The sight of the serpent's shattered body curled protectively around the egg tightened something deep inside my chest. Its scales were cracked, its movements sluggish, yet it refused to give even an inch. Every time the black beast tried to push past, the serpent dragged its broken form into the way.
I tore my gaze from the brutal clash and turned to Vaela, who stood beside me with her bow half-raised, eyes calculating.
"Sister Vaela," I asked quietly, forcing my voice not to tremble, "can we fight that monkey-looking beast?"
She shifted her attention to me, then back to the battlefield. For a brief moment, her eyes assessed the black beast's speed, its power, the damage it had already endured and delivered. Her jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
Then she slowly shook her head.
My gaze drifted back to the scene unfolding before us. The serpent's once-imposing form now trembled under the weight of its injuries. Jagged cracks ran across its armored shell, pieces hanging loose where the black beast's fists had shattered them. Dark blood seeped between broken scales, dripping onto the forest floor in slow, heavy drops. Its breaths came in ragged, uneven hisses, each one sounding more strained than the last.
And yet… it did not move aside.
Even on the verge of collapse, it coiled its massive body tighter around the egg, positioning itself between the threat and what it protected. Every time the mutated beast lunged forward, the serpent dragged its wounded frame into the path, absorbing the blows meant for something far more fragile.
Watching it stirred something deep and aching within my chest.
In that broken, desperate struggle, I didn't see a monster.
I saw a parent protecting its child.
I clenched my jaw so tightly it hurt.
"Sister Vaela," I said, my voice low but unwavering, "we have to protect the egg. I don't care about my life. I'm going."
Even as the words left my mouth, I knew she would try to stop me. I knew she would call me reckless. But if I stayed hidden and watched that serpent fall while protecting its child… I wouldn't be able to forgive myself.
Before she could answer, I stepped forward.
I burst from behind the tree, leaves and loose soil scattering beneath my boots. My sword was already in my hand, the familiar weight steadying my racing heart. Each step pounded against the forest floor, echoing louder in my ears than the roars of the beasts ahead. The wind whipped past my face as I closed the distance, adrenaline burning through my veins.
"Arthur—!"
Vaela's voice cut through the chaos behind me, sharp and alarmed.
But I didn't slow.
There was no room left for hesitation. I had already decided.
Behind me, I heard the soft scrape of leather and wood. Vaela reacted instantly. With no other option, she drew her bow in one fluid motion, her movements swift and precise despite the tension in her voice. The bowstring pulled tight and snapped forward.
The arrow struck the black beast's leg.
It hit true, but the impact was duller than it should have been. The tip pierced only slightly before meeting the resistance of thick, dense hide. The beast flinched, more irritated than wounded, and its massive head whipped toward the direction of the attack, eyes narrowing.
Vaela didn't give it time to think... another arrow was already in the air.
The forest filled with the sharp whistle of arrows slicing through wind. She moved with relentless focus, her aim steady even as the beast shifted and twisted. Some of the arrows the creature avoided with terrifying speed, ducking behind its thick arms or leaping sideways in a blur of muscle. But a few struck their mark grazing its shoulders, skimming across its ribs, carving shallow lines through dark fur.
Thin streaks of blood appeared along its body but not deep enough to cripple it.
The black beast's attention shifted, first toward Vaela… and then toward me, charging straight into its path with a sword drawn and nowhere near strong enough to face it alone.
A guttural roar erupted from its throat, deep enough to rattle the air around us, and the sound vibrated through my chest like a warning.
Then it moved.
Its powerful legs coiled and released in one explosive motion. The massive black body launched into the air, claws extended, muscles rippling beneath its thick hide. Leaves and dust burst upward from the force of its leap, and a rush of wind struck my face as its shadow swallowed me whole. It was coming straight for my chest, descending with crushing speed.
"Young master, move!" Charlie's voice cut through the chaos, sharp and urgent.
"skra-move!" Vaela shouted at the same time, alarm threading her tone.
I heard them both. I understood exactly how dangerous this was. Every instinct in my body screamed at me to run away, to survive first and think later.
But I didn't stop.
If I retreated now, the serpent would fall. The egg behind it would be crushed without hesitation. My boots dug harder into the earth as I forced myself forward instead of back.
The black beast came down like a falling boulder.
I threw myself sideways just as its massive fist smashed into the ground where I had stood a heartbeat earlier. The impact shook the earth beneath me, dirt and shattered roots exploding outward in a violent spray. Leaves scraped across my face as I rolled, the smell of torn soil filling my lungs.
Before I could fully regain my footing, it was already moving again.
The creature twisted with terrifying speed for something so large, its claws carving through the air toward me. I rolled in the opposite direction, feeling the rush of displaced wind brush against my back as its strike missed me by inches. The ground tore open where its claws raked across it, leaving deep gouges in the forest floor.
It didn't hesitate.
A third attack came faster than the last two, without pause, just raw instinct and overwhelming strength. I barely had time to react. There was no space left to dodge.
I planted my feet and brought my sword up in both hands.
The blow crashed into my blade with a deafening clang. The force surged through my arms like a violent shockwave, rattling my bones. My grip nearly gave out as the impact drove me backward. Pain shot up from my wrists to my shoulders, and the sheer weight behind the strike forced me off balance.
For a split second, I thought the blade would shatter.
Instead, I was the one who gave way.
The force hurled me backward as if I weighed nothing. My body slammed into a tree trunk with a sickening thud, the breath knocked clean out of my lungs. The world spun as bark cracked behind me, and I dropped to one knee, gasping, my ears ringing.
Before the beast could close the distance and crush me where I knelt, a sharp whistle cut through the air.
Vaela's bow sang in rapid succession, each shot precise, each release smooth despite the chaos unfolding around us. The black beast snarled and twisted as shafts bit into its hide, but most failed to sink deep. Some pierced just beneath the surface before snapping under the tension of its movement. Others deflected at an angle, glancing off dense muscle and hardened skin.
A burst of heat followed.
Charlie stepped forward, his palms blazing bright orange as compressed fire shot from his hands in controlled bursts. Flames slammed into the creature's flank and back, rolling across its fur in waves of searing light. The air filled with the acrid scent of burning hair and charred flesh.
But it wasn't enough.
The beast roared, shaking its body violently as embers scattered around it.
It swung one massive arm toward Charlie, forcing him to leap back to avoid the crushing blow. Vaela shifted positions immediately, loosing another arrow toward its exposed side, yet even that embedded only halfway before being ripped free as the beast moved.
A cold realization settled over me as I forced myself upright, gripping my sword tighter despite the tremor in my arms.
This was nothing like the low-level beasts we hunted each month with careful coordination and measured risk.
The pressure rolling off this creature was on an entirely different level. Even compared to the hound we had barely survived before, this beast felt stronger… and more dangerous.
Then I felt a gaze.
Despite the chaos unfolding only a few strides away, my instincts pulled me to the side. I turned my head slightly, and met the serpent's eye. Its remaining eye, a deep, burning yellow, was fixed on me.There was no mindless fury in it now.
For a moment, the forest noise seemed to dull around us. The beast before me was wounded, exhausted, on the verge of death but powerful enough to crush me without effort, yet it did not strike.
It only watched.
As if deciding whether I was another threat… or something else entirely.
I forced myself to break eye contact with the serpent and stepped forward, tightening my grip on my sword. If I couldn't overpower the black beast head-on, then I would strike from the side.