Xander once again voices his reluctance with Shanna's plan, "I don't understand why I have to be the bait. You're quicker and more sure-footed than I am. Plus, I didn't plan on getting eaten anytime soon."
Shanna rolls her eyes, "Oh don't be such a big baby. Far worse can happen to you on these quests. And I already told you. Your trapping technique isn't strong enough to capture something that large. That's why I'll be the one to activate the trap and you will be the bait to lead the beast toward it."
Xander doesn't want to think about what other terrible tragedies await him on future quests so instead he mentally prepares himself for what they're about to do.
He stretches out his muscles with his eyes closed. The moonlight shines down on his skin making it glow with an almost pale light. He can feel the energy surging through him. If he didn't feel this rush of energy, he probably would refuse the plan. "Alright, I'm ready," Xander says, finally conceding.
"Good. You don't have to worry. I've got your back if things don't turn out the way we expected them to. Make sure you stand in the center of the melon farm. I'll be watching from up in the shed."
"How long do you think it'll take before the beast shows up again?"
Shanna shakes her head, "As far as we know, it can appear anytime between sundown and sunup. Just stay alert."
Xander nods his head and gets into position at the center of the melon farm.
Shanna climbs up into the second floor of the shed and uses one of the spyglasses Xander made for them. She peers into the small cylinder crystal at Xander and sits completely still just watching.
Xander remains on the ground level pacing slightly back and forth while fiddling with his belt. He didn't prepare absorbing any materials before they left the guildhall, so he'll only have his crystal magic and Shanna to rely on once the beast finally shows up.
Hours go by and the two quickly start to get a bit bored. Shanna lays on her stomach with an arm propping her head up as she continues peering through the spyglass. Xander stands leaning against a rather large melon. One bigger than him and bigger than the rest of the melons in the farm.
Though, it isn't completely rare to find a spectacle as large as this in Jenson's Farm. There are multiple pumpkins in the far distance that stand at the same height as this melon. Xander runs a finger down the side of the melon, wiping off what appears to be dew even though morning time is still a long way away. The skin of this melon maintains a much darker shade than the rest of the melons in the farm. The various stripes of green running down the melon also zigzag in weird spots, almost as if the melon shares a completely different pattern scheme from the rest of the farm.
Xander sighs and leans back against it starting to feel himself drift off. Even though the atmosphere is very chilly, making everything it touches cold, the surface of this large melon is warmer than Xander expects. Almost like a solid pillow. He smiles as he mumbles to himself and dozes off.
Shanna meanwhile squints through the spyglass taking note of the melon Xander is laying against. Wait a second. Has that melon always been there? she wonders in her mind. She takes a few minutes to try and recollect the layout of the farm from earlier today, but she can't remember for sure. Something tells her she should get Xander out of there.
Almost like her thoughts were loud enough to disrupt the silence in the night, the giant melon Xander leans against starts to shift.
Xander slides off and bonks his head on another melon laying on the ground. Xander quickly wakes back up and grabs onto his head, "What the crap. What's going on?" The giant melon starts to grow taller and move about. As it turns, Xander quickly realizes it's not a melon. Before he can react, the massive melon creature leaps into the air above his head and comes crashing back down to the ground.
Shanna thrusts her hand forward and swings it, causing a thick rope of vines to break from the ground, grabbing Xander and flinging him out of the melon beast's reach. An explosion of earth causes the ground to vibrate slightly, rocks and soil flying everywhere, smashed pumpkins and melons tossed in every direction.
Xander hits the ground sprinting. The beast quickly regains its footing and charges after him. Xander summons two crystal swords as he runs. He leaps to the side for a second to let the beast pass by him. As he does so he swipes at the creature's sides with the swords. Unfortunately, the hide of the creature is too tough as they shatter. Xander gulps and runs off again with the creature in close pursuit.
Shanna steps out of the shed and calls to Xander, "Bring it to the shed!"
"How!?" Xander yells back, "The darn thing will run me over before I manage to turn it back around!"
Shanna quickly comes up with a solution by sending a wave of vines underneath Xander's feet. He uses the momentum of this footing to catapult himself over the charging creature which crashes into a rather large pumpkin that is about its own size. The beast turns around, clearly pissed off. It huffs and a small plume of breath escape its huge snout.
Now that the thing is standing still, Shanna can get a better look of it. The melon beast resembles a massive hog. There's no tusks, but massive whiskers poke from its green hide. Bristles that are reddish silver. Its snout enlarges as it rises and falls with each huff of breath. Its squeals are quite gruff, and a mouth is carved from its skin. Jagged points of its skin end abruptly giving off the impression of teeth. The inside of its mouth leads to a black hole full of a crimson liquid, almost like blood flowing inside of its mouth. Its eyes are carved out of its skin just like the mouth portion. Dark holes that hold the same crimson interior, flowing around like a pool of blood.
"What kind of creature is that!?!?" Xander exclaims.
"It's a guardian," Shanna answers in wonder.
This is the first time she's seen a guardian up close before. Creatures born from the very objects, materials, and artifacts they are meant to protect.
"Well, I'm bringing it to you now!" Xander shouts as the beast paws at the ground. It then leaps forward and charges again.
Shanna runs to fully open the shed doors. The structure should be just large enough to contain the massive beast. At least for the purpose of what Shanna plans to do.
Xander stops running at the door of the shed and quickly turns around. Just as the beast is about to bear down on him, he leaps out of the way and it crashes into the shed.
Shanna then quickly releases a magic spell she had started chanting and a huge magic circle appears over the guardian's head, "I release thee from thy duty! O protector of this farm." However, the melon beast doesn't calm down. It struggles under the light emitting from the spell. Yes. That's it. Rely on my power, child. The voice causes Shanna to lose focus, long enough for the creature to break free from the magic circle and turn back on her and Xander.
Shanna falls to the ground after the forced dispelling of the magic circle. "Shanna!" yells Xander, "Snap out of it. We need to take this beast down."
The beast directs its attention to Xander now. It charges him once again and he stares at Shanna who stares back helplessly. Xander quickly realizes he has no choice but to take it down himself.
He forms a thick layer of Crystal Armor around his arms and catches the beast by its gaping mouth as it attempts to bite down on him. The force moves Xander back several yards, but he eventually dig his heels into the ground for a sturdy enough hold. Fortunately, his crystal armor proves too tough. Though it won't last forever against the crushing force of the melon beast's jaw. Xander shoves his arms further into the beast's mouth until his hands directly come into contact with its gooey insides, "Crystalline!" The thing squeals in agony as crystals start forming inside of it and moves throughout its entire body. Soon, the entire thing becomes encased in crystal and the beast finally lays still.
Xander breaks his arms from the creature's mouth and turns to Shanna. She sits on the ground against her knees rubbing her arms while looking down and shuddering. Something is seriously wrong. Xander walks over to her and kneels down, placing a hand on her shoulder.
Shanna jumps from the sudden point of contact and stares at Xander. She hides her emotions relatively well, but not enough to hide the fear lingering in her eyes and body language. Something happened to cause her to lose focus and leave her in this state.
"Hey, everything is going to be fine," he says with a reassuring smile, wanting to calm her down.
She nods her head and stands up. She clears her throat, "Good work. I-I underestimated how far along you've come in honing your Crystalline ability."
"It's no biggie," Xander answers waving it off, "What else am I supposed to do when I don't got anything better to do."
"Sleep so you can get up earlier in the morning."
Xander feels as if he's just been jabbed in the side with a pointed finger. "Anyway, it's done now. Let's go collect our reward from the old man."
"Reward? Reward!?!?" Old Man Jenson rocks back and forth in the rocking chair on his porch, he bursts out laughing, "You dun messed up several hund'ed yards of ma farm and left behind sum kinda crystal stature in ma shed. The only reward y'all get is paying me for damages ye caused."
The two of them return to the guild dejectedly. "Is this the first time you've returned home without reward money?" Xander asks her.
She shakes her head, "Admittedly, a lot of our mages sometimes owe the same people who sent the requests in the first place. One time Frizz went on a rampage and owed the city a million Aris as well as the reward money."
A cold sweat drips down Xander's forehead, "Is she really that scary…"
Shanna looks at him funny as they approach the guild's doors, "Joke all you like, Frizz is still an S-class mage."
Xander nods his head in understanding. He still hasn't forgotten her sudden assault on the guy in the pub.
Xander and Shanna have dinner together while the barmaid asks Xander a multitude of questions about where's he's from and about his family.
"Well I'm from the north," he answers. "My father and mother both died of frostbite when I was young. The villagers who found me believe they were seeking out a secret city. I was adopted and raised by a young man and woman who weren't much older than I was. They were siblings getting by on their own. I heard many tales of Lunar Ray from my foster brother and sister. Eventually I became old enough and traveled on my own finding my way to this town with the goal to eventually join the guild. A few years later here I am."
"Well, I appreciate the tale, Mr. Prolly. That'll be 10,000 Aris for your meal."
Xander wipes his mouth with a napkin and gently places it on the plate. He bows toward Reyna, "Thank you for the meal," and tries to run off again. Reyna stares him down with the look of death and immediately pounces.
Xander returns to his dorm room feeling sore and bruised, more so from Reyna than the actual melon beast. He lifts his shirt over his head and sighs in relief as he plops down on the bed. Next time it will be his turn to choose a quest for them to go on. "Hopefully it's something simple enough to accomplish, one where we can actually be reward and not incur a debt." He feels like he's about to cry.
Shanna returns to her own home in the forest. A knock at the door makes her jump for a second. She never gets visitors unless it's…She opens the door.
Lo and behold, there stands Frizz who smiles down at her. Frizz gives Shanna a great big hug. She can feel the young girl tremble slightly. Frizz' smile drops as she asks, "The voice isn't back, is it?"
"No. No, I'm fine. I just felt a moment of weakness is all. Xander could have gotten hurt if he didn't resolve the situation so cleverly."
Frizz runs a hand through Shanna's hair and rubs her back, "You know you can tell me anything. Gridlock worries about your condition every day."
"Did you bring it?" Shanna asks, sniffing and rubbing her nose.
Frizz nods her head. She lets go of Shanna, handing over the potion.
"How long do you think I will need to suppress my powers until he finds a cure?"
"Honey, you know Gridlock prioritizes finding the materials needed for this cure. As well as Cruccevo, but it takes time. Don't worry. I have a feeling it will be soon."
Shanna nods her head and turns. Before Frizz leaves, she gives Shanna one last hug. As the door shuts behind the older woman, Shanna gulps down the concoction. She lays down in her bed and covers herself in the blankets, letting the potion take effect as the pain reverberates throughout her nervous system.