The situation was getting worse by the minute as the Wymrkin were relentless in their pursuit. They seemed to be devouring anything they could get their hands on, destroying the myth that Wyrmkin were picky eaters indefinitely. They would eat anything they got their hands on, and Saria knew this, which was why she was currently headed toward a possible target for this hunger. Though Saria herself was one as well.
"I know i said to do this, but now i'm getting cold feet!"
"You say that now?!"
Saria who'd headed to the edge of the Wind-Wader had decided it'd be the best course of action as it put her in the best position to help Fia. The only problem with such a plan was that it put her in the direct line of fire of the Wyrmkin, who slithered just underneath the Wader itself. On the opposite side of where Saria stood, about a Wader's length away was Fia who was being held by Jericho, the leader of the Windscorn Clan.
"Damn it! Stop moving woman! You're my insurance in case one of these things gets too close!"
"Let go of me you bastard! You hear?! Let me go now!"
While Saria wanted to save her, Fia herself didn't really fit the "damsel in distress" stereotype Saria had come to know. Not only was she making it increasingly hard for Jericho to keep a hold on her, but she was also taking away the clan's attention from the Wyrmkin and putting it on her. While this certainly would help Saria in infiltrating their Wind-Wader, it wouldn't help her all that much with her main goal, which was retrieving Fia. She always makes it difficult.
"Keep it steady!"
Saria yelled that half as an actual command and half as empty words to keep herself calm. I suppose there was a part of her that also wanted to fulfill a longtime wish of hers, to say that while riding a boat-like contraption, but it was mostly due to the relentless nature of her nerves. Responding those half-hearted words with a full-heart, Jiya and the other girls increased their speed while steadying the Wind-Wader as they came closer to Fia and Jericho.
"Oh crap!"
But that advance had been cut short as those giant pincers swiftly came into Saria's view and listening to the instincts that had screamed at her to move, jumped forward to avoid their attempted murder. The Wyrmkin had burrowed itself underground and used the resulting speed it'd gained to jump over the Wind-Waders, in an attempt to trap its meal in its jaws or at least take its life with its pincers which never stopped looking for food, much like Dolphins or Whales do in the wild. And while Saria herself had managed to avoid this death, there were plenty who had not, their bodies sliding down the length of the pincer and coating it in a layer of bright red. Some didn't make it as "bodies" but as parts of something that would've made up the word but failed to do so as they'd missed the fundamental pieces to be dubbed a "body."
"Saria! Are you okay?!" yelled Jiya, her voice sounded far away,and Saria deemed it appropriate not to look back in search of the source of her yell.
"I'm fine! Just keep it close, while I get Fia!"
In truth, had Saria been able to thank the Wymrkin at that moment she may have, though she realized it was only because she was alive that she could have such a thought. Such was the privilege of the living, which is why she wanted to thank the Wyrmkin for their last hunger-induced move, which had severely dwindled the number of attackers that had previously been on the Wind-Wader down, leaving only Jericho. Significantly increasing the chances Saria had of achieving her plan and adding stock to the girl's war-potential.
"—Huh!?"
It had only been a split second, but that was all her body needed to feel the slight shift in the world around her—or in this girl's case, Mana. While it was true that there was always going to be a delay in how fast one would detect a person's Mana, they had to be within the Mana user's vicinity and that was different depending on how proficient you were in Mana. While Saria was proficient in the handling of Mana—especially degrading it, constantly expanding your aura was something any Mana user would struggle with. It had been due to this, that Saria's aura hadn't expanded all that far—maybe four or five feet away from her, which was still close enough for someone to deal lethal damage to her. While this was true, it didn't take away the usefulness of the skill one bit, in fact it was due to this skill that, just then, Saria hadn't gotten her head sliced off by Jericho,who's sword had no hesitation in it whatsoever.
Had it made contact with her neck, there was no doubt the wielder of that blade would have followed through as normally as he would have brushed his teeth. The cold chill of what would have been such a casual death fell over Saria as her neck had been reminded of the fate it'd almost endured, as the wind of the strike was still tiptoeing on the skin of her neck.
"Stay back! I'll kill you and this witch right now! So, get your ass off this Wader, right now!"
"Damn it runt, do what he says! There's no use in us both dying!So, get your ass back over there now!
Jericho wildly aimed the sword at Saria with a stressed expression on his face. It had been clear to Saria, the attack that had been thrown at her, hadn't been throw with an intent to kill as she'd read it. It had simply been thrown out of desperation by the man that was wielding the sword. And had that attack managed to connect with Saria, she simply would have become a necessary casualty for the man to survive. That was the difference she saw in his eyes when she compared them to Seralyn, he was simply a man driven insane, which caused him to view death as a necessity. While Seralyn's eyes had no care if death was a necessity or not, they would simply kill without thinking of that.
"Listen to what she says! If you don't wanna end up as my meat shield the same way she is then you'd better listen to your master and scram you whore! Got it?!"
It was there, that Saria, instead of listening to the man's ramblings, was taken to the scene that was happening behind the man at the moment. She'd taken extra care to hide her facial expressions as to not let the man catch onto what she was looking at, though truth be told, his eyes glowed with a manic glint that made him blind to all but survival. Which ironically made him blind to the very thing that would ensure he wouldn't. Behind him was a Wyrmkin burrowing into the sand, having observed what the creature had done with this move previously, Saria knew what was coming. And once again prepared to thank the Wyrmkin for a second time, if she'd lived through the plan,she was formulating in her head that is.
I'd love to but….
The Wyrmkin made its move.
"This time i've gotta see it through!"
While Saria had poor compatibility with the act of using Mana offensively, she was no slouch in Mana control at all. Specifically using Mana to enhance one's physical capabilities or using it in short burst to achieve something normally unattainable for her. She'd pushed the Mana in her body towards her feet and allowed it to not only converge their, but burstoutward in a small flash of light. Stepping forward at the same time as this, allowed her to achieve a feat that'd increased her speed so much so that she closed the gap between her and Fia in an instant. It was at that moment that Saria knew she'd needed to apply the technicalities of Offensive Mana, something she'd previously struggled with due to her unwillingness to harm others.
"Ha!"
But this had been a different story. While Saria had resigned herself not to harm others, it was an entirely different story when someone was going to harm a person she'd cared about. Her fist was shrouded in Mana as it made its way towards the face of Jericho, her other arm simultaneously removing the grip he'd had on Fia. Saria wasn't sure if she'd performed the act of using Offensive Mana perfectly, until reality confirmed her guesswhen Jericho's body had gone flying back so far, that it couldn'thave been from the girl's natural power. It was at that moment that Saria's plan had been vindicated as well, as the Wyrmkin came barreling towards them at an alarming rate.
"Runt! What are you! —"
"There's no time!"
Saria pointed to the Wyrmkin coming at them and Fia immediately shut her mouth and jumped into Saria's arms which had been held out as if welcoming her. Perhaps it was this gesture that'd slowed part two of Saria's plan which resulted in her leaving just a second later than she'd intended to. She pressed off the tip of her toes and sprung herself backwards, also diverting some Mana to her arms so that she could better hold onto Fia. They jetted backwards, with this part of Saria's plan trusting that Jiya had kept the Wind-Wader close enough for her to fall back on, so that she wouldn't become food for the predators that desperately wanted a taste of her flesh. Jericho went flying back towards the Wyrmkin and let out a scream of terror that Saria barely heard before it was cut short at a frighteningly fast pace.
That was when Saria learned of the importance of a second, as the Wymrkin's mouth was far closer than she'd anticipated it to be in her own head. It was at that moment that she'd realized it'd gotten so close in fact, that Fia was still susceptible to the attack that'd already snatched Jericho into his demise.
"Gaah!!"
In a moment of trust, she'd diverted all the Mana she'd had into her arms, heaving Fia's body over her shoulder and throwing it as hard as she could. She didn't know what the fruits of such a choice had been, but didn't have time to check them as her eyes fell on the creature in front of her. It was the first time she'd seen a Wyrmkin this close before and the only thing she could focus on was its eyes. They were unlike the eyes she'd seen in Jericho, and even the eyes she'd seen in Seralyn. They were the eyes of a beast in the truest sense of the word, only focused on getting what they wanted at the moment—they didn't think of the kill—or even the hunt. Just what they were trying to make theirs in the moment.
It was due to that aspect of their eyes, that Saria had started to follow them until she felt something slam into her foot. It felt hot, and it was only getting hotter and hotter by the moment. It was accompanied by this wetness and a gushy sound that had barely made its way to Saria's ears when all those feelings ceased to exist. Leaving one recognizable feeling. Pain.
"AAAAH!"
Saria's foot slid down the pincer, making its way to the body as something long and coated in saliva—the beast tongue, wrapped around it and pulled it into's its mouth with no hesitation. And then those eyes—with no wasted movement—turned their focus to the rest of Saria's body with the goal of consuming that as well.
"Guh!"
Her mind body was on fire, but she'd been given no time to wallow in that fact as a pair of hands came wrapping around her waist and pulled her backwards away from the Wyrmkin. She'd wanted to be happy her gamble had paid off and would have been but the sight of her foot—which she knew wasn't there but refused to look at—had made it so that wouldn't be possible. The back of her had came crashing into contact with wood from the Wind-Wader and she could feel her skin scrape against the floor from the sheer speed at which she was going when she'd been pulled onto the contraption.
"Argh!! my foot! my foot!"
"Klessi, heal her NOW!"
She wasted no time in doing so, as her hand rested in front of the place where Saria's foot should have been. It was a quick reaction all things considered, and Saria could say that quick reaction had helped her immensely as the pain from her foot has steadily gone down. That wasn't to say that it had gone away completely, nor had Saria expected it to, but Mana truly was amazing. It was one of the many times that Saria was thankful for the fact that she'd been dropped into this world and not stayed and lived out a life of poverty in New Mexico. Of course she lived a life of poverty here as well, but it was a good life, but that wasn't the part Saria was referring to. Mana, Mana had been one of the most wonderful things to happen to her, and one hundred percent was the reason Saria had not been dead already.
"Damn it Runt! What were you thinking?! You could've got yourself killed! I didn't think you were this much of an idiot!"
"Ugh—i save your life, and that's the thanks i get?"
"Don't talk," said Jiya not looking back. "We're almost to the tower! We can regroup there!"
Saria didn't argue, she had lost a foot after all. Klessi gave her a couple of smiles, and reassuring nods as she healed her. They really did help, and kept Saria from looking at her foot (which she knew wasn't there) and making a big deal out of it. Truthfully, the only reason she'd been able to do this hadn't been due to her mental fortitude or anything, it was simply due to the fact there was no pain where her foot had been anymore. Klessi had ripped off a bit of her robes and wrapped it around what was now a stump, that stopped most of the bleeding, but it was more of a precaution for Saria than anything else. As the healing she'dgotten had immediately turned the girl's foot into a stump. Not much was said after this, as they simply rode in silence as the gravity of the situation rendered them speechless. the other girls poured their Mana into the Wader's and they successfullyoutsped the Wyrmkin, who were persistent about their meal.
Eventually though, they escaped, with the rest of the people they were with either being dead or eaten before they had the pleasure of dying any other way. They simply headed for the tower, not saying a word as they couldn't bring themselves to do so.
***
The silence that plagued the sand dunes was unbearable, at least in Saria's opinion. It was a far cry better than the pain and death she'd had to hear and, unfortunately, see. And although she was grateful for the lack of death that was around her at the moment, she couldn't help but wonder if what'd transpired was real. It was when these thoughts started to surface that Saria looked at her foot, which served as a permanent reminder that the events hadn't been a trick her mind played on her.
"You three put up the Wind-Wader, Klessi and i will take the runt inside."
Fia had grabbed Saria before anyone else could object to her orders, and since Klessi had already been healing her, she grabbed the girl and helped her stand up once again. It was truly troublesome trying to learn how to hop on one foot. It wasn't like Saria didn't have experience with it at all, as it was something she used to do for fun in her old world. Though doing it for fun and having to do it had very different effects on a person's psyche. For fun, you could always fall back onto your second foot and continue walking like normal, though had Saria decided to do that she'd quite literally have busted her ass.
"I'm sorry, i didn't mean to be a burden."
"Oh, shut it runt. You saved my life, the least i could do is repay you, i suppose."
"Yeah," said Klessi with a smile. "We've got your back, so don't worry about anything!"
Saria didn't know how to respond for a second and simply smiled giving them a weak "Thank you guys" as they continued helping her towards the tower. Fia had told her not to expect to skip out on work just for her foot, but Saria could tell she wasn'tthat heartless. And it didn't seem like Klessi would've let her work at all due to the look she gave Fia when she'd suggested it so casually. They made it inside the tower and Saria immediately felt the dense Mana flowing from the corpse. She could tell, it was close to Mana Inversion and they'd needed to get to work as fast as possible.
"The Mana's getting too dense, we need to get to work on it right now," said Klessi sharing the sentiments Saria herself was thinking.
"Okay. Go outside and get the others, make sure they haven'twasted too much of their Mana, we'll be at a deficit since Saria can't work," said Fia sounding uncharacteristically serious.
"Okay i'll—"
Klessi had been unable to finish her response as the sound of two things making contact had rung out. The sounds were ones that Saria had gotten accustomed to hearing within the past hour, which is why she would've been able to say she wasn'tsurprised at what had started to drip down her head. But even with this revelation, the blood that was now sprayed across the young girl's face had completely blindsided her. And as she turned her head that shock turned to absolute confusion of the greatest kind.
"My, My, you really should work on that Mana detection."
Klessi had a blade through her chest—or at least, she did, it had been swiftly taken out and wiped clean of the young girl's blood, which she was now laying in a pool of. But before Saria had any chance to react to that, she was met with a presence she'd scarcely expected to see again. The one her Mana detection had failed to register not once—but twice now, and had shown her a kindness that was rare even in the world she'd come from. Seralyn, stood there, wiping the blood of Klessi off her swords as if she were wiping her hands after they'd just been washed. It was causal, and in those eyes Saria saw that same temperament, the utter disregard and in fact, favoritism of murder.
She'd made no reaction to the murder she'd just committed, and it was the first time Saria realized how fast a person could die. And how fast you could kill someone. Because the moment Klessi hit the floor, she was dead, there was no debate to be had on this and it happened so fast that Saria herself still hadn't caught up to the reality. All she could do was stare at Seralyn as she'd finally gotten why she didn't like her eyes, of course, this was due to the disposition for murder and the aptitude for utter disregard of life of any kind. But in those eyes was somethingthat had been so perfectly hidden that it was defaming for Seralyn to even harbor it in her look. The insanity that was in the woman who'd wiped off her blade without so much as looking at the one she'd murdered; it was truly defamation of the greatest kind.
And as Saria Tenorio looked into the woman's eyes, she'd seen the outcome of this defamation in her reflection. As Saria Tenorio realized Klessi had reached defamation through death. Murdered on the floor.