Chapter XVI: Bad Blood
Everyone began screaming and running from the market area, and Natsuki was nearly trampled until Malyn picked her up and seated her atop his shoulders.
"What the hell is going on?!" Natsuki shouted over the crowd.
"I don't know!" Malyn shouted back. "But it sounds like danger is afoot!"
With that statement stupidly said, he began to wade through the crowd in the opposite direction of where they were running, much to Natsuki's dread.
"What are you doing?!"
"Clearly, we need to stop the threat, whatever it is!" Malyn proclaimed.
"You dumbass, no we don't! What if it's something that's completely out of our combat level?!"
"We'll have to find that out then!"
"The Hekk is going on?" Wolfe muttered, seeing people in the streets murmuring to themselves as bells tolled in the distance.
"Dark Walkers." Ruben said, catching up beside him as he stood outside her mediciary. "And it sounds like they're invading from the East."
"Dark Walkers?" Wolfe questioned.
"Magic users or people who sought power in Dark Magic. They've been corrupted completely by the Dark Magic, turning them into brain-dead zombies that lash out at any nearby living being, corrupting the surrounding landscape with their every step."
"Are you fucking telling me that there's more than one type of magic?" Wolfe asked, clearly frustrated. "Just when I thought I had learned enough about it…"
Wolfe turned to Yuri, who was visibly nervous about the whole situation.
"Yuri, we need to go meet up with the others in the Town Square. Let's go."
Yuri nodded, and they made their way towards the Square.
"There you guys are." Wesley said, seeing Wolfe and Yuri approach the meeting spot. Rulf and Monika had already arrived beforehand. "Where's Malyn and that short girl?"
"Natsuki." Yuri muttered.
"Malyn said he was heading to the East District to get weaponry and armor for us." Rulf said.
"Just so happens the East District is being invaded by Dark Walkers." Wolfe remarked.
"Dark what?" Rulf asked.
"I'll tell you later."
"Well, considering what I've seen of Malyn, he's likely to have jumped into the battle." Wesley commented. "So...I think I know where we're going."
"Fuck's sake." Rulf mumbled. "Well, we can't lose our powerhouse before the journey, so let's go stop him from getting himself killed."
"I think these guys might be more than we can handle!" Malyn shouted, engaged in combat against a Dark Walker.
"GEE, YOU FUCKIN' THINK SO?!" Natsuki shouted at the top of her lungs as she stayed behind Malyn, sword and shield in hand.
The Dark Walkers were conjuring destructive magic and throwing it at people engaged in combat against them wildly, almost like magic users with no control over their own mind. Natsuki noticed one Dark Walker conjuring a blackened cloud in his hands, which progressively got bigger.
"Malyn, you should kill that guy over there before he does whatever he plans on doing!" Natsuki screeched in panic.
In a moment, Malyn dodged a stumbling scratch attack from one Walker and leapt towards the one Natsuki pointed out, bringing down his claymore on the Walker's head.
SSSSSSCHLICK!
The Walker was cut clean in two as Malyn fully brought down his claymore.
"MALYN, WATCH OUT!" Natsuki shouted.
CRACK!
Malyn was thrown across the battlefield as one Walker threw a blast of heavy wind at him, and he tumbled over himself repeatedly before lying on the ground, groaning as he struggled to get up.
"Reeeauuuuugggghhh…."
Malyn looked up to see a Walker standing over him, conjuring a knife in its hand.
"GET AWAY FROM HIM!"
Natsuki sliced at the Walker's back leg, causing it to fall to one knee, before swinging her sword again and decapitating it, causing it to crumple to the ground. Malyn flashed a wide smile at Natsuki.
"Knew I could count on you."
"THIS ISN'T FUNNY, MALYN! GET UP!"
"Okay, sheesh…"
As Malyn was getting up, Natsuki spotted a group of people running into the battlefield right outside the walls of the city.
"It's the group!" Natsuki said in relief. "Guys, over here!"
She waved her hands, and the group ran over to them.
"Glad to have found you!" Wesley exclaimed.
"Of course you're fighting these monsters." Rulf mumbled.
"We're here to help." Sayori affirmed, looking over the battlefield.
Several other people from the city were fighting against the dozens of Walkers, from city guards to mages to adventurers, though most of them were keeping their distance and evading the wild magic attacks.
"Looks like ranged attacks will come in handy." Sayori commented, unslinging the recurve bow on her back, which elicited a shocked expression from Natsuki.
"What the- where'd you get that from?! We didn't even shop yet!"
Sayori grinned as she nocked an arrow.
"On the way, some merchants were quite ready to help us arm up before jumping into the battle after Darya suddenly appeared out of nowhere and got us authorization to get whatever we needed from the merchant."
She pulled back the bowstring, aiming at one of the nearby Dark Walkers.
"I don't know about you guys, but I'm feeling pretty hyped up for this mission!"
Thwing!
She loosed the arrow, which whizzed towards the Dark Walker and impaled it through the head. Natsuki's jaw dropped.
"What- How the hell did you do that?!"
"I was in the archery club, don't you remember?" Sayori remarked as she nocked another arrow. Wesley looked to Rulf, Malyn, Natsuki and Wolfe.
"What's the game plan, guys?"
"Well, none of us are ranged attackers, so we'll have to get up front and personal." Wolfe said. "Malyn, you act as a decoy since you're the biggest; Natsuki, you can dispatch of any Walkers that get too close to him; Wesley, Rulf, you guys and myself will skirt around any Walkers attacking Malyn and flank them."
Wolfe looked to Yuri, Sayori and Monika, all of who were carrying bows or crossbows.
"I know you guys aren't proficient in archery, so just pick off any distant Dark Walkers that are aiming for us, got it?"
The three of them nodded.
"Alright, let's go!"
With that, Malyn charged the nearest Dark Walker, who was focused on another combatant, and slammed into him with his shield, sending the fiend flying, while Natsuki scanned the surrounding area for any flanking Walkers. Rulf, Wesley and Wolfe fanned out around Malyn on Wolfe's orders, waiting for Dark Walkers to focus on Malyn.
"Walker, northwest!" Wolfe shouted.
"What?" Rulf shouted in confusion. "Where's northwest?"
"Fucking- Over there!" Wolfe shouted, pointing at the Dark Walker conjuring a brown cloud in his hands. "Raise shields!"
The line of fighters haphazardly raised their shields.
"Crouch as well, to cover your legs! QUICKLY!"
The rest followed suit, crouching, just as the Dark Walker released a screech and blasted a flurry of small rock projectiles at them, most of which glanced off the shields.
"Ow, FUCK!" Wesley shouted as a stray rock slammed into his shoulder. He groaned and felt the area, which was radiating with pain. He pulled down a part of his shirt to reveal a large, bruised area.
"Next time one of them does some shit like that, group up behind Malyn with shields raised!" Wolfe shouted.
Whizz-
Whizz-
Whizz-
A few arrows passed by the Dark Walker that had sent the attack, with only one of the arrows hitting it in the chest, which only knocked it back slightly. Rulf looked back to see Monika, whose crossbow was raised, lower it with an excited grin. She made eye contact with Rulf, who gave a thumbs up in encouragement.
Meanwhile, a group of two Walkers shuffled towards the formation of shields to their right.
"Alright," Wolfe shouted. "Malyn, Natsuki, you two go dispatch that Walker that just launched the rocks at us! Me, Wesley and Rulf will go take care of those two Walkers! Make some noise, Malyn, so they'll aim for you!"
Malyn nodded, and immediately began tromping towards the Walker to the left, banging the flat side of his sword against his shield.
"LOOK AT ME, WALKERS, AND SEE DEATH INCARNATE!" His voice boomed.
"How did you come up with that?" Natsuki mumbled, to which Malyn grinned.
"I read it from a cool battle book." He said.
While that was happening, Wolfe quickly dashed towards the two walkers, followed by Rulf and Wesley. Just as the Walkers turned towards them, Wolfe slashed at the knee of the nearest one, cutting off the Walker's leg and causing it to fall to the ground. Wolfe hovered over the Walker and brought down the point of his sword through its skull. He looked up to see the other one conjuring something in its hands, only to be interrupted as Rulf stabbed it through the stomach. To his horror, the Walker looked up at him, unfazed by the attack, before Wesley chopped its head off with a swipe of his blade.
"What are you doing?!" Wesley yelled at Rulf, who had locked up. "Snap out of it! They're not human, go for the head only!"
Rulf nodded, although his hands were shaking. He hadn't been confronted with anything like that before.
"Look out, you two!"
Rulf and Wesley turned towards the voice of Wolfe, who pointed to another Dark Walker, about to finish a conjuring spell.
"Get out of the way!"
The Walker released the cloudy aura in his hands, throwing it underhanded like a ball towards them which sent a line of jagged rocks emerging out of the ground. Rulf and Wesley just managed to roll out of the line of attack. Rulf was pale white as he realized how close to death he had come.
"Fucking Hekk..Fucking…"
Whizz-
A bolt slammed into the Walker's skull, sending it crumpling to the ground. Rulf looked back to see Monika, who had the crossbow raised, and lowered it. Rulf couldn't help but grin at the sight.
"Fuck yeah! That's what I'm talking about!" He shouted in exhilaration.
Wolfe looked around the battlefield. Most of the Dark Walkers were downed now, and the remaining ones were being surrounded by the other allied combatants and cut down quickly. The bodies of the Dark Walkers began crumpling inwards, their carcasses temporarily revealing decayed bone and flesh, before turning into ashes on the ground.
"Tog, what a terrible fate." He mumbled.
Rulf wiped his brow, realizing he had been sweating profusely during the fight.
"Thanks for the help, Wesley." Rulf sighed. Wesley raised one eyebrow.
"'Helped'? I carried you, bud."
Rulf laughed.
"Fuck off, I did my part-"
Whizz- THUNK!
An arrow narrowly passed by Rulf's head and embedded itself in something behind him. He turned around to see a Dark Walker fall backwards, the arrow in its skull. After a moment of shock, Rulf's face contorted in anger.
"Who the Hekk-"
He turned back to see Sayori lowering the bow, a relief written all over your face.
"What the fuck! That almost hit me! Next time, give me a heads up before-"
Smack!
He suddenly saw Monika come in from the side of his vision, her face full of rage, as she launched a punch at Sayori, hitting her across the cheek. Sayori fell to the ground, and Monika continued a flurry of blows at her head.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU DOING?" Wesley shouted, sheathing his sword and slinging his shield as he ran over towards the scuffle.
"Monika, hey!" Rulf shouted, doing the same. "There's no need for-"
Smack!
Sayori threw a punch back, hitting Monika square in the jaw. The two began trading blows and rolling around across the ground. Yuri mewed in fright as they did so.
"Please, guys, stop…"
Natsuki ran over, dropping her gear, and began trying to break up the fight, pulling at Monika, while Wesley pulled at Sayori.
Crack!
One particular punch from Sayori hit Monika in the eye, which fueled Rulf's anger.
"HEY!" He shouted, running forward and shoving Sayori to the ground, before promptly getting shoved by Wesley. "The fuck you think you're doing?!"
Smack!
In the heat of the moment, Rulf punched Wesley across the cheek, and Wesley returned a blow, before the two began grappling. Meanwhile, Natsuki tried pulling Monika back as she fought with Sayori.
"Yuri!" Natsuki yelled. "Stop fucking standing there and come help!"
"O-Okay!"
Yuri ran up and timidly tried to grab Sayori,but was promptly elbowed in the face, crying out in pain.
Smack!
Sayori felt all of the breath in her lungs leave her as Wolfe darted forward and palmed her in the sternum. She fell to her knees, struggling to catch her breath.
"Calm the fuck down!" Wolfe barked. "You all need to- OW!"
Monika had suddenly turned on Wolfe, kicking him in the shin, causing him to grab his shin in pain.
"Don't touch her!" She yelled at him.
Sayori, wide-eyed, looked up at Monika, a confused expression on her face.
"What-"
"DON'T TOUCH HIM, YOU BITCH!"
Monika was suddenly tackled by Yuri to the ground, but before anything further could happen, Malyn grabbed both of them by their arms and dragged them apart.
"Enough!" Malyn bellowed, and the field went silent. Rulf and Wesley halted their fighting. Malyn looked around at everyone, his face set in disappointment.
"All of this, over what? A close call?"
Malyn released Monika and Yuri, pointing at Sayori.
"If it wasn't for her, Rulf would have been hit by whatever spell that Dark Walker was preparing."
Sayori lowered her head, almost in embarrassment.
"All of this is unnecessary."
The field was silent.
And then, crying. Everyone looked over to see Monika, tears falling from her eyes.
"I'm sorry, Sayori. I'm sorry for what I did. I'm sorry."
No one spoke.
"I'm sorry for doing those things to you. In that other world. I...I'm not a bad person. I'm not an evil person." She sobbed. "I'm sorry to all of you. Sayori, Natsuki, Yuri. I know how awful I was. I never want to be that person again. I swear. I'm sorry."
As she cried, Natsuki and Yuri looked visibly uncomfortable, unsure of what to say, while Wesley and Wolfe looked thoroughly confused, but decided to stay silent. Rulf and Wesley looked at each other.
"Hey, uh…" Rulf muttered, raising one hand to shake. "We good?"
Wesley nodded, shaking his hand.
"We're good."
Malyn scratched his head, then noticed Sayori getting up, a serious expression on her face.
"I haven't forgiven you, Monika." She said. "You've got a long ways to go before I can think about forgiving you."
The field was silent still.
"But...this is a new place. And there's no point in bringing up something that's in another world. No one was in their right mind in that place, and I can't blame you for everything you did. For now…"
She sighed.
"...Let's just go get something to eat. I'm starving."
"This, coming from the archer who almost took away by ability to eat earlier."
"Hey!"
The field erupted with laughter as the tension was broken, and a wide grin broke out on Sayori and Rulf's faces. Rulf looked over at Monika, who was looking around in wonder at everyone. Her eyes met with Rulf, and he smiled at her, giving her a thumbs up. She beamed at him with the most pure smile he had seen from her thus far.
"Very well, then!" Malyn proclaimed. "Let us feast after this victorious battle!"
"No one asked you to give a rousing speech, commander." Wolfe said aloud.
"No need for one, it would seem morale is high enough already!"
"Togdamnit, why are you so cringey…"
The group got together and, as a whole, made their way back into town, following the string of adventurers already heading inside, their unity as a group a little closer than before.
Hope you enjoyed this chapter, because a lot more are coming out way more often now!
Happy New Year's, everyone!