Squelch Squelch Squelch
Sunny's expression darkened with every step. The mud's obnoxious chorus echoed through the coral labyrinth, almost like it wanted to make the abominable creatures where they were.
Of course, it wasn't his footsteps making the noise. Wrapped in the embrace of shadows, his movements were muffled and nearly silent. No, the endless squelching came from Nephis and Cassie slogging through the mud just ahead.
He glanced up ahead at Nephis, who was striding calmly ahead, her feet sinking into the mud without the slightest change in expression. In the middle , Cassie moved carefully, her staff pressing against the coral, every motion cautious but sure.
"Honestly," He gritted his teeth, "Can't you ladies muffle the noise in any way? you are going to get us killed, i swear."
Nephis didn't respond, her calm figure pressing on steadily through the mire. Cassie tilted her head at him, the corners of her lips twitching.
"Sorry Sunny," She said with a slight giggle, "Not everyone has an aspect like yours,"
Cassie was doing better since yesterday's events, slowly returning back to her normal self, but Sunny couldn't help but notice she carried herself a little differently.
Not much, just a minuscule amount
Nephis glanced back briefly, her pale face unreadable. "You're the only one bothered by it."
Sunny scowled. "Of course I am. Someone has to care about stealth around here. What if something hears us?"
Cassie raised her eyebrows in confusion, "Isn't your shadow scouting ahead?"
Sunny scrunched up his face, "Yes, so? that doesn't me-"
He stopped mid sentence and paused for a moment.
"Halt!" He hissed.
Through the 'eyes' of his shadow, there was a clearing with two scavengers in it.
"Two scavengers in the next clearing," He relayed, "The fastest path around them is-"
"No, we fight." Nephis cut him off, "Most scavengers are done with the body, there is a higher chance that we could meet more."
Sunny tried to think of a counter-argument but couldn't, she was right.
He grimaced.
Still, she wasn't wrong. The longer they lingered in the labyrinth, the greater the chance of stumbling into something worse. Two scavengers were manageable. Ten… not so much.
"Fine," he muttered.
They crept forward, towards the clearing and found a place for Cassie to hide nearby.
"Stay here and don't worry," Sunny comforted her before leaving, "It'll be over soon."
Cassie looked up from her crouched position and smiled weakly, "Of course, i expect nothing less from the oh so mighty Sunless."
Sunny paused, thinking back to a painful memory.
"Of Course! Big Brudda will Save me from the eevil drakon," Rain announced proudly.
Feeling his chest tighten, he croaked out a quick confirmation and started walking to the edge of the clearing to meet up with Nephis.
They crouched behind the coral and watched the scavengers.
"So, whats the plan?" He asked in a hushed tone.
She looked at him blankly.
"Don't Die." Nephis simply stated.
With that, she got into a runner's position and ,without so much a glance, rushed towards the chitinous beasts.
Sunny was speechless for a moment then cursed, beginning to run after her a moment later albeit while sticking to the safety of shadows.
Changing Star's running speed was incredibly fast. She was practically flying through the air, like an arrow let loose from a bow. One of her arms was stretched backward, holding the sword with its point to the ground. The other was cutting the air with each stride.
the distance between them kept growing, slowly but growing nonetheless.
It took the two scavengers a couple of seconds to realize what was happening after noticing her. By that time, she was almost upon them.
With madness burning in their eyes and viscous saliva dripping from their mandibles, the monsters screeched and charged forward. Nephis did not slow down, as though planning to ram them with her body. Sunny's heart skipped a bit.
Four terrifying pincers shot through the air.
At the last moment, Nephis fell backward, falling on her side. The inertia carried her forward as she slid through the mud, passing between the scavengers. Then, she twisted her body and stopped herself by plunging the sword into the ground.
A bit slower, and she would have been impaled by one of the scavengers' legs.
'Crazy! She's crazy!'
By the time Changing Star got back to her feet, one of the scavengers had already turned around. However, Sunny couldn't see what was going on as his sight was blocked by the bulky carapace creatures. He only heard the sound of chitin striking against steel.
The shadow's masking his approach, Sunny cursed under his breath as he tried to find a good angle from which to strike.
And he did.
A jagged outcrop of coral jutted from the mud, slick with seawater and grime. Sunny pressed off it, using it as leverage, and propelled himself upward.
Time seemed to stretch as he flew through the air, landing squarely on the scavenger's broad, spiked back.
wrapping his shadow around the azure blade, he forcefully drove it down into the creature's back.
Not to kill it, just so he doesn't fall off.
And true to his expectations, the creature began to buck and turn as it tried to throw him off its barnacle encrusted back.
But sunny held onto the azure blade.
Summoning Burrower's Claw, he pinpointed the slight concave at the back of its head.
Gathering his strength, he drove the dagger into it.
Crack
The thin chitin broke apart as the burrower's claw dug into the creatures head.
[You have slain an awakened beast, Carapace Scavenger.]
[You shadow grows stronger.]
[You have…]
He didn't stop to listen to the spell's announcement.
Using the carcass as a new leverage he jumped onto the back of the other carapace scavenger.
If he was being honest, it was clear Changing star did not need help, she did not have a single scratch on her while the abomination has several cuts and limbs missing.
But Sunny was greedy, he wanted the fragments.
He quickly pinpointed the weak spot of this scavenger and once again drove the knife into it.
Crack
[You have slain an awakened beast, Carapace Scavenger.]
[You shadow grows stronger.]
'Ahhh yes, this is it'
He felt as power trickled into him, improving his senses and slightly strengthening his body.
He looked down and saw changing star staring up at him with a...
slightly annoyed expression?
Sunny would've rubbed his eyes but he didn't want blood in his eyes.
"uh... sorry about that, you don't mind, do you?" He asked uneasily, he didn't want Nephis of all people to hold a grudge against him
Nephis stared at him for a second longer, then sighed.
"No," She relented, her cape billowing in the wind, "Memory?
Sunny gave a sigh of relief, "No. I'll go fetch Cassie, can you go fetch the shards?"
She nodded.
Sunny jumped down from the corpse and began trudging towards the hiding spot of the blind girl.
'Oh right the spell did announce something, maybe it was armour?'
***
Welcome to day 3 (4?) of the tomato chapter-thon part 2: electric boogaloo
Why am i late you ask?
Life.
MOVING ON.
Where do you guys want the oc handmaiden competition to be? Here or discord?
some things to note about the OC:
Aspect cannot be higher than ascendant
has to be utility based
No true name
Anyway thats all for now, see ya!