Audun's POV]
"RUN"
With Cassie in my arms, I bolted just before Sunny finished.
A beat later the white and black haired duo chased after us, ascending the ashen mountain as fast as they could.
My feet padded against the ground heavily as I accelerated.
I felt Cassie's arms tighten around my neck tighten, her face contorting in an odd, contradicting, relieved yet fearful expression.
But I paid it no mind, my heart pounding as royal purple aura dispersed throughout my body.
Clad in a haze of brilliant color, I shot forward, rapidly approaching the tree standing tall on the top of the ashen barrow.
With each stride, the gap between the nightmare creature and I widened significantly, and with that widening gap, I allowed myself the luxury of a backwards glance.
Sunny was dashing forward with the most focused look I had ever seen mar his features.
Though, I could see that the terrain was not only slowing him down, but significantly draining his stamina as my eyes caught a glimpse of the deluge of sweat dripping down his chin.
Right beside him was Nephis, her expression contorted in mild irritation as she sprinted up the towering barrow.
And unfortunately,
Not far behind the pair was our demonic friend, two burning scarlet eyes piercing through the veil of dusk.
With the artificial sunlight fading, its blackened carapace seemed to almost absorb the light, the abyssal darkness of its shell resembling an obsidian sculpture.
The genre of our adventure had changed from slap stick comedy to horrifying thriller in a matter of moments.
Mr. Krabs was frothing at the mouth, its 8 robust legs propelled it forward at a speed that felt unfair considering its size.
Every single time one of its appendages slammed against the sandy barrow ground, a pillar of ashy gray shot up into the air behind it.
"WHAT DO WE DO???" I heard Sunny scream, the urgency in his voice palpable.
Hmm…
That's… A good question…
I blinked slowly a couple of times, my tired mind reacting quite sluggishly.
Honestly, I had just kind of gotten swept up in the heat of the moment.
If my combat ability hadn't been severely compromised by my flaw, I probably would've been duking it out with the demon instead of booking it like a deadbeat dad.
My genuine thoughts on the current situation were more of an "Ah man" rather than an "OH SHIT", if that helps explain my current state of mind.
Other than the slight disappointment ebbing at my heart from the unfortunate outcome and the ever present anxiety plaguing my heart, I felt nothing.
I had long since grown numb to the dread that came with unexpected failure, so this rather expected failure didn't have my panties tied up in a knot.
I had been a bit hopeful that it might've worked, but it didn't really matter much in the grand scheme of things.
We'd survive.
I'd make sure of it.
And at the end of the day, that's what really mattered.
There was quite a large gap between Cassie and I, and Sunny and Nephis, a fact that I was going to take advantage of.
By turning my attention entirely to Cassie, I managed to push a collection of whispers through the anxiety induced mutedness that normally prevented me from speaking.
"Cassie… The situation… isn't great right now."
I set the blonde down, propping her up on her feet.
Cassie simply nodded
"Go do what you need to do, don't let me slow you down."
I gave her a small smile.
Another benefit of having been discovered was the unexpected trust that the two of us had developed.
Apparently finding out that I had been slaughtering hordes of Nightmare creatures at night had been enough to erase most of the suspicions about my intentions.
Who would've thought…
I shrugged mentally.
Without any more hesitation, I summoned forth [Arachne's Band] using the charm memory to tie up Cassie's hair in a rather messy pony tail.
It was my first time trying to tie up someone else's hair.
I wasn't much of a hair dresser but it'd have to do.
Cassie flinched for a moment, but didn't raise any objections, simply readjusting the braid into something a bit neater.
The effects of the band would be able to protect her better than most awakened armor memories, and it was my insurance policy in the case of an unexpected event.
"I'm gonna…go.. hold it… off"
She sighed and turned her head in my direction, Cassie's aimless sapphire eyes trained on my figure.
"Be safe."
Two simple yet meaningful words.
The rather short response gave me a sense of deja vu but I ignored it, instead focusing on a different sad reality.
'Man, I really suck at holding a conversation…'
"I will."
Turning my attention to the demon chasing after the last two members of our travel group, I mentally prepared myself.
My heart pumped, energy flooding into every corner and crevice of my body.
A flurry of white sparks engulfed my right hand as I drew a blue short sword from the depths of my soul.
With all my preparations complete, I took a light step forward, my body blurring as I shot forward at a breakneck speed.
—---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Nephis' POV]
I'm never listening to Sunny again.
SKRIEEEEEE
The towering Carapace Demon let out a fell shriek as it thundered after Sunny and I.
Outwardly, my face was a mask of cold indifference, but I was filled with indescribable
bitterness.
'We should've gone with my plan, we wouldn't have been in this situation if we just ambushed it…'
A part of me wanted to smack Sunny, but just as quickly as the thought crossed my consciousness, it vanished.
Instead, my mind and body completely focused on survival.
The Carapace Scavenger was far better suited for the sandy terrain of the Ashen barrow than we were, its eight legs stabbing the ground and propelling it forward at an unexpected speed.
We had the high ground right now, but with the rate that creature was ascending the hill, it wouldn't stay like that for much longer.
I grit my teeth, a subtle accusatory glare breaking past my indifferent facade and making its way towards the black haired pervert running besides me.
Sunny briefly turned to face me, returning my glare with one of his own.
But before an argument could break out between the two of us-
BOOM
The Carapace Demon pounced, pushing off the ashy sand of the barrow, its large shadow looming over us like a grim promise.
The two of us immediately broke eye contact
"SCATTER!" I yelled urgently
Sunny and I leaped in opposite directions, rolling out of the way of the impending impact.
Mid-roll, I pulled my longsword from the depths of my soul sea, its silvery brilliance manifesting in a storm of sparks.
CRASH
But, as I completed my roll and looked up, a confused look flashed across my face.
I had expected to see a massive, profane abomination glaring down at me, but I was instead greeted by Sunny's bewildered expression and an empty gray expanse.
As the two of us locked eyes, wondering what the hell was going on, my eyes registered the briefest flash of movement.
With my guard raised, I immediately turned, eyes locking onto a rather peculiar sight.
The dreadful carapace demon that I had assessed as a monumental yet manageable challenge, was currently tumbling down the barrow with about as much elegance as a baby elephant in a tutu.
It let out little grunts each time its shell hit the sand, each impact leaving a crater and releasing a small wave of gray ash.
I blinked, caught completely off guard.
Turning to Sunny, it seemed like I wasn't the only one who was surprised, his mouth ajar in pure confusion.
'What the hell is going on??'
"GUYYYYYYYS, HURRY UPPPPP"
A familiar voice interrupted my train of thought.
Right
Cassie!
My eyes widened.
In the heat of the chase, I had completely forgotten about Cassie and Audun.
The two had practically disappeared after the Demon began its chase, but I knew they would be safe.
Despite having never seen him fight, I trusted Audun was capable of protecting her, and it looks like I wasn't wrong.
My head whipped quickly towards the source of her voice, my eyes frantically scanning the ashen barrow for any trace of the blondes, and thankfully, near the top of the hill, I spotted a pair of deep sapphire blue eyes.
Searching for any signs of injury, I was inwardly deeply relieved to have found Cassie completely unharmed.
Though, after a moment, I frowned.
Where's Audun…?
A hint of concern wormed its way into my heart as I registered the absence of the sleeper who had guided us thus far.
'Wait…'
'It couldn't be… right?'
A rather absurd thought crossed my mind.
I turned my attention away from Cassie, my head rotating slowly.
Across from me, it seemed that sunny had reached a similar conclusion, his onyx black eyes swerving towards the base of the Barrow.
I followed his gaze.
SHARIEEEEEK
The Carapace Demon let out an aggrieved cry, its eyes trained on a certain figure standing firmly at the base of the ashen hill.
Despite the distance, the shoulder length wheat blonde hair the figure possessed was unmistakable.
Surrounded in a haze of purple that seemed to weigh down the air with its presence, Audun stood indifferently clad in an imposing black scale armor.
I had always assumed that he was on the stronger side, but after seeing the fatigue he had accumulated along the trip, I had begun to think that he might've been a non-combatant.
At no point during our journey had I ever seen him fight, in fact, I had never even seen him use his aspect.
He spent the majority of our trek making us food, managing supplies, and taking care of Cassie. All things I appreciated greatly, but as a result, my assessment of his strength had dropped considerably.
But it seems that I had been quite wrong.
The regal sleeper took up a flawless stance, the point of a blue blade steadily aimed at the menacing crab demon.
I blinked.
Turns out…
Audun can fight.
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(A/N: Sorry I'm a little late guys, I've been stuck in continuous lectures for the past two days.
Besides the lectures, I've been busy with the case I was assigned, and pretty much had no time to write.
Today, I spent my lunch and dinner break writing in an effort to honor the promise I made to you guys, and although it's a day late, I hope you can forgive me.
Tell me what you guys think, and I'll try and post tomorrow if I can.
Thanks for the support as always and I'll see you guys next time.)