Egosum perked up as she spoke.
“Are they still there?”
“They are and there are nearly three dozen of them from my estimations.” Cinera said.
“That is a lot of hunters but not beyond our expectations. What's the problem that you are expecting then?”
“Well, they will have no idea that the humans are trying to help. They literally despise them with everything they have. We could yell or have Thunkar tell them, but I doubt that will help. We were kind of betting on them rolling over when they figured out we were trying to kill Punishe.”
“Oh shit. That... is a good point. A really bad oversight. What options do we have?” Egosum looked back at the parasites.
“Truthfully, I think we go in with the parasites as we planned but we will need to be ready to deal with heavy resistance and continued fighting after he is dead too. He can command them to fight back and they will, but the humans will make them really try to kill us.”Cinera looked up to the beastman for him to speak up.
“I will step in after the fight is over and try my best to explain what is going on, but you can’t expect things to go well.”
‘If they are going to actively try their hardest to fight us it might turn into fifteen or more versus Cinera and I. That might be doable, but Punishe would have ample time to get away if they aren’t quick with it. The more time he has to give commands, the more likely he is to get us in real trouble for no reason.’
“Okay, we will just have to work with it then. What is the layout looking like?”
Cinera sent a gust of ash out before her to clear the land of debris, exposing the dirt below it. She drew a rough sketch of the camp's layout with a large X where Punishe was located.
“Here, here, and here are where most of the captives are located. They are guarded in the front and would let a mob of parasites slice open the back to get easy access. Here and here are where most of the hunters are located.” She pointed around to areas of focus before looking to Egosum for directions.
“So, the parasites will go in and rush the tents to get the captives out. I expect some of you to get taken out but not too many if Cinera opens up strong with some type of flashy spell. You guys will move the hostages to this clearing where Thunkar will be and then come back to open the way for us to reach Punishe. Any objections?” The clearing was silent as he waited for a response.
“We should be fine to approach from this side. I can guide the parasite in closer and then we can wait for Cinera’s magic.” Thunkar cut in.
“Great. Let's get to it.”
The beastman stalked into the forest with the parasites in tow. Egosum, Coyotl, and Cinera walked forward and to the side of the mob to get a different vantage point.
On the way, she turned to the frog.
“You should stay back. You aren’t a great fighter and There isn’t a good reason to put you into danger.”
Coyotl’s face soured as she spoke. His eyes were clear and sad, yet he still nodded consent before they fell away to the common dull shade of black he was used to.
Egosum fought back a grumble at his clarity when not speaking to him when the hunter’s camp came into full view.
The pair of fighters exchanged a hard look before Cinera raised her hand to the air.
The bubbling cloud of ash spun around itself in turmoil as power lanced around her hand.
Time ticked by as the attackers waited for her to finish and unleash her magic. The sheer volume of ash condensed in her grasp was mind-boggling to watch. It could easily cast a cloud large enough to cover the entire clearing with ease.
The wind that obscured their smell from the target slowly began to shift.
The feeling of the cool breeze slowly turned more and more from hiding them to broadcasting their location as it shifted its direction.
“Cinera, we need you to hurry up.” His harsh whisper could do very little but fall on deft ears.
She concentrated so wholly on the magic that she cut off her other senses.
‘Fuck.’
Any minutes now and the wind would blow the wave of scents right into their camp, sending them on high alert. Egosum needed to make a decision. He had to act now or lose the opportunity.
He looked to the emptiest clearing of the camp and tensed his legs with power.
Power transferred from his taught muscles and into the group, sending him flying into the air and onto the hard-packed earth of the camp sight.
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The previously dark and vile grumbling of the hunters ceased in that very moment.
The clearing became silent as the three dozen heads turned to his location to gawk at the rude intrusion.
“What in the world?” A deep voice spoke out from the side as they stared.
“Owah owah!” Egosum used his best rendition of Coyotls customary call causing the entire camp to flinch away from him as the ear-piercing call sent their hands to their ears.
“What the fuck was that?!” Punishe came barreling forward from his tent to inspect the cause.
He scanned the camp before his eyes fell on the toad.
“A toad? Oh, wait, the toad. The magic fucking toad that has been protecting the camp and hunting for them. I heard about you from the new recruits.” He pointed his clawed hand towards him and sauntered forward, confident surrounded by all of his underlings.
“So, you came all the way to our little paradise in the woods to do what? I mean really, the only outcome for doing this is your death. I am curious what magic frog legs would taste like.” He took slow and deliberate steps to Egosum.
“They would probably be very tough. These are working legs. Meat that works tends to not be very tender.” The casual conversation through Punishe for a loop as he paused in his advance before looking down to the ground.
“Ah, you’re trying to by time to make that trap again. Hunters, grab him.” He nodded his head to the right.
A small group of the beastmen stood up from their seats and walked towards him.
Egosum’s qi circulated into the dirt as he went into overdrive, pouring as much of it as was physically possible around him.
‘Right now would be a great time to send the magic out.’
As if on queue, a dark gray, billowing cloud of ash cascaded out of the tree line and flooded every inch of camp with a thick haze. Visibility was reduced to the barest minimum and their senses of smell were obliterated.
“What is this shit?” Punishe screamed the loudest as he swiped his hands around to try and push the ash away.
A cacophony of noises arose as the hunters screamed in confusion and fear.
The sound of the herd of parasites came rushing down the side towards the tents that housed the hostages.
He had successfully salvaged the attack and now it was time for the first signs of combat.
Muffled shouts and screams were hidden behind the other noises caused by the hunters.
Confusion was at an all-time high as they tried to understand what was happening.
Egosum felt his qi touch the feet of a few of the hunters for the first time. They stumbled as the solid earth turned into a soupy mess. What had once been limited to sludge was now massively saturated and more liquid than solid.
The toad shot down into the muck, kicking forward to begin immobilizing as many of the men as possible.
“Humans attacking!” The frantic shout cut over the rest of the clearing as the first call of other attackers broke through the haze.
He felt the stuck men shift their weight with a previously unsee vigor at the shout. Their efforts redoubled as they felt an intense bolt of hatred lanced through them.
Egosum rushed for the closest pair of feet that hadn't been pulled to safety. He gripped the beastman’s legs with his dao-enhanced hands and pulled him deeper and deeper into the muck
He finally stopped as his arms we trapped below the surface and solidified the earth around him, encasing him in an immovable coffin.
The vibrations of combat above him signaled the start of the parasite's struggle with the hunters. That meant they had already saved the hostages and the most important of their goals was already truly complete.
Their other goal was just the delicate herb on top of the delicious bug. The real fight began as he broke through the surface to breathe.
His enhanced sight pierced through the ash as he took survey of the battlefield.
The majority of the hunters were dashing around to try and find the attackers while the parasites ganged up on the few stragglers. They seemed to home in on the other hosts to offer their help, undoubtedly utilizing whatever strange connection enabled them shared thought.
The ash that hung in the air suddenly began to dissipate as a long and loud howl sent waves of mana pouring into the camp.
Egosum whipped his head back to inspect the cause and saw Punishe with his head high to the sky and the last wisps of the call falling to the air.
The beastmen began to turn the tide of the battle as they became invigorated with the call.
“Kill the humans!” The harsh yell from their leader sent the newly empowered hunters into a frenzy as they rushed for the parasites.
A few of them fell into his ever-widening pit on their way to fight, taking a handfull of the hunters out of combat. He rushed to rescue a few of them from suffocating to death before the first crackle of lightning shook the clearing.
A few shouts of pain and seizing gurgles stole away a few of the fighter's attention. He felt the impact of a few bodies hitting the ground as Cinera’s magic froze them in place.
“Trap them for me please!” Her light scream reached his ears.
The qi went flying from to the convulsing bodies, covering them with muck and hardening into a solid cocoon.
He turned his sight to the largest of the scuffles where a horde of the beastmen were ripping literal chunks of meat from the parasite's body.
Egosum’s vision saw small pink worms flying into the air as the goring commenced Legs, arms, and head flew away from the collision.
His first experiences in war were not kind to his senses as the smells of blood, feces, and urine all came flooding past him.
The only thing that saved him was his time fighting the human troop. His momentary lapse in action widened the gap in fighting forces as the nearly half of the parasites were already in a state beyond repair.
Egosum scanned the clearing for Punishe and leaped in his direction as he caught wind of him.
The beast was standing out of harm's way, watching his fighters put their lives on the line with a violent glint in his eye shining like the stars in the sky.
The movement didn’t go unanswered by the resistance as a small contingent of hunters converged on his landing spot.
His qi funneled into his body, enhancing the already taught muscles with as much power as they could continuously handle.
The four beastmen got close and all swung at him from varying angles. Their razor-sharp claws raked against his back, bumping over the small glands that covered his sides.
A flurry of several more swipes rained down on his before their ragged breaths filled the air. Their exhaustion was plainly visible as they took in their handy work.
Their expectations of a flayed and bloody toad were quickly squashed as he deflated and looked towards the closest of the hunters before flying into action.