"Get inside, now!" a voice shrieked, raw with terror.
"What's going on? Why are they screaming?" Hazel muttered, his hand instinctively tightening on his scythe. The urgency in the voice sent a jolt of adrenaline through him. Monster attack.
"Blossom, quick! Let's help them," Hazel yelled, sprinting towards the alleyway where the cries originated.
Blossom surged forward, her movements a blur of black and pink. They rounded the corner and the scene that unfolded was eerily familiar – a monstrous white wolf, identical to the one they'd just fought. But this time, a small group of people huddled behind a shimmering, translucent barrier, their faces etched with fear as the wolf snarled and clawed uselessly at the invisible wall.
"Let's take it down!" Hazel shouted to Blossom. "Yes, Master," she replied instantly. Hazel hurled his scythe, aiming for the wolf's legs, remembering their previous strategy. But this wolf stood its ground, a ripple of unseen energy deflecting the blow as if it had struck solid steel.
Hazel recalled the earlier fight. Level 25. He glanced at the number hovering above this wolf's head. Level 30. A cold knot of dread tightened in his stomach. This was significantly stronger.
"Blossom, together!" Hazel commanded. They launched a simultaneous assault, their weapons striking the invisible barrier around the wolf. But their combined force barely made the creature flinch. It was like hitting an unyielding wall. Then, with terrifying speed, the wolf retaliated, lunging at Hazel. He reacted too late, unable to block or dodge the lightning-fast attack.
A massive paw slammed into Hazel's chest, the force knocking the air from his lungs. He was thrown back, the wolf's weight pinning him to the ground. The pressure intensified, a crushing weight stealing his breath. Blossom attacked relentlessly, her blade a whirlwind of motion against the wolf's unseen defense, but she couldn't penetrate it. Hazel felt his ribs protesting, a searing pain blossoming in his chest. Blood gurgled in his throat. Is this it? Am I really going to die? His vision swam, memories flashing – Ivy's smile, the sterile white of the hospital room, the cold dread of his failing heart. Consciousness began to slip away.
[HP critically low. Sustained damage will result in player death.] The stark notification flashed in his fading vision.
Blossom saw the warning, saw Hazel's lifeblood staining the ground. A raw, guttural sound escaped her lips, a sound that was not the emotionless tone he had become accustomed to. A visible aura began to emanate from her, a swirling vortex of black and pink energy that crackled with barely contained fury. The air around her distorted, the ground trembling. With a speed Hazel couldn't comprehend, she launched herself at the wolf. One single strike. The wolf, barrier and all, was instantly, utterly obliterated, reduced to nothing more than dissipating particles of light.
Silence descended, broken only by Blossom's ragged breaths. Hazel lay still, unmoving, unconscious. Blossom rushed to his side, kneeling beside his broken body. A sob tore from her throat, a sound of pure anguish. Fragmented images flickered through her mind – a gentle hand holding hers, a soft voice calling her name, a shared laugh in a sunlit room. "Ha...ze...ll..." she choked out, her voice thick with a grief that seemed too profound for her current state.
A small boy, who had been huddled behind the barrier, his eyes wide with terror just moments before, now ran to them. He knelt beside Hazel, his small hands hovering over his chest. A soft green light began to emanate from his palms, bathing Hazel's still form in an ethereal glow. Slowly, miraculously, the bleeding stopped.
Hazel found himself adrift in a familiar black void, but this time, a presence was there. "Hey, boy!" a voice echoed, seemingly from everywhere and nowhere. "Who's there?" Hazel mumbled. "Not time for that yet," the voice chuckled, a hint of anticipation in its tone. "We'll meet again soon. I look forward to it."