The sun was high in the sky; it’s beams of light and heat bore down upon the golden white sands of the desert. Attesting to the nigh unbearable heat; gazing out into the distance, one was met with distorting images of the infinite dunes expanding into the horizon.

The party found themselves surveying the endless expanse of dunes that surrounded them. One of them bears the symbol of a previously defunct guild of exploration upon a bandana wrapped around her arm. Her name is Stefanie Irvine, an Outrider, a member of the Winged Expeditionary Force that specialize in tracking and hunting particularly dangerous creatures.

Despite the wide brimmed hat placed upon her head, she brings an arm up to wipe the sweat from her brow. She turns back to the two men accompanying her on her mission into the sands.

“How are you two holdin’ up there?” She asks with a wide grin.

The bespectacled man turns his attention from the infinite expanse of dunes back to her. The sun’s glare flashing in his lenses.

“I think we’re doing quite well, all things considered.” Ulrich answers, shielding his eyes from the beaming sun.

Ulrich and Stefanie were no strangers to each other. In fact, he visited the headquarters of the guild a numerous amount of times over the years. He’s provided information on things while traveling out in the wilderness. Why he’s never decided to join the guild, no one could say. Perhaps he preferred to be on his own then. Nowadays he finds himself in the company of rather extraordinary people. This situation is no different. They are also accompanied by another out here on the dunes. A Beast Man of fearsome height with a gentleness unexpected of a person that big.

Ulrich turns to the man traveling next to him.

“How are you holding up there? Doing alright?”

---

Quest Name: Prey or Predator

Participants: Exactly two

Location: Anywhere

Post Requirements: 7 post per person, 150 words per post

Reward: Entrance into the guild

Description: Outriders are skilled trackers and hunters who spend most of their time in the wilderness, living off the land and honing their skills. They are the first line of defense when it comes to the guild, utilizing their skills to collect clues and tracks belonging to dangerous creatures. You and another will join one of these outriders as they trek through the wilderness, hunting a vicious creature. However, it seems the creature was already onto you. You must help the outrider track a creature from the Bestiary whose power level is medium or higher. This includes locating things such as tracks or clues indicating its location. However the creature won't go without a fight, and after tracking it, you must now fight it! Help the outrider fight off and kill the creature before it claims anyone else!

Beist panted as he trudged through the sand. He'd changed his clothing to light, white robes and wore a sun hat to try and make the heat a little more bearable by keeping the sun off of him, but it just wasn't enough. It was like he was wearing a thick fur coat beneath the robes. The fluffy giant just wasn't suited to such hot places at all, yet he seemed to keep finding himself in the desert time after time for various reasons.

This time, he was on the hunt for a special component he needed for his research. With the help of another man who was aspiring to join the W.E.F., and one of their members as a guide, this mission also served as a sort of initiation test for the two of them. He was killing two birds with one stone, despite his not liking that term very much. No, Beist wasn't a big fan of killing innocent creatures for sport, but he had been told the W.E.F. didn't do that. They only hunted creatures that were causing problems and needed to be taken down, which he could understand. The creature they were on their way to face was an example of that.

"No... I'm not... doing well..." Beist panted, looking down at Ulrich. "I think it's about time... I can't anymore... Need to use it..." He mumbled as he drew a bottle from his bag and downed the contents. Almost immediately, he began to change. The thick grey fur on his arms and neck receded into skin that changed into blue-green scales that matched his tail. Only a mane of the grey hair remained on his head along with a tuft on his chin and at the end of his tail. His face elongated, stretching out into a snout, his tusks remaining at the corners of his mouth. His horns and eyes didn't change at all, and neither did his second pair of arms go anywhere. In a short moment, the giant fuzzy beast man had transformed into a giant Draconynh with blue-green scales and grey hair.

Beist looked incredibly relieved as a wave of cool washed over him, his transformation a success. The particular Draconynh he'd chosen to transform into was cold to the touch at all times, an ice Draconynh. He couldn't feel the heat at all anymore! One thing was strange though. He looked down at his companions with confusion. Why were they... even farther away than before? No, wait...

"Wha- But I always get smaller when I use the tonic!" Beist said, confused, as he looked at himself. Somehow, he not only didn't get any smaller after his transformation, he'd grown even larger! He now stood over 15 feet tall. He let out an exasperated sigh and shook his head. "Please don't let this be permanent..."

---

Bringing Pets
Griffon (Sleigh Bell) in pet pocket
Woolful (My Best Friend) in space pocket
Mephit (Stables) in space pocket

Beist's Transmutation Tonic
-Frozen Solid
-Ice Drake Gland

A look of concern found itself on Ulrich’s face as he watched their companion suffer in the sweltering heat of the desert. He watched with curiousness as Beist pulled a bottle from his bag; downing it quickly.

The man’s form began to change. The fur that had him sweating in the heat receded into scales, his face elongated and now there was a snout there, and there was an aura of coolness about him now. Much better than having your fur catch the heat out here, for sure.

The man had transformed himself into a Draconynh! Remarkable! All from drinking the whatever the contents were of that bottle!

“Wow, that’s something I haven’t seen before!” Ulrich exclaimed. He quickly pulled his sketchbook out to take note of what just happened.

However, the man’s height was already surprising. After drinking that potion, he’d also grown in height. He was towering over them even more now!

“Oh, is that not the intended effect? Yikes, well I’m sure the extra height will help us in the long run.”

“Well, it will definitely help us with what we’re goin’ after today.”

Ulrich turns his attention towards Stefanie. “What exactly are we tracking, Stef?”

Her remark concerned him for sure. It could only mean that whatever they were pursuing had to be something enormous. Although he had enough experience dealing with monsters of gigantic size, the though still made him stress just a bit.

Stefanie shoots him a grin, “What, you gettin’ a little scared there, Ulrich?”

Ulrich chuckles, “You can never be too cautious.”

Stefanie makes her way over to the two men. Pulling out notes from her backpack and handing it to them. When they look down at the papers there’s a lot of messy scribblings; pictures and graphs revealing clues as to what they’re tracking.

Sorting through the papers they stop on a report given by another traveler who’d found themselves encountering the beast.

“So we’re tracking a Golem?”

“That’s right! A big ol’ Golem out here in the hot desert!” She says spreading her arms out, gesturing at the dunes.

Ulrich lets out a small sigh. “How do I always get myself into these situations? I was just there to give some notes to James.”

He was indeed just there to visit some old friends. Ulrich had been giving the W.E.F. information on things that he had seen in the decade he’d been out traveling Charon. He supplied them with loads of information, but now, the world was changing. New frontiers needed to be explored, new beasts that needed to be documented. Ulrich just so happened to find himself there at the right time to get himself swept up into a tracking mission.

Stefanie raised an eyebrow, “You mean ol’ Minnesota? Y’know, if I hadn’t been the one assigned to go and track this bugger, he would’ve been. And you would’ve been dragged along either way.” She began to belly laugh at Ulrich’s misfortune.

Ulrich’s shoulders droop as he sighs again.

Beist was still inspecting his body after his transformation. Just why did he grow even larger? He was sure a Draconynh was much smaller than his usual size, so his increased height made no sense considering he was supposed to have become a Draconynh. Of course, he was often still a bit on the unusually tall side for whatever race he'd changed himself into whenever he used his transmutation tonic, but it had never made him outright larger before.

"No, this wasn't exactly the intended effect..." Beist mumbled in response to Ulrich while looking at his tail which had grown a row of spikes down the top which also extended up his spine. "I was supposed to just become an ice Draconynh, not a giant ice Draconynh..." He wondered aloud before taking a closer look at the bottle he'd pulled from his bag.

A look of shock could be seen on his face as he inspected the bottle. This wasn't the right bottle! The bottle he'd drank had been marked with a large 'X' on it to indicate it was an experimental, untested version of his tonic, and not his usual mixture. In his haste to get some relief from the blasted desert heat, he'd gone and grabbed the wrong bottle from his bag and drank it without looking closely!

"Ahh! I knew it was a bad idea to bring this bottle with me! Oh, please don't let this cause any lingering effects! Not again!" Beist cried out, clutching his head in distress.

And wait, did Stefanie just call this man Ulrich!? The Ulrich that Leni had told him about!? Beist crouched down, wrapping his hands around his knees with a loud sigh and looked to Ulrich and Stefanie. This was a horrible way for him to meet Leni's friend that she'd told him about. He'd been with the guy for less than a day and had had a potion mishap that he still didn't know whether it would have any permanent effects on him. How embarrassing! It was all the desert heat's fault. He sighed again and looked to Ulrich.

"So, you didn't know we were tracking a golem? No one told you? I only joined this mission because it was to track a golem, so I'm surprised you didn't know." Beist asked curiously. "Well, I suppose my new size might be helpful in this situation, at least. From what I heard, it's quite a large golem. Much larger than even my current size. Made by a wizard to serve as a guard, but something's caused it to lose control and go on a rampage and needs to be stopped before it reaches any of the villages out here. Personally, I'm also hoping to salvage its core once we've finished taking it down."

Beist looked to Stefanie with a look like a grandparent scolding a child. "You really didn't explain any of this to him?" He asked, accusingly.

With another sigh from which Ulrich could feel a cool breeze, Beist turned back to Ulrich again and extended a hand to shake. Even without actually touching it, just from being near it, Ulrich could feel the hand was ice cold to the touch and made the air around it pleasantly cooler in the scorching desert. "My apologies for such a late introduction. My name is Beistmild, but please call me Beist. It's a pleasure to meet you, even in such... unusual circumstances. Tell me, are you the same Ulrich that Leni-Aura told me about?"

Ulrich gave a shrug to the man, “Honestly, I was only there at the headquarters to drop in and say hello to some of it’s members. I’ve had the pleasure of knowing some of them for years, and they’ve found my notes on things out in the wilderness useful.” Another sigh escapes him, “I wasn’t ever an actual member of the W.E.F. though. I guess you could just call me an informant basically.”

Stefanie interjects, “Well when you help us out with the Golem problem, you’ll be recognized as a full member!”

“I’m trying to keep myself from being known to the public, Stef.”

“Word ‘round Charon is that you haven’t been so in the shadows like you were before, Ulrich.” She says with a smile and a shrug.

Ulrich brings his palm to his forehead. What Stefanie just said is true though. His recent ventures have garnered some talk amongst people in Charon. Especially some of the things he’s done while in the company of a certain Rabbitaur. The thought of her makes him blush a bit, and he shakes his head to clear the image of her in his mind.

Stefanie turns her attention to Beist, “Hang around this fella long enough, and you’ll find that he’s a bit unlucky when it comes to stumblin’ upon situations like this. It’s almost as if Fate has somethin’ against him, if ya ask me.”

She then turns back to the dunes in front of them; apparently going back to tracking the aforementioned Golem.

Ulrich reaches out to shake Beist’s hand, and he can feel the coolness around it. “It is a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Beist. My name is Ulrich Ambriz. I guess you already know that since she just blurted it out earlier.” He says with a chuckle.

His eyes widen at the mention of Leni-Aura. His shoulders stiffen and his cheeks take on a light reddish tone. It seems as though he starts to sweat even more now.

“U-uhh, yes. If you’ve met Leni then I am the Ulrich that she has told you about.” He says smiling nervously. “What has she told you about me exactly? If you don’t mind me asking, Beist.”

Like fate has something against him? Beist could relate. It felt like every chance fate got, it took the opportunity to make him just a bit more or a freak. He seriously hoped this wouldn't turn out to be an example. Oh, please don't let this increase in his size be permanent. He'd feel terrible for Dora who'd have to pull his increased weight on the wagon. There was no telling until later, when the effects of the potion should hopefully wear off. For now, he'd just be thankful he wasn't dying of heat stroke anymore.

"Oh, yes, Leni and I are good friends. She only told me a bit about you fairly recently though. She doesn't talk much about personal things, does she? I'm not surprised she hasn't told you anything about me." Beist smiled warmly as he shook Ulrich's hand, his scaly mitt engulfing Ulrich's hand entirely. "She told me you travel together on occasion and that you were there when she first found little Nimbus. That must have been fun. I'm glad to hear she has someone she's close to. You probably already know this, but she's not the most socially outgoing person. I hope you'll continue to be good friends with her." Beist spoke like a grandparent that was happy to hear their grandchild had found someone.

Beist put another hand on top of his first that was still holding firmly to Ulrich's as he leaned closer to whisper, not wanting Stefanie to hear his next few words.

"Don't tell her I said this, I'm sure she'd be embarrassed, but I care about her. She's like a granddaughter to me. She's a lot kinder than she likes to let on and much smarter than she thinks she is, isn't she? Take good care of her."

When he finished speaking, he released Ulrich's hand and stood up again, back to his full height.

"Well, we should continue on. We don't want that golem to find a village before we find it, do we?"

Ulrich smiled as images of his adventures with Leni started to fill his head.

“No, she really doesn’t talk about things like that. I’ve traveled together with her quite a bit and even I haven’t heard all that much from her.” As his hand was engulfed by Beist’s massive mitt, Nimbus’ name was spoken, and Ulrich nodded warmly.

Ulrich is then pulled in closer and Beist whispers to him. It felt as though what was being said to him was a bit of a threat. Although, he imagined this was no different than having a Grandfather question their Granddaughter’s special someone. Again, Ulrich’s shoulder stiffened a bit, beads of sweat slowly trickling down his forehead.

“I can assure you that I would do my best to do just that. I think she is quite an amazing woman, and I-” The words get caught in his throat for a second. He’d said them before, but he didn’t struggle with it then. Maybe it was because he was more aware of how he felt? He finally managed to get the words out, “I’ve grown quite fond of her.”

Beist released his hand and stood to his full height. Ulrich looks up to the giant man with a serious look and a nod.

They both looks to Stefanie as she excitedly yells, indicating that she’s picked the Golem trail back up. The group then runs off into the desert trailing after the creature.

---

It had been several hours of traveling through the hot desert before they seemingly caught up to the creature. Stefanie had pointed out the Golem’s tracks on the dunes. It looked as though someone were dragging massive pillars through the sands, and strange pieces of rock in places where they shouldn’t be. The tracks lead them to a rocky outcropping, and in the distance, there was a village nearby.

“Oh, that’s not good. It looks like it’s makin’ it’s way towards the village there.” Stefanie pointed out with concern. Kneeling down she could see that some of the rocks matched the ones they had been tracking. The pillar-like drags inched in the direction of the village.

“But that’s weird. We can’t see it in the distance, and the village doesn’t seem to be in a panic. It’s doesn’t even look like there’s been any damage done to the buildings.” Ulrich says, hands over his eyes to cover them from the sun.

Stefanie stands up; her eyes squinting towards the village. “It could be that it decided to change it’s course.” She looks at a piece of rock in her hand, examining it closely. “We won’t know until we go out there and have a look at it’s tracks. How’s about we take five, boys?” She suggests turning back to the two men.

Ulrich wipes sweat from his brow, “I won’t say no to that. We’ve been tracking it non stop this whole time.”

Before they could do that however, the ground starts to shake; rocks displaced, and it seemed as though the rocky outcropping would be engulfed by the sand around them. One of the giant rocks that made the formation suddenly lifted and separated, then another, then another, and another.

“Oh no…”

The Outrider realized it rather quickly. A giant shadow then towered over them blocking out the sun behind. The creaking of massive rock straining together in a humanoid shape as it looks down menacingly upon the group of adventurers. The Golem had been waiting for them disguised as one of the rocks of the outcropping.

They had been tracking the creature this whole time, but they never stopped to think that maybe the creature had been known they were coming, and now they were right where it wanted them.

Beist looked around with interest once they'd arrived at the rocky outcropping. It was unusual, seeing such a formation in the middle of the desert. He was easily distracted by such things that a majority of others would find completely mundane, but he had the heart of a scholar. An extremely large heart of a scholar. He was leaning down to inspect some of the stones scattered around, curious how they'd ended up in such a location, when Stefanie suggested taking a break here.

Not a bad idea, using the rock formation as a break area. They could rest in the shade provided by the taller stones. Of course, Beist wouldn't be able to fit in the shade, but the other two could. He didn't mind. He didn't feel the heat of the sun while he was in this form. And while they took a breather, he could take a closer look at the rocks! How exciting!

He was surprised when the rock he was leaning down to look at suddenly started shaking and then tumbled across the ground, joining with another rock. He leapt back with a startled yelp and turned to see the rocks continuing to combine, the entire formation reconstructing itself into a hulking behemoth, over twice his own already towering height, made of rock and sand. It was even larger than he'd been expecting.

Wait, it wasn't supposed to be made of sand? He looked down to see that the sand kept flowing toward it, adding to its size continuously. Some of the rocks that formed it were also different colors from the others. A startling thought occurred to him.

"It's growing! It's somehow started to assimilate the earth around it to make itself larger!" Beist shouted to the others. If it wasn't right in front of them and threatening to flatten them all, he would have pulled out his notebook and started righting this down. He didn't know a golem could do that!

The golem swung a titanic arm down at them and Beist stepped forward, catching the incoming fist between two of his own hands. He grunted as he felt his feet sink deeper into the sand and his arms ache from absorbing the heavy impact.

"We must defeat it quickly!"

---

Steel Catch
Bull's Strength

The Outrider was frozen from the surprise appearance of the Golem. She was muttering to herself to move, but her legs kept her in place. A titanic shadow eclipsed them; she looks up to see that the behemoth had reared it’s arm back into the air to smash the immediate area.

“Oh shi-”

Before she could even finish what she was going to say, the Golem’s attack was caught by their now draconic companion! However, the force of the blow was so strong that the ground around them was still affected! Sand and rock exploded up into the air in a cloud obscuring the adventurers!

She screamed, feeling herself fly up into the air; the sun eclipsed again by the dust cloud conjured up by the Golem’s attack! She closed her eyes anticipating to hit the rocky ground hard, but to her surprise, she didn’t feel any of that. She realized that it felt like she was floating gently to the ground. Someone had caught her and placed her safely onto the ground.

She felt her feet come into contact with the rock beneath her, and when she opened her eyes, she saw Ulrich charging towards Beist and the Golem. A look of confusion formed on her face as she watched the bespectacled man rush into battle without hesitation.

She silently thinks to herself. Did he just save me? He couldn’t have, right? Ulrich’s just some guy who’s been traveling around for years and gives us information about things out in the wild, right?

_____

Ulrich charges forward seeing that Beist has managed to hold the Golem’s arm in place with his amazing strength! He jumps into the air with a flip, gracefully landing upon the Golem’s arm like a cat!¹ He begins to dash up the behemoth’s arm; clasping his hands together, the crackle and hiss of static electricity fills the air. When he swipes his hands apart a chain of blue lightning forms between them.²

He brings himself closer to the Golem’s face before launching into the air.³ Flying laterally, Ulrich begins to spin in the air, gaining momentum until the chain of lightning appears as a blur of bluish light. He reaches his intended position, and almost suddenly stopping his spin, he tugs at the chain of lightning, guiding it right at the golem’s face!

The chain ferociously whips into the behemoth’s face! THWAAAACCCKKKKK! As it strikes, a small explosion of lightning is discharged from the impact! Ulrich lands on the ground with a roll to slow his momentum.

The area of impact on the Golem’s face bears a slight crack. The sounds of static electricity hiss about as sparks of lightning can be seen dancing around it’s head. The attack had set it off balance slightly, relieving some of the weight of it’s arm off of Beist temporarily.

Ulrich quickly looks to Beist and nodding, indicating it was his turn to attack and that he would follow after!

---

Spells used; 1. Cat's Grace, 2. Chain Lightning, 3. Gust Thrust

Beist looked back at Ulrich with worry. True, he was very strong, even for his monstrous size, but there was a big problem.

"I'm not much of a fighter!" Beist called out to Ulrich, shaking his head and holding his other two hands waving in front of him. He had no skills at fighting! He was an alchemist and a researcher, not a warrior!

As Beist protested, the golem began to lift its arm back up, pulling Beist up out of the sand as he kept holding onto the rising stone limb. Beist's legs kicked beneath him as he was lifted into the air, his clawed feet clear of the ground. It was a particularly odd sensation to be lifted up like this for the giant man, considering just how heavy he was. Even before becoming a beast man, he had been too heavy for almost anyone to toss around to toss around so casually.

The golem shook its arm, making Beist swing around wildly for a moment. In his flailing, Beist managed to kick a foot out and hit directly onto the golem's torso, sending it tumbling backward. As it fell, it shook its arm out hard on last time and Beist was thrown off to land in the sand with nearly as heavy an impact as when the golem had brought its fist down on the group. Sand was tossed up into the air again as both giant Draconynh and golem landed on their backs with loud thuds.

Beist groaned from the ground and lifted a clawed finger to tap on one of the charms hanging from one of his horns, a golden ram's horn curled around a green gem. Suddenly, a huge, fluffy green Woolful appeared beside him and bleated with concern. "Leon, please." Beist groaned and the Woolful closed its eyes. A wave of relief washed over Beist as Leon used a little bit of his magic to heal his aches and pains.

Also on the ground, the golem immediately started to pick itself up again, as if it hadn't been harmed in the exchange at all. A large crack was visible on the front of the rock that made its torso, where Beist had kicked it. It let out a rumbling roar like rocks scraping together, and sand rushed toward it, filling in the gaps between the larger rocks that made up its form and increasing its bulk further.

Ulrich’s eyes widen in realization as Beist protests that he isn’t much of a fighter, even given his size! He curses himself, and watches in horror as his companion is flailed around like a toy by the Golem. It’s not long before the two of them hit the sand with booming impacts; something a normal being wouldn’t have been able to survive.

“BEEEEIIIISSSTTT!!!” Ulrich screams worriedly.

He moves to check on the Draconynh, but he cannot spare the few seconds he needs to make sure that he is okay. The Golem has gotten up again, and with a roaring scraping rock and boulder, the sands around them began to gather and fill the gaps in between it’s form.

Ulrich’s attention switches back and forth between the rapidly growing Golem and the Draconynh still laying in the sand.

“I’ll check on Beist, Ulrich! Do what you need to do!” Stefanie’s voice rings out behind him.

He looks over his shoulder to see her hurriedly stepping through the sand in Beist’s direction.

“Got it!”

“You be careful now, ya crazy bastard!”

He gives her a quick nod, turning back to face the behemoth staring back at him. Sand clouds now circled around it as they continued to fill the gaps that made up it’s form. Ulrich breathes in, exhales sharply— clenching his fists tightly— and charges forth!

____

Stefanie makes her way towards the Draconynh laying in the sand. Even though she’s not treading through solid ground, she can feel the earth tremble as Ulrich and the Golem fight behind her! She dare not look as her foremost priority is making sure their Draconynh companion is alright!

She sees that he’s summoned a green Woolful and it appears to be casting some sort of magic upon him. She finally reaches them and kneels down to inspect the Draconynh.

“Gods! Beist are you okay? Is there anything broken?”

She begins to ruffle through her bag; pulling out bandages, potions, and other medical gear in quick succession. She’s been in bad situations before, but she’s never been in a situation as crazy as this!

____

Ulrich quickly scans the Golem for any clue as to how to damage it further! He wasn’t sure if they could outright defeat it, but there had to be a way to weaken it and slow it down! He looks at the two spots where he and Beist managed to land blows on the Golem. His attack had damaged it somewhat in the face region. There looked to be a crack and scorch marks left behind.

His eyes quickly move to the chest area where Beists had managed to land a kick. It must’ve been quite the kick— he thought to himself— to have the Golem fall onto it’s back like that. There’s even a large crack left in the rock! The strength of that kick must’ve be- Hang on, what was that?!

The Golem slams another arm down viciously at Ulrich as he’s attempting to get a better look at the crack Beist made! Sand and rock fly upward into the air; a shockwave burst outward, violently shaking the earth around them yet again!

Ulrich had managed to dodge out of the initial attack, but was flung into the air by the shockwave! He flips through the air slowing his momentum to a stop¹, attempting to finally get a better look at what it was he spotted earlier.

There’s a slight glow, a glint of something buried concealed within the rock that is the Golem chest. Is that the core Beist had spoken about? Maybe that could be a weak point of some kind?

Both the Golem’s arms clash together in a thunderous boom. It was attempting to squash Ulrich while he levitated there, but he was quick, managing to shoot backward out of it’s reach.² The shockwave from the boom, however, was so powerful that it shot him backward into the sands causing them fly up from the force of his impact. He tumbles to a stop; coughing from the damage he’d just sustained and the sand kicked up around him.

“The core! Look at it’s chest! The core’s been exposed!” He manages to yell to his companions through struggling breaths.

Then out of seemingly nowhere, two voices sound out.

“Would you like some assistance, Ulrich?”

“Yeah, you seem to be struggling a bit there, mate.”

Ulrich chuckles a bit as he strains himself to stand up straight.

“I thought you two would never ask.”

All of a sudden two objects appear at his side, floating in the air. A Dagger with a blade made of dark obsidian and gold markings, and a hammer that looked to be a toy of some sort.

“Alright, Round 2! Let’s get us a Golem, boys!”

---

Spells used; 1. Flight, 2. Bullet Dash

Beist sat up slowly and moved his arms, making sure everything was working fine. His injuries hadn't been very severe in the first place, so Leon's healing magic had taken care of them. The thing most bruised now was his pride. He looked at Stefanie with embarrassment and shook his head.

"No, I'm alright. Just a bit embarrassed. I've never been tossed before. I'm sorry I'm not as much help in a fight as you were probably expecting. I'm just an oversized alchemist, not a warrior." He apologized sadly.

He stood up and brushed himself off. The big green woolful bleated again and walked up next to him, butting hit head against his leg gently as if he was ramming him in the most gentle way possible. Beist looked down at him with a smile.

"Thank you, Leon. I'm fine now, thanks to you. Good work. But, it's not safe here, alright?" Beist said as he tapped the charm on his horn again and Leon disappeared, safely stored in the pocket space within the charm again. The gem that had lost its color when the woolful had been summoned turned green again, indicating Leon's presence within.

Beist looked over with a gasp as Ulrich shouted out that the golem's core was exposed. That was it, what he was here for!

"Please, don't break the core! Just removing it from the golem should be enough to take it down. I need it for my research!" He shouted back worriedly toward the man who now had two small weapons floating around him. Oh dear. He should be helping fight the golem too!

Beist held a hand up to the mane of grey around his head and pulled a tiny white snake with golden wings out of the fluff.

"Pretzels, help them out." He said simply, holding the snake out.

"I was taking a very good nap just now!" The snake's voice sounded out directly in Beist's head as its head turned to look at the golem. Pretzels' eyes went wide. "Now that looks like a worthy opponent! Even larger than you! Wait, did you get larger? Oh, this is excellent! An even stronger vessel! A vessel more worthy of the majesty and power that is the great Quetzalco-"

"Just go." Beist interrupted the snake by tossing him toward the golem. Mid-air, the tiny serpent suddenly began to grow rapidly until the little reptile had become a massive serpent, over thirty feet long and three feet thick, made up of powerful muscle. He hit the ground and dashed forward, slithering around the golem's legs and squeezing them together.

The golem that had just stood up suddenly fell off balance again with its legs tied together, throwing its arms out to try and prevent itself from falling on its back again.

---

Ginma's Familiar
Polymorph

Stefanie began stuffing everything back down into her bag seeing as Beist was okay.

“No, that is completely fine! I might be an Outrider, but I am by no means a extraordinary fighter!”

She closes her pack, slinging it back onto her shoulders and standing up to look towards the battle at hand.

“And I never would’ve guessed that Glasses over there was a fighter.”

He’d been providing the W.E.F. with notes on various subjects ranging from fauna to flora in different regions. He must’ve been fully capable of taking care of himself, but everyone assumed he was just a traveler who knew how to work his way around any problems.

“Guess you can never judge a book by it’s cover.” She mumbles to herself with a chuckle.

Stefanie watches in amazement as Beist pulls a snake from his mane and tosses it in the direction of the Golem. It grows rapidly in size midflight; rivaling that of the Golem they were fighting.

“Wow, that’ll definitely help us out there, Beist! Good on ya!”

=====

Now Ulrich knew that there was a sure way to defeat the Golem. Now how the hell were they going to get close enough to dislodge and pull the core out of it?

“How are we going to get that damn core out of it’s chest?”

“Well we can’t exactly pull it out yet. Look closely at the damaged area!”

He inspects the crack closer now. There was indeed rock giving way and falling off. Beist had done enough damage to the Golem’s chest just enough to reveal it’s core, but it was still quite protected by the rock around it.

“We’ll have to find a way to damage it’s chest even more then! Maybe we ca-”

The thought is interrupted by a titanic snake appearing from out of nowhere and wrapping itself around the Golem’s legs!

Exchanging glances between the three, they waste no time in taking advantage of this surprise ally. Ulrich grabs both of the weapons and charges towards the off balance Golem.

“I can attempt to weaken the protective rock layer even more! Maybe it’ll be enough to pull it’s core out!” He yells towards Beist and Stefanie.

Alvis and Xavier begin to glow a bright blue; electricity dancing around them as Ulrich focuses a channels a spell through them. He then throws them through the air towards the Golem. It’s so preoccupied with not tumbling backwards that it cannot react to the two weapons flying right at it. Chains of lightning spring forth from Alvis and Xavier¹, and they whip them around the Golem’s arms. It’s arms are now bound and they pull at the chains so it cannot defend itself.

Ulrich’s arm begins to glow as he focuses his lightning magic.² When the sufficient amount has been reached, he disappears in a flash, the wind howling in his wake. The core is situated to the left side of it’s chest— not unlike a humanoid, interesting— so he aims right for the center where the out cracks have reached. Reappearing suddenly in front of the Golem; a scream of determination escapes him. His lightning clad fist makes ferocious contact with the Golem’s chest. A massive boom is heard; the impact creating a small shockwave. Ulrich had managed to deal a massive enough amount of damage to cripple the chest even further!

The rocks protecting the core give even more, and now the core is fully exposed. It looks like it can be dislodged and pulled from the Golem with enough force or strength.

Ulrich flips past it as it falls onto it’s back again. He lands sliding in the sand behind it.

Alvis and Xavier still have it’s arms bound in chains of lightning.

“Beist, we need to pull it’s core from it’s chest now! Can you do it?!”

---

Spells used: 1. Chain Lightning, 2. Static Charge

Beist's ears perked up in surprise as he was suddenly asked by Ulrich to participate in the battle again. He'd thought he wouldn't expect much from him anymore, not after that terrible display of his total lack of fighting skill, but here he was being asked to finish the golem off by ripping out its core!

"Eh? Uh, yes! Of course!" Beist called back, quickly making his way over to the restrained golem. It made sense. He was the strongest in the group, physically speaking. His combat skills may be lacking, but he made up for that in the sheer muscle that made up his bulky frame. With the golem held down by the chains of lightning, he could do this!

He stood next to the golem, grabbed hold of its exposed core with two hands, and pulled with all his might.

It didn't budge. He growled with effort as he continued to pull, but it wasn't moving. He used all four hands to pull, nothing. He put a foot on the golem's chest to give him a little more leverage. No good.

"This thing. Is really. In there!" He grunted between attempts to yank the core out of the rock.

As he continued his attempts to remove the core, Beist looked down to see sand streaming up the sides of the golem's body and starting to fill in the hole in its chest, attempting to conceal its core again. If he didn't pull the core out soon, they'd be back at square one in this battle, but with the golem even more powerful than before. He couldn't allow that to happen!

"Ulrich, promise me you won't tell Leni about this!" Beist shouted and then began to change. He rapidly grew larger, his torso and arms becoming disproportionately larger than his legs. His tail thickened and grew longer, his already muscular arms becoming terrifyingly powerful. Altered by the potion, his form was still entirely Draconic in appearance, covered in the same blue-green scales, but the grey hair on his head and chin expanded into a thick mane that flowed halfway down his gigantic chest and covered his shoulders.

When his transformation was complete, the already giant-sized Beist had turned into a downright colossus, standing at 62 feet tall with a monstrously wide frame and thick limbs, his lower pair of arms resting their knuckles on the ground to support him similarly to a gorilla. Somehow, the white, desert robes that Beist was wearing had expanded and changed to continue to fit him perfectly.

The golem struggled against its bonds harder than before, seeing the monster looming over it that was even larger than it. Beist reached down, gripping either side of the hole in the golem's chest, and pulled the rock apart. The golem's torso split as easily as if he was breaking a pistachio shell in half. With one of his lower hands, Beist grabbed the golem's core and pulled it out with little effort.

The golem trembled for a moment and then the rocks and sand forming it fell, no longer magically controlled by anything.

---

Giant Size

Ulrich watched wide eyed in surprise and amazement as Beist again began to grow in size. As if his towering draconic appearance wasn’t crazy enough, he’d grown even larger than the Golem they had been fighting! Maybe even larger than it!

He struggled to his feet; a small chuckle managing to escape him. “Don’t you worry, Beist. Not a word will be spoken to her about this.”

Quite the interesting person Leni’s met while on her travels alone. It makes Ulrich wonder what other interesting people she’s managed to come into contact with out there.

His eyes follow Beist’s hand as his titanic sized fingers pluck the Golem’s core from it’s chest with ease as opposed to just seconds ago. The rocks that formed the rocky construct give way, and it’s form crumbles back into nothing but inanimate rocks and sand.

A collective sigh can be heard from the group. Ulrich makes his way back to the rocky outcropping slowly falls to his knees again in exhaustion. Alvis and Xavier reappear in their places at his hips. He was expecting to just track a Golem today, not fight one. He leans himself against a rock— removing his glasses— and begins wiping the sweat away from his forehead and neck.

Stefanie stumbles and takes a seat on a nearby rock. After a few minutes of sitting in silence to catch their breaths and process the battle they’d just had, the Outrider ruffles through her bag in search for something.

“Y’know, I wasn’t expectin’ to encounter it like that today.”

“Yeah, I think we might’ve all thought that.” Ulrich manages to say through his hard breaths.

Stefanie pulls out two bandanas; holding them out for the two men to see clearly.

“I think you two have earned your bandanas!” She says with a big smile. “Welcome to the Winged Expeditionary Force, Gentlemen!” She happily tosses them each a bandana, “Or you can call it the W.E.F., the WEF, the Expedition, the Explorers’ Guild, or whatever else you’d like!”

Ulrich turns the bandana over in his hands to look at the symbol etched into the fabric. He’d been providing information to them for years; coming and going as he pleased because he’d preferred the life of a solitary traveler. The thought made him laugh a bit. Maybe he should’ve just joined them a long time ago? Well, better late than never.

“When we get back to HQ I’ll get your paperwork started, but as of right now, I’m recognizin’ you both as proper members!”

Ulrich stuffs the bandana into his satchel and gives another sigh of relief.

He looks to Beist, “Great work with getting that core out! And don’t worry, not a word to Leni about what you did either.” He flashes Beist a thumbs up gesture with a big smile.

Stefanie points behind with her thumb, “So how’s about we take a rest at that village over there that we just saved from a potential Golem attack, yeah?”

“Yes, please. I am parched, and my body’s screaming for a proper bed to lay in.”