Chapter 138: Dune Maw Battle
Flames exploded outward, making the horrible heat of the desert skyrocket for a moment. The beast screeched in great pain, its armored hide was red-hot from the damage it had sustained.
Aria saw the moment and took it. She aimed her staff at the injured monster and closed her eyes for a brief second, focusing her entire existence on gathering mana. It coalesced around her, building up in a concentrated form of destructive lunar energy.
But just as she could release [Lunar Overload], the worm suddenly froze.
Then, in an instant, it burrowed into the sandy ground. A loud rumble sounded as the Dune Maw vanished beneath the sand with great speed. Nothing but a large hole remained in its wake.
For a moment, silence fell over the battlefield. Then, a man who was already mid-attack before the monster made its move tumbled into the hole.
Kaiden’s eyes snapped toward him. The warrior’s fall was not graceful in the slightest—he crashed hard, and his body twisted at an awkward angle. The man struggled to push himself up. He took a great deal of damage from the fall itself.
Their eyes met for a split second. The man reached out toward him. His expression was a desperate plea. "Help... me..."
Kaiden took a step forward.
A blur of movement. That was all he saw before the dune maw exploded forth in a flash, and its massive maw snapped shut around the man in a single, gruesome chomp. Blood splattered across the sand—the man was gone. Only a single boot with his amputated feet still in it was left behind.
The worm’s massive body disappeared back into the dunes in mere seconds. Panic set in, making the remaining fighters scramble, looking around frantically. "Where is it?! Where is it?!"
Kaiden closed his eyes, blocking out the noise, trying to sense the vibrations beneath using his feet. But before he could even begin to focus, the sand erupted once again. It surfaced right next to Sasha.
Her eyes widened in shock. "Aah!" She stumbled back, and her fingers instinctively reached for another arrow, but there was no time.