Aranea raised the sword with both hands, welcoming Keyl. The knight captain took the sword with both paws, lifting the handle to the right side of his head. And then he made a thrust. Aranea knew this move, and a smile spread across her snout against her wish. The knight captain covered the entire distance between two fighters with a single leap.
To evade this attack, she sidestepped to the left, allowing the tip of his blade to pass her by. She moved her own sword to hit him when Keyl surprised her. He didn’t let go of the handle, landing on the right leg before Aranea and using both his paws to swing the sword at her. She backed off again, failing to guard herself in time and feeling a scratch on her cheek. He mastered it. Thrusting and slashing, Keyl used both masterfully.
"Ari, I am sorry!" Keyl rushed to her, and she laughed, making Zeke, Carty, Olesya, Svetlana, and Annie look at them. Keyl stopped, bowing, "I mean, wolf hag Aranea."
She kept laughing, wiping off the blood from her cheek, and feeling the small cut heal beneath her fingers. It was nothing to fret about. In a moment, Keyl laughed too, putting his sword in the sheath.
They were on a small clearing, Carty was facing off against Zeke, while Aranea was facing off against Keyl. Annie, Svetlana, and Olesya stood outside the clearing, watching the supposed "dominance" match. All were wearing power armors, Svetlana tried to argue, but Annie shoved her into one force. The warlord then painted the medic's crest on the breastplate before allowing the medic to join them.
The moon was shining brightly above them, filling the clearing with a soft light. A few drones passed them by, flying soundlessly in the air, and the group played their roles, spitting out insults and curses toward each other. Their allies surrounded them, setting the trap for Huntsman and the Soultakers in case they bit.
When the drones left, it was boring to simply wait and do nothing. Aranea decided to challenge Keyl to a sword fight, while Zeke and Carty went on their long-awaited spar. Sadly, the wolf hag finally realized just how unskilled she is with her father's sword. She tried to swing down this thing like in her childhood, while Keyl used it carefully and with reason.
"Shall we start the dance?" Zeke courteously bowed to Carty.
"Be careful. He is a grabber." Annie warned the scout.
"Yes, when Annie fought against him, he groped her breasts!’ Svetlana eagerly nodded.
"This wasn’t what I tried to…"
"Zeke, sometimes I really do wonder, how you even managed to become a knight." Keyl sighed, offering a bandage to Aranea, and she waved him off.
"They are spreading slander about me!"
Carty moved. She covered two steps between the opponent and herself in an instant, aiming a punch with her right paw at his face, while the knight was busy talking. Zeke never missed this hit, slightly bending his knee, never allowing his shoulders to drop. His arms moved like whips: his right arm grabbed Carty's wrist, his left arm below her elbow, sending the scout flying and allowing a smug grin to appear on his white-furred snout.
The armored legs closed around the wolfkin’s neck, banishing his smile. Carty used his throw to wrap her legs around his neck, trying to choke the knight unconsciously. Zeke grabbed the hold with both paws, locking her own legs around Carty’s neck and falling face down, smashing Carty against the ground like a cannon ball.
Aranea looked at this with minor worry. Both of them let their helmets slide onto their back, their necks were exposed. Even in regular sparring, she saw how effective Carty was at choking someone into submission. Here, however, the blue-furred scout met her match. Even strengthened by their armors, neither of the opponents could knock out the other, both were growing weaker. Finally, almost in agreement, both let go, rolling away from each other and breathing heavily.
"You may consider this your win." Carty said, massaging her neck.
"Eh, the night is still long, don’t give me a cheap way out. Ready for round two? For real now, okay? Don't hold back on me, I want to see how my cousins fight."
Carty nodded and charged forward, engaging him in combat. Aranea saw how the two wolfkins struggled for a second before the scout threw Zeke on the ground, tearing his pristine blue cape in the process. She tried to leap at him, and Zeke knocked the scout off balance with a low kick.
"Are they playing the role, or are they trying to kill each other?" Keyl frowned, looking at his subordinate, who was all too eager to try and slam Carty into the ground while dodging punches that left craters in the ground.
"A little bit of both, from the looks of it," Aranea raised the sword, pressing the blade almost against her nose, "The prey refuses to show up yet, knight captain. Will you give me another lesson?"
"Sure," Keyl said, raising his blade, covered by the sheath this time, "Attack me. You’ll see."
Aranea raised her brow in surprise but accepted the offer. She used both hands to launch twin crisscross slashes, one after another, aiming to overpower him. Keyl took both slashes on his blade, walking backwards and refusing to let her use her superior strength. She followed after him, making one slash after another, trying to overpower him.
"Don't just let me retreat," Keyl said as he blocked another slash. "Surprise me. Control my retreat by..."
Aranea tried to do just that. She made a thrust with her father’s sword, aiming for his face. The knight captain beat aside this strike, and immediately Aranea followed with an overhead strike, making him sidestep the blow. His blade ended up beneath her own, and before Keyl could pull his weapon back, Aranea crashed into him with her right shoulder, showering the Ice Fang backward.
"Does this count as a surprise?" The wolf hag laughed, and he returned the smile, "You go at me this time, full force."
The knight captain nodded, saluting her with his blade. Both of them held the blades before them, the only thing that was ruining the night's silence was the ground’s trembling, which followed each of Zeke’s throws. Keyl moved, making a single step, turning the overhead slash into a thrust. Aranea expected it this time, taking the hit on her blade. What she didn’t expect was him closing on her and giving her a low kick, followed by an elbow hit into her throat.
Aranea gasped, falling back on her ass, feeling every inch of the pain running down her body. Keyl wasn’t weak, that’s for sure. She could bet her monthly earnings that he was lifting; there was no way an Ice Fang ever got this strong naturally. The wolf hag replied to him in kind, kicking the wolfkin in the leg and sending him stumbling before jumping up and standing on all fours, holding the blade with one arm.
"Gotta admit, Keyli man, you are better than me in a proper blade fight," Aranea laughed, projecting herself at him and slamming her head against his faceplate. She wrapped her arm around his chest, feeling the fabric of his cape, "How about I face you like a Wolf Tribe member!"
The wolf hag lifted the knight captain, slamming him into the ground. He coughed once, and they both thrust their weapons at each other, his sword ending up an inch away from her eye, her blade next to his neck.
"I missed facing up against you like that, cornstalk." Keyl admitted with a genuine smile, and Aranea stood up, giving him a paw.
"You speak as if you were ever my equal," Aranea grumbled arrogantly, feigning superiority, before blushing and bursting into laughter, "Keyl, thank you, really. I needed to let out the steam."
And I really missed you. Aranea admitted it to herself. The Ice Fang order still freaked her out. The mere thought of returning to the keep, getting anywhere close to the ice cave caused her to have nightmares occasionally. But Keyl was different. They played together, teased each other as they played video games, she helped him sneak away from his parents, he helped her do the same. He was the first outsider to assist her in treating an injury and in making new friends. After the Ice Fang found her, Aranea even messaged them, asking how they were doing and telling them that she was okay. She never dared check the responses, afraid of something, but there were aplenty. Keyl was a memory of a good life and a good friend.
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He smiled, standing up, and for a moment they stood against each other. Keyl was usually around her height, but his armor allowed him to tower over her. He placed a paw on her shoulder, reminding her of their youth. They stood in silence, feeling the tremors from Carty’s fight against Zeke.
"Enemy!" Olesya shouted, and all four wolfkins jumped back, stopping fighting.
Aranea tossed the sword aside, reaching to mount the shardgun behind her back and grabbing her rail gun in her paws. Zeke drew his broadsword and prepared the tower shield. Keyl prepared the small buckler on the elbow of his left arm. Svetlana hid behind Annie, who was readying her own energy rifle.
And on the other side of them stood a giant of a man, covered in dried blood from head to toe. He raised the massive, blood-splattered spear above his head, greeting them. Even through the night, the group saw his white teeth when he smiled, looking at them mockingly, allowing them to see him in full. Huntsman came for them.
"Now!" Aranea yelled, taking aim and firing. Her helmet moved, covering her head.
Huntsman vanished from her vision, allowing the plasma to rip holes in the trees behind him, igniting some of them. Aranea saw him, appearing right behind them, through the cameras on her allies’ power armors. The spear was about to pierce Svetlana when his leg touched the mine, and the entire group was thrown forward, away from their foe.
Aranea rolled on the ground, while Zeke darted before the medic, putting his shield forward. All around them, the wolfkins jumped from their underground covers, firing into the crowd of smoke. The sound of explosions, the hissing of energy weapons, the roar of machine guns, and the barking of shardguns filled the calm night, indicating that the other team had started as well, attacking the Soultakers head-on. Trees started falling all around the forest as two sides locked in deadly combat.
The sword spear came from the cloud of smoke. The spear’s tip aimed at Carty, and Zeke charged forward, taking the hit. The spear pierced the tower shield, crumpling it like paper. Zeke coughed, while everyone else fired at the massive arm visible through the smoke.
This time, Aranea didn’t miss. She hit Huntsman directly in the index finger, hoping to sever it and the spear’s shaft behind it, along with his wrist. Instead, the projectile was stopped by his bone.
Holy shit, he is tough. Aranea thought in panic, seeing how the finger fell from the spear, still connected to the hand by the broken bones and flesh.
Huntsman vanished, only to reappear behind another group of wolfkins. His swing hit only empty air, the mines were primed by now, and each group knew its location, positioning themselves so their foe would always reappear around the mines, sending them to safety with the shockwave. They were wearing power armors, but he was not. Even with his unnatural durability, Huntsman still suffered cuts from explosions.
Annie fired her energy rifle, spreading clouds around Huntsman. The beam burned a small hole in his shoulder, another hole was made when Aranea fired her own weapon. She noticed that Olesya wasn’t firing her cannon.
"What is wrong?" The wolf hag asked, causing the warlord to shake her head.
With a roar, Huntsman vanished, his body covered in blood and his clothes ripped from the shards. He teleported behind another group, failing to kill anyone else. Energy beams from scouts, shardguns from the lower ranks were all hitting him with everything they had. They lured him to where they wanted him. The fight was never meant to go for long, the Wolf Tribe excelled at quick killing. To their shock, the packs found out that nothing could drop him for good. Enraged, the giant stopped trying to use his power, instead stepping forward and thrusting his spear into Danulka's back. The white energy beam struck him several times across the fingers of his left hand, causing Huntsman to step back in horror, staring at the missing hand. Olesya finally stepped into the battle, walking to him and firing anew.
The beam slashed through the trees, while Huntsman reappeared behind the warlord. The mine explosion sent her away, and Aranea’s shot in the back of Huntsman’s knee bringing the giant man to his knees.
Now, to finish this! Aranea gestured for the wolfkins to advance. Huntsman was weakened, he grabbed the shaft of his spear with one arm, trembling as the shots were fired into his body, and seemingly lost in confusion.
"Yuki, come back!" Tiny shouted over the communications, distracting the wolf hag from firing the rail gun.
Fire came pouring from the skies. The napalm strikes hit the ground, bathing all fighters in fire, burning the capes of the Ice Fangs, and exploding the mines. Through the cameras of others, Aranea saw a wicked smile on Huntsman’s face and felt dread.
He lunged at nearby Olesya, opening his jaws wide. Wolf Hag Hine shoved her warlord aside as the ground beneath her leg collapsed. Kate’s work. Aranea's expression changed from relief to horror. Huntsman lowered his head, biting half of Hine's body. Her shoulder, part of her spine, and her leg all disappeared in his mouth. The gigantic jaws closed, spitting out the ruined body. With a smile on his face, Huntsman gulped down the meat.
Huntsman stood up, spinning his weapon around. His first slice killed four warriors before him. With the dull side of his spear, he hit Kaleb, sending the wolfkin through four trees and shattering his legs and an arm in the process. His kick pushed wolf hag Danulka away from the battlefield, leaving her lying like a broken doll thirty meters away.
The monster teleported away, reappearing at the edge of the clearing, pushing his spear into the ground, and grabbing an oversized tree. He tore it from the ground, sending the tree through the ranks of wolfkins, killing one and injuring eight more, including scout Ultis. Aranea fired at him, and the beast looked in her direction.
"Svetlana, give me the weapon!" Aranea heard Annie’s scream.
Grabbing the sword spear with the remaining two fingers, Huntsman charged across the flaming field, stepping on the wolfkins and killing them this way. Carty and Zeke tried to stop him, but he beat them aside, sending both of them flying with broken bones. His grip on the spear slipped, causing him to miss the deadly strike and let go of his weapon. Huntsman continued to smile as he reached out and grabbed Aranea, causing the wolf hag to squirm in pain. The rail gun shattered against her body, and the shardgun was pushed into her back, turning into a pancake made of steel. His grasp was tougher than any industrial press, breaking her bones in an instant, no matter the protection of her power armor. She was only alive because Huntsman craved to eat her.
Keyl hacked at Huntsman's legs, drawing blood, but failing to distract the monster. The jaws spread wide, introducing Aranea to the darkness of his throat. Darkness that was set ablaze when Olesya pierced his throat with her flaming claws.
"Enough! You will never kill any more of my people! You will never kill any more of my friends!" Olesya shouted, opening his throat, and Huntsman shrieked in pain, letting go of Aranea. The wolf hag landed at his feet, rolling around to evade being stomped.
Moving blindingly fast, he brought down his fist on Olesya, tearing off one of her arms. The warlord paused for a moment before bursting out laughing as sparks flew from her shoulder. She yelled, slicing Huntsman's flesh and leaving long wounds with her remaining arm.
"Wrong arm, fuc…" Huntsman kicked her away. The warlord fired one more time, burning away his right eye, before falling down at the edge of the clearing, creating a small crater beneath herself. She writhed around the ground in an attempt to stand up. Her deadly cannon finally cracked from the impact.
We don’t have anything else to kill him with! Aranea sent a call for aid to Ursico, who was supporting the second group. It was their best shot, if they could just…
Huntsman turned to her, and Keyl stood in his path. The gigantic jaws opened wide, eager to swallow him, when an energy orb, shining as bright as a star, hit him in the side, leaving an injury the size of a human body in his flesh and shattering his ribs. The shot knocked the colossus to the ground, and soon after, a trail of destruction ran from the ground in the direction of the fired shot.
Annie advanced, holding a long black rifle with ornate silver lettering written in some strange language all around it. The warlord breathed heavily, the armor around her arms was cracked, and blood poured from the cracks. With difficulty, she aimed at Huntsman, who was trying to stand up.
"What is it?" Aranea whispered.
"Dragena’s weapon. Capable of shooting an energy-shard-shaped projectile at 2,000 meters per second." Annie replied before pressing the trigger.
The warlord howled in pain. Her arms cracked, the recoil from firing this weapon forced the rifle’s handle into her chest, burying it in her flesh. She let go of the weapon, which actually remained stuck in her body, sliding away painfully slowly while she bled all over from the fountains of blood coming from the torn wounds in her arms.
Huntsman fared far worse. The projectile hit him straight in the belly, piercing the flesh and reaching all the way to his spine. Huntsman actually stood up for a split second, the force of the shot exploding the ground all over him while he grabbed his side in a desperate attempt to withstand the energy devouring his insides. The man tried to scream, letting out only a whining whisper from his lips.
His back exploded, and the projectile flew away, wreaking havoc on the forest while miraculously not killing anyone. And Huntsman collapsed like a tower, causing another tremor across the battlefield. His body trembled, he moved just once before stopping.
Now! Aranea stood up with a groan, limping to Annie and taking the weapon into her paw. In her condition, it was just as likely to kill her as her foe. But she didn’t care. Janine deserved retribution. She deserved to rest in peace, knowing that the scum who killed her was dead for good. Keyl offered her a shoulder, and she took it, despite the fact that Keyl’s cape was still on fire from the napalm’s hit. All around the battlefield, the wolfkins were dragging the wounded away, while a group of warriors, led by Kate, surrounded Huntsman, firing into his trembling body nonstop. Even after all of that, the shardguns have left barely visible scratches on his body. Aranea gave Kate a quick nod, and she ran off to Kaleb.
When Aranea heard Huntsman's whining voice, she came to a halt. She stopped, unsure if he was surrendering, "Please, mom. I will study. Just give me food…"
The wolf hag hesitated just for a moment, and that was enough to let the moment slip. With a roaring sound, something came from the skies. Covered by steel and surrounded by flames, it was not another missile. It was the crusher’s command center that came down with a force of thunder, sending the warriors flying.