Why is it always the worst thing you can imagine?

Bounding out of the darkness, there is a thing mostly made of eyes and whipping tendrils. Long brownish-orange body, and a maw at the front, that is constantly open and glowing with purple void.

It's been awhile since something strictly nightmare fuel. But this world is always happy to oblige with those, eh?

And no, I've never understood the tentacles thing.

I dodge away, and so do all the others. It crashes in the wall with a bang between our formation, so it clearly doesn't have too much fine control.

A new sword from Kiku boomerangs towards it, but is slapped away by one of the dozen wildly spinning tendrils, returning in a wide arc back to her grasp. Nice to see the returning effect is really reliable at least.

Kali gulps, throws caution to the wind, and charges at it, her steps suddenly lighting with flame and giving her acceleration as she waves her body strangely.

"Don't!" Aria shouts, but the warning is too late.

Kali impacts the thing in an explosion of flames, staggering it, but then six tendrils slap her all at once, and even though she partly blocked with her gauntlets, she screams, flying backwards, trailing some blood.

She collapses in a heap, and can't get up. Me and Rishya run over to her. The advance of the thing is distracted by a large stroke of lightning searing it, blowing it backwards in a creepy silence besides the surge of electricity and crack of thunder.

"Ah! Achacha!" Kali cries, thrashing on the floor. "Why such agony?!"

Cripes... for her to feel it with her endurance?! What the hell do those tendrils do?

Seeing her up close, the slashes also have spines coming out. She is bleeding from her shoulder, midriff, and left leg, from three hits.

"Wah! Such a strong poison!" Rishya cries, grimacing as Michael glows. "Take out the spines, Elijah-sama! Now!"

I crouch, grab Kali in my arms and do so, yanking the three spines out with my gloves.

"Achhh! Gaaahhh!" She screams.

"I'm so sorry..."

She thrashes on the floor, bereft of reply, her teeth locked in a grimace, and her whipping arm cracks me in the breastplate with a clang, making feel a sting of pain. Jeez...

"Leave her to me, now, Elijah-sama. Go help the others. Don't get close!" Rishya says, glowing with rippling orange lights.

Aria is seriously skirmishing the thing at maximum length possible with her spear, still barely dodging at times.

Kiku is basically constantly trying to find opportunities to fling in her new swords. One of those finally finds purchase, and slashes off one of the tendrils in a gush of yellow pus. Disgusting.

As Aria lands a glancing stab on it, one of its fangs snapping, Seria finally completes another incantation, striding forwards and doing her impression of the emperor again, both hands acting like hoses for raw power. My thunder spirit acts tremendously excited, but I don't think this is a good time to try my shotgun thunder spell.

It finally makes a strange wheezing noise as it gets blown backward, its body turning black and shrivelling slightly from the electrical current.

I light a vial now it is pushed away from the girls, and fling it with all my power as I run up to Seria's side as her attack splutters and finishes.

"Fire in the hole!" I shout. I always wanted to say that...

It staggers as its maw chomps furiously, and it starts to charge back at us, oblivious to its apparent wounds.

But the vial impacts true, right into its gob.

Krakooom!

It erupts in bulbous ripples from the inside, and then the front half explodes.

Fortunately, the yellow pus is incinerated by the white flames, but something I didn't think about happens... a few of the spines it must have had inside shoot towards us.

Pre-emptive dodge barely moves my head to the side in time for one spine to whistle past my ear.

The corpse of the thing collapses and rolls to a stop, the maw half consumed by fire, a green tongue lolling over the remains.

"Kaaaaaa!" Seria exclaims, and collapses, grabbing on to my shoulder.

Shit! I dodged it and she was behind me.

I spin and grab her tightly. Her eyes spin and water. The spine only glanced her left arm, but I guess that still gave a tiny dose of that poison that nigh crippled Kali.

Fortunately, Rish is the light speed cleric, and has already finished with Kali, so Seria's left arm also glows with light, and the scratch heals.

She is still sweating and crying furiously in my arms. She's alot squishier than Kali, of course.

"Master... are you ok?"

"Ughhh... fuck my bony ass... that was painful. In my two hundred years..." she yelps again, grabbing my butt. I don't think I've ever heard her swear like Kiku.

"...'tis but a scratch!" I exclaim in a silly voice.

I'm so sorry, I couldn't help myself.

"Stupid boy!" She glares at me, punches my shoulder in a huff, and pulls herself away.

"I'm sorry." I apologise. She snorts and rolls her eyes.

"You are truly blessed that I am so merciful." She grins scarily under her squinted eyes.

Aria and Kiku dash up to me, breathing heavily still.

"Seria!! Um... are you ok?!" Kiku exclaims.

"The boy being a fool besides, I am fine." She nods. "Thanks to Rishya, of course."

Seria bows to Rishya, who is approaching whilst supporting the limping Kali.

"I... it is what I am here for, Seria-sama." She smiles sweetly.

We all look at the corpse and breathe a sigh of relief. As far as horrible first battles go, that one was pretty bad.

But at least it's over, now.