Chapter 25.

There were five Grey Devils. Not in a camp though, it looked like a patrol, right in the middle of a tunnel. Hiding behind a protruding rock, Nick was actually hyping himself up. "Come on, dude, you gotta stop being a pussy ! You came on top so far against those fuckers, and now you can even bash them like a superhero !". He had no idea what a 'superhero' looked like, but it was cool to see himself as one.

Meanwhile, the small team of monsters quietly walked in his direction, absent-mindedly observing the surrounding, chatting. They spoke. Those spoke, contrary to the other times where only cries and screams were emitted, although, it was not a language Nick could understand, very rough and throaty.

Before the choice was taken from him, the man sprung out of cover with a heart pounding in fear and sprinted towards the creatures. They were definitely surprised by this fast humanoid charging at them, but not as much as Nick. It was the first time he actually energized his legs and was so taken aback that he almost crashed onto a nearby wall ! But, at the last second, he remembered the heavy spear he was clutching and pointed it at the nearest enemy. The impact was so great that the weapon pierced the monster's clothes and flesh all the way to the man's hand, making it sticky with dark blood. Still very much alive, if only for a few more moments, the thing yelled incoherent words and began hitting Nick with weak arms. The others got out of their torpor and went into formation. Pulling his weapon out of its meaty sheath, the man took two steps back and stared intently at said formation, sweat on his forehead. The four of them were trying something simple : two in front with small shields and makeshift axes, while the two behind would poke through the openings using short spears. The axes and spears were mostly made of bones, but with stone tips, which was a first while the shields were a collection of bones covered in leather. "They are not the same as the ones we killed before : they patrol, they are clearly trained, and they even look a bit healthier. Let's be careful …", he thought cautiously. Apparently, the enemies were also gauging the situation as they did not take the initiative.

After ten seconds of stalemate, Nick lost patience and went for it : a great acceleration followed by a thrust. To his surprise, his spear actually penetrated a shield and the one behind it all in the same move, producing hollow crashing noises and a painful howl. Adrenaline made the warrior unconscious of the pain in his legs and hands, he just attacked, again and again, missing a few times and slicing two throats with one wide swing. That assault finished its course with a clear metallic sound as it banged against the rocky wall. The vibration of this shock made him drop the spear. "Shit", thought he while fumbling at his waist. The last Grey Devil, however, did not try its luck, opting for a smart retreat instead, and was hit in the back by a hatchet. It hit with the handle though, as throwing weapons the correct way is a skill that must be learned. It still managed to make the monster fall headfirst on the ground. Just enough time for its aggressor to Energize his legs and get to it, sinking a long knife in its shoulders and neck. Wet bloody noises and suction sounds could be heard for a few seconds until silence took its place.

Getting back up, covered in blood and gore and sweat, with a crazily pounding heart and an incredulous expression on his face, Nick looked around at his carnage. Just before needing to sit back down, he thought : "I love magic.". And he began panting. Panting like there was no tomorrow, feeling his body hot and trembling and painful, and realising these symptoms came from overusing Wild Magic. He could clearly feel his appendix completely empty of energy, and it needed to rest after this heavy stress. So he did.

In the meantime, he began rummaging through the fallen's possessions. There were two broken shields made of aligned bones covered in hard leather, three spears and two axes, all composed of bones and stones. Next, apart from dirty leather tunics, five small pouches fixed to belts. With a disgusted expression, Nick removed one of those from its former owner and opened it. What he found was to be expected really : small nuggets of shiny metal, like gold and silver. That is basically what one would put in a purse. Although, when all were opened and the loot assembled, a few uncut precious gems could be found. All in all, a dozen gold nuggets, two dozen silver and six gems. Nick did not know how much that amounted to, but he could guess it was not much considering who previously possessed it.

Afterwards, he began thinking while his magic came back. Apparently, the moment he successfully cultivated energy, it would not exactly be stored inside the appendix, but more like strengthen it, making its use akin to a muscle in training rather than a bottle being filled. "Interesting. Means I won't have to interact with the Flow every time I need to recharge, but just wait a few hours for the appendix to rest. I like that better.".

He wolfed a piece of dried meat, last remnant of his early supplies, his only good idea since he woke up in this hell. While chewing, his eyes fell on the dead monsters, making him remember why he killed them. Apart from the 'fun'. His stomach formed knots at that sight, and the food in his mouth suddenly mixed with some acidic taste. "Will I really be able to eat those little shits ? Killing them is one thing but …". Of course, he was having doubts. A feeling of revulsion awoke inside his mind, with images he would rather never see, freezing his movements in place. But he already knew that there was no choice to make.