Chapter Four - Hunt or be Hunted?

A whistling sound stung Jarr's ears, urging him to look back and follow what was happening. Whatever had emerged from the trees flew by so quickly that once he turned, he only saw the large horse topple.

It wailed in agony, rolling over the tall grass. Despite its best attempts to stand and run, it remained grounded. It kicked upwards, revealing a pair of bolas wrapped around its legs. The metal spheres pulled the animal back down. The longer it struggled, the deeper the chains cut into its skin.

Overcoming his shock, Jarr rushed into action, until another whistling sound screeched from behind.

''Grandfather!'' The children cried out.

Jarr's breath was knocked out of him as he felt metal wrap around his body and weigh him down until he collapsed. His bones rattled from the devastating impact. He cursed himself, knowing that he was now powerless. If the great mare couldn't break free, he didn't have a chance. It was pointless to even make an attempt to break free. His body went numb and his heart broke as he heard the continuing cries of the Mamethshire. Before long, another sound reached his ears, the sound of the siblings screaming in terror.

He twisted his body, feeling a presence looming from behind. Cackling laughter filled him with dread. He saw a large individual holding the shrieking children under his arms. The man was tall and wide, wearing metallic armour with a hood and rounded nose guard to conceal his face. It proved effective, as he didn't seem at all fazed by the children trying to punch and kick their way out of his grasp.

Seeing his family in danger, anger replaced fear, and Jarr hissed through gritted teeth. ''Don't hurt them...''

A shadow diverted his attention elsewhere. He glanced over his shoulder and saw another man jump towards him. The jumper folded his legs in mid-air and crashed on top of the feeble old man, using him as furniture. A weakened grunt escaped Jarr as the cackling brute bounced up and down. 

''You're not in any position to tell us what to do!''

Fingers dug into the farmer's scalp and pulled his face upwards, forcing him to stare at the man sitting on top of him. The cackling predator wore armour identical to the giant standing beside them, except, he wore no mask, revealing a wide, open mouth. He broke into a sinister smile; showing off rows upon rows of jagged teeth and emitting a breath so putrid, the flowers on the ground lurched. Drool trickled through his fangs, dripping on Jarr's face.

''Tooth, don't play with your food.'' A sly, feminine voice whispered from behind. A woman, wearing identical armour, stepped over her slobbering companion and glared at him. Two small blades were tucked on either side of her belt.

Tooth chuckled, licking his slobbery lips. ''Aw, you're just jealous because I got the first shot.''

Her eyes bulged and she leant forward. ''What are you talking about? My shot was the one that downed the beast! You ensnared a human who looks older than your father.''

''No, I got the horse!'' He grabbed the bolas around Jarr and pulled, showing no concern for the pain he was inflicting on the farmer. ''This is yours. I saw with my own eyes!''

''I saw differently.'' She turned to the giant hunter who remained quiet throughout their argument. ''Bone? Who caught the horse?''

His expression was unreadable behind his nose guard. He shrugged his shoulders, hoisting the children upwards as he did so. ''I wasn't looking.''

Tooth huffed in frustration before yanking the bolas harder. ''Look, Nail, I'll show you. I always mark mine...''

Everyone jumped as something smashed into the ground between the hunters. The hostages felt their ears explode from the boom, causing them to almost miss the new bellowing voice. ''Must you two argue all the time?''

Jarr's eyes were drawn to the source of the crash. He saw the tip of a tail marked by large, hardened, overlapping scales. The limb was hauled backwards and he followed it, seeing one more person emerge out of the forest. Once again, the armour was the same. But, unlike the others, he wasn't human.

This hunter, a Snakor, overlooked everyone with his extended snout and narrow eyes. At the waist, underneath the hem of his armour, his body narrowed into an elongated, limbless tail. It curved and pressed deeper into the ground, keeping his body erect. The only things that came close to rivalling the size of his body were his slender arms that reached the ground. His knuckles rested into the flattened grass, as he twitched his sharpened claws.

''Either way, this catch is now ours. It doesn't matter who brought it down.'' He addressed the others.

''It was still me!'' Tooth stated before snarling at Nail as she threw him a glare.

A low, rumbling growl escaped the Snakor. ''I swear, it's like watching children bicker.''

Rojan shot them an infuriated look. ''You can't do this!''

The edge of the hunter's lip curled amusedly before sliding forward, his tail curving as he moved and raking the grass.

Jarr's face warped with fear. ''No! Leave them alone!''

Ignoring his cries, the Snakor approached the children, engrossed with their pitiful attempts. Rojan and Maas scowled and tried to attack the lead hunter. But, Bone's grip was too strong.

''Please, don't kill her!'' Maas shouted.

''Oh, you don't have to worry about that. Our employers need her alive,'' he lifted up his arm, revealing some kind of mechanism attached to his wrist. The device was unknown to the family. Their fears grew when they saw a small arrow lodged in the device. ''With this, it'll drift into a deep slumber. Won't even feel a thing. Supposedly.''

No matter how provoked they were by the hunter's taunts or the slimy smirk crawling over his face, they were helpless to do anything other than watch. The hunter slithered forward and pointed his hand at the thrashing animal. For him, everything was silent. All natural sounds were drowned into nothingness as he focused intensely, stared down his weapon and aimed precisely.

Suddenly, there was a thundering sound of metal crashing together.

The lead hunter was propelled backwards after receiving a powerful kick to his face. He skidded and crashed along the ground before coming to a stop next to the other hunters.

Hurt and angered, he was slow to lift himself up. Taking a moment to regain his composure, he twisted his body and faced his assailant.

Jarr's eyes widened and the children, who moments ago were screaming their lungs out, stared quietly at the unexpected reappearance of Ailith Natia.

She stood tall with a menacing glare etched across a face and didn't bother unsheathing her sword, even when the Snakor bolted upright.

Nail glanced at her leader. ''Vasara? Are you alright?''

''I'm fine,'' he growled at her before turning his attention back to Ailith. He lifted his arm and the arrow fired, heading for her at breakneck speed.

Much to everyone's shock, Ailith refused to run, opting to remain rooted to the spot and merely raised her arm. A twang reverberated upon impact, and the projectile shot backwards. Vasara could barely follow the ricocheted arrow, turning to find it now wedged under an exposed part of Bone's midriff.

The large man glanced down at the arrow, showing little reaction at first. ''Hey, it works...'' he then mumbled drowsily.

Maas and Rojan felt his grip loosen, enough for them to wriggle free. They dropped to the ground, as Bone's body swayed and buckled, landing on his back, out cold.

Vasara clenched his fists. ''How did she...'' 

His senses flared at a sudden movement from behind and he could only turn halfway before seeing Ailith lunge at him.

She recoiled her fist, stunning the hunters by coating her hand with green diamond. The rasping sound of her fist clamping echoed and the punch she unleashed shattered Vasara's armour like glass. Gasping and coughing, his arms jerked erratically as Ailith moved to the side, allowing him to fall to the ground. By the time the other hunters realised what happened, their leader was already down, whimpering in pain.

Instinctively, Nail unsheathed her daggers and charged towards Ailith. The young warrior raised both her arms. Now, everyone could watch as her skin slowly turned into diamond, from her fingers down to her elbows. As Nail attacked, Ailith shielded herself and blocked every strike, no matter how quickly the hunter slashed. The best she could achieve was ripping part of Ailith's jacket. Pieces of her clothing fluttered away in the wind, but no blood. With every miss, the hunter grew more agitated while the smirk on Ailith's face widened.

Ailith then heard a strange whistling noise in the distance. She looked past Nail and saw Tooth spinning a bolas above his head and then tossing it at her. Ailith dove underneath her opponent's blade and jabbed her in the stomach with her elbow, launching Nail into the path of the bolas. It entangled her body and sent her plummeting to the ground.

Tooth pounced, freeing Jarr and giving the children an opportune moment to rush to their grandfather.

Baring his razor-sharp teeth, Tooth chomped at where Ailith's head was. But, the warrior was too quick. She dropped to the ground and kicked his ankles, knocking him off his feet. She raised her leg and stomped onto his stomach, smashing him into the ground. As soil and grass beneath were unturned, a whine slipped past his lips.

When Ailith began to pull her leg back, Tooth grabbed it. He smiled wickedly and licked his lips, glazing his chin in slobber. Without a second thought, he sunk his teeth into her leg.

Then, there was a loud crack.

Tooth's eyes shot open. He burst into tears and retreated from Ailith's leg, his screams of pain suppressed as he clutched his mouth.

Underneath the holes of her pants, the skin of Ailith's leg was diamond, much like her arms. With a confident grin, she ended it by swiping her leg sideways and booting Tooth in the face. He crashed into the ground, digging up clods of dirt.

Ailith waited for the next attack, but it never came. Once she was sure that things were safe, she rushed over to the family.

Maas and Rojan couldn't pry their grandfather free from the bolas. Ailith lowered herself next to them and grabbed the chain. ''Here, let me.'' She squeezed the chains and pulled. They watched as she made easy work of the metal with her diamond-covered hands. Relief sweep over Jarr as he could finally breathe again. His grandchildren dived into his embrace. A cough escaped him when their arms wrapped around his bruised body, but it was worth it knowing that they were safe.

He looked over the children's shoulder, seeing that Ailith was approaching the distressed Mamethshire.

The horse was far too exhausted to continue struggling. Ailith hoped this would give her a good chance to approach it without the worry of getting a hoof in the face. ''Easy there, girl, easy...'' she whispered. The last thing she needed was the mare to go into another panic.

The diamond coating her left hand slowly disappeared, and she carefully stroked the horse's nose, allowing it to take in her scent. With her other hand, she grabbed the chain. After half a minute, the metal crumbled.

Instantly, the horse vaulted up and dashed around in circles, weakly at first before the run became one filled with joy and the relief of freedom. Ailith sat on the ground, following its run and hypnotised by its beauty.

After a while, the Mamethshire slowed and trotted towards her, nudging its face against hers. Feeling its breath tickle her face, she giggled and patted its nose. ''You're welcome.''

A/N: Hello everyone, I hope that you're well and getting prepared for Christmas. Because of the holiday, I decided to update early and I hope that you enjoy this new chapter. Thank you all, and take care.