Assassin Crow Evolution

"I know enough about Summoning," Gundor answered, "I only started looking into the arts two years before I passed away, because I knew that I was about to die."

"Is there anything you can teach me about Summoning?" He asked, "I haven’t seen many old crows ever since I hatched. They’re not supposed to live long, from what I understand. A few years at best."

"You are a man of greater means, that’s rare," Gundor said, "It’s true that most crows die before they can even begin to fathom the true benefits of magic, and I know that is sad, but you must understand that Summoning isn’t something you can begin practicing right away. You’re a promising mage, but you’ve barely scratched the surface."

This was not the answer Jimmy was looking for, but he expected it. The beauty within this particular branch was glued to perplexity. It refused to be mastered by just anyone.

With that considered, desperation began to linger. So, he tried to further coax the other.

He said, "I have a feeling that I will die before you, as ironic as that may sound. Can I count on you to bring me back when I die?"

"No, you cannot," Gundor answered, his words sharp this time, "I know that you don’t remember the wonderful conversations we had in the void, but please understand that you found me by mere coincidence. You wouldn’t have ever found me in the void if my feather didn’t send you there. The void is vast, endless, and I do not understand why my feather sent you to meet me, instead of meeting you itself, but it’s as rare as us meeting anyone in the void. Reviving you would almost be impossible, unless you’d settle with being a mindless undead."

"Damn," He sighed, "I’ll try not to die, then. I have shit to figure out, and I think your feather boosted my lifespan a little bit."

"Yes, it did," He nodded, "You’ll see twenty summers and winters, which is more than I can say about most crows."

"Hell yeah!" He suddenly exclaimed, slightly spooking the other, "And here I was thinking that you didn’t have any good news for me."

Gundor barely said a word after that, he simply nodded along. It was obvious that this conversation, and the long later explanations he gave, winded him, which was quite taxing on a body that woke up tired.

Jimmy did not see this as an insult. He would be insane if he did.

Instead, he led the crow towards a carcass nearby, belonging to the Dry Eagle.

"You can eat this guy, if you don’t feel weird about eating birds." He said.

Gundor chowed down right away. Despite his great size, his stomach was as empty as a hatchling’s. Two pounds of meat went down his stomach after every swallow.

"Wow, you really don’t mind that awful smell," He said.

Gundor did not care to answer. The little crow at his side only managed to make the atmosphere more and more awkward.

Jimmy didn’t try to be awkward, he just imagined old men to be more talkative. This was a confusing meet & greet, but he reminded himself that the crow was tired, and therefore not talkative, every time he saw him swallow a full bunny’s worth of meat.

After about five minutes, Gundor was done feeding. There was a bump below his chest, hinting that his stomach was absolutely full.

Gundor looked a little bit better now as well. His movements weren’t as sluggish.

At last, he said, "If I wasn’t tired, I would’ve killed one of those legless dragons. They taste a lot better than eagles."

"Oh, I think they’re called Wyrms," He said, "I had to fight them off earlier, but it’s best if we don’t kill them. Wyrms keep Summoners away, and I hate those motherfuckers. You would not believe how greedy they are. I busted my ass dragging the staff that a Summoner was trying to keep for himself."

"I’m aware of their greediness," Gundor said, "Lesser Summoners have very little to be proud of, so they always try to seize control. I did behave like them when I knew that death was close."

"You had a good reason," He said, "But anyway, I don’t want to bother you anymore, so can you give me my reward now?"

"Of course," Gundor burped, "Follow me."

Inch by inch, Gundor then spread his wings, and started flapping.

It was not easy for such a large crow to get off of the ground. The fact that he was still processing the several kilos of raw meat he just ate, didn’t help either.

Yet, every wing flap of his was so strong, that he ended up swatting Jimmy away, by accident, as if he was a little bug.

Virena, the actual bug that initially stood on Jimmy’s head, was blown away several feet! She wasn’t injured, but quite irritated nonetheless.

"Stupid bird," She rubbed her front legs, "You should’ve let me kill him."

"No no," He shook his head, "He’s actually really nice, just big. Killing him would be a great sin right now, because I think he appreciates life far more than we do."

"I picked up on that," She said, "Where’s he headed?"

"To give us that treasure I was talking about," He answered, "I know this has been a long day, but if I remember right, he’ll be giving us a bunch of Beast Cores now."

"Beast Cores?" She repeated, "You struck a deal like that in your sleep? Impressive."

"I just wanted to merge with the Sentient Feather, and I did, but this is a nice bonus." He chuckled.

Anyway, although it took him a minute, Gundor eventually lifted himself off of the ground. He hit the sky, and Jimmy followed suit, after he grabbed his hammer.

To be safe, he made sure he flew a few meters behind the massive crow, because he didn’t want to be bitch-slapped out of the sky.

"Look at that geezer go," He held his breath, excited, "Well, he doesn’t look as old as I thought he would be."