We stayed in the town for a week before we received word that help was coming to the town. Melodies Strand I guess it's called. This place was known for its wine, music, and trading. At least before the rats destroyed everything. Many merchants once lived here due to the port and trade access. (It seems to be a fairly important place for this kingdom) Is what I thought at least. Then I saw the help.
What came was a battalion of dwarves from the north. Fully armed and provisioned with wagons and doctors it seemed. It was actually quite comical. When they got here they saw me and stayed away for fear of conflict. They actually sent a scout group around a different way to enter the city. They met up with Sam and the other survivors. They ended up explaining the situation to the scout leader. He was originally planning on using his men to give the survivors time to escape while they attempted to subdue me. When he found out what I actually was he was flustered.
Sam ended up having to come and get me to follow her before he would believe her. " I saw your men come around the long way. It was good that I knew you were coming else I would have mistaken you for bandits and roasted you." I growled as I gazed down at him.
He paled slightly before I felt something slam into my the side of my head. "Agah!" Sam uses Thunder Bane to smack me..... that's about all she uses it for. Thunder Bane is the hammer she found in the rubble of one of the houses. The villagers gave it to her as thanks apparently. More like they thought she needed a better beating stick. / Blunt Damage Tolerance lvl 1 gained. Hammers deal less damage but still hurt./
I rubbed the side of my head. "I was joking Sam. No need to hit." She smugly stood there with the thing. It was 2 foot tall at the top with a square hammer part and a foot long war pike at the back. The handle was half Sam's size. The entire thing crackled with energy which came from an azure gem embedded in the middle of the handle.
" If I didn't hit you every once in a while people would think that you were a wild beast." She replied. I shook my head and just gave up. No point in saying more.
The afternoon came shortly after the battalion reached the walls of the town. It was actually astonishing. Dwarves are very fast with how they build things. It was a couple hours between arriving and lunch and 3 stores had already been rebuilt. The roofs still needed to be cleaned and the stores restocked but everything was progressing smoothly.
I continued to guard the path to the north. Not a single monster got past me due to my earth perception skill. With only a thunder tiger manageing to get close enough for me to crush with my shields. Though of course the end result was it going to my stomache. It tasted funny and didn't have a crystal for some reason. And once again gave no skills. Even though these guys should have a skill for enhanced movement or something.
It wasn't long later that a second one made it with the same results. After a few days I was facing 4 or 5 tigers a day. I was eating my fill with that but I gained no more skills. ( Why am I not getting anything besides growth materials out of these things!?) I shrieked in my mind.
My body continued to grow and my scales shed as I grew. My shields became slightly thicker and my claws sharper. My scales became slightly harder and gained a small sheen to them. After eating so many I started collecting the claws as trophies to show many I killed. (Why are there so many of them here?!) I thought after number 20 died at my claws. { Sam..... Can you ask the dwarves a question?}
{ Sure. What do you want me to ask?} She replied. { Can you ask them if Thunder Tigers are common in these parts or if killing and eating 20 in a week is unheard of?} Silence followed. After a little bit I heard huffing. I turned my head and there were 5 dwarves and Sam standing there. The dwarves were out of breath and slightly pale. " Sam..... Did you carry them again?" She sheepishly ground her foot into the ground.
" The lass moves faster than any I've seen" said the dwarf I'd learned to be Volmyr. He was the leader of the battalion. Older looking with silver braiding his beard and wrinkles spreading across what appeared of his skin. Apparently the reason for him and his men to come out here was to resettle the town and retire. Not one of his men was in their prime anymore. So the army sent them to repair and repopulate.
"I'm sure but even so you guys can't quite seem to handle it yet." I pointed to the pile of claws that was stacked close to the melted gate. " I suppose your here to answer about those?" Volmyr and the others gathered around the stack and began to mutter to one another. After a couple minutes they turned around.
" How many did you say came through here?" They inquired with a concerned look.
" Twenty or so." I replied. They once again began to mutter. After a couple more minutes they turned around. " It might be possible that the monsters are forming a stampede. It makes sense. The weaker monsters like the Fire Rats swarm to get away and find food in safer places during times they feel the most threatened. Thunder Tigers feed on Fire Rats so they naturally follow them. If what we think is actually real we have to prepare the town for the worst case scenario." Volmyr said glumly.
I dug my claws into the ground. I was a little afraid. It brought back alot of memories. The first year I was in the forest I had experienced a monster stampede. Orcs, lions, birds, and the like were mixed together into a lethal mixing pot of disaster. A single stampede could take out a fully equipped town in the span of a day. It was that time that the tiger trapped and scarred me.
Sam must have felt my anxiety through the bond as she put her hand on my back, comforting me. I took a slow breath and calmed my mind. ( I am no longer alone.) I steeled my resolve and looked at Volmyr. "What do you need from me?
...🦇...
The town was quiet as the breeze gently caressed the houses and cobblestones of the Strand. The scent of lilies and flower petals floated on the wind. My nose was tickled by one as it passed. " Achoo!" sparks flew out of my mouth onto the road before me. I rubbed my nose. You try having sparks fly out of your honker and tell me that doesn't feel wierd.
I felt something through the ground. A pebble close to me began to rattle across the rubble.
( Here it comes.) I thought anxiously. I began to concentrate my power to my throat. I kept building it there. I could see some specks in the distance closing fast. As they got closer I focused on building the pressure. The hoard grew closer. There were metal lizards, orcs, even a giant in the mix. Great black spiders and small horned rabbits. The hoard was growing close enough I could here the roaring. I still focused the power to my throat. Sam slowly walked up beside me with her hammer out and took a stance. I waited and felt my throat seeming to crackle. There was a line drawn a couple meters away in yellow paint. I remember an orc was the first to step on it. After that I released the something that could have leveled a city. A single ball was released at high speed. It was purple and smoked as it flew. It seemingly screamed and crackled. This was accumulation and concentration of Breath of Destruction. The moment the ball hit the orc in the chest there was an explosion. There was a beam of dark light, fog, and electricity crackled through the area. The monsters closest were dead due to the flames. The monsters that were in the middle were fried by the electricity. The farthest monsters were dying from the potent elemental poison. There were extremely few that survived. The metal lizards were barely moving and were heavily injured. The rest were easy pickings. It was a feast for me.
Sam just stood next to me stone faced.
" That's what I call a barbecue..." She said. I thought of a movie back on earth and I cracked up.