Arbokh moved—
and the arena died.
A single sweep of his colossal coil pulverized an entire row of stands, stone exploding into dust and shrapnel.
Another slammed sideways, flattening a formation of Enforcers, Sentinels, and even what was left of his own forces—barely giving them time to scream before they were scattered like broken dolls.
Pillars collapsed.
Walls split.
The ground shook with every monstrous contraction of his titan-sized body.
The entire colosseum was becoming rubble beneath him.
"EVERYONE BACK AWAY!" Atrax roared, his T-Rex voice booming like cannon fire.
"RETREAT! FORM A PERIMETER!"
A burst of static crackled in Atrax's earpiece.
"Commander Atrax," the voice whispered urgently, "just two more minutes to load. After that—I will be ready."
Atrax's eyes narrowed, aura tightening around his massive frame.
"Two minutes…" he muttered. "You'd better make them count."
Sanguina's voice sliced through the chaos, sharp and commanding despite the tremors:
"TAKE THE INJURED! MOVE THEM NOW—GO!"
Sentinels dove in, grabbing unconscious fighters, dragging blood-soaked bodies away from falling pillars. Their aura flickered in the smoke, tiny sparks of light swallowed by the growing darkness of Arbokh's rampage.
Dust and screams churned together into a storm—
Kongu's fists tightened, knuckles bleeding.
"This is getting out of control…" he muttered, eyes wide with barely restrained fear.
Varga spat blood, eyes burning with a hunter's resolve.
"We need to end this." he growled.
He pushed off the wall, claws scraping against the stone, gaze locked on Arbokh's massive figure.
"We go straight for Arbokh."
Waraabe's manic grin flickered—just for a second—before returning, sharper, thinner, touched by madness.
"Heh… suicidal."
A beat.
"…But I like it."
Kongu turned to Rin, voice low.
"This is not your fight. You can run away."
Rin lifted his mantis blades, expression carved into stone.
"If it's your fight," he said quietly,
"then it's my fight."
Behind them, the ground shook as Arbokh's tail crushed another section of the stands, stone groaning like a dying creature.
The moment tightened—
ready to snap.
And then it did.
A violent scream tore through the battlefield.
Not human.
Not hybrid.
Something raw, primal, drenched in bloodlust—so sharp it cut through the roar of collapsing stone.
It erupted from Arbokh's head—
Rin froze.
Kongu stopped breathing.
Waraabe's grin vanished like a candle snuffed out.
Varga's pupils shrank to pinpoints.
"…No way," he whispered.
Because it wasn't Arbokh screaming.
It was Zame.
The first man that Arbokh obliterated—
crushed, pinned, poisoned and paralyzed—
was there.
Clinging to Arbokh's head like a demon risen from hell.
Blood dripping down his face.
One arm hanging limp.
Aura shredded and flickering like a dying flame.
But his eyes—his eyes were alive.
Burning.
Defiant.
Unbroken.
He opened his mouth wide—
and there it was:
Rows of serrated shark teeth, glowing faintly under the Blood Moon.
He hissed through blood-soaked lips:
"I never… surrendered."
Then Zame lunged—
Not with a fist.
But with his jaws.
He bit into Arbokh's eye with all the primal fury in his body, teeth sinking deep into the soft, exposed flesh.
CRUNCH—!!!
Arbokh recoiled violently, an inhuman hiss ripping through the arena as Zame tore deeper, shaking his head like a frenzied apex predator.
Blood sprayed outward in a brutal arc, splattering across the collapsing ruins.
Zame roared into the serpent's skull—
And with a violent whip of Arbokh's massive head—
THRASH—!!!
Zame was ripped free, flung through the air like a ragdoll soaked in blood.
A fall that would end him.
Kongu whispered, breathless:
"He won't survive that fall…!"
But before Zame could hit the ground—
FWUMP—!!
A blur.
A silhouette—fast, silent, predatory—
snatched Zame out of the air at the last possible instant.
They landed in a crouch, dust exploding around them in a swirling shockwave.
Zame groaned weakly.
The blur sighed sharply, adjusting Zame over one shoulder like he weighed nothing.
"Tch…"
A low, annoyed growl left the silhouette's throat.
"Zame…
you're still a pain in my ass."
Zame's eyes fluttered open just enough to glare weakly.
"Hah… I don't… need your help… old man…"
The silhouette clicked his tongue.
"Hmph. Still as ungrateful as ever."
The dust cleared—
Revealing him.
Tall.
Muscular but sleek.
Skin patterned with faint rosette marks that glowed beneath the Blood Moon.
Eyes like burning gold slits.
Claws sharp as daggers.
Fangs longer than his smile.
The Predator Faction Leader.
Savran, The Jaguar hybrid.
Predator aura rolled off him like a storm, oppressive and wild, bending the air around him.
He stood, Zame slung over his shoulder, staring at the raging World Serpent with an expression that was half amusement… half hunger.
"Heh…"
His lips curled into a savage grin.
"You did a good job kid, get some rest."
Arbokh straightened his massive neck, blood pouring from his ruined eye, massive coils pulverizing what little remained of the colosseum. His hood flared wide, rage vibrating through every scale.
"So… three faction leaders came against me."
He bared his fangs in a twisted grin.
"I'm honored."
Savran stepped forward, cracking his neck, aura tightening around him like a storm ready to explode.
"Wrong," he said coldly.
Arbokh's pupils narrowed.
"We're four."
Arbokh's hood twitched—
A sharp, mocking voice called out:
"I'll copy your trick, shark."
and then the air above them screamed.
A blur cut across the sky.
Too fast for reason.
Too sharp for logic.
A streak of silver and gold diving with impossible precision—
SHHRAK—!!!
The blur pierced Arbokh's remaining eye, driving straight into the soft tissue with a wet, explosive crack.
Blood erupted upward in a violent spray.
Arbokh roared, the sound shaking the entire city.
The blur twisted free, flipping backward and landing atop a shattered pillar in a perfect, weightless motion.
The figure stood tall now, wings folding behind him—
Feathers edged with metallic sheen.
Eyes sharp and predatory.
Aura slicing the air like razors.
The final faction leader.
The Drifter Faction Leader.
Aevor, The Falcon hybrid.
© 2025 Moku. All rights reserved. INSTINCTBOUND is an original work by Moku. Unauthorized reproduction or distribution is prohibited.