It moved slowly, as if trying not to startle them. Any unintelligent animal wouldn't be able to sense anything wrong with the movements, but to the humans, it was horrifying to see the inanimate tree reaching out its branches, trying to touch them.
"Get back!" Rekka yelled cautiously. Her words had just escaped her mouth when the tree branch nearest to her suddenly extended and lunged, revealing rows of jagged edges. She reflexively jumped back and fired a fireball without hesitation. The tree went up in flames, its branches suddenly ceasing their snail-like movements and instead flailing wildly like some demented octopus.
Its "teeth" scraped against the floor, kicking up dust as its "mouths" opened and closed.
Rekka poured her magic into the flames, amplifying it as the tree blackened. The tree had no vocal chords, but if it did, it would have been shrieking. Rekka spared it no mercy, her hands shaking with power, anger, and fear. The tree blackened and began to melt, its bark evaporating and turning to ash. After a full minute of burning there was barely anything left. Rekka waved her hand suddenly and the flames disappeared. She was panting.
"Uh… Rekka? That was a bit overkill," Jasper quipped. Rekka nodded in acquiescence, catching her breath.
"There's no telling what is dangerous out here," she said. "Even the trees can't be trusted."
"Gave me quite the scare," Julia said.
"We're still in unfamiliar territory," Rekka said. "We have to move quickly and carefully. We can't let our guard down."
"You hear that? Don't let me down," Julia joked, but nobody except Macy laughed. When she heard that nobody else found it funny, she stopped immediately. Instead she wedged herself in between Saya and Silas, much to their chagrin. She had a worried face when she looked at them, as if she feared more for what they would do rather than what kind of monsters awaited them in the forest. She feebly tried to start up a conversation, which Saya eagerly returned. Macy's face lightened up as she began to relax, chatting idly with Saya about ignorant things Silas wanted no part of.
I'll never understand their ability to smile through danger, he mused.
"Wicke! You're back," Charybdis' eyes flashed curiously. "What happened out there?"
"O-one-eyed bristleback," Wicke replied curtly, stammering. She held her left arm in her right behind her back, looking at her feet. "Double J and Slick are both dead. They got caught in the fire blast. The caravan is a goner, too."
"That is a shame," Charybdis said, a slight note of regret in her voice. Regardless, she was used to the concept of death. Every scout entered the training program knowing full well the dangers. In the era where humans were still abundant enough to organize into rebel groups, many of the scouts were found out and killed in action. Charybdis had lost many of the scouts she'd personally trained over the years, so she prevented herself from growing close to them lest they shatter her heart. Her work was more important than her grief, and she couldn't let that get in her way.
"That's not all," Yona said, her eyes lighting up. Jayken's eyes darkened. "We have something much more urgent."
"After I ran from the one-eyed bristleback, I was c-captured by a group of eight human youths," Wicke said, dreading the reaction. What would Charybdis think of them running away instead of capturing them? Studying humans was her reason for living.
"What?" Charybdis shouted. "Why didn't you notify intel?"
"They could use electrical magic!" Jayken blurted out before Charybdis could blow up at them. "They destroyed them before we had a chance to establish contact."
"…electrical magic?" Charybdis' eyes widened. Eight youths, who could use magic… when humans were supposed to be extinct. This was a groundbreaking discovery. She'd have a chance to actually study humans. All she had to do was capture them. Her ultimate goal was so tantalizingly close. She even started to drool.
"All of them can use magic," Wraith said. "There's one who's incredibly proficient with fire magic. We tried to capture them, but they bested us two-to-one. We need reinforcements so that we can track them down and subdue them. They're no doubt on the run now."
"Did you get any information on their identities?" Charybdis asked, leaning forwards in her leather chair. Her coffee cup lay neglected on the end table beside her.
"The girl who's good at fire magic – she said her name was Rekka Amiri, and that they were part of a group called Last Stand," Yona piped up, remembering how Rekka had triumphantly glared at her as she prepared her final beam.
"Rekka… Amiri?" Charybdis asked, whipping out her computer and typing furiously. A holographic display appeared in front of the three other monsters, projecting search results of records under the name "Amiri". Charybdis opened up three windows of three royal-looking adults. With a snap, they materialized, and Yona grabbed them out of the air, showing them to her partners.
"I also heard them call to each other… I think one of them was called Silas and one was called Eve. She was really curious – she was using RimTech daggers. The same ones we sell to the assassins from PSEF," Wraith informed Charybdis. His scout training had allowed him to memorize and observe the little details that may come in handy some day.
"Eve…" Charybdis echoed, musing to herself. "As in… Evelynn?"
"Yes, that could be it… but why Evelynn specifically?" Jayken asked. He was clueless as to where Charybdis was heading.
"Do you remember a certain Evelynn who was proficient in weapons?" Charybdis asked them seriously. Yona and Jayken's eyes widened, while Wraith and Wicke remained confused.
"No way…"