In most situations, the circumstances often make it so expectations supersede reality. In Kenan's current predicament, all pretenses were thrown to the wind. The original plan was for Noctis to jump on the back of the raging bear, stab it a few times with the prospect of making it at least pause it’s movement. Then, when or just before the beast and man duel was starting to go south, he would switch places with Dion. Kenan would continue on his horse, while the dirus raced to catch up. Dion’s top speed was significantly higher than both the horse’s and the bear’s.
Things did not go according to plan. Not only did the bear not stop hurtling towards Kenan’s friends, but seemed to simply not care for the presence on his back.
As Noctis wobbled violently and prepared to stab downwards, his senses alerted him. Swiftly he took a sidestep to the right and brought the Black Blade up. A green vine shaped to a point shot passed and slid against the sword. While he got himself out of one danger, he threw himself into another. The combination of the bear's turbulent speed, a moving platform, and Noctis no longer being in the middle. He began to fall off. Just before he was sent tumbling into the dirt, he twisted mid air and sunk the sword into the side of the beast. It roared in agitation but continued onwards. With his left hand he grabbed a tuft of fur, using his claws to dig into flesh.
Faster the wind sped, twisting its form to sound like a fast beat, and intense song. Jorun played his lute with his eyes closed, and hands moving quicker than anyone would properly imagine an amateur bard could. Doco tried his best. It wasn’t that he didn’t have enough power inside of him, but the potency of his telekinesis just wasn’t affecting the mutated mammal. Jefned and Dion obediently raced along, but worry for their master made them want to take some sort of action.
Kenan's legs dragged on the ground and bounced on the uneven dirt road. He crunched his abdomen and buried his boots into the beast's stomach. A vine rose in the air, temping to strike at Noctis. Last second he swung his left side as he let go of flesh. The green extra limb missed, and without remorse dug into the bear's ribcage. The blade began to wiggle out and threaten to drop Kenan. Thinking fast, he oscillated his legs up, and hooked his boot on one of Doco’s stuck daggers. Once again a sharpened vine set about to stake him in the heart. No time to move and no room to maneuver. As it launched he crunched his stomach, and before it could properly hit, Noctis snatched the vine with his fangs. He let them sink deep, and tugged, snapping the sharp point off. He spat the thing out, green blood oozed out of his mouth and his tongue tasted the overwhelming flavor of rot.
Dion couldn’t think of anything to do for his best friend. The dirus twisted his head to see just how close the bear was. It swiped with its paw trying to lacerate Doco’s steed, but it merely cut fur. Dion growled. The protection drive that was already in play started to go into overdrive. In the dirus’ mind, while it might not be true, Doco was one of the pack that needed to be protected. Using his size, Dion danced in between the steed's hooves and directed them. Giz strayed to the right, while the other two went to the left. Setting Dion in the middle and being solely chased. Maybe the large mammal’s chase instincts will make it’s focus tunnel onto the dirus.
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Not wasting a second, Kenan clawed his way to the top once more. Using both his nails and sword as climbing points. As he got to the top, he saw he was not the only thing that rose. Four vibrating, pointed and twisting limbs matched his height. They launched simultaneously. Noctis spun, flicking his sword in rapid succession. All four were cut off instantly. In their place, eight raised. Down his arm, into the sword he sent mana, heating it up to an extreme. Mana blade activated, he readied for the next round. With each step and flick of blade, Noctis dodged, deflected or cut off a mutated, unnatural phalange. Each time he did so, he heard a faint hiss, the beast vibrated, and he saw a blaze creep it’s way down the vine. Once the round was over, he searched the back and the side of the bear. Thoughts and ideas rapidly generated and calculated inside of Kenan’s brain.
On the base of the neck, in between the large shoulder blades, was a massive interconnected cross section of oddly lively mutated vines. More mana to the blade. From its point flame erupted and went up it’s side. Kenan even burned a bit of qi to make sure it dug in properly. Noctis stabbed downwards with his strength.
Immediate results. The odd vines screeched in horror and the large mammal roared and shook in pain. Before the Black Blade could properly set, the bear locked his legs and set it’s butt in the air to stop as quickly as possible. Kenan launched forward as a result and was sent into the air. He landed and rolled. As he stood and slid, he twirled to face the monster. Setting his right leg back, left forward, in a subtle crouch, left arm up as if he was holding an invisible shield, and right holding the blade that was resting on his lifted arm, Kenan prepared himself. The steeds continued at full force. Dion felt his master's call for aid. He came to a skidding stop, and sprinted to Noctis' side. Growling and maw bared.
Across from them, the large bear roared. Momentarily stunned. Flame started to spread all over it, but the vines also started to unfurl further. Eventually the beast regained its senses. It looked at it’s two foes. It stood on its hind legs. Green limbs sprouted from it’s back and created a menacing, spider like span in the air. It gave a blood freezing yell.
Kenan breathed in and out. Closing his eyes momentarily, he felt at his core a piece of Nonesthic. With thought he pulled on it, and flowed its power to the blade. The Black Blade became lit with a thousand different white dots. Dion sprouted fire from his eyes, nose, claws, mouth and tail. He howled in anticipation. All three moved at the same time.