The Stone Tree: A LitRPG Adventure (Kingmaker Saga Book 1)

by Thomas K. Carpenter

  "Luna, how did you get in here without anyone noticing?" Terran asked, thankful the spell didn't extend to his mouth.

  "You move like a Crag Troll in heat. It wasn't difficult," Luna said as she sniffed his leg. "Why are you just standing there?"

  "I can't move. Selune cast Hold Person on me, so I can't do anything until it wears off, and even when it does I'm out of ammo," he said.

  Without another word, the lynx bounded into the cavern, giving Terran heart palpitations that she might be abandoning him. When she returned with a mouthful of rocks for him to use as ammo, he sighed with relief.

  Before long, she had a pile of various sized stones at his feet. During her collecting, Luna kept glancing towards the mouth of the tunnel with tail twitching.

  "What's wrong?" asked Terran.

  "They have trapped us in with their stickiness. Once is too many times for me in that mess," Luna said.

  "I think I can get us out once I'm able to move. I still have Spongy the wonder rock," he replied.

  "That better happen soon, because the workers are almost here," said Luna with her belly low to the ground.

  Terran held his breath as he continued to stare at the icon. He went over every step of the plan formulating in his head while he waited to be released. Dozens of Formidite Soldiers appeared in the upper archways, slowly making their way into the cavern where he and Luna were hiding. His heartbeat thundered in his ears as he stared at the icon, willing it to end. It finally began to flash.

  As the icon disappeared, the soldiers reached his location. Terran bent down and scooped as many of the stones as he could into his backpack. Then he grabbed Spongy and raced to the entrance of the cavern with the Formidites hot on his tail.

  As they reached the location of the sticky trap, Terran threw himself to his knees, pulling out Spongy while Luna snarled and lunged at the Formidites. Luna's muzzle was covered in Formidite blood, but hundreds of the restless ant creatures were flowing up the tunnel by the time Terran had finally cleaned a space big enough for them to escape through.

  "Run! Now!"

  As Terran looked back, his hopes that the sticky trap would protect them from the horde evaporated. The initial ant creatures were caught in the trap, but the ones behind used their stuck brethren as a safe bridge over the now useless stickiness. The only thing keeping them from catching Terran and his companion was the sheer number of Formidites pushing and shoving at each other trying to get ahead as the tunnel filled floor to ceiling with twitching limbs and mandibles. Terran and Luna sprinted through the tunnels, dodging around workers returning from their gathering with mandibles full of bloody rabbits and other small furry woodland critters. Occasionally, Terran stabbed his rusty dagger at anything on their tail, but there were just too many Formidites to form a defense.

  Gasping for breath, Terran spied sunlight filtering into the tunnel.

  "We're almost there," he called to Luna.

  "These creatures will not stop. Their queen is dead. They will hunt us until they kill us or die trying. We have to keep going," she said with her tail low to the ground as she bounded into the sunlight. "Follow me."

  Behind them, a tsunami of the ant-like creatures poured out of the dirt mound. Once out of the tunnel, they had more space to open up and run faster. It looked like a horror-movie version of a marathon—thousands of runners tripping over each other to get out in front of the race—except these creatures had six legs instead of two and were set upon revenge.

  Terran didn't know if it was because his former group mates had gone the same way or if the Formidites were just following what they saw, but the entire colony was streaming down the path after Luna and him. Afraid of tripping, Terran concentrated on the rock-strewn path instead of watching the snapping mandibles get closer.

  Luna didn't seem to even be breathing hard as she led the death parade deeper into the forest. Even in all the commotion Terran recognized where they were, and he assumed Luna was leading them to the pond. He hoped the Formidites didn't know how to swim, because his legs were not going to be able to keep up the pace much longer.

  As they crested a hill Terran saw the pond off to the right. He was confused when Luna continued down the path that jogged to the left, away from the serene water.

  "Where are we going?" Terran shouted.

  "I have an idea," she said over her shoulder.

  The rotting smell of death and decay reached Terran's nose before he spied the cave entrance.

  "Luna, we don't need any more parade entrants. I thought you said to stay away from the Crag Trolls," said Terran as they hopped down a small cliff, using trees as a makeshift ladder.

  Luna said nothing as she dashed into the rank darkness. As soon as Terran caught up to her, gasping for breath, she turned to him. There was enough light from the entrance that he could see, but deeper into the cave, the tunnel's features turned to black.

  "Shh! Quick, grab my tail. Crag Trolls do not see well, and I can transfer some of my stealth skill and dark vision to you if we are touching. But any noise or movement will alert them."

  Terran grabbed Luna's tail, trying not to tug on it as they moved quickly down the path. As soon as his hand touched her fur, the details of the cavern bloomed into existence, giving him a better view of his surroundings.

  They went a hundred feet before the tunnel forked. Luna froze, a low growl erupting in the back of her throat, signaling an enemy was near.

  Using the back of his other hand, he wiped the sweat away from his forehead as he stared into the gloom to see what she had detected. Terran smelled the Crag Troll before he saw it. The massive, lumpy humanoid could have made a landfill jealous of its putrid stench. Bile rose in Terran's throat, and he swallowed it away.

  The Crag Troll marched through the cavern in a bowlegged gait, its head lifted towards the sounds of chittering echoing off the stone as it grew louder. The humanoid barked back down the cavern in its foreign tongue.

  "If we don't get out of here, there's going to be too many of them for us to hide from," said Luna in his mind as her ears lay down flat.

  "Keep going," he replied. "I have an idea if we can find an alcove."

  As the lead Formidites entered the tunnel, the Crag Troll rushed ahead, using its fists like cudgels. The sound of carapaces being cracked echoed over the rocks.

  With his hand on Luna's back, Terran scurried forward, ducking behind stalagmites as more Crag Trolls rushed up the tunnel to confront the horde of Formidites. The gooey dripping head of one of the ant soldiers splattered against the wall, sliding down next to Terran as they escaped the fighting.

  Luna found a small room to the left, no larger than a walk-in closet. "This room needs a door," said Luna, ears back. "I don't suppose you can do anything about that, rock boy."

  "Necessity is the mother of invention," said Terran as he placed his hands on the floor in front of the opening.

  "What is that supposed to mean?" asked Luna as the sounds of battle filled the air.

  "The threat of death makes people try stupid things," said Terran as he closed his eyes and concentrated on filling the empty space with rocks.

  Nothing happened right away, so he imagined a wall growing into the space. It was hard to focus with the battle raging between the Formidites and Crag Trolls. Only Luna's natural stealth as she crouched by his hip kept them from being spotted, but that wouldn't last long if his idea didn't work.

  As an ache formed in his mind, like a burr in a shoe, Terran focused on the image, until the annoyance grew unbearable. When the spell triggered, a sense of relief flooded through him as his mana drained away.

  Terran fell back onto his rear as the earth rumbled, pushing upward as a wall rose from the floor. Dust and rocks spit from the earth like miniature stone fireworks, forcing Terran to roll backwards until the rock wall had completely covered the space between them and the main tunnel.

  [You have learned the Rock Wall spell]

  Rock Wall - Spell (END)

&nbs
p; Cost – 50 Mana

  Duration - 1 hour

  Create a 10' x 10' stone wall 6 inches thick.

  "Not too shabby," said Luna, panting. "Maybe I'll keep you after all."

  Terran wiped rock dust from his face as the sounds of battle mutely raged beyond the wall.

  "Keep me?"

  The Rock Leaf Lynx sat on her haunches. "Well, you are noisy, prone to mistakes, and have questionable judgement when it comes to companions, myself not included, but I can see a lot of potential in you."

  Terran sat against the wall, pulling out his water pouch to quench his thirst. "You're welcome, Luna."

  The lynx rolled her eyes before curling into a ball.

  Terran chuckled to himself as he listened to the battle, wondering if anything would be alive when the wall disappeared.

  Chapter Eight

  The stone wall dissipated into hazy smoke, revealing the carnage beyond. Terran stepped into the silent cavern with Luna at his side, peering around his legs. Phosphorescent fungus shed enough light into the room that he could see without having to touch her.

  "With a nice bonfire, we could have quite a feast of Formidite legs," said Luna.

  "Gross," said Terran, stepping over a dead Crag Troll with slashes over its muscled body. "Not enough butter in the world to make those appetizing."

  "Butter?" asked Luna as her ears twitched with the act of listening. She seemed to be scanning the tunnels for battle. Her lack of reaction told Terran that the way was clear.

  "Uhm. I'm not sure what the equivalent food is for a lynx, but it's delicious." Terran stepped down the tunnel. "Weren't the Crag Trolls guarding something important?"

  "I'm not sure I'd be so curious. There might be some alive below. I doubt we were lucky enough that the last two combatants killed each other at the same time," said Luna.

  Terran kneeled down to check the Crag Troll for loot, but only came away with a bloody tooth and a squirrel foot that looked half-chewed. The Formidites had clay coins that looked worthless to Terran. Both sides used their natural claws for weapons, which left little for Terran to scavenge.

  "Let's keep going down," Terran said as he picked through the bodies, trying not to inhale through his nose. "Maybe we'll find something cool, and if we run into a Crag Troll, we can always sneak back out."

  "Don't say I didn't warn you," said Luna, staying on his heels.

  Terran managed to find a few clear rocks that weren't jewels but looked valuable to the right merchant, or so he hoped. The trail of destruction led to a huge cavern that appeared to be the last stand for the Crag Trolls. A dozen of the lumpy humanoids had fallen before hundreds of Formidites, their scattered carapaces making it nearly impossible to step through the room without kicking one.

  "Stop," said Luna telepathically before he could move deeper into the cavern.

  He froze, using his peripheral vision rather than turning his head. At the back of the room, near an old fire pit that still smoldered, sat an enormous Crag Troll with its back against a stalagmite. Terran had thought it dead, but it had clearly been resting from the fight. Bloody gashes covered its chest and arms, while green goo from the Formidites had been splashed across its legs.

  "It's the Crag Troll warlord," said Luna.

  Analyzing the humanoid came back red with a skull, but its health bar was down to less than a tenth. He was about to leave the cavern until he saw the seed. Terran knew it was important even without analyzing it. The seed was the size of a watermelon, its gray-and-brown surface covered with glowing red veins. It'd been set on top of a rock formation in a cradle of old bones.

  "That's what they're guarding," said Terran through their mind link.

  "Yeah, the Mother Seed," said Luna. "But you might as well forget about it. We can't kill that Crag Troll warlord, not even if we had your so-called friends with us."

  "What does it do?" asked Terran as he craned his head in all directions, examining the room for ideas and ignoring her doubts.

  "There was once a Rock Leaf Elf settlement here, until the Crag Trolls came and wiped them out. They took the Mother Seed when they destroyed the Mother Tree, scattering the Rock Leaf Elves to the wind," said Luna.

  Before Terran could ask another question, a quest notification appeared:

  You have received a quest: Home Sweet Home

  Return the Mother Seed to its ancestral home.

  Reward: Unknown

  As Terran kept staring at the Crag Troll warlord, trying to devise a way to kill it, Luna tugged on his shirt, pulling him out of the cavern.

  "Come on, warrior-boy," said Luna. "Let's get out of here before we get turned into troll paste."

  As soon as he spied a long stalactite stretching down from the center of the high ceiling, Terran had an idea. He just wasn't sure if it was a good one, or suicidal.

  "How well can you climb?" asked Terran.

  Luna tilted her furry head at him. He gestured towards the stone formation.

  "Think you can get up there?" he asked.

  "Am I supposed to fall on him?" asked Luna.

  "Not you," said Terran. "The stalactite."

  "I can't chew through rock, and especially not while climbing," said Luna.

  "You're going to take this rope up—I'll make a loop for you. If you wrap it around the base, we can break it free," said Terran.

  "Are you sure this is wise? I'd rather not die right now," said Luna.

  He'd forgotten about the companion binding period. "You're right. Maybe we shouldn't risk it. But on the other hand, if those assholes from my previous party find out the Crag Trolls have been defeated, they'll come here and take the Mother Seed for their own."

  Luna growled, and her hackles rose. "Fine. Let's do it."

  The lynx climbed up the wall as easily as if it were a staircase. Terran's gut did backflips as Luna walked upside down on the ceiling with the rope loop between her teeth, but the Rock Leaf Lynx seemed adapted to climbing stone.

  He held his breath as Luna wrapped the rope loop around the stalactite. Once it was in place, he pulled on the rope, rocking it back and forth to work the stone formation loose from the ceiling while keeping an eye on the Crag Troll warlord, who was slowly coming around.

  Terran thought the stalactite could be a few minutes away from dislodging when he heard a grunt of recognition from the cavern floor. The Crag Troll warlord was staring directly at him. Before Terran could think of what to do, the massive humanoid came charging at him.

  Terran quickly converted a handful of rocks to shards and threw them at the Crag Troll warlord, aiming for its eyes. The explosion forced the warlord to hold its hands up, giving Terran a chance to scurry to the other side of the cavern, where Luna was lying flat with tail swishing.

  Terran grabbed Luna's tail, hoping her increased stealth would be enough to keep the troll from spotting them. His hopes were dashed when the troll spun towards them, stepped over a stalagmite, and lumbered in his direction. The ugly beast let loose an ear-splitting roar as it tried to get the rock shards out of its eyes using one hand while reaching out to try to grab Terran with the other.

  Terran saw Luna hiding in the shadows, ready to pounce on the troll's back, so he shouted, "Come get me, you ugly bastard!" to try to keep its attention.

  With the troll's focus on Terran, Luna leapt onto the troll's back, clawing at its face. Terran immediately ran to the rope hanging from the stalactite and began trying to work it free once again as the troll spun in circles trying to get the lynx off its back. The troll was in a panic trying to shake free of Luna, who was growling and ferociously clawing at its eyes. Terran continued to rock the rope back and forth with all his might but he knew he wasn't strong enough to break the stone free.

  Terran stood still with the rope limp in his hands, looking around the room for inspiration, but he saw no way to kill the Crag Troll, nor did he think he could outrun the muscular beast.

  "What are you doing?" demanded Luna in his mind.

  "I'm...thin
king."

  "Now seems like a perfectly stupid time for thinking!"

  As he looked to the rope and then to the stone hanging from the ceiling, he realized his answer and made a quick loop similar to a hangman's noose. Before the Crag Troll could regain its vision and grab Luna, Terran threw the loop over the creature's head.

  He moved to a space a few feet from the Crag Troll and motioned for Luna to jump off his back. The lynx happily complied, bounding to a pile of boulders to the left.

  "Come and get me, you fat piece of unchewed bubble gum!" yelled Terran when the Crag Troll opened its eyes.

  "Grrraaaaa!"

  The Crag Troll lunged forward with the grace of a weight lifter who always skipped leg day. His humongous neck yanked the rope, snapping the base of the stalactite, which sailed through the air, slamming through the back of the Crag Troll, severing its spine and killing it instantly.

  As soon as the troll crashed to the ground Terran's screen filled with messages.

  You are now level 4!

  [You have increased your skill Improvisation]

  Skill: Improvisation 4 (INT)

  Sticks and stones clearly break bones.

  Chapter Nine

  Terran fell to the floor panting with exhaustion, while Luna gracefully stepped across the uneven ground like a dancer.

  "Unchewed bubble gum?"

  "I, uhm, it was the first thing that came to mind," said Terran, lifting one shoulder

  Luna pressed a furry paw against the motionless Crag Troll warlord, testing it for life.

  "It worked, so I guess I shouldn't be complaining," said Luna. "I thought it was going to get its greasy hands on me that whole time. I don't think that thing washes its hands after doing its business, and I'd rather not be forced to take a bath."