"Formation Lima."
The words landed like a hammer strike.
The Vixens moved instantly.
Bunny stepped forward without hesitation, planting herself between Jax and the enemy line. Her massive war hammer—Earthshaker—in her hands, its Flame Dragon core glowing faintly beneath etched runes.
Llandra slipped backward and to the right, feet barely touching the ground as Starpiercer hummed in her grip. Her movement was fluid, instinctive—already circling to deny their flank.
Zee moved left, Sanctaris flaring to life as she raised her staff. Golden-red light spread outward as layered protections formed around the group. Her Legendary skill activated in silence.
Nyxian drifted to the right, barefoot, smiling.
Lilith's Kiss coiled lazily around her arm. Echo perched on her shoulder, shadowy form hissing at the mercenaries ahead like it could taste their fear.
Jax stood at the center.
Barefoot.
Bright shirt.
Flowered shorts.
Completely relaxed.
"My System confirms these are murderers and rapists," Jax said calmly, voice carrying across the clearing.
"Beasts hiding in man-sized bodies."
His eyes hardened.
"We wipe them out. All of them."
The bandits reacted first.
Archers loosed arrows in a ragged volley.
They never reached their targets.
Zee's Aegis of the Flame Dragon flared, translucent shields intercepting shafts midair. The few arrows that slipped past—headed for the Draft Behemoths—froze instantly, caught by Jax's outstretched hand before falling harmlessly to the ground.
"Cute," Nyxian muttered.
Bunny exploded forward.
She activated Windstep, kicking off empty air as if it were solid ground. Arrows whistled past her as she rebounded once—twice—three times, climbing higher with each step.
Midair, she spun.
Inferno Cyclone ignited.
Earthshaker blurred as Bunny twisted, the hammer's rotation tearing the air apart. A roaring fire tornado formed beneath her, crashing into the mercenaries clustered along the bridge's edge.
Men screamed as they burned.
Bunny came down like judgment.
She slammed Earthshaker into the stone.
Seismic Slam.
The bridge shuddered violently. Stone cracked. Bodies were launched sideways—some flung screaming into the river below.
Jax winced. "Careful, Bunny. We still need the bridge."
"Oops," she called cheerfully.
The leader barely kept his footing.
Llandra didn't give him time to recover.
Limitless Quiver activated.
Multi-Shot. Flame Volley.
Starpiercer sang as Llandra loosed a barrage of blazing energy arrows. They streaked across the clearing in controlled arcs, detonating among bandits attempting to circle behind them. Fire consumed armor and flesh alike, screams cutting short as bodies collapsed.
On the right flank, Nyxian danced.
Lilith's Kiss lashed out, blades slicing through armor with surgical precision. A man lunged while her whip was engaged—
The handle split.
Twin Lash Mode.
The second whip snapped around his torso, constricting instantly.
He screamed.
Venombrand activated.
Flame and poison surged together, burning flesh while halting natural healing. His screams became gurgles.
Nyxian laughed, delighted.
"Ohhh, I love new toys."
Echo hissed approvingly.
At the center of the battlefield, Zee was a calm storm.
Sanctaris pulsed as she layered Draconic Radiance, restoring allies even as she unleashed Dragonflame Surge. Three mercenaries charged her position.
They never reached her.
Fire swallowed them whole.
Then—
The leader saw his opening.
The Bunny girl was mid-swing.
The mage was casting.
The demon girl was laughing.
The elf was faced in the opposite direction.
And the clown—
Unarmed. Barefoot. Close.
The mercenary drew his sword, slammed it against his armor, and charged.
Rage drove him forward.
I'll kill him, he thought. I'll break him and force the others to kneel.
Jax watched him approach.
Forty-five yards.
The words above the man's head burned into Jax's vision.
MERCENARY / MURDERER / RAPIST
Level 55
Jax exhaled.
And moved.
Burst Acceleration.
The space between them collapsed.
One moment Jax was walking.
The next—
He was gone.
The mercenary's eyes widened.
Jax's hand closed around his face.
Crushing Grasp.
Bone shattered. Nose imploded. Temples screamed under pressure.
The world inverted.
The mercenary flew backward—over the bridge—his sword and one boot tearing free as his body failed to keep up with the force applied to it.
Jax slammed him down on the far side.
"Ant," Jax said calmly, driving the man into the earth.
The impact cratered the ground.
"Meet boot."
The mercenary's armor ripped apart.
His head… ceased to exist.
Jax released the remains of his mangled torso and quickly moved back.
Behind him, panic erupted.
Bandits broke ranks, fleeing in every direction.
Eight managed to mount their beasts and escape.
Llandra raised Starpiercer.
Jax stepped beside her, Inspect activating.
"Only these," he said quietly, marking targets.
"Second from the right. Fifth from the right. Far left."
"Confirmed," Llandra replied.
She drew.
Flame Volley.
Three arrows screamed across the battlefield, cutting through the air with thunderous force.
All three struck true.
Fire consumed the men where they rode. They fell screaming, flames outlasting their voices.
Llandra nocked again.
Jax placed a hand on her arm.
"It's enough. The rest are only bandits. They didn't cross that line."
She lowered the bow.
Silence fell.
Nineteen bodies littered the clearing.
Burned.
Crushed.
Broken.
The Vixens stood amid the destruction—still in T-shirts and shorts—bloodless, unshaken.
Jax glanced down at his bare feet and colorful clothes.
He sighed.
"…Still worth it," he muttered. "These clothes are comfortable."
The road to Crystalshire lay open once more.
And nothing stood in their way.