Stern spun and threw his dagger— it caught the creature in the chest and staggered it back, but then it came forward again. The club in its hand was a human leg bone with clear chew marks. Its skin was a shade of gray that blended into the stone cave, but its eyes were a dark red that almost glowed from sunken pits in its overly large head.
Cyra blinked at the ugly-looking creature, wondering how it could be a real threat. She had her staff ready to keep it back if it got past Stern.
Stern waited a moment for it to close the distance, then leapt forward. His second dagger slammed into its neck. Without a sound, the creature slumped to the floor.
“Clear,” Trish said as she came back to them.
Cyra nodded, staring at the dead mob. “What are they?”
“Bakruma. It’s a cave spirit. They eat anything dead and then use their bones as weapons,” Stern said. “They have the strength of an adult human, so don’t let its small size fool you.”
“They hit harder than I remembered,” Trish said. “They’re normally resilient, but they have weak points in their necks and the small hard stone that animates them. A solid hit to the chest breaks the two ribs that hold it in place, killing them.”
“I need to study more,” Cyra said.
“We can do that in the evenings,” Stern said. “We fell out of habit when we got here.”
“Was that my fault?” Trish asked.
“No. We just focused on everything else,” Stern told her. “Between you and me, we should be able to cover most things.”
“Please?” Cyra asked. “Why are their heads so big?”
“No idea. That’s just the way they are,” Stern shrugged. “I’m sure a legend says why, but I only studied about how to kill things, not all the legends behind them.”
“Same,” Trish nodded.
Pawly came back to them carrying three dead bodies with her— one in her mouth and two wrapped in her tentacles. She dropped them at Stern’s feet proudly.
“All yours, huh?”
Pawly chuffed.
“You’re a beast,” Stern chuckled, petting her side.
“So there were five total,” Trish said slowly. “The others must have been out of range to start.”
“Yes, sorry.”
“Nothing to apologize for, we’re learning. We’ll have to keep in mind that what we think we know going in might be wrong,” Stern said.
“One more room, and it should be more of these,” Trish said. “I need to stay back with you two. I went too far ahead on that attack.”
“That’s why we’re doing this,” Stern said. “Cyra?”
“I partially froze,” Cyra admitted. “I wasn’t expecting people-shaped monsters yet.”
“Just keep in mind they aren’t people,” Trish said. “They’re monsters. When we get into the mid-tiers, we’ll be fighting things that are more human than these things. Always remember that they aren’t people— they are monsters, and they will kill you.”
Cyra took a deep breath and nodded. “I can do this. I want to hit one in the next room to get used to the idea, please.”
“That’s not a bad idea,” Stern said. “Breaking the mindset of them being people is hard for most. Now, for the tough part... some dungeons will end up with two types of mobs that are opposed to each other.”
“That’s a bit off yet,” Trish said.
“Yes, but in those dungeons, talking to the monsters is a valid way of defeating the dungeon,” Stern said.
“It might confuse the situations we’ll be in to start,” Trish countered.
“That’s a fair point.”
“Some dungeons have competing factions?” Cyra asked, surprised.
“Yes, and you can ally with one side to wipe the other out. It shouldn’t happen for a long time yet, though it’s something to keep in mind. Not all dungeons are about killing all the mobs, but you should always be ready to kill and protect yourself.”
“Okay,” Cyra said, taking a deep breath. “Let’s go.”
Stern gave her a smile. Trish did one better, leaning in to kiss her cheek while being careful because of her bunnicorn helmet. Cyra smiled at them and felt her hesitation fade.
“Follow me… or Pawly,” Trish said, as Pawly was already several feet away, waiting for them.
The next room was the same as the first. When they attacked, Trish defended and retreated with one of the bakrumas, leading it back toward Cyra. Stern stood apart from them, waiting for more to come at them. Pawly’s yowl from farther into the room let him know she was attacking some of the mobs.
When Trish got the one bakruma back to Cyra, she turned to the side so Cyra had a clear shot at it. The creature was focused on Trish, its bone club having survived multiple hits against her shield.
Cyra jabbed as hard as she could with her staff at the back of the creature’s neck. A sickening crunch vibrated up her staff and the thing fell dead at her feet. Cyra swallowed as some bile rose in her throat, forcing it back down.
“Trish!” Stern called, as three of the creatures were rushing at him.
Trish ran to him, reaching him at the same time as the bakrumas. Stern’s dagger plunged into one of their necks while Trish slapped another across the room. The third almost managed to hit Stern with its club, but Trish was suddenly in his place taking the blow instead, and he stood where she had. A second later, Cyra’s staff knocked the thing to the ground and Trish’s hammer pounded it into the stone floor.
“Was that your perk?” Stern asked.
“Yes,” Trish said, scanning the room.
“All gone,” Cyra said, having felt for any life.
Pawly came trotting to them with four of the monsters on her back.
“She loves showing off how much better she is,” Stern chuckled.
Pawly shook the dead off at their feet and began to preen.
“Good girl,” Trish grinned, giving Pawly a light pat on the side.
“Yes, she is,” Cyra smiled. “After we finish our runs through the dungeon today, we should get some fresh fish for tonight.”
Pawly chuffed and bumped her head into Cyra’s leg.
“How did it feel?” Stern asked.
Cyra took a shuddering breath. “Sickening. I can do it, I’d just rather not.”
“Which is fine, as long as you don’t hesitate,” Trish said. “We’ll be doing our best to keep you protected as it is.”
“Touch the orb and we’re back in the room,” Stern said. “Velina will need a bit to reconfigure things, but we should be able to do one or two more dungeons today, at least.”
Trish took her helmet off, then leaned in to give Cyra a brief kiss. “You did well.”
Cyra felt warmth suffuse her. “Thank you.”
“You did,” Stern said, giving her shoulder a squeeze.
Cyra leaned in and kissed his cheek. “Thank you, too.”
Pawly meowed from underneath the glowing orb that had appeared in the middle of the room.
“We’re coming,” Stern laughed.
~*~*~
All three of them felt good about their first day of training. The second dungeon had them against wolves in a forest, which had been harder to deal with. They came from every angle, but they’d managed with Stern being the only one to be bitten. The third dungeon was an open plain against metal-taloned birds. The lack of ranged weapons hurt them there, but they still made it through.
“You’re slowly getting to understand each other,” Velina said, greeting them at the end of their last run. “You definitely need some ranged weaponry. Crossbows are the easiest choice, as they are quicker to learn.”
“I’m stuck in that regard, unless I want to give up the shield,” Trish said.
“Cyra and I can do the ranged fighting. You can keep us safe,” Stern said. “It’s just a small stop on the way home to pick them up.”
“Why don’t you pick them up, and Cyra and I will get dinner started?” Trish suggested.
“I’ll see you three
tomorrow,” Velina told them before leaving.
“I could,” Stern said. “Anything else I need to get?”
“A new bottle of wine?” Cyra suggested.
“Can do. See you there.”
Cyra kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”
Trish kissed him soundly. “See you at home.”
Chapter Forty-three
“What can I do for you?” the slim, red-skinned, infernal woman asked from behind the counter.
“Crossbows,” Stern said. “I need two of them.”
“Well, we can go over the different varieties,” the shopkeeper said, giving him a curious look. “I don’t mean to be rude, but are you an irregular?”
“At least you didn’t call me blighted,” Stern said a little stiffly.
“You wouldn’t be wandering the city if you were. I met another irregular once, years ago. They looked much the same... blighted or a corpse given life. Poor woman was hated by nearly everyone and shunned by even more.”
“Yeah, it’s not pleasant,” Stern grunted.
“Apologies. What kind of crossbows did you want? We have different sizes to start with,” She pointed at the display on the wall behind her. “Each of them has a couple of different ways to cock it.”
Stern pointed to some of the smaller ones, avoiding the smallest. “Neither her nor I are going to brute strength anything.”
“Hmm... so a light draw,” the shopkeeper said. “There’s the lever; the windlass; the stirrup; and the newest one I’ve had in, a pneumatic.”
“What’s the difference?” Stern asked. A smile touched his lips, as he’d heard the last word before.
“Cost and how they arm. The windlass is the cheapest. It takes the least amount of raw strength, but is the slowest to cock.” She pointed as she spoke. “Stirrup is next in line. It has fewer parts, but it costs a bit more. The materials it’s made from give it better durability. The lever is the fastest and over a long fight, still is, but it takes arm strength to make it work. The pneumatic is nearly as fast as a bow. It cocks itself and has a stack of bolts that slot in as it’s fired.”
Stern looked at the last one and smiled again. He knew where the idea for it had come from, but he hadn’t expected to see them so soon. “How does the last one work?”
“That’s a whole explanation unto itself. Unless you’re going to buy it, I’d rather not go into it, and it’s the most expensive crossbow I have. Not only is it a new thing, it has two rune slots.”
Stern exhaled slowly— that was going to cause it to eat a lot of money. “How much?”
“A gold.”
Stern stared at the shopkeeper with wide eyes. “Holy fuck, seriously?”
“Yes. I already told you the reasons why, but I should also point out it can punch through armor like one of my biggest crossbows. Unless you have the coin, I’m going to skip explaining everything about it. After the first five people asked and didn’t buy, I grew upset, so I’m not inclined to waste my time again.”
“Fair.” Stern touched his belt and thumbed out the coin he wanted. “I’m interested.”
The woman looked at the gold in surprise, then smiled broadly. “Well, good sir, let me explain the wonders of this new crossbow.”
She pulled it down off the wall to show him as she explained, and even then, it took her some time to go through her spiel. It all boiled down to an air rune and enchantment that combined when it was fired. The woman called the container for the bolts a magazine, and Stern smiled. When the magazine was inserted into the slot, a bolt would drop down and the crossbow would arm itself.
“Where did this thing come from?” Stern asked.
“An artificer up in Winterspring started selling them. I have a cousin up there who bought a few and sent me one to resell. This was the cheapest of them all.”
“I bet,” Stern said. He pointed at the magazine. “I want at least two of these, if you have an extra. I also need a stirrup crossbow and a hard quiver for its bolts.”
“I can do that,” the woman grinned.
Stern placed the gold he was holding on the counter and then pulled out a silver and set it beside the gold. “Enough?”
“A little low, but since you’re buying the big one, I’ll call it good enough.”
“Thanks.”
“Thank you,” she grinned. “Just give me a moment to gather everything for you.”
~*~*~
“I’m home,” Stern said, entering the suite. “I have crossbows.”
“We’re just getting started on dinner,” Cyra said. “You have plenty of time for a bath.”
“What is that one?” Trish asked, having seen the blockier-looking crossbow.
“Something new. I can explain it after dinner.”
“Hmm, okay,” Trish said.
Stern slowed as he moved toward his room. Trish was wearing an apron to cook, but she didn’t appear to be wearing a shirt under it.
Cyra giggled. “He noticed.”
Trish gave him a wink. “Am I distracting you?”
“There’s a trick,” Stern said.
Trish turned around so he could see the strapless dress she was wearing underneath her apron. “I’m not naked under it, but I bet you had hoped I was.”
“Guilty,” Stern admitted. “Okay, now I need a cold bath. See you both in a bit.”
Trish laughed and Cyra giggled as Stern went to his room, then left the suite.
~*~*~
When he returned from his bath, Cyra and Trish had the bottle of wine open and had glasses near them at the stove. The scent of the stew filled the room, and Stern’s stomach growled audibly.
“Welcome back. Dinner will be ready in another half hour,” Trish said. “It just needs to cook a little longer. The problem with stews is that they take time.”
“Yeah,” Stern agreed. “Since we have the time, let me grab the new crossbow and I’ll explain it to you both. It’s going to be the next big thing.”
Trish and Cyra sat on the single sofa in the living space, leaving the chair open for him across the coffee table. He brought back the empty magazine, the full one, and the crossbow. He’d get the second magazine loaded later, but for now, it would help him explain things.
“Okay, this is a new type of crossbow that was made by an artificer up north. It has two open rune slots on it, and we have runes we can slot into it right now, if we wanted to.”
“That must have cost a good bit,” Trish said.
“Yeah, but I have every confidence that it’ll last us a good long while,” Stern said. “Okay, first thing— it works off something called pneumatic theory...”
~*~*~
“That’s amazing,” Trish said from the stove, having gone to check on the stew. “How did he even come up with the idea?”
“That’s a good question,” Stern said. “If we get to Winterspring, we can ask him.”
“Were you going to use this one or the other one?” Cyra asked.
“That’s something we’ll have to decide,” Stern said. “It’s heavier than the other crossbow, so I was considering making it my primary weapon.”
“That would probably be for the best. We want Cyra to look as unthreatening as possible,” Trish said. “That will matter more during the dungeons with thinking monsters.”
“Agreed.”
“I need to practice with the other one, then,” Cyra said.
“We have a week left of mock dungeons. We’ll get you some practice in environments we’re likely to see,” Trish said. “Okay, dinner’s ready.”
The beef stew was thick with vegetables and meat diced into bite-sized chunks. Despite the amazing smell, the flavor was a little more bland than Stern was expecting.
“Should have used a bit more seasoning,” Cyra said. “It’s good, but we can make it better.”
Trish sighed. “Yeah. I wanted to make at least one meal all on my own, though.”
“It’s still good,” Stern said. “Cyra is right— some more thyme and garl
ic would elevate it.”
“And pepper,” Trish said. “I agree. I’d just hoped it would be better than it is.”
“Neither of us is complaining,” Cyra said, patting Trish’s leg.
“I know. I should have paid more attention to it as it cooked. Between teasing Stern and learning about the crossbow, I didn’t focus enough.”
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