D.E.M.O.N.S: Getting Summoned Weekly isn't so Bad

"Wait really?" asked Green in surprise.

"Aye" chorused the dwarves again.

"Well… ok then…" said Kress oddly before taking it upon himself to choose another nearby table. Still close enough to yell out, but far enough to make listening in a problem… for people other than Kat. A shame the dwarves weren't really talking about anything important. Once everyone was seated Kress said, "I know people say dwarves all look the same but this is ridiculous."

"They're doing it on purpose though," said Kat easily.

"What?" asked Kress confused.

Kat raised an eyebrow as she glanced around to see everyone else was as confused as Kress. Seeing this, she explained the differences she could spot between them all as well as her suspicions about their hair dye. "What an interesting strategy," said Nixilei at the end of Kat's explanation.

"Does it really help though?" asked Green, "I mean, sure we don't really know which one is which, especially if they swap around their shields… but like… does it matter all that much when they all have visible weapons and clearly lack a spell caster?"

"Actually why is it they don't have a caster of any kind?" asked Kat, "I assumed it was sort of mandatory?"

Nixilei made a 'so-so' gesture, "I suspect based on the bandoliers that one of them is an alchemist. My guess is they loaded up on useful herbs for whichever one of them is actually the alchemist and that's how they keep their health up. It's actually a rather interesting choice. A lot of potions don't keep all that well, but ingredients do. Taking the alchemist along, especially if they know how to fight, means they can craft potions in down times while having a proper fighter for most situations.

"Honestly if I was a normal healer with at most basic staff training or we didn't have Kat being Kat, I'd say we would be in a spot of trouble. I can't believe I didn't consider the potential benefit of taking up alchemy… then again I don't really have the talent for it…" Nixilei sighed, "nevermind. Point is, they're actually a strong team as is but, no, I don't understand the point of the numbering system."

Everyone nodded along with Nixilei's explanation. It made a lot of sense though ultimately how true it would be remained to be seen. While in theory having an extra combatant was a big step up… if they weren't really up to the level the rest of the group was there was a good chance they'd just drag everyone else down. If they could keep up remained to be seen… but the fact they managed to make it to this round did say a bit about the quality of their team.

"Kat… could you explain how you tell them all apart?" asked Green. Kat glanced over at the Fae and thought for a few moments before nodding. Kat quickly went on to explain where the largest patches of undyed hair could be found on each dwarf, something Green happily took in before testing the knowledge herself by looking for those spots. It was surprisingly easy once she knew she could find undyed hairs and it wasn't just a trick of the light.

After that the group settled down a bit and found the food storage area. It was past the tent flap next to the water barrels and contained an unappealing mix of trail rations, dried fruits, smoked meats and hard biscuits. Kat wasn't hungry and simply skipped the meal, but after encouragement from Gareth the rest of the group did have eat a meal.

It was shortly after they were finishing that up that the flap connecting the tent and the outside opened up to reveal the next group, this one much more varied than the dwarves. The three people standing at the front all had leather outfits on and looked mostly similar. They had the same emerald eyes, same nose shape, same colour of hair… the issue preventing conclusive relation was the fact that all three were from the beat tribes and while two had pointed fox or wolf ears, Kat wasn't yet sure, the third had adorable little bear ears. The bear, and one of the wolf beastkin were female while the final wolf was a man.

The bear woman had large gauntlets on her arms that looked much too large for someone of her size. The rest of her outfit was thick leather spread out around sensitive areas but allowing for a good deal of movement if pressed. She had the same dark black hair as her potential siblings and was flat enough to use her chest as a cutting board… the muscles Kat could see on the girls arms also implied the rest of her was similarly muscled under her leather.

The wolf siblings, who clearly were siblings at least, seemed to be mirrors of each other in many ways. They both had a sword on opposing hips, left for the man, right for the woman. The man's leather was dyed a reddish orange while the woman's was dyed a blueish green. The woman seemed relaxed while the man seemed tense. They both had long hair, but for the woman it was swept off to the left, and for the man it was to the right.

Behind them was a Fae, easily spotted because of her bright blue hair and the wings Kat could see thanks to her True Sight. She had a close-fitting robe on with large sleeves that looked a little like a kimono and a dress had a child together. The lower half was platted and spread out somewhat, but she still had a sash around the waist to keep it all together. The large staff carried on her back made it easy to guess at her weapon.

Finally, the last individual was a male elf that looked rather regal. Long flowing robes, the light from outside of the tent leaking in, long golden blonde hair… and standing at about five feet tall which rally did ruin the look a good deal. They had a staff as well, though were using it more like a cane at the moment because of the large cut on their left side.

"Hey Nixilei, do you know why the elf hasn't been healed?" whispered Kat as she leaned over.

The new group was still looking around and getting there bearings as Nixilei answered, "I believe I mentioned it before but as a healer it is rather difficult to heal yourself. There is a separate class of magic for it. While it's not impossible to heal yourself it takes a lot more concentration and a lot more mana. I'd guess that either he's out of mana or they didn't want to take the time loss necessary to deal with it."

The group walked over to stand between Gareth's team and the dwarves. The bear woman came forward first, though Kat was feeling a bit awkward calling the beastkin 'bear woman' because other than the ears and likely tail she couldn't see, the woman didn't look bearish at all. "Greetings to you all, my name is Walanella Margund, but please call me Nell. These are my siblings, Bonas," Nell pointed to the female beastkin, "and Nabras," the guy, "along with Ellenell," the elf "and finally out faithful Fae, Blue."

*Ok! Why does Nixilei have a normal name… or at least not a colour… but Green and BLUE?! Really? I have complaints.* While Kat was mentally questioning the sanity of the author, Gareth stood up and introduced himself as well as the rest of the party. Once that was done everyone looked to the dwarves who once again did their routine and dismissed the requests to provide names. Seeing this, the newer group sat down at the table next to Gareth's team.

The elf took up a two chairs, one for sitting another for resting their leg. Nixilei glanced at Gareth, silently asking if she should offer to heal the injury. It was a long cut, and if they fought the same monsters likely from one of the many legs, but rather shallow all things considered. Nixilei suspected it wasn't outside of the elf's power to heal it, and offering would be a way to at least make a friendly impression. When Gareth eventually nodded, Nixilei asked, "Would you like me to heal that for you?"

The elf nodded instantly, "Yes please. I'm sure you understand the annoyance of being unable to heal your own injuries and I thank you for the offer." Somehow even when accepting help for an injury they still managed to look twice as regal as the elves Kat met last time she was in this dimension.. She wondered if there was a special trick to it.