[i]The solid, undeterred strength of the dust-covered boot hammered deep into the crawling beggar's stomach, causing him to hack forth a breathless grunt of pain. The ragged figure now fully collapsed onto the roadside, open mouth gaping like that of a fish out of water -- all the while numbly waiting for his internals to reorganize themselves into the coherent state of 'breathing' that they were normally used to. Both lips lay cracked open on that dry earth -- tongue cut and bleeding from the man having inadvertently bitten it. Another powerful kick landed him upside the head, whip-lashing his face--and a newly acquired broken nose--onto its opposite side, coughing and sputtering forth crimson iron as the enraged voice of a distant tormentor seemed to mumble in a frighteningly loud tone. Slowly, it faded into the background, seconded to the emerging darkness that now began to consume his consciousness...

A sharp sting struck him across the face, and moments afterwards he could feel his upper-torso lifted. One after the other, both swollen eyes peaked open to stare in dreaded anticipation at the red-faced demon that now held his collar. Both pupils watched as another fist raised upwards for an assumed finishing blow. However, the faint sound of ripping clothes preceded a dramatic escape of this fate, as his collar tore itself from Feraen's shirt, thereby allowing him to slip out of the grasp of his attacker. He landed heavily, seeking--despite the aching pains pounding out across his body--to scurry away on his hands and knees. Footsteps recovered from their stupor, and he managed to rise to his feet, stumbling and stop-starting all over the road in his flight of flurry. Something seemed...off, however -- though he didn't dare look back, lest he lose any sort of distance advantage he had over his pursuer. 

And so he ran...

...and ran...

...and kept on running, all the while expending the powerful surge of adrenaline he'd gained earlier; now, he began to ease off...

...and slow down a bit more...finally stopping entirely as he dropped to his scraped knees, huffing and panting for breath. What would it matter if he was caught now, he couldn't go another step. Let it be done then -- and with this final thought, the beggar shut his eyes tight, waiting...

...his left eye flickered open, rotating with the turn of his head as he looked backwards over his shoulder.

No sign of his presumed captor, but...something far, far worse. A beast of malignant flame and smoke, columns high and almost as wide as the district itself. The man gazed in awe and terror at the billowing form as it shifted dreamily across the massive fields, swallowing them whole as it used the city's own harvest for fuel. A ripple of cold tingled down his backside whilst he sat there...just...staring.

"..."[/i]