Chapter 118 Reunion (Alistar and Rhander)
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Rhander's group was once again in peril as several humongous bipedal lizards rampaged at their camp. However, the group was prepared and managed to kill them. Unlike the alligator, this monster didn't back down, and Rhander toppled it with a fireball. Then, Rhegar and Helmet beheaded it with their axe and sword.
"Good work, everyone."
"Damn, if you have that skill, why don't you use it when those alligators got close..." one of the dwarves muttered.
"I don't have the feystones! They were all spent on water that we all drank." Rhander shouted. Everyone knew, but they just wanted to blame someone for their friend's death. Helmet had to stop the quarrel, and they continued reinforcing their Basecamp.
"Damn it." Helmet looked over the wide river. The alligators kept their distance, but he knew they were just waiting for a chance to lunge at them, just like before.
"Rhander! How's the feystone count?" Rhegar asked.
"I only have three now. I used one when fighting that large lizard."
"Hmm... Helmet, should we wait until Rhander has filled his feystone, or should we split our party now? We need to search for others. We should not linger too long in this place, or other nasty creatures might ambush us again." Rhegar asked. He wanted to move out as quickly as possible, but walking without support fire from magic was dangerous. Who knew how many snaring types of monsters were lurking.
"Eh? How many feystones? Won't that take over a week to fill? We don't have any blessed mage right now?" Helmet replied, clearly lacking the patience to wait over a week in this place.
"Rhander? How long?"
"Two days at most. I am ready to depart tomorrow evening at the latest. We have 12 feystones, so twelve spells." Rhander replied. The dinosaur that the group killed netted them two more feystones to use. Rhander wanted to make use of them to enhance himself.
"Wow, you're quite fast at filling those stones. Alright, we will depart tomorrow." Helmet nodded.
Rhander worked hard throughout the day, apologizing to others since he would skip his cooking duty in order to fill the feystones. His hard work paid off, and he was ready with twelve feystones the following day.
Rhegar split the team into two. Rhegar, Rhander, Ugrek, and Thorek would be in one group, while the others would wander off trying to find others. Helmet waved goodbye as they left.
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"Should we follow the river?" Rhander asked.
"That's a good idea, but let's not get too close to it, no matter what. Even if we get ambushed." Rhander cautioned him, earning nods from everyone else.
"If we don't find anyone today, we should consider building a bridge," Rhegar muttered, and everyone heard it.
"Why?" one of the dwarves asked.
"Ah, just in case the others end up on the other side of the river."
"Yes."
The group found nothing noteworthy today, except for a ruined stone building with a small pond and a well beside it. Rhander's heart sank when he saw the ruins with holes here and there, but it could be made habitable with a bit of fixing.
"Damn it. I knew I shouldn't complain, but..."
"Let's return...this is a good find. We don't have to worry about alligator attacks anymore, and we can simply barricade the door if any creatures attack," Rhegar assessed.
"Shit! If we found this earlier..." another cursed, but their curses were ignored. Rhegar then instructed everyone to head back to camp with him. It would be beneficial for the team to make the house their base now since it had functional well. It was much safer than the river infested with alligators.
The group returned, only to be chased by another bipedal carnivorous lizard. This one was smaller than the one that attacked their camp, but their numbers proved problematic. They surrounded them in the blink of an eye, and Rhegar was astonished as the lizards gained a positional advantage. Dozens of raptors, with claws and teeth bared, closed in on them.
"Circle formation! Rhander, stay in the center and don't get hit. Make an earth spear or wall to block our blind spot!" Rhegar quickly issued orders. However, the group didn't have enough numbers to form a coherent formation, and Rhander seemed confused, misreading the battlefield.
"Rhegar, there are too many of them surrounding us. We need to find some walls or trees to cover our blind spot!"
"No! They can climb trees! Stay in a circle!" Rhegar dismissed him. However, he knew how precarious their situation was. The dwarves and himself were protected by heavy armor, but Rhander only wore leather armor that could easily be punctured by the raptors' teeth.
"Let's retreat! I'll cover the rear. Get back to camp!" Rhegar shouted.
The group ran for their lives, with the raptors hot on their heels. Rhegar was frustrated with their lack of coordination, which made it difficult for him to land effective hits on their heads. He had forbidden Rhander from using his spells, as the raptors might change their target to Rhander, making it even harder for the group to defend themselves.
"The camp is near! Hang in there!" Rhegar shouted, gripping his broken arm. A raptor charged at him, knocking him down, but he stabbed it in the throat, killing it. His victory was short-lived as another raptor bit his hand and twisted it, fracturing his bones. With his good arm injured, he was forced to abandon his shield and wield his sword with his other hand.
"Damn it! Buy me ten seconds!" Rhander shouted. He brought out three of his feystones, and after precisely ten seconds, fire spewed out from his hands, burning the grassland between the group and the raptors.
"Run!" Thorek shouted, and the group didn't miss the chance provided by Rhander, but the raptors closed in again, surrounding them in no time.
"Damn it! Is this it?"
The raptors inched closer, and the dwarves were running out of breath. It would only be a matter of time until they fell prey to the raptors. However, the lizards suddenly turned their heads at the sound of cawing. Miraculously, they fled as if they were no longer interested in the group.
"What the heck happened?" Rhander muttered, but he soon understood why the lizards had fled. Their Lord had arrived just in the nick of time to save them.
"Hey! Is anyone injured?" Lord Alistar asked as he wielded his sword. Rhegar and Rhander could only hold back their tears as they saw hope in their leader.