Head’s On A Swivel

Bjorn could taste the corruption of mana in the air as thick as honey to his senses. The monsters were on the last leg of the journey to the camp as Tanisha's group followed Alfred to an elite unit of monster hunters. Bjorn noticed for the first time Alfred was in armor instead of his normal loose fitting casual wear. His outfit matched the monster hunters they were meeting.

They were all men of Mesha, their flaming red hair giving away that obvious fact. There were six of them in total including Alfred. Unlike the other monster hunters, this group was stern, their presence commanding attention like a sudden storm. 

All of them including Alfred wore a red brigandine, plates riveted to blood red cloth. None of their armor was pristine like Tanisha's new set, they were battle worn which spoke to the monsters they hunted and slayed. A black jackrabbit poised in mid-leap—came into view. This emblem, the coat of arms of their monster-hunting group, was boldly displayed on each man's armor. Some had it stitched into the chest of their brigandine, while others bore it on small metal plates affixed to their gauntlets or girded on their belts.

Their weapons, slung across their backs or sheathed at their sides, were as varied as the men themselves—longswords, axes, crossbows, and spears, each one well-worn and clearly favored by its owner. The weapons of prana users are part of their owner very being. If one was damaged it would heal in time like a wound to the body. The fact that their weapons were marred was a testament to their dedication to battle.

Alfred reached out his hand, his eyes narrowing as he focused his prana. With a deep breath, he extended his hand, summoning his weapon. Golden-brown prana swirled around him, a misty aura that pulsed with his essence. The prana coiled and twisted, forming a connection to the black metal chain net buried in the ground beneath his feet.

The ground trembled briefly before the net materialized, links clinking softly as it unraveled. Despite coming from the rock beneath him, the chain was clean of any debris or dirt even the ground was undisturbed, as if the net simply passed through immaterially. Every other link bore a dagger-like blade, gleaming with the life breath of prana. The chain coiled around Alfred's arm like a living thing, each blade quivering with barely contained energy. The prana faded, leaving only the ominous weapon in his grasp, most of it draped the ground.

Identify

Name: Alfred Quarter

Species: Human

Level: 50 < ??

Vocation: Prana Iron Netcaster

Identify

Name: William Parker

Species: Human

Level: 75

Vocation: Prana Spearman

Identify

Name: James Bernnet

Species: Human

Level: 81

Vocation: Prana Crossbowman

Identify

Name: Oliver Wright

Species: Human

Level: ??

Vocation: Prana Warrior

Identify

Name: Henry Wright

Species: Human

Level: 70

Vocation: Prana Axeman

Identify

Name: Samuel Wright

Species: Human

Level: ??

Vocation: Prana Spearman

Bjorn eyes widened at the jump in Alfred's level, before he summoned his weapon he was level fifty, but as soon as he touched his essence infused net his level jumped. The fact he could not see what his new level meant he was now at least over level eight-seven. Tanisha must have noticed it too as her shock looked to be more than just awe at just seeing the weapon.

"Failsafe?" Bjorn asked. "Did you get something wrong again?"

"Hey, don't look at me. The readings are accurate." Failsafe said in a scoff. "From what Tanisha said prana users put part of their essence into their weapon making it quite literally part of them. I guess that means they are only half as strong without the weapon? Or the weapon takes half their levels, look I don't know… material users are strange, we'll need to ask Tanisha later."

Oliver the man with the sword and shield stepped out from the pack. "It's about time we finally get you back out on the field, Alfred."

"Yeah, it's a right shit show out there." Alfred responded with a smile. "Let me introduce you all to my elite hunters…"

Alfred introduced Tanisha's party to everyone and after they all got acquainted they immediately went into a strategy meeting. While they did the first wave of the monsters filtered into the range of the archers on the wall. Their battle here was not the group's concern; they needed to take out the monarch before it could fly. Once that happened it would be able to travel anywhere freely attacking settlements and attracting more and more monsters to follow it.

The conversation quickly turned to Bjorn; his power had been on display because of the massive forest fire he had caused. The problem with monsters, especially those as strong as a jeweled wing monarch was their vitality. They could take hits that would kill any living being and recover rapidly because of all the purified mana in their bodies. They needed to burn away that vitality while also defending against the monarch and the waves of monsters around it.

"It's our best chance," Oliver said, his voice gruff. "We need to strike hard and fast. If we target the wings before they finish developing we can keep it grounded for a while longer."

Henry nodded in agreement, his hand resting on the haft of his war axe. "We'll need to hit it with everything. If Bjorn's plague fire is as powerful as what I saw near that druid hideout it could do the trick but we shouldn't put all our faith in it."

Alfred turned to Tanisha, his expression serious. "Tanisha, you're the least experienced here, my concern is that Bjorn's fire attracts more monsters to us. When he used that poison gas attack on the crawling stalkers they all were alerted to him despite being hidden. If the fire is the same, using it will attract every monster in the area and the monarch will go directly for him. They'll come straight for us."

"So, if we use Bjorn's fire, we could destroy the Monarch... but we'll be swarmed by the rest of the wave." Tanisha furrowed her brow.

Adelheid, hesitant but determined, finally spoke up. "It's a risk, but it's the best chance we have. If we focus on protecting Bjorn while he delivers the attack, we might just pull it off. But we need to be ready for the aftermath."

Alfred nodded. "This is where we need you, Tanisha. You'll need to get Bjorn close enough to use his fire. We'll cover you, but you have to trust us and keep him steady."

Tanisha still refused to look at Adelheid although Bjorn could feel her emotions knowing she had accepted the wifwolf's words this time.

Tanisha took a deep breath, her eyes meeting Alfred's with resolve. "I understand. We'll do it."

"Good," Alfred said, his voice firm. "Everyone knows their roles Tanisha, Bjorn Adelheid with me. We hit hard, we hit fast, and we make sure that Monarch doesn't get a chance to recover. Everyone else, form a perimeter and protect Bjorn at all costs from the monster wave after we get its attention. We'll survive the storm that follows, no one is permitted to die, understood?"

***

There were cracking sounds as whip-like tendrils slashed through the air with enough force to split a tree. The impacts hit Alfred's chain net which floated in the air, sturdy and unmoved as prana flowed like faint wisps in the wind. This was the second thornmire Bjorn's group had run into and was the most dangerous monster they had encountered. The first one nearly struck Adelheid unaware but her reflexes allowed her to dodge the strike at the last second. 

It was a monstrous plant-based abomination that looked better suited for swampland than a forest. Its body was a writhing mass of blood red vines with poison tipped thorns. What Bjorn and Failsafe approximated as its "face" was a gaping maw surrounded by long, flexible tendrils covered in sharp, thorny protrusions. Its mouth was lined with rows of interlocking, jagged teeth made from what looked like hardened wood.

This time they were ready for it and Alfred had his chain wall in place well ahead of the attack. Before the creature could even retract the long vines Tanisha had already used Arcane Shift in quick succession, closing the distance with her bardiche and slicing the monster nearly in half. She pulled back to strike again but the creature was already turning around to face her.

Her attack wasn't enough, even with all her might the monster wasn't dead. The cut quickly healed over with new vines which whipped in her direction as she dodged. It had to turn its attention to her which was where it made its last mistake. As soon as it turned away from Alfred the iron net dropped into the ground and reappeared directly under the monster. In an instant it closed in around the thornmire with the knife rings all pointed inward.

There was a squelch and a pained cry as dozens of blades pierced the creature all at once. It was a gruesome execution, like an iron maiden closing its door on a condemned sinner. The creature barely had time to react at all before it was dragged under ground as little more than bloody tethers.

"Don't stop, we still need to get to the monarch." Alfred said as a clean iron chain slowly raised from the ground beside him. "Head on a swivel ladies."