Leo was speechless, as he processed just how much blood he’d seen spilled. The damage of this city was caused by one lone beast, a beast who seemed more than capable of tearing apart stone bare handed. He doubted it would be stronger than him, but it could be strong enough to infect him.

His skin still stung from the frost, his neck a constant reminder of the freezing pain. They were reminders that despite his strength, he was not a god. He didn’t know if this could affect him, if he could lose himself to some spiked menace.

His pondering had been cut short, by the noise of a loud explosion outdoors. Leo turned to the door, uncertain what caused the explosion from outside. In the corner of his eye, he could see Philips already had his wand aimed at the door. From beyond the door came a guttural roar, a mixture of agony and fury. This was accompanied by bursts and explosions, likely from the traps that Philips had set.

“It’s here,” Philips solemnly said.

“What’s the plan?” Leo asked, as he got up on his feet.

“Survive.”

The doors were caved in, thrown off their hinges. There stood a monster that towered over them, with long lanky limbs. Its thin body was covered in spikes that protruded from every surface. As Leo looked up at its face, he saw that the beast had no eyes. It had nothing but a gaping maw with jagged fangs. It appeared that the monster was bleeding, covered with injuries sustained from Philips’s traps.

Leo could barely think before both the monster and Philips both acted. Philips sent a bolt of frost aimed at the center of the monster, but by the time it was halfway there, the monster had already dodged. It acted with surprising agility, leaping into the air and clinging onto the ceiling with its spiked feet. Though by the time it landed, Philips had shot out another blast of magic.

Leo could barely keep pace, as he watched the beast move faster than he could see. Philips trailed behind, each missed shot leaving mounds of ice protruding from where they landed. Leo wanted to help in the fight, but he couldn’t find any opening.

He had no way to strike the beast without also destroying the building. While, in most situations, he would resort to his patent pending “Grab and Crush” technique, this thing was far faster than him. He just couldn’t see an opportunity to get a grab on it. Leo decided to keep low to the ground as he headed towards the door, he hoped to avoid any attacks from Philips. He was also concerned about getting struck by the beast, as he hoped that outside of the room he could figure out a plan.

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While he snuck past, the fight between the two raged on. The beast lunged at Philips, its arm extended to grab the man. Philips could barely defend himself in time, as he summoned a wall of ice in between them. The monster collided with a heavy thud, as Philips forced the solid ice to melt. He shot another beam of frost magic at the monster, as he hoped to catch it while it was stunned. Even with his speed, by the time his shot was fired the monster had already moved away.

Philips' grasp on his wand had been loosening, his body wracked with exhaustion. His sleep deprived eyes darted around the room, struggling to keep pace. This was the monster that haunted his very dreams, the beast that tried to take his life every night. He fired off three more shots, as he tried to make blockades of ice to corner the monster.

If the monster was only fast, Philips would have had an easy time with it. But it knew what he tried to do, as it kept escaping every corner he was backed into. Philips fired with determination, desperate to land just one good hit that could end it all. His eyes burned, their blue shine seemed to be set ablaze.

After dodging another blast, the monster returned to the offensive as it landed to the ground. Philips shot to where it would land, hoping to catch it before it could dodge. Yet what he hadn’t noticed was that the monster had grabbed a chunk of ice before it fell. He saw it leap off the ice, as it rushed towards him once more.

The room was littered with ice, large spikes protruded from every wall. This was part of Philips plan. He could create ice with ease, but it was also possible for him to control ice. He moved the nearby ice towards him, as it propelled in between them at rapid speeds. While he could’ve been reached if he summoned it, the ice was able to move faster than the monster.

It hadn’t ever seen Philips attack this way, as it was unprepared to avoid the collision. Though once the monster collided, it couldn’t dodge. The wall of ice shot out with dozens of spikes, as it ripped through parts of the monster's body. The beast cried out, as it frantically thrashed to escape. The encroaching frost slowed and weakened it, as it tried to knock off as much of the ice as possible.

Philips swayed while he stood, as he struggled to keep his balance. He felt as if his eyes were on fire, his body over exerting itself on maintaining control. He had no certainty that this would work, especially not if the monster saw it coming. Yet now the monster was trapped, unable to escape from the mound of ice that dug into its skin.

Then, another explosion sounded from outside. Philips instinctively turned, afraid that another beast had come. What he saw was Leo, partially coated in ice, after he activated a hidden mine. Philips looked shocked, as his concentration was rattled by the accidental detonation.

With his focus down, the ice had become less oppressive and freezing. While it was no longer being manipulated, the beast had enough strength to force an opening. It charged at him, its body bleeding and covered in large wounds and ice. Philips turned back at the noise, as he hoped to do something to save himself. Yet as the beast pierced through his stomach, Philips realized he took too long to respond.

He’d not had a decent night of rest since the monster first appeared, as each battle wore him down more and more. He could recover less magical energy each night, constantly running out of mana by the time the beast left. He’d just needed to hide or fight until sunrise, but he always knew that once he failed he would die.