The ground trembled, loose stones rattling as the earth itself seemed to shudder under an immense force. The roar came again, closer this time, reverberating through the town like a war horn from the abyss.
Then they saw it.
From the depths of the Eastern Woodlands, a hulking beast emerged, tearing through the trees as if they were mere twigs. Its form was nightmarish—towering over any creature they had faced thus far, its body armored in jagged, obsidian-like plating. Two massive, curved horns jutted from its skull, framing a mouth lined with serrated fangs. Its tail, long and whip-like, ended in a brutal, clubbed appendage, capable of crushing anything in its path.
Its eyes burned with a feral intelligence, locking onto the town with singular purpose. The remnants of the Sicklefangs scattered before it, driven by an instinctive terror. This was no mere monster. This was a force of nature.
The massive Falzath inhaled deeply, its chest expanding before it let out another bone-shaking roar, shaking dust from rooftops and cracking weaker structures. Each step it took sent fresh tremors through the ground, the weight of its presence undeniable.
Shin gritted his teeth. "That thing... it's not just a Falzath. It's something else. Something worse."
Laverna drew her daggers, her voice tense. "Then we kill it before it kills us."
The town had barely survived the last battle. Now, they faced something even greater.
Laverna clenched her daggers, her sharp eyes scanning the monster for a weakness. "That thing is going to tear through everything if we don't stop it," she growled.
Shin, his crimson eyes narrowing, tightened his grip on Yoshimatsu's hilt. "We hold the line," he said, his voice steady despite the chaos around them.
A monstrous roar split the air, sending shockwaves through the ruins. Falzath lowered its head, nostrils flaring as it kicked up dust, digging its massive claws into the earth. Then, with terrifying speed, it charged.
"Move!" George bellowed, stepping in front of them. The burly veteran's armor was battered, his jamadhar already slick with the blackened ichor of lesser beasts.
Shin's eyes widened in surprise. "George?! What the hell are you doing here?"
George let out a rough chuckle, never taking his eyes off the towering beast. "While we were fighting this damn thing, it suddenly turned and bolted in this direction. I don't know why, but I wasn't about to let it rampage unchecked."
The Falzath charges again, seeing the town of Valdorne. Falzath feeds on negative energy. If it rampages there, there's a chance for it to heal.
"George, get back!" Shin shouted, but the man only smirked over his shoulder. Instead of retreating, George shifted into a low stance, his jamadhar gleaming under the broken moonlight.
With a sharp exhale, he lunged, slashing at the beast's forelimb before rolling to the side, narrowly avoiding a crushing stomp. Falzath snarled, its tail whipping toward him like a steel cable.
George barely managed to raise his weapon in time, deflecting the brunt of the strike, though the impact sent him skidding backward. He gritted his teeth, planting his feet firmly in the dirt.
"You're too damn young to die here," he muttered, before charging forward once more.
Then, with a roar, he charged headfirst into the beast's path.
Falzath responded instantly. It buried its horns into the ground and surged forward, tunneling beneath George's feet before erupting behind him in an explosion of dirt and debris. Before he could react, the beast swung its tail like a battering ram, slamming him into a crumbling stone wall.
"George!" Laverna's voice cracked as she started toward him, but Shin caught her wrist.
Through the dust and rubble, George staggered to his feet, coughing up blood. He was smiling—grinning like a man who knew his fate was sealed. "Get out of here, kids!" he barked. "That's an order!"
Falzath let out a piercing shriek before lunging again, this time using its massive horns to scoop George into the air. The warrior barely had time to react before the beast hurled him down with bone-shattering force. He crashed into the ground with a sickening crunch.
Still, he fought. With his last breath, George forced himself up, jamadhar in hand, and slashed at the monster's leg. The blade cut deep, sending black ichor spilling onto the ground.
But it wasn't enough.
Falzath reared back, then brought its massive horns down in a brutal charge. The impact sent a deafening shockwave through the battlefield as George's body crumpled beneath the beast's unstoppable momentum.
Shin and Laverna could only watch as their comrade fell.
"No—!" Laverna's voice was raw with grief, her hands balling into fists.
Falzath, wounded but not slain, turned its baleful gaze upon them.
Shin drew Yoshimatsu, its edge humming with power. His blood burned with fury, but his mind remained cold, calculating. "We finish this."
Laverna nodded, wiping away a single tear before facing the massive Falzath. As if a challenge, the Falzath roared at them, ready to fight as the claimed life invigorated the creature.
A low growl rumbled from Shin's throat as the rage within him surged like an unrelenting tide. His crimson eyes shifted, the left one burning a deep blood-red while the right glowed gold like the morning sun. The mark of his heritage, of the beast within, surfaced in full.
"You die today," Shin declared, his voice calm yet laced with unshakable fury. A single tear slipped down his cheek, a silent farewell to his fallen comrade. He tightened his grip on Yoshimatsu, the blade thrumming in resonance with his intent.
Laverna stepped forward beside him, her daggers gleaming under the fractured moonlight. "For George. For everyone you've slaughtered," she vowed, her amber eyes locked onto the beast with a deadly promise. "We end you."
Falzath lowered its head, nostrils flaring as it dug its massive claws into the ground. Then, with a bellowing roar, it surged forward, its massive horns aiming to skewer everything in its path. Shin braced himself, muscles coiling like a drawn bowstring, ready to meet the monster head-on.
His sword hummed, its blade glowed in crimson. Shin closed his eyes. "Soma Sword Style Form Five: Kagen no Hangetsu (Third Quarter Moon)!"
Even with its size, he redirected the Falzath in the opposite direction, the clash of metal ringing through the forest. Laverna's daggers followed up with Shin's deflection, attacking what looks like a soft part of its tail.
It roared, swinging its massive tail like a whip, sending Shin and Laverna flying. Shin flipped in the air and caught Laverna mid-air, landing on the ground.
Laverna, looking at George's state, can see that his jamadhar is still intact even with the Falzath's attack. She can feel her jade pendant's warmth, as if the weapon is calling out to her.
Instinctively, she ran towards it, picking George's weapon up. Wielding it, it felt its warmth, as if a friend reunited with her. As if on cue, George's soul appeared before her, offering a weary but grateful smile.
"Thank you, Laverna," he said, his voice steady despite the ethereal echo to it. "Take it. Use it well.". He glanced upward, his expression softening. "At last... I'll see my children in Elysium."
As his words faded, Laverna's Tiger Pendant glowed with an intense golden light, pulsing in rhythm with her heartbeat. The jamadhar in her hands shimmered, its weight settling naturally into her grip. The weapon had accepted her—the Tiger Pendant had registered it as her own.
She exhaled sharply, gripping the weapon tighter. "I swear, George… I'll make every strike count. For you, and for everyone this thing has killed."
As if sensing her resolve, the Falzath responded with an earth-shaking roar, its piercing cry reverberating through the battlefield. It stomped the ground, dust and debris scattering in all directions, its massive horns lowering in challenge. The beast recognized its opponents, not as prey, but as true threats.