Oblivious of anything. Roberion and Percival kept walking toward the research lab ping. Roberion improvised one of the leather clothes as a scabbard. The result was pretty barebones but serviceable. Why does it summon without a scabbard, anyway? That seems pretty half-assed. He kept the shield tied to his pants at the left size. His gun, he thought it better to keep in the magical bag, taking it out if the need arose.
Percival let go of his standard knight fighting style. Now he was messing with his gauntlets, seemingly testing them for future use. His improvised bag was already full of explosives. Still, he kept the vanguard of the team, always focused, especially after the last battle with the cat.
After some time, they reached a part of the forest filled with Nulls and animal corpses. As most of Nulls are practically clones of the same mold, it was impossible to see if they were the Nulls of the leader Null, only the leader Null seemed different because of his physicality. The animal’s corpses were in different states. Some devoured, others harvested, some seemed fresher, others insects were already eating the carcass. It was harrowing. Roberion and Percival kept quiet like in a silent agreement.
Only some carcasses seemed worth of harvesting, but that raised the question, why weren’t they devoured properly or harvested completely? That was the question on both of their minds, they knew that maybe the killer couldn’t absorb their meat, but the animals didn’t seem to limit themselves, and if it was a group of Nulls, they would share to increase their team strength…probably.
The danger wasn’t worth the reward, so they kept going hours straight. In the middle of the road, the foliage started to diminish, soon they started to listen to the rush of water. It was not long before they found a river, not big enough to arrest the use of a boat, but not easy to traverse by just walking. The clock was ticking. Even if they had time, it wasn’t enough to waste.
Quest updated: Reach the research station - Countdown started by Quest Giver; 6 days; 02:03 hours.
“You know how to swim, Percival? I got the feeling I know the basics of it”.
“Sir, the armor is hard enough for me to brave the water. I don’t think I’m capable of the feat of strength of carrying the explosives as well. I’m extremely sorry.”
“It’s alright, give me the explosives. I will keep them in the bag. You try swimming first. If the travel is alright I will go next, but keep a lookout as I go.”
Percival gives Roberion the explosives. Slipping into the water not long after. His swimming is strange, his arms, hands and finger were longer than a normal rodent. His hand even looked way bigger than it was supposed to, as far as his gloves showed. The same could be said of his foot. But he swam as if he was a true capybara, his head out of water, arm and legs down, pushing the water. The only explanation Roberion could come with was that Percival could do that, all the while in armor, was because of his abnormal strength.
I can’t criticize him too much. The guy helped me a bunch. If a random blond teenager can make a dome show up from nothing and time seems to stop, them a disproportional capybara warrior can show up. The results are what matters, as Roberion finishes his thought, Percival is finally reaching the other side of the river.
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Percival gets up and tries to shake the water off his fur, even if the armor made a hard time for him to do so. Not seeing any danger, Roberion is the next to cross the river.
He travels goes without problems until he reaches two-thirds of it. Roberion stops feeling a tug on his back, like something just glued and was trying to push him. He tried to swim forward and get out of this situation without success. The thing was pushing him deep into the river. Struggling to get free, he goes deeper, his head is submerged, until he eyes the rapier.
Using his dexterity to the maximum, he frees the rapier from the improvised scabbard, cutting and destroying it in the process. The loss didn’t even process in Roberion’s mind. Percival was already trying to enter the water. But before that, in a feat of insight, Roberion rotates slightly to his left, getting more wrapped in the white appendage, but before being completely rolled up he slashes with his rapier, the rapier struggles a little but the vertical slash was enough to cut off half the diameter of the white appendage. A bright red liquid started to invade the waters.
Roberion struggles a bit more. Before doing another slash, the appendage withdraws. Already asphyxiating, Roberion swim with all his power. It was not long before two silver bony gloves take him out of the waters. With labored breathing and taking big breaths, Roberion looks again in the water. Percival, seeing Roberion’s attention at the river, follows the direction of his sight.
In the river, a creature jumps out, a sort of large and thick gecko, his skin brown and with black pigments that seemed to move like a multiplication of cells, similar to a cancerous growth. The beast was twice the size of a crocodile. The mouth of the creature is bloody. By connecting the dots, Roberion and Percival discovered that the creature was the cause of Roberion’s plight.
In a second Roberion sees that he was still holding the rapier tightly. His left arm and right leg show that he took some glancing cuts as he swam, with a rapier in hand. With adrenaline hiding pain, Roberion just uses his left hand and withdraws the improvised bag of explosives throwing at Percival that catches swiftly. It was not too long before Roberion was already with his shield high and the rapier pointed at the creature.
The creature wasn’t idle either, already in a position of attack. It tastes its mouth and tongue and thinks better of using it. Rushing forward, the creature show his teeth, blooded, long and sharp, similar to one of a crocodile. Before the creature could reach him, Roberion dashes to the side, evading it. Percival, that was just behind Roberion, throws a landmine inside the creature's mouth.
Next, the toothed gecko by reflex closes his mouth, activating the pressure plate and exploding. The result they were expecting didn’t happen. As proof of the explosion, was the smoke, and as for the gecko he only sported a big wound on his mouth and broken teeth.
Not waiting for a counterattack. Roberion slashes at the creature's body. His slashes cut, but the creature is healed not long after. Still, he keeps cutting the creature.
The creature eye Percival. Ignoring Roberion's slashes. As the creature rushes at him, Percival looks at the landmine in his hand. That is barely enough to finish this horrendous lizard, I need to protect my patron at all cost, with conviction Percival unlocked the trigger of the pressure plate, carried his improvised bag on his left and ran to face the beast.
The beast, crazed by his mouth wound, just tried to eat Percival whole, closing his mouth off. There was only the sound of teeth meeting flash and armor. As for Percival no cries of pain, only silence. Click. All hell broke loose, an explosion engulfed and exploded the head of the beast, Percival vanishing in white sparks. His service done…for now.
Still shocked by the explosion, Roberion only had enough presence of mind to do a dash to the right before an enormous claw with an ethereal blue glow cut the soil, leaving cracks as it passed. “Dammit!” was all Roberion could utter before feeling the warmth of the dice in his hand. The battle wasn’t over yet.