What started as one long, spindly leg became many. The creature's massive, toothy maw opened to reveal a long and twisting tongue as it hefted the rest of its body onto the canyon wall.

[Sand Crawler, Level 3 Beast]

[HP: 20/20]

The not-quite insectoid monstrosity swished a large tail behind itself and fell into a forward leaning crouch.

Its large nose sniffed the air.

Then we heard its cry of hunger.

The terror of the women and children around me was all too clear. Many of them froze into a backstep of horror; others shrieked all too primally.

The beast lunged. My mind quickly inferred its trajectory.

My chains, linked to the rest of the slaves, still gave me a little give in the way of freedom of movement.

My heart pounded in fear, not for myself, but for the child who I was now reaching for.

In the last moment before the crawler's fangs would've met the little boy's throat, I felt my hand grasp around his wrist.

I pulled with as much force as my small body would allow.

The child was jerked into my arms and then held back against my chest. The crawler missed him as I dragged both myself and the boy backwards.

In a violent roar of frustration, the monster swung its tail to completely rip the feet out from under an approaching mercenary.

"Stay away, any way you can!" I screamed out to the people around me; they gave no immediate reply.

The monster shrieked again in frustration as the warrior it had hit was sent flying.

My eyes widened and in a force of will I activated [Hellish Illusion].

I and the crawler alone heard a massive burst of ignition and concussive force as first one, and then two more, towering pillars of flame spun into a fiery seeming but flawed existence.

Nevertheless, the beast hissed back in alarm from the first, false burst of flame. The next two pillars of lying fire to ignite guided it further yet away from us.

[Hellish Illusion drains 5 HP.]

My momentary success gave me little joy.

I didn't know how smart this thing was. If it realized the fire had no heat or real substance to it then we'd be at square one, but for now I'd gotten it away from us—and that was, at least, a victory of seconds.

Another roar shook the air.

My eyes for the first time shot to the cliff face above us and the source of the new sound.

At our backs, another of the beasts was present and hanging on the jagged rock face that climbed into the sky above the slaver convoy.

And, not included in my spell as its kin had been, it was apparently coming to join us.

The beasts strange, clawed point-toes cracked the rock that it clung to and it loaded its weight up much as the first had done on flat ground.

Was it truly about to...?

My fears were confirmed when the second monster lunged into the air.

I shot my gaze, for a half moment, back to the first crawler, which, with my vision diverted, had been freed from my spell. It was now once again preparing to charge into the throng of us slaves.

My attention was still momentarily split, however, as the second creature flew through the sandstorm quickly and collided with the covered wagon that we were all linked to.

The tearing of the canvas and cracking of the construction's wooden supports was all too loud, and the cart itself violently began to tip and crash to the ground. The horses whinnied as their bridled yokes pulled them down with the vehicle they were lashed to.

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With only a little regret, I hoped the second beast would become distracted with the animals, because I had other problems at the moment.

I snapped my gaze from it and the wagon to the more immediate threat: the first of the monsters that I'd only managed to stall for a few fleeting breaths.

I created a wall of illusionary smoke to cloud the vision of the original crawler that was now once again barreling towards myself and the slaves.

Formulating a half second plan, I grabbed the child I'd saved before and shoved him multiple feet into the arms of another woman.

The long chain that linked myself and the boy stretched up taunt into the air.

"Hold him and the chain if you want to live!" I shouted, but there was almost nothing but shock in the woman's eyes.

My attention shot to another woman behind her who had actually met my gaze. "Grab the chains that link you two and lean back against her! Now!"

I wrapped my own hands around my binds and pulled back against the metal to make it as firm as possible.

The sand crawler, which was suddenly blinded by the black smoke that only it and I could see, crashed into the raised metal.

The clinking links sagged forward against its weight, but I was already running to the beast. My high Agility, though diminished, carried me fast on my feet.

Without hesitation I jumped and grabbed a hold on the monster’s left shoulder joint.

The thing's weight had shifted the moment its neck had hit the chain and was now beginning to tip over itself on its unsteady legs.

I allowed my momentum to carry me up and over its shelf of a back.

My heart pounded in a long missed exhilaration as I slipped down to the other side of the crawler.

It took me another moment, but I pulled myself forward and under another chain to fully secure the links around the monster's throat.

Its head hit the ground and I yanked as hard as I could.

"Grab me now! Someone!" I screamed as my feet were pulled across the ground an inch against the temporarily collapsed monsters weight.

My sight darted with a very serious concern to those around me.

"You!" I screamed to the owner of the next not completely terror filled gaze. "I can't hold it, grab me and pull!"

I felt the beast shift again. If it started to get up I'd be done for—we all would be.

I had the body of a child, I would never be able to beat a monster's strength. We needed to cut its air off quickly, and in one fell swoop, so it lost that physical power too quick for it to use its might.

"Please!" I implored to the slaves.

The women, to my surprise and thankfulness, moved then and one grabbed me.

"Harder! Everything you have! If it gets up we die," I stressed with as much urgency as I could.

"Everyone else, grab me and the other side of the chain," I shouted into the crowd, “whichever that you can!"

The crawler stirred. Those among the group that had heard me, and who listened, finally moved to heed my pleas.

I felt the weight behind me increase as others joined in to add their strength to my own.

The monster's face strained and lifted as the chain tightened around its throat.

Despite the combined efforts of many of us, for a moment we began to be pulled forward across the sand yet more.

"Pull!" I screamed.

And, with the threat of the thing we struggled against undoubtedly getting up and killing us all spurring us on, we did just that.

The monster struggled and skirted its weakening legs across the sand and moss.

After a few infinite seeming moments, its screeches became chokes for air. Its fighting became weak.

As the beast was growing still and quickly nearing exhaustion, another familiar roar barreled out from behind us.

My eyes turned in a terror as the second crawler's mouth lunged for myself and those pulling behind me. Its maw was covered with the blood and meat of the horses, and perhaps that of some of the guards as well.

Time slowed as [Hawkeye] activated. The world became still, but so too did I.

My superior eyes watched in widening shock as my death approached; with the chains, and the weight of the other crawler, I wouldn't be able to dodge this monster like I had the first.

With only seconds left before it would hit me, my decelerated heart thundered in preparation for my second death.

Right as the crawlers teeth were about to sink into my flesh, however, and as I watched the long snout open in merciless hunger and saw the chunks of meat in its teeth, the crawler seemed to veer off target.

Time sped back up in a way that was all too disorienting and I watched the monster fall over to the side. I heard it scream quickly after.

Forward over herself in a half bend, from where she had rooted her boots to the ground to strike the beast, Nazanin stood with a long war glaive shunting out over her right shoulder.

As the last of the time slowing faded, I watched one of the crawler's legs splatter purple blood and flesh particulates across the beautiful face of the coco-skinned elf as the limb flew, severed completely by her weapon, through the raging air of the sandstorm.

The tall elf now wore an armor that was completely different from that of the guards. Light and of a beautiful make, both her weapon and gear appeared elegant and designed for a light grace.

Ringed earrings of gold lined up in a paired trio along both her tall ears; her once disheveled hair was now braided into a practical for combat, and yet intricately designed, pattern.

As the last of the tension on the chains from the crawler, that I and the slaves had strangled, was given up completely, and as the second beast crashed to the ground as well, I knew without a doubt that the elf wardancer had saved my life.

[You have killed the Canyon Crawler.]

[Please access your Character Sheet to see your progress.]

With the World Spirit notifications triggered, the powerful and graceful warrior elf approached me and with a mighty decisiveness swung her weapon down towards my arms.

The sound of metal cutting metal resounded and the chains that held me to the other slaves were shattered.

How she had managed to cut steel with steel I did not know.

"This will be our only chance," she said with a warrior's clear headed, but harsh, tone. "We must find the merchant."