In the deadly expanse of a crimson forest, a disheveled and bloodied figure could be seen battling furiously with a fierce black demonic wolf.

Blood and dirt covered their face revealing only their pair of golden eyes,that flickered with grim determination and anger.

Alexia's legs trembled beneath her, each step a labored effort. Her vision blurred, and her stomach growled with a hunger that seemed to gnaw at her very bones. The weight of her exhaustion threatened to crush her, her arms heavy as lead,as she raised her sword to deflect the wolf's snapping jaws. This battle had been going on for two days, and this wolf was still as persistent as ever.

She smiled in gratitude thankful for the unparalleled natural defense she gained from her powers; otherwise, she would be a mutilated corpse by now. Though she sustained some injuries here and there, in exchange she had weakened the menace.

And on the brighter side of things, the whole situation gave her many reasons to be angry at the people who were responsible for her current predicament and that anger could, in turn, motivate her to fight harder. Well, it was either that or becoming a midnight snack; of course, she was choosing the former.

With renewed vigor and subdued frustration, Alexia's sword, infused with red flickering flames, danced in the darkness, aiming at the eyes of the demon, missing for what felt like the hundredth time.

The demon wolf would always retreat backwards, saving itself from being impaled on her sharp blade while simultaneously using its dagger-like claws to swipe at her.

She was fed up with its forward and back movements when all she wanted was to end it all. Nimbly dodging to the side, she prevented the razor-sharp claw from dealing any serious damage.

Suddenly halting its attack, it once again retreated, obviously to gather itself. The demon was heavily panting; it seemed that she wasn't the only one who was feeling tired.

It maintained a certain distance while slowly encircling her; it's amber eyes narrowed revealing calculation, frustration,and subtle madness. Ever alert, her eyes followed it's every movement ,her grip on the hilt of her sword tightened preparing for it's next move.

Watching the dark aura fiercely surging around the demon wolf she moved into a defensive stance. Without warning, the beast's jaws opened wide as it lunged at her. Already prepared, she sidestepped,leaning backwards to avoid a slash to her face.

Midway, it's attack changed course hitting her squarely in the stomach as she raised her sword to retaliate leaving a deep gash on its neck. It backed away quickly, saving it's head. Watching dark blood ooze from the wound, a sense of thril and satisfaction ran through her.

She licked her parched lips, sliding across the slippery surface of the ground, the smell of blood stimulating her senses. While it was still reeling, she struck it's head with her flaming sword.

Her sword once again missed, so in the last second, she shifted ,slicing off a paw.

The demon released an anguished howl as the frustration and madness in it's malevolent eyes became vivid. She remained nonchalant, she knew that this was the effect she had on most of her enemies. This one was only a addition to her growing collection.

She smirked weakly, every muscle in her body screaming out in exhaustion. Her body tremble slightly, biting her lips she willed herself to stop, the battle wasn't over yet. She focused on the enemy in front of her, this wasn't time to be exhausted.

Few seconds later, she and the demon once again clashed entangled in a fight of death. The wolf was having a hard time fighting her but it was still standing it's ground, driven by a hunger for revenge.

' Like I'd let you.'

Her legs stumbled giving the vengeful wolf an opportunity to bite her on the shoulder. It seemed as if the vile thing could predict her actions now that it's movements had become impaired. She sneered,panting heavily. It wasn't the only one with tricks in it's arsenal.

Without delay, it's claws swiped at her stomach shredding her tattered armor. She flinched and disengaged, sliding backwards. It watched her warily preparing itself for a counterattack.

Out of the blue, she tossed her sword in front of it, leaving herself unarmed with nothing other than her body. The beast paused trying to decipher her sudden move, her lips curved at it's confusion.

For a few moments they both engaged in a tense staring contest, she was beginning to wonder if it was actually going to do anything. And then it moved, stepping over the sword, it's face twisted in a grin as it closed the distance between them in one swift leap.

She braced herself for the impact when it leaped unto her, sending them both to the ground. Now on top of her, it's maw moved closer to her face, it's front paw holding her down.

It relaxed, already sure of victory. Taking advantage of it's confidence,she gathered intense fire in her palm,violently thrusting it into the demon's chest.

It's face contorted in shock and pain as it howled loudly, the darkness turning erratic as it danced around them both.

' Never underestimate the enemy.'

Unfortunately she had learned that lesson the hard way. Her face brightened in triumph while retracting her hand which held a still heart as she watched the beast's body grow stiff. Before abruptly, collapsing motionless on top of her.

Speechless, she stared at the heavy body of the demon, her left eye twitching furiously. What kind of situation was this? She was lying down in a pool of blood while the body on top of her soaked her in it's own.

Was she experiencing a literal blood bath ?

Groaning, she pushed the body away, her aching arms cried out more but she just gritted her teeth. Finally she freeing herself, she took some minutes to just lie there as she breathed heavily enjoying the silence.

In between the breaths, she coughed, letting out some blood that slid down the corner of her lips. Everything ached so much that even breathing was a painful chore.

Straining herself, she turned her head sideways searching for a luxstone, one always appeared when a creature or beast was slain. Noticing something shiny, her eyes lit up, weakly stretching her hand forward, she soon felt the familiar warmth and smoothness under her palm.

As she absorbed the essence in the luxstone, she sighed in relief as warmth went round her body healing minor injuries and relieving some of her fatigue. The essence was slightly denser than she expected.

' It must have been an apex beast then.'

That would explain why it was so had to kill.

After she had absorbed all the essence from the luxstone, it instantly crumpled into dust. She tried to stand up, her body still ached but not as much as before.

Getting up to her feet unsteadily,she decided to think only happy thoughts ignoring how sticky and heavy her body felt.

***

Alexia had been walking for quite some time now, at some point she even began wondering if she had gotten lost again. Spending another night outside didn't sound appealing to her.

Almost at the verge of losing hope, she heard the familiar sounds of laughter and chatter. Feeling expectant, Alexia increased her pace even at the expense of experiencing the familar excruciating pain.

Hearing their laughter, she breathed out in relief, at least she wasn't lost or stranded for the night but she also felt indignant and slightly upset. She had been gone for such a long time yet it seemed like nobody noticed her absence.

If she was her normal self she would have made sure they vividly noticed her presence but right now she just wanted to either sleep or eat. Testing the limits of her endurance didn't sound like a good idea.

She stepped into the place that was as guarded as a military base when it was only a simple campsite. Even though they had cleared most of the beasts in the outer perimeter in the past five months, there was still a risk of being attacked if they weren't vigilant.

She passed the check point, releasing her aura so the guards wouldn't stop her. She frowned at the odd looks they threw her way. She could still feel them staring at her back as she walked away. She shrugged off their reaction, her tired mind not ready to think much at the moment.

She made a straight beeline for her tent, determined to ignore everyone and anyone standing in the way between herself and her temptingly soft bed. Her frustration was on the verge of explosion.

More and more odd gazes focused themselves on her accompanied by hushed whispers.

' Is there something wrong with the way I look?'

She continued walking, each step difficult as the accumulated blood made her feel heavier with an additional discomfort. Especially in this warm weather, that made some melt and move down her body.

On her way here she had seriously considered taking a shower but she had decided to brush it off until tomorrow. It was already a miracle that she was still standing, she didn't know if she would make it to the river in this condition.

On the way to her tent, her body kept being weighed down by fatigue,painfully reminding her about how far her tent was from the entrance. She knew that it was for her protection but at times like this, she wanted to break the head of whoever had thought of it.

After some more agonizing minutes of walking, her tent was finally in sight, she could almost feel tears in her eyes at the sight of it.

She was so focused on the tent that she didn't notice or selectively decided to ignore the person standing at the entrance of her tent. It wasn't until the person stepped in front of her blocking her way that she decided to pay him attention.

Taking notice of the familiar sandy blonde hair and sky blue eyes, she forcefully swallowed the string of curses that were already at the tip of her tongue.

It was Evan, the healer and unofficial cook of the campsite. He was also the only one she was close with here so he kind of had a place in her heart. Masking her irritation, she put on a smile though she wasn't sure if he could see it through all the blood and dirt.

" Hi Evan, I'm pretty tired now. Can we talk tomorrow? I need to sleep before I snap."

As she spoke, she gestured with her hands trying to convey the severity of the matter to him. He just stared at her a bit before shoving something in her hand, she could make out a faint blush on his ivory skin as he spoke;

" I'm... I'm sorry for disturbing you. I just thought you mind need this. I'll be leaving now, enjoy your night."

Before she could respond or even ask him what it was, he fled, she could have sworn he was here just a second ago. She looked down at herself.

' Am I really that scary right now?'