A sputter of blood, splattering down his chin and onto his chest. The biological gold poured from the gaping wound despite it being sealed by a sword. The clang of the brute vampire’s sword echoed as it fell flat to the ground. His hand journeyed the distance, taking hold of the blade sticking through him, a grunt escaping him.
His face contorted, rage seeping through the expression as he gazed down. His grunts and growls, leaving him and with them went the blade. With firm grip on the blade he placed his strength upon it, shoving it back through. Behind Dante stumbled, the sudden jolt of the force back kicking like a horse at first.
“Dante!” Elise yelled out.
“Gyeh-” the hunter grunted, releasing his hold on the sword and jumping back, just in time for the blade to pop out of Rengard’s back and land upon the ground.
“Hmph, a newcomer,” Maja grumbled.
“Yeah one of the Lightonian Girl’s friends. How exciting!” Sereena squeed.
“The fuckin ‘ell? I know I got the bastard in the heart-” Dante spoke, his face shaking.
“HEHN-” Rengard grunted, chuckling a little after the fact, “You guys don’t get it do you?”
As he spoke those words he had begun to reach down, grabbing hold of and hoisting up his massive blade once again. It swung about, the dull back slamming onto his shoulder as he turned himself, glancing back at Dante. Dante’s shaking turned into a quiver, watching the flesh around the chest wound move and buckle. Vines of flesh weaving together, the wound disappearing- consumed by the flesh.
“Regeneration-” Dante murmured.
“Very good, verrrry gooood!” Sereena called aloud, clapping her hands now while approaching step by step.
“{Shot ‘em through the heart, and they didn’t die. These are the immortals the mayor mentioned; though they are without a doubt Vampiric. What’s the deal?}” Elise thought to herself at once.
“Ya vagabonds ain’t strong enough to be able ta survive that on yer own. Ye’ve got somethin’ extra now doncha?” Dante questioned.
“Well spotted,” Maja spoke up, “We are not Vampires as you understand it. We are not mere false drones wandering this realm, nor are we the truest form of demon that are spoken of in legend. We are simply… enhanced.”
“Enhanced? The hell does that mean?”
“Stick around and find out why doncha,” Sereena laughed.
“Hey now, two on three. That seems hardly fair guys, especially if they have more ants running to join them. What say you, shall we split them up? I call dibs on this guy for running me through the back, that hurt like hell!”
“What, and leave the peons for me? Bleh- oh well, at least I can have a spot of fun with that. Maja seems set on fighting Elise, I don’t feel like pissing her off over that.”
“Please Sereena, you’re too kind.”
“So it’s settled then now is it? Right then, lets have at it!” Rengard yelled, raising his sword up high into the air.
Dante once again blinked, swerving to the left as he did so. The swing of the sword flew down to his right barely missing the fabric of his wear as he moved. One twist and another swing up, another dodge commenced. Dante slipped back with twin daggers slipping from his sleeves.
CLANG
Crossed blades blocking the down swing of the massive sword. Dante dropped to one knee instantly as with only one arm, Rengard pressed with full might down. The tip of the sword alone pressed against the daggers- forcing them closer to Dante’s chest, the sword nearing his face.
“{GYEH- what monstrous strength! I can’t- hrrrghyaaa!!}”
His foot flung forward and slammed right into Rengard’s gut with full force; though as it connected the vampire simply did not move an inch. The force of the blade did stop but that was it as it still held position. Standing over him the sword wielder grinned smugly, cackling a little.
“Sorry guy, your friend did that already, HYAAAH!!”
The ground split, Dante’s back slammed, a spot of blood spat up. Rengard’s fist lay in Dante’s gut, the massive sword held out to the right. The brute hung over the hunter, grinning, his teeth bare… though soon enough a trickle of fresh blood streamed between the gaps of the teeth. Rengard pulled way from Dante, placing a hand to his gut where both of the daggers were situated. Smoke rose from the daggers, blue sparks spat out from the impact zones; though even still, Rengard held his grin.
“Heh… blessed daggers?” he mumbled.
“’course,” Dante grumbled slowly rising, “Bakuuva ain’t tha only one wit’ them special weapons, and I’ve got plenty more where that came from!”
“HEH!! Oh I just KNEW you were going to be fun!” Rengard laughed, ripping the daggers from his gut and dropping them with clangs to the ground.
Across the way two blurred figures were mixing it up, the clash of weapon to weapon, clang to blang to slang. Katana to the bend, bite to the katana in a swiping motion, a collision of kneecaps and a flurry of kicks. Both flipped away from one another and landed atop the same tree branch- both bolting back at each other. The sway and the swish of Maja’s hooks through the air, the reverse sword grip and swings of Elise.
Both landed before one another, the swing of Elise’s sword now in her right against the bend of Maja’s left hook. One quick shout from Elise, a single HA and her left swung forward. From her palm fired a blast of Light Energy point blank into Maja’s gut. Backwards the heels of Maja dug into the bark, a very evident scorch mark present there over the impact point. Large hooks still in hand, smoke rolling, the damage healing.
“You know what I don’t get, the use of hooks instead of something like sickles. Doesn’t seem very productive in a fight!”
“Oh, trust me, they more than get the job done,” Maja spoke with a smirk, raising them up.
“So far, I can’t quite tell how Blake and the others would’ve lost to you three,” she replied in counter, raising her katana as the white glow radiating out of it grew duller, weaker, almost translucent.
“Hmm? Seems like you’re running out of light power. I suppose without sunlight you can’t keep restoring that power. Or perhaps you’re simply not taking this seriously anymore. Well no matter. You have your tricks and we have ours, little girl.”
Maja’s eyes shifted up, looking beyond Elise. Elise blinked in that moment, the sound of rushing winds behind her. One swift glance back came the revelation of multiple figures moving through the air and coming down upon her, low moans and groans. The snarls of dark green fire from corpses aplenty, all armed with melee weapons ranging from swords to pikes.
Wires flung around and crossed, coated in the flames. Elise’s head whirled back and in a split second she flickered out of sight, dodging as the ambush came crashing down. Moments later her form appeared again in a different tree allowing for perfect view. The mobs of undead there having done super leaps, the swarm on the ground once more moving, and the source of the wires.
Jaxx, muddied and bloodied, stepping out of the hole in the ground he had been blown into. Then out of the corner came the big tough guy from before. From a hole crawled Anne, and from another the last member aside from Ant himself. As for Ant- he crawled forward on the branch. His skin blackened, his skull… partially visible. He looked up, the eye on the side that shown only skull now blood shot as he locked onto Elise.
Many trees below with the lot of them had begun to split open, blood pouring out and gushing with fresh new bodies all animating with those dark green flames. More and more wires present, all connecting back further in the woods. Some bodies marched forward towards Elise’s direction, and others back the other way- further far far out a horde of them lingered, surrounding none other than the trio of knights themselves. Wires ran up a tree, connecting back to the sitting figure of Vamu, a smug expression crossing him- and at that time so too did the others come in.
Drake, Hanz, Da’Shire, and Megan. They all surrounded that mob of undead which surrounded the trio of knights. And there, there right behind that group even, another squad of five present mixed into the trees. Dozens upon dozens upon even more dozens of bodies all brought to life with the dark green flames glowing around their eyes and pores.
Elise stammered, glancing up. Wires, coated in a dark blue flame that appeared almost purple- wires flowing through the air and connecting to none other than Jaxx’s team. Multiple embedded themselves within Ant, and several flocked around Jaxx. These wires traced up to another branch where there- sat with her legs swung over the branch and dangling, another puppeteer.
Her attention turned back, looking to Dante as he rose up huffing, and then over to Maja who stood there with an ear to ear grin. Maja’s arms waved from her body and stretched out, beckoning or so it seemed.
“HEH,” Rengard chuckled as he stepped forward towards the injured Dante, “Come into OUR forest and think you can take US out? Nah nah nah, that’s not how this works.”
Rengard held his sword out, pointing the tip ahead at Dante, snickering to himself. All the while Dante kept huffing, a hand over his gut as he breathed in and out. Across the way, Sereena stood with her arms crossed in an ever so smug way.
“We took your friends out because we’re strong- each squad is capable of raising countless dead through the roots of this forest, and with Sasha up there strengthening them- it becomes downright hard to keep us down! And as for us three- well…”
Sereena’s grin grew wide upon a sudden, her teeth grew sharper and grew- almost becoming canine-like in appearance. Her eyes shifted, the pupils becoming slits, grayish hair starting to sprout around the right side of her face, her ears growing outward. As this happened to her, Rengard’s teeth also changed and a brownish hair began to cover him- primarily his arms and face. Maja herself remained unchanged, facing Elise at the present with a hold gaze and the hooks raised.
“Zaherian,” Elise mumbled.
The warrior of light shifted sights, looking Sereena to Rengard, back up to Maja and to the undead across the way, to this ‘Sasha’ above, to the ground once more where Dante stood surrounded. One final look over to the other battle waging on for the trio of knights before her sights set back to Maja.
“So what are you gonna do, GIRLIE?!” Sereena mocked with her canine grin, glaring practically up at Elise.
Elise herself turned herself, looking down upon Sereena at that point with sword raised.
“What, cat got your tongue? Have I struck a nerve brat?! Heh, well come on down here and try me, I dare you!” she laughed.
“Truth of the matter is that I don’t see an easy way out of this. You guys have a lot of undead you can freely spawn, and then there are you heavy hitters. No doubt the one above could even enhance you three if you somehow got beat or killed… and yet-”
“Hmm?” Maja mumbled, raising her eyebrows.
“You’re not going to kill us that easily,” she spoke, eyes stern and set.
“Huuuuuhhhhh?” Sereena cooed.
Her grip tightened, the buzz of white light crackling from hilt to blade tip with an explosive rage. The crackle of wood, almost like tile breaking. The blurred bolt of white fury, Elise, shot through the air with a single leap. Her blade crossed before her in readiness, set to swing as she came up on Sasha’s position.
SCHWIIIIIIIING--- CLANG!!!
Elise’s katana slammed into solid metal. Maja, squatted down in front of Sasha, arms raised high and weapons crossed. Elise’s gritted teeth sung, the full force of her swing down on Maja’s weapons. Sasha, still sat on the branch, slipped from her spot and flopped below with wires twirling around. Behind the winds swooshed once more, multiple shadows coming at her from behind at once.
Her lips curled back, her mouth curving. Maja’s expression deadened, looking to the newly formed grin. The light of the blade sparked and zing-ed, radiating like a saw’s blade.
“Howling Flash!” Elise yelled, the light roaring out and pouring over Maja’s hooks.
The latter’s eyes widened as the light engulfed- an explosion erupting out point blank. Both Elise and Maja swallowed up, the approaching shadows blown back. Sharp winds smacked into Sasha herself- flinging her right off the way, her wires skidding and lashing against the tree’s wood as they became bound.
“Maja!” Rengard yelled from below, looking up as debris came raining down from the still-visible explosion.
“Gyuh- turnin’ your back on yer opponent? Thas dumb, Zaherian,” Dante wheezed.
“Huh?” Rengard grumbled, turning his head over his shoulder, casting sight upon the stumbling Dante.
He stood there with a huff and a puff, unarmed and staggering ever so. Rengard’s own position shifted, the brute turning round and facing the surrounded hunter. Present- the biggest smile with the most intense narrowed focus, whilst Rengard wore only a hollowed reflection and a raised eye.
“Who the hell are you to talk Hunter? With the absolute pounding I just dished you?”
“Hell, your mama pounds harder than that!”
“Tch- playground insults? I thought you were better than that. Oh well,” he grumbled, slamming his foot down, “Kill this fool already!”
The figures all around Dante began to stumble at first, then swiftly they broke into definite runs. Their steps echoed around the smirking schmuck, arms raised, snarling and howling. His eyes slipped and became blazen, his knees buckling. To the ground Dante dropped of his own accord, both of his hands slammed upon the earth below.
“Eighteen Pillar Trap!”
The ground rumbled, rocks and dirt flying into the air. Pikes of rock blew out of the ground all in a radius around Dante, skewering and slicing through the encroaching undead. Their moans and groans wailed out as they became hoisted high into the air, the pikes of earth increasing in size as they grew from the ground. Rengard blanked, bright high beams protruding from his face and reflecting the very instant in which the undead surplus crumbled.
“Your damn Infernals are no better than Ghouls. Mindless simple puppets, fun to slice but far too easy-”
“Well well, a Power User. Guess that makes this a little more interesting,” Rengard chuckled, raising his sword.
One quick step forward and a swing, the crashing sound of rocks and breaking concrete. Apart several pillars fell in one swing leaving a wide open gap between the two combatants, the latter of whom was once again standing with a smug grin.
“Heh, round two then aye?”
“You betcha-” Dante grumbled, raising a new broadsword.
In a blur, both flew into one another, their swords colliding. Sparks from the collision sprung out and littered the lands, whilst high above a body flew right on by with a spray of crimson like a cloud raining. It crashed unnoticed, the direction of which it originated from signifying itself with many more bodies being ripped about and flung like litter.
SMASH, CRASH, VASHFUL BASH!!
Bodies were ripped to pieces and scattered about. The groans of the undead as heads flew off and limbs dropped. Torsos torn from legs and sent afar. The trio of knights zipped round, the massive crowd surrounding. One ax swing and down went five with deep gashes, the twirl of a dual ended halberd and away flew several heads, the swing of a scythe and apart went several torsos cut clean through.
Fen Rao shot backwards through the crowd, slamming his elbow into the gut of one undead. A swift turn round and the SWING of his ax sent a couple of bodies tumbling back. His ax curled back, slamming into a thrust from Drake’s saber; though the elder knight’s attention soon was torn again. Another figure bolted out and slammed into him with a shoulder charge, the momentum behind sending Rao from his feet.
His teeth grit together as he looked upon Hanz, then just behind at the dance of arrows marching in. Another swing and all were deflected away by the time Fen touched back down, all in time as more undead made their way forward. His teeth continued to grit and another swing launched sending another batch of minions to the ground.
Across the battle zone both Shree and Yeager fought back to back. Wide swings out and right into the crowd of charging foes. Upon them came three of the fighters of the new group. The spin of the halberd before her caught the strikes of two whilst the swing of his scythe countered the attempted edge of the third.
Yeager stumbled, scythe held at the ready and immediately swung through more undead, “HUAH-uff! Good Christ, their numbers aren’t thinning in the slightest!”
Behind him came more, striking at his back with drawn swords. He stepped and turned, striking through as his armor was struck. A slight stumble followed with more of the undead coming in. A quick glance up and for as quickly as they had moved they were then dropped.
Shree dropped down, twirling her weapon and slowly hovering to the ground as she did so, “Watch your back Yeag, you’re moving too slow!”
Dings covered the shoulder guards and front of his armor, several holes in the cape on the back. Even a few cuts to the sides of his face were present as she looked him over with one glance. For her there were little to no dings whatsoever.
“Well what do you friggen expect Shree? I’m still injured here!”
“Dammit! Damn them!”
A slew of bodies flew around the two and crashed into the wall of minions before, knocking many of them away. Behind with ax in hand strutted forth Fen Rao, moving swiftly passed a few still crawling on the ground.
“Their numbers are not more than a diversion! Their main squad waits for us to be bogged down and then they attack. Meanwhile they use the numbers to keep us from reaching the casters of the Infernal Resurrection Technique. We need to come together and punch through- if we can take just one out their units will be depleted by half!”
“They’re all just human, it shouldn’t be this hard,” Shree murmured.
“Damn skippy so lets do what Fen says and take out one of the puppeteers!”
“An interesting strategy, I wonder if it will play out~” cooed the nearby Sereena, who had begun approaching step by step still wearing her grin.
The trio of knights turned, looking to the approaching foe, scowls forging as they did so.
“{Dammit, this is bad!}” Fen Rao exclaimed to himself.
