All around the Yyrejite Mechs and Ethisian soldiers were multitudes of the very beasts they came to hunt. These creatures, already documented as wild, ferocious, and extremely dangerous, had somehow managed to surprise attack the aliens. This sudden attack wasn’t something the Yyerijite scientist expected nor had she accounted for. Because of this, she was the first to panic and fire at the creatures before she was told to. Due to her sloppiness, the beast she fired at roared and alerted the others to charge...leading to a stampede. These creatures were already larger than the Mechs and with their sheer sizes, a stampede would flatten the Mechs and kill their pilots. "SOLDIERS, PUSH THEM BACK. MECH PILOTS, FALL BACK!!" Commander ordered immediately as he, Elenor, and the soldiers aimed their weapons and opened fire while the Mechs dispersed and dissolved into the thickets of trees, shrubs, and bushes. The pilots kept their weapons on standby while the soldiers took their positions. The creatures looked down on the Ethisians, their noses flaring clouds of hot, rancid breath with their mouths lowered with threads of saliva trickling to the murky watery surface. "ATTACK, NOW!!" The two High Grades catapulted their bodies from the water at break-neck speed, sending a shockwave of water splashing. As soon as they got close enough, the Upper Legendary soldiers unleashed heavy fire on the beasts while the High Grades slammed their bodies into the head of one creature. Elenor and Commander’s bodies punctured the beast’s skull which disorientated and threw it to the ground. As soon as it fell, the other creatures lunged forward at full speed, causing a counter-reaction from the Ethisian soldiers who opened fire on them. Their weapons, strong and powerful, released blasts so strong that large gaping wounds were caused immediately upon impact. The Mech Pilots took note of this and they too opened fire on the beasts and began to take them down one at a time. Very quickly, their numbers started to reduce one at a time until all beasts died eventually. Thanks to the efforts of the Mech Pilots towards the end, they were all able to kill a large number of creatures which was quite more than they expected. However... "This is enough, right?" Commander, standing on top of one beast that was still alive but too wounded to fight, asked the Yrrejite scientist who jumped down from her Mech to inspect the beasts’ poison glands. To her dismay, the beasts didn’t have fully developed poison glands. This revelation made the scientist leap back into her Mech as she shouted; "Infants!! These were all Infants." Her cry made the other Pilots immediately center themselves together. Based on their limited research of these creatures, they realized that the reason so many beasts came after them was because they were curious infants. In nature, young beasts that moved in large groups always meant that either their mother, father, or both were close by. "We’ve just killed a litter of beasts. Any second now, their parent or parents are going to appear enraged and furious at what we did. We have to get out of here before..." A large shadow cast over the Ethisians and Yrrejite Mech Pilots while the scientist stressed over what she had discovered. In the middle of her banter, a large set of jaws swooped down and bit her Mech apart with her inside. The others immediately looked up and locked eyes with the same species type they killed earlier, only this one was much larger, stronger, bulkier, and more furious. While they thought the creature was going to kill them immediately, they were mesmerized by how it lowered its head and sniffed the bodies of its murdered young. The creature’s sniffs were long, heavy, and quite strong, showing that it possessed the knowledge to process emotions such as the grief it was experiencing. "We’ve lost that scientist Yrrejite and upset a mother!!" Elenor whispered to Commander while they all remained where they were, neither daring to make any sudden movements. "That thing’s going to kill them, Commander. I don’t know if we’ll be able to save them all." "High Ruler Enor tasked us with getting more toxin from these beasts, not guard duty." Commander whispered back while gripping his weapon as tightly as he possibly could. "They knew what was waiting for them when they decided to come along." "Commander!!" Elenor, taken back by the Ethisian’s lack of empathy, glared at him with disgust while saying, "They’re following orders like we are. The least we can do is try to protect them in any way we can." "As I said, Elenor, I didn’t come to..." "High Grade Commander," Elenor snapped mildly which startled Commander momentarily. The High Grade didn’t expect his fellow High Grade to show such emotions for a species that weren’t her own and was shocked to see her behave this way. "Our people do not let our allies die when we have the power to save them. "If you refuse to assist me in keeping the rest alive, you’ll be no better than a Granian." "Fine." Commander gritted his teeth in anger, not because of Elenor but because of what she had compared him to. "We’ll do as you command." Back to the beast. Once it smelled the bodies of its slaughtered young, it lifted its head with watery eyes. The beast’s countenance changed and so did the environment. The two High Grades could feel a surge of power emitting from the creature which came as a frightening warning to them. The rest of the Ethisian soldiers and Mech soldiers felt it too and began to prepare to take matters into their own hands. ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝✶𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮✶𝓷𝓮𝓽 "Everyone," Elenor raised her hand, drawing all attention to herself. "We are going to try to protect you all. Once we draw the beast’s attention to ourselves, get yourselves to a safe distance." "This is not an issue for you to debate over or try and act chivalrous," she snapped back while she and Commander approached the beast. "Leave as quickly as you can." "That will not be possible." One soldier, who was facing the opposite direction, shuddered in fear as he locked eyes with another giant beast whose eyes started to turn bloodshot red. Before the Ethisian could even think of taking one step back, the beast opened its jaws and ripped its body apart instantly. *ROOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR*