With a vast moving hill of sand approaching their vessels, the mostly calm atmosphere abord the sand boats became tense.
Amira's head guard climbed on top of the sand boat's highest platform and took the spyglass from the lookout in order to get a better look at what was coming their way.
At the same time Marcus and Mraziv?? used their enhanced vision skills to zoom their eyes in and see what was going on for themselves.
"Something big is certainly moving under the sand and coming our way. Gaining on us despite our speed" Marcus observed.
"It is fast and large whatever it is." Mraziv?? respond.
While everyone else onboard was feeling a sense of danger from the approaching creature, Marcus and Mraziv?? were perfectly relaxed.
They simply kept there eyes on it as Amira's guards and the boat's crew began getting the boat ready to accelerate faster and attempt to outrun whatever was coming for them.
"Oh!"
Eventually the top of the beast that was swimming through the sand towards them became visible for just a moment and Marcus recognized its familiar shape.
"You recognized it, Marcus?" Mraziv?? asked him.
Amira who as nearby turned her gaze towards Marcus and looked at him expectantly.
"Yeah, I encountered one of these beasts in a dungeon before. I am pretty certain that what is coming our way is a sand shark. I only got a glimpse of its dorsal fin though, so I cannot be one hundred percent sure." Marcus said.
Amira and the guard standing behind her paled when they heard Marcus identify their pursuer as a sand shark.
"We must inform everyone of this immediately. Even at our top speed we will not be able to outrun a large sand shark. Other actions will have to be taken." Amira said with a resolute expression.
The one guard that had stayed by her side went to inform everyone else about the sand shark.
"Our best bet is to toss a large supply of our meat soaked in water overboard. In most cased the sand shark will stop chasing us in order to eat the easy meal" Captain Haidar said.
Still in order to attach the attention of the sand shark they would need to abandon most of their meat and a large quantity of water which would put a strain on their supplies.
"Could we just not fight it?" Marcus proposed.
Amira had several strong guards aboard, and the sand boat itself had a number of magical defenses. Even if he and Mraziv?? did not participate, he figured they should have been able to easily drive away the sand shark.
However, while Marcus thought his suggestion was reasonable, everyone else looked at him like he was crazy.
"Sand sharks are one of the most dangerous beasts that live in this desert. Depending on its size and level, it could easily turn over our boats and knock us all into the sand where will be defenseless. Fighting it is out of the question unless we want to risk casualties." Haidar said in response.
Yet, it was clear that he was not including Marcus and Mraziv?? among their possible forces.
"You seem to be forgetting something. It is not just your crew and Amira's guards here; you have us as well." Marcus said pointing to him and Mraziv??.
"But you are our guests. We cannot ask you to fight." Amira said, wearing a distressed expression.
Marcus and Mraziv?? were foreign guests that had been left in her care, and it was supposed to be her job to protect them. Not the other way around.
"My lady, I think in this situation we should accept their help." Amira's head guard said.
He could not tell exactly how strong Marcus and Mraziv?? were, but he was certain that they were far above him.
"Just leave this to us. I did mention I fought a sand shark before. And that was a long time ago. I should not have to struggle to win this time." Marcus said confidently.
He and Mraziv?? then turned their attention to the ever-approaching sand shark that was coming right for them.
"Looks like it is about two kilometers away from us now. Do you want to do it, or should I?" Marcus asked Mraziv??.
"I'll take a shot first." Mraziv?? said, walking up the edge of the stern.
The air around them began to drop in temperature and frost formed around Mraziv?? as she cast an ice magic spell.
In a matter of seconds, a giant icicle around fifteen meters long and four meters thick was created in front of her.
With the flick of her wrist Mraziv?? launched her tier five glacial lance spell directly towards the sand shark.
The magic spell moved fast across the desert leaving a trail of snow in its wake.
It seemed that the sand shark was going to be skewered by Mraziv??'s spell, but just a few moments before it was hit, the huge beast leapt out of the sand to avoid being killed.
Its danger sense had alerted it to the incoming threat and it jumped into the air to desperately avoid the powerful spell.
Now, the sand shark's entire twenty-five-meter-long body was exposed and clear for everyone to see.
Yet while Amira, her guards, and the crew looked at the gigantic beast with awe and fear, Marcus was underwhelmed.
'It is smaller than the last one. Its level is lower too at only forty-one. I was hoping for something more impressive.' Marcus thought, considering one of the terrors of the desert to be as threatening as a guppy.
After Mraziv?? missed her first shot, she adjusted her aim and fired another glacial lance spell. This time she made it even smaller and shot it out at max speed.
Up in the air the sand shark was unable to avoid the attack and its head was pierced through by Mraziv??'s spell.
The glacial lance even had enough power behind it to go all the way through and keep flying into the horizon until it disappeared from sight.
With a great thud the sand shark's unmoving body slammed into the desert and its blood began dying the sand red.
"I think I have gotten a bit rusty. It has been too long since we trained or fought." Mraziv?? said, unhappy with her performance. She felt that her control over her spells had slipped slightly from her peak when they were fighting every day in the special dungeon.
"You might be right. Things have been pretty peaceful for the last several months. But we can use the Muharib Festival to get in some practice." Marcus said.
Yet as he and Mraziv?? were having a leisurely conversation, everyone else was staring at them, mouths agape.
Mraziv?? had just casually demonstrated a level of magic that was in the same league as their counties best, and killed a very dangerous beast with ease.
"I can see now why they are so confident about going into the Desolate Desert on their own." Amira said to herself, still unsure if what she had just watched was reality.
But another event soon garnered everyone's attention when it felt like the entire desert around them began to shake.
The tremor from earlier when the sand shark landed was nothing in comparison to what was now going on.
Amira let out a loud shriek and clung to her head guard and the others wore ghastly expression.
"Stop the boats!" Haidar shouted in the wake of this shaking. He had heard about this phenomena from his grandfather and knew that there only hope was to stop and pray.
Following his orders, the three sand boats stopped and the rumbling became more and more pronounced.
It was clear that whatever was causing the desert to shake was getting closer, and this time Marcus and Mraziv?? were not relaxed.
Both of them had their senses on edge as they tried to pinpoint where the creature that was causing this was coming from.
Eventually, at the very edge of his life sense, Marcus got a hit and looked out to his right where the sand was becoming more disturbed.
"Mraz, get ready, this thing is strong." Marcus said, having gotten a powerful signal from his life sense skill.
Except the creature did not approach their sand boats and moved right by them. Moving swiftly towards the corpse of the sand shark.
It was a few seconds later that they were finally able to see the colossal form of the creature that shook the entire desert.
Its head shot out of the sand with its mouth open and it swallowed the entire sand shark whole in one bite.
What has just surfaced from beneath the desert was an eel that was easily four hundred meters long and forty meters wide. In terms of size, it was even bigger than Gwyneira when she took her draconic form.
When Mraziv?? used her dragon eyes on it she found that this beast was called a boundless desert eel and was level seventy-nine. freeweb(n)ovel.com
"Do you want to try taking it on?" Mraziv?? asked Marcus.
Now that she had gotten a good look at its stats and abilities, she was certain they could beat it if they fought together.
It was only an epic grade beast and was surely weaker than most of the devils that they had fought in the special dungeon.
"No, I imagine we will only cause more problems if we go out and beat something like that. So long as it does not threaten us, we should just let it go."
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