Vault stood before them in all its glory. The town was rather large,
although it paled in comparison to the size of mighty Vale. Vault was the
sister town of the capital, and it therefore was very similar. The
buildings and layout of the town were virtually identical; the biggest
anomaly was the absence of a castle. The people in Vault were also very
similar to those in Vale in many respects, so Vault wasn't unlike home to
four of the five adventurers.
As it turns out, Isaac's prediction of their arrival was more correct than he could have guessed. They reached the town gates precisely as the setting sun met with the horizon.
"Well, we're here. Now what?" Garet asked.
"We go talk to the mayor of Vault and then we go find an inn to sleep. It's getting late." Felix stated. "Now then, I believe the mayor's house is this way. Come along now."
"Sure, we'll follow your lead." Dargon shrugged and sighed. Since when was Felix the lord of the lot of them? He guessed it didn't matter in the end. He was probably the more sensible one anyway.
The march through the town was simple, and there weren't as many gawkers as there was in Vale. Only the occasional person really noticed Felix or Dargon, and even then the crowds of admirers were thin. Had they arrived at noontime, they probably would've been swamped by adoring fans. . . mostly young women. That would've suited both him and Garet pretty well.
They arrived at the mayor's residence without mishap. Felix knocked on the door a couple of times and they were answered by a servant; a butler, in his middle ages.
"May I help you, sir?" The butler asked, in the typical butler fashion.
"Yes, I'd like to see the mayor, good sir. We come with a mission from King Picard himself."
"And your names, sirs?"
"I am Lord Felix, leader of the Paladins of Sol. This is Lord Dargon, leader of the Knights of Luna. With us are the mage Ivan, the Luna Knight Garet, and my apprentice, Isaac."
"Please wait here. Master Sarten will be with you shortly." The butler said, leading the five warriors into the foyer. "I will fetch him straight away." He walked down the hall and disappeared around a corner.
Isaac glanced around inside the foyer; it was warmly decorated. Several rugs and carpets adorned the wooden floor, and countless paintings of landscapes dotted the wooden walls. A suit of armor sat near the front door, and there was an odd sculpture of a raven in a tree on the far side of the room. The foyer's ceiling rose high and from it a glass chandelier dangled. This house was lavishly decorated and seemed appropriate for a lord rather than a mayor. Eventually, footsteps could be heard coming down from the hallway. The butler had returned, and he gestured for them to follow him. They did, and they were led into the mayor's office.
The office was similarly decorated to the foyer, only a huge oak desk sat in the room, and a young man in his early twenties sat behind the desk, writing some kind of document with a feather pen. He looked very busy, but he looked up when he saw his arrivals.
"Ah, I'm glad you could make it, Lord Felix, Lord Dargon." He rose, and walked over to shake the hands of his distinguished guests. The mayor was exceptionally young, but he looked sharp as a tack. His deep blue eyes showed incredible depth and integrity and his dark brown hair, while somewhat uncontrolled, didn't seem out of place. The man wore a blue tunic with black pants and he wore brown boots as well. "Wing Sarten, at your service. May I ask who your fellows are?"
"My name is Ivan." The mage stated.
"I'm Garet."
"Call me Isaac. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Pleasure's mine, friend. I'm glad to see you made it here so quickly. Vault's been in a bit of an upheaval since the troubles began. It's been hell trying to keep up with keeping everyone calm and normal work. To make matters worse, we have no idea what is actually causing this mess."
"Well, we were told of Skeletons mounted on horseback and zombies eating the flesh of people who are alive."
"Well, we have had sightings of some of those things, but the town defenders have managed to drive most of them away."
"Then what's the problem, sir?" Ivan asked.
"The strangest thing is the sudden weather changes. One minute, it's calm and quiet, and the next, there are gale force winds blowing everywhere! It's like the wind has gone against us. To make matters worse, recently the windstorms have been occurring in conjunction with the skeletal attack. I don't know if we can fend them off if this keeps up. The winds only get worse every day."
"When does this sort of thing happen?"
"Late at night. Usually around the hours of one or two in the morning."
"Well, so much for sleeping at the inn." Garet sighed. "We'll have to keep watch now."
"Okay, Mr. Sarten, we'll help keep watch tonight and we'll stop whatever it is that is going on here!" Ivan stated.
"Please, just call me Wing! I can't stand that 'Mr.' Stuff! My butler does it enough and it drives me nuts! Anyway, I want to thank you in advance for helping our people."
"They're our people too, Wing." Isaac stated. "What kind of nation would we be if we left each of our cities to their own devices?"
"A nation on the brink of failure." Ivan stated.
"All right, what's the plan, Felix?" Garet asked, turning to the elder and wiser Venus Adept.
"Well, what we're going to do is go to the inn and rest for a couple of hours before we go do battle with whatever is causing the problem. Then it's just a matter of defeating the damned thing or things."
"So we have no strategy in battle?"
"No, we have a strategy. The creature uses wind, correct? That means it is of Jupiter alignment, meaning that Isaac's and my own Venus attacks should do significant damage to it."
"Could it be that the creature might just have a very powerful set of lungs, Felix?" Dargon asked, sarcastically.
"Very funny, Dargon. Do you have a better plan?"
"No, not really. Just thought I'd say something for the sake of argument."
Felix smiled. "Dargon, with your sense of humor, you never would've made the rank of Sol Paladin."
"Why do you think I did so well as a Luna Knight, Felix?" Dargon laughed. "Being a jokester got me pretty far, I'd say."
"Perhaps too far, Dargon." Isaac sighed. "Anyway, I'm with Felix on this one. It's logical that if the creature creates wind it would likely be vulnerable to earth attacks, so this should be a piece of cake."
"Hopefully." Ivan stated. "Anything else you can tell us, Wing?"
"I'm afraid there's not much else. Just remember not to get bogged down by the undead hordes; they sometimes come in great number. Luckily, most of the creatures are weak and are easily defeated."
"One last question, Wing. Do you have any idea where these creatures are coming from? Was there a curse put on the town, did somebody displease a spirit, or what?" Felix asked.
"I don't know, Lord Felix. All I know is that these things just started showing up one night. Who's to say where they really came from?"
"Thank you, Wing. Come on guys, we'll need to get some sleep and something to eat. Like you said Ivan, time is of the essence." Felix stated, leading his friends from the room.
"Thank you again, Lord Felix, and be careful out there!" Wing shouted as the adventurers walked down the hall. He saw Felix raise his hand in acknowledgement, but he continued to walk. Wing sighed and closed his door. The hopes of his town rested on those five warriors; could they really do the job?
*************************************
Isaac sighed as he took his feet from his leather boots. They were blazing hot from the walking they did, not to mention from the weather outside. It had been warm all day, but it felt like the night would carry an unnatural chill this evening. Isaac's fatigued legs loosened as he reclined on his bed in the inn. He was sharing a room with Ivan; Dargon was with Garet, and Felix was in a smaller room by himself.
"It feels good to relax in a real bed for awhile. I haven't laid on a bed this comfortable since longer than I can remember."
"Your billet bed isn't comfortable, Isaac?"
"It's okay, but this bed is really nice." He said, closing his deep blue eyes.
"So, what do you think we will have to be dealing with, Isaac?" Ivan asked.
"Besides the skeletons, I haven't the foggiest idea. What do you think, Ivan?"
"I don't know either, Isaac. I can't think of many monsters that actually can cause windstorms of enough power to cause damage."
"What are a couple?"
"Well, I'd venture to guess only Wild Gryphons could produce that much wind."
"I think we can safely rule them out. If it was, somebody was bound to have seen a gigantic bird flying around in the sky."
"True."
"Whatever it may be, we'll be ready for it. I mean, we're five of the greatest warriors in the land, right?"
"Four of the greatest warriors and a powerful mage, Isaac. I hate being called a warrior. It makes me sound like a melee fighter, no offense."
"None taken, Ivan."
"Isaac, can I ask you another question?"
"Like what?"
"Well, what's it like living under such a strict code as Sol? Can you even stand it?"
"Yes, I can. Actually, the code really isn't all that bad, Ivan. It's a matter of adjusting, really. I mean, you can do without certain things, like gambling or cavorting."
"Well, what do you think about not being allowed to love, Isaac?"
He paused before answering. "I haven't thought about it, really. To be honest, I'd never see myself falling in love. Not only is it against my code, I don't have time to be worried about something like that, Ivan. Besides, as a Paladin, I will be constantly sent on missions, and I won't have time to garner a relationship. Besides, love clouds your emotions."
"Or does it make everything clearer, Isaac?" Ivan questioned. "I understand it being against your code, but I have to disagree. I believe love actually makes a person better."
"Love does cloud judgment, Ivan. You can't deny that. As a Paladin, I must always have my head on straight and have my judgment clear."
"Well, okay. I'll take your word for it, Isaac. Though if you weren't a Paladin in training, I'd tell you not to knock it before you tried it."
"Have you ever been in love, Ivan?"
"Not myself, but I've seen how powerful of an effect it can have on people. My parents were the example. My father was once sick pretty badly, and my mother ventured out to find the herb that would cure his illness. She survived and prevailed, bringing back stories of her month-long travel. It was a labor of love, Isaac." Ivan stared over at the Venus Adept, whose eyes were now closed. Ivan could hear him snoring very softly, and he sighed. It was pointless to argue with him; he had the stubbornness of his teacher as well as his leadership skills. The Jupiter Adept sighed and laid his head against his pillow, and let himself drift into a calm sleep.
****************************************
"Isaac, wake up." Felix said, jostling him on the shoulder. "Come on, it's time for us to get a look around. The winds are picking up." Isaac yawned and stretched before replying.
"Okay, I'll be with you in a minute. Just let me get changed and we'll be on our way."
"Make it fast, Isaac. We have little time." Felix arose, leaving the room. Isaac hopped out of bed and quickly got his equipment back on. Like Felix had said, he had little time, and he couldn't afford to fail. After finally tying his golden scarf tightly, he dashed out in pursuit of his master. Garet stumbled out from the room behind him, slipping his sword sheath over his shoulder.
"Dammit, couldn't Dargon have woken me up with a little more warning than 'we don't have any more time!'?"
"Apparently not, Garet. Let's go!" Isaac exclaimed, dashing outside to meet up with the others. Felix, Dargon, and Ivan were all waiting, weapons drawn. As soon as Isaac set foot outside the inn, his hair was instantly thrown back in a gale force wind, seemingly blowing from everywhere at once.
"About time, Isaac. The winds are radiating from outside the town! Let's go!" Felix shouted to his apprentice through the fierce winds. The five adventurers pushed through the wind with considerable effort until they finally reached the town walls, where several archers were lined up firing over the side. The gates were opened for the five fighters, and they pressed into a horde of undead minions. Most of the enemies were simple zombies, though there was an occasional skeleton in the mix. The zombies and skeletons were easily fallen with a swift swing of a sword or a quick club of a staff. As they drew farther from town, the winds only grew stronger.
"We must be getting close!" Dargon shouted over the high winds. "I think it's coming from on top of that hill ahead!" He pointed. The others squinted to see what he was pointing at, but they couldn't make out exactly what was up on the next hill. They each shielded their eyes as they stormed the hill, and they found the winds to be subsiding as they went up the hill. Finally, they reached the top, and they rightfully gasped at what they saw.
"What the hell is that thing?!" Garet exclaimed, putting his sword up to attack. The creature was huge; it had dark blue scales and it resembled a giant lizard walking on its hind legs. It had two orange crests that jaunted from its neck, and it had two glowing red eyes. Its teeth were long and vicious, its body strong and powerful.
"I should've known it!" Ivan exclaimed. "That's a Storm Lizard!"
"A what?!" Garet replied.
"Storm Lizard, Garet!" Felix shouted. "The thing can actually create massive windstorms that can uproot even buildings. Be careful, guys!" The lizard's attention now focused on its new arrivals. It saw an opportunity to score a free meal, and it wasn't about to let this chance go by. It roared fiercely at the newcomers and it prepared to attack.
The lizard was easily thrice the size of even Garet, and it certainly looked very hungry. The party split apart, to try to surround the massive beast. The lizard roared, and charged Ivan right away. The young mage was spry enough to dodge from its gnashing jaws, but the creature wasn't fast enough to dodge a well-placed Storm Ray. The blast did little more than aggravate the Jupiter based creature, as it turned and snarled at Dargon next.
The experienced Mars Adept dashed toward the creature and ran his trusty sword down its scaled hide. Unfortunately for him, the sword attack did little more than chip away a few of the beast's azure scales. The Storm Lizard hissed in annoyance, and quickly let slip a Wind Slash through the party. The cutting winds tore through the heroes' ranks and did some serious damage. Isaac and Felix, being of Venus alignment, were hurt the most by the shearing winds. They quickly casted Cure on themselves and moved for the attack. Isaac made sure to return the favor with a punishing blast of Ragnarok. The creature reeled in pain, giving Garet sufficient time to attack the creature with his weapon. With the Storm Lizard hurting from the Ragnarok strike, it was easy for Garet's attack to find home and catch the creature's soft flesh below its scaly armor.
The Storm Lizard gave off an awful scream of anguish and it fired off a Plasma bolt against Garet, Dargon, and Ivan. The blast was at the least shocking for the three targets.
Felix was less than pleased with the Storm Lizard's urge to continue attacking, so he made sure to drive home his point with Stone Spire. The creature howled again as the huge formations of rock dropped on him. Angered, the creature let out another massive roar, which shook the ground with its incredible volume. Now the creature went on the offensive again. It fanned its crests outward and it was noticeably gaining energy in its mouth. As it roared again, a massive Tornado emerged from its windpipe, and it began to tear through the hill. The heroes scattered left and right to avoid the out-of-control zephyr of wind. It looked like everything was fine as Isaac prepared to strike again.
"Okay, let's try the Ragnarok again! Ready. . ."
"Isaac, look out!" Garet's voice sounded.
"What, huh?! What the?!" Isaac shouted, spinning around to see the Tornado that was supposed to have missed him coming right for him. "Damn it!" Isaac tried to make a run for it, but the storm had already grasped him. It sucked him upward and into the top reaches of the funnel cloud, and it carried him off into the heavens.
"Isaac!!!" Felix shouted, seeing the Tornado actually lifting off into the night sky, carrying his apprentice with it. Felix turned to face the Storm Lizard, and without a word of vengeance or anger, let the creature have it with a blast of one of his most powerful spells: Mother Gaia. The bowels of the earth seemed to erupt from beneath the creature, and it disintegrated as the power of Venus engulfed its body.
"Wow. . . that was amazing, Felix!" Dargon shouted.
"That's not what I'm concerned about, Dargon!" Felix replied, looking into the sky for any sign of Isaac. Nothing was found at all. "Damn!"
"You don't think that Isaac's. . ." Garet trailed off.
"I doubt it, Garet. It's actually a good probability he survived. Storm Lizard's Tornado attack is notorious for sending things out of battle, not killing them. Odds are, Isaac's still alive." Ivan stated.
"How many people have survived it?"
"About a hundred people have been reported missing because of this power. Sixty of them were found alive. The Tornado has a tendency to drop its victims within a twenty mile radius of the battle."
"Well, then let's not waste any more time! There's no telling where Isaac could be!" Dargon exclaimed. He intentionally left off his thoughts of if Isaac had even survived.
"I hope he's okay!" Garet stated. "Let's go, now!" They all began searching the countryside for the remainder of the night, trying to locate their lost comrade. Little did they know that the matter of this whole incident was about to get a lot more complicated. . .
As it turns out, Isaac's prediction of their arrival was more correct than he could have guessed. They reached the town gates precisely as the setting sun met with the horizon.
"Well, we're here. Now what?" Garet asked.
"We go talk to the mayor of Vault and then we go find an inn to sleep. It's getting late." Felix stated. "Now then, I believe the mayor's house is this way. Come along now."
"Sure, we'll follow your lead." Dargon shrugged and sighed. Since when was Felix the lord of the lot of them? He guessed it didn't matter in the end. He was probably the more sensible one anyway.
The march through the town was simple, and there weren't as many gawkers as there was in Vale. Only the occasional person really noticed Felix or Dargon, and even then the crowds of admirers were thin. Had they arrived at noontime, they probably would've been swamped by adoring fans. . . mostly young women. That would've suited both him and Garet pretty well.
They arrived at the mayor's residence without mishap. Felix knocked on the door a couple of times and they were answered by a servant; a butler, in his middle ages.
"May I help you, sir?" The butler asked, in the typical butler fashion.
"Yes, I'd like to see the mayor, good sir. We come with a mission from King Picard himself."
"And your names, sirs?"
"I am Lord Felix, leader of the Paladins of Sol. This is Lord Dargon, leader of the Knights of Luna. With us are the mage Ivan, the Luna Knight Garet, and my apprentice, Isaac."
"Please wait here. Master Sarten will be with you shortly." The butler said, leading the five warriors into the foyer. "I will fetch him straight away." He walked down the hall and disappeared around a corner.
Isaac glanced around inside the foyer; it was warmly decorated. Several rugs and carpets adorned the wooden floor, and countless paintings of landscapes dotted the wooden walls. A suit of armor sat near the front door, and there was an odd sculpture of a raven in a tree on the far side of the room. The foyer's ceiling rose high and from it a glass chandelier dangled. This house was lavishly decorated and seemed appropriate for a lord rather than a mayor. Eventually, footsteps could be heard coming down from the hallway. The butler had returned, and he gestured for them to follow him. They did, and they were led into the mayor's office.
The office was similarly decorated to the foyer, only a huge oak desk sat in the room, and a young man in his early twenties sat behind the desk, writing some kind of document with a feather pen. He looked very busy, but he looked up when he saw his arrivals.
"Ah, I'm glad you could make it, Lord Felix, Lord Dargon." He rose, and walked over to shake the hands of his distinguished guests. The mayor was exceptionally young, but he looked sharp as a tack. His deep blue eyes showed incredible depth and integrity and his dark brown hair, while somewhat uncontrolled, didn't seem out of place. The man wore a blue tunic with black pants and he wore brown boots as well. "Wing Sarten, at your service. May I ask who your fellows are?"
"My name is Ivan." The mage stated.
"I'm Garet."
"Call me Isaac. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Pleasure's mine, friend. I'm glad to see you made it here so quickly. Vault's been in a bit of an upheaval since the troubles began. It's been hell trying to keep up with keeping everyone calm and normal work. To make matters worse, we have no idea what is actually causing this mess."
"Well, we were told of Skeletons mounted on horseback and zombies eating the flesh of people who are alive."
"Well, we have had sightings of some of those things, but the town defenders have managed to drive most of them away."
"Then what's the problem, sir?" Ivan asked.
"The strangest thing is the sudden weather changes. One minute, it's calm and quiet, and the next, there are gale force winds blowing everywhere! It's like the wind has gone against us. To make matters worse, recently the windstorms have been occurring in conjunction with the skeletal attack. I don't know if we can fend them off if this keeps up. The winds only get worse every day."
"When does this sort of thing happen?"
"Late at night. Usually around the hours of one or two in the morning."
"Well, so much for sleeping at the inn." Garet sighed. "We'll have to keep watch now."
"Okay, Mr. Sarten, we'll help keep watch tonight and we'll stop whatever it is that is going on here!" Ivan stated.
"Please, just call me Wing! I can't stand that 'Mr.' Stuff! My butler does it enough and it drives me nuts! Anyway, I want to thank you in advance for helping our people."
"They're our people too, Wing." Isaac stated. "What kind of nation would we be if we left each of our cities to their own devices?"
"A nation on the brink of failure." Ivan stated.
"All right, what's the plan, Felix?" Garet asked, turning to the elder and wiser Venus Adept.
"Well, what we're going to do is go to the inn and rest for a couple of hours before we go do battle with whatever is causing the problem. Then it's just a matter of defeating the damned thing or things."
"So we have no strategy in battle?"
"No, we have a strategy. The creature uses wind, correct? That means it is of Jupiter alignment, meaning that Isaac's and my own Venus attacks should do significant damage to it."
"Could it be that the creature might just have a very powerful set of lungs, Felix?" Dargon asked, sarcastically.
"Very funny, Dargon. Do you have a better plan?"
"No, not really. Just thought I'd say something for the sake of argument."
Felix smiled. "Dargon, with your sense of humor, you never would've made the rank of Sol Paladin."
"Why do you think I did so well as a Luna Knight, Felix?" Dargon laughed. "Being a jokester got me pretty far, I'd say."
"Perhaps too far, Dargon." Isaac sighed. "Anyway, I'm with Felix on this one. It's logical that if the creature creates wind it would likely be vulnerable to earth attacks, so this should be a piece of cake."
"Hopefully." Ivan stated. "Anything else you can tell us, Wing?"
"I'm afraid there's not much else. Just remember not to get bogged down by the undead hordes; they sometimes come in great number. Luckily, most of the creatures are weak and are easily defeated."
"One last question, Wing. Do you have any idea where these creatures are coming from? Was there a curse put on the town, did somebody displease a spirit, or what?" Felix asked.
"I don't know, Lord Felix. All I know is that these things just started showing up one night. Who's to say where they really came from?"
"Thank you, Wing. Come on guys, we'll need to get some sleep and something to eat. Like you said Ivan, time is of the essence." Felix stated, leading his friends from the room.
"Thank you again, Lord Felix, and be careful out there!" Wing shouted as the adventurers walked down the hall. He saw Felix raise his hand in acknowledgement, but he continued to walk. Wing sighed and closed his door. The hopes of his town rested on those five warriors; could they really do the job?
*************************************
Isaac sighed as he took his feet from his leather boots. They were blazing hot from the walking they did, not to mention from the weather outside. It had been warm all day, but it felt like the night would carry an unnatural chill this evening. Isaac's fatigued legs loosened as he reclined on his bed in the inn. He was sharing a room with Ivan; Dargon was with Garet, and Felix was in a smaller room by himself.
"It feels good to relax in a real bed for awhile. I haven't laid on a bed this comfortable since longer than I can remember."
"Your billet bed isn't comfortable, Isaac?"
"It's okay, but this bed is really nice." He said, closing his deep blue eyes.
"So, what do you think we will have to be dealing with, Isaac?" Ivan asked.
"Besides the skeletons, I haven't the foggiest idea. What do you think, Ivan?"
"I don't know either, Isaac. I can't think of many monsters that actually can cause windstorms of enough power to cause damage."
"What are a couple?"
"Well, I'd venture to guess only Wild Gryphons could produce that much wind."
"I think we can safely rule them out. If it was, somebody was bound to have seen a gigantic bird flying around in the sky."
"True."
"Whatever it may be, we'll be ready for it. I mean, we're five of the greatest warriors in the land, right?"
"Four of the greatest warriors and a powerful mage, Isaac. I hate being called a warrior. It makes me sound like a melee fighter, no offense."
"None taken, Ivan."
"Isaac, can I ask you another question?"
"Like what?"
"Well, what's it like living under such a strict code as Sol? Can you even stand it?"
"Yes, I can. Actually, the code really isn't all that bad, Ivan. It's a matter of adjusting, really. I mean, you can do without certain things, like gambling or cavorting."
"Well, what do you think about not being allowed to love, Isaac?"
He paused before answering. "I haven't thought about it, really. To be honest, I'd never see myself falling in love. Not only is it against my code, I don't have time to be worried about something like that, Ivan. Besides, as a Paladin, I will be constantly sent on missions, and I won't have time to garner a relationship. Besides, love clouds your emotions."
"Or does it make everything clearer, Isaac?" Ivan questioned. "I understand it being against your code, but I have to disagree. I believe love actually makes a person better."
"Love does cloud judgment, Ivan. You can't deny that. As a Paladin, I must always have my head on straight and have my judgment clear."
"Well, okay. I'll take your word for it, Isaac. Though if you weren't a Paladin in training, I'd tell you not to knock it before you tried it."
"Have you ever been in love, Ivan?"
"Not myself, but I've seen how powerful of an effect it can have on people. My parents were the example. My father was once sick pretty badly, and my mother ventured out to find the herb that would cure his illness. She survived and prevailed, bringing back stories of her month-long travel. It was a labor of love, Isaac." Ivan stared over at the Venus Adept, whose eyes were now closed. Ivan could hear him snoring very softly, and he sighed. It was pointless to argue with him; he had the stubbornness of his teacher as well as his leadership skills. The Jupiter Adept sighed and laid his head against his pillow, and let himself drift into a calm sleep.
****************************************
"Isaac, wake up." Felix said, jostling him on the shoulder. "Come on, it's time for us to get a look around. The winds are picking up." Isaac yawned and stretched before replying.
"Okay, I'll be with you in a minute. Just let me get changed and we'll be on our way."
"Make it fast, Isaac. We have little time." Felix arose, leaving the room. Isaac hopped out of bed and quickly got his equipment back on. Like Felix had said, he had little time, and he couldn't afford to fail. After finally tying his golden scarf tightly, he dashed out in pursuit of his master. Garet stumbled out from the room behind him, slipping his sword sheath over his shoulder.
"Dammit, couldn't Dargon have woken me up with a little more warning than 'we don't have any more time!'?"
"Apparently not, Garet. Let's go!" Isaac exclaimed, dashing outside to meet up with the others. Felix, Dargon, and Ivan were all waiting, weapons drawn. As soon as Isaac set foot outside the inn, his hair was instantly thrown back in a gale force wind, seemingly blowing from everywhere at once.
"About time, Isaac. The winds are radiating from outside the town! Let's go!" Felix shouted to his apprentice through the fierce winds. The five adventurers pushed through the wind with considerable effort until they finally reached the town walls, where several archers were lined up firing over the side. The gates were opened for the five fighters, and they pressed into a horde of undead minions. Most of the enemies were simple zombies, though there was an occasional skeleton in the mix. The zombies and skeletons were easily fallen with a swift swing of a sword or a quick club of a staff. As they drew farther from town, the winds only grew stronger.
"We must be getting close!" Dargon shouted over the high winds. "I think it's coming from on top of that hill ahead!" He pointed. The others squinted to see what he was pointing at, but they couldn't make out exactly what was up on the next hill. They each shielded their eyes as they stormed the hill, and they found the winds to be subsiding as they went up the hill. Finally, they reached the top, and they rightfully gasped at what they saw.
"What the hell is that thing?!" Garet exclaimed, putting his sword up to attack. The creature was huge; it had dark blue scales and it resembled a giant lizard walking on its hind legs. It had two orange crests that jaunted from its neck, and it had two glowing red eyes. Its teeth were long and vicious, its body strong and powerful.
"I should've known it!" Ivan exclaimed. "That's a Storm Lizard!"
"A what?!" Garet replied.
"Storm Lizard, Garet!" Felix shouted. "The thing can actually create massive windstorms that can uproot even buildings. Be careful, guys!" The lizard's attention now focused on its new arrivals. It saw an opportunity to score a free meal, and it wasn't about to let this chance go by. It roared fiercely at the newcomers and it prepared to attack.
The lizard was easily thrice the size of even Garet, and it certainly looked very hungry. The party split apart, to try to surround the massive beast. The lizard roared, and charged Ivan right away. The young mage was spry enough to dodge from its gnashing jaws, but the creature wasn't fast enough to dodge a well-placed Storm Ray. The blast did little more than aggravate the Jupiter based creature, as it turned and snarled at Dargon next.
The experienced Mars Adept dashed toward the creature and ran his trusty sword down its scaled hide. Unfortunately for him, the sword attack did little more than chip away a few of the beast's azure scales. The Storm Lizard hissed in annoyance, and quickly let slip a Wind Slash through the party. The cutting winds tore through the heroes' ranks and did some serious damage. Isaac and Felix, being of Venus alignment, were hurt the most by the shearing winds. They quickly casted Cure on themselves and moved for the attack. Isaac made sure to return the favor with a punishing blast of Ragnarok. The creature reeled in pain, giving Garet sufficient time to attack the creature with his weapon. With the Storm Lizard hurting from the Ragnarok strike, it was easy for Garet's attack to find home and catch the creature's soft flesh below its scaly armor.
The Storm Lizard gave off an awful scream of anguish and it fired off a Plasma bolt against Garet, Dargon, and Ivan. The blast was at the least shocking for the three targets.
Felix was less than pleased with the Storm Lizard's urge to continue attacking, so he made sure to drive home his point with Stone Spire. The creature howled again as the huge formations of rock dropped on him. Angered, the creature let out another massive roar, which shook the ground with its incredible volume. Now the creature went on the offensive again. It fanned its crests outward and it was noticeably gaining energy in its mouth. As it roared again, a massive Tornado emerged from its windpipe, and it began to tear through the hill. The heroes scattered left and right to avoid the out-of-control zephyr of wind. It looked like everything was fine as Isaac prepared to strike again.
"Okay, let's try the Ragnarok again! Ready. . ."
"Isaac, look out!" Garet's voice sounded.
"What, huh?! What the?!" Isaac shouted, spinning around to see the Tornado that was supposed to have missed him coming right for him. "Damn it!" Isaac tried to make a run for it, but the storm had already grasped him. It sucked him upward and into the top reaches of the funnel cloud, and it carried him off into the heavens.
"Isaac!!!" Felix shouted, seeing the Tornado actually lifting off into the night sky, carrying his apprentice with it. Felix turned to face the Storm Lizard, and without a word of vengeance or anger, let the creature have it with a blast of one of his most powerful spells: Mother Gaia. The bowels of the earth seemed to erupt from beneath the creature, and it disintegrated as the power of Venus engulfed its body.
"Wow. . . that was amazing, Felix!" Dargon shouted.
"That's not what I'm concerned about, Dargon!" Felix replied, looking into the sky for any sign of Isaac. Nothing was found at all. "Damn!"
"You don't think that Isaac's. . ." Garet trailed off.
"I doubt it, Garet. It's actually a good probability he survived. Storm Lizard's Tornado attack is notorious for sending things out of battle, not killing them. Odds are, Isaac's still alive." Ivan stated.
"How many people have survived it?"
"About a hundred people have been reported missing because of this power. Sixty of them were found alive. The Tornado has a tendency to drop its victims within a twenty mile radius of the battle."
"Well, then let's not waste any more time! There's no telling where Isaac could be!" Dargon exclaimed. He intentionally left off his thoughts of if Isaac had even survived.
"I hope he's okay!" Garet stated. "Let's go, now!" They all began searching the countryside for the remainder of the night, trying to locate their lost comrade. Little did they know that the matter of this whole incident was about to get a lot more complicated. . .
