Chương 29: Chapter 30: Ambush

The invisible panther looked cautiously at the two humans before it. Humans were a clever bunch and it would normally avoid them at all costs, but right now the panther felt a deep sense of rage within it. A rage it couldn't suppress. Its memories were fragmented, but it remembered the scene perfectly. The moment the impossibly powerful human had locked eyes on it, its peaceful life in the mountains was over. It hadn't even been a battle, the two were not on the same level.

In fact, the panther doubted any other animal in the region but the mountain king could win. It had just been bad luck. This time, the humans ahead of it, the ones who had scurried into the little cave, were weak. Their auras were light, and bodies fragile. The panther felt no fear, but after living a life of utmost caution, it suppressed its rage to the best of its ability and crawled forward slowly. The humans had placed some sharp ornaments on the floor and something thin that reflected the sun along the walls.

Unlucky for them, the panther was quite clever too. And an even better climber! Leaping up, it gripped tightly onto the ceiling. There wasn't much to hold, but that wasn't a problem. It could scale any surface no matter how smooth. Slowly, the panther crept forward. It remained absolutely silent, it couldn't even hear its own footsteps. It was different from the caves it grew accustomed to in the mountains which were far more rocky and far more stable, but the panther could adapt to these small things.

Closer and closer, it continued creeping up. The unknowing humans shifted their eyes back and forward, but it would be impossible for them to find it. For weaklings like these, its invisibility was basically perfect! Left paw, right paw. Left foot, right foot. The rage in its heart quelled a little, knowing it would soon get a meal. Just as the panther got almost within pouncing distance… Twang A long reflective string, similar to those scattered across the walls, vibrated across the silent cave.

Unlike the others which were clearly visible, this one had been hidden behind roots and dirt. The panther quickly looked forward. The two humans were looking directly at it. That was the last thing it saw before a violent explosion erupted from above the ceiling. BOOM! With the explosion the ceiling collapsed, launching the panther onto the field of caltrops. Losing its grip, the panther began falling. Below it lay a field of caltrops. Evel watched the collapsing roof carefully.

He had used the same strategy as with the tortoise. Right on cue, he dismissed Eth, causing the arrow to fall and land on the thin layer they had carefully constructed. He activated his ability the moment he could, and Eth appeared back above his head. The hand quickly got busy once more dashing through the hole created by the explosion, and moving the prepared weighted net over it. The panther would no longer be able to take that escape route.

The sound of the explosion also worked as a cue to Bremin who was probably already waiting by the entrance. A beast with invisibility and no leaking aura was an unreasonably powerful ability. Should they have met one in the wild, they would have stood no chance. The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Yet with the power of preparation, they had somewhat neutralized its greatest strength.

It was injured from the explosion, then once more from the collapse, and now every exit was blocked off. Invisibility didn't matter if they could predict where it would go next. Beside him, Diana quickly released another shot into the debris of the collapsed ceiling, causing another violent explosion as his vision was once again filled with flying debris. Evel coughed lightly, expelling the dust from his lungs. He kept his eyes focused forward, weapon firmly in hand.

Diana prepared her next arrow, and kept her bow facing forward. The panther had suffered through several caltrops and an explosion. It couldn't have been in a good state, unless it had an unreasonably good defense along with its ability. It's injured, and probably afraid, we just have to wait for it to choose its next move. The two waited patiently, ready to fire at a moment's notice. The dust fully settled, and the fresh air from the new hole above expanded into the cave. Despite this, the air felt heavy.

He gripped tighter on his crossbow keeping his arms raised high to protect his neck from any surprise attack that may arrive. He was crouched, protecting his torso the best he could. He wouldn't leave unscathed but he should survive at least one pounce. Yet the attack never arrived. Instead, movement could be heard at the end of the cave. Evel threw a quick glance at the overhead net. No movement. He heaved a sigh of relief. The panther had chosen to run away via the entrance.

With Bremin there, Evel felt secure in his victory, and was glad he didn't need to suffer a debilitating attack. Despite his thoughts, Evel remained vigilant as he and Diana slowly crept out of their spots. A loud thump. Silence. Evel began climbing atop the collapsed ceiling, shifting some debris away to clear up the path to the entrance. More movement could be heard, a sharp sprint and a heavy thump, then back to silence. Evel continued forward, reaching the entrance.

The lifeless body of the panther lay slumped on the ground. Its body was there filled with cuts and slashes, with one deep gash through its face. Large chunks of it remained invisible, as more and more of its pitch black fur seemingly appeared from thin air.

"So its fur was reflecting light," Diana observed. Evel wordlessly nodded. He figured the invisibility was some sort of added effect, like Diana's shots rather than an active ability that had to be maintained. Otherwise, he just couldn't explain the lack of Energy the panther released. Then again, there's just too many things I don't know. He continued forward out of the cave. Bremin wasn't there. Preparing a campfire already? He walked further out, Diana by his side as he quickly scanned the area.

This time, he spotted Bremin. Evel's eyes narrowed. The sight ahead was not what he had been expecting. Ahead of him, stood an expressionless Bremin, standing with his hands raised, weapon on the ground. To his right, was Allen who held a knife dangerously close to Bremin's throat. It was an unbelievable sight, the stoic, unstoppable Bremin, a hostage. And the man who held him hostage was none other than the man whose life Evel had preserved despite Diana's adamant disapproval.

Evel swallowed hard as he felt his stomach drop. Fuck. Beside him, he felt Diana's ability instantly flare as she pulled forward an arrow from her quiver.

"D-Deactivate both your abilities!" Allen yelled out. He had a hint of fear in his voice. There was something else that made him confident, Evel just needed to figure out what, but he found it excruciatingly hard to think clearly through the guilt of his mistake. Beside him, Diana scoffed, then yelled right back.

"You think you can take out all three of us?" Allen's knife remained firmly at Bremin's neck, as he stared back in silence. Shit! Evel realized if he didn't find a way to diffuse the situation, Bremin's life would be forfeit, and it would be exclusively his fault! All sympathy he had for Allen had dried up, but he couldn't just let Bremin die! Before he could say anything at all, a giant mass crashed down on Diana from her right, and into her stomach.

Evel's eyes widened as his heart sank to the bottom of his stomach. Allen's friend I never told them about… Allen was not alone. Diana flew diagonally across from in front of Evel, her empowered arrow slipping from her hand as her grip loosened. Evel watched in silence as the avian blur drove her forward with an intense force. An eagle. Diana's body slammed on a patch of dry dirt, and the eagle flew even further, rolling away from the heavy contact.

"I said deactivate your ability!" Allen yelled once more. Evel's mind snapped out of his daze as it raced to find a solution. Each idea turned to a dead end as more options presented themselves.

"W-what?" Evel pretended to still be in a daze, as he continued to parse through his options. He needed time!

"Deactivate your ability or he dies immediately!" Allen was keeping Bremin alive in order to ensure Evel didn't attack him, a reasonable strategy on his part, but one Evel was thankful for. Bremin was still alive, and still could be saved. Evel just couldn't put together the how. Each and every idea led to a dead end. Eth was hovering over the hole created by the explosion. The items in his pouch, cards, a thumb tip, some rubber bands, were all useless.

Next his mind went to the traps they had prepared for the panther, many still around, but mostly useless. In the end, only one trap could be even used from where Allen was standing. But would it be enough to turn tables? Evel glanced at Bremin whose face showed no panic nor fear. Was it confidence? Or was he just unable to express himself? Either way, Evel decided to put his full faith in him. To accomplish this, he needed time, time he may not have. Eth zipped across the air at top speed, impervious to everyone.

Evel took a few shallow breaths. Everything depended on how well he could act this out.