“Poachers?” Kaira’s voice came from behind her.

Iris turned to see her girlfriend and the kitsune in her fox form approach.

Gryff called out as Bree and Laken arrived on the opposite side, the burly telv explaining what they found.

Kaira looked around as Akane moved through the camp sniffing, Mocha stood still as she observed the scene.

As the others started moving around the camp to look around for any clues, Akane let out a bark.

Immediately transforming back to her humanoid form, she quickly disappeared inside a tent. Moments later, she emerged, her fox ears flicking back and forth with alertness and clutching a yellow mana core.

The core, the size of a baseball, was passed to Iris who rolled it around in her hands as she looked down at it in contemplation. Her fingers felt a damaged portion of the core and she held it up, seeing a deep crack running through the orb.

Definitely poachers. But what happened?

Meanwhile, the others continued their search through the ruined camp, scouring the tents and the few belongings scattered around.

After scrutinizing for anything useful or telling of what might have transpired, Kaira shrugged as she returned to Iris. “There’s nothing here,” she said, her tone carrying a mix of disappointment and relief.

Iris, still holding the damaged mana core, let out a sigh before letting the orb fall from her hands and thudding against the leaf-littered ground.

“Let’s continue,” she told the others.

Laken was quick to add his thoughts. “Keep your eyes out. Something picked those bones clean.” his gaze, like Iris’s lingered on the scene that lay at the edge of camp.

Iris nodded in agreement. “And I doubt it was the harpies,” she muttered, turning her attention to Akane. “You’ve been here before, right?”

Akane affirmed with a nod, her fox eyes remaining alert and cautious.

The adventurer continued, “Are there any beasts or monsters we should worry about that could do this?”

Akane squinted for a moment before launching into a series of barks and yips to Mocha.

The illusioned horse listened attentively before translating to Iris in a nicker that sounded amusing to Iris when seeing the source.

‘She says that there are all kinds of things to watch out for, but the area smells of bone cleaners,’ Mocha relayed, her voice hinting at how serious she was taking being more closely involved in the quest.

“Bone cleaners?” Gryffs eyebrows shot up in question even as his hand tightened around his spear.

After Akane responded with a series of yips, Mocha clarified, ‘Small lizard things with a long tail. Likes to climb and hunt in packs.’

Iris passed it on, and Bree’s eyes widened as she glanced around. “Akane, you’re pretty big in your true form. What do you mean by… small?”

Akane nonchalantly gestured to about knee height, causing Laken and Bree to share a knowing look. “Velstrids,” Laken clarified with a sigh.

“What are they?” Iris asked. She hadn’t heard of those before, but she also hadn’t heard of a lot of creatures that roamed the lands of Eona.

Gryff chimed in, “They’re feisty little scavengers. A fast-breeding reptile that isn’t afraid to attack in large numbers… well, against anything. Anytime a nest pops up, the nearest Guard or even the army is sent to clear it.”

“Oh, of course,” Iris groaned. “Just what we need, a side quest.” More trouble was the last thing they needed.

“We need to stay closer,” Laken advised, his gaze scanning their surroundings warily. “Large numbers will overwhelm us if we’re separate.”

“Sounds good,” Iris agreed, clapping her hands together. “Stay close, keep your eyes open. Akane, if you see or smell anything that may be trouble, feel free to toss us under an illusion.”

At the kitsune's acknowledgment, she gestured for them to proceed.

✦ ✦ ✦

Pressing on through the dense undergrowth, and over fallen trees, the party made their way deeper into the heart of the forest. Iris’s senses were on high alert, and she kept her [Rushing Winds] flowing through her as she moved, her eyes keenly searching the environment.

The forest itself seemed to shift in personality, from an uncanny stillness to the signs of… habitation.

They found a… clearing, sort of. The ground was neatly cleared of underbrush and the trees that were there had an almost organized placement, but instead of another poacher camp, they found a different sort of scene.

“What happened here?” Bree asked.

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Iris looked around the area, seeing what could only be a harpy nest.

The dwellings were crude, constructed from haphazardly lashed-together sticks and branches. They bore straw-covered roofs that hung low and loose, and doors that seemed to be made of animal skins.

It had a surreal beauty, this makeshift settlement, however, the scene that unfolded before them was anything but.

Everywhere they looked, there were signs of devastation.

The ground was a morbid tapestry of lifeless harpy bodies, their plumage dulled by the dirt and the grim reality of their end.

Each body was pierced by numerous arrows, the deadly projectiles now acting as grim markers of the harpies’ last stand.

What was more unsettling were the surroundings.

It was clear that there should have been more dwellings, but some were nothing but piles of burnt wood, while the trees were scorched and blackened as if standing as silent witnesses to the flames of conflict that had engulfed the area.

The smell of burnt wood hung heavily in the air and mingled with the metallic tang of blood.

Gryff broke the silence first, his voice low but steady. “It seems as if we’ve stumbled into a battlefield,” he murmured, his gaze roving over the grim spectacle before them.

Kaira gave a slow nod of agreement. “The question is, who’s winning?” she asked, her voice equally hushed.

Iris stepped forward, but then Akane froze causing the rest of the group to stop mid-motion.

Iris’s [Danger Sense] went off with a loud buzzing sound, and without thinking she channeled her [Arcane Capability] and [Focused].

The kitsune quickly shifted back into her fox form and at the same time transformed Mocha back into hers.

Two clouds of mana enveloped the two creatures, and in less than the time it would have taken for Iris to ask the kitsune what she heard, a dire fox with three tails and an armored warhorse appeared.

Akane's tails bristled, erect like flagpoles, and she let out a low, throaty growl that reverberated through the clearing, causing a few stray leaves to flutter in response.

A strange, sibilant hissing noise echoed back, an answering call from the depths of the forest. The hairs on the back of Iris's neck stood on end as the hissing grew louder, the sound warping into a sinister chorus that filled the air with palpable tension.

As Iris looked around, trying to pinpoint the source of the threat, a chill ran down her spine.

They were surrounded.

As she looked around, she realized they were completely surrounded by a large pack of reptiles that reminded Iris of komodo dragons, but taller and clearly more lithe.

These ones had long, sinewy legs that ended in sharp claws that dug into the earth as they advanced, their beady eyes fixed on the party with a predatory glint.

That’s bigger than knee height.

Each of the party calmly readied their weapons

The onrush of the strange reptilian creatures was sudden and brutal.

In the brief instant before chaos ensued, Laken cooly drew his bowstring taut and let an arrow fly. It whizzed through the air, a fleeting whisper before it embedded itself in the face of a charging velstrid. As if in sync with the arrow's flight, Kaira, Gryff, and Bree steeled themselves, brandishing their weapons and moved together with shields up.

Iris wasted no time as she cast [Chain Lightning] at a group of the charging creatures. A surge of electrical energy lashed out, arcing and splitting between the attackers and a spectacle of lethal, dazzling power unfolded as the spell bounced from one creature to the next. The victims fell, their bodies spasming and smoke coiling off their bodies.

The enemy horde didn't relent, advancing with a fervor that was almost intimidating.

The din of battle erupted as Akane's form blurred, dashing among the velstrids, claws rending and teeth biting.

Meanwhile, Mocha was equally resolute, her sturdy hind legs delivering crushing blows that launched the reptiles into the air.

As the battle escalated, Iris maintained a rapid casting of [Sparks] and [Chain Lightning], the energy around her snapping and crackling with the unleashed power. Gryff and Bree held their ground, their spears finding targets in the creatures attempting to breach their defenses.

Despite their best efforts, the terrifying creatures descended upon them like a relentless storm. In that hellish whirlwind, Bree's spear met an unfortunate end.

With a resonating snap, the shaft broke against the body of an overly aggressive velstrid. Without missing a beat, she used the broken spear to bash back the creature, buying herself a precious moment.

Quick as a flash, she drew a short sword from her belt and drove it into the nearest threat with a grim determination.

Amidst the chaos, Kaira danced a deadly ballet, her blade carving a path of destruction through the reptiles that tried to flank them. Laken’s owlbear was a whirlwind of fury, its immense form crashing into the ranks of the creatures, tossing them as if they weighed no more than feathers.

The onslaught was relentless and chaotic.

Several of the creatures knocked into Iris as she focused on other groups, their weight jarring her balance. She staggered as they seemed to use each other to climb up after her, she almost panicked when she felt the hot breath of a velstrid on her face, its reptilian eyes void of any fear.

Acting on instinct, she used [Lightning Step], her lightning form surging away from the velstrids that had nearly overwhelmed her.

She reappeared amid a fresh cluster of the creatures, her reformation from energy back into her physical form creating a violent shockwave of electrical power. The immediate vicinity was transformed into a localized storm of electricity, charring the surprised reptiles.

At least four fell, their bodies spasming before going still.

The battle raged on, each member of their party proving their worth in the bloody chaos. Iris found her body pushed to its limits, her mental stamina waning as she sent bolt after bolt of electricity into the mass of creatures.

Another leaped at her, but suddenly Mocha was there. The horse impaled the creature mid-air with her steel horn before ripping it out and using an ability to charge at another that was seeking to get at Iris.

The battle became a rhythm, a brutal symphony of casting, attacking, and defending. Iris, recognizing the efficiency of [Chain Lightning] against the sheer numbers, committed to casting it exclusively. It was a taxing spell, but their situation left no room for conservation of energy.

The clash of metal on scales, the hisses of the reptiles, and the battle cries of their group echoed through the trees. The owlbear's roars punctuated the chaos as it weathered a bite from a velstrid, retaliating with a swift and savage response.

Their confrontation felt endless, but, eventually, the last velstrid fell.

And oddly, they fought to the death without showing any signs of retreat.

The chill that ran down Iris's spine wasn't just from exhaustion–something about these creatures didn't sit right, and while she couldn’t quite put her finger on it, she did know that was a future Iris problem.

And likely a recurring quest to be posted throughout the Guild that we’ll need to fund.

For now, they had to regroup and recover, the background sounds of the forest broken only by their ragged breaths.