CHAPTER 119: MONSTER BAIT

Wade found himself beside Brody once more, who was already bleeding from a cut across his face but grinning nonetheless.

"Round two," Brody said grimly.

"Round two," Wade echoed.

They charged.

The monsters they faced now were faster, meaner, and somehow, more desperate.

Wade locked blades with a goblin, who looked larger than most, its skin dark green and its eyes bright with intelligence.

It moved unlike a beast, calculating and almost humanlike in its footwork.

It wielded bone weapons, curved blades that glowed softly with some kind of unnatural energy.

The goblin darted forward, slashing at his side. Wade blocked with the axe head of Toothpick.

The creature twisted, feinting left, then lunging right. Wade barely dodged, the blade grazing his shoulder.

"Fast little bastard," he hissed, countering with a swing that the goblin ducked under.

They traded blows, until finally, Wade found an opening. He drove his axe forward, smashing into the goblin’s chest.

The creature screamed, green blood spraying across the ground.

It collapsed, twitching.

Wade exhaled in relief, but it was short-lived.

The goblin spasmed and hurled something at him. A flask of oily black liquid. It shattered across his chest, splattering his armor with a strange, burning substance.

"What the hell," Wade started, trying to wipe it off.

Then, fangs clamped down on his shoulder from behind. But before they could bite, Wade instinctively made his move.

Stone Skin!

His skin hardened in an instant, rippling into the texture of granite just as the monster’s jaw sank down.

Crack.

Teeth broke against rock.

The creature howled in surprise and pain, its jaws snapping back with splinters of its own fangs flying.

Wade staggered forward, the Stone Skin holding.

He spun, swinging Toothpick in a wide arc.

The hammer met the creature’s chest with a wet crunch.

It went flying, a massive, dark-furred beast with two heads, both snarling, both foaming with fury. Its split jaws opened wide in unison, revealing two rows of teeth per mouth.

A twin-jawed wolf.

The monster skidded through the mud but found its footing fast, its claws tearing up dirt as it lunged again.

Wade met it head-on, sidestepping the first head and smashing Toothpick into the second. The blow fractured part of its snout, spraying blood into the air.

The first head lunged in retaliation, clamping onto his arm.

Wade grunted, twisting his body and using his hardened skin to yank the beast closer before driving his knee up into its throat.

The monster gagged, coughing blood. Wade shoved it back and swung again, crushing one skull completely.

The other head howled, snapping at the air, desperate and furious.

That was when something slammed into Wade’s back like a battering ram.

He stumbled forward, barely catching himself before turning. Another wolf, identical to the first, had pounced on him from behind, its claws sinking into his armor.

He barely had time to register the movement before a third one leapt from the left, jaws snapping for his neck.

"What the—" Wade cursed, ducking under the bite.

He teleported three meters backwards, reappearing behind the first wolf just as it lunged again.

He swung Toothpick, the axe cleaving deep into the base of its skull. Blood sprayed across his face as the beast fell limp.

But more were coming.

Across the field, the ground shook with the pounding of hooves and claws. Boars, wolves, scaled beasts, all racing towards him, their eyes fixed.

Wade’s gut twisted.

"Why are they—"

"Wade!"

Brody’s voice rang out somewhere through the chaos.

"The potion!" he shouted, slashing down a monster near him. "That goblin’s crap! It’s bait! It makes them target you!"

Wade’s eyes widened in realization. "What?!"

"It draws monsters! You’ve got to get it off before—"

Brody didn’t finish. His shout was drowned out by another roar.

The beasts were converging on Wade like bloodhounds on a scent.

"Of course it’s cursed," Wade muttered under his breath, raising his axe. "Why wouldn’t it be?"

The first wave of monsters reached him.

An iron-hide boar barreled forward, tusks gleaming, while a two-headed wolf darted in from the side. Behind them, more monsters came.

Wade gritted his teeth. He couldn’t run. They’d trample him.

So he fought.

The boar charged. Wade sidestepped, swinging the hammer end of Toothpick into its temple. The sound was like a drumbeat, deep and solid, and the creature’s head twisted violently before it toppled.

A wolf leapt next, snapping at his leg. Wade teleported, reappearing behind it and bringing his axe down. The blade buried deep into its spine.

A Fireburst erupted from the impact, the explosion flinging burning shards of bone outwards. The light flashed across the battlefield, drawing even more monsters to him.

"Oh, great," Wade grunted. "That helps."

He darted forward, his boots pounding the dirt as he weaved between monsters. Each teleport carried him a few meters at a time,allowing him to catch them by surprise.

He appeared behind one beast, a rather small drake, and struck its back legs. It roared and fell, crushing a wolf under its bulk.

Then he blinked again, reappearing behind another boar.

"Fireburst!"

The explosion lit up the field, scattering burning debris. For a moment, the heat and smoke gave him cover.

He used the moment to rip part of his tunic off, trying to wipe away the black residue left by the potion. But only the top surface was wiped off, the rest smearing into his armor.

"Damn it," he growled. "Won’t come off."

Perception pinged, and Wade looked up just in time to see a Sky Buzzard circling overhead. Its feathers crackled with lightning, its eyes burning.

"Patriarch." Wade breathed.

The beast screamed, wings glowing with electric light, then...

BOOM.

A bolt of lightning fell from the sky.

It struck an iron-hide boar first, but the current arced along its metal-like hide, jumping from beast to beast like a chain reaction.

Wade’s heart lurched. "No—"

The lightning reached him before he could move.

It slammed into him, his vision flashing white.

Every nerve in his body screamed. The jolt sent him sprawling, his muscles seizing as electricity danced across his limbs.

His axe slipped from his fingers, clattering beside him.

For a few seconds, he couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t move. The world was just sound and pain.

The stench of ozone filled his nostrils.

"Get up..." he rasped, forcing his trembling hand to move. "Come on, Wade. Get... up..."

He rolled to the side, gasping, his body twitching uncontrollably. He could taste copper in his mouth.

Above him, the patriarch buzzard circled again, shrieking, its wings gathering another storm.

All around, beasts were still closing in, drawn to the scent that clung to him like blood.

He reached for Toothpick, fingers brushing the handle, but before he could grab it, the sound of hooves striking ground reached his ears.

One of the massive boars was charging straight at him. Its eyes locked on him, its hooves tearing up the dirt as it thundered forward.

Wade tried to stand, but his body still spasmed from the lightning. His muscles wouldn’t respond fast enough.

"Not good..." he muttered, staggering upright just in time to see the beast closing the distance.

The world seemed to slow down.

Then, the tusks came.

Twin hooks of metal, as long as his arm, driving straight for his chest.