"This is hopeless!"
Raphael trudged deeper into the Dark Swamp Gorge. His frustration was growing with every squelching step. He had encountered sentient trees, sure, even a few grumpy ones that mumbled insults about his clumsy hooves, but none were of the 'Almeez' species.
"Zhu Jian! You useless piece of bamboo! Where is it?!"
He cursed his rotten luck. Just when he was about to unleash his 'Gold Press Blizzard' to vent his frustration and crush those trees around him into splinter, a distant scream pierced the murky silence.
"KYAAAH! FENRISS!"
Raphael's horns twitched. He was listening intently, "Hmm, that scream… it sounds… Human?"
His curiosity was piqued.
"Shadow Teleportation!"
In a heartbeat, he was gone.
POOF!
He reappeared behind a cluster of trees with razor-sharp leaves that dripped a viscous sap with a bioluminescent glow. This added to that unsettling nature of this space as Raphael observed the clearing in front of him with a hint of dread.
Before him, lay a scene of carnage! It reeked of death and those pungent metallic scent he was getting accustomed to these past few days.
A squadron of Blood Knights from the Bloodthorne Empire were strewn across the swamp. Their silver-gold armors were scattered, as were their weapons, all 326 of them were motionless! Their once-proud forms slowly being consumed by the murky water, adding a tinge of red to the black ooze, as if those trees surrounding them craved more, more blood!
"So many… dead… they're all…" He shook his head. These Blood Knights, even with their potent techniques and fancy weapons were nothing compared to a Calamity!
It was a stark reminder of Yama Yaguai's true nature, those unforgiving rules and those beasts that would stop at nothing to devour your soul. But what truly shocked him wasn't those decomposing bodies, but the three human figures standing back-to-back in the center of this gruesome scene.
They were desperately fending off a wave of buzzing shadows. It caused Raphael to pause his contemplation on those 'what ifs', or 'what could have happened?'
"There's no mistaking it. They are from the Bloodthorne Empire. But… why are they here?" He shifted closer, staying concealed while he observed the group.
Two adults - a male and female, were clad in golden knight armor, looking exhausted while wielding blood-red swords.
The smaller figure who was a little girl with a face covered in tearful smears and blood splatters had caught his eye. She was clad in an armor crafted from glistening platinum.
It wasn't practical armor like those warriors beside her. This armor was more elegant. It had a stylish floral design that contrasted with the blood dripping from its edges as her delicate hands held a silver shield in front of her, bravely shielding the others.
"TWO Golden Blood Knights! And she's… a Platinum Blood Saint?! I've never encountered one this small before."
This situation was indeed a puzzle, and the pieces were now falling into place, when a large swarm of flying creatures descended!
They were coming in waves, and their buzzing had a frantic, almost desperate quality to it.
Their bodies were small, dark, with a horrifyingly bloated belly. They resembled mosquitos from the distant realms. And their thin, elongated proboscises were unnaturally long and serrated. Those blades glistened menacingly.
"Such ugly little things!" Raphael cringed. They had an unsettling aura.
Zhu Jian materialized, revealing its knowledge.
…
Blood Sucking Vampsquitoes: These creatures feed not only on blood, but also on life essence. They attack in massive swarms, their serrated proboscis can pierced through even the toughest armor to suck their prey dry. And those victims rarely survive, those that do wish for death instead. They also attack with supersonic wings and acidic vomit!
Each Vampsquitoe's strength is measured by the colors their bellies pulsate:
Red – Early Nightmare Stage
Orange – Buddhist Pill Stage
Yellow – Great Ordeal Stage
Green - Saint Ruler Stage
Blue – Calamity Stage
Indigo – Nightmare Calamity Stage
Violet – Emperor Calamity Stage
…
"Whoa! Those ones attacking the knights… their yellow bellies are pulsating so bright…!" Raphael scanned the swarm with widened eyes. It was true, he hadn't encountered those tiers before, such high-level pests! Their hunger was overwhelming.
"Great Ordeal Stage 8th layer… at the minimum?! Their leader… I can't even see it!"
He could tell those knights were already struggling, even the Platinum Blood Saint was losing ground, she was about to be overwhelmed!
It was a good thing he'd arrived in time.
"This is a show I cannot miss." He rubbed his hooves together, eager to see how this played out, for perhaps it would help refine those battle strategies that he so desperately needed in this realm.
"BZZZZZZZZZ! Fresh blood mates!"
"We're gonna suck them dry, YES! Suck, Suck, SUCK!"
"And their essence! We'll devour it. Those human bastards taste like iron and salt, hahaha!"
The Blood Sucking Vampsquitoe horde buzzed excitedly around their trapped prey. They flitted through the air with their bloated abdomens glowing yellow and green. This was a terrifying sight.
"MOVE! I want a piece of that juicy leg!"
"That's mine! I SAW IT FIRST! YOU HEAR ME?!"
"SO WHAT! We'll eat them and shit out their black stain later!"
The Vampsquitoes began pushing and shoving, eager for a taste. Only one among them remained calm.
Its belly pulsed with an ominous indigo light and its wings emitted a soft hum as it hover effortlessly above the chaos. It regarded the panicked humans with predatory anticipation.
"CALM YOURSELVES, you pathetic, gluttonous fools! There will be enough to sate even the hungriest among us, so WAIT! Until I am satisfied! These humans' essences belong to me!" Its chilling voice silenced the frantic swarm instantly.
Discipline was key, for this was their swarm leader.
...
"Huff! Huff! Those bastards!"
The adult female knight, tried to catch her breath, but the blood loss was taking a toll, making her movements clumsy and her defenses weaker. She'd already activated two Blood Essence pills earlier, but the Vampsquitoes were relentless.
The Platinum Blood Saint glanced back and gasped. "Fenriss! Your leg!"
A large chunk of flesh was missing from her ankle. Blood oozed, leaving a trail on the swamp floor that stained the murky waters a dreadful crimson.
"Sanguine Regeneration!"
Without hesitation, she conjured a pulsating, ruby orb in her hand. It floated towards Fenriss' leg with those runes on its surface dancing a healing melody. Within seconds, the wound was sealed, the flesh regenerated with remarkable speed!
"Thank you, senior Lorial." Fenriss' voice had a hint of relief.
"Don't thank me just yet. We are still in very DEEP water." Lorial observed the buzzing swarm with an intensity that had even their leader retreating a few centimeters, for it seemed her gaze had a power, a quality that defied their hunger. She focused upon that arrogant indigo bellied insect.
"Nightmare Calamity, its essence is at mid Nightmare Calamity level. This… This is not a good situation."
"What? Nightmare Calamity?!" The man exclaimed. "How can a mere insect be so powerful?! Are you certain… Senior?"
"Don't question my abilities, you fool!" Lorial snapped back. Her glare was enough to silence the doubts, but she didn't bother to waste her breath explaining those differences between beast cultivation and humans'.
"Now, Handerson, you and Fenriss, you'll keep the weaker ones busy while I deal with their leader."
"Senior, are you certain? Perhaps a coordinated strike…? Three against one…" Handerson wasn't a coward but neither was he a fool, that power emanating from their enemy… it gave him goosebumps.
"Don't worry about me. Just do as I say!" Lorial's confidence had the other two knights obeying, albeit reluctantly.
With a swiftness that mirrored a master assassin, Lorial drew a long, slender dagger with a diamond hilt. It glowed with potent blood energies, and around her, blood pulsed brightly as she began a countdown.
"Three… Two… Prepare yourselves…"
But before the countdown reached 'One', that indigo-bellied Vampsquitoe leader screeched,
"Capture those humans! I want to enjoy my late night snack! Now!"
The swamp erupted into a orchestra of buzzing wings, clicking mandibles, and screams.
They attacked!
"Here they come!"
"Incinery Lamia!"
Fenriss reacted instinctively. She unleashed her Bloodline Art. From the blood oozing from her leg, a blazing crimson light exploded outwards, coalescing into a terrifying blood-goat, its horns wreathed in the hottest flames that devoured anything it touched. Its eyes glowed with her will!
"Die, you pests!"
"HISSSS!"
Those flames from Incinery Lamia swept through the Vampsquitoes, incinerating dozens in a heartbeat!
"Our wings… they ignite too easily! This is unfair!" They screamed as they tried to back away from that searing heat.
"Get back in there fight, you cowards!"
At their leader's behest, the swarm began launching fierce attack after attack.
However, Incinery Lamia also served as a potent barrier. It danced around Fenriss, protecting her from those flanking attackers with its horns aimed at their pathetic bellies.
Such a spectacle!
On the other side…
"Crimson Tempest! Blood Puppetry!"
Handerson unleashed his own Bloodline Arts with a roar as a wave of fear washed over those less intelligent insects who now found their wings heavier and escape less alluring.
The air around him warped, his Blood Essence swirled violently. A crimson whirlwind materialized with razor-sharp edges, slashing, dicing those unfortunate enough to be caught within its grasp as their essence dimmed, then their bodies turned towards each other as his command came ringing.
"KILL YOUR BRETHREN! And those fools who resist. Disappear!"
The Blood Sucking Vampsquitoes who were affected by his Blood Puppetry, began attacking their comrades in a frenzy of confusion! Mandibles clashed, wings were torn, and blood splattered across the clearing.
"This is madness! W-what is happening?" They cried.
While the swarm was busy focusing on Fenriss and Handerson, Lorial acted.
"Hmph, it's my turn!"
Unlike her comrades, Lorial didn't panic, not really. Instead, she stood firm amidst the swarming horde. Her platinum armor glistened and reflected her cold gaze, and her confidence was truly a wonder to behold, or perhaps, that arrogance she exuded masked her fear of those deadly things.
And with a flick of her wrists, she unleashed her abilities in a horrifying dance of blood!
"Blood Mirage!"
She vanish, then her form reappeared in dozens of places all at once as blood flowed from her very core and solidify into deceptive doppelgangers.
"DIE! DIE! DIE!"
BOOM!
They began attacking those unfortunate blood-sucking creatures that hovered around her, laughing as those pathetic insects found their jaws snapping at nothing, their wings being torn by phantom energies, before her true form reappear behind her blood mirages that exploded and incinerated even more.
"Hemorrhage Burst!"
Her blood then surged outward, radiating potent essence that slammed into the confused Vampsquitoes, throwing them back into their comrades like an invisible bulldoze.
And then came her favorite finale.
"Crimson Chains!"
She extend both hands towards her target. And from her Blood Essence, she summoned crimson chains, thick and imposing with thorns of black metals she so loved.
"No escape!"
Her chains then lash forth and ensnared that indigo-glowing leader, pinning it in place.
She dragged it closer.
And delivered a cruel justice, worthy of a queen's servant, and she didn't even flinch.
"My, my! Such boldness, but so stupid. A mere insect! Dares to challenge a Bloodthorne?!"
Those chains, however, weren't meant to simply restrain. No.
Those barbs now started piercing into its chitinous flesh. It screamed with such piercing, high-pitched agony. But there was no reprieve! No mercy from this angel of death!