The four of them walked at a casual pace, still on the alert but not trying to mask their traveling. Tess would have been happy for a few low-level encounters to wrap up the day's training, but maybe one big one would be better than spreading their energy out over multiple fights. Marathon or sprint?
The answer was decided for her an hour into the walk when a deep thumping noise reverberated through their feet and stopped them all in their tracks. Without warning the underbrush and a small tree exploded next to them and a brown and steel-gray form the size of a Volkswagen Beetle plowed through the middle of their ranks, slamming all of them into the air. By the time they hit the ground the creature was gone, a swath of trees and vegetation trampled, torn, and cleared on both sides of them.
"What the fuck was that?" Zavier grunted as he stood, cradling one shoulder with his other hand. "That thing hit like a Mack truck!"
The woods were silent in a way that could only be described as 'loud.' Then the staccato thrumming started again and Cass and Tess stepped into the path that had been cut through the foliage. The smell of crushed leaves and freshly turned sod permeated the air and a slight wind wicked the sweat off Cass's forehead. He wished it could do the same for his palms. He held his shields forward and led with his shoulder, but had no illusions that he'd be able to stop whatever that thing was - it felt like getting hit by a tank moving a highway speeds.
Luna had a moment of strategic clarity and moved a few paces to the side to be better able to aim around Cass and Tess. Just as she did the brush next to her exploded and a massive boar charged through where she'd been standing moments earlier, narrowly missing her as its hooves tore deep furrows in the earth. Its charge was ended by a tree three feet in diameter, the trunk cracking and falling into the woods just as the beast turned to face them again.
It was ugly aggression made manifest. Angry, weeping red eyes were surrounded by spines of thick, black fur that grew in random directions and down the length of its pale pink and gray snout. Its tusks were massive, as large as Claw of Nightfall but of a sickly brown and yellow color, chipped, cracked, and horribly pointed. The waist-high head looked tiny in front of the wall of muscled shoulders that peaked at a crest of black tufted hair on its back that had to be six foot high. The rest of it was covered in a dense, dirty steel-colored fur that looked like a blanket of iron. Zavier could even swear he saw rust patches in some area that bled into the metallic skin underneath it.
"Uh, guys," Zavier said as he stepped backwards slowly, "I don't know that we can take this."
Shots whined through the air and gears pinged off the beast's sides, confirming Zavier's worst fears. With a snort it jerked its head and leveled crimson eyes at Luna. It shot forward like a cannonball, not even pawing the ground in preparation. Luna slipped and fell backwards, turning the accident into a neat roll that pushed her to her feet just as the boar charged past her. Then it was in the woods again, crashing sounds coming from where it was trying to stop.
"I'm serious! We need to get out of here!" Zavier yelled this time.
Tess was at his side in an instant and they turned to start running, but the lack of footsteps behind her made her skid to a stop. Her heart dropped and her mouth went dry when she saw the twins standing shoulder-to-shoulder facing the direction of the oncoming stampede.
Before she could reach them the boar was on them, but the twins parted like water, Luna firing shots into its face and Cass unleashing a huge downward swing onto its skull. It grunted but its head didn't even dip as it plowed back into the woods.
Cass looked at the broken bat in shock and Luna gave an equally stunned look at her gauntlet.
"We didn't do shit," she said as she and Cass met eyes.
The trail they left in the woods didn't have the destructive power of the boar, but fear lent their feet wings.
They'd been crashing through the woods for only a minute when the thrumming sounded behind them again.
"LEFT!" Tess yelled and threw herself sideways. The boar charged in from behind them, plowing a furrow through where they had just been running in its rough attempt to skid to a stop. They scrambled to their feet and took off at an angle from the boar's path.
Another few minutes, another crashing of wood closing in on them from behind, another mad dash into the nearby brush to avoid those tusks.
"It's not going to stop," Zavier gasped in ragged breaths. His physical limitations were starting to show and it was evident he was slowing his family down.
"What can we do?" Desperation made Tess's whisper louder than she'd meant.
"Nothing we have will hurt it," Cass was picking his way quickly through the woods ahead of them trying to clear a path that Zavier could more easily navigate.
"I don't think we have a choice," Luna said.
They didn't have time for anything more as it came at them again, scattering them for what felt like the hundredth time. How long could they keep this up? Zavier wondered.
"We can't lead it home!" Zavier said in frustration, mind racing. Think you stupid fucking brain, just fucking think again, please! He prayed to whichever gods ran The System for some sort of insight, knowing the futility of it as he did it.
"Back the other way! Back to the clearing where we started!" He was off at a sprint, his family slowing their runs to keep pace with him.
They skidded to stops in the mangled patch of earth where they had first encountered the beast and Zavier pointed around breathlessly.
"Can't. Attack. Sides," he swallowed and took a deep breath. "We can't attack the sides, it's too strong. But maybe the face and belly. The legs didn't look protected either."
"Cass, Tess - you're the strongest. You grab the strongest, sharpest branches you can find. Lock one end into the ground with your foot and aim the pointy ends at its face to stop it."
"Luna, we can't let it build up a charge. Keep distracting it with your shots so your mother can get at its face and legs."
"What are you going to do?"
Zavier didn't know. He never fucking knew anymore. His eyes went wide as inspiration struck. "Jesus, I've been an idiot. Tess! I haven't used a machete yet! Toss me one! Cass and Luna, you keep it distracted between you two - don't let it charge! Your mom and me will tear this fucker to ribbons."
Tess's lascivious, predatory smile made Zavier's already weak legs go a little weaker.
There was no more time as it was on them again, ramming straight into the spikes Tess and Cass held. Their aim had been true and the jagged points fell between the tusks, straight into its snout. With a squeal of pain it reared up, squat legs flailing. Cass switched to his shield and sprinted forward to bash it on the side of the head before dancing back. When it swiveled its massive tusks to gore him, shots pinged off the hard bone of the other side of its face. It turned her way again only for double clangs from Cass's shield to ring off its opposite side. Without a clear direction of which way to run it could only huff and lunge in every direction, trying to get close enough to gore them with those ugly tusks.
Tess and Zavier got to work.
Tess fought with all the grace of a jungle cat and struck with a speed that would have made any Rattlesnake envious. Zavier found himself lost in the moment. His Jack of all Blades skill allowed him to fight with a new weapon at the highest level his stats allowed the first time he used it at that level, dropping in skill the more he used the item. He hadn't used the machetes since gaining that skill, so he wielded them with the finesse of any pre-System grand master on earth. He didn't have Tess's legendary stats or his ability to quickly analyze and strategize, but god DAMN did it ever feel good to be useful again.
Together he and Tess harried its flanks, cutting into the exposed flesh around its legs. The hide was inches thick and felt like trying to carve into plywood, but they chipped away. Where Tess was a fleeting shadow that flicked in and out to wreak havoc and easily dodge its random kicks, Zavier was an immobile weapons master who just focused on one leg at a time. His skill was giving him all the muscle memory and instinct to deflect the massive hooves without needing to dodge away, reversing its momentum with one machete to line up a strike with the other. In contrast to the way Tess was leaving the legs a bloody ruin of flesh and muscle, Zavier only had one slash on the leg, but that wound was getting deeper with every swing. Deflect, position, slice into the same spot. That had become his rhythm and he fell into it with purpose. Before his arms even started feeling fatigue he felt the machete strike hard bone, Zavier immediately changed his strikes and started aiming his cuts for tendons. He didn't have to destroy the leg, he just had to make it non-functional.
A moment later the boar squealed in pain and rage as its back leg swiveled unnaturally and it thumped down in a cloud of dirt. He quickly ran to its face, nearly running into Tess who'd had the same idea. They shared wicked grins then moved in to finish it off.
A few rough minutes later the four of them stood panting in front of the downed beast, sweat darkening their clothes and carving lines down their dirt-covered faces. The boar was huffing out labored breaths, red eyes glaring at them through a ruined mess of a face.
"Luna, hand me your gauntlet," Zavier held out his hand.
She looked at him with confusion. "This thing is probably going to drop some pretty sweet loot so I want to get your gauntlet and my chain away from it. Also, you two need to make the killing blow. We'll all get experience, but I want you two to get the lion's share."
She nodded and took it off, Zavier disappearing down the trail towards the house. After a few minutes his "All clear" came through the party chat.
Tess stood off to the side of the twins, arms crossed and Claw held at the ready across her chest. The machetes Cass and Luna held trembled in their grips as they shared a look. Determination lit up their eyes at the same time and they turned to the boar in unison. Their lunges so perfectly mirrored each other that they looked like reflections, the machetes sinking deeply into the eyes to punch into the brain behind it.
An hour later they were sprawled out in the living room nursing bruised limbs and aching joints.
"These are just so cool," Cass said as he examined his boots again.
Item Name: Boarcharge Boots
Type: Armor (Footwear)
Description: Leather boots crafted from the hide of the Ironhide Boar, providing excellent protection and enhanced stability. The dark gray and red leather has a lustrous sheen that looks metallic.
Stats:
Defense: +3
Endurance: +2
Abilities:
Iron Charge: When activated, Iron Charge allows the wearer to sprint forwards at double their top speed as long as they are moving in a straight line. While charging the wearer will be able to smash through any obstacle with a lower endurance than the wearer's strength.
Relentless: While wearing these boots the wearer will not tire from walking or running, but will still tire normally from all other activities.
Luna snatched one out of his hands, "We should each wear one!"
"I don't think they work like that," Zavier laughed. "Today was a good day and tomorrow it'll be time for you to get your level five skills. Let's get some sleep tonight so we can do it with a clear head. We'll take tomorrow off, maybe visit the Bouchards for a bit. I have some stuff I want to talk to them about anyway."
Luna's eyes lit up at the thought of getting an upgrade to her gauntlet.
"Sounds good to me," Tess yawned, shooing the kids up and towards their rooms. "Let's go. We'll play with the boots more in the morning." She looked over at Zavier. "I think we need to break down your kill box and build a wardrobe for all of our gear."
"Oooohhhh!" Zavier said with excitement. "Just like Oliver Queen's HQ for Team Arrow!"
Tess laughed and put her arm around his waist, resting her head against his shoulder as they walked back to the room. He reached down and grabbed at her but it was a hollow attempt as they both fell into a deep sleep immediately after their heads hit the pillows.