Limitless: New Dawn

Arthur's feet pounded against the forest floor, the rhythmic thump-thump of his sprinting body cutting through the unnatural silence of the alien wilderness. 

Every breath came in sharp bursts, but his face was calm, determined. Behind him, the sound of snapping branches, snarls, and heavy talons tearing through the earth echoed closer and closer. 

The three velociraptor-like monsters were relentless, their eyes glowing with a predator's hunger.

Arthur could hear the screeches and guttural growls just a few meters behind. 

'Faster', he urged himself, pushing his legs harder. 

His body responded, moving at a speed he would have thought impossible days ago, faster than any human should run. It felt both exhilarating and terrifying.

'They're close. But they are going right where I want them.'

To any observer, it might look like Arthur was fleeing in desperation, aimless and panicked. But there was nothing random about his path. 

This was a calculated plan, one he had decided on the moment he woke up that morning.

…

*** Hours Earlier ***

Arthur had woken in the hammock he'd tied between two sturdy branches, the sunrise painting the sky in vibrant streaks of violet and gold. The air was cool and crisp, the forest still waking up. 

He sat up, groaning slightly as his body creaked from soreness, though the pain faded quickly, leaving him feeling stronger.

Yesterday's victory over the velociraptor-like monster had filled him with a renewed sense of purpose. 

He couldn't just wait for things to happen; he had to find challenges, force himself to adapt, to evolve. He climbed down from the tree and set off into the forest.

The morning exploration brought strange sights. Strange looking flora dotted the landscape, plants with glowing, bioluminescent petals, and others with pulsing veins of light running through their stems. 

One bulbous plant hissed and released a puff of noxious gas when Arthur got too close, forcing him to back away quickly. 'Definitely poisonous.'

He then got near the plant again and breathed in the noxious gas and felt a burning sensation in his lungs, and after a few moments he felt fine and breathed in the gas again and felt nothing and continued his journey.

Along his journey he noticed a narrow valley, plans beginning to churn inside his mind.

'I could lead my prey into the valley, that way I can fight more than one monster at a time.'

But then came the real heart-stopping moment, the wyvern.

Arthur had been trekking quietly when he spotted the massive beast from a distance. The wyvern lay curled on a rocky clearing, its armored scales glistening in the faint sunlight. 

Its wings twitched slightly as it slumbered, each wing as long as a bus, its talons digging into the stone beneath it. The sheer size of the creature took Arthur's breath away.

He froze. 'Not today'. He crept backward, keeping his movements deliberate and silent. When he was far enough, he turned and ran in a different direction, avoiding the area entirely.

It wasn't long before he stumbled upon another clearing, and that's when he found his targets.

Three of the same velociraptor-like creatures he had fought the previous day were hunched over a carcass, tearing into the flesh of a deer-like beast with brutal efficiency. 

Their scaly bodies rippled with muscle, and their jaws snapped and cracked as they devoured their meal.

Arthur crouched low behind a boulder, a smirk forming on his face. 'Perfect.'

He tightened his grip on the smooth pebble he'd picked up earlier. He didn't just want to fight them; he wanted to test himself, to see how far he'd come. 

But he wasn't stupid. Taking on three of them in open ground was suicide. That's when he remembered the narrow valley he'd seen earlier, a natural choke point.

"Let's see if you like being hunted," Arthur muttered. He drew his arm back and hurled the pebble with all his strength.

The rock sailed through the air and struck one of the raptors directly in the eye.

The creature let out a deafening screech, throwing its head back in pain as blood spurted from the wound. 

The other two raptors snapped their heads up, blood dripping from their jaws. All three turned their murderous gazes toward Arthur.

"Time to run."

Arthur bolted from his hiding spot, sprinting toward the valley as the enraged monsters roared and barreled after him.

…

*** Now ***

Arthur skidded into the entrance of the valley, its jagged walls looming high above him. The rocky passage narrowed to just a few feet wide, perfect for funneling the creatures one at a time. 

Arthur stopped at the far end, turning to face the monsters that now crowded the mouth of the valley. Their growls reverberated off the stone walls, their eyes glinting with fury.

Arthur exhaled sharply, rolling his shoulders. 

'Time to see if this works.'

The first raptor lunged forward, squeezing into the narrow gap with surprising agility. Its jaws snapped at Arthur, but he ducked to the side and slammed his fist into its side. 

The creature screeched as it smashed against the rock wall, a sickening crunch echoing through the canyon. 

It stumbled, but Arthur gave it no time to recover. He stepped forward and delivered a brutal kick to its chest, sending the raptor flying backward three meters.

Arthur blinked, astonished at his own strength. 

'I can throw them that far, they weigh at least 150 kg.'

The second raptor leapt over its fallen companion, charging straight at him with claws outstretched. 

Arthur sidestepped the swipe, but the creature's talons scraped against his arm, leaving shallow scratches. Pain flared, but it was muted. Within moments, the wounds began to close.

He was surprised at just the scratches as yesterday it was deep gashes, reminding him of the increasing toughness of his skin, while still looking soft as before.

"Not gonna stop me," Arthur then growled. He grabbed a loose rock from the ground and hurled it into the raptor's jaw, shattering teeth with a loud crack. 

"Roar…"

The monster staggered, its roar rattling Arthur's ears.

But the third raptor was smarter.

As Arthur focused on its companion, the third monster lunged from the side, trying to snap its jaws around his thigh. Arthur knowing he will be able to avoid injury did not avoid it.

"Got you!" he shouted, taking the opportunity to pound his fists against its skull. His blows landed with bone-cracking force, but the raptor refused to let go.

He grabbed the creature's head with both hands and twisted with all his strength. The monster's neck snapped audibly, and it dropped to the ground, twitching.

He stumbled back, taking in the situation as the remaining two raptors closed in on him.

The second raptor lunged again. Arthur met it head-on, catching its jaws with his bare hands. The creature snarled and thrashed, but Arthur's grip held firm.

He roared in defiance, adrenaline pumping through his veins as he twisted its head and slammed it into the rock wall.

The beast went limp.

Arthur dropped it, chest heaving as sweat dripped down his face. The final raptor, the one whose eye he'd injured earlier, hesitated. Blood dripped from its socket, its snarls more cautious now.

"You're all alone," Arthur muttered, stepping forward. "What now?"

The raptor hissed, backing up a step. But Arthur wasn't about to let it retreat. He lunged forward, grabbing its neck and forcing it to the ground. 

The creature screeched, its claws raking at his arms and chest without causing any injury, but Arthur didn't let go. With a final burst of strength, he wrapped his arms around its throat and squeezed.

The raptor's struggle grew weaker. Finally, it went still.

Arthur let its lifeless body drop, collapsing onto the ground beside it. The narrow valley was quiet once more, save for his ragged breathing. 

Blood stained his body and makeshift pants, but his panting grew slower, his body getting accustomed to the stress it went through and growing stronger.

'Well, that was easy.'

He lay there for a few minutes, catching his breath. When he finally sat up, he began collecting the sharp talons from each creature, binding them together with vines. 

He had forgotten to collect them yesterday in the heat of the battle. But now he was calm and collected to think strategically. 

They would make excellent tools, and maybe even weapons. Although he thought his fists were a better weapon than the talons.

His stomach growled. With a sigh, Arthur cut chunks of meat from the creatures using their own talons, their flesh tough and raw.

He gathered dry branches and spent several frustrating minutes striking rocks together until he managed to start a fire. 

He used to live in a society where lighting a fire only using woods was not a mandatory skill to learn, so it took him time to succeed in it.

He then roasted the meat in the fire which was bland and chewy, as there were no condiments in the wilderness, but Arthur forced it down.

'Better than nothing.'

When he finished eating, he quickly smothered the fire. He knew better than to let its smoke attract something worse. 

Slinging the talons over his shoulder, he stood and stared out into the forest.

This world was dangerous. But with every fight, every injury, he was becoming something else, something stronger.

"Bring it on," Arthur muttered as he disappeared back into the trees.

…

The valley lay silent, littered with the corpses of its former hunters. The predator had become the prey. And somewhere, deep in the forest, new challenges awaited Arthur Sully.

***