After bailing back as quickly as possible we retrace our steps quickly to the last spot we were staying at. We would establish a camp with our supplies in it then quickly move out forward from it before heading back packing up and moving forward to repeat. Since we ran back immediately we did not have to waste time and moved as fast as we could. I did not like it since the injured could get even more hurt but well giant lizard out to kill us. With mostly broken arms and a few lacerations since thankfully no one got bitten we had to spend a little time treating them. Staunching the bleeding as much as possible with pressure and a few pre-prepared hemostatic poultices before binding up the wounds along with immobilizing the broken bones however possible with bandages and branches. After making sure we could move quickly we took the bare necessities and hid the rest in supply stashes. Grabbing a spare bronze sword we start our return journey after a short rest. We should get back in only a third of the time since we don’t need to search around and are traveling light. With the wounded in the middle and those still in good condition guarding we traveled along the path we made getting here in the first place. Of course this time it was not so smooth, of course despite the bandages there is some blood flowing and looks like we attracted scavengers. Unfortunately for us these are gray mane wolverines, these guys are mostly scavengers but looks like we have enough wounded for them to try something. These guys are not as bad as dire wolves but still enough to cause us trouble. There is a pack of 16 here and they look hungry, guess the carrion left by the lizards are not enough for these guys.

We have less than a dozen that can fight but the two ex-adventurer servants and me should be enough to make up the numbers not to mention that the guards are no slouches. The grey mane wolverine is an oversized wolverine the size of a large dog and of course the named mane. Their claws are larger than it’s size would suggest and it uses those claws to rip open the tougher hides of large animals and monsters. They are not as cunning as wolves are so they are not that strong, three rush me and the rest spread out to the others. The wounded are grouped up and those that can hold short swords or daggers do so. As the foremost one rushes me I take a rapid slash splitting it open and out for the count, the other two rush for my legs and one manages to bite into the armour. If I was at top condition I could have stopped it but after several days of travel and that big fight I am slow. As pain lances through my leg I take my sword and slash at the other one. It takes a blow to the head and backs off with a nasty cut. Ripping a dagger out with my other hand I sink it hilt deep into the head of the one biting my leg. Prying it’s fangs from my leg I look around me and see that the others have been cleaned up, no deaths but more wounded again. Nothing life threatening so far but I don’t want to risk infection when we are still a few hours out from the camp. As some of the uninjured guards help the rest get up we start moving, that wound in my leg is not too deep but we don’t have time to get a closer look. After a quick and rough bandaging of all the wounds we set off again through the woods. No sign so far of that thing coming for us but I don’t know whether it is vicious and bloodthirsty enough to come get us or licking its wounds and staying away.

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After hours of trekking through we finally can see the light of the sky without being filtered by the trees. Looks like the riders have seen us and are splitting up and heading off to get help. Two head over to us and seeing that no one is immediately going to die keep watch on the forest. It is a quick journey back and a few of the guards at the camp quickly lead the injured over to get treated. After seeing that everyone is being treated and getting my leg checked I sit back on a pile of empty crates and relax myself. After about 2 or 3 hours I wake up from a quick nap and see a little commotion going on, grabbing a random guard I hear that our guides are back with the other groups. That is the good news, the bad news is that they found traces that the monster lizard is still alive and it even has a friends. Apparently these are greater forest spiny lizards and looks like this is the preview season when they are stocking up as well for winter. They have a rather nasty digestive system where they can essentially pickle food inside another stomach to preserve it for later. Looks like this is a mating pair that is on the resting part of the life cycle, so no little ones to deal with. If this was after winter then maybe but as of right now the other groups found only traces of the two. Unfortunately since we mostly have swords and spears we don’t have much for dealing with that much armour, parents got a messenger so they will be here with some better weapons and Relan the ‘healer’ as well. Still don’t know why they call him a healer, battle mage sounds better and less deceiving even if he can heal.  Hopefully even if the lizards get here we have enough forces to take them down, since no one died and that was an unprepared group we should succeed with proper planning. Pit traps could slow them down enough but would limit the use of calvary, the charge won’t kill them but will heavily injure them. Low power spells would be pointless and those things could dodge possibly given warning, use of calvary charge vs better overall tactical advantage for infantry and mages. Do we have crossbows actually, or are they too weak? Hmm how about combining everything, there is a large enough stretch between the forest and the camp to set something up like that. But to set up large enough pit traps would mean exhausting the mages, looks like the guards are taking the brunt of things in this fight. Fighting giant lizards here to turn us all in jerky sounds amazing on paper, actually trying to fight the things in reality not so much. We had a number of injured but nothing life threatening unless disease sets in, the village was not quite that dirty and the healer’s area is kept clean meticulously thankfully. This should keep infection as low as possible since there is a shortage of antiseptic I would believe with the time period. Nothing I can do anything about however since it is not like I made the stuff or even knew the beginnings of how to make it, I can only worry and that will do nothing to fix things so I have to move on even if I do not like it.