I pushed leaves out of my way, getting caught in many spiderwebs. Mud drenched my black boots. I finally regretted my decision to always wearing short dresses. They were easy to move in, but now her exposed thighs, bombarded by bugs, sprouted red spots. I cursed under my breath, wishing hell upon the pesky bugs relentlessly biting her flesh.
Soon I heard low rustling, I turned from the distance; I snapped my head in the noise's direction, seeing a pack of ten red wolves donned with a purple spike crouching low in the bushes as they crept towards me. The wolf leading the others which seemed to be the alpha was much larger and instead of one spike had two glinting dangerously in the meagre sunlight. Why was it always wolves? I groaned in irritation.
I continued walking, speeding up slightly; the wolves did the same, their paws pattering on the soft forest floor. Reaching a small clearing, I stood still, watching the stalking wolves dispersing, surrounding me.
"Al, what about my blood manipulation training?" I asked, cracking my knuckles, darting my eyes around, keeping a close eye on the growling wolves.
'Postponed,'
"Huh, Why?" I pursed my lips
'If you can't even move as one with your scythe, how do you expect to get better with blood manipulation?'
"But Al I used it well before," I complained I thought my accomplishments with this blood manipulation thing to be successful.
'What you have done so for is mediocre, it's scratching the base of the concepts of it. The ways you have used it so far are the most basic ways to use it.' He scoffed.
I didn't have time to retort the wolves leapt toward me, fangs bared. I held one wolf's back with the scythe's handle, kicking it from me, spinning to slash to the wolf sneaking behind me. Blood flew and his head landed with a solid thump. I pulled three of my sickles out, throwing them to three other wolves in mid-air. They pierced the middle of their brows with pinpoint accuracy.
Four down. I swung my leg around kicking a wolf in his ribs sending him flying while stabbing the end of my scythe into the side of another. Not stopping I swing my scythe with wolf still attached to a wolf rushing at me, he stumbled back crushed under his packmate. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a wolf bringing his claws to my back, I sent my elbow back hitting him in the chin. I pulled out another sickled throwing it to the wolf killing him.
Four left, I thought to myself. The remaining wolves backed off staring at me viciously growling. My blood-stained scythe glinted, the red inscriptions glowing, the black mist oozing from it thickened. While glowing the blood on its blade seeped into it disappearing, I paid no attention to it so the phenomenon taking place did not enter my eyes.
I made the first move, dropping low to swing the scythe around me, cutting the remaining wolves in half. I rose, dusted off my palms. "Return from whence you came," I whispered, and the scythe returned to my finger.
"I still don't know what you mean when you say work with my scythe, it's an object, it doesn't have feelings," I plucked my sickled from the dead wolves flicking the blood off.
'I never said it has emotions, I said it feeds off the owner's emotions and blood. The scythe is like another part of you, when you use it you should act as if it's your limb, it's like dancing,' He tried to explain.
"Did you say blood?"
'Yes, it consumes the blood of what you kill'
"You never told me this, Al,"
'You never asked' I facepalmed, I could never win with Al. 'That's off-topic you need to act as one with your scythe,'
"It's not that easy, how the hell do I act as one with your scythe,"
'Treat it as a comrade, pretend as if you're surrounded, and you're with a comrade, backs pressed against one another, you protect them, they protect you, trusting each other with your lives,"
'I could never trust someone with my life," I laughed.
'If you want to use your scythe to the best of its abilities you must learn to, even if you know all the techniques of how wielding it the true value won't emerge till you understand this concept,' I grunted as I continued trudging forward.
I reached another clearing that opened up to an enormous cave. I stood by the entrance, considering whether I should enter. Water dripped from its grey rough roof, forming a small puddle. At that moment I had no idea that something terrifying was lurking in its depths and that just might lead to my demise.