Closed Harmony without Honor

[Mercy]

The sound of steel-on-steel echoed about the chambers of the Cave as blades collided. Beads of sweat formed across the Mongrel's visage, and heavy breathing followed. Unseen by the powerful Gnoll; Wraith sat atop a rock overlooking the two combatants. The fight had just begun, and already Mercy was drenched. The slight blue tint of his skin was bright enough to be seen from a distance amid the dim light. Black-clad in his tatami gusoku; a lightweight armor commonly worn by Jianese Shogun. The Gnoll swung his large battle-axe with little effort, forcing Mercy to lean backward so as not to be decapitated. The large ponytail he wore flung forward as his head backward. Gossamer thin strands of his onyx-colored hair were cleaved off as the axe slashed the air.

The Jianese Warriors' quadriceps tightened as he entered a squatting position and launched himself backward. His opponent had been far too gargantuan in stature to launch a close-quarters counterattack. Mercy opted for evasion so as not to be crushed by his opponents imposing physical strength. The axe contacted the right side of the cave wall where the Samurai once stood. All manner of rock and debris were flung into the air lowering visibility. Though Wraith typically allowed Mercy to handle battles on his own; she telepathically communicated to him throughout the battle.

From the perspective of an observer, she could see every movement made by Mercys' adversary. "Go now! It's stuck!" Wraith spoke to her Master as the words vibrated through his cranial structure. Mercy had no time to react to her statement, and simply shifted his footing; Metal-plated geta slammed against the ground. The Samurai sheathed his blade, leaned forward, and the palm of his right hand came to rest atop it's Kashira. A moment of silence ensued, as his thumb ran along the length of tsuka and reached the tsuba.

A flood of memories overtook the swordsman, and in one motion the habaki had been freed from the confines of its imprisonment. The saya vibrated aloud as the shinogi exited in what appeared to be a mere split-second. The Gnoll desperately grabbed the handle of its' battleaxe and ripped it free from the stone. However, the Vokhais opportunity had been cut short. Whilst it gripped the axe-handle with both hands the swordsman took a step forward. In the blink of an eye, its left wrist had been severed from the remainder of its arm's length. The Samurai had lobbed off the beast's hand; Cutting through it effortlessly as aqua de vitae spattered the cave walls and floor.

Mercy sheathed his blade again, and the subtle "click" could be heard as the Gnoll screamed aloud. A cry so desperate that it could certainly be heard by any surrounding Vokhai, or other entities in the vicinity. The Gnoll still managed to free its weapon from the cave, and as it did a collapse began. Large boulders began to descend atop Mercys position, and he hardly had time to react. With a single leap, he avoided most of the large rock formations and stalactites alike.

Suddenly, a presence could be felt although it appeared to lie dormant as though something had been released. Wraith had been the one to sense it first, and foremost. Thus, she chose to descend just in case another combatant so chose to join in. This feeling the Jianese Samurai, and his Familiar were no stranger to; this was a strong metaphor. One that is not uncommon in Jian, Planar.

 

[Eris]

Sweet, sweet abyss...

There is a place that the mind goes. Not quite alive, not quite dead, but elsewhere. Somewhere dark but familiar, like the place of purgatory for a soul before it is born and conscious of its existence. The blackness was enveloping like a thick blanket. Coddling, not smothering, this being suspended in it. Awareness of the world beyond had long since slipped so very far away. Here was peaceful. Here was restful. Here was...

Vibration.

It came through the underground of Ur'Dunn. The disruption was violent, like a boulder cast into perfectly still water. The tunnels quivered with it and echoed the sounds of chaotic violence far beyond the battle waged. Rocks groaned as they shifted. Creatures hidden in this dark scurried with haste. Dislodged and abused gravel scraped as they tumbled from stone wall. Rock dust was thick in the air, settling slowly and the haze of it dissipating moment by moment. Screams reverberated through the caverns. A writhing wrist hit the dirt, heavy and dislocated from the limb it belonged to. Spattered blood painted the walls, started to pool around severed body parts, and perfume the air.

It was intoxicating.

The tunnels shook with falling boulders dislodged and tumbling from where they rested for years. The stone wall beside Mercy had broken away. An age of structure had been shaved away in an instant in the wake of his conflict with the Gnoll. Wraith had come down from her place of advantage to track the presence she and Mercy had both felt. Through a dark opening in the rock a pair of eyes, glowing slightly, opened to stare back at them. The Gnoll screamed and lift the axe, surely in vain as the creature continued to bleed. Heavy droplets fell from its open wounds, drip...drip...dripping. A bright, white smile spread in the dark under the freshly opened eyes.

"Good morning, Sunshine," Eris purred with her eyes locked on Mercy. The heel of her black boot smashed into the remaining rock secreting her in this tunnel, knocking it free of her path and spitting more dust into the air. The woman stepped into the dim light of the pathway near the warriors. Her head tilted side to side and her shoulders rolled away the lethargy of her rest. Her blonde hair shook away the dirt that had fallen to rest on her over the many years she had turned sedentary.

The Gnoll groaned and heaved its axe up on its shoulder. It snorted its disdain and agony through its nostrils, screams continuing to erupt from its jaws. Eris placed her hands behind her back. Not-so-distant roars howled from elsewhere. A cascade of scampering feet echoed, growing closer. Eris's smile widened. Her hands moved back in front of her, each clutching a long dagger. She took a deep breath and let the fumes of spilled blood fill her nostrils. Sharper eyes found some of it spattered across the stranger who had woken her from her Hemostasis.

"Well aren't you just delectable..."

The Gnoll staggered toward Mercy and Wraith, eyes wild and chest heaving. It took five steps before it fell to its knee with howling surprise. Hamstrung, it found itself unable to rise again before a pair of daggers entered the carotid arteries on either side of its neck. The shrieking turned to a sputter. The angle of the blades inside its throat shifted before they crossed, and then were violently forced out through the windpipe. The axe dropped from its hands so the creature could paw at its leaking neck instead. Blood matted its fur and slicked its chest rapidly. The eyes softened and then the creature fell, twitching, upon the floor.

Deimos, Eris's trusted Familiar, stood above the kill. His features were sharp but stoic. His black eyes moved from the Gnoll to regard its master. Eris swayed toward him and warmth flickered briefly in his stare before he observed the two warriors in their midst. He grunted but was forced to turn with the arrival of thundering reinforcements. Eris giggled quietly and turned her back to the threat. She locked eyes with Mercy and stepped backward into the shadows until they swallowed her.

The creatures blindly stampeded toward the final corner, turning and zeroing in on the trio remaining near their fallen comrade. Whoops and raised blades suggested they meant to answer the transgression with barbaric vengeance.

 

[Mercy]

"Ansansu, in front of me... and I never saw him. Imagine that I was the target." Mercy thought to himself. However, he became fixated on the situation at hand. Not only had his newfound ally gone against his morals, and tradition; but he returned to the shadows. Certainly, that was a display of his cowardice. That kill belonged to Mercy, and Mercy alone; Wraith honored the duel imposed by the Gnoll. Then emerged the powerful presence, that made the hair on his nape, stand erect. The wall that broke amidst the chaos and plume of dust right beside him erupted. First Mercy saw a gorgeous smile followed by a voice akin to a siren. "Good morning, Sunshine." He heard and then blood spattered his tatami. He could no longer focus on the violation of the duel. There followed reinforcements for the enemy one hundred Orcs.


They were black, and silver-clad; in various types of armor from iron, and steel. The adversary charged in numbers and locked onto their newfound target Mercy. Just as quickly as the gorgeous figure spoke, she became his ally. They displayed a level of combat Mercy had only ever seen before in Jian. She was astonishing in every way and killed with a combination of grace and brutality. Mercy had been distracted; looking at her glutes bounce in the dimly lit Cave. The Swordsman paid no attention to the massive fist headed toward his face. A loud "CRACK" echoed throughout the vicinity as he barreled toward the ground. A bruise began to form across his blue-tinted skin purple in hue. Enraged, Wraith stepped forth and drew her blade in a circular motion. Then she lobbed off the enemy's axe-carrying arm from its pectoralis muscle.

She sliced once, and off the entire arm came with the large axe in its hand. Mercy recovered his balance, came to his senses, and joined the fray. The Aether began to exude from his body and surround him. Suddenly, moisture was being drawn from the air; The Magic made a sound akin to falling rain. The Jianese warrior drew his blade, freed it from its' restraint, and swung it once.

A column of water erupted, five gallons in volume, and violently whirred around his Katana. One of the largest Orcs in the horde had been cut in half with 55,000 pounds per square inch of water. Blood mixed with the water and began to pool on the cave floor. Wraith stood guard over Mercy, as he felled them one at a time while his newfound allies took the flank.

"I don't even know your names, Assassins. I've never seen a woman like you before. I could watch you fight all day." Mercy spoke aloud. As he carved through the center of the battlefield untouched, Wraith circled him and cut down those who dared approach his blind spots with leisure.

Wraith slashed through the gaps in her opponent's armor. While she too made use of magic to take advantage of her opponents. Mercy did not like to kill with magic; it was dishonorable. However, this was no battle of honor; it had now become a fight for life, and death. He would not be felled this day, not by a horde of disgusting, lesser beings, savages, and brutes.

 

[Eris]

The Orcs had arrived. Hulking, powerful, and stupid. She'd tasted them before and smelled their presence long before they arrived. Sweating in their armor, the reinforcements moved with the same purpose as a dumb animal with tunnel vision. Eris had banked on their amoeba-like response. Tucked in the shadows, back against the stone, they saw Mercy, Wraith, and Deimos and flooded toward them. She was still, no breath entering or exiting her lungs, only her eyes moving as she tracked each shadow that passed her in favor of the obvious enemy in their path. A fist adorned with black vambrace smashed into the face of the curious stranger. How he was caught so unaware, Eris could only make conjecture. She fought the giggle at the sight of his carelessness.

Deimos, in far more peril, grit his teeth and readied his daggers for his offensive. He parried a stab for his center and inserted one of his daggers into the base of the Orc's throat. His lip curled slightly at the sight of the blood spilling when he pulled his blade free, but he wasted no time dallying over the dying creature. He was already moving past it, driving the next into the stone wall and finding the spaces in the creature's armor again and again in rapid succession. With such overwhelming odds he used mobility to his advantage, slashing and stabbing and moving before he was tracked for remaining too long in one position.

Eris drank in the carnage. The sound of clashing blades, groans of suffered wounds, and the aroma of spilling, pooling, dripping blood consumed her senses. The gnaw of a deep, unnatural hunger tugged at her. How long had it been since she fed? Her mouth felt dry so suddenly. The battle in this dank cavern turned into a hopeful, blessed oasis. Her inaction had gone on long enough. She peeled herself from the shadows and her blades went to butchering.

The horror of a small war drowned out the sound of a small, lithe hunter jumping on the back of the last Orc in the massive stack. Her dagger punched through the cheek, settling deep against the back of the jaw. Was it a shriek of agony or the sound of a well-placed battle cry? No one seemed to know, for no one turned away from the mage with his sword summoning water before their very eyes. Eris sunk her teeth into the creature's throat and let body weight sag backwards, legs wrapped around the creature's waist like she was some wretched backpack. The creature, biting down involuntarily on the blade of her dagger, stumbled backward and fell on their rear. She cared not to be gentle, and let her jaws tear the arteries open with the jostle of the fall.

The Orc shot his axe over his shoulder, but each time he found no purchase. Eris released her grip at sign of swing and returned when it was gone. Blood sputtered from the severed arteries and she drank heartily from the fountain she had made. It was a brief feed, and a messy one, and then she was through. Circumstance forced her to tear herself from this bloody kill before it was dry and engage the rest. She ripped the dagger through the Orc's face and the second drove through the creature's exposed armpit. The blade found purchase through the ribs before she abandoned the creature in its suffering to stand. The blood on her cheeks felt warm. Her tongue snaked from her mouth to lick the carnage from her lips.

She was alive.

Eris let her daggers slice and cut through the back of the formation of Orcs, effectively flanking them and pressing them between two threats. She was having a merry time, giggling and reveling in the spatter that decorated the dust that colored her before her awakening. Through the dark she spied the stranger wielding his water and her eyes widened. The butchering stopped and she fled, finding sanctuary behind a boulder just out of the way of the arcane onslaught. When it was through the Orcs had fallen into a flooded, bloody heap.

Eris straightened up when it was over and the tunnel had turned quiet again. Her daggers dripped crimson droplets into the small red sea Mercy had created. She waded through it in her boots, resisting the urge to fall to joyful knees and drink the fresh delicacy. Her bright blue eyes glowed with wonder as she took it all in. Deimos slunk to her side, where he always resided. The pair stood in place, attention now steeled toward Mercy and Wraith. Eris tilted her head, letting her passive abilities drink in his presence. Deimos only stared stoically.

"That was fun!" Eris said, elated. "You're fun." Deimos sighed while Eris sheathed her bloody daggers, loathe as she was to let the edges go uncleaned by her tongue. The back of her hand wiped her face, smearing away the mask of blood. She sauntered toward the pair of strangers with a casual swing to her gait. The woman stopped at arm's length. Her wild eyes looked the man up and down. She tilted her head and bit her lip. "Eris." She extended her hand with a smirk.

 

[Mercy]

Mercy watched as his newfound ally tore asunder opponents in the same fashion as he, and Wraith. As the blood-water mix coated the ground beneath them the Cave had been overcome with silence. He watched as the woman soaked with aqua-de-vitae and her familiar approached. Wraith stood guard to his left and kept her Katana unsheathed as she felt uneasy about their new friends. Mercy, however, had not been so concerned about being attacked. Eris, that was her name, and he wondered what that of the other Assassin was. Mercy had no time to think about that; He was distracted and looked straight down at her bust. The Samurai watched as she extended a hand toward him, and he shook her hand in response. Yet, he couldn't help holding onto it for as long as he could, but he couldn't bring himself to look up.

Wraith was a gorgeous familiar; quite the picturesque one. Eris had the perfect figure, a nice smile, and an aura that exuded danger. Although she was covered in blood and had to wipe it away from her face, she was attractive. "That was fun" he heard the young woman speak. "You're fun." Mercy listened and took a moment to form his response. Whether or not she would reject his advances; he did not have a care in the world. Mercy parted his lips and began to speak, as he continued staring at her breasts.

"These… I meant you're beautiful." He said in about the most awkward tone possible. Mercy had never bedded a woman before. He was nervous and shaken up by her style of combat. He did not care if an interaction between himself and Eris lasted two seconds. The short-lived moment would be the best two seconds of his life. No matter how disappointed he would leave his newfound partner. Mercy had not uttered another word and began to move her hand toward the opposite side of her body. He hoped to spin her around so that he could get one more look at her rump.

"Just let me see it… one more time." He finally spoke aloud as though he'd been possessed. The war crime committed in his eyes had become irrelevant, though he never addressed the problem. All logic had gone out the window, this prompted Wraith to sheath her weapon. The Familiar watched on as her Master displayed a lust unlike any she had ever witnessed before. Though she stood at an unintimidating 5'0 in stature, she gave Eris's Familiar a murderous glare. Without words having to be exchanged perhaps he understood the message.

"You had better not interrupt my Master."

Wraith dusted her gusoku off in the next second and prepared for the worst. They would not be able to remain in place for long. There was no telling if more reinforcements would come to the aid of their fallen comrades. Various weapons, and armor laid about the Cave floor; while Eris, and Mercy stood in the large puddle of blood, and water.

 

[Eris]

Eris's brow arched as Mercy took her hand but didn't raise his stare from her chest. The shake was long, longer than it was perhaps socially acceptable, but that wasn't her doing. Mercy had proven himself as adept killer. Perhaps his eggs had been placed into one proverbial basket. Wherever they laid, they were evidently not largely collected in any labeled "tact" or "polite." Her hand didn't redden his cheek. Instead she took that moment to feel the warmth of his flesh, remembering what it was like to hold a member of the living and unblighted. A moment, to touch quarry and set it free again, now that her thirst was sated with that of the Orcs. His boyishness only widened her smirk.

Based on his dress, his accent, and the way he carried himself she felt it safe to pin him as a Jian man. She wasn't sure what he was doing here with his sidekick, but whatever it was, it worked to her favor. While Mercy stumbled awkwardly in his speech about breasts and beauty, Eris errantly mused over her last memory of this dark scene. She had been with her Sire. That much she thought was certain. They'd come down here to feed and follow the grand design of something far more powerful. Then, she had been commanded to fall into Hemostasis. She remembered loathing the order. It was so annoying: forced to sleep while the others could hunt, feed, and torment to their own ends. Yet she did what she was told.

Her Sire had promised to wake her.

Why didn't they?

Eris snapped back to the present, hearing Mercy's request and his little minion's sword sheathing. She saw the baseline, hedonistic gleam in his wanting eyes. Deimos looked away from Eris to meet Wraith's threatening glare. He snorted and raised his chin. He cleaned and sheathed his own daggers, and then took a subtle step or two closer. His eyes moved from his master to Wraith, his eyes tightening possessively though he dared not interject for fear of Eris's protest.

She had seen his work with his blade in an environment less than desirable to battle in. She could also sense he harbored greater power she hadn't yet seen. At the same time, Eris could hear Mercy's heart hammering in his chest, hear the blood circulating rapidly through his arteries and veins when his attention ruminated on the features of his interest. This was nervous, elated lust she had seen a thousand times over. Eris knew better than to squander it.

She took two steps back from him, laughing, and slowly rotated in space. Then she returned, closing that precious space between them. "Tell me, Sunshine," she purred as she gingerly raised her thumb to slowly wipe the blood from his bottom lip. "When exactly are we? It's so dark down here you know how easy it is to lose track of time." She brought her thumb back to her face and licked it from the tip of the finger.

"Eris, we have to go," Deimos murmured his interjection. He turned his head at the sound of distant scuffling farther down the tunnels.

"Always the voice of reason, Deimos." She shrugged. "I'll have my answer from our heroic Mercy and then maybe he'll be so kind as to guide us out of here? You've seen him. Carving a path is no challenge for a capable warrior like him, right?" She smiled. "Besides...this is no place to talk and he seems to want to get to know us better."

 

[Mercy]

Mercy stiffened the moment her hand caressed his flesh. The male paid close attention to his surroundings. Then came a distant shuffling that he could only vaguely hear, as his attention had been directed elsewhere. The moment she broke away Mercy looked on in awe. Her physique had been far too perfect, as she turned about, he watched the subtle bounce of her glutes. Then he heard words exit the lips of her familiar, "We have to go". Whoever the assassin was he certainly did know how to ruin a moment—mere minutes passed before the short-lived bliss. The Jianese warrior relished in her compliment regarding his skills with a blade.

Wraith preferred to speak with Mercy directly, and thus she opted to use their telekinetic connection to communicate. "They approach." cantankerous

Mercy took the vanguard without hesitation and began a cantankerous march toward his home. Eris had been correct about his want to know her; perhaps in a different way than she imagined. However, his train of thought came to a screeching halt when Eris beckoned him. "The year is 1124. That is a strange question and considering the circumstances we met in… that is the least of my concerns." Mercy said in an accent laden with Jianese.

First, and foremost they had to reach a safe position. The only "safe" place in this Cave he knew of was his home. Therefore, the decision had already been made in his mind. They wouldn't need to travel far either. Wraith traveled behind her Master in preparation to protect him from the oncoming threat. Although, she hadn't been certain whether the adversary marched toward, or away from them. "Follow me." The Samurai whispered so as not to alert any oncoming Vokhai.

The thought of another onslaught of enemies pestered him. They had just finished a battle, albeit short, and relatively easy. More importantly, he preferred to meet a woman when he wasn't covered in blood and sweat. Eris certainly seemed to have a taste for blood both literally and figuratively. The style of ansatsu taken up by Eris, and Deimos was something else entirely. Mercy hadn't witnessed an opponent die so brutally in quite a while. He'd finally met suitable allies; hopefully, they wouldn't get in his way again. The Geta beneath his feet, too had been smeared with blood. They clung to his heels, as the sound of metal-plate on stone echoed about the vicinity.

The sudden sense of unease overcame Wraith, and their surroundings grew quiet. Not so much as an insect could be heard nearby. Something was wrong, and the hairs on the back of his nape stood erect. There are various ways to describe quiet, but they experienced complete and total silence. This was an unusual occurrence in the caveat of Ur'dunn never had it been so…

Quiet

Wraith stopped in her tracks, and from behind their formation emerged a Vokhai. The emerald hue of its irises pierced the shadows. Mercy could see the massive canines protruding from its maw, as he turned to face their newfound attacker. The Katana, fixated on the left side of his hip, had been unsheathed in a single motion. The Samurai turned to face their newfound adversary. The question, however was; how many followed?

 

[Eris]

1124.

Eris tilted her head slightly. She blinked at the man, the wheels in her mind turning and mathematics being completed with the accompanied deductions. She shook her head and smiled again.

"Of course it is," she assured him with a laugh. "I meant the day! You meant to be funny, didn't you?" She turned from him, eyes darkening as she paced toward Deimos. He alone could see and understand what laid in her expression. He looked toward the wall they'd been secreted behind before Mercy's warfare shook them awake again. The hidden crevice had been relatively clean inside. Outside it, where the boulder used to be, sediment had built up. The foot prints and scents that might've lingered of the others had vanished, evidently, a long time ago. Eris knew it too. She inhaled and let her enhanced vision hunt but it yielded nothing. She bared her teeth in the dark to herself before her expression smoothed back over.

Mercy bid them to follow and Eris didn't miss a beat. Her mask of fatal pleasantries returned to her. She smiled and practically skipped catching up to the Jianese warrior and his familiar. Deimos fell in beside her like a shadow. They allowed themselves to be led and Mercy seemed eager to remain in his steadfast role of competent combatant. They seemed to be headed wherever it was Mercy and Wraith considered safe. Then another came.

The Vokhai emerged from behind them. Eris and Deimos turned and their daggers were quickly drawn. They stared at the bright green eyes glowing in the dark and the opened maw exposing terrible fangs. Eris's lips curled and she flashed fangs of her own. The creature, once storming toward them, noticed her teeth and the predatory nature of her stare. He paused. Then, sound and light.

The Vokhai was screaming. It was a horrible, shrieking cry that deafened the tunnels. Tunnels, which were not bright and alight with the giant flame consuming the intruder. The flame feasted on the creature's hair, burned through the skin, and cooked its insides at a speed that would never allow for a quick death. Eris's laughter was the only sound competing with the sick howls, and the creatures brethren whooped and yowled at the sight of what became of their assault's leader.

Fear didn't keep them paralyzed for long. Anger, hatred, and a thirst for vengeance empowered the lesser heathens now. They stormed down the tunnel, stepping over their fallen comrade as his screaming stopped and the fire consumed him. She could have barbecued the rest if she wanted to, Eris knew.

But where was the fun in all of that?

 

[Mercy]

Mercy, accompanied by Wraith; his Familiar, and servant waltzed forth. The beast of a Vokhai emerged from the shadows and paused. The beast momentarily laid eyes upon the fearsome Eris. Suddenly it was set ablaze and chaos erupted, which filled the cavern with the horrified screams of its comrades. "Yes, I meant to be funny." Mercy responded as he freed the lengthy blade from his hip. The sound of metal-on-metal echoed about as the Katana exited the saya. The Jianese warriors' stance widened his hands upheld the exotic weapon in the center of his mass. Wraith took immediate action and guarded her master. She stood beside Mercy and began to speak aloud in a thick-jianese accent.

"Blood spilled in vain is tactless and dishonorable." At the same time, she raised her hand, rather than her sword. After Eris's magic had felled the first of the Vokhai; the next one had entirely stopped in its tracks. It began to writhe in pain from what at first glance appeared to be nothing. Mercy took advantage of his opponent and thwarted its efforts to move. The male firmly grasped the menuki and swung forth severing its upper half from the lower. The Vokhais' torso fell to the ground, and as the remainder of them charged Mercy held the vanguard.

Wraith had just cast an expert-level spell, hydromancy. This left his spell reserves relatively low, but with aqua-de-vitae coating the ground that would not be an issue. Mercy raised his left-hand opposite of the one that held the Katana. The puddle of blood on the ground began to move as though it had come to life. It rose from the ground and violently swirled though it had only been approximately a gallon in volume. However, that had been enough to destroy the equilibrium of the other Vokhai.

Wraith came to join Mercy in the fray, but chaos ensued. The adversaries had been terrified after they bore witness to such magic. They fought tooth and nail with a ferocity hardly witnessed by even the mightiest warriors. Mercy was already exhausted, but he would fight to the death if it meant they would reach safety. Though distracted the warrior had not forgotten to respond to Eris.

"I often forget the days here myself, perhaps we can find out about that once we get to my home. You can stay, and so can your friend here. You'll be sleeping in my bed tonight, Eris."

Mercy spoke as the onslaught continued. Wraith took advantage, and drew her blade, at the same time she took position beside her master. She too began to cut them down with relative ease. Most of them were unarmored serpentine creatures that Mercy had rarely-ever encountered before. However, he knew that an immediate warning needed to be given to his comrades.

"Whatever you do, do not let them bite you. If you get bitten, you'll certainly die. Take the flank!"