“What?!” He fumbled his grip on the tree and fell 20 feet to the ground. “Uggghhh.” The only think to break his fall were the odd branch on the way down.

“I am glad you are alive master. That fall could have proven fatal.” She attached her proboscis to his exposed bicep and began healing him.

Before he could get a word out, a bundle of fruit fell down from the tree and hit him on his head. The unripe fruit cushioned the other fruit’s fall and saved most of them from a splattering demise.

Despite the embarrassment, he grabbed one of the soft fruits from his lap and took one juicy bite. The sweet fruits mixed very well with the new surprise.

“I think Nurgle is alive!” Drew grabbed the fruit and Sapphire to rush back home.

“I have hope that he is as well. That message could only mean one thing in my opinion. We should drop the fruit off and head their post haste.” The bubbly pair ran home with a renewed vigor.

They placed the fruit down near the rest of their saved items and checked their gear for any damage.

With their apparel checked and weapons ready they sped off into the jungle.

The forest had reclaimed the path they followed to the monkeys the first time.

Whatever had created the path hadn’t been back so they struggled to hack through the dense underbrush.

Half way through the hike to their destination another message hit his vision.

+95 xp for defeating Monkey Mob Member [Summon small monster] has inherited the xp in your place. 2600/3200 xp

“He's fighting those things somewhere. We need to speed up.” Drew panicked at the thought of Nurgle fighting the troop of monkeys alone.

“I believe we need to be more deliberate with our searching. It would do no good to stumble into a monster while searching for our marooned friend.” The voice of reason caused him to falter in his flurry of motion.

She was right of course, but it did not make it any easier to act so cautiosly when he could almost feel his friend nearby.

Swiping across the overgrown path, a small clearing opened up before them. A group of 3 monkey stood over the dead body of one of their mob members. The sudden interruption drew their attention to the interlopers.

Drew raised his shield and ax, ready to start the fight. The monkeys glanced around the clearing and between themselves, unsure if they would take the combat.

They didn’t seem to recognize him now that he was once again fully equipped with armor. The monkeys steeled their resolve and advanced forward.

Sapphire shot the closest one straight in the shoulder, leaving a bloody wound and slack arm. The preemptive strike startled the monkeys more than Drew expected. They seemed ready to flee at the earlier sign of danger.

He was ready to take the chance of survival from them immediately. The pair advanced the short distance towards them and began their massacre.

The lead monkey raised it good arm up in an attempt to block the strike only for the overhead swing to cleave through meat and bone before lodging itself into its skull

+95 xp for defeating Monkey Mob Member [Summon small monster] has inherited the xp in your place. 2695/3200 xp

Drew yanked the ax back and pushed against the still warm body. The monkey dropped to the ground leaving the two other monsters staring in fear .

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Sapphire lined up another shot on one of the beasts and shot a blast right through its neck. Red blood splattered its friend while the monster felt its throat for the wound.

Drew advanced on the unharmed monkey that immediately tried to flee from his range. Sapphire denied the retreat with a quick shot to its lower back.

It stumbled forward screaming bloody murder in whatever speech it was using. The loud noise bought no sympathy from his attackers who pinned it to the ground and beheaded it with one swipe.

+190 xp for defeating Monkey Mob Members [Summon small monster] has inherited the xp in your place. 2885/3200 xp

The fight was quick and brutal. Drew thought about the lack of feelings he took from the encounter. If t had been even days earlier he would not have been even remotely fine with killing these creatures.

Now that he saw how brutal conflict always turned out to be and the consequences of these life or death fights, he was ready to do what he must.

He wasn’t sure how to feel. Had he grown too jaded and callus or had he merely become what he needed to be to thrive in this dangerous world.

He wiped his ax clean and thanked Sapphire for her marksmanship before continuing deeper into the jungle. The horrible screams of the last monkey seemed to awaken the jungle.

Unrelated noises of warning shook the canopy, alarming anything nearby of the danger.

The pair could hear fighting up ahead. They were close to the clearing they had fought the parasite in originally.

They broke through the tree line and looked at the carnage that lay about. Half a dozen monkeys were in various states of disrepair. Slashes and gashes marred their fur and matted it down as blood crusted them over.

They refused to turn around to look at the new intruders, entirely focusing on their current enemy. They stood surrounding a barely recognizable Nurgle.

He was beaten and bruised nearly beyond the point of recognition. His light fur was missing in many places while the exposed muscle glistened in the light. His right arm hung to his side with the broken ax head still clutched in its grasp.

The only armor left was his glove hat that sat torn and stained with blood.

The monkeys tightened the circle around him, enclosing him completely. They seemed determined to stop him from escaping.

Drew stopped his inspection and ran forward to the monsters trapping his friend. The sound of his approach attracted a few of the monkeys' sight and they quickly shouted some noise to their fellow attackers.

He dropped the plushy into the battlefield and she immediately shot one monkey directly in the face once they got close enough. The shot disfigured the beast and made it go rigid on its back.

The other monkeys reacted quickly to the fear of death. Though they were all wounded, they appeared morse muscular than the trio they had scuffled with earlier. This fight would not be such a cake walk.

Drew took their attention away from Sapphire with a quick charge to the mob. The monsters abandoned their attack on the small cyclops and tried to gang up on the newer and healthier enemy.

The first monkey to make contact pulled back from the clash when it saw Drew swinging his ax. three of the monkeys started to surround him from all other sides. The situation devolved as quickly as it began.

The only way out of the encirclement was through it. Drew pressed his armored advantage as the monkey tried pouncing on him. A random slash connected as all but one of the attackers withdrew from his range. The four on one strained him of all techniques he learned.

The only monkey that continued its approach bled from the fresh wound but attempted to grapple with him anyway. A hard elbow knocked it off its balance and sent it to the ground.

Before Drew could capitalize on his advantage, the other three jumped in. A shield bash cracked the arm bones of one of the monkeys, but left him open to counter attacks from the remaining two.

One grabbed his ax arm while the other bit into his leg. The teeth failed to puncture the leather, but the pressure sent shocks of pain through his body.

He slammed the shield into the monkey's head, caving the monster's skull in on itself and taking it out of the fight. While Drew carried on his fight, the monkey that did not engage him advanced on Sapphire's location.

The wide open floor gave her every opportunity to shoot it full of holes. Despite the wounds that piled on its body, it protected its vitals from any damage. The beast finally made contact with the plushy and took hold of her trunk.

The lack of arms and stubby legs prevented her from fighting back with any other appendage. The only other thing she would use was her teeth. She flexed forward and took a bite out of the monster’s forearm like a shark out of a surfboard.

It shrieked horrifically and withdrew its crippled arm. The tactical genius pressed her advantage and went in for more goring bites.

The scuffle turned bloodier by the second. Bits of flesh were scattered around the clearing with the elephant taking chunks out of her helpless prey. It fought back with shaking arms to keep it away only to lose its fingers in the process.

Finally throwing caution to the wind, the monkey tried taking control of the fight once more and grabbed her by the head with what fingers remained. Her trunk pointed up towards its chest and unleashed a shot from point blank range at its chest sending a fine mist of red into the air above them.

The body dropped lifelessly upon her, trapping Sapphire below its considerable mass.