But Death is Not Forbidden

by Kip Terrington

  Obsidian One knelt before the troll with a scimitar above its head. In its other hand, Obsidian One was gripping the head of her newly acquired snake-whip, which she had already used to full effect. The troll, with its glowing green eyes, continued to pound down, scimitar to scimitar. Slowly, Spooky inched back, creating more space so as to use the sword and whip effectively. Moes just stood and watched, unsure of what to do.

  Still wrapped up in the snake and getting pummeled by the stone angels, Grork’s high-pitched voice brought Moes back to himself.

  “Use some magic, you short little booge!” Grork pleaded. The UI translated the word as flicked dried nasal mucus, but Moes did not spend any time getting offended. Grork was losing hitpoints. Moes stood and faced the struggling goblin, chanting and waving signs. His hands glowed silver as he began casting a spell of spirit. Silver mist began to spin around his hands, concentrating and intensifying. Raising his hands toward the snake squeezing the goblin, Moes cast the Level 9 spell, Extraction. As if the magic was a dull drill, it struggled to penetrate the snake’s armored scales. Moes focused, trying to swirl the spirit faster and tighter. It was not connecting to the spirit of the monster, and his mana was being drained by the continual use of the spell. The difficulty in casting while wearing the uniform was exhausting him. The snake shifted and the movement caused the drill of spirit to slip underneath the scales. Moes felt success within his grasp, as the snake was already low on HP because of the pummeling provided by the angels. The halfling felt the snake’s spirit being ripped away from its body, and then he felt his own ribs crack. Moes lost control of the spell as he was flung across the bridge from accidental contact with Obsidian One’s severed arm. The interruption of the spell nearly drained the rest of Moes’ mana.

  Moes barely had the mana to cast a spell to help his body heal more quickly. He was lucky that his cracked ribs hadn't pierced a lung. As quickly as the pain would allow him to, he moved away from the fighting. If he was going to be any more help, he needed to allow his mana to regenerate. He needed to get somewhere that he could sit down and enter a mana trance. As he was fleeing, Moes looked back and saw that the two angels had left Grork to his fate. The angels were now trying to distract the armored troll who was swinging his scimitar around like it was a flyswatter.

  Spooky knew that it would only take a few moments for the troll to destroy her angels. She reached down and grabbed the obsidian arm that had been cut off. Knowing without the repair they would all die, Spooky held the arm in place while casting Stone Binding. The magic bound the arm back to the torso and Spooky gripped and relaxed the fist of the no longer injured arm. All the fingers worked. She looked around and she saw the snake that she had been using as a whip attempt to slither away. She was surprised that it wasn't dead. Its scales were incredibly tough, but Spooky was sure that she had almost liquefied its internal organs. As she began moving to retrieve the damaged snake, she realized it was headed toward Grork. He was still wrapped up in the other snake. Mind-clicking him, she saw that his health was extremely low. She leapt toward the constricting snake and brought the scimitar down in a half moon motion. The scimitar was apparently able to bypass the snake’s armor. The insides of the snake spilled out from the long cut line. It fell off of Grork who rolled out of the corpse’s embrace. He had only a sliver of HP left. Grork smiled at Spooky, and then his eyes went wide. The broken stone body of one of the angels landed right on top of him.

  The party member Grork has died.

  Spooky scanned around, hoping she could find the rest of the pieces of the broken angel. It was a lost cause. By the time she could put all the pieces back together, the magic to bind them would no longer be effective. Her HUD flashed, showing that she had received experience. Apparently the snake that she had cut had finally lost its last point of HP. With that thought in mind, she spun the scimitar and brought it down on the head of the other snake. She didn't even bother to pay attention to the message informing her she had received more XP.

  The scimitar of the troll swung wild. Now it wasn't even coming close to hitting the angel that was harassing it. Analyzing its movements, Spooky was able to determine that the troll was swinging its scimitar with less accuracy than when it had cut off Obsidian One's arm. The troll's eyes had also lost their intense glow. Spooky didn't know the reason for either of these issues, but it was not pressing. She needed to crack the armor of the troll if they were going to have a chance at defeating it.

  Spooky instructed her last remaining angel to obstruct the troll’s vision. At the same moment, she moved forward, gripping the scimitar with both hands. With all the mechanical and magical might that she had built into Obsidian One, Spooky swung the sword into the side of the troll. Instead of rebounding, the scimitar penetrated and then stuck. It looked like a knife left in a block of moldy black cheese. Though Spooky pulled, the scimitar would not come free. The troll wasn't going to just stand there and let her retrieve it either.

  Kuro felt instant fury when the scimitar entered the space meant only for his ribs and lungs. Releasing the scimitar he was holding, Kuro grabbed the angel clinging to its face. In a motion similar to that of an angry toddler slamming their milk on the floor, Kuro two-handedly brought the stone angel down upon Spooky.

  The attack, which was meant to crush Spooky, ended up only being a glancing blow. Just before the throw, Spooky had seen him drop his scimitar and had quickly moved to the left to grab it. As she grasped it, she could see the attack eminent and therefore continued her leftward momentum. If she had not done so, the impact might have broken Obsidian One. Instead, only the angel broke as it glanced off Obsidian One and hit the ground, shattering.

  Spooky ducked and rolled forward. Then, spinning low, she struck the back of the troll's leg with its own weapon. She saw some of the armor crack at the calf. The troll was in a frenzy. As it spun around, Spooky hit its legs two more times. Gray blood dripped through the armor where the scimitar was still embedded in its chest. Seeing this and analyzing the situation, Spooky sprinted away from the troll. She was now nearly at the far end of the bridge, close to the island containing the stairs to the next floor. In a fury, the troll ran after her, causing its blood to only pump faster. Spooky understood that trolls had incredible regenerative powers, but hoped a good bleeding would put it down.

  The troll's eyes suddenly lit up again and it stopped chasing Spooky. Standing on the bridge, the troll paused and touched the blood running down the front of his armor. He rubbed his fingers together, feeling the stickiness, and then he shook his head. Kuro gripped the sword embedded in his chest and tried to pull it out. Ironically, the strength of its armor worked against the troll. Letting go of the sword, the troll pounded a fist into its other palm, letting out its frustration. In haste, the troll reached up and pulled off its open-face helmet. This was followed by the prompt removal of the armor covering the troll's arms. Realizing what was happening, Spooky started forward toward the troll. The troll released his chestplate, splitting it down the back, and letting it fall forward in front of him. With a large clunk, the chestplate hit the stone bridge with the scimitar still in it. The now bare-chested troll gripped the handle of the scimitar and swung it, with the attached chestplate, at the approaching Spooky. She blocked it with her own scimitar, but was forced back.

  The troll finally had a weapon that fit it. It swung the unwieldy makeshift club in wide arcs, forcing Spooky back. There wasn't even a scar where the scimitar had cut into the troll's chest. It wasn't long before Spooky was driven back onto the island. The troll’s accuracy and combat effectiveness appeared to be back up to its earlier optimum level. Spooky, on the other hand, had not had time to fix the cracks from the earlier blow. She could tell her fighting efficiency was down by at least 16%. She continued to block and evade, retreating every chance that she could. Obsidian One stepped in a hole, but caught itself before the troll could capitalize. Backing up and resetting her stance, Spooky realized she had a fistful of dirt. The automaton he
art had done that on its own. Not looking the free gift in the mouth, she threw the dirt in the troll's eyes. With a seconds pause, she cast Iron Lung. The troll put its hand to its chest trying to get a full breath. Then it smiled, and shook its head.

  Check failed.

  Iron Lung resisted.

  Spooky was not Moes, so she didn't say anything colorful, but that didn't mean she wasn't feeling quite frustrated. Trolls were supposed to be dumb, but this monster was fighting differently. Its makeshift scimitar-chestplate club was too effective. If she was going to kill this thing, she needed to cut off appendages and probably rip its heart out, but if she continued to retreat, she would never get that opportunity. Finally, from a short distance away, she saw Moes leaning forward, arms outstretched from the bridge. Whatever distraction he gave her, she had to capitalize on it.

  Moes finished the words of power and the signs, and cast Extraction. The drill of spirit hit the troll in the back and began its work. The troll reacted almost instantly, turning and throwing its makeshift scimitar club at the halfling. Although Moes was focused on the spell, he was ready and had quick feet. Stepping to the side, he did not interrupt his spell, but dodged the projectile which landed on the bridge beside him.

  Even though the troll was ten-feet tall, Obsidian One was only a couple feet shorter and had long arms. As the scimitar swung, the head of the troll fell to the ground. The monster then fell and appeared dead, but Spooky didn't stop until its body was destroyed.

  Ding

  Congratulations! You have defeated the Third Floor Dungeon Boss and his two minions. XP received: 3,000.

  You have moved up a Level.

  Current Level- 48.

  You have moved up a Level.

  Current Level- 49.

  You have moved up a Level.

  Current Level- 50.

  You have been awarded 0 stat points.

  You have been awarded 3 points of power.

  Again, Spooky was upset. Why was the UI not as generous with her as it was with Joe? She quickly attempted to wall-off the feeling, but continued to feel its residual effects. Instead of paying attention to it, she tried to focus on the important process of allocating her points. There was a part of her that wanted to continue investing in magic, making her individually more combat capable. On the other hand, she needed more soldiers to protect her castle, for this reason, she invested her points in one of her skills.

  Hard Drive Partition (3 points allotted)

  She felt the skill increase and received a message.

  You have upgraded your skill, Hard Drive Partition. This upgrade provides multiple benefits. You now have the capability to control up to 125 six-inch ivory automaton angels. These non-combat angels will now be 15% more efficient at castle maintenance.

  You may now control up to 15 six-foot ivory automaton angels at once. They may now wear up to 10 lbs of armor. Within a half-mile of the castle, the angels will operate with increased intelligence. In the case of your death, your place of power will provide them with limited instructions.

  That was a comfort. When she had died before, she remained in denial about how undefended the castle had been during her demise. With this new upgrade, she could have at least 15 angels that could fall from the sky on her enemies, even if she wasn't present. It wasn't nearly enough to stop an enemy army, but every little bit helped. The new ability to provide them with 10 lbs of armor would increase their survivability by at least a factor of two. Already, her mind was filled with sewing patterns she could use to cover them in the special fabric manufactured from the flowers of this very dungeon. Wearing a uniform, her angels could be a flying advertisement for the nobility and strength of their kingdom.

  As Spooky was lost in thought, Moes was struggling to bring a scimitar toward her. The little halfling had to use two hands to even grip the handle of a sword. He was only making headway because he was walking backwards and pulling the sword while letting it drag over the slick dirt.

  “How did you get that sword out of the armor that it was stuck in?” Spooky asked.

  “The armor melted around it and then fell through the holes in the bridge into the water. It was yet another example of the new rules brought by the UI,” Moes said.

  “I doubt it was all the UI. More likely, the armor just wasn't part of the loot the dungeon allocated for killing this boss. If you'll direct your eyes to the remains of the troll, you'll see a chest nearby that I'm sure contains the rest of our loot. Go ahead and open it and see what we got,” Spooky said.

  Moes walked over to the chest, being especially careful not to step on the deceased’s body. As he opened the chest, both of the scimitars glowed, apparently changing ownership from the dungeon to Spooky.

  You have received items.

  Item: Triton Infantry Scimitar.

  You have found a Triton Infantry Scimitar. This sword is made of black iron, thereby granting it the ability to bypass a portion of the defense a target gains by wearing armor. An enchantment has been placed on it, bestowing it with high durability.

  Historical note: this type of sword was the standard issue weapon for the Triton military. The Triton Nation was composed of extremely large humans and believed to be the distant ancestors of the giant race. Archaeologists believe that their nation was sundered by one of the Great Cataclysms, causing near global extinction.

  Pick up Triton Infantry Scimitars (Quantity: 2)? Yes/No

  Item: Set of Triton Mage Gauntlets.

  You have found a Set of Triton Mage Gauntlets. These dark blue gauntlets reduce spell interference of armor by 50%. The special-powdered sapphire woven into the fabric increases a mage's mana reserve by 10%. Plus 2 to Intelligence. Restrictions: these gauntlets are child sized, and can only be used by males.

  Historical Note: The Triton Army trained their mages from birth and believed that high quality equipment was necessary even in training.

  Pick up Set of Triton Mage Gauntlets? Yes/No

  Item: Set of Paired Companion Rings.

  You have found a Set of Paired Companion Rings. These two rings must be worn by two different comrades. When the rings are within 100 feet of each other, all stats are increased by two for both ring bearers. When the ring bearers are farther than 100 feet apart, the link provides them with a limited amount of mental communication. If one of the ring bearers dies, the one left alive will be filled with a Righteous Fury. To avenge the death of their comrade, they will reach down inside themselves and find whatever hidden power or strength they might need. Restrictions: can only be worn by the goblin race.

  Pick up Set of Paired Companion Rings? Yes/No

  Spooky grimaced. She was hoping to find one of the items in the Fey Controller Set. Then again, she had fought while using her golem as armor. This was most likely the dungeon’s way of influencing how Spooky chose to fight. Despite not being what she had hoped, the items were quite amazing. The scimitars themselves were magnificent and a wonderful combat multiplier. Obsidian One would be able to use them to great effect. She would need to manufacturer a sheath for each of them and then attach them to Obsidian One.

  Moes immediately equipped the gauntlets. Luckily, they were thin enough to fit under his uniform.

  “I can already feel how much easier it will be to cast magic while wearing this uniform. Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the uniform. Without it, I would have died during that last fight. The impact of your arm would have broken me. But, because of the interference the uniform caused, I ran out of mana much sooner that I had prepared for. Grork’s death might have been prevented if I had had these gauntlets ahead of time. Those enemies were so resistant to my spells I almost felt useless,” Moes said.

  “The troll’s armor and the scales of the snakes greatly reduced the effectiveness of magic. Most likely, the next time we fight them, they won't have it,” Spooky said.

  “What? Why?” Moes asked.

  “During the battle I was able to analyze both the scales and the plate armor. Though the ar
mor itself was different than Obsidian One’s composition. Its color was not,” Spooky said.

  “So what? Lots of things are the same color,” Moes said.

  “I'm sorry Moes, I'm not being specific enough. I mean they were exactly the same color. The way it absorbed and refracted light was exquisitely precise, as if they were all produced in the same lab. Statistically, the chance of a coincidence like that occurring approaches the impossible. This leads me to make a rather large leap in thought. When we came into the dungeon, an argument could be made that we had six group members. I believed that in wearing Obsidian One as armor, we would only be considered five party members. The color of the armor and the difficulty of the boss lead me to believe that they were a statement, or critique rather, of how I pushed the boundary of the dungeon rules. From now on, I will consider Obsidian One a group member, whether I am inside of it or not. I would be surprised if this didn't remove the critique. So, the next time we fight this boss, it's unlikely it will have armor or the snakes near impenetrable scales,” Spooky said.

  Moes nodded and stayed quiet. He got the distinct feeling Spooky was saying those words for someone else's benefit. He shuddered with a bit of a chill. Spooky picked up the rings that appeared to be for Grork and Bork. The dungeon must have obtained a memory that included Bork. Otherwise, how would it know to create a gift that was perfect for the two of them? It must have wanted more true players that it could feast on.

  Before they left, Spooky was careful to maximize their loot bonus. Because of this, she didn't forget the snake skins. Instead of gutting them the way that Grork would have, she just threw both snakes over her shoulder and walked out with them. Moes followed, but retrieved Grork’s effects first. Quickly, but carefully, they made their way out of the dungeon.