SKREEEEE!
Venom spewed into the air as a monster charged at Eliron, swirling both claws at his throat.
Eliron braced himself, one foot back just before he catapulted to the creature, delivering a vicious swipe at its head.
Clang!
His blade met its claws, sparks burning on contact as he pushed against the monster's strength.
By his side, another one was barreling towards him, its serpentine body leaving a trail on the floor as it charged.
Eliron twisted under the swipe of the first, then dug his foot into its side, causing it to stagger back—slamming into its companion.
The monsters hissed, trying to quickly leave their compromising position, but before they could, Eliron was upon them.
Swooosh!
One nasty forward strike cleaved the head of the first monster, spewing brain matter all over its body.
The other creature's eyes shot wide open, and then it opened its mouth, spewing venom like steam.
Eliron darted to the side, the venom missing completely and landing atop a couple of leaves, the leaves sizzling on contact.
He glanced back at the monster. "I'm guessing your breath is just as bad…"
Swoosh!
He sliced into the side of the monster, the beast squealing as it held his blade with both arms, pulling Eliron towards itself.
Eliron was caught by surprise, never having expected it to pull out such a move as he stumbled towards it.
The monster then let go of his blade and struck its claws at his gut.
Clang!
Eliron pivoted in the blink of an eye, blocking the strike, but the resulting force sent him into a tumble, just before he sprang up to his feet.
'I could easily end them with spatial distortion…' he mused.
'But I have to conserve my mana.' There was no telling what other monsters could possibly be waiting for them after this attack.
'Plus this is a good way to get used to this skill.'
Eliron raised his blade, his blood-soaked body reflecting on the cold elven steel.
"Alright, it's about time I took this a little more seriously."
•••
Eliron charged into a group of three monsters, his sword following him like an extension of himself.
His movements were smooth, every step so precise that it was as though he was walking atop the clouds.
He ducked underneath a claw stab, earning a nasty hiss from the first monster, then he rammed his shoulder into the next—sending it back, before spinning like a whirlwind, and lashing out like a storm of unfettered steel.
Swish!
Blood sprayed into the air, creating a haze of red, and multiple slashes plunged grooves into the creature's body.
Behind him, the other two were already racing at him, but he kicked his feet back, sending a cloud of dust to block their vision.
They shrunk back, their charge momentarily interrupted.
That was their mistake… for out of the cloud, Eliron came like a carefree maniac, a smile on his face as he ripped them to shreds, their bodies falling in a wet thump.
Meanwhile…
Yennefer was standing within the defensive circle, her crossbow clutched in her hands as she watched the battle.
The hunters had been nervous at first, but after seeing Eliron and Artie in action, they had gained a little confidence and were raring to go.
Ash was already locked in a deadly battle with a particularly large monster, and so far, they had not had any direct confrontations…
That was until one of the monsters slammed into the side of their formation.
"Ahhhhhhhh!" came a man's cry, his skin sizzling as poison took apart his clothes and seeped into his flesh.
The others let out a battle cry, slashing at the monster, but it was easily pushing them back, landing a number of deep cuts.
Yennefer's magic suddenly flared, the man's skin as well as the cuts beginning to heal.
Gaining more vigour, they shoved the monster back, slashing and hacking whatever they could lay hold of.
But then, they made a crucial mistake.
The hunters in front had tired out from the monster and were too eager to switch. As a result, they created a gap in their formation.
One that the monster was far too happy to exploit.
In mere seconds, it cut right into the center, meeting Yennefer in the middle.
Its claws came, large, deadly, and far faster than she had ever expected.
But Yennefer gritted her teeth, her crossbow clutched tightly to her chest.
If she was to lose, then the formation would break. All the hunters would die, and Eliron's plan would crumble.
'I can't let that happen…'
So far, Eliron had accommodated all her excesses, there was no way she would let him fail.
She charged at the monster, and in the last moment jumped down, the claw scratching her face as she narrowly evaded it.
Yennefer landed hard on the dirt, and quickly scurried to a crouched position.
The monster hissed and was about to turn when she raised her crossbow, blood dripping down the side of her face.
Bang!
Not too far away from them, light was dancing through the night, illuminating the dark space.
And in that light, fiery red hair could be seen glowing with violent menace.
Artie flipped to dodge a dangerously close blow that nearly took out her eyes.
The moment she landed, her bow was already out, twelve arrows piercing the night air and turning one of the monsters into a pincushion.
A serpentine beast slithered towards her, slashing at her while spitting poison.
Artie dodged the swipes, her movements fluid.
Then she appeared beside the monster, the arrow fully drawn.
It was at point-blank range.
Needless to say, the results were devastating.
Bang!
There was nothing left in that head after that shot.
Whoosh!
Three serpents suddenly jumped into the air from all sides. Their bellies suddenly swelled and then they released everything, emptying their venom sacs on her.
Naturally, their plan had been simple, but geared towards success. There was no way she could dodge it…
But to their surprise, Artie's body was suddenly enveloped in a bright yellow glow.
Zigzag patterns of pure condensed light appeared, Artie's body vanishing from that spot and appearing a few feet away.
They had completely missed.
It was one of her most useful skills.
[Short range teleportation]
Artie pulled her bowstring, sending three shots, one for each beast. Their bodies rocked back as the arrows dug into their flesh, but it was not nearly enough to kill them.
Before she could send another flying, Eliron suddenly appeared in front of her, his blood-painted sword coming down without an ounce of remorse.
Slash!
He cut the first one down without much resistance, breathing in hot air as he blocked a powerful strike, the sword vibrating in his palms.
Then he knocked a coming claw out of reach, parried the next blow, caved the monster with a knee to the gut—then shoved his sword down its throat in a sickening crunch.
The last monster slithered back, eyes wide, just before chunks of bone exploded out of the back of its skull…
An arrow right in between the eyes.
Eliron heaved a breath and turned to face Artie. "Nice shot."
She smiled. "Nice slash."
All around them, the monsters that had attacked their camp had been reduced to raw materials perfect for shoe making.