Chapter Seventeen- Rhigoyle
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ONE WEEK LATER
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A strange creature half waddled, half crawled across the little meadow near where the displaced duo had set up today’s camp. Leathery gray-green skin coated a hulking frame that looked vaguely human, if greatly disproportionate. It had a wide, stubby body balanced precariously on two short legs, with long, gangly arms. Atop its skinny shoulders was a small head, with bloodshot eyes and a single small horn in place of a nose. A deep, festering gash drew a line from the beast's pelvic region to its shoulder. A fetid smell wafted over Mark as he looked out at the disproportionate creature.
A rhigoyle, Mark recognized. The creature strikingly resembled Mark’s imagined image of a troll, one that matched the rhigoyle’s description in the books. Apparently they were rare, and he had only seen a few entries on them. Nobody seemed to have any idea where they came from too, as they were generally reclusive, with centuries passing between some sightings. Some mention seeing one their first day, while others never reported seeing one during periods of decades. Different descriptions were given for the creatures each time, but one thing remained the same throughout them all. Don’t fuck with the rhiygoyle.
The pair looked on at the rhigoyle. On the one hand, common sense said they should pack up and leave as soon as the creature was gone. After all, they were described as highly intelligent and physically quite powerful, as well as brutal. On the other… Mark focused again on the devastating wound the dead bear had inflicted on the creature. It’s weakened, he thought to himself. And its too close to the cabin. A choice had to be made. This rhigoyle was absolutely not what they had expected to encounter here. Rather, the foe they had been searching for was dead. Now horrifyingly disfigured, the corpse of the isle bear was in pieces, presumably being dragged back to the beast’s lair, and they needed to make a decision.
The sounds of muffled gagging reminded Mark of Lilliana’s more sensitive nose, and he wrinkled his own in solidarity. The smell really was putrid. Combined with the grisly sight before them, it completed the requirements for instant nausea. Blood oozed from both halves of the bear had met a similar fate to the ones they had killed several times over the past couple days. Recent events had forced Mark and Lilliana to adapt, and rather than sit and wait for threats to arise, they were taking a new approach. Rather than adopt the role of prey, they were attempting to be the predators. Not that we shouldn’t proceed with caution, he reminded himself. They might be far more powerful now than they were in their past lives, but this island had things to throw at them that they were by no means prepared for. The bear that had attacked Lilliana near the house was but a singular example of how uncertain their safety was, safety that they now knew they had been taking for granted. Over the course of the past few days, the number of creatures both approaching their home and the numbers of attacks they had experienced skyrocketed.
“And our levels, too” Lilliana sent him. He glanced up to where she was perched in a branch a little higher than his own. She was right. They were both now level four. Their control and capability over their skills grew steadily, and though they hadn’t yet gained any new ones, Lilliana Could easily cast a multitude of debilitating curses within a short span without exhausting her mana supply, and Mark was to the point where the ice spears that had once taken all of his concentration could be finished within mere moments. Even Azure had improved greatly, but he wasn’t here right now. At the thought of the baby dragon, who hadn’t come with them, Mark came to a realization. This rhigoyle was already too close to their home. It needed to die.
“Think we can take it?” he asked. They both knew that it would be a risk, but there was also risk in letting the predatory creature live. Mark shuddered as he imagined their home as a pile of rubble. Not gonna happen, he told himself. “Yeah,” Lilliana replied cautiously. “I do.”
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A half hour later, Mark and Lilliana were now lay concealed in the tall grass at the crest of the small hill that overlooked the rhigoyle’s … Den? Lair? Lilliana wasn’t sure, but it was some sort of home base for this specific creature. Mossy boulders surrounded the less than glamorous entrance. The smell was intense, and an unsettling quiet seemed to surround the entrance, as if no living creature dared approach. And yet here we are. Lilliana felt a familiar nervous twitch start up in her left ear. Because we need to be, she reminded herself. This creature, however much it made her want to turn tale and run, put everything she now held close at risk. It needed to go. A moment later, the grotesque crunching of bones and sinew emanated from within. Yes, this is it alright, she thought. “Let’s do this.”
The two shuffled carefully down the hill to the cave entrance, pausing momentarily outside to ready themselves. Lilliana unsheathed her dagger, and quickly refreshed the debilitation and pain curses applied to it as Mark summoned a pair of ice spears, each hovering over one of his shoulders, ready to be fired off at a moments notice. Mark gave her a look she couldn’t quite place, and then he slipped inside. She followed suit.
As they quietly entered the cave, the noises grew louder, and they were met with an iteration of the stench so potent that Lilliana actually gagged; one that grew as they got closer and closer, before culminating where the cave opened up into a larger chamber, where she began to recognize the scents. Mold, rot, blood, even excrement. The scent of death. Apprehension filled Lilliana as the cracking of bones echoed throughout the cavern. The skeletons of various creatures lay scattered around in the hundreds. Most were picked clean, more than a few held an unfortunate quantity of rotting flesh, but all were broken beyond repair- cracked open for the marrow, presumably. Lilliana wrinkled her nose instinctively, a strange ability she had gained from Mark. It didn’t actually do much to deaden the smell, but the strange feeling did distract from the stink.
In the center of the room was their prize. The wounded rhigoyle tore mercilessly into the corpse of the disemboweled isle bear. Lilliana nearly stumbled over a discarded rib as they made their way, as stealthily as possible, through the expansive cavern. She caught herself, sighing with relief when the creature seemed not to notice her slip. The beast was entirely focused on its meal, seemingly paying no mind to the two comparatively tiny creatures coming up behind it. But soon, it would.
Reaching a point where they were on level ground with the massive beast, Lilliana turned to Mark and together, they started with the same move they had been using for the bears. Lilliana’s improved damaging and disorienting curses were absorbed by a huge, writhing sphere of liquid water. As the cursed liquid cooled, it hardened into a devastatingly sharp spear of ice, upon which an ominous purple glow manifested itself in the form of hundreds of pointy barbs. This partner casting ability granted to them meant that they could work together to create a far greater effect than either of them could produce alone. The frightening creation hovered in midair momentarily. Lilliana held up three fingers. Then two. One.
Their deadly creation shot forward, easily piercing the skin of the rhigoyle’s back before erupting from the already wounded section of the creature's chest in a gory spray. This blow, which had proven immediately fatal to the numerous isle bears they had killed, was certainly still devastating for the rhigoyle, but the creature didn’t die instantly. Dark blood flooded out from the massive rupture in its flesh, and it let loose a scream of rage. Despite its extensives injuries and excessive blood loss, it turned to face them, unbridled anger visible in its beady black eyes. It took one shaky step in their direction. Then another. In the process of taking it’s final step, the beast collapsed under it’s own weight. The cavern went quiet. Next to Lilliana, Mark held tight to a more simple ice spear, preparing for combat. Lilliana clutched her dagger. They hung back, cautiously waiting for the rhigoyle to play its hand. It had been dealt a crippling blow, one that would kill it eventually. The question was whether or not it would take them out with it.. The two watched with their energy sense as what was once a spotlight of energy dimmed, before blinking out of existence completely.
Lilliana maintained her guard as she and Mark slowly approached the dead rhigoyle, pausing after every step to make sure it hadn’t moved. However, once they were within a couple feet of the creature, she noticed something different, that hadn’t happened with any of the other creatures they had fought. The body of the rhigoyle, once as corporeal as themselves, had begun to dissolve. She stopped and stood, dagger at the ready, and watched as the beast in its entirety condensed down into a pair of items.