The Ladies broke past the encirclement of Aerial Beasts but the moment they were about five meters away from their Fifth Rank Target, it shook its wings feebly at first and then more powerfully to charge out a gust of wind that slammed into the four and sought to shatter a formation they had not yet even completed.
Lora stabbed her broadsword in the ground for balance. Xania and Thana did the same with their sword and sabers. The only one without a weapon was Dana so the gust sent her back until she slammed against a tree trunk.
"Ack!" she groaned but once the wind danger had passed and her feet hit the ground, she got right back into running. Picking up her part of the formation immediately.
*BANG!!!*
*BANG!!!*
*BOOOMMM!!!*
She tossed out her explosives and although they were not powerful enough to char her opponent to ashes, they did cause the said opponent to stagger enough for her fellow group members to get into formation.
The trio of Xania, Thana, and Lora were the hack and slash team while Dana supplied support from behind and so they got close to the Beast and began to cut away. They got in about two good slashes each before the Shrill-caller was ready to retaliate.
Dana made it keep the Beast staggered with another set of Explosives only to be shocked then the Beast slammed them with a gust of wind and sent them back to the sender.
*BOOOOMMMM!!!*
Dana only barely avoided getting caught in the blast but the force still pushed her aside.
Meanwhile, the Shrill-caller showcased impressive nimbleness when it raised one of its feet and swung it at the attacking trio who still had their blades raised at it. The talons that tipped the Beast's feet flashed like daggers and before the trio could appropriately react, they were lacerated while the force also slammed them away.
The Shrill-caller shook itself and with a great flap of its wings, it flew up at an insane speed. The ladies wondered if that was it and they received their answer when the Beast charged down like a missile aiming to crush the puny humans that dared trespass into its territory.
"Run!" Lora called but it was not really needed as the other two ladies all knew it was wise to get the hell out of the way if they didn't want their bodies to be turned into paste.
As it was coming down with a fixed trajectory and a whole lot of force, the Shrill-caller could not change the direction of its fall on a whim but it was a testament to its insane drop speed that the ladies only barely managed to get away in time.
*WHUUUUUMMMM!!!*
As powerful as the Beast's landing was, the forest floor absorbed the impact but the release of wind was with such force that it wracked the ladies with its own impact and struck them with aches even before they were sent crashing against the trees that dotted the terrain.
The Shrill-caller cast its eyes at them all, picked its target in Dana, and flapped its wings for forward charge while it struck out with its feet. Dana tossed out explosives in defense hoping that would either stop the Beast or slow it down enough for her to at least evade the oncoming blow.
*BOOOM!*
Her explosives caused enough of an impact to slow the Beast but it was still too fast for Dana to avoid. She closed her eyes and steeled herself to be crushed when she heard a jingle...
*Klink* *Klink* *Klink*
This Spell *could* be Upgraded.
Cost: 30,000 Soul Points.
-
After his hunting down of the aerial Beasts, Evian's Soul Point Balance had swelled up to [46,587] which meant this Spell essentially cost Evian all of his gains from the Aerial assault but even then, he gladly spent those points.
He even had to swipe down a bit on the Spells list to find it. The ability to trap Stronger opponents in place will never not be important and the ability to individually control each one of the Ten chains he could so far summon, to do his bidding would certainly cause his Soul Reaping abilities to skyrocket.
Of course, Proficiency was key. It took a lot of mental strength to individually control the chains and he was not yet at all capable of making every single one attack something different all at once but of course, there was no real rush.
With the Spell's ability to be upgraded, Evian knew he would be spending a lot of time with it in his Arsenal. It could prove as much of an essential tool as Wraithic Phasing.
Anyway,
*KIEEEEEE!!!*
The Shrill-Caller bled but it remained active. If it had a health bar then it had not yet been drained.
Evian called back his chains hoping to retry a much deeper stab but of course, the Beast did not intend to allow him that time.
It sent out a barrage of wind strikes of such power that Evian had to be on the offensive with hardly any time to cast the trap-type Effect of the Reaper Chains Spell.
"Ladies!" Evian called out.
The Four had already recovered from whatever shock and awe they were feeling and they were back to their feet ready to fight.
Explosives sailed out and with Shrill-Caller's attention being on Evian, the Explosives struck their targets causing it to stagger. Before the Fifth Rank Beast could recover and strike out again, Evian cast Reaper chains, causing a Spell Circle to appear underneath it and wrap around its body, holding it in place for Xania and Thana who lacerated its body all over.
They cut off so much of its plumage that it became difficult for the Beast to gather the appropriate amount of wind that would allow it to fly once again.
Lora raised her broadsword and brought it down in a cleave at the joint that connected one of the Beast's spread-out wings to its massive body.
She was quite close to cutting through it completely but was forced to stop when, with a shrill cry of pain, the Beast tore itself free from the hold of Evian's chains.
"KIEEEEEEE- Ack!"
The Beast's loud cry was shut up when all Ten of Evian's chains stabbed into its mouth with such power that they came out the back.
Weakening sounds came from the Beast next but even that did not last long as Evian swung his Spear and cut open its neck, opening up a waterfall of flood as the Shrill-Caller slowly and surely lost the will and the ability to fight.