Headed by a Snake

The injured kobold growled low, glaring at the fallen archer. It was lowering its body, about to strike.

"NOOOOOO!!!!" Rena shrieked as she lunged forward, thrusting her dagger into the kobold's neck.

The kobold grappled with the taller human, rolling around... but when they stopped, the kobold laid motionless atop her.

Decanus Justus grabbed the kobold by the scruff and tossed it to the side.

He knelt by the archer's side and shook her, "Rena!! Rena, it's me! Are you okay??"

Rena blinked her eyes, tears streaming down her face. Bawling, she dropped her knife and wrapped her arms around him, "I killed him! Justus, I killed himmmm!!!"

Eleven heavens and seven hells. He embraced Rena tightly.

Only bells prior, Justus had been in the same miserable mess. He didn't realize it until that moment, but Rena hadn't yet been close to the killing. It was different, looking down the sighs of a crossbow.

"I killed him... I... I... It... it was so easy... My knife just... slid in. I felt him die in my arms," She sobbed into Justus' chest.

Justus grimaced, rubbing Rena's small back.

How could a woman so headstrong, so brave... be this weak and frail at the same time?

Looking past her, he saw Rena's crossbow, the archer-girl's pride and joy. Its base had cracked and splintered. The weapon was useless.

"Hey-- hey, listen to me, Rena," Justus grabbed onto her shoulders.

The miserable girl sniffled but continued to stare at the bloody dirt.

Justus examined her for injuries...

Blood was pooling around her leg. She had taken a spear stab to the side of her calf.

Shite.

Justus sheathed his sword and unstrapped his shield. Still kneeling, he turned his back toward her, "Quick, get on."

He could sense her hesitation, but Rena gingerly placed her arms over his shoulders and around his chest.

Justus stood up with the girl on his back, using his arms to support her legs.

He glanced down and grimaced. He was leaving behind his shield and Rena was leaving behind her knife and crossbow.

He had to.

He was confident in protecting them both with just his sword. Earlier, a strange golden light had wrapped his blade, allowing him to kill two kobolds with ease.

...But it wasn't important. What was important was getting to safety. He needed to get away. He needed to wrap Rena's wound and staunch the bleeding.

He needed to keep going. They could rest at sun's end.

...

"⌈Moon-Fang HELL SLAAAASHHH!!!!!!⌋"

Tycondrius calculated the aim and direction of the spotted Alpha's attack. He stepped to the side, dodging the cutting crescent of mana, and planted his knee into the Iredar's abdomen.

"Yield," Tycon ordered.

"(I will NEVER yield to you!!)" The kobold coughed, choking up blood.

Tycon grabbed the kobold by the neck with his offhand and slammed him high against a tree, "You are well out of mana. You are injured. You have lost."

The kobold snarled and slavered and spat, "(You're a MONSTER!!)"

"You're repeating yourself," Tycon sighed. He stabbed his sword into the kobold's right bicep, piercing the wood of the tree. Still, the kobold did not relinquish the grip on his weapon.

Tycon smashed his elbow into the dog-creature's snout, "Yield."

"N-NOOOO!!" The kobold barked, snapping at Tycon's elbow.

Tycon placed a mana-powered fist deep into the kobold's abdomen, "(Show me your belly.)"

He grabbed onto the kobold's sword and yanked it out of his hands.

"N... never. I will NEVER... yield..." Blood and spit dripped down from the kobold's chipped and broken teeth.

Tycon drew his own sword out of the tree, allowing the kobold to fall painfully to the dirt.

Without looking, he pointed his sword back, only ilms away from an approaching kobold's eyes.

"W-wait!!" The alpha reached out a bloodied paw.

Tycon spun quickly, striking the kobold behind him with a kick that sent it sprawling to the ground. He stood over the defeated Alpha, "(Show. me. your. belly.)"

Whimpering softly, the dark-blue, spotted kobold rolled onto its back and showed the soft white fur of its belly, "I... I yield. Mercy... (Please... enough blood has been spilled on this sun.)"

The two remaining kobolds whined sadly but did not move to help their Alpha.

Tycon glanced over to the kobold he had struck. Its neck was broken.

Pathetic. He hadn't used his full force, but an attack of that level was still enough to kill one of the Iredar.

"You two," Tycon pointed at the survivors. "Your Alpha fought with honor. You will watch him die with honor."

The kobold with spiked blue fur howled in despair. He knelt to the ground and scratched at the dirt, "(We will sing of your glory, Alpha!! No one in the Red Paw tribe will forget your bravery!! You were a good boy-- the goodest of boys!!)"

The particularly fluffy kobold stepped forward and grabbed at Tycon's armor, "(Why must you do this, Human?! Does your cruelty know no end?!?)"

Tycon glared down, "Stop calling me that."

⟬ ⌈Vexing Gaze⌋ conditions met. Activate? Y/N? ⟭

His system's cold voice resonated in his head, a voice only he could hear.

« Activate. »

⟬ ⌈Vexing Gaze⌋: Ocular ability. Target takes damage from an illusory poison, affecting both target's mind and body. If successful, target becomes distracted and may go into anaphylactic shock. ⟭

⟬ Activating. Death to the enemies of Invictus. ⟭

The kobold began to cough, spitting gobs of red upon the dirt. Slowly, painfully, it collapsed to the ground, clutching at its chest, choking and gurgling on its own blood.

The Alpha and the spiked kobold grew silent.

Tycon sheathed his sword and tossed the kobold's iron sword to stick in the ground, "How many Iredar took part in the initial attack?"

The Alpha growled, but suffered a kick to the ribs as his reward, "Swear you'll let Spike go..."

Tycon shook his head, "You are in no position to bargain."

"SWEAR TO ME!!!" Tears spilled down the Alpha's furred cheeks... "Lie to me if you must..."

Tycon rolled his eyes and sighed, "After that one witnesses your death, I will allow him to leave."

The Alpha closed his eyes, "Two... two full bands... (We should have never risked such an attack... but our village has--)"

Tycon tuned out the Alpha's groveling. It wasn't important.

Grimacing, he reviewed the information. Two bands meant some 200 kobolds. The forward group had taken out at least a quarter of that number, but many more remained.

"And you were the leader of one of the bands?" Tycon inquired.

The kobold sighed... "I... was."

It coughed and wheezed in pain. Judging from the way it moved and its fading life force, it was also suffering from mana exhaustion.

"Would you... answer my question? You... who wears human skin?"

Tycon raised an eyebrow, "Speak."