Author's Note: As usual, thank you to everyone who favorited/followed and reviewed the story. This chapter took me a while to finish, but I got there! Now that I finally wrapped up the Monsterphilia arc, I plan to focus more on the Loki familia and Bell's development with them in the upcoming chapters. Bell will finally go on his first expedition!
Special thanks to Rexias and Manatris for reviewing this chapter.
Bell made his typical trek through the city to reach the dungeon. This morning Bell didn't actually skip breakfast for once. He sat with Line like usual and even had a friendly conversation with the other adventurers in her small clique. Despite a bit of awkwardness, he really enjoyed himself.
Throughout his time in the dungeon yesterday as he practiced with his new sword, the Loki Familia rookie thought deeply about his seniors' words in the courtyard.
He wasn't alone anymore.
The words were so simple yet it almost felt wrong to say them out loud. A small smile crept to his face as he walked down the city streets. Mister Gareth was so strong yet cared so much! He was almost a literal living legend!
'I won't let your kindness go to waste, Mister Gareth. Just you wait!'
As Bell continued walking with more of a pep in his step than usual, he heard a familiar cat girl yell out to him.
"Nya! Rabbit boy! Come over here." Waved a brown haired cat girl whose name Bell remembered was Anya.
Since his first exchange with Syr, Bell had been to the Benevolent Mistress multiple times and familiarized himself with most of the staff by now. Anya was goofy and a bit of a clutz but from what the rookie adventurer could tell from his past interactions with her, she seemed like a kindhearted person.
Bell answered her call and walked over to the still waving cat girl.
"Nya! It's terrible rookie! Syr took the day off to enjoy Monsterphilia but she forgot her wallet! She won't be able to buy any potato puffs!" Anya gestured wildly, swinging the wallet in her hand back and forth like it was the end of the world.
"Huh?" Bell stared blankly back at the dramatic waitress.
"Please adventurer-kun!" She solemnly dropped to one knee. "Find Syr and return her wallet to her. You're her only hope!" She now bowed her head with her open hands fully extended out in front of her. Within her palms was a cute frilly coin pouch. Even though the wallet looked totally normal, Anya's grand display couldn't help but make Bell feel like it was something sacred.
Still a bit confused, Bell wasn't quite sure how to respond to this heartfelt request but he decided he had no choice but to accept.
Right as he was about to reach out,
*Thwap*
A broom handle slammed into the back of Anya's head.
"Yowch! Nyaaa Ryuu, what was that for? I'm just having a bit of fun." Yelped the cat girl who now had tears in her eyes.
A beautiful green haired elf girl, who Bell recognized as one of Anya's fellow waitresses named Ryuu arrived, broom still in her hand. The sight of the broom making contact with Anya's head was only a blur to the level 1 adventurer's eyes.
*Gulp*
'I know they told me they were adventurers but how strong are they?' The rookie thought in amazement.
"Forgive us, Mister Cranel. What Anya is trying to say is that it looks like Syr forgot her wallet because she was in a bit of a rush. Do you mind handing it to her if you happen to find her? We'd love to go ourselves but unfortunately we're the only ones on shift right now at the bar." Elaborated the elf.
Bell thought back to the meals Syr had given him in the prior days and all the nights he'd spent at the bar. Despite Syr wringing his wallet dry, the conversations he had with them all seemed genuine, and beneath the jokes and fun atmosphere, they even gave him a tip or two for the dungeon!
Bell decided it wasn't even a question, he would repay their kindness here.
"You've all helped me out so much, I'd be glad to return the favor. I was thinking about checking out the Monsterphilia festival anyway." Bell said a bit sheepishly.
"We are in your debt, Mister Cranel." The green haired elf said sagely. She handed the boy the wallet.
"Nya! Thanks rookie, Syr will be so happy!" Anya excitedly added.
Bell put the wallet in his bag and headed towards the fairgrounds. Line and some others were talking about Monsterphilia at breakfast this morning. It sounded fun but his exchange with Gareth had fired him up enough that he was planning on skipping it and going into the dungeon again.
'This will be a good break to enjoy myself' He thought to himself.
This was a lost cause.
Bell's eyes peered over the fairgrounds and saw hundreds if not thousands of people bustling around. He'd already searched high and low and saw no signs of the bluish-grey haired girl he was looking for.
He finally took a break near the walls of the coliseum. Numerous members of the Ganesha familia were wheeling cages in and out of the coliseum further down the wall at one of the entrances. The structure itself was massive. Bell knew about it from past conversations with Eina but this was his first time seeing it in person so close. There were numerous hallways all around the coliseum but most seemed to be gated off. From what Bell could tell, the main entrance was a ways back behind him. He heard that the main show for Monsterphilia took place within, but would Syr really have been able to get all of the way in to see the show with no money?
Bell continued to be lost in thought as he stood still trying to think of what he should do. He was suddenly interrupted from his thoughts when he felt an intense glare behind him. Reacting purely on instinct, he turned around in a start. To his surprise, a few meters away from him, he locked eyes with the girl he was searching for. Frozen in shock, a look of embarrassment washed over Syr's face that slowly turned into a small pout.
"Jeez, I was gonna surprise you!" She joked as she gave him a playful shove.
"Haha, sorry I didn't mean to ruin the surprise." Bell awkwardly laughed. "I was looking all over for you! The other waitresses told me you forgot your wallet." The young adventurer rummaged through his pockets and pulled out the frilly pink pouch. "I hope you didn't run into too much trouble without it." He extended his hand out for her to take it.
"Oh, you're so sweet, Bell! You didn't have to come all of the way out here. Did Anya and Ryuu convince you?" She said appreciatively.
"They did ask me… but I wanted to do it." He started. The green adventurer thought back to how accepting they were of him at the bar. Even after he embarrassingly ran out in a panic, Syr had been providing him breakfast the past few days. He expected her to stop showing up on his morning trek to the dungeon once he stopped going to the bar for dinner, but every morning without fail she was there, waiting for him. "You and everyone at the bar have been so kind to me, this is the least I can do. Thank you, Miss Syr." Bell finished off with a bright smile.
Directly caught in the crosshairs of the boy's beaming smile, Syr broke eye contact and looked away in embarrassment as a slight blush spread across her face.
"That's not fair." She quietly spoke under her breath. A moment later she reached and retrieved her wallet from his hands.
"Sorry, what was that?" Bell said looking at her red face. "Are you okay? Are you getting sick?" Bell leaned in to get a closer look.
Syr backed away slightly in response.
"No! I'm fine! Totally fine!" The maid responded with a fluster.
A moment later, a scream broke out near the gate to the coliseum.
"Ahhhhhh! Somebody help! A monster broke loose!"
Immediately after a chain reaction of screams took place as more of the crowd started to freak out with similar shouts.
Bell looked at the crowd dispersing. Seconds later, he witnessed the frightening variety of monsters that were running loose. Goblins, Kobolds, Hellhounds, even monsters Bell didn't recognize. They were all over the place off in the distance. His immediate instinct was to go and help but he turned and saw a worried look on Syr's face. He looked back to the crowd, unsure of what to do when Ganesha familia guards started to arrive on the scene.
"Miss Syr! We have to get out of here, the Ganesha familia should have this under control. Please stay close to me" Bell grabbed the maid's hand and hurriedly walked away from the coliseum walls with Syr in toe. Sounds of battle could be heard from the direction the screams were coming from. Bell looked off in the distance and could see that some Ganesha familia guards had already arrived and were holding off some of the beasts.
"How did these monsters break out?! What are the guards inside doing?" Shouted a Ganesha familia member to his comrade as he blocked a hellhound's claw with his massive iron shield.
Suddenly a massive silverback burst out of the coliseum's side entrance and sprinted towards the guard. Before he could even react, the monster's palm collided with his side and sent him flying.
*AWOOOOOOGA*
It pounded its chest repeatedly as it let out a victory screech. Its wrists were still locked in broken chains that once bound it. After it calmed down, it began sniffing the air as if in search of something. The beast's eyes slowly scanned the area until it locked eyes with Bell. Its attention was now fully locked in with its target acquired. Not even a second later, the monster took off in a sprint towards its new prey.
The rookie adventurer squeezed the maid's hand tighter and began dragging her in a full sprint.
"Miss Syr I'm sorry but we have to goooooo!" He shouted in a panic. Syr briefly looked back towards the monster herself and instantly understood.
The two of them now continued in a full sprint towards the center of the fair grounds. Bell hoped to find more guards from the Ganesha familia for help. While the gorilla by itself terrified him, he did not have confidence he'd be able to defend Syr properly, let alone actually fight it. That monster was known as a Silverback and they spawned on floor 11! He didn't need Eina to pound it in his skull that 11 is more than double 5!
Despite their best efforts, Bell could feel the monster's presence as it got closer by the second with no guard in sight. With seconds ticking down as he tried to come up with his next move, Syr spoke up.
"The alley over there! We'll be able to lose it in Daedalus streets." She pointed off to their right for Bell to see the alley at the edge of the fairgrounds.
The rookie's heart beat rapidly as the silverback was now only a few feet away from them. In a split second decision, Bell held onto Syr's hand tight as he took a sharp right turn and changed directions to the newfound escape route.
The beast tried to react in time but its momentum carried it forward in the same direction they were running a second ago. A large crash rattled out as it ran into one of the canopies.
Not a second was spared as Bell and Syr jetted down the alleyway without looking back.
The brief feeling of relief from dodging the beast's assault was quickly replaced with confusion as Bell saw the numerous pathways before him. The long alleyway had countless side paths in addition to the main path he was following. There was nowhere near enough time for him to evaluate each path and where it might take him. He bolted forward and with no time to think, he decided to take several turns at random, with the sole intention of getting away from the silverback. The moment he reached a dead end he immediately took the next best path in hopes of increasing the distance between them and the beast.
Exhaustion began to catch up to them as more minutes passed. The sun glared down as sweat trickled from the rookie's brow. Bell was able to manage due to his status, but looking back at Syr, he could tell this was taking a toll on her. He hadn't heard the monster for several minutes and the optimistic part of him hoped they'd lost it, as slim as that was.
It was in that same exact moment that Bell saw an ape-like shadow on the ground in front of him. His mind slowed as he switched gears into pure reflex. The silverback took to the roofs and was now mid air as it dropped right on them. The beast was mere inches away from them as Bell pushed Syr away. The distressed bluish-grey eyes of the waitress made contact with Bell's own ruby red irises as he could only speak a single word.
"Run."
The silverback crashed into Bell a moment later. They rolled around in a blur, sharp fangs gnashed at the rookie as he did what he could to dodge. One bite got through to his left forearm as he used it to block fangs that came mere inches from his throat. As the beast's teeth made contact with Bell's forearm, they shredded through the armor as if it was butter and held tight with no intention of letting go. The young rookie let out a sharp scream in response. It felt like it was trying to rip his arm off.
Unable to reach out and fully unsheathe his new short sword, Bell gritted his teeth through the pain and unlatched the knife he got from the guild starter kit from his right side. He kept it for emergencies and if any time was an emergency, it sure was now.
The iron blade, already chipped and falling apart from constant use in the dungeon, plunged into the silverback's left eye. With a massive screech the monster reeled back, letting go of Bell's arm and officially breaking the blade from its pommel.
The monster rolled around clawing at its eye as it tried to remove the broken blade. With each scratch, fresh blood covered the ape's face and hands. Its pure silver fur coat, now tainted with a red hue, gave a terrifying view for any onlookers.
Bell took this moment to take off in a mad sprint again before the beast regathered its senses.
He panted heavily as he looked down at the forearm he hugged to his chest. Red began to seep deeply into his shirt from the gash the creature left. Just from that brief exchange, Bell could tell the monster's strength was on a whole other level compared to anything else he'd faced sans Gareth himself.
He tried to not think about how much blood he was losing as he continued down alley after alley. The rookie looked at the terrain around him in an attempt to get a general sense of direction on where he was going but every path looked the same!
'Where even am I?! I've taken so many different turns at this point. This place may as well be a labyrinth!' The rookie tiredly thought to himself. His mind then wrapped back around to Syr and was filled with worry. If he was confused, then it's likely that the waitress wouldn't have any idea where to go either. Bell thought about the possibility of the silverback finding her first and color drained from his face. He immediately picked up his pace. No matter what, he had to get to Syr first.
Finally, after what seemed like forever, Bell reached a wide open area. There was a run down church among other small houses and buildings. One of the church doors opened abruptly and to Bell's surprise, Syr was the one who popped out of it.
"Bell! Hurry over here!" She hurriedly waved for him to come over to her in the building as she spoke in a hushed tone.
Not needing to be told twice, he dashed across the clearing and made it into the building with Syr closing the door behind him.
"Miss Syr, I'm glad you're okay! The beast is still out there." Bell spoke with a mix of emotions and exhaustion washing over his face. His cradled arm had almost entirely turned the front of his shirt to a dark shade of red.
He noticed that he and Syr weren't alone as he looked around the room and noticed several children, as well as a kind looking older woman who was in typical church attire. Based on the children's clothes that could barely be counted as rags, they did not look well off. That added onto the fact that they saw the gaping gash in Bell's forearm, they were justifiably freaked out to the extreme.
"Oh no, you're hurt! Miss Maria, do you have any emergency potions or first aid?" Syr asked the kind-looking older woman.
"I'll see if I can find something to stop the bleeding as a temporary fix, but this boy needs a real healer for that wound." The woman explained as she quietly got up to look for any medical supplies.
"Miss Syr, where are we? Are you familiar with this spot?" Bell spoke in a hushed tone. His heart still beated intensely as he leaned against the wall and listened for any signs of the monster.
"We're at the heart of Daedalus street right now. The people here don't have much money, but kind souls like Miss Maria look out for each other. She runs this place as an orphanage." Syr quietly said with a small smile. She gestured over to the children across the room. "That's Rye, Fina and Roux. I come here every now and then to help out."
"Big sis Syr is amazing! She always makes time for us!" Said Rye, a human boy with wild brown hair. The other two children nodded strongly in agreement while hiding behind their less shy friend.
A moment later, the older woman Bell now knew as Maria returned back with a small vial. "Forgive me young man, this health potion is the most we have to offer you. Please hold your arm out." The caretaker grimly spoke.
Bell began to extend his injured arm and immense pain immediately shot through him. Despite the adrenaline that still pumped through his system from his exchange with the monster the pain was still immense. He gritted his teeth and extended his arm long enough for the caretaker to examine it. Everyone in the room grimaced at seeing a clearer view of the boy's wound. Still fresh, the gash on his arm was truly a gruesome sight. Fresh blood continued to drip on the floor of the church while Maria inspected the injury for any broken bones. While the gash was deep enough to see a bit of the pearly white bone peeking through, luckily there was nothing actually broken.
"It's a good thing that nothing is broken, young man. Otherwise, we'd be at risk of the potion possibly regenerating the bone wrong."
Bell gulped heavily at the new information.
"Be ready, a potion of this level might only be a bandage, but it will sting." Maria grimly uncorked the bottle of reddish liquid. With a shaky nod from Bell, she poured the small vial over his forearm. The liquid sizzled as it began to coat his wound. Smoke wafted off of the gaping hole on the boy's arm as it steadily started to regenerate.
"AGH!" Bell grunted painfully between clenched teeth as quietly as he could while he struggled to hold his shaking arm still. It was almost magical how the sinew and muscle that was once missing, slowly appeared back one thread at a time within his forearm. Unfortunately, after a few seconds the potion hit its limit and the regeneration stopped. Bell continued to breath heavily for a few more seconds until he finally calmed down and opened his eyes to look at his arm. While the gash was still bleeding and much deeper than he would have liked, he could at least no longer see bone anymore.
Maria corked the now empty potion bottle and reinspected the rookie's forearm, "I'm sorry I can't do anymore for you. The bleeding has lessened but we still need an actual healer for a full recovery."
"Thank you so much for this, Miss Maria!" Bell smiled and bowed deeply to the kind woman. He then quietly moved towards the window in the front of the church and gravely looked to Syr. "The silverback is still out there. It was so determined to chase after us. Has anything like this ever happened before during Monsterphilia?" Bell returned to the more pressing topic at hand while slowly peeking out the window in search for any signs of the aforementioned beast. The coast was clear so far but Bell couldn't shake the sinking feeling in his core that its arrival was inevitable.
"There's been a couple of small incidents in previous years but nothing like this." Syr responded quietly as she crouched near the window next to Bell. Equally as worried, she took a peek out of the window as well.
On the other side of the room two of the orphans hugged their caretaker tightly in fear of what could be coming.
"It's okay children, we'll be alright." Maria kindly said as she hugged the two children back tightly. Rye, usually being the bravest amongst them, tried to stand tall.
"It's okay Mother Maria! No matter what happens, I'll protect us!" He tried to confidently declare. He held out a small rusted knife proudly, but as his eyes followed the deep wound on Bell's forearm and then to the dark puddle of blood on the floorboard, his legs couldn't help but shake.
Bell was about to speak up when he heard the heavy footsteps of the approaching beast echo throughout the buildings. In a frenzied stumble, the silverback entered the center of the clearing. Now almost entirely coated red from its own blood, the beast panted heavily while coming to a complete stop. It then sucked in a deep breath and pounded its chest powerfully as it released an ear piercing roar.
*AWOOOOOOOOOOOO*
Bell could see what used to be its left eye was now a bloody, raw mess from its repeated scratching to get the blade out of its face from his earlier attack. It made for a truly grizzly sight.
The gash on Bell's arm screamed at him in pain as he fearfully thought about going against the beast once more. He looked over to Syr and the others in the church. Looking like a true damsel in distress, Syr hugged herself shaking in fear. The orphans and Miss Maria on the other hand were downright terrified. Rye, who was trying to stand tall only a moment ago was now hugging Miss Maria just as tightly as the other orphans. Miss Maria firmly hugged them back, equally as scared. If not only for herself, but for the well-being of the children she cared for.
Anxiety and worry gripped the rookie's heart. Bell racked his brain trying to think of a way where everyone could get out of this safely. Fighting a Silverback with only one good arm was NOT on his list of things to do today. Even at tip top condition this was not a monster that he would want to take on. He looked around through the interior of the church and saw an exit towards the back. Sneaking out the back with everyone crossed his mind. Just as he was debating on what to do, he peeked back out the window and what he saw made his stomach drop.
No longer relying on sight, the beast was sniffing around the courtyard in search of something just like before. Slowly but surely, its nose eventually found its way to the fresh trail of blood that Bell left behind on his escape. Everything fell into place within Bell's mind. His eyes slowly lowered down to his still bleeding arm, and then to the still fresh puddle of blood on the floor boards. It was after him. It has been this whole time and with his wound, there would be no escaping it. He looked to the terrified orphans, and then to Syr next to him. Bell's anxiety ridden face transitioned to one of cold, steely resolve as he released a heavy breath he had been holding.
"Miss Syr, take Miss Maria and the orphans and escape through the exit in the back." Bell calmly requested of the bluish-silver haired girl next to him.
Shocked at his unexpected request, Syr hesitated looking between the orphans and the exit in the back. "But Bell… What about you?"
"It's after me, I'll distract it while you guys run."
"No I can't lea-" Bell caused her to stop mid sentence as he put his non-injured hand on her shoulder. His calm, crimson eyes made contact with her own. "Syr, please. I'm counting on you."
Flustered at the firmness of his request, Syr only nodded her head in agreement. She quietly moved across the room and started directing Miss Maria and the orphans out the back exit. Syr looked back once more at Bell before leaving, "Next meal at the Benevolent Mistress is on me so you better survive!"
Bell responded with a small smile and nodded. A moment later they were gone.
It was strange, as Bell watched the Silverback steadily follow the trail of his own blood towards the church, his mind was clear.
'What do you want to protect?' Gareth's words echoed through his memory.
Bell was beginning to understand what his senior, that he admired so much, meant. If it was a question of stopping the silverback or protecting Syr and the orphans, then the answer was simple.
The young adventurer saw the beast was only a few steps away from the church doors and unsheathed his shortsword in preparation of the battle to come. He quietly repositioned himself to the left of the massive double doors of the church with his sword raised, waiting for the approaching beast.
Seconds passed with no sound from outside. Bell could only hear his own subtle breaths as he waited in anticipation. He was beginning to worry that the beast may have gone around the building to go after Syr and orphans.
*BOOM*
The monster punched through the right door with its massive first spraying debris everywhere. Startled by the blast, Bell was only able to bring down his sword on pure instinct and sliced a huge chunk out of the beast's right arm causing blood to spray everywhere. The monster recoiled back with a shriek of pain as it jumped back from the door. Bell was surprised the shortsword was able to pierce the silverbacks' hide so cleanly with the power of only one of his arms. He internally thanked whoever created the blade.
Wanting to keep his momentum, Bell immediately launched himself out of the church with his sword pointed at the ready. Though the beast was down an eye, all of its other senses were heightened to the extreme. Sensing the rookie was on the attack, it weaved to its left, swiftly dodging the shortsword aimed at its heart. In an almost perfect counter, it swung its non-injured arm with its palm out towards Bell. To the rookie's surprise, while it was definitely fast, he was actually able to follow it with his eyes and make a dodge of his own. Bell nimbly landed a few feet across from his foe. With a cry of sheer savagery, the blood covered silverback charged once more. It had no concern for its own well-being as it charged and launched a flurry of open palmed slams towards the low level adventurer.
Barely able to keep up, Bell did everything he could to weave in and out of the attacks. Both moved at similar speeds with neither obviously leading the fight. With every attack dodged, Bell's breathing became heavier and heavier, the blood loss and the constant running catching up to him. However, the rookie could tell that the beast was in a similar boat with its own attacks slowing down as well. At the rate the brawl was going, both opponents could feel that it was down to a battle of endurance.
Finally, Bell ducked underneath a wide swing from the silverbacks left arm and saw it. The right arm he cut earlier had lost far too much blood. The beast swung it's right arm like normal, but its fist hung limp and held nowhere near the force it had a moment ago. Seizing this opportunity, Bell weaved around it, getting up close, and at last plunged his shortsword into the massive monster's stomach aiming for its magic stone core. He hoped to hear the monster disperse into a cloud of dust but was met with an ear shattering scream. Before Bell could even react the silverback slapped him into the pavement with enough force to rattle his brain. His shortsword remained firmly lodged in the beast's stomach. While Bell was still attempting to regain his senses, the monster picked him up by his injured arm and in a wide arc, swung the young adventurer over its head and slammed him to the ground on its opposite side without letting go.
"AGHHHHHH" Bell screamed in agony. Not just from the pain of hitting the pavement, but due to how tightly the beast was crushing his already injured arm.
In reaction to the rookie's screams, the beast slowly dragged him up from the ground and hung him in the air. Bell began to kick back and forth in an attempt to break free. With an almost sadistic smile on its face, the silverback squeezed Bell's arm even tighter. Bell's blood extruded over and down the beast's hand from the already open gash on his forearm. As much as Bell continued to struggle, the beast's grip was solid, with no signs of letting go. He was barely able to keep his vision focused in front of him due to the pain. As seconds passed, Bell's struggling began to lessen. The silverback loosened his grip and looked at the rookie in confusion. It brought the broken adventurer closer to its face, wondering if there was any life left in him. It was as if it was looking at a broken toy.
As Bell hung there limply, he couldn't help but feel relief that Syr and the others at least got away. His mind numbly wandered to all of the stories his grandpa told him when he was a boy. He thought about the hardships of all of the heroes he admired so much.
'I want to become strong, goddess.' His mind flashed back to his declaration he made to Loki.
He recalled the promises he made to himself after that night in the bar. A fire slowly began to reignite inside of him. His grandpa always told him, in every legend, a hero's battle was never easy. It was okay to fall down, it was okay to get beaten to a bloody mess, but what mattered was you always got back up. Bell's soul burned with his true desire. Too afraid to ever truly acknowledge it.
'I want to be a hero!'
He started to once again struggle, flailing back and forth. He was close enough to smell the beast's gnarly breath as it gave him a large toothy grin, excited its prey still had energy left. In the midst of Bell's struggle, he noticed his key to victory. His shortsword was still locked inside of the beast's stomach.
In the blink of an eye, while hanging in front of the silverback, Bell did a swift kick to his shortsword. The blade previously stuck in the beast's stomach, swung horizontally, cleaving open and releasing a significant portion of the silverback's guts. In a shriek of pain the monster released Bell's arm, allowing him to land on the ground. With loud ghastly wails, the silverback rolled back and forth on the ground in pain, trying to cover its protruding intestines that were falling out of it. In the midst of the chaos Bell limped with what little energy he had left towards his shortsword that had fallen to the ground beside the monster and picked it up.
"Huff… Huff, why won't you just die already?" Bell exasperatedly breathed out. With all of his remaining strength, Bell raised his shortsword in his right hand above his head one last time. Focusing what little mental power he had left, he brought down the blade and impaled the beast cleanly in the middle of it's chest, striking it's magic core mid roll. With a loud poof, the terrifying silverback finally dispersed into a large cloud of dust.
Finally, all of the adrenaline released from Bell's body and he plopped himself to the ground. Blood covered his surroundings from the fierce fight. He couldn't tell if it was his own or the monsters. Still breathing heavily, he tried to focus his willpower to stand up but his legs wouldn't cooperate. His left arm felt cold. He attempted to turn his head to view his injured arm but the entire world started spinning around him. His vision slowly became a blur as his consciousness began to leave him. He now laid flat on the ground with his eyes closed.
'I hope Syr and the children made it out fine.' Were the last thoughts he had until he completely lost consciousness.