Upon hearing the thunderous sound of countless legs stomping on the ground and upon hearing the war cries of the malformed, the guards of the commune were shocked. The night before the guards came to life, misshapen shapes flowed like a roaring river, charging on legs and slithering on tentacles toward the main gates. Droll was falling from these creatures' mouths, hunger and desire mixed with fear and horror were in their eyes. They knew, even before the guards started firing, that the first ones will die.

And yet they charged on. The malformed charged on, despite the bullets that rained upon them. They charged on, despite the mines coming to life and killing dozens of their kin. They charged on, trampling those of their kind who could keep up or were too injured to move. The fear before their leader, Rraghr, was all-encompassing. Here and now, they would die relatively fast, while Rraghr would torture the guilty ones for days before swallowing them alive and allowing his digestive fluids to slowly dissolve the still-alive victim.

"Breed! Devour! Conquer!" They shouted, running toward the main gates, whipped into a frenzy by their leader thundering behind them, "Breed! Devour! Conquer!"

The one in front of them, a being with two bone swords for arms, charged forth, leaving his comrades behind. Strong he was, and this malformed warrior was easily accepted into the ranks of Rraghr's private guard. The malformed next to him had her head explode upon the shot of the sniper rifle, but when the bullet hit the sword handed malformed in the space between his upper lip and nose, he only growled in annoyance, tasting his own blood with anticipation.

The mortar fired from the wall, landing a grenade in front of him. The fire and smoke greeting the champion on his road to slaughter made the bones that shielded his skin tremble. Biting his lips, the malformed pushed on through the pain in his ears. While his allies were devoured by the flame and shockwave, he was only baptized in this destruction, breaking through the smoke shroud alive and mostly intact.

He was the first to reach the gates, the first to thrust his mighty blades against the metal with enough force to shake and tremble the entire structure. It took him five thrusts to make a crack wide enough to put his entire arm through. His allies followed after him, grabbing the crack with their own arms and widening it by tearing away the metal.

Automatic fire came from within the crack, killing and wounding many, but in their fear and frenzy, the malformed cared little for their own deaths. When one fell, two more took his or her place. The gates’ metal whined, and the champion of the malformed felt rage in him. How many times has Rraghr thrown them against this place? His mother died here, his father perished in an explosion, his brothers were no more. He. Will. Not. Be. Stopped!

His blades hit the gates with double force, the bone in his arms screamed with pain, splintering and dulling his weapons of destruction. The champion didn’t care. The gates must fall. This madness must end. He hit again and again, slicing off the limbs of his unlucky allies, and finally the crack was wide enough for the first malformed to storm inside.

They were greeted with a makeshift barricade and the guards hiding behind it. Some malformed ran up the stairs, eager to bring retribution to the guards who wielded turrets. The champion stormed forward like an arrow. Once again, his comrades were falling, the bones that protected his chest cracked under the pressure of an incoming bullet, and sharp pieces of his own bone pierced his flesh. The malformed went on, coming up against a tall woman.

She threw away her gun and raised her arms over her head. Water rose from the stone ground, trying to cover the champion fully. The malformed made a step forward, not allowing himself to be enveloped in water. Few of his allies did not, and they were now trapped in bubbles of water, flying up and becoming easy prey for the defenders.

The champion stepped up to the horrified female. Rraghr demanded that all females be taken alive and brought to him. In his maddening state, the champion did not care for the instructions. His bone blades struck out, slicing through the woman, two other guards, and one other malformed. The foes screamed, and when the smell of their blood hit his nostrils, the malformed felt ecstasy. We can win! The birthplace of his kin was taken away, they were hunted and killed on sight, but finally, finally, they were getting back at this world! Rraghr will claw back a place at the top for them!

His eyes narrowed, seeing another malformed, dressed in the clothes of a cattle carrying a cattle’s child away from the battlefield.

"Traitor!" On his way after the whore, he yelled at the top of his lungs, crushing another guard beneath his mighty leg. She was given a divine gift, the ability to produce more of his kin for the purpose of wreaking havoc on the weaker, and she chose to hide and live with cattle? Worse, she was trying to save one of their numbers!

The champion did not care to look around himself. He didn’t care to see if his allies needed help or if his advance helped break the last line of defense. His body was injured, the bone plates were damaged, and from underneath them, blood ran freely down his body, coloring the white of his bone armor with crimson. He only wanted to see this whore and the little cattle she was attempting to save—a blood smear beneath his leg. The woman saw him and screamed, falling to the ground and trying to push the cattle away with her tentacle. The champion only smiled, preparing his stomp.

A black furred form jumped from above the street, landing between the champion and his prey and dragging them from the shadow of his feet. The champion let out a curse, crushing the stone, his beady eyes found the cursed intruder. The woman, if he could call her this, was dressed in a simple coat, and her skin was covered with black fur. Her head was massive, and the champion saw a glint of respectable chompers in the maw of his new foe. The newcomer turned her back to the surprised champion, grabbing the whore and her pet. It took him a moment to realize that she was shielding them with her body.

All more easier for me! The champion laughed, hearing nothing. The explosion ruptured his eardrums. Rraghr was right, the cattle were weak and unworthy of life. Instead of fighting, they chose to protect each other. Fools! As if this would stay his blade away from them!

His blade went down, aiming at the back of this dog. And was stopped, accompanied by the sound of an explosion that sent the ground shaking. Another changed: a larger figure, covered in scars and rust-colored fur, landed in front of him, crashing into the concrete with her feet.

Her bone blade was stopped by the paw, which held his blade by the sides, not allowing the edge to cut into flesh. A smile came upon the wolfish face, and his opponent closed her fist. His bone sword, a weapon that had served him for decades, shattered like glass in her embrace.

The champion tried to retreat, feeling fear for the first time. He screamed at the feeling of the sharp claws piercing his sides, ravaging his muscles, popping organs, and reaching for the spine column. Following another surge of otherworldly pain, the world spun around, and the champion found himself flying. He was torn in two.

****

"Sveta, you fine!?" Aranea shouted worryingly, jumping next to the medic.

"Y… yes." The medic gulped, helping the fallen woman and cub back on their feet.

"Supreme job, Svet," Virginia said, widening her smile at the medic's suspicious glance, "No, really, it was just grand. You actually outsped me and saved lives. Like a hero!"

"Hero or not, Sveta, you aid the civilians who are fleeing to the safety of the medical center and stay away from the fighting. Now." Aranea commanded, reaching for her pistols.

Her first shot found its mark between the eyes of an malformed who was about to tear a guard’s belly with her clawed arms. The wolf hag fired again, her next shot ricocheted against the bones of a towering malformed who just pulverized a man with his hammer-like hands. The malformed smiled wickedly, and Aranea fired twice. Her first shot came at his forehead, throwing his head backwards, her second shot tore at the palate in the enemy’s mouth, reaching all the way to the brain. The dead body made one last step in disbelief, before falling face down. Aranea moved on, helping the allies everywhere she could.

Virginia charged forth like a meteor, abandoning any thought of using firearms. Her claws tore at a malformed, tearing out eyes and throwing the ruined body away from a guard with gleeful laughter. Virginia spun around, kicking out and leaving a gaping hole in the malformed advancing at her. She saluted to the guard, while Aranea shot the malformed who tried to sneak behind her.

Virginia started to move toward the breech. The wolf hag pushed on fearlessly, facing dozens of foes head-on, never once stopping moving, always weaving a picture of death in the air with her claws. The foes who stood before her had their throats slashed. The ones who tried to gore her found only empty air before them, as the wolf hag dodged the attack, before landing her own deadly counterattack. One malformed even tried to bite the wolf hag, but Virginia met the assault by spreading her own maw wide, leaving a gaping hole in her opponent’s face and a lower jaw dangling on a string of flesh. Aranea mercifully shot down the howling malformed, before the ruined being could suffocate on blood.

Malfiro and other Breathtakers rushed from the streets to join the defenders. The abbot was with them, but the large man pushed his brother behind, snapping at the holy father to help civilians evacuate, before turning his attention on the foes. His axe struck out, cleaving through the head of the malformed before him, while his allies opened fire, covering his back.

More and more malformed stormed into the breech and were faced with death. Virginia and Malfiro seemingly competed with each other, pressing on to reach the gates and leaving broken bodies in their wake. Aranea lost count of the times she had to kill the foes who tried to sneak up on them. These two were idiots. What’s worse, they utterly relied on her and the other guards, showing no hint of fear that their allies might fail them. The plan was simple, push the enemy out of the gate, hold the chokepoint, and not allow the malformed to spread across the city.

The guards used the momentary respite to reform their ranks, the locals were helping drag away the wounded, while two pillars of strength, Virginia and Malfiro, brought fear and death to the enemy’s ranks.

Aranea felt the ground shake slightly as she noticed circles forming at the spilled blood. The enemy assault, which had appeared to be faltering a moment before, accelerated; mad determination replaced fear in the eyes of the malformed who converged on Virginia, making the wolf nag laugh even louder, like a happy cub on her birthday.

"Breed! Devour! Conquer!" The foes chanted once more, and the wall left of the gates exploded.

"And conquer we will!" Stepping inside, a being of pure rage and might yelled.

Wreathed in milky-white mist, the gigantic figure stepped with the regal arrogance of a king. An enormous scorpion tail waved behind his shoulders, the stinger struck out, claiming the life of one of the guards atop the wall. With thunderous steps, the malformed moved on, while pieces of rubble that were falling from the wall slowed down the moment they fell into the mist around the monster.

A group of six guards stood up before the monster. All of them opened fire, joined by Aranea, who fired at the green eyes of this new foe. The bullets slowed to a crawl upon entering the mist, and the creature swapped them out of the air with a chuckle. It came upon the guards, and the mist from its pores engulfed men and a woman in front of him. They tried to run from his great shadow and found themselves barely moving. The creature grabbed the woman, threw her behind himself, and struck. A great arm moved on, hitting all five people like a war hammer. The fingers lacked claws or sharp parts, but upon hitting the people, they liquidated both bones and organs within, sending former living people into a building nearby, collapsing it entirely.

"Rraghr has come and claims this place as our feasting ground!" The monster roared, making Sveta stop helping an elderly man out of the house and turn to face the creature in fear, "Will anyone provide me with a decent challenge?!"

"Play with me if ya feeling so hot." Virginia laughed, jumping from a crowd of malformed and landing before Rraghr.

The wolf hag charged at Rraghr, ignoring Aranea’s warning scream. As tall as she was, Rraghr was massive.

Among the Wolf Tribe, there was a price for his head, this bastard dared to attack one of the Tribe’s villages. The description seemed accurate, he was always covered in mist, leaving just the general shape of his body visible. The bastard, who weighed about two and a half tons, moved with the grace of a scout and punched with the ferocity of a wolf hag. Normally, a being like him posed no great danger to Virginia or Aranea. Weight difference aside, Rraghr was too slow and unaccustomed to fighting an equal opponent.

Normally. The moment Virginia came into contact with the mist, she slowed down, pulling herself back with all her force and barely dodging a punch that left a crater in the ground. This was the reason why Rraghr was unaccustomed to fighting an equal opponent. He was far too crafty to avoid a warlord, and his power allowed him to negate any speed difference between his opponents.

The beast of bone moved on, following after Virginia. The rubble behind him smashed into the ground, making the rust-colored wolfkin look at it and smile. Aranea fired, her bullet came into contact with the mist, and at this moment Virginia jumped, kicking the bullet toward Rraghr.

She was gifted with a punch that sent her across the battlefield and into the house, spearing it and landing in the one behind it. Meanwhile, the bullet, moving like a snail, reached the bone plate… And a crack appeared on the bone while the metal projectile shattered.

"Ha! Figured you out!" Virginia crashed through rubble, laughing like a maniac. The front of her jacket was torn, a small dent was below her left breast, and blood trickled from a corner of her mouth. The wolf hag, however, was happy, "Aranea! The bone fucker does not completely slow down the moving object! Just visible speed in some way! Even if it looks slow, it still carries the initial impulse!"

"Got it." Aranea replied, holstering her pistols and reaching for a metal rail lying on the ground.

She lifted the thing over her shoulder and threw it at Rraghr with all her might, sending a human-sized rail at the enemy’s leader and running after it. A malformed threw herself at the wolf hag and Aranea pierced her forehead with a claw, shaking the dead body away. Her father's sword was still locked in the sheath behind her back, Aranea felt uncomfortable at the idea of using it in this battle. She will just as likely hit an ally with it as an enemy.

The two wolf hags joined together, jumping up and kicking the rail the moment it came into the mist. The scorpion tail swooped through the air, hitting Aranea and Virginia with enough force to send them over the fighters and into the stone ground. The wolf hag rolled around, gasping for air and jumping back onto her feet. She saw that Rraghr sidestepped the rail, allowing it to smash through the ranks of his followers behind him.

"Figured me out? So what? How will this help you?" Rraghr laughed, sending tremors with each step, "Nothing you try will work. At the dawn, you will be a breeding stock to fuel my army!"

Before they could answer, another explosion rang through the city. Aranea turned around, seeing smoke rising in the night sky, highlighted by projectors. It was coming out of the entrance that the wolfkins used to enter the city.

"Damn it! Galaro, this traitor!" Aranea cursed.

"Galaro? But he was in charge of the…" Malfiro stopped briefly, and a horrible realization came upon his face, "The shot… This attack…"

"Someone tried to kill me tonight," Aranea said, motioning for Svetlana to stay away, "And that someone left the eyepatch behind him."

"No…" Malfiro looked at the axe in his hands. A trio of malformed lunged at him, and the man shouted in rage, his face changing into a mask of anger. The axe moved like a feather in his hands, slicing through the foes, "We took him in! We healed him, and… Please, I beg of you, hold the enemy here, I have to save the civilians! There can’t be that many foes coming from the rear…"

"Two can do it faster than one," Virginia said, taking off her jacket and cracking her neck, "Aranea, play with the big guy for a while. I will be back shortly."

"Sure thing." Aranea said, not feeling herself even a least bit certain.

She charged forth, firing both pistols at Rraghr. The scorpion tail moved on, coming from the mist and aiming its stinger at her neck. Aranea evaded it, allowing the stinger to pierce the ground, and wrapped one arm around the tail. No mist was covering this part of Rraghr's body, and the wolf hag smiled, pushing her pistol between bone plates and emptying the entire magazine into his flesh.

Blood poured from the opening between the bone plates, accompanied by a cracking sound. Rraghr roared like mad, abandoning his charge at the guard and rushing at Aranea with all his might. He tried to jerk back his ruined tail, and the wolf hag let the guns out of her arms. She grabbed the stinger and pulled it out, tearing it completely before the mist could envelop her. Rraghr's howl of pain filled the streets, and Aranea understood that she had earned his full attention.

The halfbreed wondered if she could survive it.