To the Village (2)

The sun hovered just above the horizon, casting long, golden shadows that stretched across the forest floor as the trio pressed onward. The forest, dense with towering pines and undergrowth, began to shift from a lively green to dark hues of twilight. They were approaching the unknown reaches that would lead them to safety, but the air was thick with tension. The day's waning light fought against the deepening dark, the forest already claiming the twilight hour.

Ellie's laughter rang through the clearing, light and carefree, even as the trio navigated the path with their senses heightened. The girl's energy was infectious, giving a semblance of comfort to an otherwise strained atmosphere. Avi shot a glance at her, a rare smile tugging at his lips. Her innocence seemed to brush away the exhaustion that weighed on his muscles, the fatigue of a long day's march, and the turmoil of what lay ahead.

Despite the occasional challenges, the trio pressed on with ease, their camaraderie and Ellie's excitement keeping their spirits high as they ventured deeper into the forest. After a while of walking, they hear a cacophony of snarls, growls, and shouts as the spirit wolves lunged forward, their ghostly, three-tailed forms weaving in and out of reality like flickering specters. The beasts were faster and more cunning than any animal they'd faced before, their translucent bodies shimmering as they phased through trees and rocks. Avi's muscles screamed with exertion as he blocked a swipe from one of the wolves, his sword clashing against its solid form before it vanished again, reappearing behind him.

"Tyler! Move left!" Avi shouted, narrowly avoiding a swipe from another wolf. The spirit beast yelped, fading just as its claws passed through the air. Tyler's massive frame shifted, his axe-hammer sweeping in a wide arc that sent one wolf sprawling, its howl fading as it dissipated into the air.

"Are there more of them?" Tyler panted, his voice strained. He was already bleeding from a gash on his arm, but his eyes were sharp, searching for the next target. The forest seemed alive with motion, each rustle a potential threat.

Avi's gaze darted to the edge of the clearing where Ellie was tucked behind a fallen log. Despite the chaos around her, the young girl sat with an expression of wide-eyed curiosity, peeking out from her cover as if she were watching a strange play. The wolves that were attacking seemed to ignore her entirely, their focus locked on Avi and Tyler.

"Ellie! Stay down!" Avi called, his voice harsh but laced with worry. He parried another attack, the wolf's ethereal form fading only for a moment before it reappeared, its eyes gleaming like twin embers.

Avi's eyes narrowed as he took in the scene. The spirit wolves had been attacking with ferocity, but none seemed interested in Ellie. She was small, defenseless, and in the thick of danger, yet not one creature made a move toward her. It was strange, so strange that a shiver ran down Avi's spine.

The echoes of their last battle still reverberated in the clearing as the last of the spirit wolves flickered into nothingness, their ghostly forms dissipating into the damp forest air. Avi stood, breathing heavily, eyes darting around the shadows that crept in from all sides. He glanced at Tyler, whose muscles were taut with exhaustion, and then at Ellie, who sat cross-legged on a fallen branch, her wide eyes reflecting the moonlight as she stared up at him.

"Did anyone else notice something strange?" Tyler asked, shaking his head as he wiped blood from his face. His axe-hammer clattered to the ground beside him, a weapon too heavy for his worn-out body but one that had kept him alive through the fight.

Avi frowned, still trying to catch his breath. The spirit wolves had been relentless, their translucent, three-tailed forms darting through trees and walls as if the world were made of mist. Yet, through all the chaos, Ellie had remained untouched, as if hidden behind an invisible shield. He turned to her now, his brow furrowed.

"How is she doing that?" Tyler whispered, his voice tinged with disbelief as he eyed the girl.

Avi's fingers found the cool, worn leather of his gloves, the sensation grounding him. He closed his eyes, activating his clairvoyance skill, hoping to glean some insight into Ellie's anomaly. The familiar glow of the skill settled into his vision, forming an interface that flickered before him.

Elleanor

Lvl: 1

???

Skills:

???

Frustration creased his features. Clairvoyance had always given him answers before, but it felt empty now. Ellie wasn't a Player—she didn't have a stats menu. That explained the failure, but it didn't quench the curiosity that burned within him. His eyes flicked back to the child, who now beamed up at him with the innocence only a child could possess.

"How does the monster ignore you, Ellie?" he asked, the question heavy with unspoken concern.

Ellie's smile widened, and she puffed out her chest proudly. "Ellie is good at hiding! Nana plays hide and seek with Ellie! Ellie always wins." She raised her small nose and looked up at Avi filled with confidence..

Avi's lips twitched into a faint smile despite the tension. "That's good, Ellie. Good job! Keep hiding like that, okay?"

Before Ellie could respond, Tyler, now tiredly kicking the corpses of the dead spirit wolves, grunted and nudged one of the bodies with his boot. It was the last one he'd struck down, its ghostly form now a darkened, crumpled heap. Tyler's foot caught on something beneath it—a small, smooth orb, glistening with an unnatural sheen. He scooped it up, holding it out to Avi.

"Hey, what's this?" Tyler asked, eyes narrowing.

Avi squinted at the orb, its violet surface pulsing with a strange light. He reached for it, but before he could take it from Tyler's grasp, the warrior tripped over one of the spirit wolves' bodies and fell, shattering the orb on the ground.

A thin, violet liquid seeped out, oozing and spreading rapidly across the dirt. The liquid emitted a sharp, acrid scent, like burning herbs mixed with something metallic. The trio's eyes widened as the air seemed to crackle with tension, the forest around them growing colder, heavier.

A low, guttural howl rolled through the clearing, sharp and primal. Then another, and another, until the night was filled with the cacophony of dozens, perhaps hundreds, of creatures calling in the dark.

"What the hell did you do?!" Avi barked, his voice cutting through the rising panic. He took a step back, pulling Ellie against him as he eyed the forest edge. The shadows that surrounded them darkened, shifting, and deep, glimmering red eyes began to blink into existence, their pupils reflecting a predatory hunger.

Avi's jaw clenched as he surveyed the eyes multiplying in the dark, the forest alive with anticipation. He felt Ellie's small hands clutching at his cloak, her breathing quick, panicked. With a shaky breath, he looked around them at the encroaching horde.

"If we die here," he whispered, eyes narrowing on Tyler with a mixture of rage and desperation, "I'm so gonna kill you."

As the howls grew louder and the red eyes surged forward, Avi tightened his hold on Ellie, ready to run if need be, but prepared to stand and fight with every ounce of his strength. The darkness wasn't just creeping—it was pouncing, and there was no telling what lay within it.

The trio tensed, the forest air thickening around them like a living entity, pressing down with an almost tangible weight. The dim twilight was fading quickly, shadows stretching and warping as the unseen predators inched closer. The earlier battle, though exhausting, had barely made a dent in the sheer number of foes they now faced. The wolves seemed to emerge from every direction, their eyes burning like coals as they closed in, hungry and unyielding.

Tyler shifted his stance, muscles taut, the pain of his earlier injuries radiating from the gash on his arm. He glared at the encroaching dark, eyes locked with the hungry eyes of the beasts. The exhaustion was clear in his breathing, but determination flickered in his expression.

"Ready to fight?" Tyler grunted, tightening his grip on his axe-hammer. The weapon was heavy, the edges nicked and stained from battle, but it was the last defense standing between them and certain death.

Avi nodded, adrenaline sharpening his senses. The forest was growing darker now, the waning light reflecting off the violet sheen of the orb's broken remains, which shimmered like a malevolent pulse at their feet. He set Ellie down behind him, the child's eyes wide, reflecting a fear she couldn't fully comprehend.

"Stay close to me," Avi said, voice low and fierce. He summoned his |Aura| skill, a heat rushing through his veins as it reinforced his shadowfang daggers. The weapons glimmered with a dark blue hue of energy that mirrored his resolve, a lethal extension of his will.

"Berserker Strike!" Tyler bellowed, the roar reverberating through the clearing. With a feral yell, he lunged forward, the force of his skill propelling him into the closest wolf. The beast shrieked as Tyler's axe-hammer found its mark, splintering its ethereal body into fragments that evaporated into the air. Tyler stumbled, the weight of his blow pushing him into a knee-buckling halt, but he quickly recovered, glancing over at Avi with a slight grin of defiance.

"Let's see how many of these things we can take down," Tyler said, blood trickling down his temple, mixing with sweat.

Avi's muscles burned as he fought, each movement made slower by the weight of protecting Ellie. The clearing was filled with the shouts of battle, the clash of weapons, and the ethereal howls of the spirit wolves, but Avi's focus was singular—keeping Ellie safe. Her small hands clung to the fabric of his cloak, her face pressed against his back, eyes wide with fear but unyielding as she watched him fight.

The wolves came at them in waves, their ghostly forms darting through the trees, claws reaching, jaws snapping. Avi's strikes were swift but calculated, his daggers slicing into the wolves' ethereal flesh with barely enough force to disperse them. He couldn't afford to take risks, couldn't swing wildly and risk losing control over the one person who mattered more than his own life.

"Tyler, cover us!" he shouted, his voice tight as he caught sight of the warrior's battered form swinging his axe-hammer with a desperation that mirrored Avi's own.

"Shut it! I'm already fighting a bunch" Tyler roared back while gritting his teeth, the deep voice punctuated by the sickening thud of his weapon meeting wolf after wolf. But even he couldn't keep up the onslaught. The wolves were relentless, and no matter how many they struck down, more emerged from the darkness, eyes glistening and mouths wide with hunger.

Avi's legs ached, and his arms felt leaden, the weight of exhaustion creeping into his bones. He ducked under a swipe from a wolf, spinning and slicing its tail before pushing it away with a kick. The creature's body evaporated, but he barely had a moment to breathe before another pounced, forcing him to weave and strike, all while maintaining his stance as Ellie's protector.

"Keep your eyes open!" Avi called, his voice snapping with tension. The girl behind him trembled in fear, staring at the wolves with wide eyes but staying close to his side. Every time a wolf lunged too close, she flinched, and Avi's resolve hardened.

Then the forest seemed to hold its breath, a tense pause in the symphony of snarls and howls. A growl, deeper and more resonant than any before, rumbled through the clearing, rolling over the trio like a wave of raw power. Its body was twice the size of the normal spirit wolves, with eyes that blazed a deeper red, gleaming like coals in a forge. Its form was a darker shadow with its five tails coiling like serpents poised to strike.

[lvl 3 Alpha Spirit Wolf]

Avi's heart pounded, dread clawing at his throat as he realized the level of danger they now faced. The other wolves fell back, forming a huddled line behind their leader, their red eyes reflecting a new, unsettling intelligence.

"Run, Tyler! That things as strong as a demonoid!" Avi yelled, the command coming out sharp and urgent. Without waiting for Tyler's response, he grabbed Ellie and sprinted into the night, forcing himself not to slow down. The Alpha's growl carried on the wind, the guttural sound vibrating through the trees, and the pack surged forward, their snarls echoing in the clearing as they surged after their prey.

"That way!" Ellie pointed, her voice small but determined, and Avi didn't hesitate to follow, pushing past branches and thorny underbrush, barely feeling the scratches that raked at his arms and face. Tyler was close behind, his axe-hammer thudding against the forest floor as he fought back the encroaching wolves, kicks and punches aimed at those daring to get too close.

The two moved like a storm, with Avi's breath ragged and his body screaming for relief, but he kept pushing. A wolf lunged, and he met it with a knee to its chest, sending it sprawling back into the underbrush. Another tried to claw at Ellie, but he was there, snapping it away with a furious swipe of his dagger before shoving it into the dark.

The cold air thickened, the weight of exhaustion pressing down on them as the howls behind them grew fainter, but not enough to allow them rest. It was only when Ellie pointed again, voice cracking but resolute, "There!" that Avi spotted a faint glow in the distance. The flicker of light cut through the dark, warm and inviting.

Relief crashed through him like a wave, a beacon of hope in the oppressive gloom.

"Almost there, Tyler!" Avi shouted, glancing over his shoulder to see the warrior's bleeding, battered form pushing forward, eyes hard with determination.

But the wolves were still in pursuit, their howls sharp and relentless, a chorus of rage and hunger. The village light grew clearer, promising safety but not yet within reach.

Avi's breath was ragged, chest heaving as he took another step, shoving away a wolf with a vicious elbow to its face. The forest's cruel embrace clung to them, but the glow from the village was stronger now, cutting a path through the darkness. He pushed forward, every muscle straining, heart pounding as he fought the last few yards toward safety, the chorus of wolves behind them fading but not silenced, a last reminder of the nightmare they were escaping.