On a deep night, where only the moonlight illuminated the sky, in the heart of a forest far from any settlement or human road, several shadows emerged from the undergrowth.
It was a team of five men and women. Some wore knight armor; others, robes; and some carried light armor focused on speed. The whole group moved in unison, as if each one perfectly understood their role and none tried to get ahead of the others.
One of them, wearing heavy armor adorned with the symbol of a cross, signaled to one of his companions.
The companion nodded and responded with simple gestures.
The knight nodded in understanding and continued leading the march in silence.
From time to time, the members communicated through hand signals to share information. None spoke, to avoid being detected by the creatures that inhabited the forest.
Finally, the entire group stopped at a certain distance.
Hidden in the shadows of a large tree, the figure of a gigantic bear-like creature appeared. It had prominent teeth and enormous spines, the size of an arm, protruding from its back.
The creature was sleeping peacefully, unaware or indifferent to what was happening around it.
It was the target they had been searching for over several days, a slippery prey.
Immediately, everyone signaled and began to spread out.
The man wearing a robe over light armor stayed behind. He carried a staff with a gemstone at its tip and, in the other hand, a black book with a seven-pointed symbol.
A short distance from him, a woman dressed in a robe and witch's hat remained there, waiting.
Behind them, a man in light armor with a bow and arrows watched the surroundings, ensuring no unwanted guests approached from the rear.
Finally, at the front of the group, a man in armor and sword positioned himself.
And further ahead, there was the man in heavy armor, covered in religious symbols.
The latter raised a warhammer that would normally be used with both hands.
"Divine Strike!" he whispered, and the tip of his weapon was imbued with a golden aura, shining in the middle of the night.
Without hesitation, he brought the weapon down toward the monster.
The strike reverberated throughout the forest, but what followed made every tree shudder and caught the attention of all nearby predators.
Grrraaaah!
The roar of the bear-like monster echoed as its body, as large as a mountain, rose.
"Vine!" shouted the mage, pointing his staff at the beast.
From the ground, roots began to emerge, binding the monster's limbs for a moment, but with a single movement of its powerful body, the vines shattered into pieces.
Still, it was enough time.
The warrior closed the distance and cut the monster's leg.
The monster aimed at him and swung its claws, but the warrior raised his shield while a bluish aura enveloped him.
The beast's claw collided with the shield and the bluish aura.
"Ug!" the warrior groaned lightly as he staggered from the impact, though both forces held, the clash was enough to cause minor injuries.
The monster tried to continue its attack, but someone immediately stepped in.
The warhammer was raised and swung toward the creature's body.
The monster, with its enormous body, could not move in time and took the knight's full blow.
The heavy strike destabilized the creature's body, and it fell heavily to one side.
"Fire Discharge."
"Icy Touch."
Two spells were cast in unison.
The mage extended his hand, and a bolt of fire shot toward the monster, striking its body and burning it deeply.
The witch followed, raising her hand and summoning a ghostly, skeletal hand above the monster. The hand descended and touched its body, and immediately part of the creature's life force could be seen being absorbed.
The monster screamed in pain, the wounds visibly accumulating.
The monster lifted its heavy body.
"Back down!" shouted the knight as his weapon, infused with divine energy, swung toward the creature's body.
The strike landed with a thunderous impact, but the monster barely flinched; it had withstood the blow completely.
Unfazed, ignoring the pain, it tried to flee.
"It's retreating! Don't let it escape!" shouted the knight.
"Magic Missile!" exclaimed the mage. Three darts of light appeared before him and shot toward the monster's lower right leg. The darts struck violently, illuminating its leg, but the creature ignored them and continued advancing.
"Weaken Ray!" shouted the witch.
From her outstretched finger, a powerful black beam shot forth, striking the monster's body. The creature's physical strength weakened instantly; its movements became heavier, as if its own power was leaving it.
Unfortunately, even with that, the creature kept advancing, almost breaking through their encirclement. If it got too far, they couldn't pursue without risking entering the territory of other monsters.
Then, three flashes hit the monster's body. Each arrow had a small vial tied to its tip, so upon impact, the vials shattered and the solution inside was released, bathing the creature.
"Sorry I'm late," said the archer as he raised another vial and threw it at the creature. As soon as the solution broke and interacted with the monster, three explosions resonated from it.
"After all, the old ways are still the best," the archer murmured.
The creature's body fell to the side; it couldn't withstand so much damage and finally went still.
The knight approached, raising his mace imbued with divine energy and aiming at the monster's head.
"Rest in peace," he said as he swung the mace. The creature's head exploded instantly at the blow.
They all gathered around the corpse.
"Bastard! You made us chase you for three days!" shouted the warrior, kicking the body.
"Don't do that! It doesn't matter if it's a monster or a human— the bodies of the deceased deserve respect," the mage scolded him, his tone serious.
"Suit yourself," muttered the warrior, showing no interest.
"Enough talk. Let's finish this and return to the city," the archer intervened, his voice firm.
Thus, the battle was over. With everything done, they dissected the creature, took the important and valuable parts, and left, leaving the remains for the scavenger beasts to devour.