Quality Over Quantity

“There’s wolves attacking us!” one Enclave warrior screamed, his voice cutting through the howling wind. His eyes were wide with terror as he pointed toward the shadows moving between the trees. The wolves moved like ghosts, their bodies barely visible against the falling snow.

Another warrior turned sharply, raising his sword as he tried to warn those around him. “Watch for the enemies be—”

He didn’t finish his words.

An arrow flew through his open mouth, the shaft emerging from the back of his skull. He collapsed into the snow, dead before his body even hit the ground.

The warriors around him scrambled backward, their panic spreading like wildfire through their already exhausted ranks. They had been fighting for what felt like hours, and yet they were no closer to victory. The Nightshade warriors were everywhere and nowhere at once, appearing from the snow and disappearing into the storm before the Enclave warriors could even determine where they had come from.

And then the beasts showed up again.

Skylurs burst through the trees, their massive bodies crashing through branches and sending snow tumbling from the canopy. Their yellow eyes burned with feral hunger, their jaws snapping at anything that moved.

But this time, they failed to succeed.

Gregory wasted no time.

His axe moved in a blur of steel, carving through the limbs of the first Skylur that came within reach. The beast roared, its enormous body stumbling as its legs gave out beneath it. Gregory didn’t stop. He immediately turned toward the next beast, his axe swinging in another wide, brutal arc.

The weapon struck deep.

The Skylur roared and attempted to lunge at him, but another warrior stepped forward and drove his blade beneath its jaw.

The beast collapsed.

“Keep moving!” Gregory shouted.

He wasn’t alone.

A group of warriors followed closely behind him, their movements coordinated and precise. Some targeted the limbs of the beasts, disabling them before they could attack. Others struck at their vulnerable points—the throats, eyes and underbellies.

Their weapons were stronger than ordinary steel.

Most had been crafted from materials obtained from the beasts of Nirvana itself, forged using Skylur fangs and reinforced with venom. The weapons were designed specifically for this battle, and they were proving their worth.

Another Skylur lunged.

Gregory ducked beneath its enormous jaws and rolled across the snow. One of the warriors immediately stepped into the opening and drove his spear into the creature’s stomach.

The Skylur roared.

Before it could recover, Gregory was already on his feet, his axe came down repeatedly on the beast until it fell.

But there was no time to celebrate.

Virelops joined the battle too, their small white bodies multiplying as they emerged from the trees. Their shrieks cut through the air like blades, their crimson eyes gleaming as they leapt toward the Nightshade warriors.

The Enclave warriors cheered when they saw them.

“Get them!”

“Don’t let them surround us!”

The Virelops attacked alongside them, leaping at the Nightshade warriors with their sharp teeth and relentless aggression.

For a moment, the Enclave warriors believed they were finally gaining an advantage.

Then the Nightshade warriors began moving differently.

They didn’t rush into direct confrontation.

Instead, they slipped between the Enclave ranks, brushing past warriors as they moved.

Some touched their arms.

Others brushed against their backs.

A few simply passed close enough to smear something across their armour.

The paste was invisible beneath the blizzard, but its scent lingered faintly in the air—the bitter, pungent smell of blackwater berries and bitter veil.

The Enclave warriors didn’t notice.

They were too busy fighting.

Too busy trying to survive.

One moment, a Nightshade warrior would appear in front of them, their blade flashing through the storm.

The next moment, they would be gone, swallowed by the snow before anyone could pursue them.

It was as though they had become one with the blizzard.

As though the storm itself was fighting against the Enclave.

“What the fuck is happening?!” one warrior screamed.

“I can’t see anything!”

“Where are they coming from?!”

“Fucking cowards! Fight us like warriors!”

But there was no answer.

Fear began to grip them.

It started as a whisper, a quiet seed of doubt planted in their minds.

Then it grew.

They were being played with.

They were being toyed with.

The Nightshade warriors weren’t simply killing them.

They were breaking them.

Every time an Enclave warrior thought he had finally located an enemy, there was nothing there. Every time they tried to regroup, another arrow came from the darkness. Every time they attempted to advance, another wolf appeared from the storm.

Their confidence was disappearing.

Then Gloria spoke up.

“The goddess is on our side!” she shouted, her voice carrying over the wind. “Even the beasts now aid us! Do not fear! This battle will be ours to win!”

A few warriors straightened.

Her words gave them something to hold on to.

They had numbers.

They had the beasts.

They could still win.

At least, that was what they wanted to believe.

Immediately, someone leaned in close to Gloria.

“Really?”

Gloria froze.

She hadn’t heard a sound.

No footsteps.

No rustle of clothing.

Nothing.

How were these people doing this?

She slowly turned her head.

Blue eyes stared back at her.

They were beautiful eyes, she had to admit.

The warriors surrounding Gloria stopped moving, their gazes fixed on the woman who had appeared among them without making a single sound.

Gloria’s expression hardened.

She wasn’t going to allow herself to be intimidated.

She sneered at the woman.

“Go fuck yourself.”

The blue-eyed woman smiled.

“I cannot do that. But perhaps you will learn to in the afterlife. My mate has an inkling it would be nice.”

Several of the warriors surrounding Gloria stepped closer, their weapons raised.

Gloria’s gaze never left the woman.

“One wrong move,” she warned, “and you will be gone.”

The woman tilted her head slightly, a smile still resting on her lips.

“Do you think so?”

Just then, a low growl rumbled from the shadows.

A black wolf stepped forward, its silver eyes fixed on the warriors.

At least, that was what the warriors thought.

The truth couldn’t have been farther from it.

The wolf wasn’t looking at them.

She couldn’t see them. She could only sense them.

The warriors snickered.

Then another wolf stepped forward.

And another.

Soon, the Enclave warriors found themselves surrounded by a ring of wolves, their eyes gleaming through the darkness.

The warriors swallowed nervously.

Some took a step backward.

Others tightened their grips on their weapons.

Gloria, however, refused to show fear.

“You think that is enough?” she asked. “Our numbers are greater than yours, even with your wolves supporting you.”

The blue-eyed woman nodded slowly.

“True.”

She paused, her smile widening.

“But it’s quality over quantity anytime.”

And then the chaos erupted.

The wolves and the warriors attacked each other, steel clashing against fangs and claws. The snow erupted around them, kicked up by the violence of the fight.

A warrior swung his sword at one of the wolves, only for another wolf to slam into his side and knock him off balance.

Another warrior tried to attack from behind.

A set of claws tore across his back.

He screamed.

Gloria swung her sword toward the blue-eyed woman, but the woman stepped aside with ease.

Their blades met.

The woman twisted her wrist, knocked Gloria’s sword aside and moved forward.

Gloria barely managed to recover before something struck beneath her.

A spear burst from beneath the snow, piercing Gloria’s chest.

Her eyes widened, a choked gasp escaping her lips.

She looked down at the blade protruding from her chest, her hands clutching at the weapon.

The woman moved then.

Her own blade sliced across Gloria’s throat, the cut clean and precise. Blood sprayed across the snow, and Gloria’s body crumpled to the ground.

The warrior beneath the snow came out as massive snow poured from him, shaking it from his armour. He winced, pressing a hand to his lower back.

“I’m too old for this,” he muttered.

The woman chuckled.

“You volunteered.”

The man chuckled, then sent his spear into the snow.