A long day ahead of him, Forcent made himself comfortable on a boulder in what would be considered enemy territory. He took in the cool crispy breeze, from the morning, feeling lighter than ever. The wolves beneath him, eyed him with intent. They all remain motionless, not moving a muscle, nor blinking.
Forcent began to hum. This seemingly innocent act provoked low growls from the Gray Persudo's, their distrust of any sign of change manifesting as hostile.
"The overgrown beast of our kind," An approaching, confident voice exclaimed.
This caught Forcent's attention, so he stood, his smugness unwavering. "The leader finally showed himself," He exclaimed. "What's your name?" Forcent inquired leaning forward.
The leader's entrance was made simple thanks to the wolves being scattered around. He seemed similar to the other Gray Persudos, except his white snout, legs, and around his neck.
The leader Persudo came to a stop. He positioned his head upwards at Forcent, an unreadable expression playing on his face. "Does it matter in the end?..." He paused dramatically for a second. "But why not. I'm Erinot, Leader Of The Grand Pack."
They stared into each other's eyes, trying to discern the threat each other might pose.
"I'm Forcent," He said imposingly, finally giving up his name. "Now to save both our times… Yield."
Erinot remained silent and unfazed, his penetrating intense gaze unwavering.
"Hm." Forcent gaze narrowed, his expression fell flat for the first time. "I'll take that as an answer." He leapt from his position down to face Erinot. The size difference between the two was quite marginal, but this didn't shake Erinot's resolve in the slightest.
Taking one step at a time, Forcent began to circle Erinot, his steps light and ominously soft. The wolves around snarled at Forcent, each step that he made, propelled them to become more aggressive.
"What is your business here?" Erinot inquired, posturing his head upwards.
"My business here?..." Forcent repeated to himself, briefly losing his focus. "...Is with that thing."
Erinot was puzzled by this response, and Forcent's out of touch state didn't help with this. He cared little to continue the conversation any further and lunged at Forcent's leg in attempts to reduce his mobility.
This attempt at taking his leg by Erinot, was evaded by Forcent with just a leap, despite their close proximity towards each other.
Forcent promptly made his move. From his sides came the crackle of electricity, and in a second the unleashing of two bolts of lightning.
[[
[[-Hell Beam-]]
Swiftly, Erinot made use of his skill, Hell Beam, shooting an instant high intensity scarlet beam from his mouth, countering Forcent's lightning bolts.
Forcent stood ideally. He didn't seem bothered by the failure of his attack or the use of Erinot's.
[[
[[-Hell Bullet-]]
Keeping Forcent on his toes, Erinot unleashed rapid bursts of hell's bullet at his opponent.
Taking immediate action, Forcent slammed a paw onto the ground, forming a translucent force field. The bullets collided with the barrier, causing one explosive mass.
Erinot paused. He narrowed his eyes, searching for any signs of his opponent through the thickness of the dust and the smoke.
The thickness gradually subsided, revealing piercing blue eyes for only a moment, before they vanished.
Erinot calmly scanned his surroundings, his other senses heightened, as he tried to catch a sound or Forcent's sent in attempts of locating him.
From his side, came an unseeable force that knocked him off his feet, and sent him sliding across the grass. Erinot didn't stay down for long, the experience only giving him a shock.
At a gradual pace, Forcent materializes bit by bit, revealing himself once again. "Even without my most potent skills…" Forcent smug expression reformed once again. "The ones I have are still far above your caliber," He boasted.
His gaze revealed that what he suspected was indeed true. His superiority to Erinot is clear and obvious.
Forcent slammed his paw onto the ground, sending a blue translucent force field, bursting towards Erinot, with speeds he was unable to react to, before crashing into him with extraordinary force, knocking him unconscious, determining the winner.
Forcent gave the wolves a particular glance. Non made a move against him, all seeming rather submissive in a subtle way.
He redirected his attention to Erinot on the ground. "So this is it?..." Forcent meticulously observed his surroundings, contemplating. "So, this is the apex of the Sacred Forest… At least fitting to be at the food chain…. But what I'm after…"
Meanwhile, under the supervision of Roll, the Dark Deviders got to making Imuru's village their new home. Clearing out the obstacles, and tearing down buildings that have no use to them.
Whilst, Imuru tried his luck once again at the water source, an innocent expressly expression, though his eyes had an eerie gaze to them.
He broke his attention for a moment to give Arken behind him a glance. "You're oddly quiet," Imuru murmured, giving Arken curious blinks.
"Mm." Arken slightly raised his head. "This requires patience. As so do my people, I very much understand the process," Arken replied, his demeanor calm and docile.
"Oh!" Imuru's eyes lit up with surprise. "You've done this before?" He curiously inquired.
Arken looked away, and crossed his arms across his chest. "I am a true warrior," He grumbled.
"Mm." Imuru's expression flattened, but a simple smile remained on his face, unsurprised by Arken's reply. "Well, then let's leave it at that," He thought. "Neither the less, the Dark Deviders are fascinating."
Imuru's attention returned back to his task at hand, doubts gradually forming in his mind that he might not catch it.
Hearing sounds of something crashing through the forest in a hurry, Arken focused his gaze towards the sound, for him to eventually see a Dark Devider breaking through bushes.
"F-Forgive me, Lord Imuru, Sir Arken," He stammered through his heavy breathing. "Four individuals have arrived, two are wounded and unconscious… We have them surrounded at the moment. I was sent to make you aware of the situation and to collect our orders."
Imuru listened and took a moment to absorb the information. "Orders? He wants that from me… Ah, I'm not cut out for this. What if I say something wrong?..." He slowed down and took a deep breath. "Okay. They probably just need some help, that's it, right."
Having no reaction from the Great Demon Lord, Arken narrowed his eyes, puzzled. "Imuru!" Arken called out, breaking Imuru from his thoughts.
"Sorry, sorry." Imuru retrieved his fishing line and stood up. He turned to Arken, his expression stern. "Let's go see who they are for ourselves."
It took them very few minutes to get back to the village. They're led to a hoard of Deviders surrounding the individuals. Without resistance Imuru let through, and met up with Roll, who seemed to have been communicating with them.
Imuru gasped, finding the familiar faces of the group he met earlier and intriguingly the strange woman Yosho.
He looked at Roll beside him, with a stern gaze. "Can you guys help?"
Roll nodded reassuringly, and swiftly ordered the two wounded to be taken care of. The Dark Deviders lowered their weapons and a few carried Taz and Miic to be taken care of.
Imuru gave him a nod and a grateful smile. "I'd like to have a talk with these two…" He murmured.
Roll gestured to the rest of the Dark Deviders to scatter for the moment. With Arken behind, he took the two aside.
Imuru attended to Unop, seeing that she seemed more distraught over the situation and rightfully so.
She had her head held low, and her chest expanded and contracted noticeably. "Thank… Thank you," She murmured.
Imuru gave a simple nod. "What happened?"
Unop looked him right in the eyes, a burning sense of anger present. "It was an Ennom…" Her gaze drifted to the side, helplessness and prompted realization setting in. "I'm not quite sure… But it might have awakened."
She shut her eyes for a moment. "Can I go see my friends?" She asked, retaining eye contact.
"Hm." Imuru was taken aback by this, feeling that it wasn't a necessary question. He composed himself and called over Roll. Unop thanked him once again and left, guided by Roll to check up on her friends. Imuru watched her with worry in his eyes.
Arken looked on with complete indifference to the situation. "That Ennom… Forcent." Closed his eyes, and re-positioned his head towards Yosho. "I've seen stronger, in my times."
Imuru spun around swiftly, the woman almost slipping past his memory. "Um. Sorry… You're—" He paused for a moment.
"Yosho." The woman pleasantly Interjected, helping Imuru along.
"Right, right, Yosho. Thank you for your help in getting them here," He shyly replied, rubbing the back of his head.
"So, yeah…" Imuru gave himself a second and cleared his throat. "This whole Forcent situation… I'm not sure if this is useful but he came here for Arken strangely enough… For attacking a Persudo, I believe."
"Ah…" Yosho gave Arken a glance, taking him in with her eyes for a moment, before she closed them. "I see. Despite the chaos he's causing, the wolves do overall respect their species."
Imuru pleasantly rested his hands on his hips, a smirk laid out on his face. "Now, that's intriguing… So even they have levels they wouldn't stoop to? Mmm." He looked up at Arken, who remained reaction-less.
"Something else. Unop sorta mentioned it, what did she mean by 'Awakened' exactly?" Imuru inquired.
Yosho curiously opened her eyes. "Hm. It's the highest level of evolutionary process, all creatures are capable of. Ennom's are naturally connected to spirits… Typically that's the evolutionary path they chose to take."
Crossing his arms across his chest, Imuru gave a simple. "I see," He murmured. "Only if I got whatever any of that meant, besides Forcent being powerful… But hey, really, what else is there to really know?" Imuru thought contentedly.
"Arken, keep everyone safe until I get back." Imuru nonchalantly ordered. "Yosho, i think you should probably stay here, while i alert your brother of what's coming." He looked out. "I'll have to be quick. Thankfully, I don't have any luggage."
Yosho waltzed up behind Imuru. "Excuse me," She began. "If I may Great Imuru. Could I tag along?" Yosho inquired, a tinge of unusual charm present in her tone, and a much genuinely-brighter smile on her face."And. of course, worry not, I'll keep up."
"Of course she can… I can tell she's not just some office lady," Imuru mused. He gave her a nod, and a smile. "I don't doubt you can."
"Honestly, I'd rather have her on my side, than not."
To continue on with his assault, Forcent made swift use of the wolves for Intel. Calmly he sat and listened in for what was mostly good news, but still there was something they couldn't provide him with. He didn't muse on it for too long, and got them to point him to the closest settlement, where he'll maybe be able to acquire the information he wanted.
Forcent returned to his feet, posing with fierce confidence. "One final request," He exclaimed. "I'll need you all ahead to clear the way…" His gaze sharpened beaming grave intensity. "Do not be mistaken, this'll draw out the strongest. I'll be watching to assess the strength of such a potential individual," Forcent murmured.
The wolves made sure to listen carefully, before they all hustled. Ripping through the forest like a hot knife through butter. They moved around trees, shrubs, bushes and anything protruding from the ground like snakes, their top speed only ever mildly being disrupted.
The evening was upon them, and the slightly humid nature of the forest during the day began to cool. The wolves gradually slowed, as they reached in close proximity to their objective. From this point on, they moved forward slowly.
Very familiar with the leathered and armored guard that protected the path, most left to move on to the village, where a few stayed to deal with them.
The majority of the pack that went on to the village took a moment to observe from the edges of the forest, looking in they pondered briefly when they should strike.
One by one they stepped out, non-aggressively. It was noticed by them that guards are littered around, in attempts to protect the village from all corners.
They caught the eyes of a few folks just hanging about chatting. A wolf pointed itself at them and began a methodical approach to them. One of the males took immediate interest in said wolf, before he could even step a foot in the beast's direction, he's held back by a guard.
Even though deep into the concentration of his work, Collon heard the howl of a wolf. This wasn't unusual, but he felt something was off. This was almost immediately confirmed, by terrified screams of his people greeting his ears.
He shot up out of his seat. "Wait, could the Persudos be attacking?!" He asked himself, making his way into the merchant section of the guild.
His eyes met the terrified and puzzled look of the patrons. A message is telepathically communicated to him a few seconds in. "Everyone, stay here. Don't go outside," Collon ordered, his bewilderment palpable.
A man stepped forward. "A‐Are you positive sir?…" He inquired. "I'm confident me and my group would be of great assistance. If we're able to alert Commander Tort's, and his outpost sir."
"...No," Collon bluntly, and swiftly replied. The man gasped, Collon's swift response taking him by surprise. "Don't underestimate them. I need to talk to the leader, without anyone else getting in danger."
The man bowed. "Yes. Of course, Great Collon." He respectfully stepped back.
On the outside. It was ominously silent, even though there was a ruckus outside mere seconds ago. "Thought so…" Collon took in his surroundings some more. "Buildings are still standing. There isn't any damage from what I see… Is this just to scare us?... Erinot."
Collon marched on in search of a Persudo that could hopefully direct him to the leader. As he wished, the leader slowly made his way from a corner, but it wasn't who he expected.
He looked on, his shock overcoming any fear he should have. "An… Ennom?... New to the pack?"
"He seems to be in charge here." With caution, Collon marched on up to Forcent.
Hidden from sight, Mult watched the two closely. Uncomfortable with the situation unfolding in front of him, he swiftly decided to make his move. Mult leapt into the air, blade in hand.
Forcent picked up on his presence. He slammed a paw onto the ground, creating a barrier above himself, blocking Mult's sword.
Mult landed heavily back on his feet, after his failed attack. He grunted out of frustration, and got ready to engage Forcent.
"Mult…" Collon calmly raised his hand at him. "I'm fine." He stared up at Forcent and telepathically got in touch with Mult. "Don't engage him. You're far from capable of beating and would only get us all killed."
With a heavy breath, Mult lowered his blade and took some steps back. His distrustful gaze glued upon Forcent.
"Allow me to introduce myself." Collon began. "I'm Collon, the leader of this village, passed down from my father."
"Forcent…" He introduced himself simply, a contemplative expression rested on his face.
Introductions done. Collon got to the point. "If I must ask. What's the meaning of this?" Collon carefully probed, trying to discern the wolf's motives.
Forcent lowered his head. "I suppose you know of the guardian of this forest?" He inquired.
"Huh?" Collon's demeanor abruptly shifted lightly. His gaze softened momentarily. "We no longer have a guardian. And what would you have to do with it?"
The information didn't warrant a reaction from Forcent. He turned away from Collon, and walked off to the edge of the village. Collon trailed behind Forcent, still unsure of the wolf's true motives.
Collon exhaled deeply. "What business you have with the Guardian is yours… My interest is the security of my people."
"I have no quarrel with your people." Forcent calmly assured Collon. With the Guardian possibly long gone, he only had one other thing to try.
"No longer here?..." He growled. "Maybe just dormant."
Forcent's body started to glow, and in one swift moment, Perivállon burst from his body, knocking Collon off his feet. The very surroundings began to warp around Forcent, his body disrupting light itself. His excessive amount of power wrecked the nearby buildings behind, uprooted trees and cleared the sky above of any clouds.
[[
[[-Fleeting Beast-]]
An intangible force is launched into the forest, going on for a certain distance, before it erupted into a dome-like explosion that sent out random intervals of devastating lightning across the land.
It expanded, until it reached its maximum radius, before fading. Leaving behind in its wake, 3.2 acres of destroyed forest and, with a hole 100 feet deep.
After this devastating attack, Forcent remained motionless. "Nothing?... Well then." Perivállon burst from his body. He charged and utilized his skill once again.
Prior to the last, this had the same devastating force. Until, a dazzling mix of blue and purple flames swirled around, countering and negating it entirely.
A pleasant smile formed onto Forcent's face, his once stoic expression no more. "There's one creature capable of doing that… Guardian."
He took multiple steps back from the edge of the forest, as electricity crackled across his body.
Forcent anxiously waited for the guardian to show itself. A wolf approached him and told him something. He followed it, to the northern path connected to the village, and saw one woman approaching.
He wasn't at all bothered and found her presence intriguing in any sort of sense and thought he'll look elsewhere, while he'll make the Persudos handle her if caused trouble.
He stopped, and glanced back. Something now really piqued his interest, enough for him to step forward.
The male walked up close to Forcent, a wide smile on his face. "Hi, I'm Imuru. We've met before, just not personally."
"I have business to attend to… But, if I were to presume, you're the reinforcement?" Forcent inquired. His smug expression reformed on his face.
"Hm." Imuru held his chin. "I suppose… I wasn't exactly planning on meeting you here." Imuru dropped the smile. "Listen, I don't wanna fight you. But I will stop any more attempts you make to harm this forest and its inhabitants."
Forcent narrowed his eyes, and raised his head slightly. "You?! You stopped my skill?" Forcent asked.
Imuru gave a simple nod to Forcent's question.
Forcent expression flattened and he looked off. "This child. I won't be able to carry on with him here. That was the best in my arsenal." He mused. "If the Guardian is truly gone… Then, I am out of options. My existence continues to be difficult."
He redirected his attention back to Imuru. "So be it. I'll continue on no more. There are benefits of me fighting you or for me to continue on with my assault."
Imuru stepped back, his eyes widened out of complete disbelief. "Wait, really?!" He exclaimed.
"Tell the others, it's over," Forcent ordered the Persudo beside him.
Yosho had her unadulterated attention on Imuru and his actions this entire time. "Great Demon Lord…" She thought to herself. Yosho gave herself a nod and directed her gaze at Forcent.
"Great Imuru if I may. What will become of this… Ennom?" She asked, staring Forcent down with a penetrating gaze.
"Good question," Imuru thought, contemplating what he should do next. He could feel the tension between the two.
Coming up from the village, Collon, assisted along by Mult. "Imuru, I'm quite pleased to see you again."