[h3][color=black][b]East Forest[/b]
Rutger Artz VS Forest Vulcan (Gorian)[/color][/h3]
"Me no mind if me do!" The creature reached for him with grasping claws...

"Stop, now!" the young man suddenly yelled, though his voice still wavered. The Gorian only paused out of amusement. "I am a Mage, but the magic I wield is very dangerous. If we fight, this forest could be in danger. Please leave me alone."

"Ook! You think you stronger than me!?" the Vulcan snarled, slapping the ground with its massive palms.

"That's not what I--"

"Me show you!" The Gorian brought one massive fist around, slamming it into the ground between them. The impact sent up a cloud of dust and rubble, and the traveler shielded his face with his arms. Before the cloud had cleared, another punch came flying through, striking the youth and sending him flying. He cried out in pain as he slammed hard into a tree and slid down, falling in a heap at its roots. The Gorian roared and charged towards him, loping forward on its knuckles and skinny legs. The self-proclaimed mage managed to rise to his feet and dive to the side, letting the Forest Vulcan ram headfirst into the tree. The hard wood cracked and splintered, leaning to one side with a drawn out groan. 

"Please. I don't want to fight." His voice cracked, and the corners of his mouth pulled down sharply as if he were about to cry.

"Too bad!" With a roar the beast charged him again, this time bringing both hands around in an attempt to crush him flat between its palms. The traveler turned and ran, the hem of his cloak barely slipping away just before the creature clapped. He hopped up and grabbed onto a low hanging vine, using the momentum to quickly haul himself up hand over hand. Climbing had been an all too common activity in the mountains, and though trees were certainly different than walls of sheer rock and ice, the basic concept was the same. The traveler scaled the trunk with ease. The Gorian actually seemed impressed.

"Ook! You good climber! But not good as me!" It began to follow him up the tree, and the mage continued to flee. Soon they had both reached the peak of the tallest branches, and the young man stood unsteadily atop the forest canopy. The Gorian emerged from the leaves a moment later, sneering confidently before it lunged at him. Its legs, though small, held plenty of power and propelled it high into the air before it fell down at its prey, ready to tear him to pieces...

"Hopefully up here I won't hit anything else..." The mage looked up at the monster above him, and beyond the Gorian, the clear blue sky. He opened his mouth and sucked in a deep breath. He felt the power building in his gut, his diaphragm expanding. The Gorian raised an eyebrow as something black and purple and red began to shine from the depths of the human's throat.

"[color=black][i][b]Flame God's Bellow![/b][/i][/color]"

The Gorian's eyes bugged out of its head as flames, red the color of blood at their core before turning purple and finally black at the edges, spilled forth. The human roared at it in a furious voice so different from his earlier speech; the sound itself was terrifying, a scream filled with not only rage, but a strain as if it had been held back for far too long. The flames erupted with monumental force, expanding in a wide blast that raced towards the Vulcan. It windmilled its arms desparately in a vain attempt to get away, but the dark column hit it dead on.

The blast carried the beast over the tree tops, its fur blackened and smoking almost comically. Its eyes were wide and blank as it lost consciousness, and fell in a tumble towards the earth. A fluttering leaf that had been caught in its fur floated gently out of the sky to land in the traveler's hand, unharmed by the flame. So too, was the rest of the forest.

"Thank...goodness..." the young man huffed. He felt the magic still churning in the pit of his gut, but forced it down like bile. He had used more power than he'd meant to, and after only one real attack he felt like he'd run a mile. If he made one single slip, one mistake, using just a bit too much power...He shook his head with a grimace. He was sweating again, but dared not vent the heat the way he had last time for fear of attracting another predator. So he suffered in silence as he made his way down the tree, and continued through the tangled forest path.