01.19 - Point Blank

Hannah kept her focus on the now four-tailed beast form of the Nine-Tailed Shadow Fiend. The other team members organized themselves, while Luc and Gabe tried to replenish their Aura to rejoin the fight.

Rogue took over the position of the rearguard, while Sascha rushed back to Hannah’s current position on the frontline.

The beast destroyed the mud walls Uriah had created at the beginning of the fight, leaving the group open to be surrounded again. Yet there weren't enough Shadow Fiends left to pose a serious threat.

Rafe’s air blades sliced through the remaining fodder to the right, while Mirai’s fireballs incinerated the remaining opposition to the left.

Hannah and Sascha kept the four-tailed beast busy while trying to avoid its copy of Sascha's electric spell.

“Damn it!” cursed Sascha as the beast tried to use her spell against her once more. “Does this thing have a limitless Aura supply?”

She was saved by Hannah knocking the beast to a safe distance with her staff.

“Uriah, Rem, frozen soil,” shouted Hannah. “Now!”

Uriah began to liquefy the ground below their opponent, who attempted to gain footing within the quagmire by solidifying parts of the ground again.

His sister Rem focused her ice conjuration spell on the still partially liquid ground, freezing it solid with the beast's legs still partially stuck in the ground. The frost covered the soil and slowly made its way up to their enemy's body.

Hannah and Sascha used the window of vulnerability. They struck at it from both sides, free from the dangers of electricity, severing one more Core before the beast freed itself, paralyzing the two with a follow-up spell in the process.

The now three-tailed beast copied Gabe’s position exchange spell to trade places with a remnant of a treetop, severed by Luc’s initial bombardment, then jumped back and vanished into a nearby shadow.

“Did we just win?” asked Rogue.

“Don’t let your guard down just yet,” said Hannah. “This isn’t over yet. It still has three Cores left. Status, everyone!”

“I am spent,” said Sascha, bleeding on the ground without further regeneration as she moved toward the center of the formation.

“I am spent too,” said Uriah.

“So am I,” said Mirai.

“I got a little Aura left in me,” said Rem.

“Same,” said Rafe.

“I just spent the last of mine on three more trap spells,” said Rogue.

“I’ve recovered a little,” said Gabe. “Enough for an exchange or two.”

“Me too,” said Luc. “Enough for a fast projectile or a large explosion, but not both.”

Luc and Gabe’s gaze met. Both nodded.

They walked away from the others.

At a safe distance, Luc took aim.

Mirai looked worried. “Wait, don’t tell me…”

“Not a good plan,” said Hannah.

“I am open to better ideas,” said Luc. “Anyone?”

Silence.

“Fine,” said Hannah. “Rafe, get ready, but keep your distance.”

“Are you serious?” asked Rafe.

Their conversation was cut short.

The three-tailed beast reappeared from a shadow and switched its position with Sascha.

Gabe did not miss any time.

Their positions switched too.

The beast appeared right before Luc, who didn’t waste a second.

He hit it point-blank.

The explosion was massive. The shockwave threw him back by a few meters. It ripped his right hand apart and scattered some of his fingers around the battleground.

The former Nine-Tailed Shadow Fiend’s mask crumbled in the aftermath as the last three Cores fell to the ground.

Victory was theirs.

Luc’s ears rang, his breathing short and heavy. Be it from shock or adrenaline, he did not realize the severity of his wounds or the amount of blood he was about to lose just yet.

Rafe rushed towards Luc. He used what little Aura was left in him to reverse Luc’s injury. The pieces of bone and blown-off flesh returned to their former places. Luc’s hand reformed bit by bit. A minute or two later, and it would have required a transplant or an advanced Body Creation spell to restore.

The group was spent, in both Aura and stamina. They stood in what was left of the forest clearing: broken earth walls, cut trees and bushes, remains of ice, and burned undergrowth surrounding them.

The chirping of insects slowly returned to the forest, breaking the eerie silence from before.

Terra and Mary remained in the treetops above for a few more minutes still.

“See?” asked Mary. “I told you they could handle this much. So, what do you think?”

“They are more than acceptable,” said Terra.

“Great.”

“But I must say, they seem a bit reckless. Your boy didn’t hesitate to blow his own flesh to pieces, let alone flinch in the aftermath.”

“They know that even a moment of hesitation can cost you your life. That said, I’d appreciate it if you could skip some of the details in your report to Grant.”

“That is… acceptable.”

The two of them slowly descended from their observation point and joined the group of tired but elated hunters.

“Great job,” said Mary as she ruffled Luc’s long white hair, now colored by mud and the occasional plant material clinging onto his dried sweat.

An exhausted but sincere smile formed on his lips as he looked up at Mary.

“Terra and I will collect the scattered Cores and secure the perimeter,” Mary said. “Take as much time as you need to recover.”

The better part of an hour went by while they recovered some of their Aura. The drinks they had brought washed away some of their fatigue, and the field rations tasted better than many of the fancier meals of days past.

Hannah, Sascha, and Rafe were the first to fully recover and collect the few Cores left lying around the clearing.

Mary and Terra had met again after collecting all of the Nine-Tailed Shadow Fiend’s Cores while keeping their distance from the group.

Terra carried a black sphere with a diameter of a bit less than half a meter. There were a couple of indentations. She managed to open it up after some fidgeting. Inside was an artificial Core surrounded by many small Aura batteries.

“Do you know what kind of device this is?” asked Terra.

“I have seen something similar before,” said Mary. “It looks like a lure. Those have been outlawed for the better part of a century, but truth be told, I’ve come across a few. But this one seems less sophisticated, even makeshift.”

“But what is it doing out here?”

“Beats me. But it sure wasn’t placed here by accident. Maybe someone wanted to mess with you… Or maybe this was just a trial run to see if it works?”

“This is unacceptable,” Terra hissed.

“We should deactivate it. Leave it out here and position a couple of observers to catch whoever set it up.”