Chapter Twenty-Eight
Three days later the six-man party finally reached the Dry-Lizard grounds. On the road they agreed that Daniel and Lucas would be the ones to face the lizards; if they needed backup, only Niral would join them. The rest of the team would intervene only if a real danger arose.
First, the elder Azrian, Malik and Risha would take a rest — this task was meant to compensate for the downtime they'd been promised between missions.
Second, Daniel and Lucas would get a genuine chance to fight creatures. What they'd done before with Sanjay had been practice, and the biggest beneficiary would be Daniel: he planned to use his Nira in this hunt. He currently had 13 mana points and Neural Paralysis Nira needs only ten, which is why he linked the Paralysis Nira first, before the Lightning Strike Nira.
Finally, Niral — though newly graduated from the academy — didn't need this training as much, but he wanted to join the hunt out of enthusiasm, so the agreement was that he would intervene only if Daniel or Lucas called for him.
This training would be very useful, and the Dry-Lizards were an excellent choice: they lived alone, moved slowly… perfect for a first real test.
Before the fight began, Azrian stood at the center, everyone gathered around. He fixed them with a steady gaze and reiterated the lizard's attack patterns, laying out the details in a clear, decisive tone as if carving the instructions into their minds:
1. Drying Dust:
A fine, invisible dust coats the lizard's skin — a dull shimmer under the desert sun. It sticks to human skin on contact and begins to evaporate moisture from its surface. After minutes of contact the victim feels a sharp sting followed by painful cracking, as if the skin itself is being torn grain by grain.
2. Numbing Bite:
Though its jaw looks weak at first glance, the bite carries a sedative that seeps into the bloodstream at the wound and slows muscle movement for minutes, especially in the limbs. The victim feels sudden heaviness and a mysterious numbness, as if their limbs refuse to obey — stiffening and betraying reflexes.
3. Irritating Breath:
The lizard exhales a faint vapour full of particles that irritate the lungs — an invisible steam that seeps into the air, filling each breath with a choking dryness. It triggers a dry, persistent cough and mild breathing confusion; with every inhale, breathing grows harder. The effect multiplies in the harsh desert air, which is dry by nature.
The sands shimmered under the blazing sun when Malik spotted the first lizard, partially buried among the dunes. He made no sound; he only pointed with a careful finger, his look sharp as a hunter's arrow.
[Name: Dry-Lizard]
[Age: 3]
[Rank: F]
[Life Stage: Juvenile]
[Health: 246]
[Strength: 26]
[Speed: 4]
[Endurance: 9]
[Mana: 30]
[Elemental Resistance: Highly resistant to sand]
[Defense: 5]
[Poison Resistance: 1] (general resistance to weak toxins)
[More details: 巛]
Daniel and Lucas understood the signal instantly without words. They exchanged a quick look and moved with silent steps toward the lizard's position. Each took his own path, heading in opposite directions as if performing a practiced duet. Both gripped a sword in one hand, the crossbow slung over a shoulder, the small hand shield occupying the other hand — ready to parry any swift strike.
And so the zero hour struck. The battle began.
Malik's voice cut through from the rear, precise and urgent: "Don't let it get close. The moment it breathes, change position immediately." His words were quick but measured, as if trying to compress all his experience into a single sentence.
Suddenly — as if the creature sensed the warning with some instinctive, ultra-sensitive danger-sense — the lizard exhaled while still half-buried. There was no loud noise, only a nearly invisible thread of vapour drifting through the air, a hidden shimmer briefly revealed by the sun's reflection — a thin, poisonous glow that slid on the wind like a soft threat.
Daniel leapt aside instantly. His reaction was automatic, bred by long training and too many similar moments. He covered his mouth with his shield, trying to hold his breath as much as he could.
(That irritating breath… don't breathe it!) his inner voice warned with fierce focus.
At the same moment Lucas readied his crossbow with practiced speed; his hand trembled slightly with tension, but his eye never left the target. He nocked a bolt, measured the angle, and fired.
The bolt pierced the lizard's hide with difficulty, not deeply — only halfway — but enough to kick up a cloud of fine dust around the wound. Drying dust — the lizard's hidden second weapon.
The lizard slid toward Lucas slowly, its movement ponderous but determined, as if something invisible pushed it forward despite resistance. Its sand-flecked eyes stared at him, blank and searching, as if reading the weak points through distance. Its cracked hide gleamed with a film of fine dust that promised drying and fracturing for anyone who came too close.
Lucas took a single step back, breath quickening, determined to keep the distance as if his life depended on that one pace.
Then it was Daniel's turn.
He seized the moment of distraction and moved around the lizard with the lightness of a trained wolf, aiming for the wounded spot where the bolt still stuck. But tension trims even the best timing.
Daniel missed by a few centimeters; his sword struck beside the bolt, opening a new wound — painful but not fatal. The lizard spun instinctively toward the source of the pain, its cracked jaws snapping for his foot with short, poison-laced teeth.
Daniel did not wait. He pulled back fast; his feet danced over the sand before the teeth could close. A puff of the dust from the disrupted wound sprayed over his shield.
His heart beat like war drums, but he didn't retreat.
That backward move gave Lucas a second chance. He moved in now with his sword, striking the same spot with greater precision. The blade bit deep, tearing dry skin and slack flesh. Lucas let go of the sword by reflex and stepped away, avoiding the cloud of dust that rose with the creature's movement.
Daniel saw the opening and understood the message.
It was time to finish.
He surged forward, sword glittering in the sun, and aimed at the lizard's neck without hesitation. He knew the skin there was thinner than the back; any delay could cost him dearly.
The blade sliced cleanly as if through paper. Two fine lines opened and a gush of dark yellow blood poured onto the sand like thick paint, then with a single, clean strike he severed throat and windpipe.
A heavy silence followed the blow.
The lizard wavered for a heartbeat and then collapsed without a sound, folding into the embrace of the sand from which it had emerged.
When Daniel and Lucas returned to the group the others were still in position, having watched without intervening. They greeted the pair with cautious pride. Then the critique began — immediate, strict, precise — a breakdown of errors in their moves and strikes, offered without flattery.
In the first two days after that fight they continued to fight side by side, sharing each moment and assault. But afterwards the tasks split and each started to face monsters alone.
It was hard at first; it demanded more focus and coordination, especially as fatigue set in, while Niral remained more active and took a heavy share of the daily hunts.
Then — on the fifteenth day — everything changed.
A grey morning arrived and the sky hung heavy with clouds as if something different was coming. That day the party discovered two giant lizards, each patrolling different sectors far apart. No words were needed. Daniel and Lucas exchanged a quick glance and silently moved toward their targets as if by tacit agreement.
Daniel ran in long strides, fingers clenched on the crossbow grip. The lizard before him wound slowly through the sand, its dark, plated back gleaming beneath the pale sunlight. In a flash he drew the crossbow, fitted a bolt and fired without hesitation. The bolt struck true: it pierced the lizard's right eye. A muffled cry burst from its throat as it thrashed violently, claws digging the sand, tail thrashing the ground.
But Daniel did not stop; he wouldn't give space for doubt. He ran on, watching every twitch and shiver of the beast. While it writhed in pain, preparing a counterattack, it expelled a toxic breath — a dense cloud belching from its mouth. Daniel slipped aside with the precision of someone born for such moments and avoided the blast.
He rolled toward its head, skimming the sand until he reached the wounded eye. There, just beneath the neck, a small patch of skin was free from the poisonous dust. He pressed his palm hard on that spot, activating his Paralysis Nira.
In an instant the lizard's body convulsed as if struck by lightning. Its limbs twitched violently for a few seconds before freezing utterly. Even its tail — which had been thrashing without cease — stilled as if turned to stone.
Daniel stood over it, breathing deeply, a fine sheen of sweat on his brow, a cold smile playing on his lips. He waited for the complete immobility, then lifted his sword slowly, face calm and expressionless, and drove the blade into its neck. The head rolled across the sand; the great body collapsed, lifeless.
On the far side of the field Lucas had already begun his own assault. He moved with a silent speed, eyes locked on the second lizard as it scanned its surroundings warily.
At the right moment he loosed his bolt. The slender projectile sliced into the beast's open mouth and plunged deep into its throat, causing a severe internal wound. The lizard choked immediately, stunned and unable to release another toxic breath; it writhed in place, trying desperately to eject the pain.
Lucas approached slowly, sword in hand, his steps a deadly dance — neither rushed nor delayed. When he was within arm's reach he raised the blade and brought it down in one decisive strike. The head detached with a terrible hush; seconds later the body crumpled.
When Lucas finished he looked up toward Daniel by instinct. Daniel stood at a distance, his sword still dripping, dust swirling around the fallen lizard. He smiled broadly, a mix of pride and teasing mischief, and waved at Lucas in a loud, triumphant voice:
"I win this time!"