I spent my respawn time putting together a very colorful bug report about the timing involved in that portion of the quest. I thought that even Kjara and Mika with their obscene Agility scores would have been hard pressed to get off the course within thirty seconds, let alone any tank or caster types who were required to participate in order to meet the quest conditions.
When my timer was up, I teleported over to the Gates of Death and stepped through, emerging at the entrance to the dungeon.
*** Weakened Spirit has been applied. -25% to all Attributes and Skills. Duration: 12 Minutes ***
The death debuff would have made things a pain in the ass if I had to fight through anything, so I was quite glad to see that there didn’t seem to be a respawn mechanic in this dungeon.
The trek back down the stairs was much easier with all the traps out of the way and enemies defeated. I even had the opportunity to bask in the beam of sunlight on the way, upping my regeneration and keeping the low battery debuffs at bay.
When I reached the docks, I was relieved to see a boat waiting. I didn’t look forward to the “water slide” as Kjara put it, but having to make the trek without a boat would have been even worse. Looking down at the contraption, I hoped I remembered all the right answers to the riddles.
Luckily for me, the tunnels were still lit with red and green lights so I was able to navigate the correct path all the way down.
When I reached the altar room, Kjara and Mika were sitting there waiting for me.
“There he is,” the dýrafólk said as I came into the room, panting a bit from the exertion of the trip.
Kjara rushed over and started looking me over with a worried expression. “You okay?” she asked, giving me a hug.
I nodded, returning the embrace. “Yeah, stupid quest bugs. Thirty seconds is bullshit. At least it was just a direct trip to the underworld, do not pass go, do not collect two hundred dollars.”
She shook her head. “Well, let’s go get your stuff and finish this part of the quest.”
“Where’s Amenhotep?” I asked.
“Dude dissolved into a swirl of sand a couple seconds after you fell,” Mika said.
I sighed. There goes another chunk of divine favor. “Stupid darkness, wish I knew magic missile.”
Mika tilted his head, “Huh?” but Kjara laughed at the joke.
“Don’t worry about it,” I said and led the way back.
Instead of the obstacle course, the passage had reassembled itself into its original hallway configuration, the only difference being the group of spirits waiting patiently for further instructions.
I handed the golden crook to Kjara and slid past the spirits to recover my gear, sighing as the stat bonuses offset some of the weakness imposed by the death debuff.
My pack felt a bit heavier, and I could barely raise my shield into position, so I’d definitely want to avoid combat until the debuff was gone.
I tried casting Sehkmet’s Cleansing on myself, but to no avail.
*** The Weakened Spirit condition cannot be dispelled. ***
I lumbered back over to my companions and knelt down, my stamina almost completely drained.
Mika winced. “Damn man, that death debuff is crazy.”
I nodded. “Indeed. Twenty-five percent to all stats and skills. Even if you could get back into the fight immediately after kicking the bucket, you’d probably end up heading right back.”
“How much time left?” Kjara asked.
I concentrated on the debuff icon and read the timer. “Thirty seconds or so.”
“Good,” she said and pressed the crook back into my hands. “Let’s wrangle your ghost peeps and get things rolling.”
The debuff faded away and strength returned to my limbs. I sighed and stood back up, stretching some kinks out of my back as I shouldered my pack once more.
Not knowing what awaited us once we delivered the spirits, I took the time to summon Amenhotep back from the underworld and endured his look of disappointment.
I tapped three of the spirits with the golden heka and smiled as they fell in line behind me. Kjara and Mika used the crook to do the same, gathering the remaining two spirits, and we were on our way.
We arrived at the altar with no further complications, Amenhotep silently leading the way. As each spirit came within sight of the altar, they stopped following their respective player and surrounded the altar.
*** Quest Update: Guide spirits to Aset’s altar. [5/5] ***
As one, the spirits prostrated themselves before the altar and faded from existence.
*** Quest Completed: Trial of the Heka ***
*** Your party has gained 1000xp! ***
*** You have gained 10 Divine Favor! ***
*** Congratulations you have reached Level 13! ***
*** You have gained 2 Combat Skill Points. ***
*** You have gained 2 Divine Skill Points. ***
*** You have gained 2 General Skill Points. ***
*** You have gained 16 maximum Hit Points. ***
*** You have gained 20 maximum Mana. ***
*** You have gained 8 maximum Stamina. ***
*** Kjara has reached level 12! ***
“Grats!” I said and held Kjara’s hands as we did a little celebratory dance.
Mika just groaned. “Can we get a move on? Time’s a wasting!”
“Give us a second to level up first, okay?” Kjara said.
I nodded in agreement and took a seat to ready myself for the upcoming dizzy party as I spent some of my newly acquired points, and some of my reserves as well.
I raised Precision Strike by three, bringing it up to rank ten and unlocking the second tier boon, which did not disappoint.
*** You spend 1 skill point and raise your Precision Strike skill to 8! ***
*** You spend 1 skill point and raise your Precision Strike skill to 9! ***
*** You spend 1 skill point and raise your Precision Strike skill to 10! ***
***Congratulations! You have reached rank 10 in the Precision Strike Skill. The time required to identify a weak spot has been halved. In addition, critical results from this skill will now do extra damage to the target. ***
I put three points into first aid as well since it would boost my healing efficiency.
*** You spend 1 skill point and raise your First Aid skill to 11! ***
*** You spend 1 skill point and raise your First Aid skill to 12! ***
*** You spend 1 skill point and raise your First Aid skill to 13! ***
And finally, I added a single point to Cure Wounds, keeping my main healing spell at my current level.
*** You spend 1 skill point and raise your Cure Wounds spell to 13! ***
The discomfort and disorientation that came with gaining skills in chunks was a lot easier to deal with when you were ready for it, and after each skill I was able to collect myself enough to keep my stomach contents where they belonged.
At the end of my point splurge, I was left with zero banked combat points, two banked general points, and three banked divine points in my “just in case” fund.
Kjara was finished before me and was looking at me expectantly.
“Hey. I actually spent points, okay. No need to give me that look,” I said with a smile.
She turned to Mika. “How much do you want to bet he has points left that he hasn’t spent?”
He shook his head. “Not a bet I’m going to take based on what you’ve said.”
I sighed and looked at Kjara. “Yeah, Yeah. So, I like to be prepared in case something cool comes up. Speaking of which, you use that skill book Kaluitep gave you?”
Judging by the look on her face, she had not. I felt a little vindicated, and I said, “I thought not. Now imagine a world where you had saved some points when you leveled, and the glory of that new skill in your repertoire.”
“Fine,” Kjara said with a reluctant grin. “You have a point.”
Mika just tapped his foot. “If you guys are done, can we get a m
ove on?”
I gestured towards the left passage. “Lead the way Mr. Musa. Just let me put the crook back on the statue first.”
The dýrafólk gave me an impatient wave and moved into the tunnel, searching for traps while I slid the crook into the statue’s right hand.
As soon as it clicked into place, a wave of energy washed over the party.
*** You have been blessed by the goddess Aset. For the next hour all healing magic and regeneration rates will be 10% more effective ***
I heard a delighted “woo hoo” from down the tunnel and laughed before leaving the altar room behind.
…
22
The left hallway was almost identical to the right, except instead of a puzzle awaiting us at the end there was a pedestal. Atop the pillar was a golden nekhakha, decorated in much the same fashion as the heka had been.
“What do you think will happen this time?” Kjara said, staring at the flail.
I shrugged, “As long as it doesn’t involve the second stage of ninja warrior, I think I’ll be good with it.”
Mika snickered. “I don’t know, man. Watching you try and make your way through the obstacle course was pretty damn entertaining.”
“Har har har.” I replied with a grin. “I’ll remember that next time you’re getting cut up and calling for heals.”
He winked and nodded. “Touché.”
Again, everyone was looking at me, so I sighed and grabbed the flail from the pedestal and waited.
*** Quest Received: Trial of the Nekhakha ***
*** A ruler must defend their people and drive off those who would do them harm. Keep your charge safe from attackers and escort them to safety. ***
*** Success Criteria: Protect the Priestess of Asah.
*** Rewards: xp, unknown. ***
The info for the nekhakha flowed into my mind as soon as I grabbed it, along with the knowledge on how to wield the weapon.
Nekhakha of Aset—this artifact is a holy weapon designed to defend the faithful. Any who hold it gain full proficiency in its use. When a creature is destroyed by this artifact, the wielder will radiate an aura that enhances the attack speed of all allies within ten feet. This aura lasts for five seconds and is cumulative for all creatures defeated. Tomb Key [1/2]
When the walls began to crumble, I was unsurprised, but instead of an obstacle course, the stones reformed into a wide open room. The light died away at thirty yards out, and even my blessed sight couldn’t pierce the darkness.
With a flicker of ghostly light, the form of an older Saa woman appeared before us. Her robes were embroidered with glyphs and pictograms of Asah in his glory, and she carried no weapons as she took a slow, deliberate step away from us and back towards the altar room.
A quick read of her info text confirmed the obvious. The spirit was the focus of our escort mission, the Priestess of Asah.
From the darkness ahead came a long, wailing howl that was echoed from all directions, and the first of the enemy emerged from the shadows directly in the path of the priestess.
I’d personally never considered what a mummified wolf might look like, but in that moment I found out. And while one would have been bad enough, I was now faced with ten of the things. Their shriveled bodies were wrapped tight with old, drying bandages, except for their red glowing eyes, and long, quite deadly looking teeth.
A long red bar tracking the priestess’ health appeared at the top of my view with an ominous message.
*** Wave 1 ***
They rushed forward, charging directly at the spectral priestess who seem oblivious to the threat, her lips mumbling something unintelligible under her breath as she slowly walked forward, into danger.
“Shit!” I cried as we rushed forward to meet the wolves, raising my shield and using Analyze on the closest.
*** Upuaut, Level 1 ***
*** HP: 100%, SP: - ***
*** Conditions: Fixated ***
*** Active Spells/Abilities: None ***
*** Weakness: Fire ***
*** Highest Statistics: Agility, Strength ***
I was confused. “They’re level one, guys, but have some condition called Fixated on them. Don’t know what it does, so be ready for anything.”
As soon as the pack entered range Amenhotep slammed his shield into the ground, activating his Shockwave taunt skill. The blast of power washed over the front rank of creatures and utterly obliterated them. Those furthest from the guardian took some damage but completely ignored the tank.
Instead of focusing on the tank as was proper according to all of the laws of MMORPGs, they dashed through our lines and attacked the priestess, taking off a small chunk of her health before we were able to recover and put them down.
Kjara sighed. “Guess we know what Fixated means now. So much for aggro management. At least they’re crunchy enough to one shot.”
“Guess it’s time to bring out the Fruit Ninja skills,” Mika said, brandishing his daggers as we fanned out in front of the priestess who continued her slow walk.
I tried healing her to no avail and sighed as howl announcing the next wave rang out. Two howls answered from the darkness, announcing not one, but two packs of wolves rushing in from our flanks.
*** Wave 2 ***
I scanned the new wave and called out, “Same stats as wave one!”
We spaced ourselves out to create a wall of flesh in front of the spiritual lady and braced for the attack.
I cast a Flamestrike right in front of one of the packs, but they were moving so quickly that when it actually erupted it only took out a few in the back ranks. But anything was better than nothing.
The next few seconds gave a fair amount of credence to Mika’s interpretation of the encounter mechanic. The mummy-wolves had only one goal and that was to get past us to our charge, and we just had to cut them down, just like the flying fruit in the Fruit Ninja game.
I whipped the nekhakha back and forth, obliterating the upuaut and stacking the nekhakha buff on the party, making it even easier to make the fast paced attacks necessary to deal with the numerous pup-ras trying to make a meal out of our charge.
A single enemy managed to make it through our wall of attacks, but with the added speed boost Kjara was able to catch it with a kick before it could sink its teeth in.
Taking a look backwards, I estimated we’d traveled about twenty yards so far and still had about forty or so to go before we reached the other side of the field of death.
At the rate we were going, we’d be getting a fresh wave every ten yards or so, and I sincerely hoped that the increase in enemies was a static ten extra critters and didn’t double every time.
I shared my observations with the party, and we prepared ourselves as we moved past the next probable trigger point.
*** Wave 3 ***
I cursed as the initial howl was echoed from four sources spread in a one hundred and eighty degree arc before us and four packs of upuaut emerged.
This time I was able to time my Flamestrike to better effect, and the blast of fire took out almost an entire pack of the creatures.
When the rest of the creatures got close, Amenhotep blasted a sizeable chunk of them away with his Shockwave skill and Kjara became a whirlwind of spinning blades as she culled the pack.
I whipped my flail back and forth in a poor imitation of Willa Smith’s hair, taking out any upuaut that got close enough to me, and spreading the speed buff to my party.
Mika played the back line, dashing back and forth behind us to pick off any stragglers that got through, but even with all of our efforts combined, some of the creatures were able to reach their target and drop her health to just over sixty percent.
Things didn’t look too good. My fears of the enemies doubling had been confirmed, and enough of the enemies were getting through that I wasn’t sure we’d be able to handle many more. If the progression continued, we were about to be hit with eighty of the little bastards.
I tucked the nekhakha between my s
hield arm and the shield and readied a Flamestrike, ready to begin tossing AOEs like Oprah giving out prizes, hoping that the sheer press of enemies would cause them to be extra effective.
“This is going to su-uck,” Kjara said in a singsong voice and readied her blades.
Mika chuckled. “Those who are about to die salute you,” he yelled and saluted the priestess spirit.
The spirit took another step and howls came from all around, accompanied by the sound of the upuaut’s claws on the stone floor as they charged.
We fanned out and I tossed Flamestrike after Flamestrike until they were on us. The flaming explosions taking out dozens of the creatures to our rear and creating a break in the enemy lines.
Once they were on us everything degenerated into a mosh pit of snapping teeth, mummified claws, and the all too often mouthful of dust as the enemies were destroyed.
With no other options, I put myself in the way of the creatures as they strove to reach the priestess, doing my best to intercept their attacks with my own body and weapons.
I was partially successful. The mummified wolves’ teeth and claws were barely able to penetrate my armor, but the sheer volume was enough to take my health down quite a bit. At least I could heal myself.
The rest of the party were doing their best to hold off their own waves of puppers, but the priestess’ health bar was draining slowly as the sheer press of creatures managed to push past us to bite and claw at her spectral flesh.
By the end of the wave, the priestess’ health was down to twenty percent, and after some light healing, our mana and stamina pools weren’t in much better shape.
Amenhotep:
HP: [95%], SP: [24%]
Kjara Mistwalker:
HP: [98%], SP: [16%]
Mika Músin:
HP: [92%], SP: [21%]
Kheph Sa’tep:
HP: [93%], MP: [44%], SP: [20%]
There were twenty yards to go to the exit of this part of the dungeon, but I didn’t think we would be able to stop one hundred and sixty of those things. Even with the speed buff there was only so much four people could handle.
Heart of the Void: Sosaku Online - Book 2 Page 15