Chapter Seventeen

A portion of the forest was charred and blackened, the trees reduced to splintered stumps. The ground was scorched and burned, and the air was heavy with the acrid smell of smoke and ozone. The forest, having struck by lightning, now bore a bald spot where the earth was still smoldering and the trees were reduced to ashes.

The silence was oppressive, punctuated only by the creaking of trees and the distant growling of low level undead. The sky above was dark and foreboding, with clouds that seemed to swirl and twist in malevolent ways.

Despite the devastation, the members of the Stormbringers could only stare in despair at their teammate Holga, who hung limply from the claws of the new comer, a second Ursagorath.

Amidst their shocked disbelief, a voice cut through the thickened silence. "You bastard!!" Drawing her daggers with a righteous fury, Elara charges towards the Ursagorath holding her friend captive with a red glint in her eyes.

A bit slow to react, Jarred draws his claymore. "Elara wait, regroup."

Elara is having none of it though as she closes the distance between her and the undead monster in an instant, moving so fast no one had seen her.

Except the Ursagorath in question. As if getting rid of trash, the monster tossed the mages body towards the charging human.

Elara slows down her charge in order to catch her friend, a mistake on this battle field.

The world seems to enter a slow spell as Elara hears voices screaming her name. Looking back she can see Kai with a look of despair etched on his face, his arms limp not even trying to nock an arrow in his bow.

Just behind him Shin, the ever competent healer, is attempting to cast a long distance healing spell. She can spot tears gathering in his eyes.

And Jarred, Jarred had a look of absolute terror etched on his face as he ran with all of his strength towards her, his voice screaming her name.

Confused at first, as to why everyone had those looks on their faces, Elara finally realizes. "Oh." She turns her head forward, staring at the rows and rows of blackened jagged teeth looming right over her head. The Ursagorath had used Holga's body as a cover and she had recklessly jumped to her death, literally.

It's said that in the face of death, one's life flashes before their eyes. This, was not true for Elara however. No, in the face of an inevitable death, She didn't think of her past, she didn't think of her family, she didn't even think her lover Jarred nor her friend turned sister Holga. No, in the face of death, there was only cold acceptance. Elara had messed up and she was about to die for it. Nothing would save her, not her family, not her lover, not even the memories she had with her team. There wasn't going to be a miraculous power up born from hope.

Elara closed her eyes with a smile as the monster closed it's jaw around her head. In but a few moments, Elara would be dead, decapitated by an undead monster.

BOOM

Elara feels a large gust of wind slam into her and through her hair. A few seconds pass and Elara is certain. She's still alive, opening her eyes, a dark cloak flutters into view. Connected to the cloak is a blood red armored man with the lower half of his face covered with a bloody skull.

Standing in front of her, with a cleaver in his right hand and a large shield, shaped like a coffin with eerie carvings on it's form. The back of the unknown warrior looked larger than the largest walls she had ever seen, promising protection. Nothing could ever hurt her. An answer to a question she didn't know she had.

Elara like her teammates, didn't notice the slightly red hue on her cheeks.

The other members of the Stormbringers watch the new comer with caution. Apart from Elara who had closed her eyes, they had seen what transpired. One moment, the Ursagorath is about to bite off their friends head, the next, he appears from thin air, in his hand a cleaver that smashes into the neck of the Ursagorath, sending it flying towards the other injured Ursagorath.

The seven meters tall Ursagorath crashes with a loud impact right next to it's partner kicking up a large amount of dust. Getting back on it's feet/paws, it lets out a gut wrenching roar towards the new threat.

Chrome watches the two undead monsters in front of him with an impassive look on his face, "Guess it works after all." his skull mask hiding his panicked expression. 'Oh shit, how could I have been so stupid. Damnit Kuromu, you messed up.'

////

The inn's common room is bustling with activity. The fireplace crackles and spits, casting a warm glow over the room. The air is filled with the savory aromas of breakfast cooking in the kitchen. Patrons mingle and chat, enjoying their morning meals and planning their day's adventures.

Maple and her friends are seated before a table laden with steaming hot plates of food, with Maple digging into a honey filled bread, Mai and Yui enjoying their umpteenth cheese sandwich and milk along side Rosa. Chrome is relaxing on a couch by the fire place with a mug of mead in his hand.

Ding.

A blue screen appears in front of Maple as she stuffs bread in her mouth. "Huh?"

|| Chrome has leveled up ||

|| Maple Tree Guild || Lv 1 || 450/10,000 ||

|| Members

Maple : Lv 1 - Guildmaster

Chrome : Lv 2

Yui : Lv 1

Mai : Lv 1

•Sally•

•Kasumi•

•Iz•

•Kanade• ||

|| Inventory ||

|| Armory ||

|| Buffs ||

|| Skill Slot ||

"Ehh?" Maple, her cheeks puffed up from her breakfast blinked her eyes twice before swallowing her food. Walking over to Chrome she calls. "Uh, Chrome you've leveled up? When? What'd you do?"

Chrome turns to Maple. "Leveled up? Oh right, you still have the guild interface don't you." Glancing through the blue screen in front of Maple, Chrome scratches his head in confusion. "I have no idea how this happened. I've been in the city the entire time, same as you and the girls. You even got those kidnappers two days ago and you didn't level up."

Maple takes a thinking position on another couch. "Is it a class based exp bar?" This seems to shock Chrome though as his eyes widen. "What did you say?" He asks.

Maple stares at Chrome for a while. "A class based exp bar, like Iz. She gets exp for crafting. But you're a great shielder."

"Am I though?" Chrome wonders. "It doesn't mention our classes in the guild interface but I think I'm a hybrid class now, a mix between a great shielder and a necromancer class."

This piques Maple's interest though. "Necromancer class? Oh yeah, the gorilla bears. Didn't you release them into the wild? That seems highly irresponsible Chrome."

Chrome chuckles nervously. "I can't believe you'd be the one to scold me, but yeah, it seems I've made a mistake." He places a hand on his chin. "It seems the gorilla bears are wrecking havoc somewhere, but where and how do I stop them?"

Maple hearing his thoughts, gives her suggestions. "You can try calling them here, but that'll probably cause more problems huh. No choice then, go after them."

Chrome blinks at Maple. "How though?" He asks. Maple smiles. "Use cover move, it's bound to work since they should be registered as allies."

A little surprised at the suggestion, Chrome raises his eyebrows. "Is that how it worked for you?" He asks. Maple giggles. "Yeah, when I was looking for Rosa, I just felt like I could do it."

'So, anyone registered as allies? That's a little broken, isn't it.' His decision made, Chrome immediately changes into his armor, holding his unique cleaver headhunter, and coffin like shield wrath wraith wall.

The sudden change in the atmosphere and drop in temperature, startles the patrons of the inn. "Be right back, Maple." Having said that, he waves at Mai and Yui before invoking his skill.

|| Cover Move ||