The jungle grounds froze over in a steamy flash of crystalline winds. Forever encasing the brilliant flowers surrounding in a glacial blue case of ice. A dark funeral of sorts.
Both for the flowers and evil serpents once seated in the grass, seemingly in praise of Stella's home like it was some place of worship.
The sight made Claude's blood run cold. Reptiles made exceptional followers. The dragons of old literally beat it into their DNA.
And if the sight of Stella's front yard explained anything, it was that she understood that fact like any beast-tamer would.
She had become their dragon.
And they were about to enter her nest.
Theoretically.
"I'm getting real tired of snakes!" Ursula cursed as she stomped the frozen evil creatures into frosted giblets.
Claude was already on the move, climbing the tree that led up to her home. With (Beast Trait) active, he dug his claws into the same grooves where Stella and Grimm once climbed.
The difference in claw length and sharpness made him cringe.
Along the way, he let his long crooked nose brush against the tattered bark, trying to latch onto any fresh scents.
There were none. Naturally, Stella said she was doing perimeter runs with the archers.
Claude reached the top. His hounds and Ren followed, despite not being built for feline feats of dexterity.
He turned his back to the wood and thatch lined door to face everyone below. Even in the dark, he could see how alert they were.
"Warren, did you see the night squad of archers?" Claude questioned.
Warren itched his nappy high top of hair, "Sort of....I was kind of just ready to get to bed, man."
"Was Stella with them?"
"I...I don't remember. Also where is Chase? Did he call us over here and run away?"
"Probably. He's weird." Marion replied.
"Dammit!" Claude punched the railing bordering Stella's treehouse.
"It would not matter, Liberator. Even if she was there. Beast-tamer's with enough skill can commune with and control their tames from nearly any distance." Naz explained.
Claude sank at her words, "I know-- but it would've given us something to work with.
"We will work all the same." Naz replied before looking directly up into the tree above her.
"WAH!" Whoever was up hiding were she looked fell after being startled, startling everyone else.
Chase got up from his face plant to find all manner of elements and weaponry aimed at him.
"This guy is such a dumbass, oh my gods." Marion let his face fall into his palms.
"Why were you spying on us!!?? You brought us here!!" Warren exclaimed.
"I was waiting for a cool entrance! I didn't expect Ms dreadylocks over here to snipe me like that. Seriously what's your deal? I have less issues sneaking up on panthers when I'm in the zone." Chase explained.
"Unfortunately for you, I am no panther." Naz replied calmly before extending a hand to help him up.
Chase dusted himself off, "So, the serpentmancer is the hot blonde with long legs. A tragedy, I think. But hunting the horse-cat dragon will be just what I need to become a legend."
"Don't get ahead of yourself." Claude said before turning back to the door. "We need more information."
Before Claude could even get his hand on the door handle into Stella's place, Chase was at his side with his bow string pulled taut and arrowhead glistening in the dark. It was crooked.
"You know we have arrows crafted daily?" Claude whispered to him.
"A man is nothing if not his own saving grace."
"You're gonna save yourself with a crooked arrow?" Claude asked.
Chase tried to think of a witty reply before realizing he wasn't and angrily turning to the door. He unracked his arrow and kicked it open.
"Alright serpentmancer, how do you feel about crooked arrows to the face??!" Chase roared as he entered the dark room.
Claude followed in from behind. His dark vine cloak stilled in the suddenly windless space. The flowers adorning his shoulders were dotted with golden pollen that glowed in the lunar dark. His canine eyes and nose allowed him near perfect vision in the dark. His beastly kin filtered in after. Just Ren an Rivera. The remaining two dogs stood guard outside.
Chase tried to show similar perceptive abilities to Claude and tripped over a bag of clothes. Ren chastized him with a growl.
"HAHA! Quiet jungle-rat! Ive found her bag of shedded skin! She's changed into her true monstrous form-- right before Wraith Night. Hells yes." Chase dug through the bag.
It was empty.
"You guys find anything?" Warren questioned from outside.
"No." Claude replied.
But his mind was elsewhere. Hed never been in anyone's room except his own and Naz's. And hers didn't count for the point he was trying to make.
It was too militarized and plain. Hiding her mind from being picked through design choices and wall art for example.
Stella's room was as expressive as someone's room their age should've been. With the resources she had available.
She was an artist. An appreciator of jungle landscapes, yarn castles and princess's of cat villages. At least according to the burnt wood and berry drawings on multiple sheets of hide and skinned bark.
Near her bed, a bedside table stood beneath a small window. The light of the moon and leaderboard northern lights shone through the opening, highlighting the sight of a handcrafted globe sitting atop the desk.
She had a pin in New Gloria-- the Midwest. Claude spun the globe on its boar bone stand and found another pin on the Sunlandian Prison-Sect. His brain went to work.
His brain shifted into overdrive when he noticed the grave there.
It read, "RIP Socks."
"I personally never cared about clothing that much." Chase commented.
Claude didn't reply, and Chase didn't continue speaking due to Claude putting a finger to his lips.
His ears twitched as the sounds combat fell on his sensitive ears.
He ran out of Stella's room.
Naz was already looking around like she was hearing it.
"There's a fight a few miles west of us. Stella's got scents going that way--but that isnt saying much since the beach is west of here. It could be her-- it could be bad, but we should keep an open mind and keep this between us until we have more answers. Figure out what's going on west, dont let any information spread, and find Stella." Claude explained.
Everyone nodded once before taking off.
They cleared their two mile run in ten minutes and came to the unpopulated backend of the beach full of sand golems and goblins going to war.
"No Stella but free EXPERIENCE!!!" Chase entered the fray quickly.
Everyone else filtered in soon after.
Claude unsheathed his construct blade, manipulating his aura within the MS Glass until the familiar shape of the khopesh glimmered in the dark.
He charged the first enemy he could. A wiry light-green goblin wearing a boar pelt and wielding a stone axe fortified with island-dog teeth.
It swung the axe at his face.
Claude sidestepped the attack and pivoted in the sand, sending debris flying as he slid to a stop behind the monster. From there,he let his hooked blade wrap around the goblins throat.
Naz came from the front suddenly, hooking her scythe around it's midsection.
They shared no more than a glance before pulling their hooked weapons in opposite directions and ripping the goblin in half.
[+35 EXP]
It's guts splattered in the sand, turning it into foul burgundy mud. Almost immediately after, it was swallowed up by the growing form of another sand golem.
Before it could finish forming, Ren stomped out the shaped sand until it's core was crushed beneath his paws.
It was only then that Claude noticed Ren looked different.
He shed his protective bodyfat. Looking more like a jackal now and had yellow eyes and a humped back-- like a camel.
There wasn't much extra time to process the changes fully, another wave of sand golems rose.
"So nobody wants to say it?" Marion asked as he pushed a black wind bullet through three sand golem heads.
"I will!" Ursula froze a golem and crushed it in a bear hug, "What are the chances that this is Samuels doing? You guys did kind of crumple his empire..."
"The timing doesn't make sense. Plus, we know he's not the type to not handle his own problems. This is something else. For now we need to clear the beach."
And clear the beach they did. A few students woke up and Chase almost spilled the beans but otherwise everything went smoothly.
They searched the archers routes until the beginnings of sunrise came and the leaderboard faded. Warren jumped up two placements. Unfortunately it wasn't time to celebrate.
Double as much when they finally came to terms with the fact that they couldn't find Stella,though her scent was everywhere. Unnaturally fain though.
As if that wasn't enough to worry over. Then he descended.
Claude was just about to fall asleep when he was shaken awake and rushed out to the beach he and his small group of friends fought on only hour ago.
The students warily stepped through the battle scene to circle around Prof. Brennan.
Jus like when they first saw him weeks ago, he wore a black University of the Phoenix branded cloak with his hood up, all they could see was his red stubble lined jaw and thin lips. He wasn't smiling this time.
"Good morning, new entrants. You've done well for yourselves. Claude Grey, if you're here step forward." Prof. Brennan announced.
Claude made his way to the front, "Yes, sir?"
Prof. Brennan looked him up and down, "You're on track to becoming the first ever Fifth-Waver House Champion."
Claude smiled faintly and some of the students cheered.
"That's not a good thing..... for you. Many of the houses grow angry with you. Your placement delegitamizes the importance of previous investments. But I'm sure you've already felt the wrath of this."
"The hexblade." Claude came back no reality.
"Personally, I look forward to your development. Change the structure of power here if you can. In my mind that's the first step to changing the world." Prof. Brennan explained.
"But many of your worlds have change already, and that's why I'm here." Prof. Brennan went on, "I was informed two hours ago that the westcoast of New Gloria had a large scale Silver-Cursed pack skirmish. Many new werewolves were born, many were killed."
Claude stumbled, only avoiding the fall due to Ursula catching him.
"Werewolves....." Claude thought, "An outbreak on the westcoast.... where I live. Where my father..who might not be human also lives...."
"It happens often around this time. Freshly reborn young men and women make the strongest Silver-Cursed but also have the highest risk of malformation."
Claude suddenly remembered how his dad seemingly wished he wasn't Reborn.
Was that because he simply didn't want Claude in harms way? Or was Gil Grey a conniving werewolf eagerly waiting and hoping for a better chance of changing Claude, a second time....
It was all coming together in the worst way.
He didn't hear the rest of the speech. He had to be told after how ninety percent of the last wave was dead, so the final three were being rushed in right as Wraith Night was about to begin in less than a couple weeks.
It seemed many things were about to begin, and he wasn't looking forward to any of it.