Toby was moving forward when his instincts screamed, and he leapt backward just in time.
A giant paw tore through the bushes, claws missing him by inches.
But the creature, unfazed, used the back of its paw to slam him upward.
He was thrown into the air, disoriented for a moment as the world spun around him.
But as he made his way back down, he plunged his daggers into the earth, dragging them through the dirt to slow his fall and brace for impact.
He looked up, his heart pounding, and he saw a massive Wolf looming ahead.
At first glance, it resembled an ordinary wolf, but Toby could feel the entire forest pulsing around it.
There was no mistake, this was no ordinary creature. It was...
' The guardian beast of the forest. '
The Wolf stood tall, his once-glorious coat marked with scars and patchy fur, evidence of his past battles.
His massive frame, still imposing, carried deep wounds that ran across his side, partly healed but rough.
His right ear was torn, and his left eye was clouded and dull. Each breath he took came with a low, rough sound.
Patches of fur were missing, revealing raw skin beneath, while his paws, once no doubt would have been swift and sure, were cracked and stained with dried blood and mud.
' I had no idea this forest was under a guardian's protection. No wonder Allysanne chose this place.. it kept her hidden and safe all these years. She must be under its protection as well.'
A guardian beast, as the name suggested, watches over the area, its very presence a silent warning.
Ordinary locals or mundanes seldom sense a guardian's presence; to them, the area is as normal as it could be.
Trespassers and infiltrators are seen as threats, ones that are powerful and malevolent enough to be.
And when the guardian sees something as a threat, that's when the danger begins.
And Toby was clearly considered one of those threats.
He had no clue if Sirius had been attacked yet, but given how quickly the beast had focused on him, it seemed unlikely.
He was the first target.
' Or maybe the only target '
"The illusion earlier... that was your doing, wasn't it?" Toby's voice was steady, hiding his discomfort.
He knew it was the guardian's trick, but he needed time, to regain his balance, to plan his next move.
Guardian beasts were intelligent, often capable of communication.
He was hoping this one might be reasoned with, that perhaps this fight could still be avoided.
But alas, there was no answer from the other side.
Whether he refused to speak, or the ability had been taken away in some long-forgotten battle, it didn't matter anymore.
It only meant one thing for Toby.. he had to fight.
And if he were honest, he normally preferred it this way too.
Words had been wasted, and now there was only action.
He'd tried to resolve it peacefully, but if things went south, it wasn't his fault.
Reaching into his pocket, Toby pulled out a smooth, round object and bathed it in a red light.
The glow went into the material, igniting it with a molten, crimson hue, like something freshly pulled from the forge.
Keeping a safe distance, Toby hurled it at the guardian. The orb bounced once before...
* BOOM! *
A fierce explosion erupted, and flames blazed in a circle, trapping the wolf in a fiery prison.
The fire roared, its heat distorting the air as it threatened to consume anything that dared step through it.
"Elemental bombs always do the trick," Toby muttered, eyes glinting with satisfaction. "Charge them with Heka, and you're all set."
But the wolf didn't flinch.
It stepped forward, its fur catching fire as it walked through the flames, unfazed.
His eyes raged brighter than the fire around him, daring Toby to try harder.
With a savage burst of speed, the wolf lunged straight for Toby, flames dancing around its body like the fury of Fenrir himself.
For a split second, the beast's blazing figure overlapped with the myth, claws extended, and eyes locked onto Toby.. ready to end him.
Toby ducked low, rolling to the side just as the wolf's claws slashed through the air where he'd stood.
In a fluid motion, he pushed off the ground, sliding back on his feet, readying his daggers for the next attack.
Toby had a nagging question in mind, one that felt crucial to answer.
' Why didn't it warn us before we entered? '
Typically, trespassers were given some kind of sign, a warning that this territory was forbidden.
But for some reason, the wolf ahead hadn't done that.
It waited, ready to attack.
This could mean one of two things:
First, it held a grudge.. against him or Sirius, and had already decided to strike on sight.
Second, it hadn't sensed them until they were already deep inside his territory, which was why it hadn't reacted sooner.
The first didn't seem right.
Toby had no memory of this forest.. heck, he didn't even knew where Allysanne was hiding.
And if the wolf had an issue with Sirius, it wouldn't have let him leave after Allysanne died.
Looking at the scars crossing the wolf's body, Toby leaned more toward the second theory.
The Wolf moved again, leaping and crossing a huge distance in a blink.
Its claws were already about to shred him, but Toby just barely managed to slide underneath it.
That's when he noticed something he'd missed earlier.
There was a nasty wound slashed across its chest.
It looked old, but somehow still fresh.
Now, Toby was certain.
The guardian was hurt bad.
A past fight had messed him up, and Toby could feel it in the way the Wolf moved, in its stance.
' Maybe that wound's where all the pain's coming from,' Toby thought.
There was no real proof, but he had his own hunches about how and when the Wolf got hurt.
This was a good news for Toby.
Fighting a guardian beast at its own turf was a fool's errand, yet Toby has no choice but to be a fool.
The guardian beasts were one with their land, that meant the Wolf could control everything around them..trees, vines, branches, plants, like they were just an extension of its body.
Normally, he'd have pulled back, lured the guardian out to neutral ground, or had backup from his comrades.
But retreat wasn't an option.
He couldn't just leave Sirius and Sylvie hanging.
Plus, the second option, help from his comrades was about to come through.
Toby was overdue for his return, and Sirius must have left to search for him by now.
With the sound of their fight echoing through the forest, Sirius would find him soon enough.
All Toby had to do was hold out.
He stuck mainly to defense, conserving his strength, waiting for the right moment to tip the scales.
"It's time we get serious."
Toby sheathed his daggers and drew his longsword.
His front foot moved ahead, glutes tight, core steady.
With both hands gripping the hilt, he held his posture, focusing Heka into his legs, feeling the power surge through him as he lunged toward the Wolf.
The guardian smacked its lips and made its move as well.
They clashed once again, the Wolf swiping with its claws while Toby parried each strike with precision.
* clang *
* crash *
* clink *
The beautiful melody of their battle carried on.
Toby wasn't winning, but he wasn't losing either.
Each parry was smooth, every dodge perfectly timed.
One kiss from those claws would mean instant death for anyone inexperienced.
But Toby wasn't some amateur.. he was exchanging deadly blows with a smirk on his face.
Not because he had the upper hand, but because this lunatic lived for the thrill of the fight.
* Shing!! shing!! *
The fight raged on, the sound of clashing steel echoing through the forest.