adblock plus

"Take the shot!" Gil gave the order to the dragonkin as soon as Walker and Su had baited the last sand flea in to the perfect position. The harpoon arrow was released in an instant and pierced straight through the head of the sand flea leaving the last one defeated for Walker to store away.

"Good shot, you are getting more accurate with Gil\'s guidance." Walker was a little amazed. This dragonkin warrior had never used their full potential since they were able to use daggers like others of Mordant\'s dragonkin warriors. But they had been such an archery genius that it was a wonder how they had never considered trying it until now.

"It is all thanks to the opportunities given to me. I can improve myself to better serve my lord." The dragonkin was very energetic compared to the start of this scouting quest. There had been an unsurety when it came to the bow but now that they realized how much it fit them, there was a pride blooming.

"That should be it for these ones. I can see more towards the water but if we go that close we will have other things to worry about. Such as what might feed on the sand fleas." Su was very right. She had inferred that the sand fleas causing the sands to shift nearer to the water would be perfect prey for anything that could survive in the shallow waters of the ocean. It would be easy to see them beach themselves for a meal and then wait for the high tide to return. Some monsters cared a lot about food.

"So we get to check out the tidal pools. I am sure that some of the seaweed there will be valuable to what I can make." Remey was thinking about the herbs she had seen in books but was unable to gather since they didn\'t find them the last time they were at a beach or even in the merfolk city. This chance was great for the alchemy guild since Remey knew how to preserve the seaweed and bring them back to the guild so that they could be grown properly.

"I just hope that the tidal pools don\'t hold too much trouble. If they do then it would mean more people will have to be posted here while the port village is built. Especially soldiers or adventurers. But it would make a nice repeating quest for those able to handle it." Gil was sure that the hunting would be good for those around the port village when it was built. All that needed to happen was some time to figure it all out.

"Good point, we should be extra thorough then." Walker took this as more encouragement to improve faster. They had to work a little harder to bring a better future, so that was what they would do.

Booking at the rocks that had naturally spoiled up on the beach in random groups, Walker could only wonder how long it would take for them to be turned to sand by the tides. It was a strange thought but one that would happen as nature moved forward. The thought was interrupted as he saw the waters in the pool ahead of them rippling.

"Stay slow and steady. Then we can take a look." Walker couldn\'t see any danger right away so he moved as slowly as possible to make it to the first large tidal pool. What he saw as they approached was something unexpected.

The bright and vibrant corals were mirrored by the many different sea weeds and fish within the tidal pool. It was as if they were looking at an entirely different world than they had ever seen. The small monsters were clearly the young of some of the larger ocean monsters that would travel the shores.

"Rock crabs, pink needle coral, sand flea eggs, there are even a few adolescent sword fish monsters. There are so many things in this pool!" Walker had started using the all around appraisal skill as soon as he was able to. The immense amount of life within this tidal pool put him in to a frenzy. He had to learn everything he could.

"I see some angel hair seaweed. That will be great for making some water affinity potions. But I also want that green lettuce seaweed. It is edible but also helps heal your body from small illnesses brought on by the dry weather." Remey watched as Walker used the water to harvest these seaweeds in their whole form. He was still looking wildly but did not hesitate to help Remey using his water manipulation.

"I thought there would be some larger monsters in here. But they are all small and couldn\'t harm us much if we keep our distance." Gil was a little disappointed but understood that this was ideal.

"Oh, no. there are worse things deeper. Look at that hole there. The tidal pools are connected to each other under the sands. Some of the rocks have been hollowed out by the water over the years. That is where the larger and more dangerous monsters are. Just watch out for holes like that." Walker knew that there were many things that could hide from them. Most that he didn\'t know about.

"Let\'s see what is in the next pool. This one is too small to have any larger sea weed specimens. I need to gather one of those adult bull kelp pods. That has the roots of the next generation within it. That way I can simulate the ocean and grow them in small quantities. It also means that we might be able to make an earth and water affinity potion. That would be an odd but powerful combination." Remey\'s orders turned in to mumbling but Walker was not discouraged. He liked that she was finding value here. It gave the area even brighter of a future.

"Maybe not that pool though." Remey stopped her rambling as they approached another pool. They had all seen a large rock crab claw break the surface of the water. It slowly moved back down but the sight was enough to make them hesitate.

"No, we should try and capture that rock crab. It has meat that can feed the ship. It is also an adult and doesn\'t need to be protected for anything." Walker had used the all around appraisal skill on the crab. The small detail that the system had left him with proved that this crab was old and could not help populate the ocean anymore. That meant it was a perfect target for boosting food reserves on the ship.

"Then I will go first." Su took a step toward the rocks and banged her shield on them. The vibrations were enough to cause many ripples but also liven up everything within the single pool. The younger monsters were sent in to a panic but the larger rock crab also moved in a flash.

The rock crab broke the surface of the water showing off its larger body covered in multiple types of seaweed, algae, and even some small barnacles. It had lived for a long time and the larger prey that came to the pool was how it survived. This time though, it did not expect that the prey was biting back.

Su\'s baiting had allowed Gil and the dragonkin warrior to prepare arrows. They had already released them at the first sight of the rock crabs\' large body. The result was simple, the joints of its legs had been attacked by Gil causing two of them to be unusable. The third arrow had been a harpoon arrow that perfectly shattered a third leg. In moments the rock crab was in pain and being beaten.

The following attack from Remey was a solid but powerful defense breaking punch toward the back of the rock crab. The cracked shell caused clear blood to flow out of the crab but it was not enough to defeat it. However, Walker had prepared for this. Remey had made a perfect opening.

With a single large jump, Walker had changed the eternal orb in to a spear and fell downward with it pointed at the space Remey had cracked open. His attack would have been easy to dodge if the crab was not in pain and slowed by the arrows. Now, the attack landed and pierced through the damaged shell revealing the victory hiding behind their teamwork.

"Good job. We are getting more efficient lately." Walker had a feeling that they were only improving their teamwork. He couldn\'t wait to have Midnight and Onyx return to the group. Then with Alice\'s buffs and healing they would be even better off. The ocean was looking more and more manageable by the day.

…..

….