"QEUIIII!!" A shrill scream ripped through the clearing as the illusion shattered.
The bat-creature clutched her face, her small black eyes wide with a mixture of pain and disbelief. She had poured her power into that illusion, weaving a perfect image of the one person who could have broken the young orc's spirit.
Instead, he had stabbed it without a moment's hesitation.
And that scared her.
This orc wasn't like the others. He wasn't just a brute. There was a coldness in him, a ruthless practicality that went beyond simple rage. He was a predator, just like her.
In truth, Valkar's way of thinking was simple, like the rest of his kin. When he saw his mother standing there naked and vulnerable, he knew it was a lie. It was a trap.
He left his mother in the tribe; how could she be here?
And even if she was, that gentle smile was all the proof Valkar needed.
Zura'thrax didn't smile like that. Her smiles were sharp, predatory, full of challenge. She would never look at him with such... softness. It was an insult to her strength. An insult to everything she had taught him.
The attack was an instinct. A reflex honed by years of brutal training. Zura had taught him to strike at any sign of weakness, to exploit any opening. And the illusion had given him a perfect one.
"NOW!" The real Zura's voice echoed in his mind. "When your enemy shows weakness, you end them!"
ROAR!!!
Valkar let out a mighty roar, the red sigils on his body burning brighter. His focus was entirely on the bleeding, screaming creature before him. He raised his fist, intending to smash her skull in.
"QUEEIII!"
However, the creature let out a deafening screech, a wave of pure sonic force that slammed into Valkar and the others.
It was a physical blow, a wall of sound that sent them staggering back.
At the same time, the female bat-creature woke up all the beasts and monsters from their frenzy. The bears, the wolves, the boars, the goblins, the trolls—all of them turned, their glowing pink eyes locking onto the orcs.
They were no longer mindless creatures driven by lust. They were now a pack of enraged monsters, driven by a single command: kill.
"ATTACK!" Grosh roared as he charged forward, his axe raised high. "FOR THE HORDE!"
He swiftly unleashed his ability, which allowed him to cover his body with a solid layer of rocks and stone, making him look like a walking boulder. He swung his axe, the blade glowing with a faint emerald light, and cleaved through a charging wolf, splitting it in two.
The other orcs followed his lead, their own abilities awakening. Three of them had the same ability as Valkar, Rage, but their red skin was duller compared to his. They turned into a whirlwind of claws, teeth, and fury, tearing into the monsters with a savage glee.
The last one's ability was something else. It allowed parts of his body to grow in size; his arms elongated, becoming as thick as tree trunks, and he grabbed a charging boar by the tusks, lifting it into the air and slamming it down onto the ground with a bone-shattering thud.
Valkar's focus remained on the bat creature.
She was the source of this mess. The others could handle the beasts. His job was to take her out. Moreover, he was running out of time.
Rage had a massive drawback. When the duration was over, he would be left weak and vulnerable for a long period of time.
He had to end this now.
The bat-thing reeled backward, one shredded wing hanging in wet tatters, pink ichor dripping in thick ropes that sizzled against the cracked stone. Her other wing beat frantically, trying to lift her ruined body off the ground, but the damage was too severe. Each flap sent fresh spasms of agony through her frame. She hissed through broken teeth, black eyes darting between Valkar and the carnage unfolding around the pillar.
"QUEEII!!" she shrieked again, not as a weapon this time, but in desperation.
The pink orb above the pillar flickered, its light dimming as if her pain was disrupting its power.
Valkar pressed his advantage. He surged forward, a crimson comet of violence, his shield raised to block any stray attacks from the battling beasts and orcs. The ground beneath his feet cracked with each step, the raw power of his Rage making him a walking earthquake.
Both Valkar and the bat creature were engaged in a lethal dance; however, neither managed to land a clean hit on the other. She was agile, and Valkar was a tank. She would leap and glide, her remaining wing propelling her in short, erratic bursts, while Valkar would charge, using his shield to bash and deflect, trying to corner her.
Unfortunately for Valkar, the more time the fight dragged on, the weaker he was getting, and the bat creature was clearly more experienced than he was.
"!!!" The bat creature saw her chance. A clear opening. Valkar had overextended, putting too much force into a shield bash, leaving his side exposed.
She lunged.
Her claws, long and black as obsidian shards, shot out, aiming for the space beneath Valkar's ribs. They were meant to pierce organs, to gut him from the side.
But suddenly she stopped and, with extraordinary speed, dashed to the left side away from Valkar. She jumped high in the air, using her one good wing to slash a wolf that Grosh threw like a ragdoll.
"Huh?" The whole act was strange and left Valkar confused. She had a perfect opening, yet she abandoned it. Why?
For a moment, Valkar didn't know the answer, but as he was about to charge again, he caught something behind the bat creature.
The pink orb.
"Protect?" He tilted his head slightly. The bat creature wasn't just fighting for her life; she was protecting the orb. She had deliberately avoided a finishing blow on Valkar to block the wolf from crashing into the pillar.
"Orb... source of power."
Valkar's eyes widened.
He had been fighting the wrong target.
The orc's mind, simple in its directness, latched onto this new truth with terrifying clarity. The creature was just a guard. The orb was the treasure. The source of the pink smoke, the mind control, the unholy rutting—it was all that glowing pink heart.
"Must destroy." A grin split Valkar's crimson face. A feral, hungry grin.
He changed tactics.
"GROSH!" he roared, his voice a raw, guttural command. "TREASURE DESTROY!"
Grosh, still encased in his rocky armor, heard the call. He bashed a troll's head in with the back of his axe, sending green brains flying, and turned toward Valkar. He saw Valkar pointing not at the bat creature, but at the pillar.
Understanding dawned in the big orc's eyes.
"ON IT!" he bellowed in response.
"QUEEIII!" The bat-thing shrieked in denial. She abandoned all pretense of fighting, flinging herself between the orcs and the pillar, her one good wing spread wide like a living shield.
"Valkar must destroy." He looked around, ignoring the other monsters who were busy with the rest of the orcs.
Valkar didn't wait for them. He saw Grosh charging from the right side of the bat creature toward the orb, so he instantly charged from the left.
The bat creature had a hard choice to make: block Valkar or Grosh. She was surprisingly weak, only able to fight one at a time.
She chose Grosh, who was stronger than Valkar.
"Hehe..." A wide grin appeared on Valkar's face as he saw the bat creature dashing to Grosh.
He had a clear shot at the orb.
"Die!" he roared as he closed the distance, ready to throw a powerful punch toward the orb.
Just as he was about to reach the pillar, the female bat creature suddenly appeared on his right, and with her razor-sharp fangs, she bit his forearm, sinking deep into his flesh and muscle.
"AHHH!" A scream of pain escaped Valkar's lips as he tried to shake her off.
However, she didn't let go. Instead, she started to pull harder, trying to rip off the entire arm from its socket.
"GET...OFF!"
He slammed his shield into her back again and again, but she held on like a leech. Her claws found purchase in his side, raking deep gouges in his crimson skin. The red glow of his Rage ability flickered, the pain a terrible, grinding pressure against the furnace of his fury.
Grosh was far away, blocked by a horde of beasts. The orb was so close. He had to make a choice.
Let her have the arm, or fail.
"Valkar... never... FAILS!"
With a roar of pure, unadulterated agony, he kicked the creature with all his might.
CRACK!
The kick connected with her ribs, and a sickening crack echoed through the clearing.
Unfortunately, the kick was so hard that the flesh in his arm ripped completely as the bat creature's head was thrown back with a shower of pink blood. What remained of Valkar's right arm was a mangled mess of blood and torn flesh.
But it worked.
She was thrown off him.
Valkar didn't care. He swiftly turned to the pink orb and, with all his remaining strength, punched it with his good left.
Surprisingly, the orb didn't shatter. It was sent flying from the top of the pillar. It soared through the air, trailing pink light like a comet, before slamming against a solid rock a few meters away.
"AGAIN!" Valkar roared, quickly dashing toward the orb, ignoring the searing pain from his severed arm and the gaping wounds on his side.
He reached the orb, but just as he was about to crush it underfoot, he fell on the ground face-first.
"ARRGHHH!"
An inferno of pure agony erupted from every nerve ending.
"QUEEIII!" The bat creature managed to recover and lunged at him, her claws severing his left leg and severely injuring his right.
"Valkar will...not...die," he whispered through gritted teeth. He managed to flip himself on his back just in time to block the next attack with his shield.
But the shield didn't last long, as the bat creature's claws ripped it to shreds.
He was defenseless.
He cast a glance at his kin. They were overwhelmed. Two were dead, two were still fighting, but they were wounded, their movements slow. Grosh was still standing, but he was bleeding from a dozen wounds, and his rocky armor was cracked and crumbling.
The battle was lost.
But he did the one thing he was supposed to do.
"Valkar will... not...fail." He looked at the bat creature, a feral grin on his face. He fully opened himself, to which the female bat creature took the bait, lunging at him, piercing his chest with both her claws.
However, Valkar didn't even flinch.
Instead, he mustered all of his remaining strength, the last drop of mana he had left.
And seized the female bat's head from the back and pulled her toward his face—or, to be more accurate, toward his massive tusks.
CRUNCH!
He bit down.
Hard.
Her skull caved in like an overripe fruit. Pink blood and brains splattered across Valkar's face and chest. He held on, tusks sinking deep, tearing, grinding, until her struggles ceased and her body went limp.
He didn't let go.
He kept biting, tearing, chewing, until half of her head was inside his own stomach.
He won.
But he had lost too much blood. The red glow of his Rage ability flickered violently before extinguishing completely.
He was dying, and he knew it.
"Valkar... Died... A... Warrior." He forced a grin. His vision started to blur, the sounds of the battle fading into a distant hum. He saw Grosh rushing toward him, and the other two orcs falling, their bodies torn apart by the enraged beasts.
"Valkar... is... sorry... mother."
"..."
"Oh~... what an interesting creature."