Flames hissed and danced across Lira's blade as she stood beside Gray, the snow melting in a wide circle around her. Steam curled upward, and her breath came in sharp bursts. Her eyes, once calm and calculating, now burned with a fierce light.
The monster roared in fury, its severed arm thrashing wildly in the snow behind it. The wound bubbled, ice reforming over the flesh as if attempting to seal the damage. It stepped back and slammed its remaining hand against its chest, sending a shockwave through the ground.
Lira charged.
Gray followed.
Side by side, they raced toward the beast, Lira slightly ahead. She struck first, ducking under the monster's counterattack and slashing upward. Her blade cleaved through its lower ribs, flames searing the wound before it could begin to regenerate.
Gray moved in behind her, his katana gripped tightly. He sidestepped a backhand swing and slashed the creature's thigh, carving a thin line through hardened flesh. It wasn't deep, but it staggered the monster, forcing it to raise its leg to balance.
Taking the opening, Lira leapt onto its knee and thrust her blade toward its chest. The monster snarled and brought its massive head down, attempting to bite her. She dropped, rolling off its leg and avoiding the snap of jagged, frostbitten teeth.
Gray dashed forward, his movements sharp despite his pain. He brought his blade down across the monster's exposed side. A deep gash formed, blood and frost gushing out. But the beast retaliated swiftly, slamming its remaining hand into Gray's side. The impact sent him tumbling through the snow.
He groaned, struggling to rise. His vision blurred for a moment, and pain screamed through his ribs, but he forced himself up. Lira was holding her ground, barely keeping the monster's wild swings at bay.
It lunged again.
This time, both met it together.
Lira ducked left, drawing its attention with a feint. Flames surged along her sword, and she spun, slicing its arm. Gray came from the right, katana aimed low. He struck the beast's leg just behind the knee, severing tendons and forcing it to drop.
The monster roared, thrashing, flailing. Its arm caught Lira, knocking her backward into the snow, dazed but conscious. Gray leapt onto its back, plunging his blade down into the shoulder. The beast reared up, trying to throw him off.
Then it paused.
It was breathing heavily now. Its wounds glowed faintly with frost, trying to heal but failing to close fully.
Gray leapt off and landed beside Lira, panting.
"We are not killing this thing," he muttered.
"No," Lira replied, standing shakily. "But we can make sure it stays down."
Together, they charged once more, blades ready.
Lira led, heat rippling off her like a tidal wave. She darted left, then feinted right, drawing the beast's gaze and forcing it to turn toward her. Gray closed the distance from the other side, silent and sharp.
The monster swung its good arm wide, swatting the air with enough force to send snow spiraling into the sky. Lira ducked under the arc, then slashed her blazing sword across its exposed chest, leaving a trail of flame that sizzled against the ice coating its body.
Gray came in low, sliding across the snow and slicing a deep gash across its thigh. The beast roared in fury, its knee buckling again. It tried to rise, only for Gray to leap upward and slam the pommel of his katana into the side of its skull.
The blow barely staggered it, but it opened a moment.
Lira pressed her hand against the gash in its chest, and fire exploded from her palm in a furious burst.
The monster howled, stumbling backward into a broken column of ice. Chunks rained down around them, but it was still standing, swaying like a dying mountain.
Then came a whistle through the air.
Korr's axe.
It spun in a vicious arc, embedding itself in the creature's side with a deep thud. The beast froze in place, stunned from the combined assault.
"Now!" Lira shouted.
Gray didn't hesitate. He ran up the slanted debris of a fallen hut, then launched himself off it. His blade arced down as he aimed for the neck, the cold biting into his skin even through adrenaline.
The katana struck, clean, deep, but not enough to sever. It lodged in the dense, icy flesh, stuck fast.
With a roar, the monster threw itself backward, slamming into a stone pillar. Gray was thrown off violently, landing hard and rolling through the snow. He groaned, he attempted to get up. But this time he was really done.
His legs buckled as he tried to stand up, hw fell face first into the snow. His vision blurred then darkened. Muffled voices was all hw was able to hear.
"Gray!" Lira called out, her voice strained.
The beast, now howling with madness, wrenched Korr's axe from its side and tossed it aside. It staggered forward once more, blood and ice pouring from a dozen wounds.
Then Korr came from the side, catching the monster's knee with a shoulder charge. The beast lost balance again, teetering on the edge.
Lira ran straight at it, fire coating her blade from hilt to tip. She slashed across its chest once more. With every ounce of strength and Vyre.
The monster screamed.
Finally, it fell onto one knee, then forward into the dirt. Not dead. But broken.
'We-we did it...'
Korr blinked in disbelief before looking around.
Lira also stared with shock but only for a moment before running towards Gray.
She turned his body around and shook him.
No response.
She quickly picked him up, aswell as his katana lying on the floor and stumbled towards the truck.
Korr dragged himself to Adel, who was still trying to move, but something was off.
Her face was pale and lips trembled.
Korr pulled the arrow out of her shoulder and analyzed it.
"It... it was laced with something. Poison perhaps."
Adel let out a bitter smile.
"There should be some medical supplies in the truck."
Korr nodded, retrieving his axe. "Renn will fix you up. We need to move though. Now."
They ran. Lira set fire to a nearby building as a distraction. The flames crackled and roared.
High picked screams were heard from around the village. Those monsters weren't entity dead. As long as even one lived, they had a chance of being followed.
The group stumbled out of the crumbling square and back toward the village's edge. Through the fog and snow, the reversed truck came into view, half-covered but humming with life. Renn sat in the front, his hands white-knuckled on the controls.
Orrin stood near the back ramp, his spear drawn. Relief flooded his face when he saw them.
"Get in!" he shouted.
Orrin jumped out, helping Lira and Korr get in.The truck door slammed shut.
Renn didn't ask. He gunned the engine and turned them around, the wheels grinding against the snow.
Inside, it was chaos. Adel groaned as Orrin checked her wound. Korr slumped against the wall, breathing hard. Gray lay still. His eyes cold.
Lira sat beside him, hands placed on his chest. She was channeling Vyre into his chest. To ensure he didn't die of the cold. She had noticed that Gray was seemingly more resistant in the cold compared to the others.
'Perhaps a skill...' she decided to keep it to herself however. Talking would only waste energy.
Everyone was in a bad state. Almost everybody's suit's were damaged. Making them more prone to the cold. Not to mention that they had run out of supplies, including medical supplies. They had used the last of it.
They now had more issues on their plate.
Renn glanced at her. "What was that back there? What happened to you?"
Lira shook her head slowly. Her eyes glued on Gray. "I don't know. I just...I reacted. That's all."
Korr tried to speak again. But nothing came out. He simply rolled his eyes.
'Now we have two unconscious people on our vehicle... great.'
The truck started to move slower. Outside, the trees had thinned, replaced by open ground and distant flickers of torchlight.
Lira sat up. Her body ached and she was tired.
Renn noticed. "You're awake."
She looked around. Everyone was asleep excluding Orrin and Renn. And now herself.
She looked at Gray for a moment.
Renn coughed. "Don't worry. I checked his vitals he'll be fine. Just give him some rest."
Lira nodded slowly. "Where are we?"
Orrin leaned in from the driver's side. "You're not going to believe this. Look out the window."
Ahead of them, rising from the snowy plains, hidden between two mountains, was a village.
Not like the broken settlements they had seen before. This one was intact. Large buildings made of reinforced stone and wood, it stood firm against the wind. Towers, inns and even shops stood still. They could all be seen from the hill they stood on.
It was abandoned.
However, the mountains shielded it from the cold. Keeping it mostly intact.
"It's the village we saw," she murmured. "From the mountaintop."
Orrin spoke up again.
"I think it's best we stay here for a while, rest up and hide from thw monsters. Then we can think of where to go next."
"I agree." Lira nodded. If they kept moving in a random direction things would only get worse. It was best to see what the village had to offer instead.
The truck rumbled forward, toward the village gates.
And all the while, behind them, the faint roar of the monster echoed across the mountain. Still alive.
Still hunting.
They had survived.
But only just.