The air on the high plateau crackled with an almost tangible tension, the shrieking wind carrying the enraged howls of the Silverback Blue Apes and the defiant roar of Ayra Sand in her Tyrant's Mantle.
The ground trembled continuously as dozens of A-Grade, Level 18 simian sentinels, their silver backs gleaming under the ghostly Yin light, closed in on Daniel's small team.
Ayra, a crimson meteor of berserker fury, met the first wave head-on. Her great-axe, a blur of polished steel, whistled through the air with terrifying force.
"BOOM! KRA-SHUNK!"
Her first strike, aimed at the chest of a charging Ape, connected with a sound like a falling mountain.
The Ape, despite its A-Grade resilience, was sent tumbling backwards, roaring in pain and surprise, a deep gash weeping dark blood on its silver-blue fur.
The wind from the impact alone flattened the nearby shadow-slicked ferns.
