The Systems Challenge-Chapter 409: The Hydra part 2

Kim wasn't sure what she'd be able to accomplish against the hydra, but she wasn't about to back down. Especially since it was clear that the hydra could move over the surface of the bog than she could. Which made retreat unlikely at best.

Still, she knew she had the abilities of her sword available, which he doubted the hydra was aware of that. Although, she had a feeling that she'd be best to avoid using some of them, just in case it would be a double-edged sword. Since if she created the pillar of flames, she couldn't say how much it would affect the others and it wasn't like they could fall back that quickly if they would be too close at that time.

An arrow shot out, drawing the attention of the head that had looked like it was getting to strike towards Kim. She didn't look to see who might have shot it, but she was pretty sure that it was Owen, given he was the only archer in their combined group.

The next movement that Kim saw was Bart using his staff to jump out of the bog, lifting his staff with him, before swinging his staff on the hydra's head like a club, twisting in the air to add additional force to the blow. Kim couldn't ay if he expected that to do anything, but it did at least pull the attention of four of the heads. Not that Kim was able to excape the head facing her.

Kim invoked the fire element to coat her blade with flames, even as a continuous blast of flames struck the hydra, letting Kim know Patrick had entered the fight. Though, Kim hesitate her own attack as a result, since the hydra didn't seem bothered by Patrick's attack.

Kim had ignited her blade because she remembered that the mythology about hydras was that if they cauterized the wound after severing the heads, that it would prevent the heads from regrowing. Which she would have thought would make the hydra to hesitate with flames. Especially since it was clear to her that it had lost some heads before, given the scars that grew out of the necks where some of the heads split apart.

Not that her hesitation lasted for long. She could see Patrick's flames doing at least some damage, so she stepped forward, as best as the bog would allow her to, with the sucking still pulling at her feet.

As the head that had been focusing on her struck, she couldn't do much other than use her sword to parry the hydra's teeth. She wasn't sure what else she could do, with her balance a little unsteady since she couldn't reliably move them as fast as she'd like in this terrain.

As her sword struck the hydra's teeth, a couple were cut off as the flames along her blade bit into its lips, forcing it to back away a moment before it tried using its head as a club.

Kim couldn't be sure how well it would turn out for her to take that strike, even if to strike the head, but it wasn't like she could move out of the way fast enough to avoid it.

So, if she was going to have to get hit, she figured she might as well do some damage herself to the hydra. Though, as she held her sword to slice into the head as it struck her, she felt her feet get ripped out of the bog as the force of the neck of the head slammed into her, her blade only cutting partway through before she lost her leverage to cut deeper.

A Kim flew through the air, she couldn't help but wonder if maybe she should have started the fight with the pillar of flames. It was a little late to do that now, but the though still crossed her mind.

When she landed, she felt her clothing tear as she slid along the surface of the bog before she started to sink a little. She climbed to her feet as quickly as she could and took a quick assessment of herself.

Other than a bruise to likely form where she'd been hit by the hydra's neck, she seemed to be mostly unharmed, ad her clothing had torn, but not to the point that it was unusable or that it would interfere with her fighting. Which she couldn't help but be a little thankful for.

So, Kim slowly started to walk back towards the hydra. Part of her wondered if maybe the hydra was just playing with them, like a cat with a mouse, but she wasn't sure. Especially since it was clearly outnumbered, aside from the number of its heads. Although, she did have to take into account each of their systems. Each which gave each of them more of an advantage over the hydra.

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However, despite that, it felt like they were more at a stalemate with the hydra. Neither side really gaining an advantage. Part of it was the terrain, Kim was sure, but part of it was that the hydra was just relentless. It didn't seem to care about the damage it took, but rather was more interested in trying to eliminate those it likely considered 'prey.'

Kim could also see that she wasn't the only one who'd gotten thrown. Elwin and Jonas were also walking towards the hydra, though Jonas hardly seemed to have had any other effects as she'd had when she'd been thrown. She couldn't say if Elwin was more like her or Jonas, since he was on the other side of the hydra from her.

If they could get some dry ground, Kim was certain that they'd be able to charge the hydra and close the distance closely. That the hydra was able to maintain this stalemate solely because of the terrain.

When Kim reached the limit of the hydra's attack range, she stopped. She could only see that they'd be able to defeat the hydra from sheer luck or because they were able to find a way to solidify the ground to give them firmer footing.

However, she knew that Elmo didn't know any spell that would create dry land, and even his 'Open Earth' spell wouldn't drain the water from the bog that quickly. That it would just drain it over time, time that they didn't have at the moment.

However, she wasn't sure if Patricia could freeze the ground. If she could, then they might be able to work out getting some firm footing. Although, aside from the vegetation that grew on top of the bog, it would make the ground a little slippery, but Kim was pretty sure that it would allow them to still have a better advantage against the hydra than they did now.

The only real problem with it was controlling either where the ground froze, how fast it froze, or both. Though, Kim wasn't sure how best to relay that thought to Patricia. As Patricia was closer to Elwin than Kim herself.

However, she doubted that the hydra would react to anything they said, aside from what most predators do when they hear a sound near them. Which the hydra was already doing.

"Patricia!" Kim called out, hoping that Patricia would be able to do this in the first place. "We need you to freeze the ground so we can have better footing!"

Kim didn't slow her approach to the hydra, since she was pretty sure that if Patricia did freeze the ground, she'd be one of the last ones to benefit from that aspect, considering how far away she was from Kim.

"Are you trying to get us trapped!?" Elwin cried out, sounding annoyed as he clashed with two hydra heads using his sword, while blocking the strike of another with his shield.

"If she does it when we're not there it won't be a problem, then we can approach the hydra faster. Then we can actually do something more to it than what we're able to do now," Kim replied, half wondering if maybe her voice might decide to give out during the fight if she had to keep yelling like this as she was doing her best to not lose her patience with Elwin. After all he was stupid simply because he was male.

"I'll try it the next time he gets knocked back," Patricia called back as she sent another spear of ice to strike the hydra's chest, where the heads came together.

Kim didn't say anything more. If the others between them didn't know what they had talked about from here on, it'd be their own fault for not paying attention. As it wasn't like they were trying to hide their conversation, especially given the distance between them.

Kim managed to dodge the hydra's next 'club' attack with its ead, but she saw Elwin get knocked a distance away as well as Bart. Kim wasn't sure if it had a pattern to attack with, but she kept trying to find an opening to attack the hydra and do some real damage.

Elwin cutting off the head of one of the heads of the hydra was the first Kim sign to Kim that Patricia had managed to freeze the ground a little. Patrick almost immediately followed up with another blast of flames.

Kim started to smile to herself, confident that they were about to turn the tip the scales in their favor, but then the hydra turned one of its heads to bit the cauterized wound. Kim was shocked as another head started to emerge from the neck when the head pulled away.