122. The Beast at the Oasis

After mining for quite some time, their supply of salpeter had begun to pile up. Siska then took a short break and opened the regional chat to check what the other Pioneers needed.

Her eyes stopped on a message from Deri.

Deri: Need soda ash.

Siska immediately turned toward Rangga.

“Bang.”

Rangga was still busy putting the mined materials into his inventory.

“What?”

“This is in the desert, right?”

“Obviously. What do you think this is, a hotel?”

“Duh... Soda ash is in the desert too.”

Rangga immediately turned toward her.

“You want to get it?”

Siska nodded.

“Yeah. Might as well.”

Rangga was silent for a moment before answering.

“The problem is, the soda ash is near an oasis.”

“So?”

“There’s a Shantungosaurus there.”

Siska understood what he meant. She looked toward the oasis, which was quite far from their current position.

“If it’s just the two of us, that’ll be difficult.”

Siska then pointed toward the two Vespesaurus standing not far from the salpeter deposit.

“We can give it a try.”

Rangga followed the direction she was pointing.

“Besides, we have these guys.”

He nodded toward the two Vespesaurus.

Rangga scratched his head as he considered the situation. A Shantungosaurus wasn't an opponent they could take lightly, especially since they didn't know what the conditions around the oasis would be like that day.

However, they hadn't come here on foot. The two Vespesaurus gave them speed and the ability to quickly retreat if things got worse.

Finally, Rangga nodded.

“All right. We'll give it a try.”

Siska smiled.

“See? We can do it.”

“But if we can't, don't force it.”

“Yeah.”

“Seriously.”

“Yes, Bang.”

Rangga continued staring at her for a moment.

“Don't get cocky just because you got new armor.”

Siska chuckled.

“I won't.”

They then packed up their mining equipment and stored the salpeter they had obtained. After making sure their combat equipment was ready, they returned to their respective Vespesaurus.

Siska mounted hers first.

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“Ready?”

Rangga mounted his.

“Ready.”

The two Vespesaurus began moving away from the salpeter deposit, heading toward the oasis far in the middle of the desert. This time, their goal wasn't simply to gather materials for themselves, but to fulfill Deri's request for the shared logistics stockpile.

The two Vespesaurus eventually brought them to the oasis area. Vegetation began growing denser around the water source, contrasting sharply with the vast expanse of sand surrounding it.

Once they reached a more open area, Rangga immediately slowed his mount.

“Stop.”

Siska stopped her Vespesaurus as well, and Rangga pointed ahead.

“There.”

A Shantungosaurus stood not far from the oasis. It was enormous, its body towering among the trees and rocks surrounding the water source. Even from their current distance, its size was obvious.

Siska stared at it for a moment.

“Damn.”

Rangga nodded.

“See?”

He then pointed in another direction.

“And there. Gypsum deposit.”

Not far from there, a soda ash deposit was also visible. Siska looked at both deposits, then back at the Shantungosaurus.

Rangga sighed.

“What did I tell you?”

Siska chuckled.

“Yeah, yeah. You were right.”

They decided to stop and not approach any farther. The two Vespesaurus remained in a safe position while they observed the situation from a distance.

Siska then asked,

“So, Bang? How are you going to deal with it?”

Rangga thought for a moment.

“If it shoots electricity, I'll use a javelin.”

Siska frowned.

“What for?”

“I'll throw it into the ground or something that can conduct electricity. Then the electricity will discharge into it.”

Rangga pointed toward an empty area beside them.

“Then we run. Don't get shocked.”

Siska slowly nodded. She looked at the Shantungosaurus again, then at the Vespesaurus standing beside her.

A few seconds later, an idea came to her.

“How about this, Bang?”

“What?”

“You use your trick.”

Rangga looked at her.

“Then?”

“Let me and this Vespesaurus fight it.”

Rangga immediately turned toward her.

“Huh? You're serious?”

“Yeah.”

Siska patted the side of her Vespesaurus.

“I want to see how fast this armor really is.”

Rangga shook his head.

“You could get electrocuted. That could be dangerous.”

Siska instead gave him a mischievous smile.

“Awww...”

Rangga immediately fell silent.

“Are you worried about me, Bang?”

Rangga put on a flat expression. His face wasn't very visible because it was covered by his helmet, but his reaction alone was enough to make Siska laugh.

“Hahaha! All right, Bang.”

Siska gripped her weapon.

“Let's just give it a try.”

Rangga let out a long sigh.

“Fine.”

The two then dismounted their respective Vespesaurus. They made sure their mounts remained behind them, then cautiously began approaching the Shantungosaurus.

Rangga gripped his javelin tighter, then he and Siska immediately ran in opposite directions.

Rangga took the left side, while Siska and her Vespesaurus moved to the right, circling the Shantungosaurus from two directions. As they drew closer, the Shantungosaurus's massive body immediately began moving.

Several sections of its mechanical body opened, revealing components glowing with a bluish light. Electricity began coursing across its metal plating. The sound of a mechanical hum grew louder, like a massive generator being forced to operate at full power.

Rangga immediately shouted.

“Watch out! It's attacking!”

He pulled the javelin from his back while continuing to run. As he reached a sufficiently open patch of ground, Rangga immediately drove the tip of the javelin into the sand.

On the other side, Siska pulled her spear from her back.

“Ready!”

The Shantungosaurus released a heavy mechanical roar.

“GRRRAAA—KRRRZZZT!”

In an instant, the electricity covering its body surged outward.

The first bolt shot toward Rangga, but he didn't stop running. Instead, he kept himself positioned beside the javelin he had planted in the ground.

“Come on, over here!”

The lightning struck the javelin.

KRAK!

The electricity traveled through the metal shaft and discharged directly into the ground. Only a few sparks bounced through the air and reached Rangga's body.

“Whoa! It worked!”

But his excitement lasted only a moment. From the other side, several bolts of electricity shot toward Siska.

“Whoa!”

Siska pulled her body to the side.

The first bolt passed within a few centimeters of her body and struck the sand. Siska immediately changed direction without losing her balance.

The Scout Armor she wore made her movements much lighter. She even glanced back to check the Shantungosaurus's position before continuing to run alongside her Vespesaurus.

“Pretty fast!”

The Vespesaurus ran around the massive creature while Siska maintained her distance. Several more bolts chased after her, but she managed to dodge them with quick movements.

Rangga, who saw her from the other side, immediately shouted.

“Sis! Don't get too close!”

“I know!”

“What if you get shocked?!”

“That's why you should stop nagging!”

Rangga shook his head beneath his helmet.

“She gets tested once and she's already enjoying it...”

He refocused on the Shantungosaurus. Electricity was still coursing through the mechanical creature's body, but whenever it attacked him, Rangga tried to redirect the bolts toward the javelin planted in the ground.

The strategy successfully absorbed the electrical attacks from one side, but Rangga began noticing a problem.

“Uh-oh...”

The javelin planted in the ground began vibrating violently as electricity continued flowing through it.

Rangga took several steps back.

“Looks like I can't keep doing this.”

Meanwhile, Siska had already managed to get behind the Shantungosaurus. She raised her spear, preparing to look for an opening.

“Bang!”

“What?!”

“I'm behind it!”

Rangga immediately turned, and Siska gestured with her spear.

“I'm attacking now!”