“I mean, after what happened, you needed to train more,” Sherlyn replied. She watched Ryke as he hammered out push-ups, her eyes tracing his back, watching the muscles stretch and contract with every rep.

  “How many have you done?” she asked.

  “Mmmm, five hundred,” Ryke grunted.

  “No, I don’t believe you,” Sherlyn said, a playful smile on her face.

  “I stopped counting when I reached a hundred,” Ryke confessed.

  “Yeah, I figured. I should get to cooking. Tell me when you’re ready to go,” Sherlyn said, walking back toward the house.

  ' I’ve got to improve. Faster, stronger, ' Ryke thought.

  "You are the tragic paradox, in the good way, if possible"Ryke remembered Leon's words , after the ass-whooping he’d received from Leon for being overconfident. After a few more push-ups, his left hand finally gave out. Can’t even do something for a long time without my body reacting.

  Ryke stood up, his muscles defined from his back to his abs. He shut his eyes and began walking blindly around the area, sensing the trees to avoid them. Grass, he thought, feeling the texture shift beneath his feet. He started bouncing like a pro boxer, moving from right to left, cycling around as he moved. His balance grew shakier by the minute until he finally fell.

  “Not bad, though my mind...” Ryke muttered, feeling dizzy.

  He stood up. His head wasn't clear, but the message from his within was clear , 'dodge, dodge, dodge'. He felt a sensation on his right side and quickly shifted his stance. He didn’t even have to think about "Hollow," but as he swung his hand and his body followed the motion, the blade was there, cutting the incoming object in half.

  A wooden spear with a metal triangle head, Ryke realized, staring at the pieces. He looked around, trying to figure out what could throw a 180cm spear. 'Almost my height'. His body remained restless, ready to react. Through the thick trees, he spotted a flash of a green leg in the distance.

  'An Orga, here?' Ryke thought. 'If I go back, it might follow me. Sherlyn...' he thought.

  He began walking toward the creature.

  As he drew close, the Orga emerged. It stood nine feet tall, a massive bulk of muscle and fat. Its mouth was filled with three-inch teeth, two up and one down , and it stood barefoot, wielding a huge sword nearly eight feet long—a heavy slab of dark steel, brutally serrated.

  ' This is unfair, damn,' Ryke thought, his grip on Hollow tightening.

  It was a stalemate for several minutes as Ryke tried to calculate the outcomes. ' Wait, I... ' Suddenly, multiple "duck" shouts echoed in his head. He dropped low, his instincts saving him once again. 'That was a... a swing.' He looked at the trees behind him; they had been sliced clean in half.

  'I don't even have a shirt on,' Ryke realized, staring at the monster. He saw a movement—subtle, but there. Trees. 'Right... right!' Hollow enlarged to eight feet. Ryke swung instantly. The swords clashed, and Ryke’s body was sent swirling to the left, the force slamming him into a tree.

  'Move, move, move!' came the command. His body felt exhausted and there was the taste of blood in his mouth, but he moved. The poor tree he had been leaning against was destroyed seconds later. The Orga turned, sniffed the air, and pivoted. Despite the cover of the trees and grass, it saw him.

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  'Its movement is limited. As long as no more trees get cleared, I can pin it,' Ryke thought.

  The Orga gripped its sword, blinked, and suddenly saw nothing but thin air. The movement of the air changed, and it caught the scent of a human behind it. It spun around, only to have Hollow pierce it straight in the eye. Fluid sprayed everywhere.

  “He’s sure taking his time today,” Sherlyn said on the other side of the house, busy cooking. “Skreevil meat sure is nice.” Suddenly, she heard a loud crash. 'Wait, Ryke!' She dropped what she was doing and ran toward where she had left him.

  She followed the sound of falling trees and heavy grunts. When she got close, her legs nearly gave out from the sight, but she managed to stay upright behind a tree. Her gaze fell on Ryke, who was swirling through the air. There were bruises on his back—no, they were cuts. She squinted to see the extent of his injuries on his whole body.

  The Orga was about to launch another attack when something caught its attention. It sniffed the air, the scent of something drawing it. It took Ryke a few seconds to spot Sherlyn hiding. The distance between Ryke and the Orga was nearly equal, and now Sherlyn had the attention of both.

  Sherlyn’s brain was a second slow to the movement. To her, there was a desperate-looking Ryke, then a sound, then—'Wait'.

  To the Orga, it swung, felt a clash, and saw something swirling through the sky toward the human with the beautiful scent.

  To Ryke, he didn’t know what was happening, except that he was coughing up heavy loads of blood, Sherlyn near him and again leaning on a tree

  “Are you...?”

  “Run! I... I can’t...” Ryke started, trying to find feeling in his back. “I can't fight with you around!”

  “I’m not leaving you here. I’d rather die.”

  “Then keep moving! Just move, get behind five trees!” Ryke replied.

  “Give me a minute, I’ll be back,” Sherlyn said, turning to run back to the house.

  'For some reason, it feels like a break,' Ryke thought, pulling himself together. It was a stalemate once again. This time, Ryke used the trees for cover instead of approaching directly. Huh, the training. He pulled up behind the Orga, Hollow now four feet long.

  He swung, but the monster showed freakish agility, turning swiftly and sending Ryke flying into the closest trees. A single tree was barely enough to stop his momentum.

  Sherlyn reappeared holding small glass bottles. “You fine?!” she shouted, once again drawing the Orga's attention.

  The monster focused on Sherlyn. Ryke used the distraction to jump it from behind, but he was unsuccessful again as the force of the Orga's swing threw him away.

  We’ve got you, Ryke thought, twisting through the air with a grin and landing with flair. He was riding a final wave of adrenaline.

  Sherlyn immediately hurled a bottle. It shattered against the Orga's head. She threw two more, both landing hits, before she ducked behind the trees. Ryke jumped the Orga again, stabbing it in the back this time. The creature spun and kicked him in the chest while he was mid-air.

  'It’s a miscalculation. He was overconfident,' Sherlyn thought, watching Ryke get sent flying with such force that he flipped over the ground twice before stabbing Hollow into the dirt to stop himself.

  The Orga was clearly in pain. If it wasn't, Sherlyn would have been in serious trouble for standing still, but she moved just in time. She threw two more bottles from its blind side—the side with the punctured eyeball.

  As soon as the bottles struck, Ryke appeared again. He delivered a massive horizontal cut, followed by a wild shout. Sherlyn kept up the pressure, and as Ryke launched another ambush, the Orga turned to meet him. Sherlyn threw her remaining bottles, creating an opening for Ryke to slice the hand holding the giant sword clean off.

  As the beast lunged to grab him, Ryke danced away, allowing Sherlyn to work her magic with the bottles. Finally, Ryke moved in, stabbing it through the heart before slicing the head off—just for precaution.

  “You caught on real quick,” Sherlyn said, approaching the headless Orga and the green blood soaking the ground.

  “What, think I can’t... know a perfume bottle when I see one?” Ryke said, clutching his abdomen.

  “I need to get you back as soon as possible,” Sherlyn said, stepping in to support him.

  “We don’t have much time,” Ryke said, forcing himself to walk.

  Luckily, the house wasn't far. Sherlyn helped the limping Ryke inside. There was no comfortable sitting room, so she led him straight to the bed.

  “What’s the problem, besides the cuts everywhere?” Sherlyn asked, easing him down.