Crushing dried leaves, quick whooshing thuds echoed from a dull dagger. Kaelin walked over the jagged piece of a dense tree branch on the floor.
*Snuff* *Snuff*
The air around them was uneasy. With a calm and steadied pace, Kaelin followed closely behind Toast in his completely monster-formed state.
"Are you sure you're healthy enough to be doing this." Kaelin gazed over their surroundings as she spoke.
While carrying Jared on his back, Toast replied. "In the grand scheme of things, my life matters not."
Accepting his decision, Kaelin switched her attention. Calmly placing her finger on her dagger, she examined its edge. "Jared, catch."
"Wait, what?" Jared swiftly turned to her, reflexively dodging the knife that was tossed to him. " Did you just throw a dagger at me?"
Kaelin looked forward, sucking her teeth. " First of all, I didn't throw it, I lobbed it. There's a difference. Second, the knife was dull… and a bit warped. You could have caught it."
Instead of replying, Jared looked down at Kaelin in bewilderment. From his expression, Kaelin understood his answer.
" Ore."
Suddenly, the bunny poked her head out from Jared's lap. Without a word, she tossed another knife to Kaelin. "Yeah, this should do. Toast."
"Yeah, I know," Toast grumbled, already anticipating her orders. "No fighting, just keep Jared in range to watch the fight."
Kaelin nodded. "Go. I can't afford you taking any more damage in that form. Honestly, I'd prefer you never use it to begin with, but I digress."
Jared shifted his focus back to Kaelin. His tone indicated confusion. " I still don't get it. Why are you so scared? Aizen and his team deal with them all the time, like it's some kind of field trip. And you put up a decent fight against him, no?"
" Ok, we'll use that as an example. What made you believe I wasn't scared in that fight?"
Jared replied with silence.
" Exactly, in that fight, the first thing I did was disengage. I used my words, then backed away. When those two things didn't work, I played defensively, trying to get an idea of his Core Concept before going in."
" But that's understandable. Aizen is like a celebrity in our town. He's known for his capability in battle and is naturally smart."
"Exactly," Kaelin replied, "I was privy to that information. I don't have that advantage here. The only reason I seem stronger than I actually am is because I'm well-informed. It's either that, battle experience, or pure reaction speed that gets me through fights—and if I have any control over it, I'd rather not rely on the last two to survive."
As if disregarding everything Kaelin just said, Jared replied. " Sooo, all that to say that you're indeed scared."
" I'm not scared about how strong the beast can be, I'm concerned that they might be self-aware."
Once again, in confusion, Jared replied. " Self-aware? What does that even look like?"
With barely a second to react, the sharp whistle of piercing wind tore through the air, sending Kaelin's instincts into overdrive.
Time seemed to slow as her eyes locked onto the wooden stake—a jagged missile, the size of a fist, hurtling straight for Jared's skull. With a flick of her dagger, Kaelin struck the stake out the air, deflecting it's lethal blow.
Jared froze, his wide eyes fixed on Kaelin, too stunned to speak.
With a steady voice laced with irritation, Kaelin muttered, "Well, there's your answer."
" Ore!" Kaelin screamed.
Kaelin tossed up her hand as another dagger flew into her grip. Toast summoned his laughing specters into the surrounding forest. "No, nothing's there. We're the only ones here."
Kaelin gripped her weapon tightly. "A trap?"
Jared's voice broke the silence, "So that's it? They're smart enough to set traps—is that what we're worried about?"
Kaelin shot him a sharp look. "Stop being so narrow-minded. Think. I know you can."
Before she could respond, Kaelin's eyes shot open in alarm. Fangs sank deep into her shoulder from behind, and her back slammed into the tree, as if the bark itself was trying to devour her.
"Ugh!" she gasped, pain radiating through her body.
Without hesitation, Toast leaped into action, his tail whipping across and breaking the tree's hold. Kaelin staggered forward, gripping her shoulder as blood seeped through her fingers. She gave Toast a quick, grateful glance before steadying herself for combat.
"Toast, destroy the tree. Ore, get our path to Lowestoft ready—this fight needs to be quick. Jared, hurry up and get over here so Toast can do his job!"
Jared's voice wavered, his realization cutting through the tension. He jumped off Toast, taking cover under Kaelin's guard. " Wait… they can form strategies and use tools… kind of like crows!?"
Kaelin shot Jared a sharp glance. "If that's how you want to see it, sure. Just as long as you understand they're not all mindless beasts. Some fight recklessly, yeah, but others—they pick their battles. The smarter they are, the more careful we have to be."
Her tone hardened, " Just like the situation with your brother, evaluate your options before committing to combat."
Following Kaelin commands, Toast quickly smashed down several trees. Within emerged several off-looking wolves. The bodies weren't made from flesh and blood but with wood and branches. Their arms were open but firm, having roots for legs, traveling up to its torso.
Vein-like vines wrapped around each stump, pulsing dark forest-green as if pumping a liquid through its body.
With no more than a second to think, Kaelin stared down the beast narrowly, glowing with bloodlust filled eyes. " Toast, you know what to do."
Toast swiftly maneuvered, scooping up Jared and keeping several of the creatures distracted from a safe distance as Kaelin engaged them one by one with precision and focus.
Jared glanced at the scene, his voice hesitant. "So what are these things? And—" His words faltered as his eyes locked onto the wolf leaping forward.
Kaelin's pulse quickened as she faced the oncoming threat, gripping it and slamming the first one to the ground. The air crackled with tension as the two clashed, their movements became like blurs to Jared's eyes. All he could see were broken twigs gradually growing across the ground.
Losing her vision of the beast, Kaelin snapped her sights to the sky. The creature looming over her, its shadow casting a dark veil over the forest floor.
With a sharp smile, she launched herself into the fray, embracing his attack as she pierced his chest with her own. With one decisive blow, she ripped the beast open, reducing his status to nothing more than lumps of broken wood.
"That makes five," Kaelin muttered sharply, her eyes darting toward Toast. "You've got two more over there, right? Send them over."
Toast dodged swiftly, weaving past one wolf and slamming it toward Kaelin. With the other, he grabbed its leg in a single motion and hurled it her way.
Kaelin faced the weakened creatures, their stamina utterly drained. Despite her own body straining under the constant fighting, and the heavier toll it took on her core concept, she continued to toy with them.
Catching his own breath, Toast took a seat on the ground, letting Jared off gently before doing so.
Saying nothing, Jared walked toward Kaelin to watch, waiting for her to truly deal with one millennial beast before distracting her. " So what were these things? And… why did you look so relieved."
Crushing the skull of one of the beasts under her heel, Kaelin turned to the sound. She seemed off, but with the suddenness of Jared words, her eyes swiftly turned back to normal. A sharp pain rippled through her body, but she barely reacted, only flinching for a moment.
Despite the shock, Kaelin dodged the next beast's attack, twisting to trap it in a headlock. She exhaled sharply and replied, " I was relieved because it could've been worse. The last thing I wanted was to deal with a Millennial beast that had gained awareness. "
' The final step would be subjective experience. But that topic is too… problematic.'
Kaelin tightened her grip around the beast's neck, twisting until the roots connecting its head to its body snapped apart with a sickening crack. She stood, grinding the remnants of its roots under her heel.
"As for your other question, that one's a bit more straightforward," she said, brushing dirt off her hands."
Kaelin gestured at the lifeless forms around them. "Those were OakGrown Hounds. They updated their move set so I didn't know until that tree attacked me. They're pretty much wolves that live in trees and sometimes hunt in packs. The only way to truly kill them is to either shred every single root into microscopic pieces or burn them to ash—neither of which we have the time for. "
She gestured towards Toast, motioning for him to follow, and began walking northeast with Jared. "All that matters is they're down for a while."
As if on cue, Ore popped out of the ground, landing neatly on Kaelin's shoulder. "Lowestoft is about 30 miles from here. If we keep moving, we'll get there before sunrise."
"Alright." Kaelin turned to her exhausted subordinates with a wicked grin. "You heard the lady. Let's get to it."
Jared and Toast groaned in unison, "Ughhh."