The Wild Path by Dan Michaelson & D.K. Holmberg

Author:Dan Michaelson & D.K. Holmberg [Michaelson, Dan & Holmberg, D.K.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fantasy, Action & Adventure
Publisher: ASH Publishing
Published: 2025-01-08T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter

Twenty-Two

The Swordmaster raised his crescent sword and slashed at the rolling ape.

But it was not a normal slash. For a moment, the Swordmaster’s weapon seemed to explode into a thousand blades, each one slicing at the Unbeast. Additionally, the Swordmaster himself seemed to become intangible for just a moment, looking more like a ghost than a person.

Then the moment passed, and the Unbeast—still charging at full speed—rushed past the Swordmaster. Or maybe through him. Leo’s eyes found it difficult to keep up with both the movements of the Unbeast and the unnamed Swordmaster.

Rather than crash again, however, the Unbeast rolled to a stop on the other side of the road opposite the Swordmaster. Uncurling back into its normal form, the Unbeast whirled to face the Swordmaster, grunting and clicking, its muscles rippling underneath its skin.

As for the Swordmaster, he looked unharmed. He simply turned to face the Unbeast, his crescent sword still resting on his shoulder, a smirk on his face.

“His attack didn’t work?” pondered Leo.

Papa rested a hand on Leo’s shoulder, however, and said, “No. Watch.”

The Swordmaster tilted his head to the side. “What’s the matter, monster? Aren’t you going to come at me again?”

The Unbeast growled. It took one step forward…

And fell apart into a thousand pieces. Chunks of flesh, fingers, ears, tufts of fur, bone… every bit fell off like it was being finely chopped by a professional butcher. Black-green blood exploded out in every direction as its body collapsed into a pile of bone, flesh, and fur.

“He did it!” said Frederic, who Leo had not noticed had recovered from getting knocked out. “Awesome!”

Leo, however, knew that killing an Unbeast was a lot harder than that and shouted, “Swordmaster! Watch out!”

Just as Leo said that, a frog-like creature—the Unbeast itself—leaped out from its collapsing body toward the Swordmaster. A surprised look appeared on the Swordmaster’s face as the Unbeast flew toward him, but the look was only for a second before he swung his blade at it.

The Swordmaster’s crescent blade cut the Unbeast cleanly in two, sending both sides flying past him. Both halves of the Unbeast landed on the border road with a plop and immediately turned into piles of goo that glistened under the late summer sun.

Lowering his sword, the Swordmaster looked over his shoulder at the Unbeast, a puzzled frown on his face. “What in the heavens was that? A parasite?”

“Sort of,” said Papa, who was already approaching the Swordmaster. Leo hurried to follow. “It’s an Unbeast. Think of it as a mixture between a parasite and a plague. You’re lucky you killed it.”

The Swordmaster suddenly looked at Leo and Papa as if he had just noticed they were there. “Huh? Who are you people, and where did you come from?”

Leo blinked. “We are the people you told to stand back while you dealt with the Unbeast. How could you have forgotten us so quickly?”

The Swordmaster peered at Leo and Papa more closely before shaking his head. “Nah. Don’t recognize either of you, but if this monster was attacking you, then I guess I just saved your lives.

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