Early the next day, the crew left the riverway behind them and crossed into a sub-biome known as the Painted Lands. After passing through the borderlands, they parked the wagon at the base of a hill where they could get a better view of the surrounding terrain.
As they started scaling the modest incline, Sasha stepped behind Edge and put her hands over his eyes, guiding his steps with her body. He was in a great mood, and decided to go with the flow while he waited to find out what she was up to. “It’s best if you see it for the first time from an elevated vantage point. Just a few more second and we’ll be there.”
Edge didn’t mind. He was excited to see the region with his own eyes, and having Sasha’s front pressed against his back was a pleasant way to climb the hillside. He smiled to himself while enjoying the moment.
“Get ready. Turn your head to the right and…” She took her hands away, leaving him gazing down at some of the most gorgeous terrain that he’d ever seen.
The Painted Lands were formed from mineral-infused sediments that had been churned together by powerful forces long ago. As a result, the entire sub-biome was banded in brilliant shades of azure, violet, and emerald—creating intricate patterns that were miles wide and dazzling to the eye. Here and there, swirls of rose and peach mingled with the rest, adding swaths of warmth to the cool color scheme.
“This is incredible.” Edge turned to share a smile with Sasha, drinking in the exotic colors and rugged natural splendor. Not to mention the radiant beauty of the strawberry blond hunter.
The Painted Lands were higher than the surrounding plains, causing water to gather around the borderlands in a network of shallow pools and creeks. They were too murky to drink, but they reflected the sky above, forming a shimmering border to the rest like the frame of a painting.
When they were done admiring the view and charting the course they would follow, the crew walked a few hundred feet into the grasslands. Then they stopped for lunch where they could eat in relative safety. They sat in a circle and went over their plans one final time while inspecting their gear and preparing themselves for the ordeal to come.
When everyone was done eating, the crew stepped back into the Painted Lands and fell into a combat formation—walking side by side with their weapons at the ready.
From this point on, the padamas could ambush them at any time, with little to no warning of its approach. Only Trapper’s sense life skill offered them any form of protection, and no one knew if she would be able to counter the lizard’s power before it was close enough to launch an ambush. She wasn’t certain, but Trapper thought that it was probably cloak of invisibility—a rare stealth skill that offered superior concealment, even while moving.
While Trapper focused her attention on searching for the padamas, everyone else kept their eyes peeled for other dangers. Their journey would continue to grow more treacherous as they drew closer to the end of the Ivory Plains and the medium-threat biomes it bordered. They passed the next dozen miles in silence, ready to spring into action at a moment’s notice.
Although the tension was so thick that you could cut it with a blade, the experience gave Edge a real appreciation for the competency of the hunting crew. He watched them closely, learning everything that he could from their impeccable teamwork.
Though they had crossed into the padamas’s new territory, they were either lucky or the beast was elsewhere in the region, because the hunters made it through the day without running into the predatory lizard. They decided to camp for the night on a patch of elevated ground, where it was easy to see for miles in every direction.
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Instead of a hill, this rise was a butte made of solid brown stone. It featured three steep sides and a narrow ascent along the fourth that led to the summit.
It wasn’t completely safe by any means, but only creatures with a stealth skill could approach them unaware. Better still, the only way to reach the crest could be guarded by mechanical defenses that wouldn’t be deterred by magical concealments. The summit wouldn’t offer any protection against climbers or flyers, but camping on the butte would keep the padamas from reaching the crew without giving itself away.
While the others stood guard, Trapper went to work preparing the defenses that would shield them during the night. Tonight, the crew’s leader was going all out. She was laying down a series of traps that would reveal the lizard’s presence, even if its skill was active. If it stumbled into them, they might even deal some significant damage, or at least slow the big bastard down while the hunters made a break for it.
Edge learned what he could from observing her efforts. It was the first time that he had seen her weave together multiple layers, covering the bottom of the hill first and then working her way up. Watching the woman in her element, it was easy to see why Trapper was one of the most successful hunters in Puppet Town. Her manifest trap skill let her create a range of powerful devices, although it took a good ten minutes to form even the simplest.
The pit traps that she was creating at the edge of the soil were only one tool in her kit. A collection that the veteran hunter had spent long years developing, testing them out against a wide variety of beasts across a broad range of situations.
Her versatile skill was supplemented by her uncommon core. Thanks to Trapper’s specialty core, her creations were even more powerful than a mundane version would be. Better still, they wouldn’t trigger on anything friendly, and she could set them to activate automatically or wait for her conscious command.
The downside was that manifest trap consumed a lot of mana and its creations only lasted for twelve hours, after which the magic giving them physical form would break down and disperse.
After Trapper covered the bottom of the approach and moved on to the rockier sections, it was safe for the crew to start working on other tasks. At that point, Edge began pitching in. He hadn’t forgotten that he was being evaluated during this excursion, and he wanted to leave the best impression he could with everyone in the crew. He was willing to work hard to earn their respect and their trust, both on and off the battlefield.
While Violet got ready to make dinner, Edge and Sasha headed over to a nearby spring to fill four big jugs with water. Once they were filtered and boiled, they would be safe to drink.
Fortunately, the spring was in the middle of a dense grove not far from the bottom of the hill. A place where the trees grew close enough together that the big lizard wouldn’t be able to reach them. Not without knocking down the trunks and alerting the crew before it was able to draw near.
Side by side, they carried the jugs through the thicket and down to the water’s edge. Edge was worried that there would be some manner of aggressive beast laired nearby, but they didn’t run into anything of the sort on the way. There aren’t many animals living in the grove for that matter. Maybe the local ecosystem was damaged by the anomaly or the padamas drove them out of the area.
After a quick sweep of the region, they filled the contains to the brim and got ready to head back. The big jugs were heavy enough that they had to carry them one at a time, even with the extra strength provided by their cores. By the time that they made it back to camp, Trapper was nearly finished with the second line of defenses, and so far, they hadn’t seen any sign of the killer lizard.
After packing the jugs into the wagon, Sasha and Edge went back to retrieve the other set. When they reached the border of the spring, he realized that the atmosphere had changed while they were away. The grove had gone eerily silent over the last few minutes, and a strange scent had risen to ride the breeze.
It smelled like a net full of fish had been left to rot in the sun, topped by the acrid stench of sulfur. After sniffing at the air, Sasha and Edge turned to one another, and spoke at the same time. “Something isn’t right.” As one, they abandoned their jugs and turned to run, but it was already too late.
Before they could take two steps, the earth beneath their feet erupted in a spray of soil, as a swarm of crablike creatures came boiling out of the ground. He knew at a glance that their assailants weren’t beasts. A truth that Sasha confirmed with her next words.
“Oh shit. They’re monsters. We need to get out of here, Edge. Now!”