by R. A. Mejia
Wendy smiles as she shakes each of our hands as she continues, “First, let me tell you how glad I am to finally meet you. It’s been such a long time since I’ve gotten a chance to face anyone of such athletic prowess. When I saw how much effort you put into getting through that obstacle course, I couldn’t help but root for you to make it through. We all did.”
A weird tingling sensation spreads through my body after shaking hands with Wendy, but more disconcerting is her statement that she’s been watching us. I give her my best smile and ask, “You were watching us? And who are ‘we’?”
Wendy tilts her head as if not entirely understanding the question and giggles once before answering, “Why of course we watched you. You’re the only entertainment we’ve had in a couple centuries.” Then as if realizing that she hadn’t addressed my question of “we” she rolls her eyes and says, “And by ‘we’, I mean all of the dungeon bosses. Stevie and Ryan say hello by the way.”
There’s so much information to unpack there it takes my brain a second to catch up to what she said. I ask, “Do you mean Stevie Shadows and Royal Ryan? The dungeon bosses we already beat?”
Wendy nods and answers, “Yes, of course. Who else would I mean?” Then realizing something she lowers her voice, leans in towards me, and asks, “Did you think you killed them permanently?” I nod once, and she laughs, “Oh, how silly. No. Even if you kill us, we respawn in a day, healthy as ever. Our dungeon master would never let us be destroyed permanently. Though I do hear that other dungeons run differently.”
I look around at the other members of the group and see the same confused expression that must be on my own face. Before I can ask anything else, the dungeon master’s voice echoes through the room, “Ok Wendy. That’s enough chatting. You’ve had your chance to talk to them.” Wendy’s face loses a bit of its cheerfulness, and she turns away from us and walks to the other side of the room and starts to stretch her arms and legs.
The dungeon master continues, “Sorry about that folks. At first, Wendy wanted to perform for you like the other bosses. However, when she saw your performance on the obstacle course, she instead requested a few minutes before the fight to chat with you. Apparently, she was rather impressed by your performance there.” Then almost as an afterthought, he adds, “Not that it will stop her from killing you. It’s still her job after all.”
Well, I guess it’s good to have a fan? Still, we need to get prepared for this fight. I signal for the group to get ready. Mary summons Mr. Snuggle Butt, and Kitsune equips the Pointy Shield of Pain. We back ourselves against one of the corner pillars, Vrax and I positioning ourselves closest to Wendy. We don’t know if Wendy is a summoner type like Royal Ryan and we don’t want to get attacked from behind.
The dungeon master uses his announcer's voice and says, “Everyone looks ready to go. Let the fight begin!”
The moment the dungeon master finishes speaking, Vrax and I rush forward to grab Wendy’s attention. Vrax doesn’t bother to use his [Sneak] skill having found out repeatedly that the undead can’t be backstabbed. Instead, he rushes forward with me until we’re about five feet from Wendy. Then he splits off to the left, and I move to the right. Typically we use this maneuver to give Vrax a chance to backstab an opponent, but this time it’s just a way to shift Wendy’s attention.
It works too. Wendy doesn’t know which way to look as Vrax and I move to opposite sides of her. I strike out with the most powerful ability I have [Thrust] and feel the spear in my hands shoot forward. Wendy tries to dodge to the left, but my spear catches her in her thigh.
Damage dealt: 6 (Thrust)
God dammit. That should have done at least ten points of damage. Frustrated that my best abilities never seem to work on anything in this dungeon I yell out, “She’s resistant to piercing.”
Wendy smiles at my statement and taunts, “That’s not the only thing I’m resistant to.” Then she grabs the spear in her thigh and yanks it out. I pull on the spear, but she’s stronger than she looks, and I can’t pull it out of her hands. I’m starting to think this fight is going to turn into a game of tug of war when I see Wendy’s eyes widen.
Vrax deals damage: 5
Ha! That’s what you get for forgetting about the kobold. I hear Vrax yell, “Slashing no good.”
Wendy’s smile vanishes as she throws the spear tip in her hand to the side and leaps three steps back so that Vrax and I now both face her. We move to flank her again, but instead of running, Wendy closes her eyes. I’m surprised by the move until I hear her start to chant, and a blue glow begins to surround her.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Vrax rush forward, and I follow his example. If we can damage her even a little, we may be able to stop her from casting whatever spell she’s preparing. Unfortunately, we move too late. Before we can take more than a step or two, the blue glow surrounding Wendy leeches into the ground and radiates in a pulse of magical energy away from her. When the pulse hits Vrax and me, we both stop moving forward. I look down and see ice crystals forming around my feet and up my calves. I don’t see a damage notification, so I’m reassured that I’m not hurt. However, I also can’t reach Wendy with my spear from here.
Vrax is in an even worse spot than I am. Because Vrax is so short, not only are his feet frozen in place, but most of his legs and hips are too. Wendy casually moves around Vrax until she’s at his back. I see her fingernails grow to sharp points before she stabs them in his back.
I look at the corner of my vision and see Vrax’s health drop slightly. His health bar shrinks a little, but of more concern is that the pallor of his scales seems to fade slightly. I don’t know what Wendy’s done to him, but it can’t be good.
I hear a growl, and three magical bolts hit Wendy from above.
Mary deals damage: 3
Mary deals damage: 5
Mary deals damage: 3
Looking up, I see Mary. With a look of anger, she yells at Wendy, “Get away from him you bitch!” Wendy smiles at Mary, the only one of us to do any real damage to her so far. She runs forward out of my field of view. I twist at the waist and catch glimpses of Mary darting around the ceiling trying to cast magic missile again, but Wendy won’t let her. Every time Mary stops to cast a spell, Wendy raises her hand, and a blue ray shoots out. Mary has to stop her casting and dodge. Mr. Snuggle Butt is doing his best to attack Wendy, but she’s agile and nimbly dodges his every attack.
I return my attention to my own predicament and use my spear to try and chip away at the ice encasing my feet. I’ve knocked off a few chunks when I remember that I have magic of my own. I toss my spear in my [Inventory] and spellwrite ‘fire’ over the ice at my feet. I pour as much mana as I can into the spell to speed up the heat gathering process, and I find myself free of the frozen restraints in less than a minute. I run over to Vrax and use the same spell to release him. A quick glance up at the corner of my vision tells me I’m already half way through my mana.
Now free, Vrax and I turn just in time to see Mary hit with one of the blue rays cast by Wendy. In the corner of my vision, I see Mary’s health bar drop by a third from that one attack. The fairy’s flight seems to slow down after the assault, but she’s able to dodge another blue ray by dropping from the sky. I’m afraid for an instant that Mary’s seriously hurt, but she pulls out of the dive at the last minute and flies along the ground back towards Kitsune who’s protecting herself with the shield.
I mentally cheer when I see a green glow behind the shield and see Mary’s health bar return to full. Kitsune must have healed Mary of the damage she’d taken. Wendy rushes toward Kitsune but is intercepted by Mr. Snuggle Butt. She shifts left and right, but no matter how she moves, Mr. Snuggle Butt positions himself between her and our casters. Wendy winces as another set of magic missiles slam into her.
Mary deals damage: 6
Mary deals damage: 3
Mary deals damage: 4
Vrax and I rush to attack the now distracted Wendy. She must hear us coming because
she turns around and runs towards a corner of the room away from Mr. Snuggle But, Vrax, and I. Vrax and I chase after her, but the wolf maintains his position as guard.
Vrax and I now find ourselves trying to chase down Wendy as she runs around the room. She shoots off a number of blue rays as she runs. Most of which, we’re able to dodge. Unfortunately, I don’t see a loose tile ahead of me. I trip and fall flat on my face. Before I can get up, I’m hit by one blue ray then another.
Damage received: 6 (Ray of Frost)
Damage received: 9 (Ray of Frost)
I feel cold seep into my body, slowing me down slightly as I get to my feet and stumble into a trot. I have to keep moving, or I’ll get hit by those spells again. I feel a cold ache in my side and find myself wishing Kitsune were close enough to heal me. The moment that thought crosses my mind, I realize what Wendy’s plan is. She’s been intentionally drawing Vrax and me away from our healer. Neither Vrax nor I are fast enough to catch her, so all she has to do is lead us around the room and shoot spells at us. God dammit, we’re being kited.
I stop running and yell out, “Turtle defense!”
Vrax stops chasing after Wendy and moves towards Kitsune and Mary. I do the same, leaving a confused looking Wendy behind.
As soon as I reach Kitsune, I open my [Inventory] grab the other Pointy shield of Pain and equip it. No sooner is the shield on my arm than I see Wendy send a [Ray of Frost] at me. It hits the shield, and while I feel cold seep through the metal, the ray does no damage to me. I smile as I feel a warmth spread through me and look down and see my body glow green briefly. My health restored, Kitsune moves up next to me, Mary riding on her shoulder. The two of us form a line, our shields up next to each other forming a protective shield wall. I motion for Vrax to get behind the wall and once he does, I tell the group, “Looks like we’re safe for the moment. Her [Ray of Frost] can’t get through the shields and even if they could we have our healer here to take care of the damage.”
I peek over the shield I have raised and see that Wendy has retreated to the other side of the room and is pacing back and forth. I turn back to the group and continue, “We’re fine where we are right now, but we’re never going to win this fight on defense. We’ve taken about half her health, but she has the ranged advantage as long as she can run away from us. So we have to take her mobility away. Here’s my plan, I call it ‘Trip and trap.'”
I proceed to explain my idea to my team and get nods of approval from everyone. I walk forward, away from Kitsune and past Mr. Snuggle Butts. I stop when I get to the center of the room, shield in my left hand protecting my body, right hand bare and held out wide in front of me. I call out, “Wendy the Wight. I challenge you to single combat!”
I hear laughter from across the room and Wendy walks out from behind one of the pillars lining the inner perimeter of the massive room. She looks me over, smiles, and says, “We both know you wouldn’t stand a chance against me one on one? So, why would you offer to fight me all by yourself?”
“Oh? If you’re so sure you can take me then why not accept? Here I’ll make it even easier for you.” I take the shield off of my left arm, turn it upside down so that the sharp ends of the swords it’s made out of are now pointing down. I slam the shield into the ground, cracking the tile floor with a deafening crash. The shield is now embedded upright into the floor. I walk past the shield, closer to Wendy, and bare my rock covered fists at her, “See, now it’s even. My fists against your magic. We’ll see who can get who first.”
Wendy looks at me curiously as if trying to figure out what I’m up to. She glances past me towards Kitsune, but the moment her eyes leave me I rush forward trying to catch her off guard. Wendy returns her attention to me as I close the distance between us. She dodges behind one of the pillars to put something between the two of us, and I give chase. Wendy clearly has the speed advantage on me, and she easily keeps a ten foot gap between her and I at all times. However, she has to turn around slightly to shoot a [Ray of Frost] at me. That’s how the next fifteen minutes goes. If you use the embedded shield as the midpoint mark of the room, I chase Wendy exclusively on this side of the chamber, away from Kitsune and her ability to heal me. I’m able to dodge many of the blue rays that Wendy sends my way but take three shots during the chase, dropping my health down to twenty points. I’m seriously reconsidering my plan at this point. If I take just a couple more shots, I’m toast. Or rather frozen bread, as is the case when dying from an ice spell.
Regardless, I’m just glad when I finally chase Wendy past the shield embedded in the middle of the room again. She’s just turning to fire off another [Ray of Frost] when Vrax breaks stealth and whips his tail at her legs. I see her eyes widen when she finds herself falling forward instead of blasting me with deadly ice magic. She catches herself with her hands but still falls prone onto the ground. Before she can get up, green vines burst from beneath the tiled floor and wrap themselves around Wendy. Wendy screams in frustration as the vines entwine themselves around her. I’m finally able to catch up to Wendy, and Mary pops up from behind the metal shield she’d been hiding behind and tells Vrax, “It’s about time you tripped her. I was falling asleep waiting for her to stay still long enough for me to cast [Nature’s Grasp].”
Vrax points the shortsword in his hand at the struggling Wendy and tells Mary, “Less talk, more kill.”
I couldn’t agree more and move closer to the entangled Wendy. However, when I’m still three feet away, she starts to glow blue, and a wave of energy radiates from the ground around her. Once again, I see ice form on my legs, and I see Vrax similarly stopped. He swings his sword, but it’s just too short to reach Wendy. Mary, on the other hand, was flying in the air when the blast of ice energy went out and is unaffected. She whistles once and Mr. Snuggle Butt comes running. She whispers something in his ear, and he dashes forward and begins attacking Wendy the Wight. Between the wolf and Mary’s [Magic Missiles], the rest of the level boss’s health disappears and shortly after, so does her body.
You’ve helped kill Wendy the Wight, lvl. 8. You receive 20 XP. Because you helped defeat a creature more than three levels above your group’s average level, you receive an additional 6 XP.
I use the last of my mana to unfreeze my and Vrax’s feet while Mary collects the loot dropped by Wendy. I finish getting rid of the last of the ice around Vrax’s left leg when I hear Mary curse. I look up from my work to find Mary holding four ceramic dinner plates.
Chapter 4.16
With the level boss defeated, we’re more than ready for a good night's rest. Not only did we beat the dungeon boss, but we also completed a grueling obstacle course today. To say we are tired would be like saying fire can be hot. It’s true but doesn’t really convey the depth of the thing.
Unfortunately, just as we’re sitting down to rest, the dungeon master’s voice reverberates throughout the room, “Congratulations on defeating Wendy, Adventurers. There were several bets going that you would not be able to best her.”
As I stretch out my sore calves, I reply dryly, “Thanks. I’m glad we could entertain you. Now, how about those answers you promised?”
The dungeon master, for once, answers immediately, “How about I answer all your questions in person?”
The swift and direct response throws me off, and my tired brain can’t come up with a better response than, “Huh?”
Instead of answering my eloquently phrased question, the dungeon master opens up the floor to reveal a new set of stairs leading down to the next level of the dungeon. The dungeon master doesn’t answer any of the other questions I ask, so I walk over to the rest of the team.
We debate for a while whether we should go or not, and everyone seems to have an opinion. Well, everyone except Vrax. The poor dirt encrusted kobold is so tired he falls asleep during the discussion. Eventually, our curiosity gets the better of us, and I wake up my brood brother and we all descend down the stairs.
What we find is beyond anything I’ve experienced i
n this world so far. Stepping off the last stair, I walk into a moderately sized living room with plush carpeting. The wood paneled walls are covered in decorative art pieces, and the room is furnished with couches and chairs right out of a Gimbel’s catalog. In the corner of the room, sitting at a round table in front of a recessed kitchen, are Stevie Shadows and Royal Ryan. They’re talking to each other while drinking. Sitting with them is a tall skeletal figure with a thick curly black afro that adds a foot to his height. He wears a small black top hat and a black two piece suit with ruffles at the sleeves.
Looking up, the skeletal figure notices our presence and waves a bony hand at us. The figure then says in a familiar high pitched voice, “YoHoHoHoHo! Welcome adventurers.” Stevie and Ryan finally see us too and wave as well.