Each bird was as big as a man's chest. They resembled crows, but they had two pairs of wings and curved beaks. The flock filled the bright sky with a dark-red cloud that descended toward the group and prepared to storm the snowy area.

No one knew why the sunlight didn't affect those creatures, but they were too fast to let the group think about the issue. The flock was only a few seconds away from filling the area occupied by those young troops, and only a few of them could step up to face the danger. The long travel without food had made even the most resilient of them unable to stand.

Khan, Ilman, and the squad leaders exchanged a worried glance when they inspected the surface. They could see other students and recruits struggling to stand up, but they wouldn't be helpful at all in that condition.

Khan glanced at Liiza. She could also fight, but her position was odd. The flock was descending toward the crowded part of the area, and she wouldn't have the time to reach it before the initial impact.

Liiza nodded when she saw the hesitation in Khans' eyes, and he didn't hesitate to shoot toward the friends farther away from his position. Orders also came out of his mouth during his sprint.

"Ilman, protect George and Havaa.

"

The couples in the group had settled in various partially isolated spots. Doku and Azni had even found a good place where to exchange intimate moments without letting the others see them, but their area was on the path of the flock.

Khan arrived in front of them in an instant. He was ready to defend them, but the couple tried to complain. Still, they felt weak after the prolonged starvation. The birds were even on the verge of clashing with the recruits in front of them. They only had the time to stand up before the loud caws fused with painful cries.

The flock moved quickly. It only took a few seconds to reach Khan's position, but an azure halo had already covered his blade by then.

Khan kicked directly at the dark-red cloud, and his attack released a rumbling noise before clashing with the birds. Blood and feathers immediately rained toward him and hindered his vision, but nothing escaped his senses.

Two birds flew past the barrage of feathers and crossed his position to reach Doku and Azni. However, Khan continued to rotate on his rear leg as his arms spread. One monster saw the glowing knife severing its body in half, while the other ended up in Khan's grasp.

Khan didn't hesitate to rotate again to throw another kick forward. He even used that chance to launch the monster toward the cloud before waving his left arm a few times. Maimed corpses fell at his feet, but he didn't stop attacking until the bright sky unfolded in his vision again.

Doku and Azni had to deal with little to no threats due to Khan's efforts. The flock was full of monsters, but they were pretty frail. Moreover, none of them had shown abilities, so everything had been a matter of avoiding being overwhelmed.

Khan glanced at his two friends before moving his sharp eyes on the sky. A few cuts had opened on Doku and Anzi's arms, but they were superficial. Still, the flock in the distance was turning to prepare another assault. The painful cries behind him explained how effective the first attack had been, so he understood that the current tactic wouldn't work.

"Khan,

" Liiza called as she approached him.

Liiza pointed her hand at a spot behind Doku and Azni, and a wall of ice grew from the snow. The structure was only two meters tall and three meters large, but it was thick enough to endure the assault of the flock.

Liiza took deep breaths after the feat. She appeared tired, but she could remain on her feet. Doku and Azni even nodded at her to express their gratitude.

"Take cover!

" Iris shouted from the other side of the group.

Ilman had sprinted to reach George and Havaa, but the squad leaders shot toward the other underlings to defend as many Niqols and humans as they could. The crow-like monsters didn't give them the time to cast spells, but their martial arts had been enough to relieve some pressure.

Khan could inspect the state of the group now that he had turned to look at Liiza. Many had suffered injuries, and some of them were quite severe. A few recruits were even lying lifelessly on the snow as pools of blood expanded from their figures.

The squad leaders had helped, but they were only four first-level warriors without their spells. They could probably fight the entire cloud of monsters on their own, but protecting the group behind them was pretty impossible.

Iris, Ryan, and Felicia prepared their spells while the recruits and Niqols tried to find cavities hidden by the snow or in corners created by the rocky walls nearby. They were ready to counterattack properly now, but that would temporarily disregard the lives of their underlings.

Khan found Ilman with his eyes, and the two exchanged a meaningful glance. George and Havaa had been in an isolated spot already, so they could find cover before the return of the flock. Ilman was free to defend those still in the open, and Khan silently agreed to do the same.

Khan jumped forward. He took Liiza by her waist and threw her toward the couple under the ice wall. Doku and Azni widened their eyes before catching the girl mid-air and moving their attention on their friend.

The couple couldn't find Khan in his previous position. He had already reached a group of recruits who had been too weak even to attempt to find cover, and Ilman was nearby, protecting a few Niqols that the snow had tricked. Those aliens had started digging after sensing a hole under them, but they had only found a short pit that didn't offer any protection.

The flock returned, and many monsters slammed on the ice wall in a desperate attempt to pierce it. The clash filled the outer surface of Liiza's spell with blood since it remained intact, and she didn't stop expanding her ice to make sure that the monsters didn't open any significant crack.

The rest of the dark-red cloud swept the area occupied by the group again. The first to face the monsters were Khan and Ilman, who unleashed a flurry of palm strikes, kicks, and slashes that managed to protect those behind them from most creatures.

The monsters reached the four squad leaders afterward, and a spectacle of lights began. Ryan gave birth to an intense wind that made the cloud stop for a second, Iris launched her piercing beam toward a crowded area, and Felicia threw fireballs everywhere else.

The discharge of those three spells killed many monsters in a single exchange. Paul only had to punch away the few birds that managed to fly past that destructive barrage. His attacks were precise and powerful. His arms resembled snakes as they cracked in the air while killing the few creatures that entered his range.

The flock couldn't advance further. It rose higher in the sky instead of forcing its way forward, but it didn't leave the area. The monsters flew toward the sun before turning to dive back at the group.

Khan and Ilman didn't know how to protect the recruits and Niqols behind them from that vertical attack. They jumped among them and prepared themselves to do their best, but the squad leaders stepped forward to place themselves right under the descending dark-red cloud during that time.

The monsters reached an insane speed and threatened to squash everything under them, but the four squad leaders didn't feel any fear. Ilman and Khan shared the same confidence, but their efforts didn't involve only their safety. Still, their worries ended up being unnecessary.

Ryan used his control over the wind to generate another spell that made the descending dark-red cloud shrink. Intense gales forced the monsters to slam on each other and slow down their advance, and Iris didn't waste that chance. She shot one of her piercing beams, and the attack crossed the flock from side to side, killing many birds at the same time.

Those who continued to descend even after that display of superior might had to deal with Felicia's fireballs. She only managed to launch three of them before the flock reached the surface, but her attacks had appeared quite effective against those feathered creatures.

Khan, Ilman, and Paul relied on their martial arts to kill as many monsters as possible after those creatures stormed the surface. Many corpses fell on the dark-grey snow that had started to melt after everything that had crashed there. That barren and pure area had turned into a bloody spectacle in a matter of minutes.

The flock dispersed in the area before flying higher in the sky. Khan and the others prepared for another wave, but they remained surprised when they saw the monsters leaving. It seemed that those creatures had given up on the hunt.

Everyone remained silent even after the flock left the area. The group wanted to be sure that they had actually won, but sighs of relief eventually started to resound. Even the squad leaders relaxed, and Khan also accepted that they had won that battle.

The faint happiness felt due to that feat didn't last since the state of the battlefield was impossible to ignore. Many dead monsters had tainted the dark-grey snow, but they couldn't hide the few corpses among them. One Niqols and three recruits had died during the sudden assault, and many more had suffered injuries that required immediate attention.

Some recruits and Niqols exploded into tears due to the casualties, but the others looked at the dead monsters with hungry eyes. Grief existed in the minds, but they couldn't think about it with their stomachs grumbling to no end.

Almost everyone remained silent out of respect for that sad moment, but Khan couldn't allow himself to waste time. The group was basically standing on top of a pile of food, which could attract other predators. The flock had found them, so the same could happen with other monsters. The new threat might be too strong for them, and it might even force them to leave the area, so eating had the priority now.

Khan picked a few birds from their legs before bringing them next to the ice wall where Doku, Azni, and Liiza had remained hidden. The couple smiled at that sight, but Liiza pouted even if Khan could read the hunger in her eyes.

"Do you know how to cook them properly?

" Khan asked, and Doku forced himself to stand up.

"Squad leader Felicia!

" Doku shouted with his weak voice while pointing at a relatively empty spot in the area.

"I need your help to set off a fire. Can you help?

"

The woman initially felt surprised, but she eventually nodded and approached Doku. The two started preparing the fire to cook those monsters in no time while the other squad leaders handled the issue about the corpses.

"You have thrown me,

" Liiza complained when Khan sat next to her and let the coldness of the ice wall spreading throughout his back before taking her into his arms.

"It was quick,

" Khan explained before mocking her a bit,

"And fun.

"

"You are lucky to be cute,

" Liiza snorted before cuddling on Khan's lap and closing her eyes.

"Thank you, Khan,

" Azni exclaimed after Liiza finished teasing Khan.

"I'm glad you are okay,

" Khan announced.

"Everything is already quite grim. I would have found it hard to bear all of this if something happened to you.

"

"I suspect someone would have helped you getting through that,

" Azni smiled while glancing at Liiza half-sleeping in his arms.

Khan caressed Liiza's hair before focusing on the squad leaders. He had obtained another demonstration of how strong spells were, which intensified his desire to get his hands on the Wave spell. Still, the scent of roasted chicken soon reached his nostrils, and every complicated thought vanished in front of his hunger.

****

Author's notes: I wanted to warn everyone about my break, but I found myself unable to write anything as soon as I made that decision. Anyway, I'm back now.