The bramble was helpless before them. Wily and aggressive, its snaking vines would have been incredibly dangerous up close, but it could do little against their strafing assault. For every pass they made it barely had half a second to thrash them with its vines.
Yet, at the speed of their charges, it had no hope of landing more than the faintest of glancing wounds.
Three more passes he used his Bladerite, and three more times he mete out punishment for the spirits' audacity at attacking them. With every pass, the two guards who had been assigned to assist him worked with a well oiled synchronicity. They capitalised on the wounds he left, making them all the more potent with the concussive force of their shots.
**Ding! Initiate’s Glyphic Bladerite has reached level 5!**
For the fourth pass, he ignored his skill, wanting a comparison to see how effective it truly was. The difference was… hard to tell. The wounds he left in the spirit were just as dire, but, without his enchantments, empowered living wood was no longer so easy to cut through. His blade bucked, nearly wrenched from his hand before heightened reflexes kicked in and he was able to clutch his weapon with a startled burst of strength.
Despite the rhythmic thumping of Porkchop’s gait, and the heavy bellows of his breath, Kaius didn’t miss the small hoot that left his brother’s mouth, nor the flood of amusement that crossed their bond.
Of course, trust in Porkchop to find the time to focus on his fuck ups in the middle of a fight. Dismissing the flush of warmth on his cheeks as the invigoration that came with the Song, Kaius refocused on their opponent.
With a body as alien as its own, it was hard for him to tell how injured the bramble ball really was. Sure, it was absolutely covered in sticky sap, the glistening fluid lousy with the splintered remnants of its own severed limbs. On the other hand, it had not slowed, and it seemed no matter how many vines they cut there were more waiting to sprout.
“Another pass, it’s got to be at the end of its tether.” Kaius demanded, focused intensity colouring his words with the fervent need to see his opponent crushed utterly.
Porkchop growled in response, delighted agreement rushing across their bond soundlessly.
They raced in.
Ready and waiting for them, the bramble ball surged. Suddenly another three dozen thorned vines erupted from its chaotic body. It had to be a skill, stamina of some sort judging by the fact he saw no tell tale sign of mana
The air was flooded with a staccato boom of thunder, each and every vine cracking like a bullwhip as they launched towards Porkchop with synchronous violence.
His stomach lurched at the sight of the oncoming storm. Blade glowing with internal light, he slashed through two handfuls of vines, but there were more than twice that number waiting. Each one snaked around Porkchop, binding him tight as thorns dug deep into flesh and barding alike.
Howling in pain, Kaius felt his brother buck against the skill. To be restrained was to be cowed, and he had never seen Porkchop cowed.
Speed and mass in his favour, Porkchop doubled down. Kaius braced himself, feeling his brother’s intention as he tapped into his amulet. Suddenly their speed doubled as Porkchop adjusted, heading straight for the meat of the monster.
Evidently, it hadn’t anticipated that they would decide against another strafing run. It had braced to pull them back, not push them away, and now with multiple tons of muscle and bone descending on it there was no recourse left.
It tried to yank itself to the side. Kaius smiled as he saw that, with its commitment to its assault, it was left with too few tentacles to move with any haste.
Twisted plant-life pulped as Porkchop smashed the spirit with the unstoppable might of a runaway carriage. Sap sprayed through the air, splattering heavily on Kaius’s armour.
Then the bramble born went airborne, flying up and out as a dozen splintered and snapped vines writhed through the air with furious intensity.
“NOW!” the leader of the guards screamed.
Two arrows slammed into the arcing bramble ball. Whatever skills those guards had used, it was a different one from the previous. Both arrows detonated, vines exploding out of the knotted mass, carving a deep crater into its animated almost-flesh.
Whiteness dominated his vision. The air howled in desperation, sundered as a beam as wide as his fist crackled into existence with a primal scream. Kaius watched in shocked fascination, the might of Ianmus’s preparations making themselves known with the finality of a delivered promise of destruction.
The heat of it. Kaius could feel it from three dozen strides away, searing his hair and scorching an afterimage of divine desolation onto his eyes.
The bramble ball didn’t stand a chance. The spell hit it dead on and continued unhindered. Immolated from the inside out, Kaius could barely see it fall to the ground limp, so blinding was his ally’s attack.
**Ding! level 32 Bramble Ball - Lashing Shambler slain - Experience Gained! Bonus Experience for slaying a foe of Significant Strength! Experience reduced due to significant group size.**
Whipping his head over to the caravan, Kaius was treated to the sight of a dozen guards cheering at their victory. At their front, two guards dripping with sweat, and one Ianmus - his face so pale that Kaius was surprised the man was even standing.
“Damn, elf-boy’s hits like an irontusk.” Porkchop said slowly.
“Even if he’s about as hasty as a particularly energised snail.” he continued, unable to help himself from slipping in a friendly jab.
It was all Kaius could do to nod in agreement, still shocked at the violence that had been hiding within their reedy academic.