At first, Mikhail refused to even consider letting Cade go. Cade was safety! Cade was going to kill all the sandworms before they had a chance to hurt Mikhail.
Yet, for whatever reason, Cade seemed to be letting him down. Hissing again when the sandworm lunged, Mikhail finally released his grip on the mercenary. Scrambling away on hands and knees, Mikhail put distance between himself and the worm, leaving Cade alone to handle it.
Too many. Run. Pah. They would be over run in minutes. The larva were fast and could move much better in this heat and sand then they could. What was the point in hiring all these men if they couldn't even handle a few worms?
Standing, Mikhail's long fingers felt along his chest, where the vials of rich blood were attached to him. No, no, no, no, no, yes! That was the one he wanted. Fire and Earth, mixed for this adventure. His hands trembled as he slid the needle into the vial. Replacing the vial, Mikhail took a deep breath, then jammed the needled into his thigh.
Nothing happened for a second, then it hit. Power burned though his veins, making him feel alive like nothing else could. He could feel his skin harden into rock in places and his hair was now flickering flames on his head. Mikhail no longer looked human, but some strange and disturbing cross between human and elemental.
He couldn't help but laugh at the sheer pleasure of it. He hardly even noticed the worms or the danger around him. He could have taken on a god like this! All this power! His strange eye, now a pure bright white color glanced around. So easy now. These worms were nothing to him.
Holding out a hand, Mikhail laughed again and the larva on the surface started to thrash wildly, making strange, high pitched screaming sounds before they finally lay still, their internal organs cooked from the inside.
Ignoring the stench of burned flesh that filled the air, Mikhail stared down at the sand. He could still feel them under the sands. Feel them moving. And he still had power, though it was fading. That last trick had used a lot. Dropping to his knees, Mikhail shoved his hands into the burning sands, not seeming to be affected by them.
The sands rippled wildly, making it hard to keep footing before going still, red blood oozing to the surface in a few places. Mikhail made a pleased, almost sexual sound in the back of his throat. So good. So much power!
Power that was rapidly fading. He had used a lot of blood very quickly and he was starting to come down. The rock on his skin started flaking off, falling to the sands below him, his hair and eyes returning for normal as the blood faded from his system.
Clutching his belly, Mikhail started to cough. It was all gone now and the effects were hitting hard and fast. Blood was leaking out of his nose and the corner of his eye. Too much. That had been way too much blood. He shouldn't have done that. But it had been so easy and felt so good.
Struggling for air between his coughing, Mikhail uncurled from his tight ball enough to puke blood everywhere.