In the final moment as the vicious creature turned its eyes up to face him, emitting the first note of its baleful screech, Arcturus gazed down into the scarlet orbs that gleamed amidst its murky hair. For that brief moment he stared back into its excited gaze, struck with an uncanny realization as his saber sank deep into its head. Perhaps it had merely been his imagination, a wild adrenaline fueled fancy, but he had seen in those eyes a strangely familiar emotion. An eagerness alike to that which had just now driven his curved blade into its skull.

Unsettling as it was, however, there was no time to dwell on the matter. Arcturus' attention snapped up to the door as the other man called it out, his arms moving to draw his sword from the inky flesh of their fallen foe. His muscles ached with fatigue from their unnatural exertion, his breathing heavy while his heart pumped furiously, but he couldn't stop moving. The threat behind their lines had been quickly dealt with, but every second they had spent killing it was a second lent to the enemy outside. Luckily it seemed the door had held, so they might be able to-

When the door bent inwards, the deafening crack of wood resounding through the room, Arcturus knew their barricade was not long for the world. Hurriedly he scrambled to the side in anticipation of what was surely about to breach their defenses, gesturing for the man in charred clothing to move in the other direction. While they had swiftly defeated the bell beckoned nightmare it had also inflicted a casualty. As far as he could tell their fighting capacity had been reduced to just two men, himself and the darker skinned man, which likely left them outnumbered. The only way they could maintain an advantage was if they forced the enemy to meet them one at a time, attacking at the doorway.

Of course that was a tactic meant for killing other men. Arcturus wasn't so confident about the [i]vile[/i] thing he had witnessed at the beginning of the skirmish, when that gnarled hand had willfully torn itself free from his spear.

Suddenly a horrid, clawed foot jutted into the room, shattering the wooden barrier that had stood between them and the dangers outside. Arcturus flinched as an errant splinter struck his cheek, causing a small cut in his pale skin. However he kept his nerve, slowly bringing his breathing under control. His piercing blue eyes stared apprehensively as the stretched, beastly appendage was followed by its owner. A towering monstrosity that easily stood as tall as their previous quarry.

Reflexively he glanced down at its hand. He recognized that twisted, [i]disgusting[/i] thing, its knobbly fingers and blood caked fur. The very hand that had tore itself open and knit itself back together before his very eyes. There was still a part of him that doubted if they could even harm something like that, let alone kill it. However Arcturus was feeling confident. Together they had struck down a being seemingly made of nothing more than shadow, a specter unnatural and terrifying by its very nature. Besides, what choice did they have? With the door gone they now needed to block that chokepoint with their steel! The only option left was to [i]attack![/i]

They had one more advantage, Arcturus noted, as he heard the voice from outside. The enemy wanted to capture them alive. This would likely restrict how the things attacked, he figured, which would only serve the two of them. He certainly didn't plan on being 'taken.' Raising his sword, the young man took an aggressive step towards the beast, swallowing his reservations as his heart beat ever faster. Once again he was trying to draw the main threat's attention, his boot stomping hard into the floor with a sharp thud. The young man had been given almost no time to rest and could still feel the fatigue. Yet still his piercing blue gaze glared sharply up at the monstrosity before him, intent on forcing himself to confront it. To draw its attention away in the hope that his ally might catch it unaware.