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Chapter 30: Tactical Success

Nexus felt his heart racing.

Ten yards out.

He dropped to a low crouch.

Five yards out. . .

He readied himself.

And then the prize came bursting out of the woods, charging unperturbed, and without fear. Nexus timed his jump- and pounced.

With the aid of gravity, his black form descended from on high. Arms outstretched like a massive bat, and eyes gleaming with urgency, he slithered through the open air, bearing down on his target like a live human missile.

From that height, he watched the fox's ears twitch suspiciously.

Despite still going at full speed, it managed to spin its head upwards reflexively. For a slight moment, Nexus' saw its face fully. Crafty eyes, a triangular snout, and streamlined face met his eyes.

For the briefest moment, Nexus also saw the surprise in its eyes. He grinned with satisfaction;

Gotcha.

But Nexus did not got anything. He was literally right on top of it, when the fox twisted at an unnatural angle, evading his grasp, leaving Nexus empty handed. He came crashing down hard with a defeated snarl on his face. He had seen it all from above, and yet, he still could not believe it.

But thankfully, he had kept a contigency for a result like this.

The second attack followed immediately.

Like a sky diver, Crystal hurled herself out of the tree branch, and dove straight at the Lightning Fox. She tore through the air, grasping the rune paper in one hand, and the other hand extended for a grab.

Lightning Fox had already managed to work a miraculous escape once. The likelihood of performing another Houdini act, at that speed, was very unlikely. In slow motion, Nexus watched as the slim-thick succubus descended from above like a bird of prey, honing on the crafty fox.

There was truly no escape for it now.

The Lightning Fox was startled to the bone. Humans usually came at it head on- with weapons, noisy footsteps, and in great numbers. So, it had been an absolute shocker when the first human came flying from out of nowhere! It had barely registered the shock when the second came!

There was barely a moment of interlude between each attack. Both attacks had been executed well. How many more were lurking in the trees?! Crystal, closing in fast, was barely inches away from contact.

Then the impossible happened.

Crystal saw it all.

The Lightning Fox's reaction time was something none of them could have ever thought of factoring in their plans.

Mid-stride, and completely off balance, its rear legs suddenly jerked backwards, and kicked off the ground. Crystal, who was literally seconds away from touchdown, watched the whole scene aghast.

Sill in the air, the rest of its white furry torso responded to the situation, and twisted at an unbelievable angle, wrenching itself out of her grasp. Crystal, in an effort to salvage the situation, extended both of her hands in a futile bid to grab it.

But the creature escaped.

Crystal came crashing down. There was an atrocious sound of a bone snapping, and a a sharp shriek of pain followed. She had not been able to break her fall properly. And she paid the price dearly for it. The fox, thinking it had already escaped fully, suddenly felt Crystal's arm on its body.

A slight tremor shot up the fox's spine. Eyes buzzing about widly, astonishment gripped the animal with an icy hand, forcing it into a state of despair.

It had never been out maneuvered before. The lightning fox had outdid itself with its previous daring escape moves. The first had been impulsive but effective. With less than a second the react, its follow up maneuver had been all but extreme.

Still in the air, with exhausted options, and limited space, the Lightning Fox's eyes blazed desperately, searching, trying to do the impossible. The Lightning Fox found itself landing feet first, on the carpet grass, with the human's palm grazing its blazing white torso.

The creature, although not quite captured yet, refused to concede defeat just because the human's hand had touched it. In its mind, it had the advantage of agility. So, the very moment it touched down on the lush grass, it sprint forward with a spring-like quickness.

But unfortunately, the Lightning Fox was in for a nasty surprise.

Crystal's free hand was undoubtedly sprained. The pain shot through her wrist, enflaming the entire region, clouding her eyes with the stinging tears.

However, her loyalty to the cause, far exceeded her own personal pain. Forcing herself, she soldiered through the pain with great effort, and rose above unpleasantness.

She had fallen headfirst and face flat. The right side of her face, despite the cool lush feeling of the carpet grass, was burning hot with a swelling pain. Her torso was pressed up against the earthy grass, and her free hand was twisted at a very disturbing angle.

But her right hand- that was the point of contact between her and the fox. So, in the very brief second, while it was still in the air, while it was still thinking about running, Crystal unclenched her fist- revealing the white strip of paper within.

With the searing pain tearing through the right side of her face, with her other hand burning, Crystal unfolded her fingers.

Like metal to a magnet, the paper stuck to the white fur.

The fox, still entertaining ambitious thoughts of running away, did not feel the paper on its skin. But it certainly felt its entire body turn to lead.

Eyes sunken in despair, a new kind of terror engulfed the poor creature. Suddenly, it felt its weight tripple as it fell- no, dropped down to the earth like a huge boulder. Dread, like never before, creeped up on the Lightning Fox. It kept forcing itself, willing any kind of motion, overhauling its brain with signals as if it was a jedi trying to use the force.

But it did not move.

It could not move.

On the ground, wide eyed in catatonic shock, catatonic, it remained like a statue.

Nexus was up on his feet in a flash. He set his sight on the elusive fox, and eyed it with a mixture of annoyance and victory.

Even though it was clearly subdued, he sprang forward towards like it would suddenly disappear or something. Even though Nexus was but a meter away from it, he launched himself at it in a dramatic manner, with his arms thrusting the air.

He came down hard, grabbing it greedily with a perverse satisfaction on his face. He held the elusive fox tightly, not even easing up for a moment.

"Excellent work Crystal!" he boomed sincerely, "That was absolutely phenomenal!"

Crystal struggled to rise up on her feet, swaying lightly as if she was intoxicated.

"You flatter me my lord," she winced, and added; "I'm just glad I could help."

"Thanks for taking one for the team. Are you alright though?"

She put on a brave face; "Nothing I can't handle, I'll be fine."

Nexus hesitated; "I heard a nasty snap earlier on, are you sur---"

To his left, in the bushes, there was a sudden movement. It was heavy, pronounced, and seemed to be coming at them.

Crystal caught his eye- something was out there. They both instantly got into alert mode. Still clutching his prize, Nexus stepped forward, keeping Crystal behind him in a defensive position. He trained his eyes forward, up ahead.

The distortion got even louder.

Behind Nexus, the succubus tugged at his sleeves, urging him to consider running.

He would have.

The creature drew closer, cloaked behind the bushes, fighting the vines and thickets to burst through.

Finally, an opening in the bushes gave way. Nexus stretched out his sword, ready for the worst. In an instant, his jaw dropped, as well as Crystal's. In collective shock, their eyes widened when the cute face of a girl emerged from the opening.

Her head poked through, and her eyes met theirs. Her look mirrored their own- surprise. Head to toe, like a bubble wrapped toy, she was clad in heavy animal fur. Draped across her shoulders, show cased like a prize, was the stuffed head of a Grey Wolf.