The horns on its head were gleaming as chunks of flesh plopped down on the ground, dark red blood coating gleaming teeth. It raked its claws across the ground in both impatience and desire, noticing its new guests that interrupted its meal. With a hawklike roar. it crooned to the sky before jumping upwards!
"Brace yourselves, kay?" Bie's carefree voice entered the squadron's ears as he followed the foul demon into the sky using Mountain's Step to reduce his weight. In his hands were a chain and sickle, the Guide withdrawing the weapons out of his duffel bag in an attempt to tie up the beast for a good second or two.
"Raw-RAWK! GAAORRR!" The chickenfooted ghoul beset Bie as it flailed its claws at him, drawing fine arcs in the sky as the ridges brushed past Bie's form. The baby blue Guide reacted in turn by grasping both weapons in his left hand, swinging his right hand onto the demon's arm, attached to it by the red thread. Hi eyes shone as he recalled the thread back, rapidly approaching the ghoul's form as he increased his weight.
And then, he increased his weight tremendously as he smashed into the demon's torso with both of his knees. Pulling his hand back into place, he quickly spun around on his heel as he threw down the sickle, the chain hurtling out of his grasp as it wrapped around its legs.
"Next!" Bie jumped off of the demon, quickly replaced by Lulac who flew upwards with his beam saber drawn. He sent a Mansion's Sting at the demon as he quickly sizzled through its arm flesh, flying below it in order to avoid its frenzied strikes. In 10 seconds, the demon fell where Gyuho was, the Vendetta Jackie stepping into his shadow as the demon phased through him.
Before Gyuho could continue whaling on it, the demon screamed and whirled around on its back until it was free! It avoided a falling Casmere by deftly stepping to the side and sending a strong kick. The hit connected, causing the Demon Hunter to fly meters backwards until Llac swooped towards him and caught him
The ghoul smiled, raking its claws towards Gyuho and Bie as it lifted itself with a single arm. Bie darted towards the legs and kicked upwards with increased weight, deflecting the blow as the demon became unbalanced. The suctioning force the Guide was emitting pulled the flailing monster towards them, though Gyuho messed up his timing and was raked across his flank.
"Ram Shot!" Energy condensed on the tip of the flag, causing the spike atop the banner to reveal a milky glint. Moments later, the lightning surged out of the flag and shot at the demon, battering it with a crackling heap of energy.
Taking the initiative to strike while the demon was stunned, Bie skirted the demon and shot a javelin at its flank. Blood gushed out in rich red spurts tinged with green, causing the beast to cry out with fervor and anguish.
Although this fight seemed easy, Casmere was wary of something. As he ran back, he sent his wheel hurtling towards one of the ruined wooden buildings, smashing it open to reveal another Chickenfooted Ghoul...
Suddenly, five other wooden buildings burst open as the sets of claws raked towards the fighting Guides, Lulac having to rise to the skies as wax dripped down to the ground. Narrowly avoiding two attacks aimed at him, eight other demons emerged, their horns shining in the dreary light!
Gyuho's chest heaved, his limbs straining as he had to make a renewed effort to defend Wanxi, who was in the center. Bie worked to invalidate the demons' attacks, withdrawing Ekulech and deftly deflecting blows as he ran in a circle around the two. His blood started boiling as he began breathing, steam gently rising from his body as he intensified his movements.
He increased his weight as he ran, his body like a truck as it smashed into the striking Ghouls. Gyuho's ankh started gleaming as his shadow engulfed him, surging miasma arising to protect the three and give Bie a breather.
"Thanks, Gyu." Said Bie, appreciative. "Cover me, if you don't mind?" Gyuho nodded, doing what he knew he could and revealing a previously unused move.
"Broken Flair: Showoff. Next: Showboat." He then took a grand bow as his hands fluttered above him, shadows streaming from his eyes as a light shot down to illuminate him. The shadow seemed to flicker in the spotlight, before readjusting itself onto Gyuho's bat as the boy started wildly swinging.
Darkness streamed in the form of shadowed bats, knocking onto the demons' heads as Ink drained out of his body. Bie nodded, his pupils turning into white crosses as Ekulech's other body emerged from the hand axe. The ghouls fell to the ground, an invisible suppressive force pushing them down low to the ground.
"Alright, now's your chance..." Bie smiled, focusing on pressing all of the rather large demons to the ground. Ekulech's illusory form shot towards the struggling frames, clawing at their heads. Unfortunately, Bie felt more than enough strain from having to hold down nine demons at once, the strain even greater than the giant monster back in Renthia.
Thankfully, Lulac and Casmere took the opportunity to pierce the heads of the demons, causing their cries to rise to the peak. Wanxi performed Ram Shot, directing the bursts of magic owards the holes in their head and ending them for good.
"No second phase?" Lulac said, withdrawing the laser beam on his hilt when he was sure the ghouls stopped struggling. Bie raised them up into the sky with creased brows before smashing them down again a couple times, his intent to make sure the demons were dead. Surprisingly, two of the demons squawked before promptly dying, their plow to play dead left unrealized.
"Well, it would be strange if all of them could do it, yeah?" Bie's pupils returned to normal, though he kept his weapon drawn just in case. With a glance towards Casmere, the man in turn shook his head.
"There shouldn't be any more, so we can return after harvesting the materials." He withdrew multiple flasks of amber liquid and handed them out, gesturing to the one he held afterwards.
"This is Fall Liquid. It works to reduce the demonic taint from what you apply it over, and it works as a corrosive poison to them."
"Why not coat your weapons in it, then?" Wanxi asked, wiping away sweat that beaded her brow.
"It's corrosive to all demonic material...so it would eat away at our weapons." Casmere patiently answered, getting to work at pouring it over the cadavers as he talked.
The Pinions got to work, listening to Casmere's advice to remove the heads and the legs, since those were the most useful parts of the demon. Bie collected the feathers on his own, storing them in his Inner World in the hopes of using them later to create more clothing. In that same vein, he removed their skin as well.
'Silkie, take anything you like~' He noticed that the corrupted Remnants they produced were bigger and seemingly stronger than that of the Gania Dogs, though weaker than the leader. With that said, Ekulech moved and swiftly collected them all, reentering its master's Inner World with each murky orb in tow.
Bie smiled, though it created an effect that sent shivers down Lulac's spine as he was currently splattering blood all over the place. He looked towards Casmere, who was humming along with a happy look in his eyes...and he felt surrounded by maniacs. The fact that they reminded him slightly of his mentor...ugh...