Stranger

"So what now?" Hildegard whispered to himself. "We need to get back to safety, right?"

Johnatan and Railan both nodded.

"Feel free to go. Doors are open." Tom smirked and waved his hand toward the doors, knowing that the lightning was why they couldn't leave.

Hildegard's face was turning red from anger. He wanted to grab Tom's collar and yell at him, but he knew they shouldn't act rashly and start any trouble. That is why he decided to ignore what he said.

The atmosphere in the room was suddenly filled with tension, which made everyone uneasy. Everyone had a bad feeling about the whole situation. As the group started walking, they noticed that someone was running across the fields. The guy was carrying some small box behind his back. He was moving faster than they thought possible, and he was running so fast that it sounded like he was flying on wings.

"Hey!" Someone shouted. "Stop right there!" The stranger turned around.

"Go back! It's dangerous here!" shouted Jack, jumping forward. However, he ended up tripping over something that was lying on the floor. He falls flat on his face, landing on the floor. His head snapped at his side, causing pain to travel through his neck. He slowly sat up with a groan.

"Fuck!" he noticed his sword was lying on the ground, making him even angrier. Standing up, he began brushing the dust off his pants and fixed his hair. Everyone noticed that he was standing next to Tom and Dorian, who was staring at him intently.

Dorian looked at the stranger and noticed that two wolves were chasing him. However, a flying shadow appeared in a moment, and with one slash from its scythe, it killed the wolf. The other wolves ran away and left the stranger standing on his own and staring after them, stunned. He then turned around and stared at everyone. After seeing all of them stare at him, he cleared his throat and talked.

"Hello." He bowed slightly and held out his hand towards the strangers. "It's not safe outside. Could I spend the night here?"

Hildegard and his crew look at each other, unsure.

"I mean..." The stranger continued looking at the stranger's hand, waiting for a response. Eventually, he sighed. "Look, just let me rest here until monsters leave. Just for tonight. I will pay you."

He opens the box and shows Mana crystals inside it.

"Please?"

Silence filled the area once again. Hildegard gritted his teeth together. How could they agree with him? He could be a villain for all they know. He has drawn his sword and glared at the stranger, ready to attack. However, before he could do stranger panicked and began running for his life. Then the group noticed something strange. The lightning did not target the stranger and only hit the wolves instead. The wolves were also frozen in fear.

"What the hell?!" Hildegard shouted and walked outside the building.

"Oh, dear! Look out!" Tom grabbed Railan's arm and pulled him back right before the lightning struck.

"Tom?!" He questioned, bewildered. "Thank you."

Hildegard was breathing hard and clenched his teeth as another thunderstorm arrived. Rain poured down from above, soaking him and the others.

Once the rain stopped, Hildegard wiped his forehead from sweat. Looking back at the building, he realized how weak he felt.

His legs almost gave out, and he fell to his knees.

"Please! Help me!"

The rest of the group watched in awe as the stranger was attacked by wolves again. He used a defensive barrier, but it barely held the wolves back.

Someone from the group started a spell as he changed words and moved his hand in circles. No one noticed the man casting a spell, and when he was done, many wolves appeared on the plains. Those wolves were engulfed in a dark aura like the flying creatures that brought them here. They started killing the wolves that were attacking the stranger.

"There's more of them?!" Hildegard looked around, trying to see more. But before anyone could answer, a shadow-like man appeared in front of them and ordered in a deep, booming voice.

"Wake the others up!"

The mysterious voice demanded in a loud tone. Everyone froze at the sound of their voice. Their heads whipped towards the man, and their mouths gaped open.

They finally understood what they were seeing. This man standing in front of them...was not human. Before, they never had a clear view of the creatures, so they could still assume that they were humans, but the creature in front of them now... in the light. It was a gargoyle. A talking gargoyle that could use weapons and magic was never discovered before.

"WAKE THEM UP!"

The creature raised its voice once again. Its expression became darker, showing rage and impatience mixed within its eyes.

"Yes. One moment." Tom rushed to the healing facility and found his brother lying in the weird glowing blue coffin. When he walked closer, he sighed in relief and saw his brother's wounds were all gone.

"Brother…" he whispered. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay!" Dormir replied in a cheerful tone. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, the creatures didn't harm us."

"Great!" Dormir chuckled lightly. "What is this place? some sort of healing facility?" He asked, confused.

"Forget about that. Can you walk?" Tom kept looking back nervously. He gave Dormir his hand to help him stand up and whispered." I am not sure what the creatures will do if we keep them waiting."

Dormir's eyes twinkled when he saw the creatures. "So we didn't escape?!" He exclaimed with excitement.

"Not yet." Tom scratched his head. "But we will try. Now!" He took Dormir's hand and quickly dragged him out of the coffin.

"Follow me."

"Wait for a second!" His brother stopped Tom when he remembered something important.

"Where's my storage ring?!"

"Right here! Here it is!" He grabbed the ring with his free hand and handed it to Dormir.

Dormir opened the ring and put it on his right index finger. The ring released a weird blue fog. Instantly, he felt stronger and more energetic.

"Did you check what's inside?" Dormir asked his older brother with a dark expression on his face. Tom shook his head.

" No."

"Good. Very good."

Dormir opened the container and removed one of the things inside. He closed it and placed it inside one of the pockets of his backpack.

"Now what?" Tom asked anxiously.

"We can use the weapon in here to escape."

Suddenly a shadow appeared behind them. However, this time it was not a monster. It was one of the seemingly kidnapped people. He put his hands on their shoulders and, with a smirk, asked.

"And what kind of weapon is that?"