Beneath the Surface (Adventure, slight Gore)

"Well, I kinda hope something happens, this is incredibly boring." Ruby moans.

"Well, if you want to jump in there, be my guest." Ician motions towards the forest. "We need a lure anyway."

She grins voraciously and leaps in the forest, yelling to draw attention at the top of her lungs.

((Heads up, the forest is... quite a distance away from the encampment. Within sight, but not within immediate reach.))

[Then she's blinding towards the forest, still yelling]

"Ugh." Ician rolls his eyes and follows her in a brisk trot. "That wasn't an invitation, Ruby!"

Ruby giggles and keeps running towards the forest, with Divine following them both as she listened.

"I mean it!" Ician adds as the forest grows ever larger in his field of vision. "I don't know what could be in there! It could be anything!"

"All the better!" She shouts, closing on the forest quickly. Divine picks up the pace of her trot as she follows them.

"Oh, for Celestia's sake." Ician mutters. He tightens his magical grip around the hilts of all four of his swords and breaks out into a full gallop.

Ruby reaches the forest and leaps into, giggling happily. "Hurry up slow-pokes~"

"Ruby." Ician breathes. "Out of there. Now! There's no telling what could be out to get you that's lurking in the darkness right now!"

"Oh, you worry too much~" she said, standing in the forest happily.

Ician's eyes narrow. "I don't think I'm worrying quite enou-"

A loud, booming roar echoes from the forest. The thundering sound of heavy, approaching footsteps begins.

"Out." Ician states coldly. "Now."

Ruby blinks in surprise. "Ummm... Okay..." She turned and began to back out rather quickly.

Just before Ruby manages to leave, a twig snaps. In a flash, a huge paw reaches out and snatches Ruby further into the forest.

Ician advances wordlessly and unsheathes all four of his swords.

Before he could even take a step, Divine had vanished from sight, a broken line of bushes in the forest the sign of her trail as she rips her way to Ruby.

Ician charges in behind her, his swords slashing mechanically before him to clear a path through the brush.

Divine's ears twitch as she tracks Ruby's assailant easily, her sword flashing as she began to easily catch up with them.

Ician squints into the darkness, trying to catch sight of the attacker.

"No good..." He mumbles. He closes his eyes, prays to Celestia that he doesn't mess up, and casts.

The forest is bathed in a dim, luminescent glow. A few metres away from them stands a beast of a manticore, Ruby tightly enclosed in its grip. Disoriented by the light, it howls and turns to face Divine.

"There we go." Ician mutters. His swords snap into stillness, and he advances cautiously.

"He's mine. Give me... Two minutes." Divine muttered, leaping into the air as her blade became like liquid silver as she struck at the manticore a dozen times, careful not to strike the apparently unconcious Ruby.

"I won't-" Ician begins, then shuts his mouth. "No. I'm helping, Divine." He takes a step forward, only to be deafened by another roar to his right.

He swings around. "Oh, you have got to be kidding-"

A fist materialises from the darkness beyond his spell, and with a sweeping strike it catches him in the face. He flies back several metres and hits a tree. "Ouch..."

The manticore fighting Divine, meanwhile, howls in pain as a score of wounds appear over his body. It snarls and drives a paw downwards, aiming for Divine.

Divine lunges at the first manticore, ducking under its blow, only to be sent spinning back by an explosion of flame from the paw that held Ruby.

Blue-white flames continued to burn as a staggering Ruby stumbled from its paw, collapsing as her flames extinguished themselves. Divine stood up groggily, shaking her head as her ears surveyed the situation.

The manticore howls. Its paw is on fire, the flames scorching its fur. For a moment, fear registers in its eyes. It turns to run away.

Then the flash of green replaces the fear. It looks back at Divine and Ruby, and with a menacing gait, it advances towards the two of them, the fire on its paw all but forgotten.

Meanwhile, Ician rubs his head groggily, clearing away the stars. Dimly, he perceives the image of another manticore hovering above him, poised to deal a fatal blow-

He snaps to alertness. His swords spin around him swiftly, scoring a group of hits on the manticore's torso. It stumbles back, enraged, but not defeated.

Divine growls, her armour flashing as she darts forward, a huge gash in the ground appearing as she drags her sword blade threw the earth, its intended target the manticore's neck. As soon as the blow would land, she would change direction rapidly, aiming to decapitate.