It stumbled further, trying to catch where the man was by scent. But the village was confusing, his scent being masked by a growing stench of death and decay - and the Kaiser was not the most intelligent of beasts. Its cries started turning from anger towards ones of frustration and sadness.

Inside, Ryu was still fighting, trying to gain control. His will wasn’t exactly weakening, but he was growing tired - and the smell of what was left of the villagers was distressing him further. He had to gain control, had to get a handle on this… but the pain was starting to get to be too much for the form to hold.

The dragon slammed into another building, looking for the shadowy man… and then flickered for a moment. It groaned, letting out a pained cry before finally falling over and lying on its good side. It flickered once, twice, three times… before leaving Ryu lying there in the rubble, his face stained with tears. The young man curled up and closed his eyes, shaking a little bit.