POV: Chase
as the monsters charged the group braced.
Andrew took this chance to unleash massive water blades in the cramped forest, slicing through a few wolves before more took their place. Getting physical was inevitable.
A mutated moose was getting in the way and blocking Andrew's attacks. "need distractions. Where is the speedster!?"
bolting forward in a blur, Chase raced to the monsters before they could get into the group.
slicing a wolf, kicking a dear and dodging getting impaled by a moose, his speed was giving them trouble.
but the deer survived the kick. In fact, once I got done skidding on the floor, its bones began shaping back to whatever normal was for it.
Damian cut it in half, burning its innards and moved to the next enemy, but even he noticed it took more strain than normal. "Just what ARE these things?"
More importantly they most certainly couldn't keep every monster at bay. a mutated moose came running at chase, he moved slightly to the left, but he underestimated the moose's agility. It turned its head and smashed one of its horns into him, launching him into a tree and cracking it. He also might've cracked a rib or two.
Both Andrew and Damian looked back but only for a moment. "Get up damn it! Now!"
Andrew didn't say anything but he looked considerably less confident. Chase yelled out from the impact.
Instead he scowled before using a third of his mana on a [water shield]. As the monster hoard finally met the group, a barrier kept most monsters back while allowing the swords of his allies to pass through.
"Relax ladies I'm only half dead." Chase said with ragged breath. "I'll bounce back, easy" He took one breath of air before hearing the moose charge at him again. he got up quickly, body slightly battered and sword in hand.
moving to the side, he grabbed one of the horns of the moose with his left hand, his feet barely staying on the ground as he was being pushed back further and further back. as his feet kept getting dragged through the ground he couldn't feel them anymore.
the moose tried to push him into the ground and impale him, staring at with angry blood red eyes.
"JUST GO DOWN ALREADY"
Using what little air he had in his lungs he let out a wild scream before plunging his sword into the eye of the moose, puncturing its brain and putting its relentless charge to a halt.
using most of the strength he had left he punished the carcass over and let it topple over to the side.
the group was surviving but they were paying a grand cost. Andrew was doing the best he could, opening parts of the force field for their few archers or mages to get shots off whole blockading every monster.
but now they were pushing through in bunches, tearing at the water. Most were met with swords and died. but eventually one group member slipped up and got bit. before he could finish screaming, he was thrown out of the circle. and into the horde. "Damn you all" was all that he had cursed before being fed upon, the last sound from his body were loud crunches.
but it seemed they would survive this.
Damian was dealing with the last moose, his suit a little battered. he had it by the hoe coming out of the middle of it's head, pushing it up with all his might.
"Hehe…you watching this chase!?" He said, sounding winded. Then he swung his axe upwards towards the throat of the beast, cutting partially through it. it started shaking its head, intending to fling him elsewhere.
Dropping his axe, he use both hands to grab individual horn. "You're not getting away fro meee!!!" His manic eyes looking just as crazy as the bull.
a few footsteps echoed behind him, but he would die if he lost focus. Why wasn't Chase helping!?.
As he prepared to get hit in the back with something, he heard a slicing noise and fell over. "Huh?" getting up, he noticed the bulls head in his hand.
and looking to where the body was, Chase was looking a little smug, and dog tired.
Dozens of animal carcasses littered the ground, now that most of the animals were dead, the group regained confidence, murdering with fury.
once everything was done, they regrouped to see the losses. they had lost 3 people. One to the rabbit, and two to getting bit. Meaning someone else died without them even noticing, just getting killed while everyone was focusing on their own problems.
but as Chase turned to where that guy should have been he noticed something.
His body was not there. Just some blood where he was. No way someone got to their flank and just ate him. Right?
"Hey that guy who was laying down is gone. No corpse no nothing."
when Chase pointed them out to the group Andrew looked disturbed. "I say we find Donnie then we walk right out of here"
honestly Chase was in a agreement. Whatever this thing was didn't matter to him. No way he was going to risk death for his drafter's. But he thought his draftees were pretty cool.
"Yeah let's retrieve Donnie. A knight like me has no business in this foul place" a still evidently tired Damian wheezed out.
Chase looked at him with one eyebrow way above the other one. 'fake it till you make it i guess'
once the group was ready, as ready as they could be, they began moving again.
Enemy patrols were less common now.
but the ground went from occasionally shifting to writhing. The group simply avoided these parts of the floor. They had enough enemies as it was.
getting to the camp, they saw they saw a bunch of dead bodies and flames in the distance, a unknown voice spoke from above
"What's up"
Everyone immediately looked up with weapons in hand. andrew was seconds away from blowing up the tree.
the only reason they didn't was because of his familiar cloak, a little tattered now. He jumped down, landing in the middle of the team.
"…you look better than I thought" Chase was in shock.
Damian was a little pissed, Putting his armored glove to his face. "All this worrying and you're doing better than us"
Andrew while also shocked quickly moved past it. "Welcome back. Now let's get out of here. Nobody cares about whatever this thing is"
Everyone silently said things approving this message. They were done here.
Seeing the morale of the team utterly crushed Donovan clenched his fist hard, scowling and looking down.
Everyone was put off by this reaction. Did he want to keep gambling his life?
"What's with the look? Don't you at least want to be free of this place?" Damian was getting annoyed at even the consideration of staying for another second.
Chase simply smiled. They couldn't see it under his mask however. "At this rate we all might die here"