The Builder's Pride (The Legendary Builder Book 3)

by J. A. Cipriano

  “Seven, is that all?” I replied, swallowing back my concern. Seven seemed like a hell of a lot, especially given Annabeth’s current condition. Still, I was pretty sure I’d rather fight seven dudes than carry her through the lava plains. That sounded like a recipe for disaster.

  “I think so,” the scorpion began moving toward the cliff. “But who knows, could be more.”

  12

  The trip to the scorpion’s back way was, how can I put this delicately, uneventful. Why? Because the scorpions bound us to their backs with sticky goo and carried us down. Admittedly, it was a little disconcerting because crimson lava bubbled and popped in the superheated pit below us, but hey, nothing is perfect, right?

  After only a few minutes, the scorpions stopped on a narrow ledge with a solid gold door the size of a garage door embedded into the side of the cliff. Throbbing inflamed veins spread out along the area surrounding the door, giving me the impression it wasn’t particularly awesome to have a massive entrance implanted in your esophagus.

  Anyway, after the scorpions hummed a weird tune that sort of reminded me of the itsy-bitsy spider, the door swung open to reveal a yellow, effervescent tunnel that smelled like raw fish. The walls inside looked ragged and raw, and for the first time, I wondered if this tunnel had been crafted by the dwarves. It seemed likely being that this was the way to their stronghold, but then again, I didn’t expect the belly of the beast to really mean being swallowed a giant hell beast, so there was that.

  “This is as far as we can go, Builder.” Pat gestured for me to enter. “Good luck.”

  “Thanks for everything.” I slung Annabeth’s still unconscious form over my shoulder in a fireman’s carry. “But are you sure this is a better way than going down to the lava fields?” I pointed down below.

  “Are you lava proof?” the scorpion asked, tail bobbing in a way that let me know he was curious.

  “I am not,” I conceded, wiping my brow with my hand. It was hot as balls here.

  “Then you must take the back route past them.” The scorpion pointed at the door behind me with one huge claw. “It is, as you say, what it is.”

  “Fair enough. Just thought I’d ask.” I waved to him and stepped inside. I’d barely made it five feet when the door slammed shut behind me, leaving me trapped alone in the corridor with only an unconscious sculptor for company. The ground beneath my feet oozed and pulsed as I padded forward, wishing not for the first time, every inch of the place wasn’t covered in slime. At least, I hoped it was slime. For all I knew, it was saliva or something worse…

  I took a deep breath that tasted of day-old gym socks and made my way forward until I came to a sheer drop off. About half a meter past the edge was what looked like a ruby-colored stepping stone. I squinted, trying to see beyond it, but had no such luck. Nope, the only way forward seemed to be that stone.

  “Well, here goes nothing,” I told Annabeth’s unconscious form as I shifted her weight so I could try jumping it. Normally, I’d have not even bothered, but since my armor granted me increased strength, I was sure I could make it a foot and a half.

  Hoping I wasn’t making a huge mistake, I stepped across the gap and onto the ruby. It was only a couple feet in diameter, and I stood there for a moment, steadying myself. As I once again shifted Annabeth’s weight over my shoulders, an emerald stone appeared about three feet in front of me, but the pathway remained otherwise dark and gloomy despite the glowing yellow walls. It sort of reminded me of walking through an unlit hallway as the lights came on one by one. Only, you know, with stepping stones above a pit of absolute darkness.

  “You know, I think this would be easier if you were lighter,” I mumbled before jumping across the gap.

  As my feet hit the emerald step, a jade platform appeared a few hundred feet above my head. I stared at it, trying to figure out how the hell I was going to get up to it when a braided gold rope ladder tumbled downward. It came to rest with a thud right next to me.

  I grumbled, “Not that I think you’re fat or anything, Annabeth. It’s more that I don’t really want to carry you through the whole dungeon. You understand, right?”

  “Thought so.” I grabbed ahold of the ladder and tugged on it. The ladder seemed sturdy enough. “Guess we’re climbing up. Hang on, okay?” I grabbed the rung and climbed onto the ladder, putting all my weight on it. When it didn’t immediately tear free, I breathed a sigh of relief.

  I began the tedious climb upward. I had to stop every few moments to either catch my breath or adjust Annabeth, so she didn’t fall. Sweat dripped down my body as I pushed myself up, one rung at a time while careful to go slow enough to keep from rocking the ladder.

  Even still, it took forever. In fact, despite my increased strength, by the time I put my hands on the platform and hauled myself onto it, my muscles had turned to jelly.

  I shoved Annabeth onto the platform before climbing up there myself and laying down next to her unconscious form. I lay there panting, my chest heaving with effort as I stared at the unending darkness above, trying to regain my breath. If I had to carry her the whole way, we definitely weren’t going to make it. At least, not anytime soon, and I didn’t exactly have much in the way of supplies beyond my canteen.

  “Maybe I can just look around a bit while you rest here?” I turned toward Annabeth as I spoke and saw a woman standing there with a golden dagger clutched in one hand.

  “Fancy meeting you here, Builder,” she said, gesturing at me with her dagger before dropping into a curtsy. “I’ll be honest, it’s been ages since I’ve had a visitor.” She touched her face with one hand as she rose to her feet. “Tell me, does my makeup look okay?”

  Her skin had the tight, pale texture of a corpse left in the morgue for a month, and blue veins throbbed beneath her porcelain flesh. Her eyes reminded me of the milky marbles of an unseeing cadaver, only hers were fixed upon me. Her white as snow hair was piled upon her head in tight buns with a pair of black as night horns jutting from the center. So yeah, she was the picture of fucking loveliness.

  “I think it’s great,” I said, swallowing hard as I looked at her. I wasn’t sure what or who she was, but at the same time, she scared the bejesus out of me. Not because she felt particularly powerful. No, it was more because she was basically one of the walking undead. “Mortician chic is definitely in this year.”

  She took a step toward me, and her bare, alabaster feet barely made a sound. Her shimmering blue dress whipped around her even though there was no wind in the cavern, and I got the impression she was trying to decide whether or not to take me seriously.

  “Let me help you up. When you’re ready, we can begin our battle. I should warn you, I’m tougher than I look.” She reached her left hand out toward me, and as I took it, she gripped my hand with enough strength to make my bones creak beneath my gauntlet. I tried to squeeze back, but it was hard enough to keep from crying out.

  “Thanks,” I wheezed when she released me, and I barely resisted the urge to wring out my hand. If she had a grip like that, I wasn’t exactly confident in a test of strength. Pretty sad considering how decrepit she looked.

  “Don’t mention it, but you really should work on your handshake. Your grip is a bit weak.” She smiled at me, revealing a mouthful of rotted teeth. “Now, do you know the rules for our little contest?”

  “Um… no.” I shrugged sheepishly. “I don’t even know what our contest entails.”

  The woman stared at me for a long time, probably trying to decide whether or not I was serious. After what felt like hours, she rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Something tells me you really don’t have any idea what we do here.” She gestured around the tiny platform.

  “Uh… yeah. I have no idea at all. I was brought here by some scorpions.” I shrugged. “I’m just trying to get to the dragon at the end of the tunnel, but then my friend got hurt.” I nudged Annabeth with my toe, but she barely moved.

  Before I could blink, the woman dropped to her knees and poked Anna
beth’s nose with one spindly finger. “She’s still alive, but if you wish for her to help with the contest, that can be arranged.” She waved a hand at Annabeth, and a soft purple glow surrounded her body before fading away.

  “What did you do?” I asked, gripping the hilt of my sword and ready to go to town on the woman if she’d hurt my friend.

  “I tried to heal her.” The corpse bride looked at me, brow knitted in confusion. “That really should have worked.” She leaned in closer to Annabeth. “Oh well, I guess you’ll have to fight to the death without her.” She shrugged.

  “Die!” Annabeth cried, her fist lashing out in a blow that slammed into the woman’s face with an earsplitting crunch. The zombie stumbled backward, landing hard on her butt and gripping her nose.

  “Fiend!” the woman shouted through her hands as black ichor dribbled down her face.

  “Sorry, but if you mean to kill us, I can’t show any mercy,” Annabeth said, scrambling to her feet. “Even if you did heal me.”

  “Wait, you knew what she was?” I asked as Annabeth dropped into a fighting stance beside me that reminded me of one of those Shaolin monks. It was weird because I’d known she was trained in hand to hand combat and often sparred with Sheila, but I’d never really considered her a warrior. Now though? Well, I was glad she knew what she was doing.

  “No, but I heard her say we were fighting to the death,” Annabeth said as the woman sprang to her feet.

  “You will pay for this. Now, ready yourselves for the end.” The zombie woman slashed the air with her dagger. The movement was so fast, I felt the wind move even from where I stood beside Annabeth, but at the same time, I could still follow it enough to know I could probably fight her off. It was weird, a few weeks ago she’d have scared the daylights out of me, but now? Now, I almost wanted to fight her.

  “It’s two against one,” I said, gripping my sword tightly. “Those are bad odds.”

  “You’re right,” the talking corpse said. “You should have brought more—”

  Annabeth cut off her words with a roundhouse kick to the zombie’s face. The creature staggered sideways, her dagger slipping from her hand and hitting the ground with a clang. Before I could blink, Annabeth followed up her kick with a barrage of punches, peppering the zombie’s torso as she tried to cover up.

  The zombie reeled back as another devastating kick caught her in the solar plexus. It was followed by an upward elbow that sent her reeling backward toward the edge of the platform. Her arms shot out, grasping at the air for balance right before Annabeth decked her in the face.

  “That was freaking awesome!” I exclaimed, staring open-mouthed as the zombie tumbled backward off the platform.

  “When you wander Hell by yourself, you learn a thing or two about fighting.” Annabeth fidgeted slightly as she scooped up the woman’s fallen dagger. “She seemed really powerful, so I figured the best way to beat her would be with a surprise attack. I doubt that trick would work a second time.”

  “Either way, it seems like it worked,” I said right before a bone white hornet the size of a small car rose from beyond the edge of the platform. “Fuck.”

  “You’ll pay for that,” the wasp buzzed as its decayed, multifaceted eyes fixed on me. “Both of you.”

  It came at Annabeth stinger first, and she dodged to the left, barely avoiding the acid that the wasp shot from its ass. The smell of burning plastic filled my nose as the stone began to bubble and smoke.

  I lunged for the flying insect, swinging my sword at the creature’s torso while it was focused on Annabeth. With little apparent effort, the wasp darted away before spinning and coming at me. I crouched down as it approached, and at the last second, launched myself into the air like I’d done with the scorpion. I landed on its back as its razor-sharp wings cut into my armor and sending sparks cascading over its back.

  Trusting my armor could handle it, I drove my sword into the section of carapace beside the left wing with all the strength I could muster while unleashing a sapphire blast of energy. The wasp screeched in pain as the wing blew right off its back in a cloud of green ichor.

  Unfortunately, I’d forgotten one thing. By blasting its wing off, the creature could no longer hold us aloft. We plummeted from the sky, falling straight past the platform and into the dark abyss beyond. I jerked my sword free in a spray of slime that covered my chest and arms in foul-smelling goo and leapt from its back, using all my strength to propel me through the air.

  As I slammed into the wall, I drove my sword into the wall as hard as I could, managing to stop myself from falling to my certain doom. Even still, the force of the impact rang down my entire body. A cry of pain slipped from my lips as slick, yellow blood flowed from the wound in the wall.

  I hung there, sword dug into the wall, and watched the broken wasp disappear into the darkness below. I rested there for a moment before reaching upward and using my gauntlets’ power to tear gobs of flesh from the surface. It was hard since I’d never done it before, but once I tried a couple times, I got the hang of it. The key was to try to pull the veins just below the surface out.

  Ichor sprayed over me as the first vein tore free from the flesh. As it hit my hand, I dropped it and tested the crater I’d made in the wall. It’d work well enough. Now, to make a couple dozen more. If I could get up that far, I could leap to the ruby platform and make my way back up the ladder.

  I spent another few minutes, ripping more hand holds out of the beast's flesh. Yellow slime rained down around me the entire time, but I soon had a set of handholds leading back up to the platform. Now, I just had to climb my happy ass back to the top. Awesome.

  13

  By the time I’d made it back to the platform, I found Annabeth sitting Indian-style with her stolen dagger lying flat across her knees like she was some kind of meditating monk. Six animal-headed corpses surrounded around her.

  “Nice of you to drop by,” she said, raising one slender eyebrow at me as I collapsed onto the jade platform, my chest heaving and my muscles reduced to quivering bowls of Jell-O.

  She got up, padding over to me as she waved her bloody dagger at me. “This thing is awesome by the way. The moment I touched it I got stronger and faster than I’ve ever been before. And look what else it does.” She pointed it at the far wall and let loose a blast of energy that blew a crater-sized hold in the gooey flesh.

  “So, I got to climb back up here while you got a cool weapon,” I muttered, rolling onto my back and staring up into the darkness above. “Seems fitting.”

  “Well, it’s a good thing I did, Arthur. I got attacked by six more guardians. Without this dagger, I’d have never been able to take them on.” She smiled. “You know, just to put things in perspective.”

  “What perspective is that, exactly?” I asked, willing myself into a sitting position and barely succeeding. I pulled out my canteen and unscrewed the top when I realized I hadn’t bothered to refill it before we left. I stared longingly at the empty canteen before sighing and putting it away.

  “The ‘I got tons of awesome loot’ perspective of course,” Annabeth said, offering me her own canteen.

  “You keep it,” I said, waving her canteen away.

  “Are you sure?” She frowned. “You’re all sweaty, so I’m sure you’re thirsty.”

  “I don’t want to drink all your water. I’ll be fine,” I said, letting her help me to my feet. “Wow, you do seem a lot stronger.” I looked her up and down. “It’s all from the dagger.”

  “No, I got some other stuff too.” She touched the amulet around her neck. “The second one dropped this, and it gave me the strength of ten demons.” She held her hand out. “The third one dropped this ring, and it made me super-fast.”

  “Well, I guess we know which of us is taking on the dragon,” I replied. Part of me was annoyed I’d had to deal with the stupid wasp lady while Annabeth had gotten a bunch of loot, but at the same time, I knew she needed it. Besides, I had Armaments to find.

  “U
m… Maybe we cross that bridge when we get to it?” Her face paled. “You don’t seem pleased. I thought you would be.”

  “I’m plenty pleased, just tired.” I took a deep breath. “So, what do we do about that?” I gestured toward the center of the platform where a keyhole had appeared. “Did you find a key?”

  “No.” She shook her head. “None of them dropped one either.” She shrugged. “I could try sculpting one, but I don’t really have any material for that…”

  “Did you search their bodies?” I asked, looking at the corpses and hoping the key hadn’t been on the zombie wasp. If it had been, well, I guess we’d have to try her method, even though it didn’t give me high hopes.

  “Um… no.” Annabeth swallowed and looked at her feet. “Was I supposed to do that?”

  “That’s like the first rule of adventuring. Always check the bodies for loot.” I smiled at her. “Which was the last one you killed?”

  “Um, that one.” She pointed to a moose-headed creature on the far end of the platform. “The bastard didn’t actually drop me any gear.” She kicked at the dirt in his general direction. “Cheapskate.”

  “Maybe he did, and it’s still on his person?” I moved over to the corpse and began going through his robes while trying to ignore the fact I was pillaging a dead body. Thankfully, it only took me a few seconds to find the chain of a necklace around his neck, and as I pulled it free of his armor, I found a large jade key on the end of it. “Bingo!”

  “Well, I’ve learned a valuable lesson,” Annabeth said as I moved toward the keyhole in the center of the platform. “Always loot the corpses.”

  “It’s a good lesson to learn.” I placed the key delicately in the keyhole, and it began to glow like it was filled with nuclear radiation before exploding into a cloud of emerald sparks that rained down around us before petering out on the stone.