Large, red eyes scowled at Bathilda as they watched in contempt and frustration from inside the tunnel. She was hovering above an ocean of blood, a stupid smile plastered across her face. Her black fur was matted with the blood and guts of its kin as she shot back and forth finishing off the remaining Barts. To the creature that held dominance in the bottom of the pit, Bathilda was the harbinger of death.
King Tarb, the ruler of the Brats and Barts, was unable to move. Its entire body had turned stiff, except for the teeth that chattered away in fear.
Arriving at the scene of the one-sided slaughter, the King of Rodents was ready to buff his underlings and join the fray to put a swift end to the menace attacking them. Thanks to the ability to buff its kin through skills, the oversized rat thought that no one was able to get the better of the ruler of the lower world.
Unfortunately for Tarb, King of the Rodents, as soon as he met eyes with Bathilda, his legs turned to stone and his heart began to beat at an unhealthy pace. His whole body washed cold as a feeling unlike any other swept over him. All he could do was stand there, watching his kin die, and that's exactly what he did.
He watched as blades of air, created from the wings of the harbringer, bisected all his underlings and the floor of their hunting grounds was dyed red with blood. He watched as a second menace, also throwing around blades of air as though they were nothing, added to growing count of dead.
The Bats moved at supersonic speeds and easily overpowered their weaker opponents, despite being outnumbered. King Tarb couldn't help but wonder about their remarkable strength and what they might have gone through to acquire it.
He himself had fought non stop for his entire left. Starting as a Brat, the runt of the nest too, he chewed and clawed his way to evolution. Fighting many a hair raising battle, the Brat became a Bart and continued to grow. After killing countless monsters without keeping track, the Bart evolved and chose a magnificent option.
King Tarb.
Since then, none of the others looked down on him. He was no longer the runt anymore. Instead, he was now the leader of the pack. The head vermin. All others bowed in reverence and followed whatever instruction they were given.
King Tarb had a singular command for his followers, which was easy enough for even the dimmest of creatures to comprehend. His directive was to become stronger by any means necessary. He was tired of being at the bottom of the pit, and as his species was one of the weakest, he was determined to alter the course of fate.
King Tarb had decreed that his army should grow stronger and stronger for almost a decade in a location far away from civilization. His army had fought against many enemies, including bats. However, none of the bats they had encountered were as ferocious as the two they faced now.
Bats were tricky opponents for the vermin, due to their ablilty to fly. The were not the Barts forte, but the rodents could usually manage to bring one down using rocks when they were in large groups. Today was not their day, however. All of their attack patterns and the tactics they usually employed against airborne enemies that had been successful in the past, failed miserably
King Tarb watched in resigned contempt as Bathilda and Hiro cleaned up the remaining stragglers that refused to give up. It was a valiant effort, but as the cries of the last Bart went silent, the monarch shuddered at what was to come next.
He was immobilized, unable to move, and surrounded by a ghastly and overpowering smell. The death of hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of his kin was heavy in the air. Their blood had coated him as he stood still, glued to his position. He hoped that the bats would leave now that they were finished.
The mighty leader was absolutely terrified, so much so that he couldn't even move. All he wanted was to curl up into a ball and pretend that what he had just witnessed had never happened. He had watched as two bats had brought an end to his entire species.
King Tarb attempted to shrink himself as much as possible. However, the particular Bats he encountered possessed a unique ability to locate their opponents through radar, and they instantly detected his presence as soon as he arrived.
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Not that he knew that critical price of information and even if he had, King Tarb didn't possess the abilities needed to escape the insanely-fast bats anyway.
The demons that had descended from above had no more subjects to hold their attention. As a result, the King of Brats and Barts, who was the ruler of the underworld, found himself being attacked with numerous blades that he could not dodge. His legs felt as if they had turned to stone and were the only appendages left standing after his body had been reduced to mincemeat.
Well, that was... Anticlimactic.
Bathilda let out a sigh as the largest rodent she had ever seen was turned into a cloud of blood. She surveyed the destruction that she and Hiro had wrought in their pursuit of XP. That wasn't how Bathilda wanted to live her life, but down here, there was no other choice.
How many do you think we killed? Including that big one trying to hide in the tunnel.
"I counted more than three hundred, but I stopped keeping track after that. They were moving around so much that I just gave up. I mean, they were fast, but not fast enough." Hiro thought about some of the near misses he had during the fight, dropping down to low and not noticing the projectiles fast enough.
Aerual combat was a bit of a bitch. There were a lot of variables to consider.
They weren't that fast. Maybe you're just slower than me.
Bathilda confidently pulled up her stats while giving her companion clone a knowing smile.
Name: Bathilda
Race: Vampire Bat
Class: None
Title: Rodent Exterminator
Level: 18
XP needed until next Level: 2769
HP: 868/868
MP: 352/757
Skill Points Available
What a load of shit. We killed that many of what I used to consider overpowered Brats, I feel like the XP we recieved should have been higher. I know I need more per level now, but still. That was ridiculous.
Kicking the torso next to her and sending it flying, Bathilda's frustration was clearly on show.
"Shall we see where this tunnel leads?" Trying to view the tunnel from which the largest rodent had arrived, Hiro's use of (Echolocation+) brought his attention back to an irate Bathilda. He watched as she spread her wings before taking off. A cloud of red dust blew passed him as she flew up the pit.
"Bathilda!" he called out, as he took to the air himself. He didn't have far to travel however as she had went straight back to the base and was already in the process of throwing large mounds of earth out of the entrance.
"What are you doing now?"
Preparing.
Was the only word Bathilda said as she continued to dig. Dislodging large boulders before ejecting them to the pit below.
"Preparing for what?" Still a little confused, Hiro thought he knew what she was upto. He had learned it was better to ask than assume with Bathilda, however. Plus he would have liked more information than a one-word answer.
"I'm renovating now for whatever the next evolution brings. Plus, I need to wait for a whole so my MP can replenish and...
Stopping mid-sentence, Bathilda had just realised that she didn't take the time to test out any of her new vampiric abilities, during their assault.
Nevermind. If I'm not fully regenerated by the time we're finished, I'll snack on something on the way."
"I'm probably going to regret this, but on the way to what?" Hiro looked at Bathilda ominously. The original body to his clone, his transport out of Paradise, the person he had started to think of as a friend.
Whatever I have to kill next of course!
Bathilda turned to look at Hiro as if the answer had been obvious. She tilted her head as she continued digging.
"Why do you have to say it in such a creepy way? You're starting to sound like you're slipping off the deep end," worrying about her sanity, Hiro let his thoughts slip off his tongue.
Why?
Removing herself from the excavation area, Bathilda moved to face Hiro.
Is it because I'm embracing what I have to do to survive? Is it because I'm pre planning my evolution so that we're not trapped in this cave the next time I get bigger? Or is it because I've finally accepted that killing is a more of a pre-established fact of life on this crazy-ass world than it was on my own? Hmm? Which one, Hiro? I'd love to hear what you think.
All four of Bathilda's eyes were trained on the now-silent leech. Bathilda crossed her arms, a novelty she was over the moon with, and waited patiently for his answer.
Eventually losing the staring contest, Hiro conceded to Bathilda's well planned thoughts. Even if she was raising voice with each sentence, he couldn't deny she was adapting well for someone unused to taking the lives of others.
"Well when your head turned to the side and you didn't stop digging, it looked... Kind of... Scary."
Hiro?
Bathilda calmly addresses the smaller, srill-shaken bat across from her.
"Y-yes, Bathilda?" Heart pounding in his chest, Hiro's eyes widen as Bathilda grew closer and closer with each step until she was right next to him. Staring down at his small body.
Get digging, or so help me God, I'll show you what scary is.
Scampering around her to the closest wall, Hiro began working as instructed too as fast as he could. Over the space of a few hours, they proceeded to expand their base of operations for the next time Bathilda evolved.