53 The battle

Leo watched as the water in the mud froze, halting any movements from he enemy troops. He had the gardeners dig a pit roughly four feet deep, and filled it with water. He then had them create a fragile shell of dirt over the pit to hide it, and had Lucy help regrow the grass so that it didn't seem out of the ordinary at all. As a result, at least fifty of their troops were halted by the ice, but there were still at least twice their numbers left to fight.

"Archers, loose!" The hunters released their arrows, as the Warriors dispatched the troops frozen in the ice. The arrows flew over the ice, to the troops still standing with their captain. Most were blocked, but a few managed to find their targets. Seeing that arrows won't be as affective, Leo walked up to Natalie,

"You're in charge here, I'm going to disturb their ranks so that more arrows might get through their defense. Try not to hit me." Natalie acknowledged his orders, but gave him a small smile at his joke, her arrows will never hit something that she doesn't want to hit. Leo then turned to Iris, and gripping her arm; he looked into her eyes and said,

"Together, with me!" Iris smiled at the "order", and was happy that she got to walk side by side with him into battle. The two walked to the edge of the cliff, and stepped off. By the time Leo hit the ground, his clothes had been shredded, and there was a seven foot tall monster standing there instead. Iris didn't change, and only pulled out her daggers as she followed her husband to the slaughter.

Iris had trained with her new weapons from the moment they became hers, and she was a killer with them. No matter where she went on the battle field, there was a trail of blood behind. As a werewolf, her base capabilities were far exceeding the ordinary person; and as someone who had spent their life training in chi, no ordinary soldier could ever hope to much her. She turned slaughter into dance, as she expertly aimed her weapons for the chinks in the armor, and turned to the next "partner" once she was finished with her current one. As someone who was raised in the wilds, she learned quickly that more often than not, it was kill or be killed. The men in front of her were just prey in the beasts eyes.

Leo inspired terror on the battlefield no mater where he went. None had ever seen whatever this new type of monster was, and with each swipe of its claws, death followed. Leo would normally hesitate to kill, but after drawing his wife's blood and attempting to shame her, the beast demanded blood. Those who fled from him, left behind limbs; those who confronted him, joined the pile of corpses. His dark red fur became an even darker shade as he made his way through the field of corpses.

The Warriors had focused on disposing of the ones trapped in ice. They intended to hold back the remaining troops, but after seeing the husband and wife duo cutting their way through with ease, they decided to ensure there was no surprise attacks. The hunters were not idle either, as terror spread through the ranks, the men started fleeing. Natalie set an example, as each deserter found an arrow sprouting from their back.

As more and more started fleeing, Leo threw back his head and let out a deep howl that echoed through the the forest. To the soldiers horror, there was several dozen to over a hundred howls answering back, and they all demanded blood. High wolves rushed towards them through the brush, and slaughtered the cowards. Driven by the fury of Luna and Leo, they felt rage at the deaths of their brethren. The men didn't even fight back as the wolves gorged themselves on their flesh.

Soon, there was only Marshal and his last few remaining men. Leo slowly shrank, as he resumed his human form and slowly walked towards the captain. He had not come out completely unscathed, as there were several deep cuts running along Leo's body to match the stab wounds he had suffered. Marshal watched as this being he thought was exhausted and wounded, began to heal right in front of him. Each cut closed in a matter of seconds, the stabs took close to a minute. Soon he was whole once more, and he continued slowly walking towards the captain, while his wife joined at his side.

Iris was only slightly cut as she was more nimble than her husband, and had come out of the conflict with fewer injuries. These too, had healed almost instantly under the captains close gaze. It wasn't until this point, that the realization hit that he made enemies of those he shouldn't have, and he noticed something else. The monster that slaughtered the majority of his men, bore the brand of a champion on his right arm. As they walked ever closer, the last few remaining men decided to attempt to bring this thing with them to the afterlife.

"DIE YOU MONSTER!!" They shouted as they ran forward in twos and threes, only to be cut down by the girls daggers, or have their throats ripped out by the boys hands. Finally, they stopped before Marshal.

"If you're going to kill me, just get it over with." He said with resignation. Leo simply turned to his wife, and asked her,

"Is he the one that insisted you be brought to him alive?" His quiet words sparked that last bit of fear in Marshal's heart. He had accepted his death, and that he was simply used by Artemis for some type of growth for her real champion. But at Leo's words, he realized with horror that he might not die right away. As the fear built, he saw the mans wife nod her head, and then his vision went dark as he felt pain on his jaw.