'So that's him, huh?' Alchemy hummed inwardly, looking at the incoming wolves from a tree near the center of Alchemy's territory.
As far as she could tell, the leader was a large werewolf-like creature with a fur color between teal and turquoise.
They were at least 3 meters tall, nearly double her height, and just shy of Nera's [Gigant Form]. They wore a loose-fitting black gi, something you'd see straight out of a martial arts movie. Behind him was a small strike force of wolves, each pulling a small amount of something.
Alchemy couldn't identify what they carried, but she wasn't too worried about them compared to their leader.
"Scatter and don't get seen. Only attack if I give you the order. Do you understand me?" Alchemy commanded.
{Mother, please do not do something stupid.} The Wingrazers under her commented.
The Wingrazers, her newest units, were a mix of Dragonflies and Praying mantes with mantis sickles aimed downward and wings as sharp as knives.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
As their description said, they could stack their bleed extremely fast if she had sufficient numbers, but their speed should be useful even with this few.
=
|
| | | | | = | Looking at the information, Alchemy felt a cosmic dread wash over her. 'IT'S NOT LIKE I WANT TOO, SYSTEM!' | "Look, no promises." Alchemy tried to laugh off just how screwed they were. Hopping off the tree, Alchemy let out a massive sigh. She noticed that their highest stat was BTL, an extra stat she didn't recognize from A.O.A, but acknowledging that was at the bottom of her priorities. "Sapphire, listen to me. You should run. This is a suicide march." "But Master Alchemy! Let me help you!" "Did you not listen to anything I said? There's no reason for you to fall for me! Now go! That's an order!" Sapphire, who had remained silent this entire time,, took a few steps back. Her expression showed unmistakable pain. But she knew Alchemy was right. The system also allowed her to identify beings. On top of that, her fight-or-flight response was going crazy. "I-I'll come back with help! I promise!" Sapphire ran back toward the base, tears running down her face. She tried to stop her fervent shaking, barely succeeding. All she could do was stall for as long as possible, and that she did. While her stride looked confident, her pace was that of a snail, wanting to draw out this confrontation for as long as possible. Alchemy heard Gravana's bellowing laughter as the two parties grew closer, making her heart sink even further. "Is that the [Witch] you lot were talking about? Such a small girl; how could she possibly beat the Assassin Bird!?" "It wasn't that difficult. I just ran it into the ground." Alchemy feigned confidence. She could feel it. This monster, the moment she showed any fear, would kill her in a single strike. "Look, the tiny human has a sense of humor. So you're the master of the one who roughed up my boys?" "That's correct. I do apologize for that, however. They picked a fight with those monkeys on my territory, and I couldn't let their battle risk harming my own people." Alchemy gave the most genuine, heartfelt apology she could. She didn't know whether it worked, but it was doing something as Gravana halted his movement. "You're words make sense… It makes too much sense. Is that the logic you used when killing our young?" The Werewolf closed their small gap of a few meters instantly, Alchemy nearly losing sight of him. Alchemy nearly choked on her saliva as she struggled to keep a straight face. 'No. ¡NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO! WHY DO THEY KNOW?! HOW DO THEY KNOW?!' Alchemy screamed inwardly. "I still don't know what you mean by that. Your wolves accused me of the same thing, but I know nothing about it. I gave my theory, saying that Assassin Bird dealt with them. I don't know what you want me to say, leader of the wolves." Gravana let out a huff of bad breath, as he turned and began slowly walking away. It was clear that he had never brushed his teeth. "You know. The funny thing about that is that I know the patterns of the Assassin Eagle. My boys, especially the young ones, would've died at the same time if they ran into that beast. Yet, their [Life Flames], an item which signifies how healthy they are, went out after diminishing significantly." Gravana paused, turning around again to face Alchemy. "They fell after a long and heated battle." 'They had such detailed vital sensors? Could that even be replicated with modern technology?' "I… I'm sorry for your loss, but just because my theory was wrong doesn't mean that you can bla-" "I'm not blaming you, young Witch or Goddess. Whichever you are. While we weep the departure of our young, you look weak. Our young were idiots, unable to determine your real strength, and attacked you. I imagine you fought them in self-defense. That does not mean you get to go unpunished." He finished speaking, clenching his claws. "MY NAME IS Gravana! LEADER OF THE GALE WOLVES! YOU WILL BE PUNISHED FOR HARMING OUR KIN!" | | | | | A sweeping lunge from Gravana immediately followed the swarm of system panels, Alchemy narrowly avoiding it by bending over backward. The attack was quickly followed up with a crushing blow to the ground; once again, Alchemy avoided the attack by a hair's breadth as she rolled out of the way. Breathing heavily, Alchemy stopped her momentum by digging her nails into the ground, making her look like a startled cat. 'I WOULD IF I COULD SYSTEM! HOW DO I RUN FROM THAT WHEN HE'S FASTER THAN NERA IN HER [GIGANT] FORM!?' "You have pretty good reflexes, little girl!" After he spoke, the ground beneath cracked under his force, sending himself flying at Alchemy. Pivoting to the side, she tried to retaliate, but Gravana had already beaten her to it, intercepting her attack and slamming his palm into her stomach. | The impact sent her flying through several trees. {Protect Mother!} The Wingrazers said through the link, flying toward Gravana with great synchronicity. "DON'T INTERRUPT OUR FIGHT, INSECTS!" He roared in response, sending them hurtling through the skies. "N-NO!" Alchemy shouted as she spat out blood. |