by R. A. Mejia
As more ice shards hit my shield, I sigh and think about what went wrong. I can only guess that I need to release all the built up energy all at once and not let it stream outward lazily. I set another arrow, and in my mind's eye, I picture my mana charging the ‘force’ symbol but not letting the energy release yet. I can feel the build up and just when I think it’s about to burst I release it all at once. I feel the arrow leave the fingers holding it in place in a rush of movement and I see the shaft of the arrow speed forward like a little rocket. It hits the other side of the room with a clatter, and I see the shaft of the arrow snap. Professor Dufendoor scowls slightly at me from his seat on the stool. Since the arrow hit the wall a foot from his face that is understandable.
Still, I can’t help but give a loud ‘whoop’ at the success of the experiment. I have those mephits now. I aim the next arrow upwards at the nearest ice mephit and fire it off just as it’s about to launch its own projectile.
Damage dealt: 3
My arrow hits the wing of the creature and does minimal damage, but it has the desired effect. Not only is the ice mephit forced to abandon its attack, but it also drops a foot in the air since its delicate wing now has a gaping hole in it. The creature tries to stay in the air by flapping its wings harder, but it’s only delaying the inevitable. The monster's stamina reserves quickly deplete and it comes crashing to the ground with a thud. It’s not dead, but it’s also not getting back in the air anytime soon.
I repeat the trick with the arrows five more times before I bring down the last three mephits. Once they’re all on the ground, I’m able to make quick work of them and end the second round of battle. Again, I don’t get any experience points from the kills since they were summoned creatures.
I grab the spear I threw, pick up my shield, and retreat to the far side of the room. I’m slightly winded as I put my back against the wall furthest from the Professor Dufendoor and try to rest while I can. I quickly check my status.
Health 60/65
Stamina 24/87
Mana 04/91
Looking at my numbers, I sigh sadly and wish that I had thought about making some mana and stamina potions before I took this test.
I’m barely able to catch my breath before I see another person in the balcony start to gesture and yell magical words of summoning. A large circle, at least six feet in diameter, appears on the ground in the middle of the room. A cloud forms within the circle and the smell of sulfur radiates from the area, assaulting my olfactory senses.
I get up wearily, having only been able to rest enough to restore a few points of mana. When the smoke from the summoning circle clears, a great beast stands in the middle. I can’t help but stare at the canine creature that’s as big as an Irish Wolfhound but has dark black skin, piercing red eyes, and radiates heat like a furnace. I look above the head for its name and see that it’s a level five Hell Hound. While I don’t know for certain what this creature is capable of, I can make the reasonable guess that it has some fire based attacks.
The moment the circle around it disappears, the monster races forward slamming right into my shield and knocking me back several steps. I shift my shield lower and peer over the top, my spear in my right hand, ready to strike from above. However, the crafty creature seems to recognize the weapon in my hand, and it moves back just outside the range of my spear. The beast circles me, trying to spot a weakness. It makes a few testing lunges and tries to bite an exposed leg, but I’m able to turn and keep my shield between us.
I tire of playing the waiting game and try to rush the monster. It lazily skips backward and stays out of reach of my spear no matter how many times I rush forward. When I finally stop chasing after it, the hellhound opens its great maw, and its black tongue rolls out. It almost seems to be laughing at me. The Pointy Shield of Pain is starting to get heavy, and I drop it to the ground momentarily to rest it. In that instant, the hell hound charges. It streaks past the shield that I’m still trying to pick up off the ground and bites my leg.
Damage received: 6
Damage received: 2 (fire)
Not only do I feel the creature's teeth pierce my leather pants but I also feel my flesh burn from the bite. I let go of the shield in my left hand and twist to bring my spear over my head for a downward strike. The hell hound lets go of my leg, and I see it prepare to dance back out of range, but I have a surprise of my own. I activate [Thrust] and the spear in my right hand shoots forward at an accelerated speed.
Damage dealt: 10 (Thrust)
The fiery beast yelps in pain as the spear pierces its side. It pulls back, and because of the awkward angle of my attack and the sheer difference in weight, the hound pulls the spear from my grasp. The spear, embedded in its side, drags along the ground as the creature puts more distance between it and me. I take the opportunity to pick up my shield in my left hand and spin to defend myself.
However, the hellhound is more interested in getting the spear in its side out and is spinning in circles trying to dislodge it. Finally, the weapon comes free and goes spinning into a corner of the room. I run and try to retrieve it, but the Hellhound gets there first and picks it up with his mouth. The wood, firmly in the jaws of the beast, begins to smoke. In another few seconds, the shaft of the spear catches fire. Though fire is literally coming from the hound's mouth, it doesn’t seem to notice, and it bites down hard snapping the weapon in two.
I stare in disbelief at the raw power of the creature and almost don’t notice the burning glow that is building in the chest of the beast. The hell hound races towards me and I pull my shield up close to my body expecting some kind of charge attack. Unfortunately for me, what happens is much worse.
A mere foot from my position the hell hound stops and the burning white energy in its chest travels up its throat and to its jaws. Its head glows white for a second before a white hot gout of flame burst from its mouth. Even though I’m able to duck my head behind the shield, I’m still engulfed in flame as roaring inferno seems to creep around the shield to burn me.
Damage received: 15 (Hell Breath)
Damage received: 2 (Fire)
Damage received: 2 (Fire)
The metal shield absorbs some of the damage from the attack but becomes so hot that I have to drop the shield or risk cooking the flesh of the arm holding it.
Damage received: 2 (Fire)
I’m confused by the new notification until I look down and see that the bottom of my pants are on fire and quickly stop, drop, and roll in the sand to put out the blaze. I hear a deep growl and remember that the fire is not my only concern. Before I can get back to my feet, I’m tackled by the hell hound, and I find myself on my back staring up into the jaws of the creature. I experience a moment of deja vu as I instinctively cover my face with my left arm and feel the teeth of the hound bite into it.
Damage received: 6
Damage received: 1 (Fire)
I scream out in pain and see my health drop to less than a third of its maximum. The memory of another monster biting down on my arm flashes through my mind. The warg in the forest outside Restrian breaking my arm while chewing on me. I remember that I thought I was dead when that monster attacked me, and I would have died too if Rex hadn’t come along. Instead of the painful memory causing me to freeze up from relived trauma, something inside of me breaks, and I scream out in primal fury, “I’m not level one anymore! Some stupid mutt won't kill me!”
I begin to punch, knee, and kick the monster that has my arm in its jaws. I receive damage notifications but ignore them as I fight for my life. The creature snaps its head back and forth trying to rip my arm off, but the pain only makes me fight more furiously. I feel the knuckle buster on my right hand break apart as it reaches its damage absorption limit. But I continue to punch. The red scales that cover my flesh provide some protection, but it still burns every time I hit the creature.
The monster releases my left arm, and it falls limply to my side, bloody and burnt. I see the familiar white glow in the hell ho
und’s chest build and know that it plans to release its fire attack at point blank range. As the energy flows up its neck, I take a gamble and reach up and clamp my free hand around its mouth. The demonic canine’s eyes widen, and it tries to pull back away from me, but it trips over my legs and lands on its side. As the white-hot energy travels to the creature’s skull, I keep an iron grip on its jaws, stopping them from opening and releasing a burning inferno. The beast whips its head trying to get me to let go and madly rakes at me with its claws. However, I ignore the new wounds and focus on just keeping my grip on its jaws closed. There’s a white-hot flash, and I feel my right hand burn as the energy the creature planned to release on me, instead explodes inside its head.
I feel the body of the monster spasm once then go still. However, my vision starts to go, and the world spins around in a blur as my head hits the sand, and everything goes black.
Chapter 6.6
When I next open my eyes, I’m staring up at a slate tile ceiling. Looking at a particular spot on the ceiling, I can’t help but think that the builder should have used more mortar there. The smell of sulfur on my clothes triggers a memory in my mind, and I sit up and look around for an enemy.
I hear a voice speak out from across the room, “Woah there boy. Take it easy. You’ve had a rough day.”
Turning towards the sound, I see a shirtless old bearded gnome sitting with his legs crossed in the lotus position. His eyes are closed, and his body looks relaxed. It takes a moment for my addled mind to place him. When I do, the memories of the combat trial come flooding back into my mind. I stare at the Gnome for a second before I ask, “Professor Dufendoor, where am I? How did I get here? What happened with the combat test?”
The aged white-haired gnome doesn’t open his eyes, but I see a faint smile pass his lips as he answers, “Use your brain boy. Failing that, your senses. Look around.”
I follow the professor’s advice and look around the room. The bare wooden floor, the single bookshelf, and the small table in the room tell me that I’m in the professor’s office. I guess someone brought me up here after the combat trial. I pull up my [Status] screen and see that my health, stamina, and mana are all full. I look down at my body and see that my cotton shirt is mostly burnt away exposing my red scales. My black leather pants have several slashes, and I can see the places the hell hound bit into them. However, there’s no sign of injury beneath. So, someone not only brought me up here but healed me.
Returning my attention back to the professor I ask, “Ok. I know I’m in your office and that I was likely healed and carried here after the combat test. But I’d still like to know what happened.”
The professor takes a deep breath and slowly releases it. He opens his eyes and stands up slowly while asking, “What do you remember about the test?”
Trying to recall the day, I answer, “I remember defeating the sand golems and the ice mephits. Then there was a hellhound I think. I remember fighting it.” I touch my left arm and continue, “I remember the creature getting a hold of my left arm and biting down on it. The rest is a blur.”
The shirtless gnome harrumphs and shakes his head. His white mustache and beard bouncing with the movement. He picks up a small dark shirt and pulls it over his head and walks over to me barefooted. Since I’m still sitting the gnome can look me in the eye. He smiles and pats me on the shoulder while he says, “Well, the rest of the fight was splendid. When the hellhound got your arm in its jaws, I thought the fight was over, and I’d have to step in.” The gnome laughs and continues, “But boy, you surprised me. Instead of surrendering, which would have ended the test, you fought on like a cornered dire badger. You kicked and punched the beast until it dropped your arm. Then right when it was going to finish you with its special breath attack, you have the gall to use its ability against it.” The gnome laughs again but sees a confused look on my face and explains, “You held the beast's jaws closed after it activated its fiery breath. The flame had nowhere to go and exploded in the creature's skull, killing it. The mess was quite something. After that, you passed out. Not surprising, since you were out of stamina, and nearly out of health. One of the facility cast several healing spells on you, and you were brought up to my office to rest.”
Well, that sort of matches up with what I remember. “So does that mean I passed all the exams then?”
Professor Dufendoor’s smile fades, and he walks over to the small table and picks up a pile of papers. He flips through the pages until he finds what he’s looking for, “Let’s see here. Your first test was the written exam.” He looks up from the papers and shakes his head solemnly at me, “You failed that. I believe you had the lowest score of the entire term.”
Oh, I knew I wasn’t going to ace the written test, but I thought I would have at least gotten a gentleman’s C. So much for the law of averages working in my favor on those multiple choice questions.
Professor Dufendoor looks back down at his papers, “You did remarkably well on the physical fitness and dexterity course. Many of the more scholarly students didn’t even finish the course. You got an A on that test.”
I can’t help but feel a bit of pride at getting that “A.” I know I’ve had lots of training on those courses, so I had an advantage going in. However, that doesn’t mean I didn’t work hard to get good at them.
He puts the papers down and looks at me seriously, “Finally we have the combat test. There were ten rounds of combat for the test and I’m afraid you only made it to the third one.”
A weighty sense of despair falls on me, and I cradle my head in my hands, embarrassed. I only made it to the third round? That means I got 30%. That’s not even a D. That’s solidly in F territory. I put on a brave face and smile at the kind gnome, “Well, I did my best. I guess I’ll just have to wait for the next yearly Adventurers’ Guild test.” I hold out my hand, and the professor takes it in his small child sized hands and shakes it gently. I tell him, “Thank you for giving me the opportunity to take the test though. I know you went out on a limb with the college and probably had to call in a few favors.”
I get to my feet and start to walk towards the door. I’m wondering how I’m going to tell the team that I wasted all their money by failing these tests when the voice of the professor calls out to me, “Don’t you want your certificate of completion?”
I spin around and yell out, “What?”
A wide grin breaks out on the elderly gnome's face, and he pulls a sheet of thick paper from the small table in the corner of the room and hands it to me. I look down at the paper in my hand, and it reads, in fancy calligraphic lettering: Armon Ellington has been certified as completing the adventurer curriculum of Trinitarian College. It’s signed, Professor Albus Dufendoor, B.A.A.G.
You’ve completed the quest ‘Making the Grade.’ You have secured a place in the Adventurers’ Guild.
You receive 50 XP.
I stare at the paper in my hands, then look down at the professor’s grinning face. Then back to the paper and back at the professor again. Finally, recovering from the stunned effect the document placed on me, I ask, “But you said that I only made it to the third round of the combat test. Doesn’t that mean I failed?”
Professor Dufendoor chuckles and slaps his knee, obviously enjoying my reaction to his misdirection, “No, you didn’t fail. Most of the students didn’t even make it past the first round with the golems. Besides, the test was never about how many creatures you could defeat. It was a test of your mental and physical endurance under fire. We wanted to see how you’d handle the sudden change in tactics from different creatures one after another. We wanted to know if you’d keep fighting even when it seemed like you’d lose or if you’d give up and accept your defeat.” The professor slaps my side and chuckles, “Boy, you did better than ninety percent of the students. You conserved your mana and stamina when you realized you could defeat the golems with normal attacks. You adapted brilliantly to the ranged attacks of the ice mephits. With the hell hound, you proved y
our spirit and willingness to endure tremendous pain to overcome an enemy. If those aren’t the traits of a good adventurer, I don’t know what is.”
I stare open mouthed at the gnome. Slowly the information the professor gave processes through my brain. I really did pass then? I really did pass then. I really did pass then! I leap up and let out a cry of joy. When I land I pick up the professor, thank him, and hug him. When I put him back down he’s still smiling, “You passed those test on your own. I congratulate you.” Then making shooing motions with his hands he adds, “Now, be off with your scaled self, boy. Go celebrate with your friends.”
I thank the professor once more and take his advice. I drop my fancy new certificate in my [Inventory] and run across town, past the construction, past the city walls, and to our camp. Only when I see it, do I remember that everyone is off working and I have to wait till sunset for them to arrive back at camp.