden force pulled at his shoulders and back, nearly tearing his concentration apart. Pain shot through his body. But his eyes widened slightly.

"It's… working…!"

The wings trembled under the pressure. They weren't strong enough to let him fly. He already knew that. This wasn't about flying.

This was about survival. The shadow wings flapped once. Awkwardly, unevenly, he flapped them.

Not a true flap. More like a desperate push against the air. But it helped him. His falling speed reduced further.

It was enough to survive.

"Just… a little more…!" he forced himself.

The darkness around the wings thickened at the edges, trying to harden them. The inner parts remained more flexible, like a membrane stretched tight between rough, shadowy bones.

The strain on his mind increased. His vision blurred again.

'Don't pass out… not now…'

Below him, the forest floor was rapidly approaching. Trees, broken ground, and scattered debris became clearer with every passing second.

Still dangerous. He was still falling fast.

"Damn it…!" He adjusted his body slightly, angling the wings.

The airflow shifted.

Instead of falling straight down, his body tilted forward slightly, turning his fall into a rough glide.

He moved through the air at an angle now, cutting across instead of dropping directly.

The speed decreased again. But not enough to land safely. The ground was right there.

'This is it…!'

Amon gritted his teeth and pulled all remaining focus into the wings.

"Hold… together!"

The shadow wings spread as wide as possible. The air roared against them.

CRASH!!

Amon slammed into the ground. The impact was strong. But before he could crash.

The wings shattered instantly, breaking apart into fragments of shadow that dissolved into nothing.

His body rolled violently across the ground, crashing through dirt and broken roots before finally stopping against a half-broken tree trunk.

Amon lay there, unmoving for a while.

"…ghh…"

A weak groan escaped his lips. Pain spread through his entire body. His arms trembled as he slowly pushed himself up.

"Fuck…" he whispered hoarsely.

He was alive.

His body was covered in dirt, scratches, and bruises. His head still throbbed from the intense strain, and his back felt like it had been crushed.

But he was breathing. He pushed himself to sit upright and held his head. Slowly, it started to calm down. He had fallen more than fifty meters away from the tower.

"I am safe…"

He blinked his eyes. His body was in a lot of pain. But he was now used to it. Just then, a loud, heavy voice came from above.

"So you are still alive… I have to say… that was an amazing fight… was that your first attempt to fly?"

The heavy male voice sent shivers down his spine. His heart started to beat faster.

Thump

Thump

Thump

He felt an oppressive pressure from above.