It took Nyx only a moment to understand what he was seeing; 'A glaive...'
He gritted his teeth, pushing off against the nose of the Terror and thrusted himself as hard as he could.
Only moments later did the Terror's head slam against the ground, dust and rock being hurled into the air as the disheartening crunch of its shattering bones and squelch of the gush of blood echoed through his ears.
Nyx slid on his side, the ground beginning to scuff against his arm as he looked in awe towards the now bloodied corpse of the Terror. Sitting above the beast was Acher - blood nearly completely covering his body as his silver glaive perched itself within the Terror's head.
His head hood high; staring straight into the sky with his golden hair being illuminated by the scorching sun. Through the dust that kicked up, his subtle panting could be visible as his hand swiftly moved to his heart.
He watched in awe as the streaks of blood on Acher's body began to burn away into smoke. It was only soon after that he noticed the same was occurring with himself - the front of his body similarly doused in a thick coat of pure red which began to steam and dissipate, feeling as though he were lit aflame.
He gave a slight wince, slowly standing as he reached for his spear; still currently lodged into the fractured mouth of the beast. Naturally, his eyes paced up towards Acher, appearing as if some form of heroic figure from a children's tale.
"Your arm-!" Acher exclaimed, hurriedly rushing to his side as he lifted the arm Nyx had thrown against the ground.
The skin was nearly completely peeled off - flesh blatantly exposed as it filled with small bits of dirt and rock.
"It's fine, I'm okay," Nyx murmured.
Acher gave a slight shake of his head. "You got injured because of me. I should have waited a moment longer before I attacked."
"No- that's not it. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be dead."
Nyx could spot a glisten in Acher's eye, now realizing as to why he felt a slight hint of hatred towards him.
"-You saved me." Nyx spat out under his breathe, tracing his eyes away as he stroked the side of his own face; only now realizing the existence of a wound he didn't know previously existed.
The warm, slick feeling of running blood seeped onto the tip of his fingers, now feeling the deep gash that struck his cheek.
Even still, his entire body felt numb. To Nyx, it felt as though he didn't even have a body, and that feeling was only growing worse.
The wolf bit it's tooth into his face, and yet Nyx could feel absolutely nothing. It was only then did Nyx gain a sense of clarity.
'After all these injuries...' he pondered to himself, 'shouldn't I be in a lot of pain? If that's the case, then... why can I barely feel anything?'
His eyes fell upon Thane, who to his surprise was standing just before him.
Ever so gently did he tap his fingers against Nyx's shoulder before turning back towards the battleground.
"Don't get too comfortable..." Thane muttered, rushing into a rather large basin just beneath them, sword still drawn and in his grasp.
Instinctively did they both follow behind, peering out into the battlefield below them. Nyx could almost feel himself throw up.
Scattered limbs and shattered weapons spread across the ground below them - all covered by deep puddles of crimson and the sickly scent of iron. The cadets were completely dispersed, split apart by more Terrors of a similar vein to the previous.
The one that stood out, however, was the colossal beak and tendrils of a creature that had yet to even fully emerge from the ground - so large that it could easily tear right through an entire building with one bite.
"We need to help them," Acher stated, twisting the glaive in his hands as he began to rush down towards them.
Nyx did the same, clutching his spear as he bolted towards the others. It was only when his hands began to tremble did it begin to go wrong.
At first, it felt like something was tugging him down. As if something was commanding him to fall.
His body grew more jittery. More responsive. His breath began to fall heavy. His legs began to crumble from underneath him. It didn't last long until his body finally caved.
His face smashed against the ground, spear collapsing to the side as he desperately tried to stand, though only to no avail. His body was completely numb.
'What's happening!?' He thought to himself, body slowly turning a grim black as blood began to leak from his mouth. 'Why can't I move?'
"Nyx-!" Acher shouted, rushing over as he kneeled beside him. "What's wrong! Answer me!"
He couldn't even open his mouth to speak. All he could do was look up towards him, eyes beginning to drift shut.
Acher examined Nyx, trying to find the cause of the problem. He had always had the look of composure — yet for once that look had completely faded away. It was only when he spotted a small, nearly invisible dark thorn piercing straight through Nyx's thigh did he regain it.
Without hesitating he ripped it out, Nyx jolting up and screaming in agony. It's as if all the pain he felt before had only just now caught up to him; back feeling as though it would collapse under his own weight. The abrasion on his arm burning uncontrollably. The gash on his cheek singeing with pain.
Acher swiftly gripped Nyx's hand, pulling him upwards as he held him up. "Can you stand?" He asked.
Nyx was in too much pain to respond, only giving a subtle nod.
"That thorn- it's one of the spikes on the wolf-!" He exclaimed, gritting his teeth as he carefully placed Nyx against a smal rock.
Nyx gave a slight tick, only now regaining the ability to speak — albeit with an immense amount of pain. "It must act as a form of poison. It slowly begins to paralyze and kill the target unless removed."
'I don't remember touching the back of the creature though...' Nyx gripped his spear as he peered towards the wolves. 'regardless, we know how to stop it. The poison stops once the thorn is removed.' He let out a brief smile, 'We can use that to our advantage.'
* * *