The Ambush of Flame pt. 1

"Argh! Forsaken cinder! I don't remember walking through a portal would be so painful."

Sahasya found himself out of the void portal which just captured him. The place where he stood was still surrounded by a sea of trees, though a lot darker and silent since there's no battle currently happening around him. The air also felt as tense as when he fought alongside his teammates.

The Waraney's eyes began to glow like a setting sun, orange and bright, wandering around to see more clearly throughout the jungle he was in.

"Damn it! Why do they have to be so hollow that not even the heat vision detects them?"

All he saw were insects and nesting animals high in the trees, along with a couple of nocturnal predators lurking for their prey. Not even a Taanji present around him.

But seeing how many animals still calmly live their nightly activities has shown that he was teleported quite far from where he just fought before, or the Uhndak's villages which he just burned to ashes.

"…"

The anxious night shivered down his skin. Everything is so quiet and eerie. He could feel hundreds of eyes watching him, and none from an animal or things that he can see.

But the sensation of being hunted is incredibly thick.

The young lad put up his stance, [Santi] up in the air, to the level of his ears, while a long rectangular shield or [Salawaku ] raised firm, facing straight up his front.

He slowly walked backward, reaching for a nearby tree and burning it harshly to enlighten his surrounding. He could hear the sounds of animals panicking, some flap their wings, some run with their feet. All fleeing from where the fire occurred.

"Come to think of it… I remember Hada also being caught by their portal. Does that mean… they understand the rule of gender in combat!?" His thought just worsen his mental state, the animals might have broken the silence, but the pressure is still too tense.

*Rustle!*

Sahasya heard the tree ahead of him move, right after the silence was restored. He could see the leaves slowly falling, indicating something or someone is hiding there.

He squinted his eyes, tensely waiting for what was about to come. His focus is unshaken, with his body readily facing toward the potential threat.

*Swoosh!*

Suddenly a knife came flying at him with insane speed. His shield quickly raised and caught it, preventing it from scratching his face.

A man, shaded in pitch black, calmly hopped down from the tree. On his head tied a headband with both its ends flutter along with the night wind. In his hands, daggers, forged in black, covered in white mist.

The way he moves looked carefree. Even an amateur can tell how agile he would be in a fight.

*Snap!*

As his fingers snapped, hundreds of portals shaded in black and white showed themselves surrounding Sahasya along with the loud disturbing noises which almost made his ears bleed.

Army of the void appears themselves one more time, but now no one else will be there to support him. No Revian either to attract all the aggro from those pseudo people.

Their headwears varied and so does their weapons, but they always come under the same pair. The Guild called a void person a Suanggi, with each of them assigned a combat class just like the Guild's member.

The problem is… that headband-wearing guy… never existed in the Guild's list.

"Come!" Sahasya taunted all those Suanggis, he repeatedly pounded his [Salawaku] with his [Santi], clapping noises that agitate the army of the void. And so they came straight at him, rushing with violent steps.

He can not see their expression since what is presents in their face is just hollow rounded eyes colored in white mist. But the way the headband guy commanded his troops to attack… it was clear he's degrading Sahasya.

Arrows and magic flew toward the Waraney. They come showering him with hostile projectiles coated in white mist. Just the sounds of their travel sent chills to his bone.

[Fire Arts]

[2nd Level (Extension)]

"(Fire Shield EX)"

"Gen Salawaku EX!"

He stomped the base of his shield harshly to the ground, and around him appear 7 fiery shields, heightening themselves and guarding him against each direction except for behind which is covered by a burning tree.

*Thuck!* *Splash!* *Stuck!*

Each and every one of those projectiles is perfectly blocked, then the shields shattered like glasses. However, the advance is only just begun.

The melee troops charged with their weapon pointed straight at him, rushing without a single battle cry as their voice is as silent as smoke. Though their mad footsteps could be heard crowding the air around Sahasya.

Just waiting for those blades and lances to arrive and shred his skin will only be disadvantageous for someone with a shorter melee range. So the young man run, weightlessly jumped over their weapons, and slashed the neck of the nearest Suanggi to him.

From that point onward, the battle is nothing but pure chaos.

Groups by groups come to strike him along with all the projectiles that continue to pester him. Each of their attacks is coated with void energy, which can easily pierce through his uniform and so does his skin.

Nevertheless, as someone bestowed with agility as his main attribute, dodging all those attempts is nothing but child play to Sahasya. Regardless, just a single scratch can lead to death, especially when he has no one to heal his wound.

And with the numerical disadvantage, his problem just continued to grow as time goes.

"Dirty! Fucking! Waste Fluid!"

The spot where he could stand is slowly getting cramped, edging him piece by piece. The lances cornered him into the center, limiting the movement and attention of both his sword and shield.

Sahasya then swiftly jumped high in the air, and a sphere of fire quickly enveloped his body, as he began to recite the chant of his skill.

"As the night burst from sorrow"

"Lit up my heart with the inferno"

The air turned red, polluting the atmosphere with hot mist. The Suanggis tried to break that hardened sphere, which rapidly getting denser at a concerning rate.

[Fire Arts]

[7th Level]

"(Flame Carpet)"

"Genutrosor!"

Like a bomb, the sphere slams itself viciously to the Suanggi right under it, and it explodes with blazing smoke and covered the entire battlefield with raging fires.

It was the state of inferno, and the Suanggi could feel their body slowly being devoured by fire, dancing as tall as their whole body.

Among them, Sahasya stood proudly with his [Santi] posing majestically in front of him, now with the size as high as his chest.

His blade was shaken, hungry for prey. The Waraney gazes sharply at the headband guy, he was full of anger and murderous intent. He then spoke harsh and loud, as if challenging the entire existence of Suanggi present on this battlefield.

"I am a lion, a prideful king with the heart of bravery. My blade scorches with flame, as it engulfs the night with fiery amber. This ground is now my castle, and those who step on it shall burn and perish!"