Chapter 20: Rescue?

After a while Lexa reemerges out from the tent she holed up in looking slightly better than she did before she went into rest, the party chalked her better looking condition up to her having recharged her mana back to a fuller level than it was after the fight. With Lexa now awake and present the party start planning their strategy for taking out the alpha void wolf and getting Suieol back, the plan would be similar to their previous fights with Ami, Arano and Isla taking the front line, Ilev would command the battle from the center of the formation and Aromi and Lexa would sit at the back providing ranged attacks via their spells, Lekly would also be in the back charged with altering the matter around the fight to provide protection or advantages to the trio on the frontline. With the plan sorted the group packed up camp and headed towards the entrance of the cave, as they reached the mouth a howl could be heard from deep within each member looked at another and without words being said they all knew that they were in the right place and that howl belonged to their target. Knowing that this is the right place the party dive deeper into the cave searching for the alpha void wolf so that they can fight it to get their friend back. Not too long later they found a large opening within the cave, at the far side of the room was where the alpha void wolf stood seemingly ready for the party’s arrival, as the two sides spotted each other they both prepared their first attacks. As standard Ilev cast a defensive buff first so that each member of the party could take the first hit and still be able to fight on, Ami and Arano both drew their fire elemental swords with Isla electing to draw her void elemental sword as the three of them charged the alpha Lekly altered the ground below it to get it off balance and give the frontline an opening, using the opening as well Lexa cast a plant restraining spell to lengthen the advantage started by Lekly. Each member of the frontline landed their initial attacks and were able to come back for a couple of follow up attacks before the alpha broke free of the plant binding it, Aromi fired off his light spell to give the frontliners more time to fall back and avoid a quick retaliatory attack. Even with a successful opening salvo of attacks the alpha remained resolute and on the whole unhurt, and like it did back in the village it used it’s glitchy movement to appear to teleport behind the entire party and close in of Lekly who was completely defenceless as the alpha bared down on her, she used her ability to alter matter to construct a wall behind her right in the path of the alpha and seconds later it crashed head first into the created wall and staggered backwards stunned by the sudden impact. Taking no time to adjust her position Lexa spun on the spot and unleashed a water bubble around the alpha attempting to drown it before it could figure out what was happening, unfortunately the alpha regained its senses and used its own unnatural ability to escape Lexa’s water trap and face down the frontline members once more. Lekly made the ground below the frontliners raise up allowing them to drop down onto the back of the alpha each digging their swords into the beasts back and running them down the length of it before pulling them out and jumping off the beast back onto the ground, as they circled back into formation they dodged the alpha’s attempts to swat at them landing a few more swipes in as they did so. Once clear of the beast Lexa utilised an earth elemental spell and cast it directly onto the beast to add to the list of elements it’s been afflicted with in an attempt to trigger an elemental overload to draw this fight to a quicker conclusion than they are currently facing, as the spell lands the alpha starts to experience a small amount of the elemental overload but it doesn’t affect it’s ability to fight and it sensing that Lexa is the largest threat, it uses it’s ability to teleport and lunges at her in midair it’s attack scratches Lexa’s left side as she tried to roll away from the attack. As the beast lands back on the ground Lekly launches the ground beneath it upwards towards the ceiling temporarily crushing the beast but it busts out of that trap sending chunks of rock flying uncontrollably through the room, but in the time that the frontliners were afforded Ami and Arano changed their swords Ami now wielding the electric elemental and Arano having an ice elemental blade in hand along with Isla they made their next move buffed by Ilev on the alpha. Each one of the frontliners attacks hit but only weakly, with the alpha swatting at them as they approached not allowing for a clean hit but still allowing for enough of a hit to inflict more elements onto the alpha causing the elemental overload to really take hold, to compound the effect of the overload Lexa inflicted the wind element to make sure the job would be done as the elements ate away at the alpha as they created a huge imbalance within it. Soon after the alpha crashed to the ground and started to disintegrate like every void beast before it had, leaving behind only its core which the party offered to Isla as this beast has been her target long before it was the parties, with the core collected and beast gone, the focus of the people left behind in the cave was finding Suieol and getting her out of the void. The search took a while but eventually they located Suieol and made their way out of the cave and the void itself before setting up camp to wait for Suieol to wake up, Lexa went into the tent housing Suieol to cast some of the healing magic Evie had taught her on Suieol and potentially herself too to flush out some of the void corruption. While that was happening the rest of the party were discussing where they should go next, Isla overhearing that conversation recommended the city of Seolford as that is a city built on travellers and adventurers located at the other end of the Valley away from the forest. With their location set they Ilev asks Isla if she would like to come with them to which Isla refuses and tells him that she has more to do in the forest before she can leave on her own adventure or even to come with them, after saying that she departs back for the village of Daphnie to show them the alpha’s core and that they’ll be safe from it now. With Isla gone Suieol wakes up shortly after, and soon the party of seven were on the move again walking alongside the valley towards the city of Seolford.