While his students were running for their lives against the numerous packs of aswang, Professor Fields halted his movements and faced the incoming aswang. All of them were thirsty and craving for a piece of human meat where saliva drooled from their hungry jaws. Despite the odds, the professor faced them fearlessly and greeted them with a smile which made the aswang hungrier to break the neck of this human.
'This will give them enough breathing room to find the missing student,' the professor thought.
It was pure chaos at the front of the west hallway. Numerous wolf-like aswang converged their path into the hallway. There were some aswang nudged and bite the other aswang, so they could lessen their competition in eating the lone professor.
Professor Fields thought what kind of attack he should unleash to his opponents, so he could neutralize them, when a number of aswang simultaneously leaped from the ground and launched at the professor. Realizing that he did not have enough time to summon his weapon, Professor Fields lowered his body and turned to his attacking stance.
He may not have his weapon yet, but he was not totally powerless against the aswang.
The professor launched his fist to the first aswang who came at him, sending the fiend flying to the wall. Then another aswang came where he greeted it the same way as the first. Three more aswang aimed at him, but he leaped on the ground also to avoid their attacks. He spun in the air, momentarily, then his momentum brought back his feet to the ground again where it released a huge wave of air, knocking dozens aswang from the impact.
The professor tried to shrug some dust on his pants, looking carefree at the eyes of the hungry aswang. Looking content that his pants were free from the dust and dirt, Professor Fields eyed the remaining aswang before him.
Looking at his eyes, the aswang hesitated to attack him again. They had realized that they were not the predator in this battle. The packs could feel his overwhelming presence, and this time they were his prey now.
Professor Fields flashed his smile at them again and tilted his head. "Please last long, okay?" His chest suddenly glowed, releasing a ball of light and transforming into a giant sword on his hand.
That was when the aswang turned to another direction and run for their lives.
*****
Ranger, Sanna, and Yule were running deeper in the hallway when they had noticed that the professor was no longer behind them.
It was Sanna who had noticed it first. "Guys, where's the professor?"
Ranger and Yule halted their steps and looked around the area, looking for any signs where the professor could have been. They tried contacting the professor through their earpiece, device, but unfortunately, he was not replying to their calls, even from Avatara.
"I'm pretty sure, he left behind to deal with those aswang," Knowing the attitude of the professor, Ranger just shrugged at the idea and looked at his companions. "So what now? Should we proceed? Or wait for the professor?"
"I say, we should proceed. The professor would want to continue the mission. I'm pretty sure he will catch up to us anytime soon." Sanna replied, trusting the capabilities of Professor Fields.
Nodding at Sanna, Ranger turned to Yule.
"I agree also. Plus, the more time we wait, the more chances that Candace would be in danger."
"Okay. But before we proceed, I want all of us to summon our weapons first, just a precaution to what awaits us deeper in this hallway. Understood?"
Yule and Sanna nodded in reply at him, and everyone summoned their weapons.
"Now, let's -" Ranger wasn't able to finish his sentence when they heard a piercing scream, coming from the end of the hallway.
"I got the feeling that we've found our missing student," Sanna declared to them.
"Guys, before we go, I want to advise everyone to be rational regardless of what we may find at the end of the hallway." Ranger looked at the hallway again, looking grimly at the situation.
"Are you expecting that we may find Candace's dead body?" Yule raised his voice.
"Yule, this is not the first time that a missing civilian will be dead on the Ground. The Ground is a very dangerous place to slayers, most especially to civilians who lack proper training in slaying against aswang."
"But she summoned a frickin' goddess as a contracted partner!"
"Again, lack of proper training," Ranger said weakly.
"Guys! She'd be probably dead if we keep on bickering than heading to the location. Avatara, can you scan any enemies ahead?" Sanna stepped forward, waiting for the reading.
"Hmmm, I have a weak signal on your area, but I can detect at least one giant figure meters away from your group. But deeper than that, I could no longer scan it. You're on your own."
"I have the feeling we'd be facing a Level 2." Only a Level 2 would fit in this area, Sanna assumed from Avatara's reading.
Nodding at each other, the trio raced towards the end of the hallway, clenching closely on their weapons.
*****
After running a good few meters away, just like they had expected a Level 2 aswang was standing guard to whatever place it was guarding behind it. The boar-head giant saw them coming and flared its nostrils at them.
Standing at ten feet, the aswang stomped on his ground and marched towards them, angrily.
"Yule! Sanna!"
The two nodded at Ranger's signal and prepared their spells against the giant aswang. Yule quickly ran in front of them and stabbed the ground with his violet spear.
"Lunar Monument!"
The ground trembled and cracks started appearing on the surface where similar violet spears sprouted from it, piercing the feet and a portion of its body. The aswang tried to thrash his body out of the spears impalement, but Sanna launched her attack, releasing a giant energy arrow, targeting its head.
The aswang raised its arms, trying to deflect the energy arrow, but he felt another presence behind. It was Ranger, and the aswang was startled that it didn't notice a human passed through.
Ranger raised his swords on his hands and stabbed it straight on its back, straight where the heart supposed to be. The aswang yelped in surprise, lowering its arms and clearing a path for the energy arrow, piercing straight to its head.
The students never had the chance to enjoy the satisfaction in defeating a Level 2, when another piercing scream came from the room at the end of the hallway.
"Candace!" Yule shouted. Then he pulled out his violet spear and ran straight to the room.
The spears that impaled the giant aswang, started disappearing, and the boar-head monster fell to its knees, lifeless on the floor.
"Yule! Wait!" Ranger hurriedly followed his classmate.
And upon entering the giant open space room, they found the missing student - Candace floating in the middle of the room, writhing in pain, and a woman dressed in a long black dress with her right arm raised in the air.
From Yule's view, it looked like the woman in black was siphoning the energy from Candace's chest where the mythical contracted partner resides in slayer bodies.
"What the..."