The two brothers growled, "Magic. There is no other explanation!" Valiant said through gritted teeth.
"I knew that adventurer was a cancer!" Gallant said with a snarl, "We never should have welcomed her!"
Gone was the tolerant, somewhat welcoming demeanor of the red fox. There was now anger in his tone of voice and body. Yet he couldn't be further from the truth. Dalinah's magic was noble. She practiced healing, not corruption.
As the brothers and I had a standoff with the boars, possibilities swirled in my mind. I could use a spell and end this in one swift blow, but that would prevent me from getting more information about the necromancer controlling the boars. Not to mention using my magic might make the brothers even more suspicious of me. They hated magic users and it was already in full display.
If I didn't use my magic however, then I would be forced to end this the old fashioned way. Through fist and sword. However, how? How much do I need to hold back? If I did too much, I might end up intimidating the brothers, and therefore the village. If I did too little, then I risked the lives of the brothers. If they died, it would be on me.
Yet again I found myself frozen by indecision. And in that moment of indecision, the undead charged.
They were fast. Faster than they had any right to be. The brothers immediately used their grapples and pulled themselves away as the boars surged forth. Much to my surprise, the queen boar veered off from the rest of the boars, focusing instead on the brothers as they leapt away, swinging from branch to branch. My senses followed the brothers as the massive boar chased them through the forest, leaving behind a path of flattened trees.
Why did it ignore me? Maybe it was intending to kill them first. If that was the case, I couldn't let that happen.
The smaller boars, four in total, went after me. With shortsword in hand, I struck.
The first boar met my blade, losing a tusk as I swung wide before it even reached me. I swirled away from where I stood, slicing a second boar as I did, and pushed the first boar away as it drew close. It tumbled onto the ground, gurgling. The second boar found itself rushing into a bush.
Two more boars came at me from my left and right. They were charging at me at the same time, which meant someone was issuing orders, even from this far away.
Whoever they were, they were exerting a considerable amount of dark magic to do this. To maintain a magical connection this far.
And they were focusing all of it on me.
I jumped out of the way, allowing the boars to crash into each other. It worked out better than I expected with the boars impaling each other with their tusks.
As soon as I landed, the first boar was back on its feet and charging at me again. This time, the second boar followed from behind, emerging from the bush it disappeared into. Both had murder on their deceased minds.
I stood my ground and met the first boar with a clean, powerful thrust from my shortsword. Blood sputtered and splattered on my face as my blade pierced through the snout, burying itself deep into the skull.
Taking advantage of the boar's momentum, I hoisted it up and swirled around, slamming it against the second boar with enough force to shatter the bones of both.
The two boars fell on the ground, deader than before. I hated how that phrase was even possible.
The other two boars were stuck in each other's tusks, barely able to move around. One swing from my fist was all that was needed to turn the conjoined boars into a pile of flesh.
As I was rubbing my hands clean of the bits of flesh that clung onto my skin, I heard a loud squeal in the distance. The brothers were there, my keen senses confirming that they were still alive. My gaze traveled to where they were.
They were tired. Fortunately, none of the brothers had sustained any injuries, but they were close to expending most of their energy. It seemed like they harried the undead behemoth. There were fresh wounds on its sides, courtesy of Valiant. Meanwhile, dozens of arrows protruded over its skin, particularly on the eyes, the snout, and skull. It seemed like Gallant had a plan, unfortunately it was meant for a living target. The undead did not need to see or feel. Even without its eyes, the boar was still able to sense its surroundings. If willing, the undead boar could chase them until all of its bones had finally been ground to dust. Or until the two beastkin could run no more.
The golden shimmer of a portal appeared before me and I walked through, emerging directly in the path of the undead queen. It slowed to a halt when it saw me.
The creature then stared at me with punctured eyes.
"Mr. Viduri!" Gallant called out from a nearby branch as I walked into view. From the tone of his voice, it seemed like the red fox thought I had suicidal tendencies. Or maybe he was surprised to see me. Most likely both. I made sure to open the portal at a blind spot where neither beastkin would notice
Valiant immediately jumped to my right with bloody blade in hand. I couldn't help but notice the brothers panting in exhaustion. Fierce, determined eyes hid the terror they both felt.
It was hard to hold back this much, especially against an opponent that felt nothing. No pain. No exhaustion. Just an unending devotion to commit to whatever twisted command it was given. A simple spell would have finished this. But alas.
"Leave this to me." I said to Valiant. He was only putting himself in danger.
The blue fox looked at me incredulously, "What in our ancestor's name are you saying?" He gripped the handle of his sword tighter, as if to reassure me of his resolve.
"As I said, this is beyond the both of you," I walked forward, "Now step aside, you'll only get in the way."
Hearing my words, the blue fox frowned. I did not intend to insult nor wound his pride as a fighter, but the truth needed to be said.
Their efforts were to be commended, and I would see to that. For now, only I could finish this.
Valiant hesitated for a few seconds before finally relenting to my request, jumping away just before the undead boar renewed its charge.
With the brothers on a safe distance, I could let loose my physical strength. Just enough of it.
More arrows flew from Gallant's bow, striking the boar on the legs in a vain attempt to slow it down. It did not care and maintained its speed. With its tusks lowered to strike, I readied myself. A simple swipe from my hand would shatter the tusks, after which I would cut off its forelegs with a swing from my shortsword, enchanted by a little bit of magic. The minor enchantment should render it sharp enough, despite its size and quality.
A few moments later, the thundering behemoth closed the distance between us. Its tusks shattered into a thousand pieces as I struck both with a swipe of my fist. With no time to waste, I quickly stepped aside. Using a bit of my speed, I crouched under its gaping belly and swung my blade against both forelegs.
The undead boar found itself tumbling into a clump of tall trees as its two forelegs detached from its body. It crashed in a spectacular explosion of flesh and wood, drowning the forest with its vile sound.
The undead boar squealed as it struggled. Murky white eyes stared at me despite the arrows that punctured them. Someone was watching. Good.
I walked towards the undead beast, slamming it down as it tried to crush me by rolling over. With no forelegs and an abundance of broken bones, it could only squeal and flail.
I leaned near its eyes, gazing directly into the murky surface. Placing my palm over its bloodied face, I unleashed a spell.
The creature trembled as black smoke smoldered from its wounds. Its murky white eyes melted away, leaving behind deep holes.
I watched as the unseen taint of dark magic was purged from the forest, overwhelmed by my own magic. The spell did more than just purge, however. It hijacked the magical connection that bound the undead boars before it could be severed, using it to inject a little surprise.
If all went accordingly, the necromancer responsible would burst into flames the moment my magic reached them through the connection. It wouldn't kill them, just burn their skin.
Unless I overestimated my opponent.
After minutes of chaos, the forest once again fell silent. Gone were the birds that called the branches home and few were the critters that still lingered around. If there were any animals nearby, they wouldn't be coming out any time soon.
I looked around and beheld the devastation. Though many trees fell, I knew nature would reclaim what was lost. Tall trees would grow again on new fertile soil, fueled by those that came before.
The two brothers landed behind me, possibly judging that all was safe and done. I turned around to greet them, and to at least explain what had happened. But before I could speak, Valiant spoke first.
"What are you?" He asked.
Silence was my only answer.