117 A swarm of locusts (1/2)

A strange sight left every witness speechless, making them doubt their own eyes. Right in front of them, a horde of monsters was currently trying to run away.

But these fierce monsters were not fleeing due to powerful magic, they were escaping from a group of players, which hunted them down full of passion.

This burning desire was emitted from every pore on their bodies. Their eyes were entirely focussed on the monsters ahead of them.

This deep state of concentration caused an eerie feeling in every onlooker. No one dared to interfere in their affairs as they kept watching from a safe distance.

This safety did not apply to these pitiful creatures, those were forced to endure the relentless pursuit from the players. Instead, they had no other choice than running for their lives. The consequences of them slowing were not pleasant, that much was easy to imagine.

Their appearance was pitiful and it almost caused them to feel pity about their misfortune. But since they were monsters, this thought was quickly forgotten and attention was paid to the circumstances that caused this situation in the first place.

What have these players done that these beings react in this way? These bitter and wild monsters are acting like that now? This event eluded their logic and they could only shake their heads in the face of such absurdity.

But the opinion of the outsiders was of little interest to the situation itself and it continued to unfold undisturbed right before their eyes. The swarm consisted of only 8 players, but their number seemed significantly larger for all those who observed them. This appearance was created by their behaviour coupled with their distinct aura and made the spectators shiver in the face of this spectacle.

Who were the players who could do something so absurd? That act was the most unlikely thing they had ever seen, and despite its almost impossible possibility, it happened at that moment.

Their horizons, whether they wanted it or not, were inevitably broadened. With this expansion came more and more questions that brought more doubts and confusion with them.

They were at the mercy of these circumstances and the only thing they could muster enough strength for was to open their eyes as far as they could to perceive everything as best as they could.

As silent spectators, they experienced an event that would happen even more frequently, but at that moment it was not the time to think about what would happen in the future. The present offered enough tinder for these poor souls, it is hard to imagine how they would have reacted if they knew that this event would not be a rarity in the distant future.

When it came as it had to, they experienced the terrible end of the creature that could not outrun its fate. The bloodthirsty players attacked it and one life came to an end under brute force.

The body covered in wounds was lifted without any regard and carried into the distance, where it will be seen for the last time. This body is carried by a single player who struts away blissfully with his prey under the envious gaze of his cronies.

Each of them wanted to be in his shoes, but their turn had yet to come. Unfortunately, the monsters found themselves facing these players who had just smelled blood. It didn't take long before a motivation was born out of their deep envy.

Before the monsters even had the chance to breathe, the hunt continued with an intensity almost bordering on madness. This fever forced every spectator to hold his breath and to completely rethink his assessment of the situation once more. Nobody would have thought it was possible that the already crazy situation could become even more intense.

However, they found themselves disproven once again by the reality they are currently witnessing. This day will be remembered for a long time to come, although no one would believe them since none of them thought of broadcasting this event. The stimulation was just too much and left every viewer unable to think for themselves. Their confused and baffled facial features were proof enough for the strong effect the situation had on them.

Though neither the monsters or the frenzied hunters had any time to pay attention to details like that, as their primary focus was entirely elsewhere. A battle concerning life and death was vastly more important than some minor details, of some characters that were bound to be forgotten.

This hunt had only stopped when a monster fell victim to the hunters and was resumed after a happy soul disappeared with its prey.

After a short time, one of the players had joined the group again, this time without monsters in his hand. The player seemed to be happy, but the greediness could be seen in his eyes as he resumed the hunt with zeal.

This pattern was repeated over and over again until they were satisfied with their yield. However, this case never seemed to occur as the numbers of monsters began to decrease.

This trend only came to an end when the herd of monsters no longer existed. The monsters that were bursting with life some time ago were mercilessly wiped out.

Only a glance into the eyes of the hunters was necessary to recognize that they were already looking for the next group to hunt. They were not content with the number of monsters they had hunted.

Under the gazes from the audience, these group of players ran past them without even sparing them a glance. Monster carcasses were the only object of their desire, and judging by their behaviour, they hadn't received nearly enough of them.

Their quest would continue and the rumours of a crazy group of players striking fear in the heart of every monster would only spread more with every successful hunt. Some would claim that these rumours are just a stupid con and that it would only serve as a way to get people on the wrong track.

With the vast amount of rumours circulating in the world of Primal Survival, it was no wonder that some people would make this assumption. When news like this are spread from mouth to mouth rumours will find themselves exaggerated and certain details will disappear.

Some might hear about the group of ferocious players, whose lust for blood was palpable and caused even the monsters to run in fear after encountering them. Others would learn about strange magic, that caused monsters to flee in terror just by being in its close vicinity.

Every player mixed their own explanation into the story causing the rumours to deviate more and more from what happened originally. Until the census had turned it into something, which was put down as yet another hoax.

Despite these rumours refusing to die, thanks to the actual sighting of this group of players, it was only a minority who actively believed in these rumour thanks to their own experience. But this small minority was very vocal about their theories and speculations.

Their wild theories tried to explain, what happened to the monster corpses and why they returned empty-handed to hunt for more flesh. Explanations ranged from a hidden event just waiting to be discovered to a cover-up from players trying to draw attention away from something.

Discussions like these only caused others to shake their head. They could not fathom how they could spend so much of their time on something so useless. It was nothing more than a wasted oppurturnity if they did not spend their time on something of use to them.