A Mage Prepared

by Thomas Whipple

  My next target is the swordsman. Getting between him and the firestarter, I hit the mage with another Mana Bolt and dive to the side. Again their loose cannon of a team mate fries one of their own. I repeat this one more time with the last brawler and then look back to Azzaria and wave her forward. Using telepathy I tell Thia to attack the archer. I check the mage and he is below half health after taking my spells. All attack and no defense with that one. Aiming my staff at the blind mage I charge up an Earth Spike and hold it. Pumping more and more mana into it, there must have been at least three times the normal amount. Feeling at the edge of my control I release the spell at the back of the Pyromaniac. The release of my spell must have tipped him off to where I am in the fog because he turns toward me raising his hands to throw his fireballs. It was too late though and the larger than normal spike of dirt and rock slams into his chest. The cracking of bones from the force of the impact is clearly heard over the sounds of the other three engaging the archer. My overcharged attack killed the enemy mage instantly with its low health, so I fire off a couple Mana bolts at the beetles that are slowly crawling out of the other monsters we killed.

  A moment later all the patrol members are dead and I am still watching the body of the Pyromaniac. Azzaria comes up to my right and my companions join us. I get concern over the bond with Thia when Azzaria says "What's wrong Vol." Answering everyone "A beetle didn't come out of this one." They all look at the body again. We had killed a lot of these things and so far there was always a beetle. After another minute Azzaria looks at me again. "Maybe you killed it in the body with that super Earth Spike spell you just used." That's when I see movement at the mouth of the kobold caster and hold up my hand to get everyone's attention. When it emerges I start to understand. It has scorch marks on its carapace and a couple legs look like they were burned off. "Do you see that Azzaria? I bet that the fire mage was not a very compatible host for the beetle. Could also explain why it was so strung out." She nods her head and I crush the beetle with my staff. "I have heard that they may be vulnerable to fire, but I didn't mention it because you don't have any fire spells."

  Searching the body I find something that makes me jump up "HELL YEAH!" Alarmed at my sudden outburst the rest turn to me, so I hold up the spell book I found. "I got a fire spell now!" Not seeing any objection to it I use the book to learn the spell and then look up the info for it.

  Burning Palm: Causes the users hand to ignite with fire. Touching an enemy with the burning hand causes damage every second the touch continues. Burn status is also inflicted, causing half the original damage amount over 10 seconds, stacks up to 5 times. Duration: 10 Secs. Range: Touching. Cost 15 MP. Base Dmg: 15-20.

  The range on it sucks but its DOT, or Damage Over Time, component could really make the difference. Plus it will give me something to work with to raise my fire magic level. I saw a few spell books at Bolden's shop that were fire. I didn't get them because I wouldn't be able to meet the requirements. I keep looting after that and there are a couple of things that are worth note. First is the swordsman's weapon, which was uncommon in its class and provided 2 AGI and 1 STR. The archer actually had a bangle that was worth something too. It was steel and provided 1 AGI. Both items went to Azzaria since they would benefit her more. She looked particularly happy about the bangle for some reason. I guess women like jewelry no matter what world you are on.

  Having looted everything we moved into the village. We didn't even bother with stealth, just walked in and started fighting the first thing that attacked. Only a few had returned to the village so the fights were just one or two at a time, and ended quickly. We did one more look around the huts to make sure we wouldn't have to deal with enemies behind us, and then headed to the mouth of the cave. Looking at the entrance, it seems to be too symmetrical. It's about 10 feet across and a perfect arch. "This looks like it was built, not formed naturally." Azzaria looks thoughtfully at the arch for a moment. "I think you are right." We get closer and look in, seeing that farther back there is light. We enter the cave and I am certain now. The walls are all smooth and the floor is even. On top of that the layout is perfectly straight.

  A little ways in we find the source of the light. In alcoves cut into the wall there are little colonies of mushrooms. They are glowing surprisingly bright and illuminating the tunnel. We continue down until we come to an opening into a much larger cavern? Room? To me it looks like the entry to a mansion, so I am starting to think of them as rooms. There are two curved staircases that curve around the rounded walls of the room on the left and right. In front of me in the wall across from where we entered and between the staircases is a double door. It is made of dark wood and looks solid. Focusing on it I can feel a little mana from it. We all look around the room but don't see any enemies. Going to the double doors I can see lines for an enchantment on it. That must be how it looks brand new.

  I crack the door and look in to see a kobold standing in the hall like a guard. I quietly close the door, which must be part of the enchantment since I don't think the beetles oiled the hinges, then turn to everyone and explain what I saw. Next we go up the stairs to the top where it is a balcony overlooking the large room and find another similar door to the one on the ground floor. There is no one up here and the door is closed. "I want to clear the ground floor before we start moving up." I whisper to everyone. We return to the ground floor and I have everyone move to places not immediately visible. I then open the door but stand behind it. After a couple minutes a kobold spearman and a kobold swordsman step into the room, both level 11. As soon as they get far enough in I close the doors behind them and cast a barrier on myself. It is then that we all attack and it's over in a few seconds.

  Heading through the door we come into a wide hallway with doors lining both sides and another double door at the end. Going from door to door we clear out the rooms with about half of them being occupied with two or three kobolds each. So far there are no possessed goblins in the complex. Of the five doors on each side of the room the one in the middle on both sides leads to another hallway. These hallways lead to more living quarters on each side of the hall and the double doors at the end of those halls lead to rooms that look like storage or crafting facilities. One of those storage rooms has glowing blue crystals that the information I got from my profession tells me are Mana Crystals, an essential ingredient to enchanting. In that room is another door that is barred on the inside. We leave that for later since nothing will come through it. Back to the first hallway, we go to the double doors at the end. There we fight a couple more kobolds in what looks like a bathroom with separate sections for privacy. It is filthy though, and there are egg sacks attached to corners of the rooms. I light up my hand to start torching beetle eggs when a hand on my shoulder stops me. Confused, I look at Azzaria questioningly. "We don't want to start burning everything yet. Those eggs aren't an immediate threat and if you burn them now it may alert all the others in this place." Nodding to her, we then backtrack to the original entrance hall and go up the stairs to the next floor.

  Through the double doors is an antechamber where we encounter a group of four kobolds. Two warriors with a short sword and shield each, as well as a spearman and what my Identify skill tells me is an Earth Mover. The ceiling here is pretty high so Thia takes flight. I am glad I have been putting up a barrier before we enter rooms since the next thing that happens is that I am knocked back a few steps from a rock that slammed into my chest. Recovering, I fire back a Mana Bolt but the caster blocks with a wall of earth that rises up between us. "Damn it! Everyone focus on one of the warriors. Timbre, you know your role. Keep their attention. I have to deal with their caster and he is going to be difficult."

  After calling out instructions I take advantage of the fact that the enemy mage can't see me and cast a Earth Spike into the back of the warrior they aren't attacking, followed by a mana bolt. About to finish him off I felt a momentary surge of mana coming from where the mage was and drop to the floor. I knew it wasn't goin
g to sit idle while it couldn't see me so I was waiting for this. I heard something whistle over my head and look to see a four foot spear of rock sticking out of the stone wall. That would have hurt. I jump up and start after the enemy mage. "Thia, finish off the one I attacked, it should be quick. Then go after the spearman. Save your screech when it comes off cooldown though" I tell her telepathically. I'm about 15 feet from the mage when he fires another rock at me, but I am too close to completely dodge and it clips my hand knocking the staff away. I can still use the hand, but it's a little tingly from the impact.

  At about 10 feet from the mage he raises another wall to block me. I turn and fire a Mana Bolt into the back of the spearman who has all three of my companions on it now. "Thia, time for that screech I told you to save." She gets that message and swoops in over me as the wall falls and screeches right into the Earth Mover's face. The kobold, distracted by the unexpected attack, misses with his next stone spear and it whizzes by me. A few more steps and I jump at the disoriented mage. Not giving him time to recover, I cast my new spell Burning Palm before using my flaming left hand to grip the kobold around the neck when I land on top of it. It screams in agony and claws my barrier, breaking it and leaving four lacerations on my lower chest and side. My turn to scream, but I tighten my grip on its neck and cast another barrier now that it's off cooldown. As the downed mage claws at the new barrier surrounding me, I take the hunting knife at my waist and start stabbing it. Ten seconds expires causing my hand to go out but I keep it pinned with that hand. After a couple seconds, and a few more stabs, it stops moving. The only reason it took that long is that there was some spell on him that reduced the damage he was taking.

  When I see the light leave its eyes I hop up casting Burning Palm on my left and holding the bloody hunting knife in my right hand. Scanning the area I only see Azzaria and Timbre with Thia on her head, and they are slowly approaching me. Azzaria holds up her hands in a calming gesture to me as she comes near. It's then that I realize that I probably look like a crazed maniac at the moment. I relax from my alert stance a little and lower the hunting knife. Raising my still flaming left hand I focus on ending the spell and the fire disperses. Everyone else calms down and the adrenaline in my system starts to drop. I stumble over to a wall and put my back to it before sliding down to sit on the floor. Azzaria sees me sit and grip my side, then runs up to me pulling a health potion from her belt loop. I need to get me one of those next chance I get. I raise my hand to dismiss it. "Treat Timbre first, she looks like she took some damage. I am fine, it only got in a partial strike when my barrier fell." She doesn't stop though and points down to my right leg. "You got hit with more than that and if you check your HP you'll see you are down to almost 60%.

  Looking down at where she pointed there is a deeper set of claw marks on my thigh. Damn, I didn't even remember getting that. It probably happened when I was dealing with the pain of the first strike. I reach to take the potion from her but she slaps my hand down. She places her left hand on the back of my neck and pulls a little to tilt my head back while using the other hand to place the potion to my lips. I gulp it down and feel it going to work. Looking forward again I can see Azzaria's face is so close that I can see my reflection in those swirling emerald pools. Then I realize she still has her hand on the back of my neck.

  Opening my mouth to say something, what I know not, she suddenly yanks me forward and our lips meet. It is fierce at first, but after a second the kiss softens and I lose myself for a moment. When we break our kiss, we are both holding each other in a tight hug. Looking at her eyes again I can see tears building there. "Don't do that again. You are a mage, not some fighter. I can't lose my partner." Using my thumb I wipe away the tear that starts to roll down her cheek and squeeze a little tighter for a second to reassure her. "You are right. I need more versatility to my spells so that won't be necessary again. Now, I honestly hate to leave this position but Timbre needs treatment." We release each other and I pull a health potion of my own from my storage and have Timbre drink as I pour it in her mouth. "Let's take a long lunch break here. Timbre and I could use a little more time to regenerate and we all need a break after that fight. First thing first though, loot!" What we found was another spell book and a ring.

  Spell Book: Shape Earth: Allows user to shape the earth to his will. The changes are permanent and because of this it is slow and mana intensive. Class: Mage. Earth type magic level 5+.

  Silver Ring of Minor Health: Plain silver band that is enchanted with a strong heath enchantment for the materials used. Item class: Rare. Durability: 20/20. +50 HP.

  The spell looks more like a utility spell and the ring would be best for Timbre, but she can't wear it. Azzaria insists that I wear it. I think she is still a little scared about what could happen to me, but she does have more in the way of HP than me so I relent and accept it. Thia finishes her work frying the beetles and wings over to land on Timbre who lies down next to me. Azzaria sits and scoots up next to me, laying her head on my shoulder. It feels good, and I don't want it to end but we are not exactly in a friendly place right now. We eat and take a break for an hour or so before getting up to continue on. We crack the doors and peek through into the next room. It's a large meeting hall with a raised area at the other end of the room. There are a total of five other doors, one in the middle on either side of the room, one large double door in the middle of the back of the room and a door on either side of the double door. We enter and take care of the two shield bearing warriors without a hitch. After fighting so many of these possessed things it isn't a challenge unless there are more.

  We loot the bodies and I store the weapons and shields that are junk to sell for later. I have been doing that more and more now that we are in here. More of the gear the kobolds have been carrying has been at least sellable, and with the amount of space I now have it isn't a problem to bring it along. I try to open the set of double doors in the back of the room but they are locked somehow. I take a good look at the door but there is no keyhole or way to unlock it that I can see. Now that I am closer I can see that the door is enchanted and covered in designs of beetles like the Corpse Driver Beetles that we have been killing. Really creepy stuff. We move onto the middle door to the left of where we came in from. It looks like it was a kitchen, with prep tables, sinks, and ovens. There are a couple of doors there that lead to rooms that may have been for food storage but now only contain dust.

  Heading back to the hall we go to the other middle door and look into another hall with three doors on each side and one at the end. The rooms we find when we enter through those doors are much bigger than the ones we found downstairs. They also all contained three kobolds level 12 and 13 that we killed. They were suites with their own sitting room, bedroom and bathroom. Then we get to the room at the end of the hall. Taking a peek inside I see two swordsman and another mage. Identify says that it is a level 12 Hydromancer. I inform the group of what I see and Azzaria speaks up. "Let me and Thia take the mage. With her stun I will get in close and get a little work in with my new sword." I am a little worried about it, and I guess it shows because she continues talking. "I'm a higher level and with Thia to back me up and hit it with screech we should be fine." She looks determined so I give in and nod to her.

  We enter quickly after I buff up and Thia flaps her large wings to speed off toward the back of the room where the mage is. Azzaria sprints in that direction as well. Turning on the kobold swordsman in front of me I release the Mana Bolt I had prepared and overcharged. The spell looks even stronger than the first time I did it. It streaks across the distance between us and impacts the swordsman in the chest. It hit so hard that it actually took the kobold off its feet as it ran at me. The unfortunate kobold lands on its back and I conjure an Earth Spike through his chest. Looking around I see Azzaria cutting up the mage while he tries to regain his senses from Thia's attack. Confirming she is ok I look to Timbre, who is playing hard to get with the other swordsman. I am sure she can handle him,
but it's more about wearing out her opponent. It will take a some time for that to end so I give her a hand and hit the swordsman in the back with a Mana Bolt. My surprise attack causes it to stumble forward a step right into the waiting jaws of my Beast Companion. Taking advantage, she clamps down on his sword arm and starts to shake her head. When I hear the snapping of bone I know the fight is all but over.

  Back to the mage I can see it has recovered from its disorientation. Using its staff it is defending against Azzaria's sword. He is bad at it, but good enough to not die right away. Every time it gets enough distance to try and cast a quick spell Thia hits it with Zapp or a sharp feather. Noticing movement where I left the swordsman I turn and quickly end the beetle that emerged with another Mana Bolt. Then I point my staff at the mage and make an earth spike stab its leg. The Hydromancer looks down at the point sticking out of his leg and then back up just in time for it to see the blade that takes his head. With all the enemies dead we collect the gear they have worth salvaging and another ring that adds health, though not as much as the one I already have. I put it on Azzaria myself to make sure she takes it, and when she opens her mouth to protest I kiss it. "No arguments."