In the darkness of night, under the moonlight whose rays couldn't reach the swamp because of the fog that enveloped the area and obscured the viewer's eyes,
N and Uzi walked through the muddy swamp. With each step, the fog thickened, but what bothered Uzi most was the mud they were walking on, which seemed to deepen with every step.
"Why does the key have to be here?" Uzi said irritably. "Stupid key with a stupid book."
While Uzi was speaking, N walked close to her so they wouldn't lose sight of each other. His mind was still preoccupied with the terrifying tree they had seen. After a while, N said, "Uzi, listen... I said I wouldn't ask you why we came here... but..." N didn't know what to say; he was afraid of upsetting her by asking.
Uzi stopped walking and turned to him. "What? Say what you want... Go on, I knew you'd do it sooner or later."
N was a little flustered by what he heard and said, "Do what..."
Uzi interrupted him, saying, "You don't want to help me, or you think I'm crazy or a nuisance. Go on, I won't stop you from staying with me." She turned her back on N and started walking away from him, saying, "I can manage without you. I don't need you or..."
"Hey, hold on," N said. He ran up to her and continued, "But I didn't say that. I didn't even think of it. I want to help you and stand by you until the end, believe me."
Uzi was surprised by his words. No one had ever said anything like that to her before. Uzi blushed and said, "So... what do you want?"
N said, "I just want to know what kind of difficulties and threats we'll face here, that's all."
Uzi said, "I told you before, a witch's ghost and a dog or something."
N rubbed his head and said, puzzled, "Yes, you did say that, but isn't there anything else? Because that tree still worries me."
Uzi said, "Are you still thinking about it? I told you to ignore it..."
N interrupted her, saying, "But Uzi, how can you ignore a tree made from human remains? I mean, it doesn't make any sense at all."
Uzi said irritably, "So what? Are you scared now?" She pointed at him and continued, "You're a vampire, you idiot."
N replied, surprised, "So...?"
Uzi shouted, "So you should be used to that kind of thing!"
N said, "That kind of thing?" "Uzi, there's no such thing as 'those things' you're talking about."
Uzi sighed and put a hand to her forehead, trying to think of something to say to N. She didn't want to tell him about the book or what had happened to her the previous night. Despite his kindness, she still didn't trust him. Uzi walked past N, moving a little away, and said, "I'm just wasting my time with you." She paused, then continued, "You know, no wonder your coworkers think you're a fool and useless. You're..."
Before Uzi could finish, N lunged forward, shoving her aside and shouting, "Watch out!"
Uzi fell to the ground from the force of the shove. After a few seconds, she tried to get up and said, "What the hell do you think...?" She stopped when she saw that N's face was covered in a large gash. At first glance, she could tell it was claw marks. "N!" she said anxiously, approaching him. "Are you...?"
"Don't worry about me, I'm fine. How about you? Are you hurt?"
"Never mind me," Uzi said. "Look at you. What happened?"
"Something jumped out of the fog and tried to attack you," N said.
"Something?" Uzi asked. After N's face hardened again, she said, "The dog!!" "
"
While she was thinking, N shouted, "Behind you!" He transformed one hand into a sword to block the attack and with the other pulled Uzi to his side so he could protect her.
N blocked the attack with his sword, and a spark flew through the air from the force of the blow. Then, N grabbed Uzi and pulled her close, saying, "Don't go away. This isn't over yet."
The monster began to increase the frequency of its attacks. It would strike N, then quickly retreat into the fog to use it as camouflage, only to quickly change position and attack again. The monster repeated this process over and over. N, meanwhile, was blocking the monster's attacks, and every time his sword met the monster's fangs, a spark flew through the air from the force of the impact.
Throughout this time, N was blocking the attacks, but he noticed that the frequency and intensity of the attacks were increasing. The monster had begun to focus on Uzi, N asked himself this question: "Why? He used to direct his attacks at me, but over time, his pattern changed. He would attack Uzi, then hide, and then, after a short while, attack me. However, he didn't always follow this pattern" .
It was then that N realized this was the monster's plan; he employed two fighting methods.
The first method was:
He would attack me---> then hide in the fog---> remain hidden for a short time---> then attack me again targeting my heart.
After a while, he would switch to the second method:
He would attack Uzi---> then hide in the fog for a short time (shorter than the first method)---> then attack me---> targeting my heart---> and then revert to the first method.
The problem was that he didn't adhere to a specific number of attacks. He might switch to the second method after five or more strikes, or he might land two strikes with the first method and then switch to the second.
N realized that this monster wasn't just a mindless animal; this fighting method proved... He has experience fighting, especially with vampires, so how could he know my weakness is my heart?
N thought to himself, "Think...come on...I can't stay like this much longer...what can I do? I used up most of my energy getting here and locating the tree, so I can't use my wings to fly far because this monster will chase us, and if we find it, I won't have enough energy to fight it...wings...that's right!!!"
As the monster attacked Uzi, N extended one of his wings to deflect the attack. The monster's claws pierced N's wing, but this slowed the monster down slightly, allowing N to grab the claw that had pierced his wing and hurl it forcefully into a nearby lake.
N quickly checked on Uzi and asked, "Are you alright? Are you hurt?"
Uzi replied, "I'm fine. What happened to that dog (monster)?"
N said, "I threw it into that lake," then transformed his other hand into a sword and continued, "And I'll finish it off there. You should go and hide so it doesn't target you."
Uzi said, "Hide? No, I'll help you..."
Before Uzi could finish speaking, N spread his wings and flew towards the dog (the monster) to attack it. As N attempted to strike the dog, the dog delivered a powerful blow that sent N flying a short distance away, severing his arm and jaw.
N fell into the shallow waters of the lake, astonished by the force of the blow, which was not as powerful as the previous ones. He tried to get to his feet and quickly recover, all the while watching the dog, which also stood up, leaving both N and Uzi in shock.
What they encountered wasn't a dog, or even a dog-like monster, or at least one the size of one. It was terrifying. Its body was long, even taller than N's, and it was covered in hair, scars, and old bloodstains. Its arms and legs were also long, ending in sharp claws. Its face resembled a Doberman police dog, but it wore a chilling smile.
"Uzi," N said, transforming his paws into claws and retracting his wings. "I don't think that's a dog."
N and the monster stood facing each other, their eyes locked in intense stare. Suddenly, they both charged at each other simultaneously. The moment they drew closer, their claws interlocked, freezing them in place. They began shoving each other, the force of the impact creating ripples on the water's surface.
Uzi watched the scene, still trembling at the monster's appearance. She had never seen anything so hideous. "What kind of thing is this?" she wondered. "Is it a werewolf? That's impossible. The moonlight barely reaches here. What is it then?"
Uzi tried to draw her weapon to help N, but then she remembered what had happened last time when she used it against him and it malfunctioned. "Damn it," she said. "I only have one bullet left. If I use it now, I might miss, or worse, I might hit N."
N knew he couldn't keep up with the monster's muscular strength because the monster started pushing him back. So, he spread his wings again, flew a short distance above the monster's head, and delivered a kick to its face, causing the monster to release N's claws. Once free, he landed a blow to the monster's chest and then moved away slightly.
As N moved away from the monster, he noticed that his attack hadn't caused any damage. This led N to conclude that he had another problem: the monster's strong immunity, which outweighed his own strength and speed. When he thought of its speed, he remembered what had just happened and said to himself, "Its speed?! Why hasn't it used its incredible speed yet? Even if its attacks were as powerful as last time, it could have finished me and Uzi off in no time. Why hasn't it?"
As he pondered, the monster lunged at him, forcing him to stop thinking and prepare for its next attack. N stood frozen, waiting for the next assault, which resembled the previous one. He dodged, attempting to strike the monster's foot with his claws, but the monster noticed and slammed its knee into N's face. Then, the monster grabbed N's leg, lifted him high, and hurled him to the ground with such force that water splashed out. The monster repeated this action several times before finally hurling N farther toward a nearby tree, which crumbled from the impact.
The monster turned its gaze to Uzi, who stood terrified by what had just transpired. The vampire she had brought with her had been defeated by this monster.
Uzi's body trembled violently with fear, so much so that she couldn't draw her weapon and move toward the monster. Moreover, the monster was advancing toward her, its footsteps in the mud making a sound that only intensified Uzi's terror.
The monster stood before Uzi, who was breathing heavily, tears welling in her violet eyes. The monster raised its hand to deliver the final blow to Uzi, who remained rooted to the spot, the sound of her breathing and the pounding of her heart almost piercing her eardrums.
Before the monster could strike, N lunged at it, pushing it away from Uzi. He began punching the monster in the head, shouting, "Move! Come on, Uzi, move and run now!"
Uzi heard N's voice, which gave her some relief. Without hesitation, she fled.
The monster tried to grab N, but N moved away, luring the monster further away from Uzi. After their previous encounter, N knew his punches wouldn't affect the creature, but he could distract it, giving Uzi time to escape, or at least finding a way to defeat it.