Before Umirin can even consider running when the earth begins rumbling under his feet and the foliage starts shifting, it is upon them.

At first, just a dark shadow that falls over their forms from the forest, but then—the body breaks between the trees.

An Elder Soulbiter.

Umirin yanks on Shani's hand to pull him as far away as possible, his heart hammering like a battle drum immediately.

He brandishes his spear before the massive densely striped beast.

Its head and body is shaped like that of a wild horse, but its soulless, milky white eyes are at the front of its face. A predator. The long snout opens as the Soulbiter looms above them, revealing a maw of gleaming fangs and bladed teeth.

"Huungryyyy..." it croaks, voice hoarse and garbled, clearly straining to manage even the one word.

Umirin grits his teeth at the awful chill that overcomes him when he hears it speak. He wonders briefly which of those first five hunters this one is.

"We can't outrun it," he whispers to Shani behind him, glancing down the length of the beast's long equine legs. They appear as normal until the very bottom of them, where the hoof would've been. Instead there is a mangle of roots buried firm into the earth. They cannot lift their legs nor walk as one might imagine proper walking to look like, but they leave rows of burrowed out earth in their wake as they glide instead. And they are still deathly fast.

"So we fight it off," Shani mumbles, his voice trembling but determined.

They get no time for more words before the Soulbiter descends upon them, cracking through the soil as it plows forward, maws split wide open and ready to bite.

Umirin jumps to the side, his body thrumming with energy, and he sees Shani do the same.

Though knowing there's little point, he wields his spear and drives it into the Soulbiter's side with all his might. It glances off its smooth leathery skin but the beast does feel something, it growls and spins its neck around to snap at Umirin's arms.

He jerks away before those jaws can clamp on, his ears ringing in rhythm with his thundering heart. He can taste the bitter aftertaste of fear on his tongue.

The Soulbiter burrows in a half circle to turn on him, hissing and plowing forward. Umirin backs up until his back hits a tree trunk, his body tensing up. He holds his spear, his body overcome by trembling as he stares up into the beast's lifeless pure white eyes. Better him than Shani, is all he can think about as the beast opens its maw toward him. He hopes his beloved will save himself from this place.

However, before the Soulbiter can strike, Umirin catches a glimpse of Shanirin heaving up a tree across from them, climbing above the Soulbiter. He wants to yell to his husband about what he is doing, but before he can he sees Shani launch himself off the tree, leaping down with his spear held to his side, directly onto the monster's back.

Umirin's mouth goes dry with shock when Shani slams into the beast, rearing himself up to sit atop it, swinging his spear around its neck and catching the other end of it in his other hand. He yanks the beast's head back, the shaft of the spear pressed across its throat.

The Soulbiter howls and jerks, swinging side to side to throw Shani off, but he tenses his body and stays on.

"Run!" Shani yells at Umirin now that the Soulbiter is distracted from him.

Umirin scowls and shakes himself off from shock. He is not leaving his husband behind. He sees Shani struggling to hold on as the Soulbiter snaps its maws angrily and slams its head around, trying to get at Shani who is yanking its neck backward.

They need a brief distraction so they can run. He needs to somehow get Shani off of the creature safely.

Umirin leaps forward and swings the shaft of his own spear at the beast's front legs, knocking its knees out so it bends forward to the ground, sending its head slamming into the dirt, its maw flooding with dirt. The motion of the beast collapsing forth sends Shani flying from its back and falling against the same tree Umirin had been backed up against moments ago with a choked up yell of pain, his spear long lost under the weight of the fallen monster.

While the Soulbiter is stunned so, Umirin grabs Shani by his upper arm and tugs him upward, pulling him along more as he starts to run, his chest heaving with terror. Every spot of his being burns, his blood rushes through him almost painfully. His grip on Shani is a vice as he runs, his body hurling onward.

He hears the Soulbiter howl behind them as it pulls itself up and gives chase, the earth rumbling and trembling as the heaving beast plows through it, rowing after them.

Umirin pants heavily as he propels his muscles to strain harder, mercilessly yanking Shani who's running behind him further along. His lungs are ablaze with agony but Umirin cannot allow himself to stop.

They stumble and sprint, and Umirin can just about make out the large hollow tree their pulley is waiting within, he can just about make out hope, so close it's searing.

But then he hears Shani cry out and suddenly his arm is gone from Umirin's grip. Umirin whirls around, veins flushed with ice as he sees the Soulbiter with its jaws buried into the hem of Shani's tunic, his husband drawn up and hanging helplessly from its mouth. Shani flails, face pale with terror as he breaks into panic, arms flying up to bat at the Soulbiter's snout, fingers clawing with desperation to be released.

Umirin immediately looks around for anything he can use to make the beast drop Shani. He spots some rocks nearby and rushes to them, picking up one and hurling it at the monster's head, his aim precise. The beast growls and twitches when the rock slams into its snout.

It still holds a struggling Shani however, starting to turn away with him.

Umirin can't let it leave, he keeps peltering it with rocks, launching them at the beast to draw it back, make it drop his husband.

If all else fails, he will pry its mouth open with his hands, being bitten be damned.

The Soulbiter growls and twitches against the onslaught, shaking off the rocks as they hit it.

Umirin's blood thickens like poisonous lead with the weight of the horrifying thought Shani will be taken away and cursed. He heaves his spear at the beast's head, having been too afraid to do so initially for fear of impaling Shani but now too frenzied not to try everything.

The spear prods the Soulbiter in the eye and it howls and flinches, unharmed but clearly feeling the hit. Its maws part and finally it drops Shani to the ground with a thud.

Umirin feels his eyes burn as he lunges forward and grabs Shani, yanking him toward himself, trying to drag him out of the beast's reach. Shani scrambles himself, trying to shimmy far enough away. Just as Umirin hopes they made it and starts pulling Shani up to his feet, his husband lets out a gasp and gets jerked backward.

Umirin digs his fingers into Shani's arms, damned if he lets the beast pull him away again, belatedly realizing the Soulbiter had bitten into his husband's boot, tugging on his leg to pull him towards itself.

Umirin barely sees or hears anything except for his beloved's scratched up and dirt caked face as he holds onto Umirin as much as he can, Umirin still pulling and pulling with all his strength to separate Shani from the Soulbiter.

He would sooner die than lose him this day. Or any day.

The beast is stronger however, larger and more powerful, and with a final vicious jerk of its head Shani is ripped clean from Umirin's grip.

Umirin screams then, clawing desperately to catch hold of any part of him he can again, clambering forward as Shani gets dragged toward the beast. He kicks at the jaws holding his boot and tries to grab for Umirin's spear where it fell earlier after hitting the Soulbiter, stretching his arm as far out toward it as he can, almost within his reach.

Umirin notices this and alters his course to kick the spear into Shani's grip. As soon as his husband grabs hold of it he swings and jams it between the Soulbiter's jaws, pulling down to unlatch them enough that he can get his leg free. Umirin runs in and puts his whole weight into the effort to leverage the beast's mouth open too, doing his best to help.

The Soulbiter growls and bites down harder in turn, and Umirin fears it will pierce the thick leather clothing protecting Shani any moment now and sink its fangs into his skin. Everything would be over then.

He leans more bodily into the spear, Shani pulls harder, the beast hissing as they together finally manage to force its mouth open. Shani kicks his leg free and starts scrambling backward, and before Umirin can rush in to help, the Soulbiter roars, enraged, and swings its neck right for Umirin, slamming its head into his body so forcefully it sends him flying with a yell, his ribs aflame with pain.

He sees the world blur past him rapidly as he swings through the air until his back cracks against something hard and unyielding, his basket splintering into him, his flight coming to an abrupt stop as he crumples at the base of the tree he was thrown into, a choked up yell overtaking him whilst he gasps for air.

Oh Heart, this monster can not be fought off.

"Umi!" he hears Shani yell for him, full of concern, even as death looms above him.

Umirin feels a sob wreck his aching chest as he pushes himself up on his arms slowly, lifts his head to see what's going on. His sight is blurry, head spinning. He can't save Shani. Oh Heart he can't save Shani. He's so useless.

He tries to move forward when he sees the Soulbiter shake the spear jammed between its teeth out and burrow toward Shani, lowering its head toward him, but his body aches too much, he can't get there fast enough, he has no weapon even if he could.

Shani still tries to scramble back and get up, but the beast is too quickly upon him, it's maw split wide and closing around his neck while he gasps and turns despairing eyes to Umirin. Even from some distance away, Umirin can see them gleaming with tears.

"Run, Umi," he calls out, face contorting into a grimace as he feels the Soulbiter's teeth graze his skin, "please run," he begs.

Umirin can't. He can't. He crawls forward, still trying to force himself to reach them, still deliriously hopeful he can do something before the Soulbiter takes everything he's ever loved away from him.

The Soulbiter begins to bite, to shut its jaws, and Shani sniffles, tears flowing from his closed eyes as he cringes and seems to brace for the inevitable end, "I love you Umi," he calls out with a shaking voice, as if saying goodbye.

Umirin can't survive this, his voice scraped raw and agonized when it bursts from his chest, a primal scream, "Please! Stop!" he begs.

The Soulbiter twitches a little when it hears him. They have no ears as such, rather just two openings at the sides of their smooth heads for hearing.

Umirin just keeps yelling, heart bleeding with the sharpness of his desperation, "Take me, take everything, just please do not take him," he calls out to the beast, not knowing for certain if it can understand him. He knows the Elders retained some speech, but he doesn't know if they retained comprehension of language.

Shani seems too stunned to react to this, especially when the Soulbiter opens its maw and lifts its head upward, turning it to regard Umirin instead.

Umirin feels his bones ache with hope, "I'll do anything," he reiterates, watching the beast wide-eyed, meeting its milky gaze.

The Soulbiter rows its way toward him, slowly this time, with no aggression. Umirin can hardly believe it can understand him.

Shani sits up behind the Soulbiter, one of his hands rubbing at his throat where those deadly teeth had been, "Umirin?" he mumbles quietly, the word laden with questions.

Umirin has no idea what he's doing either.

The Soulbiter tilts its massive head, and lowers it to regard Umirin closer. Umirin tenses as that face nears him, but doesn't dare move. He doesn't dare breathe.

"H-Heelppp?" the Soulbiter groans, opening its maw to strain the word past its lips.

Umirin swallows heavily, trying to comprehend the fact a Soulbiter just asked for help. His mind aches to reject this madness, but he promised to do anything at all to make sure Shani does not get hurt, he already made this bargain, and he will not risk this delicate truce now by questioning things. He nods, "Yes. I will—help," he mumbles in confirmation, "With what?" he tentatively asks, using simple phrases to ensure he's hopefully understood.

"Atooonee..." the Soulbiter rasps in response, its unblinking gaze not wavering from Umirin's face.

Umirin shudders when he hears that, chilled to the bone. Atone? Do—they still remember who they once were? What they'd done? That—surely, that can't be.

He doesn't dare put up a fuss though, "Okay. Atone. I will help," he nods again, his heart about to burst with sheer emotion.

The Soulbiter shifts its snout over his head then, and bites into the back of his tunic. Umirin grimaces but forces his limbs to stay still. You will stay controlled. He takes a deep breath and follows his mentor's training when the beast lifts him off the ground, his body hanging mid air momentarily while the Soulbiter turns its head and then lowers him onto its back.

Umirin chews on his lip as he sits up slowly, feeling the beast's leathery skin beneath his palms. Cold as ice.

Shani's gotten to his feet by then also, approached the Soulbiter, "I'm coming with," he insists and reaches a hand up toward Umirin.

Umirin manages a shaky smile at his husband's determination as he takes his hand and gives it a squeeze, "Please get home, my love," he asks, gently shaking his head. He has no idea where this Soulbiter will take him nor whether or not he will just be killed in the end, after all.

Shani grips his hand tighter, "No, I want to come with you, I want—" he is interrupted by the Soulbiter growling. Clearly it does not intend to allow this.

Umirin takes a breath, squeezes Shani's hand one more time before letting go, "No. Go home," he takes the soil basket off his back, now half empty and battered from all the fighting, with a crack along it when Umirin got slammed into the tree. He hands it down to Shani anyways, "bring this to the people, I'm sure anything helps," he nods, his voice as firm as he can manage.

Shani sniffles as he takes the basket, "Oh little one," he cries a bit, clearly unwilling to leave.

Umirin just smiles, "I love you, I will return to you, I promise. Now go," he nods, praying to the Divine Beast he will be able to fulfill his promise.

Shanirin sniffles again, wipes his wet eyes from tears, "I love you too, you'd better come back," he swallows, shaking all over, "please be safe, beloved," he takes a step back.

Umirin hates to see Shani distressed, but there is not much choice now. He just manages to nod as the Soulbiter starts to move forward again, rowing through the earth, into the trees, carrying Umirin off somewhere unknown.

He draws in a deep breath and composes himself as much as he can. Heart be with him, he hopes he will at least live long enough to see his beloved one more time, if nothing else.