Chương 16: Mutual Destruction

In a small clearing, Evel gulped. A gargantuan bird loomed over Evel, frozen in place in an unnatural, white membrane. A Skydart, but unlike any Evel had seen before. Folded unevenly, its featherless, wide wings would span at least four meters when unfurled, and its triangular head faced the sky, as if caught mid-peck. Scaled skin ran the length of its body like armor, and its sharp, unmoving orange pupils tore through Evel's nerves. These are the beasts we're meant to defeat? Evel shook his head.

He'd die in an instant. Skydarts were known for their speed, being held back only by their small size, but the bird in front of him was an absolute behemoth. Evel looked to the sky and saw the crows flying overhead. I can't even take those guys out. He 'recalled' the method to free it from its membrane but quickly suppressed the idea, leaving no space for intrusive thoughts. Maybe once I'm grouped up with everyone, we can consider killing this thing. Even then, Evel had doubts.

Once the bird took flight, who exactly was supposed to bring it down? Evel pressed forward into the sparse forest, taking note of the location of the beast should he need to return. He continued walking unevenly. Thankfully, the pain in his foot had lessened. He wasn't sure whether it was the wound healing or that he adapted and learned how to walk while avoiding the cuts. A few minutes later, he stopped to rest before a massive tree carrying clumps of pink fruit.

It had been three hours since he woke in this forest, and after losing so much blood, thirst clawed at his throat. He called upon Eth to pluck a piece of fruit, then bit into it. Juice spilled across his tongue, and a little from the corners of his lips, but Evel couldn't be bothered with that right now. He had never encountered these pink fruits in Yosten, but they had been scattered throughout the forest, and they looked irresistible. After seeing a squirrel nibble away at one, he figured it must be safe.

Evel smiled, enjoying the small moment. It could be going so much worse. As he subconsciously relaxed, enjoying the sweet crunch, a brief, high-pitched whirr sliced past his ear. Evel froze. The arrow shot past him, barely missing, and crashed into the tree behind him violently. The loud crash jolted Evel's mind awake, filling his blood with adrenaline. He blinked, then quickly understood. He was under attack.

Twang A distant release of a bowstring could be heard, and before Evel even saw the arrow, he ducked behind a nearby tree. From behind cover, he stared at the destroyed trunk. What the hell? The tree had been hit with such force that its trunk was splintered, leaving a deep crater-like gouge. An archer, I should be out of their line of sight for now. I need a plan. Evel scanned his surroundings, his mind racing for a plan. He could never hope to outrun this archer, not with his injury.

He couldn't shoot back; his long-range shooting skills were just too unreliable. He needed to bait them into medium range, then use his crossbow to end the fight quickly. But would even that be enough? I'm completely outgunned. Evel quickly extended some wire and laid the same trap that had worked before. First, I need to see what I'm dealing with. Evel peeked behind his saviour tree and looked at the area where the arrow had originated, but he couldn't find anyone.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere. Ability to stay hidden? Evel threw out this idea immediately. No, their ability must have to do with their powerful arrows; nobody is naturally that powerful. He widened his search a bit more and found a dark-haired figure in a green hood circling around his location. Below their hood, their faces were slightly showing. He recognized this person. Shit. He had first met her at the rest pods. He wouldn't forget her hunter eyes.

She seemed powerful, so he had observed a few of her spars, and the situation was grim. While most of the recruits were just that, recruits, she moved with the experience of a veteran. He had watched her spar multiple people at once using a wooden stick and win, and the fight hadn't even been close. She was on the same tier as Bremin, a great talent he had no chance of beating, especially not while injured. I can't win from afar. I can't win from medium range.

Evel began scouting his surroundings, preparing for any ideas he could come up with. And I certainly can't win in a melee. Evel's brain kept churning, looking for a chance of survival; a simple hope was enough. And eventually, he came up with a plan, albeit extremely risky. That may be my only choice. Evel leaped into action, sprinting towards the location he'd come from, abandoning his set trap. He strafed left and right, weaving between the trees, trying to stay out of the archer's line of sight.

He ignored the wound on his foot, which had reopened and focused solely on making distance. Yet, no arrow came. She's trying to end it decisively by closing in on me. Good. After about a minute of running, Evel reached his destination. The towering figure of the Skydart filled his vision. As soon as he was within reach of the membrane, he rotated his body back and activated his ability.

"STEP OUT INTO THE CLEARING NOW!" His injured foot was shaking, but he tried his hardest to preserve a strong front. Evel's voice carried outwards as Eth remained stationary above his head. He needed to convince her he could survive at least one shot. Silence. There was no reply, but Evel was confident she had already caught up to him. She was certainly within the danger zone should he free the Skydart. A cold bead of sweat travelled down Evel's face, as his body tensely awaited a reply.

Evel felt completely naked in the clearing, surrounded by trees, any of which could be hiding the lethal hunter. After no reply for a few seconds, Evel's nervousness rose. If she had simply run away quietly and gone for a long-distance shot, there was nothing he could do. Yet that would still be a risk for her. The Skydart was massive; regardless of the distance she escaped, it may still catch up to her.

After a few more tense seconds, a hooded figure walked out from behind a tree, bow drawn in hand, aiming at Evel. Relief washed over him; the most dangerous part was over. He had gambled that she wouldn't want a long, drawn-out fight and would close the distance, and it had paid off.

"Drop your weapon or I free the bird." Evel stared down the archer with fake confidence as he met her amber eyes. Evel's jaws clenched tightly as he waited for a response. Silence. Seconds passed as both parties remained deathly still. The archer moved; Evel tensed. She slowly kneeled down and placed her bow on the ground before getting up again, hands raised slightly in the air. It seemed she wasn't willing to take the risk. Evel dismissed Eth.

"If you pick up the bow or try running away, I'll free the bird soon before you make any distance." He sat down, cross-legged beside the bird as he continued watching her. The pulsing pain from his foot was a major distraction, so he took this opportunity to rest it.

"You'll die first." The hooded figure replied carefully. Evel shrugged, "Maybe. But you'll die with me." Silence. She took off the hood on her head, revealing jet-black hair that reached her back; her deep amber eyes remained fixed on Evel.

"Now what?" Evel thought carefully before replying. He hadn't exactly planned out what would happen from here on out. Now that he was close enough to touch the membrane, he was basically wearing an explosive vest. He couldn't think of an easy resolution.

"Any ideas?" Evel asked back, unable to think of any solution. The corners of her lip slightly rose.

"I'll leave, and we can pretend we never saw each other?" Evel couldn't help but snort at that suggestion. She had attacked him, and now she wanted to let bygones be bygones? Evel shook his head.

"You'll just snipe me down after you get far enough, no chance I'll let you leave, unless you want to leave your bow here?" She frowned.

"No. The bow stays with me."

"Well, in that case, I guess we have to wait."

"For?"

"One of our friends, or even better, a group with the intention of killing this bird. If it's your friend, I'll have another hostage, and if it's mine, I'll feel safe enough to let you leave. If a big group comes, I'm sure we'd be willing to put aside our differences and help them out." Her eyes flicked to the Skydart, then back to Evel, her silence betraying hesitation.

"I have no guarantee you'll let me leave if your friend arrives. At that point, I'd rather take the risk of getting away from the Skydart while it's busy gnawing away at you." The lack of trust from both parties really made this more difficult than it needed to be, but Evel couldn't just take her words at face value, not after she just tried to kill him.

"Mutual destruction." Evel spoke the moment the idea came to his head. He pointed at the beast behind him.

"If you free the bird, then my friend and I will be food. Same trick I'm using on you, you can use on me." Her amber eyes held Evel's gaze, unblinking. Then she deeply exhaled.

"Fuck. I'll miss out on so many kills wasting away here." She walked forward with her bow, hands raised to show she meant no harm. She dropped her bow on the ground, just a meter away from her. Then, she joined Evel and sat within an arm's length of the beast. In the little clearing, a giant Skydart lay trapped within its white membrane. Two figures sat cross-legged several meters apart before it. They appeared relaxed, but kept their gazes fixed on each other, ready to react to the slightest movement.

The time quickly passed by as they waited in silence. Eventually, Evel turned to her with curiosity.

"Why'd you give me that funny look back at the camp?" She frowned, a look of confusion. Seeing her face, Evel clarified,"At the rest pods, you bumped my shoulder." Her confused face slowly distorted, as her eyes widened in realization.

"…Oh." Her eyes narrowed.

"You're the creep who was watching me sleep."