The battle dragged on, the fog swirling as if the forest itself recoiled from the clash of titans. Mistwing Drake screeched, wings tattered from Elara's arrows and Hunnt's relentless gauntlet strikes. Obsidian Fang's obsidian-like scales were cracked and chipped, shards scattered across the rocky ground from Corwin's hammer blows. Every muscle in the hunters' bodies burned with exhaustion, yet their spirits refused to bend.
Hunnt's fists trembled within the gauntlets, sweat and blood slicking the metal. Each strike echoed like thunder across the ridge. He darted forward with a sudden Soru dash, his movements blurring through the mist. His gauntlet collided squarely with Mistwing Drake's wing joint, a resounding crack reverberating through the air. The drake shrieked in agony, its aerial grace faltering as it spiraled down. The mighty beast crashed against a plateau, shaking the cliffs with the weight of its fall. Dust and shards of stone rained down, cloaking the hunters in haze.
"Keep on it!" Hunnt barked, chest heaving.
Corwin roared, eyes blazing with focus. Armament Haki glimmered faintly along his arms and across the head of his hammer as he drove forward. He swung with all his might, smashing Obsidian Fang's exposed flank. The impact shattered a thick plate of black scale, shards flying like obsidian knives. The brute wyvern staggered, claws gouging trenches in the stone as it tried to recover.
Elara steadied her breathing, her bow taut. Through Observation Haki, the world slowed. She felt the rush of Mistwing's wingbeat before it happened, saw the tension in its muscles before the dive began. Her arrows flew one after another, each one aimed not at where the drake was, but where it would be. Shafts pierced the edges of its wing joints, clipping its speed. One arrow drove deep into the soft flesh beneath its throat, forcing the drake into a ragged screech.
Mistwing faltered, wings folding awkwardly as it tried to ascend. Hunnt and Corwin saw the opening at the same time. With a wordless cry, they surged together—Hunnt's fists hammering against its chest, Corwin's hammer smashing down against its skull. The drake screeched in defiance, wings flaring one last time, before Elara's arrow pierced its chest in the exact instant its heart was exposed. The monster convulsed, then collapsed, its body slumping against the plateau with a final, shuddering groan.
"One down!" Hunnt shouted, sweat dripping into his eyes.
But there was no time to savor victory. Obsidian Fang bellowed, enraged at the fall of its aerial ally. The brute lunged, its massive bulk crashing forward. Its spiked tail swept across the battlefield like a wrecking ball. Pyro darted in, SnS flashing as he drew its focus, his Observation Haki keeping him just a whisker ahead of every deadly swing.
"Nyaah! Over here, you big brute!" he taunted, his tail lashing with excitement even as his breath came ragged.
Corwin planted his feet, every ounce of strength poured into bracing his hammer. Armament Haki surged down his arms as Fang charged him. The impact sent tremors up his body, but he held, deflecting the beast's momentum just enough for Hunnt to dive in.
Hunnt clenched his fists, black steel shimmering faintly across his knuckles. He read the brute's movement through Observation Haki—the telltale shift of its weight, the pause before its tail swept. He sidestepped and drove a crushing punch into its exposed ribs. The sound was like stone shattering under a smith's hammer. Fang stumbled, its body faltering under the sustained punishment.
"Now, Corwin!" Hunnt roared.
Corwin's eyes flared as he surged forward, hammer raised high. With a primal shout, he brought it crashing down upon Fang's weakened knee joint. The ground erupted with the impact. The wyvern howled in anguish, collapsing onto its forelimbs. Its tail lashed once more, wild and uncontrolled, before finally slumping to the ground.
Hunnt didn't hesitate. With one final punch, Armament blazing around his fists, he struck the beast's jaw. Corwin's hammer followed immediately, slamming into its skull. The brute's roar choked into silence as its massive body crashed to the ground, quaking the ridge beneath them. Dust rose in a suffocating cloud before slowly settling over the battlefield.
And then—silence.
Only the hunters' heavy breathing filled the air. The screeches and roars that had dominated the battlefield for so long were gone. Mistwing Drake and Obsidian Fang lay still, their colossal forms sprawled across the shattered ridge.
Hunnt wiped blood and sweat from his face with the back of his hand, his fists aching inside the gauntlets. His chest heaved as he whispered, almost in disbelief, "We… did it."
Elara lowered her bow, her arms trembling. She bowed her head, voice trembling with awe. "Both of them… two apex predators. And we stood our ground."
Pyro bounded onto Hunnt's shoulder, his fur matted with dust but his eyes shining with pride. "Nyahaha! Master, we did it! Nyaah!" He purred, tail flicking despite his exhaustion.
Corwin leaned on his hammer, his muscles screaming in protest. His voice was steady, though tinged with awe. "Their hides, their strength… unmatched. But we matched them, strike for strike. Together, we endured."
Hunnt looked at the two fallen predators. His gauntlets, Elara's bow, Corwin's hammer, and even Pyro's tireless flanking—all had carved this victory. The marks of Armament Haki across his fists, the heightened awareness of Observation guiding their every move—these had tipped the balance.
He took a long breath, feeling exhaustion and exhilaration war within him. "We survived. More than that—we fought as one."
The group gathered, moving with quiet reverence as they harvested what materials they could. Hunnt inspected Mistwing's shimmering wing membrane, already picturing what it could become in Elara's hands. Corwin lifted fragments of Fang's shattered obsidian scales, their glimmer promising new armor and weapons. Pyro pawed curiously at claws bigger than his body, tail flicking.
As the sun dipped lower, staining the mist in shades of gold and crimson, Elara whispered, "We've grown so much since Ravagerak."
Hunnt nodded, clenching his bloodied fists. "And we'll keep growing. These monsters… they're trials. And we'll meet them, no matter how strong they get."
The forest seemed to breathe again, the oppressive weight of the battle fading into silence. For now, they were victorious. Their bond had been reforged in fire and blood.
Hunnt lifted his gaze to the horizon, shadows stretching long across the ridges. "But for now… we rest. Tomorrow, we prepare. Because there will always be a next hunt."
The fog curled low, reclaiming the battlefield, but within its embrace, four hunters stood tall, their spirits sharper and stronger than ever. The hunt was over—but their story was only beginning.