Animal Control

After a long time of not hearing from Margaret the Herbalist, Leona decided to pay a visit to Beanstalk Village. Wearing her olive green t-shirt and khaki cargo pants with boots and backpack of supplies on her back, Leona was also wearing her Argent Gloves and carrying her ram dao. She had just set foot in the village limits when she heard screaming. Margaret the Herbalist ran up to her. She looked very upset.

"Leona! You got here just in time! It's terrible!" Margaret exclaimed. She then began speaking so rapidly that none of her words made sense. Leona gently put a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry, dear. Something's wrong with the village's animals. They're attacking anyone they can reach! Most of the people are inside, but some are stuck outside! You've got to help them!" Margaret exclaimed. Leona was alarmed. Domesticated animals rarely attacked people without provocation. What could be causing it? She did not get an answer because the pair heard screaming from deeper within the village. Margaret turned to her.

"Leona, you have to do something about those animals! Go! There's no time to waste!" Margaret commanded.

"I'm on the way!" Leona shouted before racing towards the village.

-Inside the town square-

"SOMEONE HELP ME!" A young woman wearing a white wedding dress screamed. She and a man in a tuxedo were clinging to the top of a lamppost while three wolves tried to climb the pole. Other people were running inside any building that would open their doors. It was a mess. Leona decided to start with the married couple clinging to the pole.

"OVER HERE!" Leona shouted, throwing a Wind Ball at one of the wolves, soliciting a pained yelp from it. Its fellows immediately forgot about the couple, who slid down from the poles and took shelter inside a tavern that had opened its doors to them. Now she had three wolves after her. Leona was ready. She raised a hand and waited until it glowed silver, then pushed it forward and used her Wind Blast spell.

The three wolves went flying and struck a brick wall beside a bakery, impacting and leaving bloodstains on the wall. Leona turned to walk away when she noticed something strange. The dead wolves all had purple growths on their bodies. One of them had glowing mushrooms of some sort growing from its back. That was definitely not natural.

Leona hardly had time to ponder the mystery because she heard more screaming coming from the town square. She raced into an open building and found an older man in a dress suit standing on a counter, attempting to fend off a pair of wolves with a broom. He had a frightened look on his face and his face and forehead were sweating profusely. It looked like he was nearing the end of his rope.

She hit one of them with a Wind Ball to divert their attention and lure them outside. The wolves obligingly bounded outside and growled at her. She used her ram dao to swing and hit one in mid-air, splitting its head in one swing. Its friend leaped for her and latched onto her left Argent Glove, weighing her down as two more wolves bounded in from nowhere.

Leona dropped her ram dao and drew her knife. With some difficulty she lifted the wolf into the air and stabbed it in the side until it let go. While she was busy with it, its friends latched onto her pants legs with their jaws, pinning her in place. They were constantly moving around, clawing her legs as they tried to bring her down. Leona's pants were getting shredded, but they were protecting her legs from the worst of the canine assault for the moment.

Leona struck one with a Wind Ball, making it let go and roll backwards. Its partner growled and let go, then ran away. What was it up to? She soon found out. Leona ducked and dodged one attempt to pounce on her.

The first wolf then raced off and the second made an attempt. Leona kicked it in the face, making it yelp and roll backwards. It growled in defiance as the first wolf looped back around and jumped at her. Leona raised an arm to block it and its jaws caught her left forearm, dragging down her gloved hand again as it latched on. The second wolf clamped down on her right leg, making her scream as its teeth punched through the khaki fabric with ease.

Leona exerted the effort needed to raise the wolf on her arm to stabbing level, then stabbed it until it died. The other animal let go and raced back as Leona dropped to a knee. She was in pain as the wolf slammed into her, knocking the knife out of her hand and knocking her onto her back. Its jaws snapped at her as Leona attempted to protect herself.

Seizing its head in her hands, Leona struggled to keep it from tearing her throat out. More than once it lunged for her throat. More than once only an adrenaline-fueled push kept the rabid canine from succeeding. Leona had to end this. Using her strength, she suddenly made a sharp twist to the left.

The wolf yelped as Leona broke its neck. Its head hung limply as Leona shoved the corpse off of her. She had killed seven wolves in a short period of time. People were emerging from their homes and buildings. Was it over? Judging from the loud roar of a bear and a dozen screaming townsfolk running past her, the village was not yet safe.

Leona picked up her knife and ram dao and got ready to face the bear. The brown-furred creature slowly trundled in like it was king of the village. In a manner of speaking, it was king of the village. Except for Leona, the streets were practically deserted. She was about to defy all common sense and fight a bear.

[Word Count: 1,000] [Total Word Count: 1,000/500]

With a mantle of the purple algae growing on its back and over an eye and its back dotted with mushrooms, the bear was an imposing sight. Judging from the crimson stains on its muzzle and front paws, it had already claimed a victim. She had to stop it before anyone else died. Hefting her ram dao into a ready position, Leona prepared for battle as it stood up on its hind legs and roared at her.

It charged at her with surprising speed. Leona barely stepped aside in time. It stopped, turned around and made another pass. She threw a Fast Ball and hit it in the face. It roared and came after her again.

It made a swipe with its paw that struck her left leg. It was a miracle that the limb was not broken. Leona retaliated with a Smashing Crescent spell that hit it in the left shoulder. She followed up with a Crescent Wave that knocked it backward as it stood on its hind legs. It was preparing another charge attack when Leona stabbed her ram dao through its chest and through its body.

It roared, stood up again, and knocked Leona down with a paw swipe to the left shoulder. Her shirt was torn to ribbons by the blow and her shoulder was badly hurt. She had to end this fast. Raising her hand, she waited until it was glowing silver before pushing outward. The bear was hit with a Wind Blast that sent it slamming into the brick wall of a home. The occupants looked through their window in shock as Leona limped towards the bear.

To her horror, the bear stood on all fours and roared in defiance. Leona simply hit it with a Mach Straight to the face. It slammed into the wall again, this time not to recover. The blonde wrenched the sword free from its body and hacked at the bear's neck until it was decapitated. It was over.

"You did it, Leona!" Margaret exclaimed, flanked by town guardsmen. Citizens began opening the doors of their homes. Assisted by the town guard, some injured people began to make the trek to get medical attention. Leona would be joining them shortly. Or, she would have if Margaret did not produce a potion that she handed to Leona.

"Here, take this potion. It'll close your wounds right up!" She assured the blonde. Leona chugged it and watched as her leg wound and shoulder wound closed up almost immediately. She was hurting, but she would not bleed to death. Leona slathered the areas with antibiotic ointment to kill any leftover bacteria from the teeth and claws of the animals.

"Those weeds are getting out of control. I'm sure they were the cause of this!" Margaret theorized.

"I think so too. All the animals were coated in purple stuff that looked like the plants." Leona agreed. Margaret thought for a moment, then turned to the blonde. She had a finger raised like she had just hatched a plan.

"I need to contact a friend of mine. He'll be able to help us. You might want to bring some friends of yours for the next part. It's only going to get more dangerous from here." Margaret advised Leona. The former then produced a small bag of Jewels. She handed it to Leona.

"I'm sorry about your clothes, dear. Go and buy you some new ones. You've saved our village yet again!" Margaret said to her before abruptly leaving, presumably to contact her friend. Leona too had to go. She really needed to get some new clothes and visit the guild hot springs.
Turning around to see the frightened citizens slowly reclaiming their streets, Leona set out for Silver Wolf Guild Hall. Her work here was done for today.

[Word Count: 634] [Total Word Count: 1,634/500]