SUTA POV

Suta swallowed one of many harsh gulps down his sore throat again. He placed a hand against his neck, and cold, dried sweat wet his palms. He was reminded that fear had dehydrated his body. Despite this, his mind was working quickly. He scanned the disproportionate creature with a tense glare. Judging from the size and shape of its legs alone, Suta was assured it must be incredibly quick.

'Problem one,' he thought harrowingly.

Next, his gaze trailed towards its muscular thigh, thick streams of veins worming beneath the pink skin. Its abdominal muscles were chiselled like iron. Suta watched its entire upper body heave in and out, with hoarse breaths puffing through its closed visor like dense smoke. His gaze then fell towards the obscenely long bone claws resting by its side, slightly curved in the middle.

'Second problem.' The corners of his mouth curved into an ugly smile. This...creature wasn't going to be easy.

"Verdi, I'm sorry to ask, but I imagine I'll need your help again."

The gentle-looking fairy carried itself away from behind Suta's neck, fluttering its delicate wings before hovering just before his ears. The green-haired sprite looked dishevelled and tired, but like Suta, those eyes were still filled with burning resolve. Verdi bounced its tiny head up and down, and then, in the next moment, a soft, bright light covered its entire body. Suta watched its graceful figure slowly fade into nothingness. This would be another outcome of Verdi's brightness - the ability to become invisible beneath the soft light.

"Ok, exhale. Let's go."

Suta blinked before taking a step forward. The deformed figure of Ser Ector slightly tilted its iron-encased helm to one side, displaying a sense of curiosity. A gentle idea flickered into Suta's mind seeing this.

"Heh-he? S-say, I don't suppose you remember me, do you?" He cleared his throat anxiously, dangerously shuffling his feet a little closer.

'What am I doing? What do I think is going to happen?' Suta felt he had to try at least; maybe there were remnants of the honourable little fellow somewhere. Perhaps he could appeal to it. Of course, this was entirely based on imagination and some of the fiction he had read growing up in manga novels.

'Maybe I can…huh-what is it…doing?'

Before another hopeful thought could bloom, a disturbing sight quickly stole his attention. The creature placed two bone fingernails between the closed visor. A few obscene long nails fell between the gaps, and the scrunched iron began to be pried apart.

The lack of effort with which it physically bent iron was not missed. In reflective response, Suta's palms fell low and swiftly acquired both Red Tooth and Moon Drop in his grasp.

His heels rooted a little more than 40 feet away from the creature. Staring with a contemplative, distressed look, a beastly maw appeared between the opened visor. The murky white breath crawled free, but then Suta's brow twitched upon seeing a tiny reddish beam glowing in the depths of its maw. Alarm bells started to sound immediately. Suta sensed danger until the creature held out its grotesquely shaped mouth and fired a surging red beam, which phased so quickly through the air that he almost missed it and was forced into a desperate dive to the side in a hopeless attempt to avoid it. The burning red beam shaved through the air and burned one side of his ribs. The creature leaned forward and sprang towards him before he was given a moment's respite.

Suta's mind desperately sought a sudden, forceful calm. Luckily, his mind and body were still accustomed to Candy's dangers. With all the beasts and cunning creatures he had wrestled with so far, there was little room within him to be entirely caught off guard. Therefore, as Ser Ector rushed towards him bearing its bone claws, Suta rooted his right foot down before swiftly kicking away from it, pulling his momentum to the opposite side. The creature mindlessly clawed at the open air. Suta landed on his heels and staggered a little; he blinked once before the beast moved upon him again. Its agility was way beyond what he had calculated. An enraged snarl broke free from its grotesquely bestial maw, up close its slimy spittle spat roughly away from its maw, covered in jagged teeth, but it was the bone claws rushing towards him.

Suta's gaze widened, refusing to blink, understanding that a single mistake spelt death, a quick and probable painful death. Fear was certainly still an anchor in these moments, but Candy had taught him a lot of ways to handle fear. And the most consistent response was this...

{Double Slash}

His body mechanically reacted and struck out two arc-shaped attacks. By sheer luck, Suta disturbed the bone claws' trajectory whilst moving his body out of the way. His dagger flashed forward quickly and struck the creature's upper arm. A slight amount of blood appeared, leaving no natural effect on the beast.

'Danger!'

Suta inhaled a deep breath and tossed his head backwards; the bone claws whistled through the air, so agonizingly close he could smell the dried blood stained against the claws. His body was forced into retreating at an uncompromising angle, whereas the agile, bone-like creature was nimble enough to turn and dash after him. Suta angled his two daggers in anticipation of the double-clawed attack bearing his way. But just before it closed the last stride, Suta tensed his arms in a cross-guard motion. The beast feigned an attack but instead curved its body down and performed a frontal flip. A thick, leathery white tail slammed down, crushing Suta's guard.

A snarl rippled through his bones; the pain against his two arms shrunk into a cold, dreadful silence. Suta's glaring eyes could only watch on as three slightly bent claws of bone clawed for his chest. Sweat splashed against his lower lip as he tried desperately to move to avoid the ferocious bite he could see coming. When he almost practically envisioned the sting of death, a flutter of wings graced his ears.

[Brightness]

That all-too-familiar swash of gold danced across his tense air. Suta exhaled; he finally blinked, knowing what was set to come. A roar of vines shot forth from the ground beneath them, swiftly bombarding the enraged creature in a tangle of coiling vines bounding around its ferocious limbs.

Verdi's power erupted at the right moment.

Suta skidded backwards; his knees buckled from the strain against his bones. His hand fell against the centre of his chest; he felt his heartbeat thumping wildly. Beads of sweat trickled down the side of his flushed face in disbelief. His wide stare could only behold the tip of the bone claw inches from his chest. He moved quickly and kicked the ground away to get some space.

Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

'Damn it-damn it, that was dangerous!' His life practically flashed before his trembling gaze.

With his mind whirring for answers, he wouldn't be getting a reprieve right now. He heard the creature howling furiously into the air, followed closely by a red light flickering around its maw. Suta had already seen that attack and swiftly made haste to evade it. The beam quickly passed through the vines and charred a strip of the earth.

Once the creature was free, it clicked its neck from side to side and glared menacingly toward Suta. Its maw slowly sunk open, dispelling a froth of murky breath. Suta wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and retook a deep breath.

He carried the daggers in a reverse grip, lowered his body, and leaned forward slightly like Anak had taught him. His soles were never fully planted flat; he bent his entire body and bounced against the top half of his feet before pushing off his heels as hard as possible. He dodged his short dash, imminently arriving in the creature's attack zone. The grotesque form of Ser Ector merely stood there, its arms still hung low, utterly devoid of any show of fear. Suta dared not hesitate and swiftly ducked beside its ribs; he smelled an opening and swiped Moon Drop in a forward hook. The creature came alive and sidestepped out of the way; its claws almost responded by habit and slapped down.

Suta's eyes flashed open.

{Double Slash}

Two red crosses appeared against the beast's torso. Suta felt his bones groaning in pain, but his eyes obsessively remained poised on the beast. The claw came swiping towards his right; he planned on taking another step back. So he placed one heel back but felt his legs cave beneath the weight of fatigue.

Suta saw the air of death looming, but he reacted quickly enough to swoop low. Almost a second afterwards, he felt a callously burning heat strike against his back. Suta rolled to the side, from which the arm reacted. He exhaled a calm breath and wildly slashed forward. Red Tooth's bite sank deeper into the space below its arm. Already, Suta noticed a red mist circling its hilt. The glutton dagger had already started drinking profusely despite this desperate situation.

The creature cried painfully loud and slammed its elbow square across Suta's jaw. His head painfully snapped backwards, carrying his entire body flying away. Amidst the eerie distortion in the air, Verdi's alarming cries filtered into his ears. He felt the firm impact of the ground awaiting his heavy fall. His wounded back slammed heavily; he bounced a few feet away before sliding to a halt. Suta desperately blinked to stay awake, but instead, he saw a cloud of darkness blinding his view. It took him a few moments to regain consciousness, to which he hurried himself off the ground.

Still slightly disoriented, he tossed his frantic gaze around in search of the creature. His neck twisted to one side, and a wave of pain assaulted him. He felt a deep, pulsating burn layered against his entire back. Luckily, he quickly saw where the creature stood, still almost 100 feet away. Seeing it still a fair distance, his gaze softened, allowing him to catch his breath after that first exchange. The creature was preoccupied with its wounds, too busy snarling through the torn visor to follow up its attack. Verdi buzzed around him in anxious wait.

"M-mi-mister, you're hurt! Let me heal you!"

Suta didn't bother to object; he could barely move his legs. If he wanted to stand any chance of winning this battle, he needed to be sharp, precise, and most importantly…deadly.

'Attacking its body won't do me any good. I'm nowhere near strong enough to inflict any accumulative damage. I can only use Double Slash once more before my body breaks down. It's still a beast so it will display fits of rage and mindless behaviour in moments. Most creatures have attack patterns, unlike real people. They don't plan or hold back. They aim to kill. Which means…"

Suta's gaze narrowed as he kept a close eye on its visor. An idea sprang to his mind.

"Verdi!"

"Hm? M-mister?"

"I need your help again…of course. How bright can you shine?"

Verdi looked at him a little confused, but it pondered on some things before lifting its little round helm up and answering honestly.

"Very bright, mister."

A cruel smile creased Suta's face upon hearing that.

"Good. I'll need you to go supernova in a sec. Just…just follow my lead."

Suta straightened his back and slowly walked (yes, walked) towards the slender-bodied creature snarling on its heels. Observing its feral demeanour, his mind told him this was a creature no more different from the countless predators he had met during the disastrous time spent here. But he knew those thoughts were merely half-truths. Nestled deep in the confines of his heart, he remembered his brief time spent beside the short knight.

"And what's your name then?"

"Hm? Oh, my name? I am the first knight called Ector, sire. And it's quite the honour to be in the presence of a descendant from the lineage of dawn."

"It's okay. I tend to have many things to consider too."

"Oh? Like what? Tell me of the great troubles that plague you, Ser Knight,"

"W-well, there's the matter of... you know. Getting caught outside during the eclipse."

'Tsk! Stop it, stop thinking about that. It's...it's not him.'

Suta held Red Tooth whilst kissing the face of its hilt. His nerves seemed to descend into stillness. That strange, lucid feeling was approaching. His mind had found that point where his concentration met the heights of his vast and oversaturated mind.

"Yeah, Anak was right. There are no friends here. I have to win. I have to get stronger…for their sake." Ringo's face flashed across his thoughts again. The mirage of her face calmed his nerves. Steeling his heart, he exhaled a cool breath and dashed forward.

The air felt oddly light; everything suddenly fell into a strange quiet.

'Strange, I can hear myself. My heartbeat that tiny stone softly covered in a strange cooling liquid. My dormant core? Yes, that has to be it.'

60 feet away.

'Verdi? Why can I see the trajectory of his flight? And why is he so slow? Slow…everyone is so slow.'

Suta's world turned slightly grey like an eternal gloom had clouded over his skies.

"Huh?" Suta suddenly noticed a strange azure light being drawn into the space ahead. The outline gradually formed into the shape of a human. He casually blinked a few times and noticed an additional two almost identical figures being conjured on either side of him. With nervous intrigue, he stretched out his hand; his fingers moved right through their misty bodies, and a warm sensation ran straight up his arm.