5 The Predator

The room became dead silent after a moment. No one was moving an inch like they were waiting for the other to make the first move. The centipede crawled a little back, taking a defensive position. The cut from the disjoint limbs of it's head, closed off and stopped the bleeding. The tail tried to attack from behind again but Raven turned back and jammed his two scythes in it, leaving it impaled on the ground and quickly dashed off to where Selena is.

Raven,"The same thing won't work on me twice."

But the head of the beast tried to eat Raven from behind but Selena threw some icicles at it and Raven instantly made another scythe and bashed it on it's head and jumped towards Selena. The centipede raged towards Raven but he pulled out one of his magnum and shot the beast in it's eye, followed up by a barrage of icicles by Selena.

Raven reached near Selena and taking the scythe in his left hand and kept shooting the beast with his magnum by his right hand.

Selena,"Those 'Guns' can damage it's beastly parts but it's hide make it ineffective on the centipede body."

Raven,"I'm trying to hit it's vital points but it isn't dull like other beasts. Maybe you should use some kind of fire magic on the centipede body."

Selena threw a fireball on it's body, the centipede coiled it's body again.

Selena,"It didn't seem to have much of an effect."

Raven,"Nope it had enough effects, for me that is."

Raven shot the gaping part of it's bodies which did significant damage. Selena noticed that the fireball dries off the mucous on it's body which covers it's gaping holes. The mucous was protecting this openings from external injury. Even, drying the mucous makes the gaping hole, expand more and release fluid to recover the protective layer, a kind of metabolic response.

Raven,"Can you use some kind of magic to cut it's beastly parts and freeze it?"

Selena,"I can use 'Air Cutter' to cut it's flesh and 'Icy Wind' to freeze it. But what effect will it do?"

Raven kept looking at Selena for a moment and then smirked,"Catchy names you've got there."

Selena didn't further question it and started following the plan. They kept cutting the beast's flesh apart and then Selena kept freezing the cuts, turning into a instant frozen blood clot. And Raven kept periodically shooting the gapings while they opened due to it's moving. The barrage of attacks from both sides confused the beast as to go after whom and it kept attacking them randomly.

After a while, they head was full of frozen scars by Selena's spell, it not only could not close it's wounds but it also seems to be gotten frostbitten. It's senses were growing dull. The body also took significant injuries as most of the gapings on it's bodies were damaged by Raven. They are doing this carefully while keeping an eye on the creatures movement, dodging it's attack and running around.

Selena,"The strategy is working, maybe we . .

Suddenly the tail sneaked from behind Selena. While they were busy dealing with the body and head, the tail freed itself from the impaled joint with the surface. Raven pushed Selena out of the tail's way.

Selena,"Are you fi . . . !!"

Raven's right hand got chipped off from his arm. The tail instantly ate his whole arm with the mouth like hole on it. The beast had a two way digestive system, so it can eat with both sides. His hand was then chewed by the fangs in it's tail's mouth in a grotesque manner.

"Stay put for once, you annoying thing!"

He again impaled the tail to the ground while it was trying to escape. But the head was coming from behind to devour Raven whole with it's mouth wide open.

Selena,"Look out!"

Raven instantly jumped on top of it's head and slammed it with his foot, crushing it's face on the surface. The impact from the kick opened up all the frozen wounds, doing a massive bleed out. Raven instantly regenerated his arm and made two large scythes and cut all of it's eyes with one swift cross swing and jumped back.

Raven,"Freeze the head, quick!!"

Selena chanted a spell 'Frost Wave' and froze the whole head. The head turned into a huge ice slab from all the blood and mucous coming out of it's wounds. The creature was flailing to break the ice, slamming it's head on the ground as it's senses are frozen solid.

Selena noticed, this time the scythes on Raven's hand were not normal.

Selena,"What are these weapons, it's blade are spinning around so fast that it looks like it only has a single blade?"

Raven,"It's just a scythe with cutting chains."

Selena,"Doesn't it have a name?"

Raven,"Well, you could call it 'Saw-scythe'."

Saying that Raven jumped off to the body of the centipede and started ripping off all the gapings cleanly off it's bodies. Compared, the previously damaged ones were easy as they stayed open, the bullet wounds made it unable to retain it's original traits. Due to continuous slashes, the internal flesh started to slip out, near the places where the gapings were ripped off from.

Raven,"Burn the exposed insides, maybe it will do some internal damage." he said it while he was still hanging from it's body by plunging his hand inside a gaping. Selena then used her 'Mega Fireball' to lit the wounds with flames. They kept slashing it and burning it until the point it worn out.

After A Hour or So. . .

Selena was panting, she was tired from all the fighting. They relentless attacks from both sides made it a deadly battlefield, the room had only the smell of blood, ash and the mucous that the beast was secreting. Raven was still on guard as he doesn't want to face another surprise attack from behind. The beast itself was unrecognizable. The head was in a bad shape as it did itself to remove the ice, leaving pieces of it's flesh barely attached, it's upper part of the head was still frozen but it somehow freed it's jaws. It's body was torn and burnt, some parts of it's hide fell off. It was already half-dead. It coiled it's body to a corner taking a stance even in this situation, as it's life depend on it.

Selena,"Is it finally giving up?"

Raven,"You shouldn't let your guard down, finish it before it recovers or escapes. We don't what it has up it's sleeve."

Selena,"I can use 'Crust Smash' to finish it. Shall I do it?"

Selena started to chant a complex spell as Raven didn't say anything. But what Raven was actually thinking,''What's a 'Crust Smash'?? The other names were literal, what does even crust smash mean? Some kinda blunt attack? But what will she hit with?''

As soon as Selena finished her chant, large boulders started falling on the centipede crushing it

while it was screeching. The room was filled with dust and smoke along with a dead silent.

Raven,"A ROCKSLIDE!?! In the first place, Where did those rocks even come from?!"

Selena smirked and said,"Behold, it's MAGIC!!"

Raven,"SO. . . that was tiring, let's just get out of here."

Tired from the intense fight, they finally could take a moments breather. But for Selena it felt like a peaceful moment like an afternoon nap.

They were walking towards the gate, Selena was about to say something but Raven felt a chill through his spine. He grabbed Selena and threw her at one side and dashed to the other side.

Selena,"What happened?! W-Why did you throw me?" She stumbled her voice seeing Raven's face which had a tint of weird smirk that was rather the first time she witnessed.

Raven,"People say, the struggle before death is a really beautiful thing to witness. But I think rather than beautiful, it's more of a scary scene. No matter if it's of a human or an animal."

From the debris, the beast launched itself on Raven. Raven retaliated it whole body with his scythes. But his scythe on right hand broke due to being the one to directly grazing it's body. The beast was now hanging in corner of the room and getting ready to attack again. Even though the thick ice on it's head, one can see the red but lifeless eyes of this predator's final squabble to survive.