"Ha, there it is! Let me down, let me down!"
Bat dropped the enthusiastic ant soldier down. One by one, others followed, descending into the woods. She readied to dive down herself when she identified another target several kilometers north. Sharpening her senses, she realized it was two distinct forms bundled as one.
Excited, she beckoned Hollow. They spiraled in the air, in a predatory lockdown of their next prey.
Meanwhile, on ground level, a fight had already broken out. The surrounding landscape had been wrecked by a combination of attacks from every direction, mutant claws and antennas and spit all aimed at one retreating figure.
Snake materialized at blinding speed from behind, his tail wrapped around their target. Caught him! Now to crush- His eyes bulged at his empty grip.
Balanced casually on top the coils of his tail was the boy. Snake made a second snatch, only to find air yet again. One upwards kick, and the boy disappeared altogether.
Next thing Snake knew, the world was rotating like a wheel. His head rolled to a stop before his comrade, who stared back in unrestrained horror.
Shaking, the soldier stared at the piling bodies. In consecutive thumps, the ants fell, cut down with merciless efficiency. And their killer, a human child. He was just a child, young and fresh, all thin limbs and soft outlines. Even now, his gestures carried a touch of deceptive innocence, maneuvering the battlefield as if he were playing a ball game.
This child was supposed to have been easy meat, a good practice hunt for newcomers like him. They made eye contact.
The soldier had severely misunderstood. This was not a hunt. This was a slaughterhouse.
In the air, Hollow continued to follow Bat. Their prey had changed paths, aiming for the deep woods. He must have noticed their presence, attempting to use the thick branches and leaves of the forests to camouflage their escape. It was no use. Once they had zoned in on their target, they had one hundred percent strike precision. They-!
Hollow froze, watching his partner plummet to her death. The atmosphere thinned once more, cracking viciously. It was his turn, to be smited down from the heavens.
The silver-haired boy landed in a crouch upon the highest tree branch. Electricity continued to discharge from his fingertips until it quieted with a clench of the fist.
One step, and he fell with gravity. His foot refound the ground, as his eyes scanned his surroundings for any further threats.
The sun had tilted. Behind the shadows of a tree, the ant captain waited for the boy to walk past. His tail curled when the footsteps stopped instead, head turned sharply in his direction, darkened eyes burning into his back.
The captain smiled wryly to himself. What a predicament this has become.