Chapter 26: The Elf Society Pt. 3

Hunter surged off to the right as Shen Yi faced The Hydra head-on, leaving Theriault behind.

He looked over at the crowd, they were all at the edge of their seats, it seemed they were doing a pretty good job.

"The only thing you have going for yourself is your strength," Hunter said in an even tone with no hint of anger or strain. "Fighting is all about technique!" He yelled, sending a shot of flames at the Hydra's face and falling through the air, landing under it and running past, shooting brighter flames up at its underbelly, the real target.

Shen Yi slashed along its side, running through with her mother blade before she jumped back, switching her footing and running the opposite way, looking for a weak point in the strong draconic skin of the hydra.

It was clear that Theriault's training had done both Hunter and Shen Yi good. Though Hunter hadn't been learning long, he was showing the same level, if not better, than Shen Yi.

The orange-haired boy slid past the Hydra's legs, lodging a dagger into the thick skin, shooting a small string of flame into the open wound before sliding past, kicking up the dirt.

A blast from the left hit Hunter full force knocking him onto his back, but instead of rolling away like most people would do after being blasted by fire, he rolled straight up, then launched himself forward again, jumping high above the hydra and outstretching his arms.

"You're getting it, boy, you may be able to use my power soon... Such progress," The Pheonix said next to him, flying alongside him.

Hunter smiled as he soared down toward the beast, summoning flames all around his body, spiraling into the monster's side with a loud thwack.

The beast staggered a bit, managing to keep its footing.

Shen Yi rushed forward, stabbing into one of the hydra's throats, wanting to test something.

Sure enough, the beast didn't heal. "So you only grow your head back if it's severed huh?" She said, smiling at her realization as she raised her arm. "789!"

The small elf ran from the walls, standing by her side the second he reached her. "Go back to your post, I will come get you later..."

789 gulped, but it was a direct order from his love, the one he would die for, his one true soulmate... Even if it was one-sided.

"Is that a male!?" A yell from the crowd could be heard as many complaints and shocked gasps escaped the female elves.

Hunter's eyes narrowed slightly as he watched the elf run, he didn't know whether to kill it or let it continue its course. Though, if Shen Yi had casually talked to it, he assumed he didn't need to worry much.

As he turned back towards the battle, he noticed a flash where Theriault had been, but he wasn't able to say anything with the flames that surged toward him, yearning to burn him to a crisp.

"Well damn," Hunter muttered, dodging the flames and surging under the monster, grabbing his dagger from one leg and stabbing it into the next, then repeating it before spinning out the other side and jumping on toward the Hydra.

When he landed on top of the hydra, he pulled another knife from somewhere within the small leather armor he wore, stabbing it as deep as he could into the base between two necks, piercing through the skin with some struggle.

From there, he kicked up on the backside of the Hydra beneath him, launching himself into the air once more. As he rose higher and farther away, his blood began to flow faster, flames bursting from all around him, boosting him through the resistant winds.

Fenghuang's magic was almost too much for any human to handle. It took every ounce of energy he possessed just to hold onto his own form. It was a nigh impossible task, but he did manage to make sure his hair remained in place and his clothing didn't catch fire, a sign of total control.

"Now... Burst!" The Pheonix said next to him as he dive-bombed down, holding both daggers off and burning his energy with the fire, landing hard against the Hydra and stabbing clean through the thick side all the way down to his shoulders.

It was a clean attack, the fire around him dissipated as the Hydra let out a eardrum throttling shriek, causing Hunter to wince and cry out, feeling like his eardrums had exploded.

So far though, the elves weren't paying attention to anything other than the fight. So much so that they didn't notice the human climb the wall, flashing above them all and appearing behind the Queen's throne.

Theriault quickly wrapped his fingers tightly around the neck of her guard and yanked hard, causing the male elf to fall to his knees, immediately falling unconscious. Then he turned on the queen and grabbed her chin, pulling her close to whisper in her ear.

"Don't scream, don't make any sudden movements, if you try to alert anyone you and your offspring are dead..."

The queen only had time to widen her eyes before the words sunk in. She quickly relaxed, trying to see her captor, it was clearly a male, but who...

"Don't worry, just continue watching, we can negotiate and come to terms while there is some background entertainment..." Theriault said, still crouched.

Luckily her throne was normal size, even if she was mini, so he was still hidden.

A confused look flashed on her face, but she continued to watch the battle below, not wanting to risk her daughter's life.

As the two fought, Theriault pulled out a small knife, cutting a slit in the fabric of the queen's dress near her chest, exposing some flesh as a thin line of blood trickled from a tiny cut.

"Just in case you think I won't harm you for some stupid reason..." Theriault said, making the knife disappear into the shadows.

"Well then... What is it?" The queen said, trying to keep an authoritative standing, but she couldn't hide the halting in her breath.

"I want your daughter to understand that I wasn't beaten, just caught off guard..." Theriault smirked to himself, watching the battle.

The queen was surprised that was all he had requested. In her mind, she was already thinking of the different scenarios of the twisted things he would want to do with her and her daughter.

"Is that really it?" She said, turning toward him with a confused look on her face.

"Well... You can also end this stupid game, and maybe we can talk civilly..."

She hesitated a moment longer before nodding once.

"...Very well." With that, she stood raising her hand high.

In the arena, Hunter and Shen Yi were being pushed back. Both had managed to land blows against the beast, but it justwasn't taking any serious injuries.

With every attack, more wounds opened up on Shen Yi's body; her hands bled, her feet felt like lead weights, and she knew her energy was draining fast. Hunter felt the same, using the power of the pheonix had drained him so much that he resorted to the normal flame of his flame key, which wasn't doing much against the thick hide of the Hydra.

Ther beast whipped its tail, sending the two tumbling to the ground, nearly defeated as it closed in, opening its jaws wide.

"Stop the games!" A shrill voice yelled out. Without hesitation chains appeared around the hydra's mouth and legs, sending it toppling next to Hunter and Shen Yi.

Dozens of female elves looked at them, then at their queen in confusion. They had simply followed orders, as was procedure, but why hadn't they let the humans be killed? They weren't even supposed to be the main event.

After several moments of silence, the Queen spoke. "We will allow these two to live, however, they will be shackled, I want them brought to my hall within the hour!"

This caused another round of chaos among the females, but they eventually calmed themselves, leaving the arena, the fun was clearly over.

Hunter and Shen Yi were then, although protestant, shackled and held by the female warriors, all of them sneering at them.

It was only when a taller elf, around 4 feet or so, smiled a bit. "That was some of the best combat we've seen in a while..." She admitted, her partners agreeing with her.

Though, none of those girls showed signs of believing it. It made sense to Hunter though. From the way they had reacted and moved to bring the beast down in an instant, he could tell most of them had probably been fighting monsters ever since they'd been born.

With that they walked to the elven village, neither of the two knowing what to expect from this deeply vast yet hidden city. They weren't sure where Theriault had dissappeared off to, but he was surely close.

"Welcome to Ulibel... The heart of the forest..."