"TO THE STRUCTURES!" Elio's shout echoed across the crater. "EVERYONE UP, NOW!"
The builders leaped toward the carbon platforms, but not all were fast enough.
A second scream sliced through the air as another soldier began sinking into earth that had suddenly become fluid beneath his feet.
But this time Elio was prepared... And closer.
They wouldn't catch him off guard twice.
His body became a blur of motion as he propelled himself toward the sinking soldier. His fingers closed around the man's arm just before he disappeared completely into the treacherous ground. The movement was precise, he pulled with 10 points of strength, but the artromus wasn't letting go.
The soldier's leg was firmly trapped in what appeared to be a solid earth claw, and the force pulling him down was monstrous.
Caught between two superhuman forces, the soldier screamed in agony. Only his armor and Elio's transferred resistance kept him from being torn apart.
Elio then pushed his muscles beyond their safe limits, matching and exceeding the Artromus's superhuman strength as he extracted most of the soldier's body.
But the ground beneath his feet had become treacherous, too soft to gain proper footing.
Each moment that passed was an invitation to be dragged down alongside his comrade.
'Can't maintain this,' Elio realized, his mind racing through options. He couldn't risk a battle of attrition, the soldier wouldn't last, nor could he chance being pulled into the depths where the artromus would have every advantage.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, the green scythe flashing as it cut cleanly through the trapped leg.
Taking advantage of his position, Elio discharged a wind impulse toward where he sensed the artromus's presence. The attack connected with something solid, an arm probably, but the monster simply melted back into the earth, vanishing from sight.
The soldier's scream of pain rang out as Elio, propelled by the same impulse that had struck the artromus, landed safely on the carbon structures.
'The armor will heal him, it was the best option,' he reminded himself, though the thought did little to ease the weight of his decision.
♢♢♢♢
The Artromus glided through the mud, its frustration growing with each moment.
The level 7 soldier it had managed to devour had barely satisfied its hunger for vengeance, and worse still, his essence represented only a tiny fraction of the percentage needed to escape and return.
How could he be level 7? The Artromus had been certain they would all be level 9 or 10... Otherwise, why were they so strong?
'These parasites...' Confusion mixed with its rage. The reports about their capabilities were completely wrong. A mere level 7 shouldn't be able to cause significant damage, and that leader... his attacks far exceeded what should be possible.
'A level 10 should have 70 magic points maximum,' it calculated while moving through its domain. 'And without level 10 summons, it's impossible to reach that power.
They need 100 billion cores for one lvl 10 summon... Where did they get such resources?'
Moreover, that cursed parasite hadn't just dealt 140 damage, an acceptable critical for a level 10 with a maximum level summon, but 390... The bastard had to have a damage of 220 before the critical multiplier to exceed its magical defense by 390 points.
How was that possible?
Its body shuddered at the thought of fighting an army of such powerful beasts. One might be manageable... but 10? Impossible. Fortunately, the likely leader seemed to be the only one with such power.
Still, it wasn't what it expected, and the lack of correct information was infuriating. Not only that...
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The loss of the second prey especially enraged it. That a mere human had matched its strength in that tug-of-war was... inconceivable. Just a useless leg as a consolation prize, when what it needed were heads.
'Heads!' The thought roared in its mind.
It needed to kill them, needed their essence. Without them, it couldn't reach the percentage necessary for its escape.
To return to its beloved queen.