Chapter 17: 16. Devil of the Woods

Riding on the back of Alpha One, it doesn't take long to reach the edge of the forest. I had faced off with the bear a few times here already. A part of me is a little disappointed that the bear beast isn't waiting for my arrival. Sure it had been a few weeks. Still, I would think there would be some loyalty. 

It's a real shock to whatever ego I have, knowing I'm not the center of the bear's universe anymore. The other half of me, the part that realizes all the time and effort that went into the last few weeks, is real glad that I'm still alive and my work hasn't gone to waste. 

We creep through the forest edge carefully. Ten of my scorpses are scouting ahead. Even though the scorpses can't communicate, they are instructed to make noise when they see any beasts the same size or bigger than them. Who knows how the bear monster has evolved. 

Keeping to a slow pace, we eventually reach a nice forest clearing. In times past, open space was an advantage for the bear. This time it will be its downfall. 

Other than the distant flowing water, it is strangely quiet. Bones and I dismount from the scorpion. Cautiously, we look around only to find the woods empty. Our location will be the perfect place to make our stand. 

Come to think of it; this is close to where my previous self, Kel, fought the swarm of desert beasts. Those were some times. That they were. I waste only a moment reminiscing on simpler times and then return to work.

Scattered trees surround us, allowing for a clear view of the desert. It will be challenging for the bear to approach unnoticed from the east. That leaves the other three directions open. For those openings, I order fifteen of my scorpions to bury themselves in a semicircle. 

Efficiently the creatures use their legs to loosen up the dirt. Then in a shimmy-like motion, they move their bodies side to side. Each movement causes the scorpions to dig deeper into the ground until they are completely buried. Had I not witnessed their burial, I'm not sure I'd be able to pick out their locations. 

My palms are sweaty. It is getting harder to wait. Impulsively, I command my ten scouting scorpions to circle me, bones, and Alpha One. Then, I order everyone besides the buried scorpions to make noise—hissing, claws smashing, bone clattering, and yelling echo through the woods, causing quite a ruckus. 

I'm hollering out to the bear as loud as I can. Only lovely things escape my lips, such as, "Hey bear!", "Hello, bear!" and "Hey stupid bear. Come show your three ugly mugs. You stupid overgrown beast of burden." What we lack in pleasing noises, we make up for with volume. 

Snapping branches pulls my attention to the left. I'm expecting to see a hideous multi-headed bear step into the clearing. Instead, the bear-man-thing is standing upright, walking confidently on thick legs. 

The last transformation has done wonders for the beast. Its size is still impressive as it doubles mine in every way. What once were the front paws are now massive hands, one of which is holding a small tree. 

Resting on the bear's shoulders are the two extra bear heads. They are now covered in bone and look even more intimidating as lively pauldrons. Protecting the man-bear is bone armor plating. What isn't protected by the bipedal bear's armor is covered in thick fur. Despite the heavy coat and armor, the bulging muscular features of the beast are prevalent.

The man-bear astounds me further when it starts to speak in a heavy growl. "Small human, I thank you for coming to fuel my power some more. And I see you have brought me more flesh to feed upon." 

I'll be the first to admit the bear looks cool. His armor set is so much more intimidating, and his bulky-lively pauldrons induce envy. Even his voice is booming and powerful. I will never say it to the bear's face—faces?—though. It is already fuming with arrogance. In a way, I guess the three heads are fitting for such a bear.

Still a bit in shock and awe, I linger in silence. I knew the bear would be different. This upgrade was just completely out of my expectations. Breaking the silence, the bear growls out some more words. "I see you are as incompetent in speech as in combat." 

This one causes me to chuckle. "Wait a moment. You could speak this whole time?" I say, feeling like we have missed out on some casual chats. 

"Listen, all those times you ravaged my body; you at least could have been cordial." That one didn't come out right. It is my first time conversing, so I cut myself some slack. 

The bear follows with a burst of nerve-racking, growling laughter. Not friendly laughter. Far from it. This laughter was definitely more of an—I am going to eat you—kind of laughter, void of any cordialilality. Obviously, I have lost the respect of my fellow bear.

"I've missed you, human. None of the creatures in this forest empower me as much as you." So maybe the bear is more cordial than I have given him credit.

"Please," it growls. "Don't make me wait so long. My power needs your fuel. I grow tired of your inconsistent timing." Nope. This bear is greedy and not pleasant company, which isn't shocking. To him, I am just a snack. 

The bear takes a few more steps closer. "I grow tired of waiting. Hunting for you does not please me. And you must be tired of dying." He is close enough now that I can see its sharp teeth as it speaks. 

"How about we make a deal?" He takes a couple more steps passing my buried scorpses. "If you promise not to make me wait, I promise only to harvest your power six more times. Then we go our separate ways. You can hide in your caves peacefully once more." He pauses for a moment before adding, "Your deaths will be quick and relatively painless."

I'll admit the offer isn't bad. Definitely, not great. Just not bad. Six quick deaths, and I'd be done with this monster. Say one thing about the greedy bear. It was somewhat reasonable. 

On the other hand, I would hate to see the power of this thing if it was allowed to continue to feed off my mana. Besides, power tends to want more power. 

What will stop the beast from feeding off the entire energy of the forest? The whole ecosystem could be destroyed to satiate its hunger for more. What would even prevent it from continuing to hunt me? On top of that, I have no intention of dying. I need a break from that business. I try to come up with something clever in my response. 

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"How about Nah…" I crushed it. 

Pouts of anger thinly disguised as his typical roar unleashes as if refusing his offer was a slap to his shoulder faces. The bear goes full tyrant. 

"Silly human. You do not understand your foolishness. Do you think the sand demons will be enough for you to defeat me? There is a reason they are sand demons and not forest demons. This forest is my domain. All who enter only do so because I allow it. Now you will die. You will spend your life dying. Not even the desert will keep you safe. I will find you. I will destroy you."

That took a turn for the worst real fast. Tired of the pompous bear, I try to chip away at its pride. "Silly bear—" It needs a name. A conversation will be easier if it has a name. "You look like a Grundle...Can I call you Grundle?" Probably my best name yet. I don't bother to wait for a response turning into a slight tyrant myself. 

I may not know who I am, but 'petty' could possibly describe me. If not me, at least this iteration of me, whomever I am. Dangit! I didn't even come up with a name for myself. After sacrificing Wayne, I lost track of the naming business and wasted my only good one on this ninny of a bear. 

"Silly Grundle," I continue with my tirade while trying to hide tones of jealousy when I say the bear's new name. "You only live because I want you to live. You think the only path to power is through victory?" I let out a genuine laugh. Truthfully I probably did gain a lot more losing to the bear than I would in beating it. "You know nothing and will die in your ignorance." 

Shoot dang. That didn't sound good. I'm not impressed with myself. A month of preparation, and that is my retaliation? Manners put on hold. I keep talking. "Sorry, that came out wrong," I say, cutting off Grundle's response, allowing me to recover my misspoken words quickly. "Truth be told, Grundle, I like bears and currently hold an open friend policy. If you want to be friends, we can be friends. Just put aside this power struggle, and we can probably become best buds." 

Grundle laughs his vicious laugh and takes a few more steps forward. There are only thirty feet of space between us.

"Think carefully on this," I say just as he takes another aggressive step forward—this time in a more serious tone. "You are no more than a cow fattened for slaughter. Now that you are ripe for harvest, I will not hesitate to reap my fruits of labor." That was much better. And I believe half of it. Fruit, cow, and death all in one paragraph. Too bad it is wasted on this heffer. 

Before I finish responding, I order my scorpions to spread out and charge. The bear roars in my direction as the scattered scorpions rush towards it. Only a couple of the scorpions get caught in the terror of the growl. If they weren't already dead, they would be momentarily paralyzed. My army doesn't know fear. It can't feel pain. It can only obey my command. 

Caught off guard by its ineffective roar, the bear now has ten scorpions directly facing it. Wasting no time, I order Alpha to charge the right side and Bones to the left. I'm directly in front, slowly closing the distance with a bulking chitinous kite shield and spear, both of which are just for show. Hiding in my shield are a couple dozen throwing spears and my launching device. Twenty feet apart, I grab my launcher and let loose. 

Grundle takes a direct hit from a spear to his leg. The impact disrupts his stomps causing weaker shockwaves to ripple the forest floor. The scorpses low center of gravity and multiple legs counteract the attack. Still, they are slightly slowed, leaving an opening for the beast to start picking them off with his ghost claw. 

Grundle's arm begins its forward slash when a spear pierces it. His slash misses his targets. Now the scorpses are nearly at his feet. Grundle tries another claw attack. This time his hand is impaled by my spear, and he never finishes the motion. 

Roaring in anger, Grundle pulls the two spears impaling his arm and hand out. This slight distraction gives my scorpses the second needed to get in attacking range. Two spears are thrown at the swarming scorpions doing minor damage. 

Grundle abandons his ranged attack and begins using his club. Methodically the man bear swings the club low to the ground dispatching three of my scourpses at once. It begins its second swing when I order my blitz. At once, Bones and Alpha dart forward, closing the distance instantly, and attack. 

Bones is thrusting his spear. Scorpions are attacking with their claws and stingers. Alpha has successfully grabbed one of the bear's legs in its claw and is proceeding to sting it multiple times with its four tails. I continue launching spears from a distance interrupting as many of the bear's attacks as possible. 

Previously, my spear throws were insufficient to break the bear's armor without the launcher. With the launcher, my spears become much more threatening. Already the bear is showing multiple signs of injuries.

As a testament to the bear's strength, he can withstand the force of our attack and fight back. The bear dispatches three more scorpions, roaring and swinging its club and clawed hand. 

Since it has been a while since I have used my core, I can reanimate scorpions and send them into battle as soon as one goes down. So even though Grundle has taken out six scorpses, he is still facing off against thirteen of us.

Grundle's heavy fur is showing more signs of wounds. Blood is dripping from gashes left behind by Bone's spear thrusts. A couple of my spears have also hit weak spots, the shafts partially acting as a deterrent for the monster's movements. Even some of the bone armor is beginning to crack due to our combined onslaught. 

Despite the injuries and pressure, Grundle is still dangerous. Fortunately, he focuses all his attention on Alpha, who is doing the most damage. Alpha is layered in this chitin plating. Even though it takes a beating, the tank of a scorpion keeps fighting back. 

Grundle raises his club again. He is solely focusing on killing Alpha. Now that he is committed to the battle before him, I send in the second wave of scorpions. 

Fifteen scorpses emerge from the earth at once. Unnoticed and unified, they make their way to the flank of Grundle. When they arrive, they attack with a storm of stingers, striking every part of the bear's exposed back. Every successful attack delivers poison into the bear's system, further weakening him.

Caught unaware, Grundle lets out a terrifying roar. Slowly it turns to face the new threats stumbling in the process. I am now charging with my spear. With all of my power, I ram it into the exposed back, forcing it through the other side. 

Pierced heart, full of poison, bleeding, and completely covered in scorpses, the bear falls to the ground. Not taking any more gambles, I summon a warhammer and drive the spiked side into the head of the beast.

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