Culdia's POV:
As we decided, when the bear does anything out of the normal, I'm to make use of my Shield of the Trees, and then everyone is supposed to run behind me. But for some reason, not everyone was able to make it this time. I did a check by turning my head and found that Spi was missing. I couldn't see what was happening due to the shields in front of my face, but I knew something was wrong. I was about to activate my Magic Art despite my lack of Genesis Liquid when my body was flown into the smallest shield I made.
The gravitational pull trying to push me through the shield was incredibly intense, bone-crushing even. And it wasn't made better by the elbows and knees slamming against me at high speeds because of the others going through the same thing. Not only was it pulling us though, I could also see the mud below, the rain in the sky, and even the trees around us being uprooted as they were all sucked to what I assumed was the bear.
As this continued I could feel the pull getting even stronger. The first shield broke, then the second one. The final one, our last bastion of hope, was luckily still holding strong. But even that was questionable as the cracks in the shield spread, along with the cracks in my bones. My body was slowly, but surely, being crushed against the shield. Even if the shield didn't break, I would still die if this kept up. As I looked around, hoping for anything that could help me get out of this situation, I saw a spark of genius flash in Fragitus's eyes who was next to me.
She practiced a Technology Path Branch, so she was able to barely get on her knees despite the incredible pressure. Then she lifted her arms in the sky. Those arms were immediately snapped back and broken by the joints, but she still got what she wanted. As her backward arms bent across the edge of the almost shattered shield, stacks and stacks of dynamite spawned out of her hands and were promptly sucked into the bear.
I couldn't see what happened next, but the sound of a giant explosion along with my face hitting the muddy floor was telling enough. Thank goodness for her quick thinking, I was too freaked out by the pain in my bones to make any kind of move.
I tried to use my arms as a spring and lift my body, but then I realized that they were practically two pieces of meat with shrapnel inside them, the same went for all of my bones and joints besides the particularly strong ones like my skull. Due to that, I was able to turn my body around and look up to get a view of the situation. Onvima was able to defend himself enough so that he could still walk, but I doubted his fighting capabilities. Vernam was slightly healthier than Onvima, but still in the same situation. The only one who might be able to do any kind of damage was Fragitus who still stood tall, I'll be it with broken arms. As for Spi...
I felt a single tear run down my cheek. I remembered that loud crunch just as the suckage began, and his inability to get behind the shield... It was obvious what had happened to him. I really wasn't sure how to feel. I've always done my best to protect the people I love. The death of my parents during the Wild Beast attack only amplified that trait of mine further. I had to do everything I could for them, no matter the costs.
When I used the healing torture method on that guy in my school year, it was only to set an example. Some jackass with a high status punched Onvima, and well, he wasn't the type to fight back very well, so he was decimated. Once I found that out, of course I did something extreme! That was my friend! Someone that had suffered just as much as me, and someone who lifted me out of bad times. I would do anything to protect him. It was pure coincidence that he was using a Demonic Technique, and I was let off scot-free.
Or another time when a jerk by the name of Iraspisit picked on Paxium. Of course, due to what could happen, she didn't fight back and it just became straight-up bullying. So I gave him a real beating, the only reason I didn't do the same thing to him was because he only hit her a couple of times, that and because of his begging. After that, he started to hang out around me, and well, we became good friends.
He was a real hothead for sure, but I always felt like his heart was in his friend's best interest, and that was a quality of him that I loved. Today proved that even more. I'm sure that he already considered the pros and cons of coming here and helping us fight the bear. Yes, he could have the glory of defending the sect from the horrid beast, but that just wasn't worth the risk of death. Better to live on and try again than to die for no reason. That meant he really did have us in his best interest, not to mention he was a half-decent commander... He was a great friend...Just thinking about the fun times we had together brought comfort to my heart, as tears fell down my face in an increasing tempo.
I slammed the back of my head against the mud, staining my hair. The reality of the entire situation hit me. Not only would Spi die here, but Vernam, Onvima, and I would also end up crushed by the thing's teeth.
Boom!
The loud sound forced me to use my neck to look around, and I soon found Fragitus slammed against the side of a tree. After peeling off of the bark, she landed in the mud face-first. I almost forgot Fragitus's no running away policy. Now she was also going to die along with us... No, both she and Paxium were going to die. At least I wouldn't have to live with the guilt of being the only survivor again.
The bear calmed down as it observed us all on the ground. It surveyed all of them individually before returning to me. It took a few steps toward me before sitting just before me. It used its paws and held me without any kind of grip. It then slowly brought me to its mouth.
I resigned myself to my fate. Even if I wanted to do something with my Magic Art, it wouldn't matter. The bear would just eat me quickly, and I would die with less dignity. No. This way I would be able to think a little before my death. Recall all the fun times I had with my friends. Recall the faces of my parents before they were eaten as well. Recall the boy I tortured to death at the school gate. Recall the faces of the people I killed in the name of keeping my friends safe. Recall the past couple of months I spent with the man who I respected most...
I took a deep breath as I faced the open jaw of the Wild Beast. It was a warm breath, an unsatisfying one to end it on... but who cares.
If there's an afterlife.
I hope to see Spi there-
Swoosh!
The sound of an object passing by my head broke me out of the calm atmosphere I built for myself and made me turn my attention for a split second. I say a split second because, in the next moment, the bear let out a pained roar before dropping me on the ground. I looked up at the bear and noticed something sticking out of its eye. I focused my vision and found what looked to be a small version of an arrow... wait, that was a bolt!
My body began gibrating as the bones in my body rattled. I could feel the individual fragments being pulled into place before forming a full bone. I was being put back together.
Once my body was fixed, I looked around and found that the same was happening to everyone else. I then heard slow footsteps moving toward us, which forced my body to turn around and get a look at who it was, despite me already knowing.
He had maroon hair that went a bit below his shoulder blades. He had a brown skin tone in some places and a more black skin tone in others, creating a strange pattern across his body. His signature baggy grey pants were somehow clean of any mud stains. And his piercing blue eyes looked straight through my soul.
He clapped his hands, causing us to lend him our ears and eyes before calmly stating with a soothing voice, "Hello everyone. I see that you're having some struggles here. How about I lend a hand."
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Quis' POV:
"Hello everyone. I see that you're having some struggles here. How about I lend a hand."
I calmly got their attention. As someone who was taking control of the operation, I needed to always act like I was in control, like everything was in my hands. Though, that did have some truth to it, as I already had a good grasp on the situation thanks to my previous observations.
The bear belonged to the 2nd Half Coal Class, which was easy to identify when you looked at its previous move. It was much too strong to be a normal Magic Art, so it had to be a Spell. If I had to guess, I would say it used Wood Branch means to reach a Gravity Branch conclusion. That was something only possible with Spells and Machines, but to see it come from a Wild Beast was a huge surprise. Usually, only Iron Class Cultivators are able to use their Branch to mimic the effects of another. Normally only those hailed as "geniuses" could complete such a feat while in Coal Class.
It made me extremely curious about how a Wild Beast could hold such a power, but that was neither here nor there. It didn't matter why it had it, all that mattered was that it did have it. And after seeing what Fragitus did earlier, I had a good idea of how to kill the turtle-like bear.
I looked around at the people who I just saved. Vernam looked at me with eyes of pride, Culdia captivation, Fragitus suspicion, and Onvima terror. None of these reactions were a surprise to me. Vernam was proud because she was living through my actions, Culida was captivated by my striking presence, Fragitus still harbored ill intent toward me but I just healed her so she was only left with confusion and suspicion, and I made sure that Onvima saw what I did to Iraspisit so his fear was expected.
After confirming everything was going to plan, I began to speak with a calm yet confident voice, "Everyone, I need you to listen very carefully to my words, as it is they that will allow us to kill this blasted bear. Onvima, you will bait out the bear's attacks and give opportunities for Fragitus to get in crazy attacks. Vernam, I need you to support the two of them with your speed and attack power. Culdia, you take a break and regenerate your Genesis Liquid after which you will support everyone with your swords. I'll make sure the bear can't run away and also restrict its movements. Don't worry about killing it, you can leave that all up to me. Just make sure you run away as far as possible when it activates its Spell. I know best that you all have the ability to do this, so prove your months of effort haven't been for naught! Go!"
With that, we were off. The scene was practically the same as before, but instead of using walls of fire to restrict the bear, I used my fists and a good amount of Genesis Orbs. I was well aware that this was the exact same strategy Iraspisit gave only minutes ago, but why should I be original when something unoriginal works? He was dead now, and the others weren't in the right frame of mind to think, "Didn't he just copy Iraspisit?" So why not just smoothly take the credit for someone else's idea? And since this time I would show results, people would only think of me when they thought of who led the Elders to beat the Wild Beast. The end result was all that mattered.
And the only reason Fragitus and Onvima actually listened to me was because they had already done it before, so it only felt natural now. As for Culdia... more likely than not, she needed something to distract herself from her inner thoughts. She was the type who held those close to her above all else, even herself, so to let one of those people die was probably soul-crushing. She isn't so stupid to break down in the middle of battle, but I was unsure what would happen afterward. That was why I planned to make use of the feelings in the air to push her to my side instead of letting her think of what happened.
Like this, the battle progressed smoothly, and around another five minutes passed. In this time frame, Fragitus, Onvima, and Vernam ran out of Fruits to use, so it was left to Culdia and me to take care of the bear. It was an intense last minute, but once we saw the bear hold still and begin to take a deep breath, the bell of victory also began ringing. All four of them ran as fast as their legs could take them, and just as Vernam passed me, I made sure to slip a note into her hand. Soon enough they were all out of vision, leaving me and the bear alone in a crater of mud created by its last onslaught.
The bear slowly breathed in. At first, it was just a simple breath, but soon enough an attractive force lifted my body in the air and into the thing's mouth. Once I was inside, to avoid being crushed from a single chomp, I used the handy Bolt of Wind and grabbed onto it before it took off allowing me passage into the bear's throat. I used Tinder to create a small flame in my hand which let me see even though the bear closed its mouth. Nothing would be worse than to unknowingly fall into a pit of acid once I reached the stomach.
The beast was big enough to allow me to just barely slide down the esophagus without getting stuck, and eventually, I reached a drop point. This had to have been the stomach, so I quickly used another Crossbow Bolt Fruit and grabbed onto it which allowed me to stick myself to a stomach wall. Once I pierced the stomach, I could feel a large rattle, probably the bear yelping in pain.
The anatomy of Wild Beasts from Dirt Class to Gold Class are almost always the same as their normal beast counterpart, meaning that there would be no surprises while I was in here, only some good old-fashioned inner turmoil. I activated and began to punch my fist over and over, each punch releasing a Bolt that was imbued with lots of Genesis Orbs. Blood would splash on me every now and then, but it didn't bother me much. I just had to continue attacking and eventually, the thing would die. But I'd rather it be sooner rather than later to give that real pizazz to this whole charade.
So, using the bolts to create a hole inside of the bear big enough for me to jump in, I began to dig out a tunnel. No doubt this was excruciatingly painful for the bear due to the crazy amount of shaking, but I was able to keep myself stable as I continued to "dig". Soon enough, I was where I wanted to be: the heart.
The heart was about the size of me, in a heart-shaped manner of course. It was small enough for me to do what I needed to do, and that was all that mattered. I wrapped my arms around the bear's heart and squeezed with all my might, along with hundreds of Genesis Orbs.
Pop!
Blood splashed all over me as the shaking of the bear grew incredibly intense. I had to time this correctly, so I readied my Bolts of Wind and once ten seconds passed, I began carving a hole outside of the bear. Because the bear wasn't the size of a mountain, but a hill, it didn't take me too long.
Eventually, the final bolt was cast, and a hole of bright light was created, temporarily blinding me. After a couple of seconds, I regained my vision and jumped out of the hole head-first. Like a baby emerging from the womb, I exited the bear with vigor, going around ten meters into the air before losing momentum. I fell onto the lifeless carcass and took a look around me.
Surrounding me were the same five Elders from earlier.
My body was drenched with blood, dying my skin a new color of crimson, and causing my hair to drip with blood as if I were fresh out of the shower. Their faces varied in emotions, but nothing was different, except for Fragitus who showed some sort of amazement. I took a deep breath and looked around from the top of the bear who was lying on its side before opening my mouth and saying with a calm tone not befitting the atmosphere.
"Hello everyone. Good things it's raining, otherwise I don't know how I'd get all of this blood off of me."