Back up, so you can shoot it!

You leap back as far as you can, landing softly, and raise up your gun arm as you take several rapid steps further backwards. Before you've even landed from the initial jump the monster's already darting towards you, moving just as quickly as it was before.

Everything happens in moments. Your pepperbox pistol is about halfway to the height you need it, your legs slowly stepping back at the fastest pace you can manage, and the much faster monster is closing in on you, working to reduce the ground you gained in the jump. Each step sends gravel rolling underfoot, but you keep balance, and you keep moving even as the creature slowly gains ground, lifting your arm higher and higher and watching with focused eyes for the right moment until.....

BANG{if ExplosiveShots == True}!{endif}

You close your eyes and squeeze the trigger, right as the monster gets close enough to pull back its {if@ ExplosiveShots == False}own arms{else}remaining arm{endif} for a strike, at the moment you think that you have the pistol's top barrel level with the monster's head. Your final quick backstep lands, and you hold your feet still as you breathe in, bracing yourself for the potential strike that does not come. You open your eyes again.

In front of you, slumped on the ground, is the grey-skinned monster. In its small round forehead there's a {if@ ExplosiveShots == False}hole from which an orange liquid leaks{else}crater from which orange liquid pours{endif} down its face, staining the gravel path. The simulated monster isn't moving, and the orange liquid is probably supposed to look like blood. Which means that you did it! You just killed a monster, on your very first try! And all on your own!

There's a hefty CLANG to your left, as Cameron connects a blunt shield backhand to the snout of the monster he'd been facing up against. It falls down to the floor, stunned, and before it can scramble up to its feet there's a gentle wooshing sound as a crossbow bolt from your right flies and sticks into the downed monster's flank, another orange trail starting from the impact area of the artificial monster. You look to the right to see Jace peeking out of one of the hut's windows, giving him a smile as a second CLANG marks Cameron finishing off the downed monster.

"That went pretty well." Cameron says to you a bit out of breath, as you fiddle around with the loose bullets in your pocket to reload your pistol to its maximum capacity again.

"Yep!" You smile back. You're feeling pretty awesome about your skills right now. You finish up loading five {if@ ExplosiveShots == False}more shots{else}regular impact bullets{endif} into your gun, and give the barrels a good spin before looking over to where Delilah fights the last monster on the bridge.

She looks like she's locked in something of a stalemate with the monster. Neither party are landing many strikes -- sickles either deflect scythes or the other way around, while Delilah ducks under or jumps over the rest and the creature's chitin renders what remains ineffective. Delilah looks like she's really doing a good job of avoiding being hit, and working her evasive movements into her next attacks, but at the moment it looks like it's just a race to see who lands a good hit first.

Since you're all done here, maybe it would be a good idea to help her out? Otherwise, you could always just take a rest break. You're pretty puffed.