The sizzling sound of Ella's claws, superheated by wyvern flame tore through the carapace of what seemed to be a giant hairless caterpillar.
It hung from the ceiling from a metal hook from the ceiling of a cave.
The length of its body extending three quarters of the way down.
The strange creature's greenish carapace came off, revealing its smooth white flesh coated in a layer of viscous translucent mucus.
Ella waited for the mucus to drip to the ground through its own weight. She hopped up to the top of the caterpillar, hanging from a metal bar installed onto the ceiling.
She began carving off the part at the top with the least mucus.
Once done, she grabbed the piece of flesh, placed it inside a roughly circular stone pot and began roasting it with her flames.
The meat turned brown and toughened.
Hikari's mouth watered as she watched the juices were squeezed out, gathering at the bottom of the pot.
After several minutes of roasting, Ella poked her claw into the meat. It went straight in.
She gently peeled open the meat, checking the color at the center.
Satisfied, she pushed the stone pot with her horns towards Hikari with her horns.
Before it reached her, Hikari grabbed the stone pot and immediately bit into the steak, shredding almost a quarter of the mass in one mouthful.
"More"
Ella got to work, skillfully dissecting the giant caterpillar. She cooked several pots of meat at once. The curved pot surface could contain the heat from her flames.
Once the meat was cooked, the pots moved on their own, flying towards Hikari, stopped by the palm of her hand. The contents was promptly emptied.
A whole caterpillar was skinned. The creature was big enough to fit into an entire train carriage.
Hikari actually felt a little stuffed for once. She closed her eyes, leaned back and meditated. Her bare skin resting against the sloped stone surface.
Ella pushed the last pot of meat to her, nudging it against her toes
Hikari sleepily opened her eyes, getting a blurred view of Ella's wagging scaled tail.
"I'm full, you should eat"
Hikari closed her eyes and leaned back.
The squishy sound of Ella chewing and swallowing.
Drip. Drip. The sound of dripping water as the snow at the top of the tower melted by the heat in the cave.
The faint howling of the wind outside.
Despite the freezing temperatures above the clouds, the cave felt like being indoors during the plowing season.
Golden flowers bloomed inside the cavern, illuminating it with its warming light.
A brief cooling sensation as Ella's scales brushed against Hikari's foot and shin.
Pulses of warm mana up Hikari's leg as the half wyvern snuggled.
"I'm tired."
Hikari starts falling deeper and deeper into the depths of her own consciousness.
Drip. Drip. All she heard was the dripping of water.
Drip. Drip.
Boom. Boom.
"Pssh.. Hikari. Wake up. Hikari."
Hikari furrowed her brows.
"Pssh.. Wake up…" The low pitched voice echoed.
Hikari felt a nudge at her side.
She opened her eyes. A blurry view of a man's half shaven face.
"Gerald?" The name just popped into her head.
"Gerald your tits. 'My Lady', Can't you hear the cannons booming?"
Hikari sat up. She found herself in a fur coat and leather gloves. The tip of her brown boots came into view.
She was inside a tent. The ceiling seemed a bit low. It was chilly. The howling of the wind outside.
She slowly stood up, expecting her heat to hit the tent ceiling. But it didn't.
A man stood before her. Quite young, no wrinkles yet, probably closing in on the thirty mark.
The top of his head level with the bottom of her blossoms.
Plain fur coat. A short sword, a musket strapped onto his front. A green crest on his chest.
Hikari grabbed her sword. She opened a gap in the scabbard to check the blade.
A decent sword, though it was just steel. No runes nor enchantments.
She closed the scabbard. The blade was about the length of her arm.
"Slap your cheeks and rub your eyes quickly. Here's your orc poison."
Gerald held up a translucent dusty vial containing a thick brownish liquid.
Hikari opened her palm. Her brown leather gloves reflected off the glass surface.
The thumb sized vial dropped into her hand.
"Hurry up. I have a feeling we're going to need you for this one."
Gerald turned around and left the tent.
Hikari checked herself. Moving her arms and legs. Her shirt felt a little tight but it did not rip.
Her hand touched a metal crest resting on one of her blossoms.
She looked around the tent.
There was nothing but several pieces of hide strewn on the ground to become her bed.
No stitchings. The bedding would get wrapped up if she had tossed and turned in her sleep.
She followed Gerald through the tent opening.
As she emerged, the snowscape briefly blinded her. The sound of cannons and gunfire.
Men pulled up their pants as they emerged through the tents, frantically grabbing their muskets resting on racks.
A huge boulder barreled towards her in a high arcing trajectory.
With a high kick, she smashed it into pieces. Several more stone boulders landed around her, smashing a hole in the wooden roofs where they landed.
The sudden crackle of wood. One of the gates was smashed right open. Several greyish green hulking humanoid beings stomped through the broken gate.
A volley of musket fire peppered the charge, felling the first few orcs. But as more of the musket line reloaded, the orcs surged through into the village.
"Thats your cue Hikari! Plug that break in the line! We can hold the other sides. The orcs are not charging the other gates yet!"
Gerald yelled as he emptied his musket. He immediately turned to bark orders to a chubby cannoneer cranking a lever.
Hikari leapt towards the breach. She drew her sword. The vial floated above the blade. The cork came off, the thick liquid coated the outer edge of her blade.
Hikari advanced. An orc charged her. She hopped to the side onto a building and dove down towards an orc behind him that was lumbering towards an infantry man with a smashed leg.
Hikari moved past it, gently sliding her sword along its back and making a shallow cut on its back.
The orc fell limp behind her as the poison kicks in.
With another step, she drove her blade into another orc that was attempting to flank a knight in steel armour dueling two orcs.
An orc charged her from the side, dragging a heavy maul along the snow. As it tries to swing, Hikari kicks its arm carrying the maul, staggering it. A thrust into its chest, the blade touched its innards for a brief second before it was pulled out.
The orc collapsed on the ground as Hikari jumped past it, ran her blade through another orc's belly while ducking the swing of its club.
A mass of orcs charged her. She lightly stepped back as the orcs swung their heavy, unwieldy weapons wildly, hitting each other as they funneled towards Hikari.
An orc leapt into the air, its hammer above its head. Hikari kicked it in the belly, sending it crashing into its brethren, staggering them.
Seeing the opening, she dove into their line, making a round house swing with her sword. Several orcs fell limp at once. The next wave of orcs broke and ran for it.
The armoured knights cut down the stragglers left inside the village.
The infantry man cheered as she made her way back to her tent. Several men in plain leather and green crests greeted her. Their faces seemed familiar.
"Stuning work as always. Looks like we'll be getting you another round of mead. Provided of course the supply wagons get here. Not to mention new underwear or pieces of dried cloth at least." Gerald laughed.
The men laughed and sang around her.
Hikari stood and watched. The wind was cold but the men's energy was warm.
It was warm.
For a moment.
The wind started picking up.
A fog came over the village.
The men groaned as they started making their way back to their tents.
"Back to your tent 'My lady' Hikari." Gerald yelled through the howling snow.
"Hey! Don't tell me you're trying to snuggle into her 'Ladyship's tent!" One of the men protested
"Shut it, or I'll bury you beneath the snow!"
Before Hikari could react, the fog had gotten so thick that she had lost track of her own tent.
The laughter had died. The men around her seemed to have vanished into thin air.
She tried to walk. The snow had piled onto her boot. She had to lift her knees to trudge through the snow.
It had been a while since strong wind had been an impediment for her.
Grrr…
Hikari flinched. She expanded her mana sense but felt nothing. The thick fog remained opaque to her. She drew her sword, holding it in front of her in a guard.
Slowly, she advanced. Maintaining her stance at every step.
Grr…
The growling came again.
Hikari walked.
It was silent. The sound of her own footsteps and the howling wind.
She felt hard ground. Stone walls on either side of her appeared in the fog. She continued down the corridor.
It was completely deserted. Not a trace of men nor orcs nor horses.
Only empty wooden crates and the splinters of torn bucklers.
Grr…
She emerged from the corridor into the village square. The fog in the square cleared.
Several men wandered the square like zombies.
Pink Flowers and grey vines growing out of their faces.
They stopped as she stepped into the village square.
A still pause.
They turned around, the pink flowers glowing. The grey vines shuffled their flesh.
Their green crests.