YCH from the talented  kashioliverart!

Worn and weary from travel, I was grateful when I happened upon a temple out in the wilds. Such sanctuaries are always ready to provide much-needed respite to travelers in need. I heaved a sigh of relief as I entered - but such gratitude was short-lived. There as no one to greet me or welcome me in, no one offering aid as there usually is in these refuges. Had the place been abandoned? No, it looked far too pristine and well-kept for that. Incense was still burning, the golden halls still shone. But...no one here. Perhaps I should have turned around and left right then and there...

...yeah, of course I was never going to do that.

Looked like I wasn't going to get any respite yet. And so I headed into the halls, looking for something, anything which might clue me in as to what happened here. It didn't take long; the scrabbling of claws on stone echoed through the halls, ringing out into each room of the temple. I wasn't alone in here after all - but the sound echoed out from every direction, down every hall. Whatever else might have been in here, I couldn't possibly tell where it was. Or, indeed, if there were any more...

Well, I didn't need to look far. Because the beast found me first.

Something slammed into me from behind, smashing me against the floor. Honed instinct made me roll aside before I had even gathered my senses, and I narrowly avoided a set of claws, each the length of my arm, slamming into the ground where I had been moments before. I hefted up my shield and smashed the claw aside, jumping back to my feet before taking a few steps back. I had no idea what monster stood before me - long and slender, vaguely reptilian, but with unscaled skin the colour of dried blood, and no face save for a mouth of glistening, dagger-like fangs. Some sort of demon, perhaps - those things came in so many shapes and sizes that even after years of adventuring I had come nowhere close to having seen them all.

I stepped back, keeping my eyes on the demon, shield raised and ready. But it moved with blinding speed, skittering along the golden floor like a bolt of lightning, and smashed into my shield with just as much fury. The thing's speed and aggression were almost unbelievable; even demons were rarely so aggressive. Where had it come from, and why was it here now? And what had it done with everyone in the temple?

Little time to ponder such questions yet. I had a battle to fight.