Baleful Wings (Dragon's Dogma Fanfiction)

Chapter 38: Damping

    The cool breeze that greeted the Elite troop was comforting for Arya, who lived in the colder regions of Hearthstone prior to her adventures in Gransys. In front of her was the short, red-haired Ser Thorne, trotting about with her chest puffed up and jagged blade over her shoulder, alongside Ser Larkey in an unspoken gambit for leadership. Ser Innick traveled at her side, taking notes of his surroundings, careful not to bump into any of the other rowdy members of the brigade. Nathy was distant, walking with folded arms and an aloof expression on her face. The sun shined as per expected in the mild biome of Gransys, but had little effect under shade of the thin but lush and fruitful arbor surrounding the dispatch.
"So, how do we go about luring this beast?" Questioned Larkey, studying the grassy landscape with an annoyed glint in his eyes, his attention shifting between the apple trees that dotted the area.
"How does one usually lure out a sordid combination of a snake, goat, and lion?" Raised Innick, looking up from his notepad with a finger on his chin. "After all, snakes vary in hunting methods, male lions rarely hunt, and goats are farm animals."
Thorne rolled her eyes before stretching a bit. "I 'ear Georg's men used a dead goblin to lure out their mark."
"Chimeras have a particular taste for human meat," inserted Ser Nathy, speaking in her typically cynical tone.
There was a slight shudder that coursed over the group of soldiers, looking at each other, obviously wondering if the next person was as alerted as they were. 
"Honestly," chuckled Arya, as she turned to face the soldiers behind her. "It can't be all fearsome. Even together, those animals don't amount to an earnest size. I mean, how many of you have actually seen a Chimera, anyway?" Again, a wave of silence returned from the troop, only much less ominous. "And there are quite a few of us, so there's no reason to f--"

 A crackling slash sound coursed through the air, accompanied by a splatting plop smashing against the ground.
Arya's vision was blurry and inconsistent as the Elite soldiers turned around slowly, causing her to catch sight of the horrid scene at the same time they did - an arm, joined by a collection of ligaments and bloody mesh strewn across the grass. 
"M.. Maker's sovereign grace.." Ser Deen couldn't even finish his prayer as he lay broken on the ground, before a burgundy gurgle fell from his lips, silencing all but strained coughs as the life fell from his open eyes. With a quick swipe, the head of a Lion snatched up his severed appendage, gnashing it betwixt its jagged fangs.

 Arya's eyes widened as she stumbled back in horror of the beast before her, staring at her party during its slow stride. With the head and forelegs of a mighty lion, much larger and ferocious than the normal feline predator, the Chimera's fiery eyes became surrounded by the wrinkles of its snarled expression. As the Arisen clenched her shield, the black head of a Goat showed itself on the Lion's back and stared down at her from the side of its head, also morbidly enormous. With a wicked bleat, the Goat summoned an ingle of flame and fired it upon the soldiers, standing up on its hooved hind legs.
 "I-impossible..!" Frozen in fear, another soldier was blasted to the ground by the flaming missile, tossing and turning under the smoldering flames that encased his body, screaming wildly in pain.   
"Maker's brows, a cattle animal wanting nothing more than to feast on us!" Innick dodged with tumbling roll, still writing in his notes. "What a twisted turn of fate."
"Ser Powsky!" One of the Elites turned his attention to the burning man, quickly catching the eye of the Lion, who rushed at him in full haste. The Lion's jaws expanded as it dashed at its new prey before meeting with the cutting edge of Thorne's hatchet.  
"Damn. Tough bastard." She quickly jumped to the side, leaving her blade lodged in the monster's side. 

 With a thunderous roar, the Chimera bounced back and forth between its forelegs and hindlegs, before turning back at the weaponless Thorne. 
 "T-To blazes with this..!" Seeing the creature shake off Thorne's attack, a Gransys knight in the middle of an assault immediately turned back to retreat before being snatched up by a massive Snake, sinking its fangs into the back of his calf and lifting him in the air. His screams of pain were ignored as the Chimera's tail dangled him about.
"Our turn. Hang on, ser Spano!" Exclaimed Innick, loosing a dire shot at the monster. With a chocking sound, the arrow was lodged between the Lion's eyes, only making it even angrier. Oxface pushed Arya aside and took the chance to slash at the goat's ankles, joined by another warrior that attacked its ribs. Following their momentum, Larkey dashed forth with harmful intent, skillfully avoiding a mighty swipe from the Lion's claws, and taking a jumping swath at the tail. The Snake reeled back upon feeling the bite of Larkey's steel, tossing Spano in the air and catching him at the belt. 
"Aggh..! Damn it!" Spano screamed, not daring to reach down and grab his gored ankle as he was yanked about by the Snake while the Lion thrashed in combat.

"Wait just a minute," said Arya, drawing her sword. Ser Oxface held his heavy blade at his hip, silently listening while Thorne cracked her knuckles. Nathy quietly intoned a spell behind her, sending out wisps of fire to glide around Arya's weapon, enchanting it with a glowing blaze.
"All I'm thinking about is fetching me blade from this hobknocker's 'ide," commented Thorne, before dashing back into the fray.
"Note to self, Chimeras have incredibly thick skin," said Innick, stepping back and holding his bleeding side. A vibrant green aura bloomed around him, slowly stopping the bleeding. "My thanks, cleric. Have aught to say, Ser Arya?"
"This monster is... quite strange," studied Arya, watching the fight ensue from a modest distance, taking note of how Thorne was punching and kicking the beast, not seeming to notice that it was doing paltry amounts of damage. Without another word, she sprinted forth into the battle.
Sensing that it was surrounded upon meeting eyes with the Arisen, the Chimera planted its monstrous paws into the dirt and let out a ferocious roar, emitting an astounding shockwave that blasted its attackers to the ground. The Goat uttered a protesting bleat, yanking its black hooves backward. The Lion turned around, wrestling back and forth with its hind legs.
After regaining her stance, Thorne shook the blood off her reacquired blade, "Let's see where I'll lodge it next."
Making a quick scan as she propped herself over her shield, Arya counted nine soldiers left, ten if they were able to save Spano. With a clanging of her sword against her shield, she took the lead of the Elite troops. 
"This beast goes first after the most afraid. Show no fear and slay this abomination!"