Chapter 21 - Aiming

"I want to help too!" Kei's said in a light tone, but her expression was filled with determination. Her eyes were glued to the Aberration. It was her first time seeing one, but she'd heard a few stories about them from Shono and Een.

"W-well, I think it's better for us to sit this one out," Alice explained with a nervous chuckle. "They'll take care of this one in no time. So let's sit tight and watch them." The last thing she needed was Kei running off on her own... The others had already done that.

They'd taken the Gargling by surprise. The beast stumbled backwards, and Karabell saw fear glinting in its eyes. It was intelligent enough to understand just how slim its chances of winning were. The Captain glanced over his shoulder. Shono and Een had almost caught up to him. They could do it.

Lyra scrunched her face in concentration. The Gargling was pretty far away. She wasn't sure if she would manage to strike it down on her first try. But a miss could very well result in the projectile hitting one of her companions instead. She squeezed the end of the arrow between her thumb and index finger. Why was she getting so worked up? Those were anti-Aberration arrows, it wasn't like they could kill a human. Not from that distance, anyway. Alice was still trying to calm Kei down. The girl didn't even have a weapon. What was she hoping to accomplish? Lyra needed to focus. Karabell's spear was more than enough to kill the monster. So why had he asked her to help?

The Captain locked eyes with the Aberration. He immediately fell back, letting Shono take the initiative. The Gargling snapped to attention. It curled its hand into a fist, striking Shono with a movement so quick he barely managed to block it with the shaft of his mace. It was going to rely on brute force instead to using its claws. They knew they couldn't count on Lyra to help them, too. Karabell carefully approached the creature. It was safe to assume that they'd have to kill it on their own account. But he wanted to have faith in her. She hadn't come across as the type of person who'd abandon them in that kind of situation. She wasn't like Frederick. Even so, was trusting her the correct answer?

"Take care Shono. This one's not the kind of Gargling we're used to. I can't shake off this feeling for the life of me," Karabell's voice faltered.

Lyra narrowed her eyes. That kind of creature shouldn't have been able to move so fast, nor be so quick on the uptake. Suddenly, a chilling thought struck her. She had no reason to stay there. They were in what looked like some kind of courtyard. She could easily find a better spot to snipe at the creature.

Shono jumped back, distancing himself from the Aberration. He signalled Een that they needed to attack at the same time. Even if it was an intelligent creature, focusing on two enemies at the same time was a hard task. Een's leg pounced, propelling him forward. His axe hit the creature square in the chest, but it wasn't enough to make it lose its balance. Shono, on the other hand, had circled around the creature, and started pounding its lower back with his mace. The Gargling screeched. It immediately punched Een, knocking him to the ground with incredible force. One problem out of its way, the creature turned around, glaring at Shono. However, the Aberration had gotten overconfident. In its haste to eliminate both its attackers, it'd completely forgotten that a third threat existed. The tip of Karabell's spear glanced off its tough scales, but that was enough to distract the Gargling. With a fearsome cry, Shono whacked the left side of the beast's torso, creating a huge dent in its plates. But he wasn't going to stop there. The man delivered a quick blow to its knee, before going back to hitting the same spot on its upper body, over and over again. Karabell restlessly thrust his spear towards it, making sure it wouldn't take its eyes off of him. After a few strikes, Shono finally managed to create an opening.

"It's all on you, Captain!" Shono shouted, hoping that Karabell'd hear him over all that noise the creature was making.

Lyra pointed her bow toward the ground, nocking an arrow. They couldn't fell the creature. That much, she understood. Otherwise, Shono would've already done that before attempting to peel of its scales. Een seemed to have passed out, too. It wasn't looking good for them. But she didn't plan to just stand idly by. Lyra drew the string, taking a deep breath. She just needed to Shono to get out of the way. She'd grown accustomed to those motions less than a year after she'd begun her training. Yet it took all she had just to keep her hand from shaking. She couldn't afford to miss. They'd attacked the creature with reckless abandon. One of them had even gotten hurt. Karabell had asked her to provide cover, but she still hadn't done anything. Unconsciously, she loosed the arrow. She blinked rapidly, trying to realize what'd just happened. The Gargling let out another cry, writhing in agony. The arrow had sunk between its ribs.

"Great job!" Karabell called out to her, pride coloring his voice. He wasn't sure if Lyra could hear him or not, but it was worth trying.

"Thanks... I guess."

They all met back at the wagon. Een had, fortunately, woken up, although he'd somehow managed to sprain his knee. Shono didn't exactly understand how such a thing was possible, but he didn't say anything. Kei was cheerful as ever, bombarding them with questions. For some reason, Alice seemed exhausted.

"That's right, didn't we have two more guys with us? And where're the horses... No, don't tell me," Karabell sighed, rubbing his temples.

"They left just after the fight broke out. Sorry I couldn't stop them." Alice wrinkled her brow.

"It's fine. It's not like you could've done anything. Those cowards... So, what now? Should we head back?" Karabell asked, turning towards Lyra. Without horses...

"We're almost halfway there. It's entirely up to you, but I think we should keep going," she responded quickly, like she'd already rehearsed those words in her head. Going back meant having to wait for at least another week. And none of them wanted to spend an entire week in that place.