Hunting the Shifters [1x1 - romamaro and moniiqwolf]

romamaro

romamaro

Well-Known Member
A flock of birds flew over the little yet proud village, but the humans knew many of the shifters ways. Five skilled archers poised themselves upon the villages archer towers, and all at once, let loose their arrows. Five of the birds fell, and for every arrow fired one bird would go down. The alive birds moved faster as the killed members of the flock fell to the ground. However, contrary to expectations, these birds remained thouroughly bird-like long after death.

One such dead bird landed in the garden of a fearsome female warrior. At that moment in time, she did not look the part; she wore a plain brown frock, and hung up her family's clothes on the washing line. This was because Isabella had long ago hung up her sword for favour of a broomstick, after the birth of her first child, Walter. The ex-warrior wandered over to the dead crow and sighed. If you were going to use arrows, you ought to make sure you were shooting at something worthwhile. There wasn't much mean on a crow to eat. Even still, the housewife scooped the bird up and went inside with it, leaving the washing for the moment.

When Isabella entered her two roomed house, she instantly noticed that her husbands fighting spear was missing off its stand. With a gasp and a bit of a groan, she dumped the dead bird on the kitchen table and rushed off to the house's bedroom. Within, instead of finding one of her six children playing with their parents' old and new weapons, she saw her husband, Geoffrey, tucking each of the children into bed one by one. On his back, his spear sat in its sheath, and the well-built man wore all of his best armour.

"Geoffrey, whatever's the matter?" Isabella asked, rushing over and scooping up the youngest child, Emma, before the baby escaped into the kitchen.
"They're finally attacking those filthy shifters, Bella!" Geoffrey exclaimed proudly, taking Emma and setting her in her cot.
Isabella scoffed in disgust, but for an odd reason. Isabella was one of the most ardent shifter haters in the village, and had killed many of them in her time. "Why wasn't I told?" The wife asked, walking backwards out of the room as her husband walked past her.
"We've no time for this right now," he said with a wave of his hand, "if you're coming, put on your armour! You have wanted to do this for a while, yes?"

Unbeknownst to her husband, Isabella had started putting on her armour as soon as he had turned his back to her. Now, she wore a full set of armour, nearly all her body covered in steel and iron. Her sword, polished, lay in its sheath, waiting eagerly to slice through the air and come down on a neck or two. "Well then, we must hurry!" She exclaimed, then looked back into the room where her children slept. "Do not leave the bedroom, do you hear me, children? The shifters will come for you if you do," she claimed. The children that could nod nodded, as they were terrified of the shifters, and Isabella closed the house door behind her and her husband.

The pair hurried to join the large crowd that was gathering. The two were well known, though many were bewildered to see Isabella with her armour again, and her long sword just as intimidating as it had been ten years ago. They stood at the front of the crowd, beside everyone from a trained warrior to a young peasant boy with a sickle. Once an ample crowd gathered, an experienced and wise warrior stood at the front and lifted his sword upwards. "Today, we finally attack the heathens!" He declared, which prompted magnificent cheers. The loudest ones came from Isabella and Geoffrey, who raised their own weapons.

"We attack the heathens who go against the Lord, and transform themselves into devious creatures to rob and murder their fellow men!" The wise man shouted. "They murder our neighbours and kidnap their wives and children! They work them to death! They sacrifice them to their evil gods and take great pleasure in their misdeeds!" The speech went on for a very long time, and none of it really did anything but reinforce beliefs that most everyone already held. Finally, it was over. The group of humans began their trek into the woods, a forty-five minute or so walk that would lead them to a long time enemy.
In the branches of a tree in the shifters' village, a monkey lay, soaking up the sun like a sponge soaks up water. She sighed contentedly, though she was starting to get a little bored. She sat up and moved to standing on the branch. Carefully, she bent her knees and jumped, diving into a small pond just beneath the tree. As she hit the surface of the water, the monkey instantly became a little fish. A few quick laps of the pond later, and the fish jumped out of the water and became Matilda's favourite form, back into a monkey

The long legged animal strode away from the pond and the tree, towards the centre of the town. She intended to buy some things and then return home, but quickly noticed distress amongst the people in town. She transformed into whatever animal was needed as she spoke to the other citizens, and eventually gathered that the normal people were believed to start an attack against them that day. She learned that a young wolf scout came back, terrified, and howling about the humans. He had been badly hurt by them, but had escaped. The village was now in high alert. Most everyone took aggressive, angry forms.

Upon gathering all that she could, Matilda transformed into a black bear. She stayed on four legs for now, but she was prepared to come back up to full size if she needed to. Restless, she forgot about shopping, and she stayed close to a crowd of other aggressive formed shifters, feeling safety in numbers.
 
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Lilith stood, careful and still, as the flock of birds flew over the village, a mass of feathers and loud caws. With the practiced skill of an experienced archer, she and four others let loose their arrows at the same time, five deadly shafts hurtling towards their prey in perfect harmony. Each arrow found its mark, and four crows plummeted from the sky. Liliths dark grin disappeared as each bird hit the ground. She had been expecting the splayed limbs and corpse of a shifter, but instead had wasted her arrow on a bird.

She tossed her dark braids over her shoulder and trudged down the stairs, disappointed, and retrieved her arrow, leaving the bird to rot. Not worth her time. Some other villager would doubtless use the bony creature for a stew or some other meal. Normally, she would have taken it, but she didn't have time for cooking. She was going hunting. Shifter hunting.

The woman's grin returned as she saw the growing crowd of armed villagers. Even Isabella and Geoffrey had come, which meant something big. The two revered warriors stood tall and proud, decked out in full armor, large weapons glinting in the sunlight. Lilith had armor on as well, though not as good quality. The classic leather kit of an archer, covered with a tough, knee length tunic. She did have some metal armor on, two plates on her chest and back, and, of course, the iron cross around her neck. Most shifters, or at least fae, had a negative reaction to the substance. A symbol of superstition more then protection, but it meant the world to the young archer.

She joined the fringes of the crowd, nodding and listening to the wise mans speech.
"We attack the heathens who go against the Lord, and transform themselves into devious creatures to rob and murder their fellow men! They murder our neighbours and kidnap their wives and children! They work them to death! They sacrifice them to their evil gods and take great pleasure in their misdeeds!"

Lilith cheered, blood boiling in anticipation. The yells and hullabaloo reinforced the crowds pack mentality, until the group of humans were on a hair-trigger, hyped up and ready to kill. Once the speech was finally over, they started the trek, which wouldn't last long. The shapeshifting scum were so close, Lilith was honestly shocked that the village hadn't staged an attack sooner.

Dark trees rose above the group, and a ambush group fanned out ahead of the rest. Leather boots crunched softly in the undergrowth as Lilith moved forwards cautiously, at the head of the group. Through the dappled undergrowth she spotted one of the creatures; a wolf, sniffing and loping towards them, unaware of the danger. With a leather clad hand, Lilith stretched her arm over her back, slender fingers wrapping around one of her well made arrows. Silent as ever, she notched it into her long bow, aiming for the wolf. It's pointed ears swiveled upwards just as she let the arrow fly, it's golden eyes wide with fear as it scented the humans. As was typical of shifters, it moved extremely fast-but not fast enough. The arrow would have hit the creature between the eyes, but the creatures desperate swiftness meant that the arrow buried deep into the superntuals side instead. It sliced through the thick fur and into the flesh beneath with a satisfying spray of blood. The canine yelped horribly, screaming in pain and sprinting off through the woods as the humans rejoiced.
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Quinn, as usual, had been lazing about in a tree, a long legged black cat dozing in the warmth of the sun. His ears flickered upwards, and one pale eye cracked open, however, as one of the wolf scouts yelps filled the air, and moments later the canine was sprinting past him, tail low and an arrow bolt sticking out of it's side. Both eyes were wide open now, and Quinn scrambled down the tree nimbly, shifting into a long legged stallion the moment his paws hit the the ground. His sleek mane whipped in the wind as he galloped after the wolf, nostrils flaring at the metallic scent of blood and the even more distressing scent of iron.

The village soon can into view, normally organized and calm, now in complete disarray. A few shifters had passive, scared forms. They flitted around the village, talking about what had happened in hushed tones. Quinn shifted into his canine form and conversed with the wounded wolf, eyes narrowing at the young creatures panicked report. A group of humans, a large one at that, all armed to the teeth and heading straight for the village. The aggressive supernatural nodded to the wolf, sympathetic, and ran off to join the defense.

Much to Quinn's savage delight, many supers had chosen a huge, war-ready form. Big cats, wolves, bears and a few humanoids prowled in an angry, tight group, teeth flashing and claws unsheathed. Quinn decided to stay in the form of a slender stallion, deciding that he could always trade size and stretch for nimble flexibility and claws if he needed too. But, for now, he would stay in his current form.

Despite his lean appearance, his equine form was perfect for fights. His hooves were sharp, and unlike any normal horse, he had huge, curved fangs and an unnatural thirst for blood. With a vain toss of his head, Quinn galloped up to the group, skidding to a halt and giving a sly, sideways smirk at the bear he was next too. He could recognize Matilda in almost any of her forms.

"Ready to kill some humans?" He snorted, ears swiveling backwards and forwards in young, giddy excitement. He was furious, of course, and a little worried, but was more excited then anything else. The humans should be easy meals, stuck in one, weak form with only weapons to defend them. The shifters had been nothing but neutral, even kind, towards the humans, but the backwards villagers still viewed them as 'satans servants' and tried to kill the shifters every chance they got. Well, if they want a fight, they'll get it, Quinn thought grimly.
 
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Isabella was just about to draw her sword when the wolf was shot. At first, she cheered along with everyone else, before she started thinking. The shifter got away. Best case scenario, it died before it reached the shifters village, but worst case scenario was that it got back home and warned the village of their presence and they lost the element of surprise. Not to mention that the sound the wolf made would likely notify the rest of the wolf scouts...

Isabella told her husband this, and he nodded along in agreement. "We must be careful of the other wolf scouts now!" He called to the group, hitting the wooden bar of his spear against the ground. "For now, we should keep moving, and with any luck that shifter will die before reaching home!" He added, before starting to walk again, spear remaining drawn. Isabella followed, her sword and shield ready to go at any time.

As the group kept moving, there were at least two more shifter encounters. One was with a second wolf scout, and the combined efforts of Isabella, Geoffery and a few other villagers took it down. The second was somewhat of an accident; someone stepped on and killed a bug and it had spontaneously become a person under their feet. This made the group much more cautious about bugs; any bug could be a shifter spy. Still, they were a mere ten minutes away from their destination, and every sound made the humans jump for fear that it was a shifter.
Matilda noticed Quinn just as he moved beside her. She turned her great bear head to look at him, mouth pulled into something resembling a cheeky smile. "Whaddaya mean, 'am I ready'?" She asked, batting at the horse with a large paw. She drew herself up onto two legs. "I'm always ready. You know I am!" She declared proudly, roaring slightly. Even this slight roar prompted a roaring and howling from the rest of the crowd, all on high alert.

Matilda flinched slightly at the ruckus she caused, and returned to four feet. "Still, very ready." She added, a little quieter than before. The female shifter often caused a fuss when she didn't mean to; slightly raising her voice often lead to great howling and much mess. Chances were, she would lead the fight that day, if it were to come to full power. "Betcha I can get more than you can," she challenged Quinn, nudging him with her paw.
 
Liliths euphoria at injuring the shifter quickly died off. Her sloppy shot could have cost the humans the element of surprise, so she slowed down and hung at the back of the group. The woman nodded at Geoffrey's words, agreeing. She notched another arrow in place and continued on, blood pumping. Before long, another unsuspecting wolf was cornered, and Lilith shouted praise as Isabella, Geoffrey and a few others ended the creatures pitiful life, the sharpened edge of a sword bleeding it out swiftly.

Her eyes became narrowed and attentive, each step more cautious then the last the closer they got to the village. The group slowed down, preparing for the attack, and their unease only grew as a bug turned into a human corpse underfoot. The shifters were everywhere and could be anything, from an insect to a bear. Nowhere was safe. But that was why they were here, after all. To purge the forest of it's pest problem.

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Quinn smiled at the bears proud comments, rearing up alongside her and neighing loudly, adding to the general cacophony of noise the shifters were making. He smirked, shaking his head at Matilda's almost sheepish expression. She was like that. A ruckus maker that didn't mean to cause a scene, but did so anyway. The polar opposite of Quinn, who very gladly stirred up trouble. But, she was also a natural leader. She would most likely lead the attack, with Quinn not too far behind. He would gladly and proudly follow her into battle.

"Ooh, is that a challenge?" He neighed, slit pupiled eyes crinkled in faux offense. "Betcha I'll kill twice as many as you." He added on proudly, smiling a conceited, smug grin. As she batted him with a large paw, he playfully swished his tail against her flank, prancing backwards. The shifter was visibly wound-up, nervous excitement building in his chest. But, despite his outwards demeanor, he was furious, emotions in turmoil.

The humans had hurt a wolf barely out of pup hood, and judging by the sounds from the forest, had killed another scout. Acting very unlike a horse, Quinn hissed, lips drawn back in a snarl. He could smell them in the wind, a rank stench of iron, smoke, sweat and fear.
Good. He thought darkly. They should be afraid.
 
The forest began to thin in the last few minutes of walking, which ended with the death of one more shifter, who took the form of a little girl once her ferret form was killed by Geoffrey. Isabella and Geoffrey both lifted their heads as they walked past the child, not willing to admit how the child resembled one of their own children. This is when they noticed that the murder of the young shifter was in full view of a huge crowd of large, angry looking animals. Isabella swallowed nervously and drew her sword, crouching slightly.

She glanced at her husband and the few others who stood beside her, and cleared her throat. "Wait for the whole group. We've got a better chance of winning then." She said with a nod.
"Hey!" Matilda batted at the horse's tail. "I'll get triple what you get then!" She declared, rearing right back up on her two legs and causing a ruckus again. This time, however, it wasn't her fault. She turned her head towards the forest, just to witness a well armoured human pull his spear from a young girl's body.

Instantly, all the tension in her body released in a huge roar. She charged through the crowd to stand at the front of the crowd and roared again. She looked back at the rest of the crowd, all of whom were either shocked, or were over their shock and were just charged with rage. In another wordless roar, she turned back to the crowd of human, and charged forward senselessly.
 
The humans trek ended with the death of another shifter. A little girl, unseeing eyes wide and terrified, lay dead at the front of the group. Geoffrey pulled his spear from her body with a wet thunk, eyes steely. It was almost a shock, even for the warriors. But how were they supposed to know the age of the demonic things? It had been in an animal form when it was killed. And, age didn't matter. They were all as evil as each other, and the child would have grown up to be a murderer, Lilith reasoned. However, she still averted her eyes as she walked past the tiny corpse.

And then, she heard the roaring. She looked up, only to see a huge crowd of furious shifters charging the group. Unluckily, the young shifters murder had been witnessed by the whole village, so they were all absolutely livid. She raised her bow in preparation, frightened and ready to kill.
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Quinn was about to reply to Matilda's challenge with a witty quip, when he heard a collective gasp from the entire village. A little girl, a child, had just been murdered by one of the humans, a big, armored male with an even bigger spear. A grown warrior, stabbing a child. Quinn's pupils dilated in blind fury, and alongside Matilda, sprinted forwards, hooves thundering against the earth, letting loose a furious horse-scream.

As the pack of animals neared the human warriors, Quinn lunged right for the child killer, long fangs flashing in the sunlight. He reared upwards, neighing in anger, and stamped his hooves down, straight for the humans skull. If his devastating kick missed, he would continue barreling forwards, hopefully knocking the human down. Recklessly, Quinn ignored the humans weapons, and just fought, hooves smashing and teeth trying to tear into any human he could reach.
 
"Oh god!" Isabella shouted as the animals charged. The plan of waiting was a distinct failure, which she discovered as a lion came rushing at her. She lifted her shield and blocked its jaws, following it up with a slice at the lion's neck. It fell to the ground, but didn't die straight away, so Isabella finished the job. She looked towards her husband, who had been bowled over by a horse. She bounded over and sliced towards the horse, but missed by a few centimetres and almost got her sword stuck in the ground. She pulled it free of the mud again and ran back towards Geoffrey, who was already back on his feet and was stabbing at the horse with his spear. Together, the two began a coordinated attack against the stallion, lunging and stabbing together in a way that clearly showed their marriage, even without prior context.

Matilda first ran into an old warrior, skin wrinkled with age. She swiped viciously at whatever piece of revealed flesh she could, and together with another bear, they overmastered him and brought him down. Matilda didn't even know who the bear was, and she left them just as soon as she met them to tackle more men. As she fought with yet another warrior, a line of archers mobilised as the rest of the group joined up. They fired fast and hit accurately, and even in her rage Matilda realised the danger they posed. She knocked past whoever she came to and burst into the archers line, roaring first to bring attention to the threat, then charging at them. She could only hope that they didn't had any close range weapons.
 
Lilith swore as the animals charged, eyes wide and horrified. Fangs, claws and fur were all she could see, a huge mass of angry animals hurtling towards the humans. Where was the rest of the group, dammit! The first creatures fell apon the humans with furious roars, tearing throats and slicing at any un-armored flesh they could reach. With expert aim, Lilith shot a leopard in the chest, watching it fall mid-leap, muzzle wrinkled in anger. Within seconds, she notched another arrow into her bow, letting the deadly shafts fly through the air. Most hit their mark, injuring or outright killing the beasts, but she had to be careful not to hit any of her fellow warriors. The woman was shocked out of her killing spree by a very loud, very angry rose. She looked up, startled, to see the slavering maw of a bear far too close off comfort. She stepped back with a yell as the huge creature charged the archers, scattering them like flies. She dove out of the way of the enormous claws, rolling to her side and fumbling for an arrow. She did have a dagger starred to her side, but it would be nothing but a pinprick to the beast. She had to hope that she could kill it before it killed her, and with that desperate thought, shot an arrow towards it. It was a messy, distracted shot, and if it hit, would hit the hindquarters of the predator, missing any vital organs.

Quinn whinnied in triumph as the human fell to the ground, rearing up, ready to crush the mans skull. However, he abruptly shied away as a female warrior swung a large sword at him, missing his sleek flank by inches. The stallion darted this way and that as the two paired up, pale eyes narrowed. He guessed they were a couple, by the way they moved together so easily, harmonious in their attack. Well then, he would just have to go for a double kill. They could join each other in hell.
A well aimed stab from the male elicited a pained whinny from the horse, blood trickling down his side. A minor, but deep wound had been created by the spear, and Quinn viciously lunged forwards with a sharp snap of his jaws, changing to a tiger sized lynx mid leap. He needed to be deadlier, more agile, and with that thought, swiped his claws at the female with a rage fueled hiss, aiming for her knees in the hope it would cripple her.
 
Isabella would have struggled to hit the stallion herself, but her husband was far more accurate. She whooped over the sound of the horse's whinny, but her short celebration was a mistake for her. In her distraction, she couldn't dodge out the way quick enough, and the lynx's claws sliced through the chain part of her armour that covered her knees, leaving her knees downwards more revealed than they would usually be. With less connections holding it soundly together, the leg armour felt heavier and more restricting. She shouted in rage and swiped at the shifter's neck, aiming to stomp down on a leg or paw at the same time to hold it in place. She wondered briefly why Geoffrey wasn't helping out, then noticed that her husband was currently locked in battle with a frightening bengal tiger, a good few feet away.

Matilda killed (or at least knocked down) a good few archers before they started to fight back properly. A few retreated backwards and fired shaky arrows, some which hit but didn't do much damage, and some which missed. There was even one or two from obviously less experienced archers who shot other comrades in a panic. Even still, as she continued to fight, she was starting to feel the pain. There was at least two arrows in her legs, and her arms moved so quickly that none managed to stick in them. She avoided getting shot wherever she could, but she was inevitably going to get a few wounds. One arrow went particularly far into her hindquarters, making her roar in pain. She swung herself around to face the shooter and charged, biting forwards with her sharpened teeth.
 
Quinn grinned toothily as his swipe made contact, a unnerving amount of cruel human emotion in his feline face. Out of the corner of his eyes he watched a bengal tiger tackle the male, leaving Quinn to only battle one of them. The woman warrior stumbled, shouting in anger, and stamped down with her large boots. He twisted out of the way of the blow, but the edge of her shoe clipped him on the throat, causing the lynx to choke and retreat a few paces. His eyes narrowed to white slits, pupils dilating. He started to circle the human, keeping watch for any other warriors that might attack him while he stalked his prey. He was playing with her, which was a reckless move on his behalf. Birds and young deer were creatures to be toyed with, not formidable humans. His muscles bunched as he crouched, haunches wiggling as he prepared to leap at her throat.

Lilith's cheer died in her throat as the bear roared and turned to her with a furious snarl, clearly not appreciating the humans arrow in it's hind leg. The creature was fast, and had already killed three of the other archers with one powerful swipe of her claws. It had various arrows sticking out of it, but Liliths must have hurt, since the beast decided to target her. The young archer scrambled backwards with a shriek as the bear leapt forward, huge teeth catching the side of her arm and dragging her forwards. She kicked out in panic, fear pouring off her. She didn't want to die. The bears jaws were locked around her leather arm armor, but it's teeth were so strong that they had pierced through it and were digging into her arm.
 
Isabella didn't make the mistake of cheering again, any celebration she did kept quite in her own head as to not jinx herself. She lunged forwards as the lynx stumbled backwards, but she miscalculated how far forward he would retreat and missed. She quickly returned herself to a normal fighting stance as the shifter circled her, watching her own back so that she wouldn't be ambushed by another vicious animal. She noticed a slight change in the crouch, and decided that if anyone was going to attack first, it was going to be her. She lifted her shield to cover her face and neck as she lunged forwards as quick as she could, aiming for the neck, though the face also simply because it was quite close. This one shifter was being quite the bother, and she would quite like to get him killed and move onto another one instead of all the same back-and-forth. It was competent, that was sure, but that was where any praise would end. A shifter couldn't be anything more than competent in her head.

Matilda smiled through the arm in her maw, biting down a little harder. She could feel the archer panic under her, and just as she lifted the archer off the ground to slam her down, the archer's panic gave her an advantage. Her rapid kicking hit a good mark, as she hit the end of one of the arrows in her leg, burying it deeper into her skin. As she roared in pain, her jaw released, dropping the archer to the ground. She turned her head to look at the wound. It looked a lot worse than it had before, definitely, but she thought it didn't look too bad. Then again, Matilda was no healer. The pain and the blood she was losing from the now deeper arrows made her slow - not very much, but it was noticeable. She flexed her paw, stretching out her great claws and swung down at the archer who had now badly wounded her twice.
 
Funnily enough, the human was the first one to pounce. He saw the glint in her eyes and reacted too slowly to miss her charge, the sword slicing down and cutting a large slash across his muzzle. Half blinded by pain and blood, Quinn snarled in pain and whipped upwards, sinking his claws into the shield and rearing forward, reaching the humans height as he stood on both legs. With a roar he pushed against her, trying to shove the human over. As he pushed, he lifted both hind legs, lifting them to the scrape and scrabble at her belly, much like a domestic cat would do with a toy when too excited. However, the shifter was anything but playful as he attempted to disembowel her, jaws snapping. Despite his viciousness, he was in a rather unstable position, half draped over the shield, legs off the ground.

Just as she thought it was over, that she would die in the shifters jaws, her flailing feet hit one of the arrows wounding the creature. It bellowed in pain, releasing her, and she hit the ground with an 'oomph' and a cry of relief. As the bear looked at it's wound, she grabbed out her small dagger and attempted to scramble away. Unluckily for the human, the bear had other ideas, and swiped down with it's talons, aiming for a kill. The blow connected solidly with Liliths chest, and she gasped for breath, winded and knocked backwards, tumbling a few escaping archers. Thank god she had armor on, but dear lord, that had hurt. If the bear continued the attack, she would lunge up and slice at its eyes with her dagger, but if that didn't happen, she was just going to suffer silently and play dead among the corpses she had been flung into.
 
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Isabella yelped in fright as she was shoved forwards. She fell backwards, wheezing slightly as she hit the ground. She recovered as quickly as she could, but by then the beast she was fighting had gotten a few good claws at her armour and was weakening it every second she did nothing to resist. She kept her shield lifted up high to save her face as she tried to think of a plan. She glanced down at her half-armoured legs to see that the attacker did not have stable ground himself. In that moment, she thought up one or two different things she could do. Taking a few quick breaths, she took one of her ideas and executed it. She bent her knees and kicked upwards at the lynx's stomach, at the same time trying to push against him to keep him held in the air.

Matilda had never been the smartest fighter. When she saw the archer's chest lift and then fall quickly, she assumed that that had been her last breath. She was ready to leave the presumed dead archer, before she saw the slight rise and fall of her chest. Growling, she got on all fours and went back to the archer. She watched for a few more seconds, and noticed yet another breath. With a devious smile, she raised her paw once more and slammed it down towards the archers neck this time. She'd made a bet against Quinn, and she didn't like to lose bets. This would just be one more point to her.
 
A rush of victorious satisfaction washed over Quinn as the warrior toppled, restarting his attack with vigor the second she hit the ground. He could feel her armor weakening with each violent slash of his claws, and was so peocuciped with trying to grab her throat with his jaws that he missed seeing the kick coming. Her boots hit his stomach, hard, and the huge big cat was lifted into the air. He wheezed and fell limp against her, hoping that her legs weren't strong enough to hold his weight in the air for too long. His front paws were useless, claws embedded deep in the shield, and he tried to yank them out. His back legs scraped at her shins, long talons making a horrible grating sound against the metal. He was eager to kill this human, and if he was successfully would definitely telk Matilda that this particular human counted as two points. She was a very good fighter, he'd give her that, even if she was child murdering scum.

Lilith wasn't very good at playing dead. She tried to take small, inconspicuous breaths, but the physical exertion paired with her panic and fear meant she was taking huge, shaky gasps of air. The bear started to lumber off, but abruptly turned. Lilith held her breath as the beast stood over her, hot breath blowing against her face. She opened her eyes just to see what it was planning, and was greeted with a huge paw swiping towards her neck. She screamed and rolled out of the way, ducking under the outstretched limb and slashing her dagger at the beasts uncannily human eyes.
 
Isabella wasn't expecting the sudden weight. Her arms jittered in the heaviness and nearly collapsed, which would have probably been the end of her, since the lynx would have gotten his footing back. Her only just managed to keep him off the ground, but wasn't sure how long that would last for. She needed to be on top again. She could feel the creatures claws on her shin-guards, and every so often they would slip into the free space caused by the previous attack and cut into her skin. She gasped in pain, biting her tongue. She definitely needed to get out of the position she was in. She was aware that the creature was stuck in her shield, so she violently hit the shield against the ground to the right of her, hoping that the lynx would go with it and give her time to recover - however, if she had hit it even the slightest bit wrong, it might well shake the shifter free.

Matilda had thought for sure that she had the archer. The last thing she saw before her vision was clouded with blood was the attacker dodge, then aim a blade just at her eyes. She roared louder than she ever had that day and staggered backwards, blood beginning to stream down from her eyes and over her muzzle. In a pained panic, she switched between many forms in the space of a few seconds - monkey, rabbit, blackbird, badger and more - and finally settled as a kangaroo. As quickly as she could manage, as wounded as she was, she bounded away, back to the village to seek healing.
 
The humans limbs trembled under his weight, and Quinn felt and smelt hot blood tricking down her legs as his claws sliced at any exposed skin. Before he could properly appreciate the damage he was inflicting, the woman slammed her shield into the ground. The shifted yowled as he hit the ground, pulling harder then ever to dislodge his claws from the shield. The force had partially loosened one paw, and he pulled it free with a hiss. He quickly shifted forms, this time into his long haired dog form. He pulled his blunt nails out with ease, and growled at the human warrior, but his long ears swiveled upwards and his eyes widened as Matilda bounded past, horribly wounded and in the form of a kangaroo. Numerous other shifters, seeing one of the lead warriors leave, joined in and fled, panicked. He barked in agitation, annoyed - they had been winning! Before snapping his jaws angrily in the air, glaring at the human, and sprinting off. His long legs pumped as he tried to reach Matilda, concerned. She needed healing, and the rest of the shifters needed to fortify and prepare for another attack.

Lilith smiled, victoriously proud, as the bear shrieked in pain, crimson droplets splattering her as she pulled the knife free. The beast shifted numerous times before her eyes, before finally settling on a kangaroo. Lilith winced and stepped backwards, wary of the mammals sharp claws and powerful legs, but the shifter decided to flee, leaping away from the danger in a matter of seconds. Lilith hollored, ecstatic, as the rest of the unholy beats followed the kangaroos lead, going back to heal and fortify themselves. The rest of the villagers had caught up, and they started going after the shifters, ready to finish them off.
 
Isabella got to her feet as soon as she could, still holding her shield down on the ground. She was about to use advantage of the trapped animal, before the quick shift freed the beast. She picked up her damaged shield and readied herself to fight again, but her head twitched to the side at the great roaring. When she looked back to the creature she had been fighting with, it was speeding past her. She lunged and stabbed at it, hoping to get a final blow in, but her sword missed by a good few inches and sliced the air. She watched as the beastly force dispersed, leaving the humans, some just tired, some wounded, and some seconds from death. She winced at her own wounds, but she was unwilling to give up. She turned to look at the rest of the group. "Quickly! Before they recover!" She barked to them, and then turned to follow the group, legs stinging with the slices and the hot blood that poured down them and pooled in her boots.

Matilda bounded away as fast as her legs could carry her, and once she could hear the gentle sounds of water moving in a pond not too far from the battlefield, she crouched down and jumped into the body of water, turning back into a fish. She forced her eyes open as she swam, cleaning her eyes of the thick blood that caked her vision. She got back out of the water, turning into a monkey for the sake of the thumbs. She sat by the pond, whimpering and gently touching her eyes. She could hear paws against the ground, and turned her head to look at who it was. She could see a little out of her left eye, but her right eye was blurry and unclear, vague coloured shapes. She looked at the dog in front of her. "Quinn?" She asked quietly. "Quinn, is it bad?" She asked, pointing at her gashed eye that still dribbled out blood at a slow pace.
 
Quinn didn't slow his relentless pace, even as Matilda veered off track and went towards the pond, rather then the village. The rest of the shifters thundered into the village, and his sharp hearing picked up shouts and commands as they tried to organize themselves for the humans attack. He sat by the edge of the pond, watching fish-Matilda swim, blood billowing to the surface of the water, staining it. He kept his ears pricked, in case any humans decide to attack the lone duo, but he guessed that most of the humans would have continued on to the village.
The shifter whined as Matilda clambered out of the pond, his pale eyes softening in pity. His friend was bedraggled and bloody, one of her eyes had a large slash crossing over it. She would probably be blinded in that eye forever.
As she asked the question, her voice trembling, he wilted and shifted back into his humanoid form, reaching out a hand and resting it on the monkeys shoulder.
"Oh, 'Tilda...it's...it's pretty bad." Quinn was bluntly honest, knowing she wouldn't want any frivolity. "But we'll fix this. I'll fix this. Everything's gonna be okay, you're gonna be okay, we'll get ya healed up. I'm so sorry, I should have been watching your back..." He comforted her the best he could, his normally harsh and sarcastic attitude replaced with a softer, more protective approach. "Speaking of which..." he bared his teeth angrily, fangs dripping. "Which bastard did this to you? Are they dead yet?"

The human warrior coughed, wiping blood from her mouth. The bear had really gone all out. She straightened and stepped carefully over a corpse, before hesitating and quickly picking up the arrows from their quiver. She murmured a prayer as she did, tears pricking at her eyes. She had known the man, practised archery with him, hunted with him, talked with him. And now he was dead, throat still dribbling blood, an empty cavity where his jugular had once been. She turned away, sickened, and surveyed the damage. Various shifters lay dead, as well as a good portion of humans. Her head rose as Isabella spoke, and she ran after the group, following Isabellas lead. This was not the time for mourning, they could honor the dead later.
 
As soon as Quinn shifted, Matilda could tell that it wasn't good-looking at all. She whimpered, swallowing to hold back tears. She placed her small, rough monkey hand on his wrist, using her other arm to try and stem the blood. Her gold-blonde fur was still wet from the water and diluted blood covered most of her body. She didn't quite believe that everything would be alright, since her right eye wasn't getting any better, though her left eye looked to be improving. She looked up and Quinn and couldn't help but laugh at the look of him. "It was some archer girl. She had a dagger on her I didn't see." She nodded sadly. She looked back towards the town, wincing at the crowd of humans proceeding forwards. "They're still fighting..." she said slowly.

Isabella couldn't move as fast as she could before, but that wasn't going to stop her. She trudged onwards, other warriors quickly overtaking her as she prepared to take up the rear and help out the archers if needbe. At the speed most of the humans were going, there was plenty of time for the shifters to reorganise themselves. This thought infuriated Isabella, who pushed herself to move faster and push into the devil village.
 
Quinn's furious snarl trailed off as Matilda gave a little laugh, looking down at the monkey with a sad laugh of his own.
"Some archer girl, huh? Sneaky bastard." He snapped, eyes flicking to the humans, who were indeed still fighting. There were many archers at the back, but his cold gaze was drawn to a young woman holding a bloody dagger and with telltale bear claws over her body. He'd kill the bitch.
"Here, let's get...get that fixed up a bit, shall we?" The shifter ripped off a strip of fabric from his cloak, reaching out to her hesitantly. If she let him, he would bind the injured side of her face to try and stop some of the blood. She could be given proper medical care once the fighting was over. He stood with a shake of his shoulders, fingers curled around a long bladed dagger. He was ready to attack the humans from the back, ambush them as they had ambushed the village. However, he would wait for his friend and go with her, whether or not she decided to keep fighting or not.
"There's no shame in retreating, y'know." He murmered, watching her from his peripherals. "The human really hurt you. You hurt her pretty bad too, by the looks of it, but well," he shrugged. "I'll stay with you, either way."

Lilith picked up the pace, glancing at Isabella as they moved.
"Any formation, miss?" She asked, out of breath, but eager to fight. Isabella would hopefully have some sort of tactic or formation she and the other archers could get into. Lilith winced a little at the sight of Isabellas wounds, but didn't comment. They could all be healed after the fight.
 
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