“Oof! What the! Yuri?” Krystal managed to crawl out of her bedroll despite Yuriko’s deadweight. “What happened?”

 

“Ugh. Animus depletion,” Yuriko managed to say. “Need to sleep, sorry. Take over watch.”

“What happened? Yuri--?” was about as much as Krystal could say before Yuriko blacked out. The next thing she knew, she was in her bedroll with the sun hitting her eyes through the small window. 

 

She groaned, fully expecting to be in pain from last night’s experiment. She was pleasantly surprised when she found that nothing of the sort happened. She crawled out and stretched. Her hair was a frightful tangle and she dreaded combing through it. Her brush was with her other toiletries and she tamed her unruly golden locks with practised ease, though she winced every now and then when a stubborn knot pulled at her scalp. Once she had her hair in braids and a high ponytail, she changed her sweat-soaked underclothing into fresh ones, put on her forceweave clothes, and headed out to breakfast.

 

‘Need to wash clothes today,’ she noted. 

 

Krystal was stirring the cooking pot and as soon as Yuriko left the room, the other girl zeroed in on her.

 

“What happened last night? I tried to wake you up but you wouldn’t respond. I could have done anything to you and you still slept like a log.”

 

Yuriko flushed. “I, uhm, had a little accident while training.”

 

Krystal sighed. “I won’t say anything since nothing dangerous happened but don’t do that again!”

 

None of the boys were in the cooking area since the food wasn’t ready, so the two were alone for the most part.

 

“I learned something new from my Facet and I tried it last night. It consumed most of my reserves and I couldn’t stop it,” Yuriko admitted.

 

“I see, and how do you feel now?”

 

“Better, actually. Hmm, a lot better.” Yuriko realised. “I feel like I’ve rested and recovered for several days.” She took a sniff at the cookpot. “And I’m hungry.”

 

Krystal gave her an annoyed glance. “You're always hungry these days. Shoo, it's not ready yet.”

 

With a sigh, Yuriko returned to the bedroom and gathered her dirty clothes and a bar of soap. She might as well do this now while waiting. Except when she got to the lakeside and started scrubbing her clothes, she ripped one of her camisoles apart when she scrubbed it against itself. 

 

“Huh?” Yuriko stared at the cloth. ‘What happened?’ she thought furiously. It wasn’t as if she applied more force than usual. Well, the camisole was still usable, just that her modesty would be compromised if she didn’t wear anything over it. 

 

She tried to be more gentle with the rest of her clothing but she ended up ripping another camisole and one of her panties. Sighing to herself, she brought them back to camp and hung them inside the bedroom where the sun would hit them in the late afternoon. She had wrung as much water out of them as she could but that act had been the one to completely ruin her underwear. 

 

“I’m not normally this clumsy,” she muttered. 

 

“Breakfast!”

 

Yuriko’s tummy growled hungrily in response. She ate more than all three boys at breakfast again.

 

“How can you put all that away?” Orrin asked, staring at her midriff which showed absolutely no sign of fullness. “This goes beyond the hunger one would experience after using Recovery for wounds.”

 

Yuriko shrugged. “I’m sated but not quite full.”

Orrin muttered something under his breath.

 

“What?”

“Nothing. I’m just wondering how much we need to forage to feed you.”

 

For the second time since she woke up, Yuriko blushed crimson. “Ugh, I’ll go hunt today, alright? Hmmph!”

 

“Oh, uhm, no I’m not implying anything,” Orrin backpedalled sheepishly. “Ahahaha.”

 

"Anyway, I guess that means we're the ones hunting," Krystal said. 

 

"Please send a messenger crane when you find the Wanderer," Heron said with a strained voice. "And please don't kill it without us."

 

"Relax, we'll let you in on the fun," Krystal laughed, "right, Yuri?"

 

"Ehehehe."

 

Yuriko strapped her Plasma Caster on her pack while she inspected her side-blades. The swords weren't in the best condition anymore despite Yuriko doing her best to maintain them. Even with a protective coating of Animus, the swarmlings' carapace was just too hard. She tested the edges against her thumb but frowned when she didn't feel the sharpness. Muttering to herself, she pulled out a whetstone and worked on both blades.

 

Krystal was waiting for her outside, and they headed westward. Krystal set snares as they went along, while Yuriko used the arboreal highway to scout. With her childhood friend more concerned about their dwindling supplies than anything else, finding their target fell mostly to Yuriko. 

 

The truth was that they didn't have much to go on. They didn't have a scouting report to work with or any idea of what the Wanderer would look like. She contemplated going south into the nest of the swarmling horde which was usually accompanied by Wanderers but she quickly discarded that thought. She didn't want to get hurt or die and she certainly didn't want any of her friends to get hurt either. 

 

It was just past midmorning when she felt a twinge like something was nudging her mind and she couldn't help but look to her right, a few degrees down from her vantage point. Animus flooded into her eyes, sharpening her visual acuity and magnifying the distant thing she was looking at. At first, she didn't quite know what it was. 

 

She squinted at it but it was a…blur? She blinked and whatever that was, it wasn't there now. When she squinted and focused, she thought she saw something, but not quite. Krystal moved along on her path and Yuriko determined that, whatever it was, they would run into it after a couple hundred paces. 

 

Finding an acorn, she flicked it in front of Krystal who started and glanced up at her. Yuriko raised a fist, followed by a single finger over her lips. Krystal's eyes widened and she froze. Yuriko pointed back at the trail then returned the finger over her lips. 

 

The other girl nodded and quietly backtracked while Yuriko returned her gaze to whatever it was in the distance. For a few minutes, there was nothing. She waited while Krystal continued to move back. Just when Yuriko thought it was a false alarm, something moved.

 

The outline was a blur, but it was a roughly humanoid shape a little bit bigger than Yuriko. Almost immediately, the image of a Hunter crossed her mind.

 

The creature was two hundred paces away. She briefly considered shooting at it with her Plasma Caster but worried that the accumulation of Animus would be noticed. At this distance, the monster would need only a few seconds to reach her and Krystal. 

 

The blurred outline had disappeared after the movement stopped. If she was to strike, now was the moment. She also knew that if she attempted to send a messenger crane, the Hunter would notice it and her as well. The only reason it hadn't seen her was that she was up in the trees and it was down on the forest floor. 

 

She gulped nervously. Truth be told, she didn't want to fight the Hunter. It had taken all five of them to survive the single one they encountered before and they almost died, too. Now, there was only her and Krystal; to challenge it now would be suicide. 

 

With a soft sigh, she started backing away. Hopefully, the creature wouldn't notice them and they could stay out of the western part of the forest. 

 

She had taken no more than a couple of steps when the creature moved. The blurred outline returned and it was advancing down the path. 

 

Her heart at her throat, Yuriko knew that the Hunter would eventually find their campsite or even worse, catch up to Krystal while she was alone on the path. 

 

She grabbed her Plasma Caster, determined to at least wound the Hunter before being forced to melee. She took out the messenger crane they prepared this morning. It was keyed to Heron and would lead the boys back here. It would probably be too late by then.

 

She focused her Animus into the weapon, willing with all her might that it would go unnoticed. The outline moved slowly that, at times, she lost sight of it when the blurring disappeared. But it was now within her sights. 

 

The rifle hummed and crackled with power while Yuriko pressed her back against the tree trunk. Her breathing slowed, seeking the moment between heartbeats to pull the trigger. That her pulse was racing only hampered her efforts. Finally, after a timeless moment, she found her moment of stillness. She pulled the trigger and with a sharp whine, a bolt of golden plasma blasted out of the muzzle.

 

The creature froze when the crackle-pop of the bolt sliced through the winds. It tried to dodge, it's visual camouflage failing at the sharp movement, revealing iridescent scales and a lithe body. But Yuriko had been too close for it to react.

 

The bolt splashed against the Hunter's hastily erected Field, drilling through after spending half of its force. The plasma would have taken its head but since it jerked aside, it burned at its side, below the ribs. The scales cracked and melted, roasting the flesh beneath. The Wyldling roared in pain and anger, it's blue eyes zeroing in on her position. 

 

Yuriko didn't foolishly wait. She had tapped the crane on its head and while it flew to her team, she carefully lowered her rifle on the branch, drew her side-blades and ran towards the Hunter. 

 

The third blade dance's circulation pattern swirled in her Anima, her eyes glowed a fierce golden light while her swords were sheathed with her Animus. 

 

The Hunter charged at her, head tilted up to keep her figure in sight. Despite the intervening leaves and branches, Yuriko met its eyes, blue orbs staring at blue, while she leapt out of the tree, aiming to use her momentum to cut past it's Protective Field. The Hunter was armed only with claws, which it raised to meet her weapons. The edge cut into its palms but no more than a fraction of an inch.

 

She kicked its torso, aiming to create distance while she ran the second blade dance pattern. She had it up in time to party a blow, sidestepping a kick and countering with she sidestepped a kick and countered a knife-hand. 

 

She dove into the bushes while the Hunter lunged, rolling under the thorny branches and coming up behind as the monster trampled the plant. The thorns scraped uselessly against the Hunter's scales but then caught on an open wound, eliciting an annoyed roar. She swiped at its feet, dancing back down a slope when she missed. 

 

Most of her focus was on the Hunter but she kept herself aware of her surroundings. It would take no more than an exposed root for her to trip over to spell her doom. For a time, she kept up the second sword dance, dodging around tree trunks and other shrubs to limit her exposed sides. The enraged Hunter tore through every obstacle but it had slowed down enough that she could cope.

 

It actually seemed a little slower than the first monster they fought. Where the previous one's movements were too quick for her to clearly see, this one was not quite fast enough to achieve the same effect. Instead, she saw through its attacks enough to enable her to properly place her defences. 

 

She led the creature in circles, hoping to buy enough time for the others to arrive. If they ran it should take them ten minutes or so. 

 

Her Animus reserves slowly dwindled as the minutes ticked by. The Hunter bled its blue blood onto the forest floor. The initial plasma bolt had cauterized its wound but its exertions had ripped it open. It's breathing became more laboured as time passed. Yuriko's shirt was soaked in sweat while her face had several rivulets running down her cheeks. 

 

It was merely a question now of who made the first mistake while they danced on a razor's edge. A green plasma bolt provided enough of a distraction when it splashed against the Hunter's Field. 

 

It flinched when it happened and Yuriko took the chance to dove into a powerful thrust aimed at its heart and an eye. 

 

The Hunter reflexively blocked the sword aimed at its face, leaving the other blade free to sink into its chest. The metal caught against a bone, stopping it from penetrating too far. 

 

She wrenched her weapons while she spun to her right, rotating a full three hundred and sixty degrees while slashing at its throat and waist. Bolts of green plasma peppered the Hunter, confusing it for an instant, which proved to be a fatal distraction.

 

The golden glowing steel dug into its side, catching another bone. But the strength of her blow was too much. The weapon snapped near the crossguard, leaving several inches of steel inside the monster. The blade aimed at its throat scraped against it's hastily raised forearm before it was deflected. The creature bent over in agony, but it had no more time to scream as her remaining blade slammed into its open maw and came out drenched in blue blood at the back of its head. 

 

The body fell over slowly, as if denying it's demise. Yuriko held on to the hilt of her remaining weapon while gravity slid the body off the blade. 

 

The next moment, the cavalry arrived in the form of three slack-jawed teenagers. 

 

Yuriko glanced at Heron, Orrin, Mikel, and Krystal who was just about to pull the trigger of her pistol.

 

"You're late." She said, before she dropped down on her knees in exhaustion.