Kat kept her stomping routine up for around a minute, trying to make her steps as large as possible with her rather awkward running motion. She wanted the worm on her trail, but not right underneath her. Of course with the overwhelming amount of sand blocking her vision meant it was really hard to estimate any sort of distance.
After that minute had passed however Kat used her feet to dash forward rather than stomping down. It still threw up a large amount of sand, but it was concentrated behind her, and she was able to spin around during her short hop to try and see if the worm was indeed still following her.
This question was answered extremely clearly when a gaping maw burst through the curtain of sand with a roar that sounded like falling boulders on the hillside. Kat saw it was attacking more so the spot she just was and was able to dive towards the side. However as soon as she started the dive, she watched its head turn to face her instead.
Though its momentum carried it forward it was already readying itself to go after Kat. She took this quick moment of… minimal sand coverage to try and take a peak at the sand skipper but the falling sand worm's body had still kicked up enough in her line of sight that the skipper wasn't visible through the debris.
Kat didn't have the time to wait for it to fall either because the worm was already lunging towards her position. Kat's dodge was more graceful and deliberate this time, aiming to just barely miss the worms charge, eased by the fact it didn't have its full speed when jumping towards her.
With a flourish Kat landed on the sand and slid for a moment before looking at the worm with a grin. *I could get used to this.* The worm for its part used this charge to dive back underground.
As Kat saw this she made sure to stomp once again and head off just in case it was thinking about turning towards the sand skipper once again. As Kat did this she also looked at her energy levels. She saw that they weren't down too much, but it was about the same pace as if she was flying at twice the speed of the skipper.
*How does that make any sense though? I'm not even moving that fast, and surely it takes more effort to cut through the wind once you are going that fast rather than just a light stomp.*
Despite Kat's internal complaints she sped off stomping along the way as she continued to puzzle over her situation. *So the real problem is I'm burning through energy a bit too fast. I can probably hover to get some back after leading the worm around in circles but I risk the bird coming for me.*
*And like how far do I need to lead this thing of course? I'd say the skipper was just shy of halfway to the mist wall after what… two hours of travel maybe?* Kat grimaced as she thought of this.
*Do I have to lead this dumb worm around for an hour or so then?* Kat cast a worried internal glance at her energy levels. *Yeah, I don't think I could manage that one. I probably have enough energy to * Kat stopped her train of thought to dodge the worm growling behind her.
*I don't even need to look if you're practically yelling in my ear every time you leap dude. Just oh I don't know, perhaps consider not screaming when you attack? Where was I? Right energy problem.*
*So, this is possible somewhat. I can probably keep it busy for the hour or so, but I couldn't then fly to catch up. But I can't just head off much earlier then that because the worms faster then they are.*
*Hmmm.* Kat jumped backwards letting herself drift up and over the worm as it lunged for her position. Flipping and letter her wings out so she could glide the length of the enormous thing Kat took a sharp turn when she hit the ground just so that she could still be heading at least somewhat in the right direction again.
*So the real question is, can I do something other than this stomping.* Kat considered her options, and admittedly they weren't great. Anything that required testing and wasting energy wasn't ideal, and she really just had no idea how the crazy worm worked.
*Well, when in doubt just hit it really hard.* Stomping away and waiting for the next worm attack. As soon as Kat heard the roar signalling its attack she jumped to the side and whirred around. Right as expected the worm sailed past charging for her old position
Winding her fist up for a solid hit she slammed it into the side of the worm expecting a rather disgusting squishy sensation. That was not what Kat got. The moment of impact she felt like she'd slammed her hand into a solid steel wall. She felt her entire body ringing and vibrating in response, and the worm itself rang out like a gong but seemed to hardly even feel the hit.
It dove into the ground and turned to her just the same as it always did while Kat tried to shake her hand out as the damage regenerated. It was only some minor bruising but considering how much power Kat had packed into her hand she was surprised that was all the damage deal to either parties.
Kat took a few more steps and stomps before settling back into the familiar rhythm. *Ok, so clearly that didn't work. What the heck is the damned thing made out of? Felt like a solid steel sheet, I guess what one would feel like if a human slammed into it.*
*I wonder if I could rip through steel now? I mean I'm clearly stronger then before just based on how fast I can run. Kat dodged another worm charge. Then again, its not like steel is easy to tear apart. They use it for heavy machines for a reason after all.*
*You know, people always use steel as an example of such strength, but they also don't take into account how strong it can actually be.* Kat dodged another worm strike spinning around just for the hell of it. *Should I really be thinking about this now? Probably not.*
*But its also not like I have anything better to do. I can't think of a better way to keep the worm's attention. I can't afford to waste energy setting it on fire, I can't hurt it with a punch, it only seems to react to me if I make a massive racket with my stomps*
Kat sighed. *Who thought leading around a giant worm capable of swallowing a boat whole could actually be so boring. At least the Barbarashi had a decent chance of hitting me if I wasn't paying attention.* Kat stopped and took a jump forward before bowing to the worm as it sailed over her.
*I mean look at this. It jumps in exactly the same way. Screaming every time like the world is ending, and it always targets the place I was not where I am. Is it only so scary because it's super tough?* Of course, Kat was neglecting the fact that she was much faster and able to enact sudden shifts in movement unlike anyone else at her power level.
Being able to turn on a dime and redirect all her momentum once they reached such speeds was not a common skill. Alas her body was perfectly designed for flexibility, she could use it to turn on a dime just relying on her instincts.
Kat sighed. *Really why is this so boring?*
#####
Meanwhile – Back at the sand skipper with Skye and Grace
"Do you think Kat can manage" asked Skye, still manning the sail, but much more exhausted. Grace had recovered enough to use the till, but not proficiently like she once was.
"Well, um, I mean, I think she'll be fine" said Grace.
Skye clicked her tongue "True but you didn't see the endless plumes of sand I did. They must be having an intense battle to throw up sand like that. Just one of those plumes was enough to nearly take us out and it burnt all your mana defending. How could Kat manage to get through so many"
Grace bit her lip and thought of the contract she'd made with Kat. This certainly did seem like the best course of action for everyone, but she was in the most danger. Grace hoped that she wasn't about to be punished horribly "Well, um, I mean at least Kat isn't hurt by the sand right?"
Skye nodded but continued "Yeah, but I'm sure 200 tonnes of worm can still cause her plenty of problems"
Grace took a worried glance back at the area they'd last seen Kat. Worried over the intense battle they must have been waging.