With a short growl, Tusk looked towards him and kept silent. Then he tilted his head down at the elves.
"Don't worry, they're good friends of mine. And sorry for waltzing into your home like this. We need to capture a Black Meelo," James muttered after dropping his arms.
Some elves staggered back as Tusk wouldn't take his eyes off them for almost a minute. He then hummed, a sound that buzzed their skeletal structure.
He raised his head and faced James. He raised both hands and made some peculiar gestures, to which James kept nodding in complete understanding.
"He can communicate using hand signs?" Powder muttered in disbelief, her neck strained as she tried to see Tusk's head.
"And I thought James was bluffing when he told me," Hazel shook her head.
"Let's just hope they come to a mutual understanding," Alaric said with folded arms. He knew they wouldn't survive if Tusk went AWOL on them. That was why he brought James. If they all died here, who would protect the district from the Black Meelo?
Since the Elven district had always been so peaceful, there had been no need to create a Sentry post there.
"Oh, you saw it?" James asked with dilated eyes. "Where is it now?"
Tusk responded with a short hand sign, whilst nudging his chin in a particular direction.
"Ah, thanks, buddy," James said in smiles, throwing up a thumbs up.
Tusk simply groaned as he took one last glance at the elves below. Then he turned and slowly walked away, gradually emaciating in size.
Everyone heaved a heavy sigh of relief as the beast got out of sight.
James jumped off the tree and landed before Alaric and Achlys.
"Will it return?" Alaric asked curtly.
James shook his head as he parted his lips to respond, but Achlys was faster.
"No," she answered softly with closed eyes.
'They have a powerful witch with them. Seriously, what do they need me for?' James complained internally, resisting the urge to roll his eyes. Though Tusk was physically more powerful than all the squads combined, Achlys could use a mental hex to put the beast to sleep or something.
"What she said," he answered, before stepping aside and pointing towards the east. "He also gave me directions to where he had encountered the Black Meelo before reaching us. We should move faster and catch up with it."
Alaric hummed in contemplation. He turned to his wife, who nodded in agreement.
"He's right. Though it's quite faint, I can sense an abysmal aura coming from that direction," she said, her eyes glowing crimson red.
The fact that Alaric didn't trust him enough frustrated James. He simply sighed and started walking towards the east on his own. They all followed soon after.
Hazel soon caught up to him and patted his shoulder, "My father only wanted to make sure that we weren't being tricked. He trusts you. It's Tusk he doesn't trust."
"Understandable," James shrugged, shoving the topic aside. He wasn't one to linger on stuffs like this for too long. He saw getting angry or frustrated at someone as unnecessary mental stress.
But he also understood where Alaric was coming from. He also felt the same way about Tusk when they first met. More so, a lot of elves were killed last year by a Black Meelo's attack. It showed up earlier than expected. Alaric had always been on guard since then.
"Quick question though," Hazel said. "Why didn't Tusk engage the Black Meelo when he saw it? Or doesn't he consider it a threat?"
"Well, let's just say Tusk likes to mind his business," James answered with a wry smile. He felt nostalgic about the time he first encountered Tusk. The latter had ignored his presence and continued his carving, but James was foolish enough to throw a fist at it. In his defence, he found Tusk to be a worthy opponent to test his strength, but it was still a foolish move either way.
"He wouldn't pay attention to you if you don't provoke him. I'm not sure if the Black Meelo has gained enough sentience, but it could probably tell that Tusk would crush it if it did anything silly," James added.
They kept walking for metres, with each squad positioned strategically, forming this arrow-shaped line.
The forest was oddly silent with no creature in sight. The clouds were gradually gathering, casting a dark shadow on the entire forest.
James quickly halted as he saw a Meelo approaching them. Like every normal Meelo, the 3 feet tall creature was white and without any blemish. It was like a blob with arms and legs, but no fingers or toes. Its round eyes were black, and it had a smile on its face.
"It's funny how something so adorable can become a nightmare," Hazel shook her head in melancholy.
She crouched and put her hands out as it came closer.
However, the cute smile on its face depreciated with every step it took. It dissolved into a sad, painful expression.
Achlys froze as her witchy premonition kicked in. Her eyes turned crimson red.
The Meelo stood still a metre away from James, and the crouched Hazel. They had their brows creased.
The Meelo, like a deflated balloon, suddenly began to shrink till only a dry husk was left.
It was at that very moment that a streak of lightening flashed across the gathered clouds, which was immediately accosted by a deafening sound of thunder.
Standing behind the Meelo all along was the black one, its spiralling eyes so dark, its entire body looked grey.
In its fingerless hand was a flickering white ball. It was the life force of the other Meelo.
It raised the ball to its mouth and swallowed it whole. Its body shimmered a dull white glow in the process.
But even before It had swallowed the ball, Alaric had unsheathed his broad sword and moved. In a blur, he appeared over the Meelo and swung his sword down with burgeoned muscles.
A resonating boom followed and the aftershock rid every tree of its leaves in a five metre radius. Some had deep cracks in their barks.
Achlys had erected a protective dome just at the nick of time, providing everyone shelter.
By the time the dust cleared, everyone's faces went grim. The sight before them was deemed... Impossible.
The Meelo had caught the edge of the broad sword in its hands and held it above its head, completely unscathed.
Alaric was flabbergasted but he couldn't have expected less from a creature of utter destruction. He burgeoned his muscles once more and pulled his sword back.
However, the Meelo wouldn't let go and was unmoved by Alaric's forceful thud.
A malicious smile crept up on the little creature's face as its black spiralling eyes whirled even faster.
Achlys gasped as a deathly premonition struck her.