With a heartbeat's delay, Lynna turned around, ready with her staff. A large, shadowy figure formed at the edge of the clearing, emerging from the dark woods. It was vaguely reminiscent of a wolf or a dog, but it had a sinister quality that chilled her to the bone.
Before she could react, the shadowy creature lunged at her with a speed that belied its size. She had no time to swing her staff around before the creature made contact. An odd sensation accompanied the heavy shock, followed by a sharp pain in her leg, as her magical defense was overwhelmed.
She stumbled backward, using her staff to stay standing. She saw a bleeding gash in her leg. A wave of fear washed over her. This creature was unlike any monster she had faced before.
Shaking off her initial surprise, Lynna refocused on her foe. The creature was fast, its movements almost a blur in the shadows. She had to always keep her eyes on it, predicting its movements, adjusting her defenses just in time to block its attacks.
Each strike against her magical air coat sent a vibration down her staff, but she could feel the diminished force of the impact. It was getting through, but her defense was doing its job, and her staff was taking the brunt of the creature's slashes and reducing its effectiveness. This gave her a glimmer of hope.
This glimmer dwindled as she realized that the creature was smart, hitting her only to continue its way to the cover of the forest where it almost seems to disappear… She was in dire straits… Her brain worked ferociously to understand the pattern of the monster attacks. It was aiming deadly and true, each time very precisely. I can anticipate it, Now!
The beast lunged at her again. Seeing a split-second opportunity, she swerved to the side, narrowly avoiding the creature's attack. Quickly, she focused herself and called upon raw fire, a bright burst of it, aiming directly at the dark beast. It was more agile than she anticipated, skillfully dodging the flame and fading back into the shadows once again.
"Mother of Steia!" she hissed, frustration flaring within her. The monster was quick, adaptable, unlike any she'd faced before. Lynna knew she needed a different approach. She had planned to burn the creature to hinder it but she realized this creature wasn't going to be defeated by her simple way of hunting. It was too much of an oddity.
When her left leg flinched, a flare of panic rose once again and she decided to use her most deadly spell, the one she devised and had kept secret.
As the creature lunged at her twice again, she began casting her ice spell for a counter-attack. Drawing upon her favored element, the chill of her power ran through her veins, reaching out to the moisture in the air. Tiny droplets began to solidify into sharp, deadly pellets of ice.
She yelled fiercely and sent a barrage of ice pellets towards the fast-approaching creature. The creature attempted to dodge, but the pellets were too fast, too numerous. It let out a pained growl as the pellets tore into its shadowy form, causing it to recoil and retreat.
Battered and visibly weakening, the creature quickly slunk back into the shadows. Lynna didn't let her guard down, her eyes stayed on the spot where the creature had disappeared. Her leg throbbed with pain, but she pushed it aside. She knew she had to remain vigilant until she was sure that the creature wouldn't return.
After several minutes passed, she felt slightly relieved, Lynna knew she had managed to survive this encounter, but the creature left her with more questions than answers. What was it? Did it overpower her defense with brute force? And why did it leave?
As she was about to let herself fall to the ground, an icy chill ran down her spine. Maybe she had let her guard down too early, she thought. In sheer panic, she began casting ice, blindly firing deadly pellets all around her. Each second felt like an eternity, as her spell shot out in every direction. She didn't even think about the destruction she was causing to nature, or if there were any innocent bystanders.
The sound of her ice magic connecting echoed through the forest — it was right behind her. Lynna whirled around, expecting to see the shadowy creature writhing in pain or retreating further. But there was nothing there, just a soft shadow cloud dissipating quickly.