The Extra Wants Control

A collective gasp rippled through Azrael's faction as they witnessed their normally kind/shy/awkward leader engage in a brutal fight with the monstrous tiger king. His face neutral and cool.

The sunlight glinted off Azrael's aura-made armour form as he weaved through the beast's attacks, his every movement lethal and graceful.

Whispers broke out amongst the group. "Wow," someone muttered in awe.

"The faction leader sure is something else," another murmured, their voice barely a squeak.

Vera, Azrael's trusted second-in-command, noticed the effect the fight was having.

She understood that many, especially their younger members had only ever seen Azrael's aloof, almost shy demeanor.

This battle was a revelation. Stepping forward, she seized the opportunity to solidify Azrael's leadership and inspire courage within the group.

"You see that?" she said pointing at Azrael.

"That's Azrael, the leader you stand beside. He wasn't just ranked number one for four years straight for nothing!"

Heads turned between Vera and Azrael, but her words resonated with the group. She continued, tinged with pride while also giving a stern warning. "This is the side of Azrael you don't see – the Azrael honed in battle, the Azrael who wields his blade decisively . You may be used to his quiet and kind side, the one who gets flustered by compliments.

But make no mistake, that man is not easy, he is powerful."

She said while obliterating the falling peaks with her concentrated light beam.

Vera's gaze swept across the group, her face and tone were very serious and cautionary. "Consider yourselves fortunate to be his comrades, fighting alongside him. Trust me, you do not want to be on the receiving end of that blade."

A silence descended upon the faction, heavier than before. The image of their usually reserved leader who is now a monster in battle were too different for them to grasp. Not to mention Vera is also a monster in her own right. Some were happy they had a thick thigh to hug, they were in a place where the leaders were caring and strong, qualities you can't find both on one person.

But Vera's words hung in the air, it was a lesson. As they watched Azrael evade a monstrous swipe, his form flickering into mist and back again, two feelings stood out of the many they were experiencing, these were respect and fear.

They really needed to see this fight.

***************

It was calm before Azraels body started glowing then burst in a pillar of golden light, his body now a blazing aura of golden, materialized at the tiger king's side.

In a flash that was not noticed by most of the students there except Vera, his blade cut through the air in an impressive arc.

The tiger king, feelling threatened its aura burst and flared in resistance, offering a fleeting moment resistance before finally succumbing to the knight's relentless assault.

The monster's head parted from its body in a spray of crimson, sending a wave of shock and awe through the observing faction members as Vera smiled slightly as she nodded, she already knew that Azrael would win the only thing she didn't know was how.

Azrael, his movements as efficient as ever, separated the blood from his blade with a flick of his wrist before sheathing the weapon. His aura calming down before disappearing.

The battle was over, the mountain peak well whatever was left of it a testament to the ferocious struggle that had just transpired.

Turning towards his stunned faction, Azrael's voice boomed through the silent air. "We set up our fort on the windward side," he declared, his voice firm.

"Get the R&D department students. We need their expertise." He said, jolting the group from their reverie.

Vera also stepped forward. Wasting no time, she took command. "Earth elementalists,begin constructing the fort walls immediately. We build from the outside, working our way inwards" she made orders too.

Then a wave of activity came amongst the faction. The students, shaken from their awe by the brutal display of power, scrambled to follow orders.

The called elementalists making the earth pulse beneath their feat as they began shaping the borders, laying the foundation for their stronghold following Vera's instructions.

Others moved towards the fallen tiger king, scavenging its body for resources. Dome were tasked in finding its cave.

*************

Her emerald eyes scanned the shimmering water, a welcome sight in the scorching desert sands. She looked around.

Then a sudden slither was heard in her mind, a raspy voice forcing its way into her thoughts, and she let it became she saw something that gained her attention and that something was probably the cause.

Still she was prepared for any mental attacks.

"Hmm... Only one child was sent to battle me? Is your side devoid of talents? Or do you perhaps underestimate me? Are you really prepared to die, invader?"

Lara's eyes glowed deeper green, as she prepared herself for battle.

"You rule this desert?" she countered, her voice surprisingly steady well it was atleast surprising to the source of the voice as sge returned the favor and spoke directly in its mind.

"One of its rulers, yes" the reply came, echoing inside her head.

"The guardian of the water, you may call me."

The calm waters started moving, spreading the water's edge, and a colossal form began to materialize from the waters. It wasn't a beast of claws like what Azrael faced, but a monstrous serpent, its scales shimmering brown and almost in the sun as water fell from its body back into the pond.

It uncoiled itself with grace, easily reaching a height of 100 feet. Its body, thick as a truck.

" Okay, you should know what this is, correct?" she said as if she wasn't impressed.

Wind slowly swirled around her, picking up speed with each passing second.

A miniature tornado formed, swirling sand and small plants into debris im a vortex. The monstrous serpent watched with what appeared to be amusement or perhaps curiosity as Lara, finally condensed her wind solidified the swirling air into a green javelin.

"A challenge," the serpent said in amusement, its voice resonating within Lara's mind.

With a powerful throw, Lara launched the javelin towards the colossal snake. The projectile shot forward in whistle like sound, leaving a trail of disturbed and split sand sand in its path.

The serpent, surprisingly agile for its size, simply arched its body evading the attack, the javelin whistling harmlessly past it.

Simultaneously, green magic circles materialized around the snake, each one spitting out a thick cloud of noxious, venomous gas and liquid missiles. Lara reacted with lightning speed enhancing her speed with wind magic while also protecting herself with a barrier. A blur of green and emerald danced around the oasis as she gracefully leaped and twirled, dodging the venomous blasts with ease.

As the first volley of projectiles erupted from the numerous magic circles pulsating with an unnatural green and blue glow, Lara sighed in annoyance as the beast formed more Circles sacrificing quality for quantity as it reduced its' attack strength to make them numerous to trap the agile elf.

The sand around the oasis churned, spewing forth a barrage of venomous darts and pressurized water missiles.

And Lara simply weaved through the deadly rain, not letting any get to her.

The colossal serpent watched, its brown scales glinting goldenish in the harsh sunlight.

Frustration coiled within it. Its initial attempts to overpower the nimble elf had failed. Time to change tactics.

"Are you done," Lara called out, her voice cold, "because now I'll finish this." Said as she raised her hand.sand solidified around her ankles, creeping upwards like a treacherous quicksand.

A guttural chuckle resonated within her mind, the snake's voice thick with smug satisfaction. "Did you think I shot at you aimlessly? Look at the ground beneath you, little girl. It's wet. I can control not just the poison, but the very moisture within the sand. And with a touch, I turn it into a binding agent."

With a hiss that vibrated through the very air, the magic circles pulsed anew. This time, however, the focus shifted from brute force to cunning.

The sand beneath Lara's feet began to shimmer, its color morphing from arid beige to a murky grey. Binding Lara.

The snake's voice dripped with gloating as Lara watched in horror.

The wet sand, was melted with poison and mixed with water making a semi solid it could control, it had solidified around her legs, forming a chain-like structure that grew tighter with every passing moment. The monstrous serpent, its victory seemingly assured, began to slither towards her, its colossal maw agape, ready to swallow her whole.

Lara remained silent, but a heavy sigh escaped her lips. "At the end of the day," she said, "a beast is still a beast... predictable."

Just as the gargantuan head and opened jaws of the serpent loomed over her, a surge of emerald energy erupted around Lara.

A monstrous wind javelin, swirling with shades of green and blue(wate+wind), materialized within the serpent's wide-open maw. The colossal creature, caught completely off guard, let out a surprised hiss.

The javelin, a vortex of condensed wind and sand, ripped through its throat like a searing blade. The colossal form convulsed, a death throe that shook the very ground. The sand beneath Lara loosened its hold instantly. The monstrous serpent was split open from head to tail, crashed to the ground with a wet thud, its scales dulling.

Finally, she was done. She then took a deep breath and spread her energy all around her. Dispersing and present poison in the air in her radius. She then churned the air forming an air ball that had trapped the poison. Since she didn't have any use for the poison currently she saved it for later, perhaps she could ise it in an AOE attack.

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