Smurfocalypse chapter 136: The Search for the Savant Cure part 26: The Treasure Duo, and The Deep Sea Tag Team Death Match!
Hefty and his forces had secured the second major piece to the cure and had begun their trek home through the forest. However time was no longer on their side, they had spent precious time here already just trying to get to the meadow. The sun would be going down soon, and with the arrival of dusk their surroundings would become more hostile. Under the cover of night spiritual forces protecting this land could freely manifest in physical form spelling death to any foreign entity. The sun came down and things were mostly uneventful as the knights made their way towards the edge of the forest. One could have seen the end of the forest in the distance if not for the darkness. They had eyes all around them watching from the shadows. Shadows were exactly what they were. The actual shadows cast by the trees during the day get up at night as though they were alive, assume a humanoid form, and walk around as though they were alive. Like a dryad these shadows protect the trees that emit the magic, and as is the law of the land anything not born here must be destroyed as it is a threat to the forest. As they walked Dew rubbed her eyes tiredly when out of the corner of her eye she spotted the red eyes these creatures have and glanced at it only for it to be gone when she averted her full attention to it.
"Guys… I think I saw something just now." Dew said stopping in her tracks.
"Probably just your imagination. Not scared of the dark now are we Dew?" Pearl said walking passed her.
Dew's face turned red and she gritted her teeth.
"Shut UP Pearl! I'm being serious." Dew said.
"It does feel like we're being watched…" Mammoth said.
Hefty stops and draws his sword. This was not the ideal place to have to fight. The magic was still affecting him, Storm, and Blossom that's a huge chunk of the group's power unable to fight at full strength.
"We'll defend this position. Don't split up! Our surroundings are unfamiliar!" Hefty said.
"Are you sure you saw something Dew?" Sweepy asked walking up to her.
"I'm positive. I saw two red glowing eyes in the distance." Dew said.
"Good eye as always Dew. Blossom stay by my side." Storm said.
"Right!" Blossom said.
Just then the figure that had been stalking them took its moment to strike. A thin tall shadowy humanoid figure descended from the treetops and was falling right towards Dew. Dew instinctively ducts and thrusts her trident into the air causing it to have to dodge her attack. The creature hits the forest floor and rolls before landing on its feet. It was taller than them by at least a foot. Grotesquely large lanky arms and legs with two glowing eyes being the only clear hint of its existence in this darkness. Storm reaches into her bag quickly and tosses Blossom a torch so she can light it. Once the torch was lit they could see the full figure looming over them. It stared Dew down with a piercing leer before it came at her causing her to leap back and once again thrust her trident forward causing it to dodge.
"Whatever it is. It's not very Smurfy." Dew said.
"Huh… Want to kill it Dew?" Pearl said.
"Guess we have no choice." Dew said with a nod.
"Let's do it!" Pearl shouted as her aura flared instantly above her head providing dim light.
Pearl then assumes a stance with her legs spread and her knees bent thrashing her arms forward causing the concealed blades in her wristbands to extend. She then violently stabs the Earth.
"Pressure point!" Pearl shouted.
As Pearl was doing this Dew distracted the creature with evasion tactics. It had completely forgotten the others even existed. Meanwhile Pearl had used her pressure type Smurf essence to create what was basically a sandbar that rose up around what would now be the arena leaving the others outside to spectate. Dew lures their opponent into the arena as a second one came in to serve as reinforcements and then she runs to the nearest tree, leaps as high as she can, kicks off the trunk and generates her Smurf essence as she flips into the arena.
"Tsunami!" Dew shouts as her aura releases a massive wave that crashes into the arena filling to the brim with water.
With a splash Dew lands in the water and dives deep down trident still in hand. Breathing wasn't an issue here for Dew. One cannot drown on their own Smurf essence. However, Pearl came prepared and stuffed a plant into her mouth that would produce oxygen for her once swallowed.
"I Don't know what they are, but they picked the wrong time to mess with Smurfdew!" Dew said shoving her hand into her pocket.
She retrieved a small little magic pill Magica had given her weeks ago that she of course didn't bother to test the potency of. Magica's Form Balls were a unique magic medicine she invented back in Sweden. It allows the consumer to assume a temporary transformation without an incantation. She boldly pops it into her mouth and swallows it whole. The moment she does Dew is transformed into a creature that has likely popped up in very few people's heads. She was a MerSmurf. Her legs had assumed the form of a strong tail with sapphire blue scales granting her mobility the likes of which she's never experienced while utilizing her Smurf essence.
"I'm trusting you Magica… Don't let me down." Dew thought.
Their opponents now completely submerged in Pearl and Dew's Death match arena tried to swim towards the surface when they felt actual pressure pulling them down once they reached a certain point in the arena making escape impossible. Pearl was on what would be their makeshift ocean floor using her Smurf essence to remain on solid ground. Everything and everyone was being affected. The two rival knights had created an artificial ocean from which there was no escape. The only one that could move freely was Dew especially now that the magic of the Form Ball had transformed her body to be fully aquatic.
"Magica's invention has perfected our strategy. If you fall on your ass Dew it's on you, and the shoes will be all mine." Pearl thought.
"A Death Match arena… A very well put together one too." Sweepy said as he watched.
"Opponents that get stuck in Dew's ocean never escape. If they don't drown then she gets them." Blossom explains.
"I'm guessing she can breathe in there. Raptor was able to swim in his own lava and not get burned." Hefty said.
"That's correct. Dew can breathe perfectly while under her own water. Nobody else can. Dew may not seem like it, but she is always in complete and total control." Storm said.
"It'll be interesting to see how the two of them handle things from here." Hefty said.
Mammoth said nothing as he watched. Just took in all he could visually, and learned. The concept of creating a death match arena with Smurf essence always rose the stakes. While Storm claims with confidence that Dew is in full control here, its clear things could go wrong for the two of them and this could backfire. The setup was more fragile than what meets the eye. If something were to happen to Pearl then the hydrostatic pressure necessary to maintain this arena would disappear causing the water to lose its shape and form a large puddle that would sink into the forest floor. However Pearl has a limited amount of time she can actually breathe down there. The plant she ate is a special aquatic herb that grows in the ocean allowing her to get plenty at the port. When it wears off she will be unable to breathe and would basically be suffocated by Dew's Smurf essence. It was normally a battle against time as lung capacity determined the length of the death match. That has been stripped away, and now the two of them will have to fight a drawn out battle this way pushing their synergy and strategies to the limit to ensure survival. This strategy has earned them the nickname: The Treasure Duo. Like buried treasure their opponents are lost at sea never to be found again.
"For Port Saint Smurf!" Dew shouts passionately as she takes off in the water trident in hand towards her shadowy opponent.