by Matthew Kent
“Why am I a cleric, you mean? Well, the long and the short of it is my beliefs are different. They are Christian; I am not.”
I never got to hear the rest of his answer, as the exit door was forced open, and another trio of our enemy were there. While it surprised us, they were even more surprised when as a group we peppered them with spells. They wrestled the door closed again, though they lost one of the lower level members to our spells. By my count we had killed four.
“That’s four!” I said excitedly.
“Four that have re-spawned, but those other two have reported where we are.” Tekadan said.
“Let's roll, people. We have people to kill and places to be."
Chapter 11
The new gallery was of rough stone with a smoothed dirt floor, though this stone appeared darker than the other part of the dungeon we had just come down.
“Is this stone different?” I said as I voiced my thoughts.
“It’s sandstone. Similar to that of Turkey,” Apollyon stated. I could almost hear the smirk in his voice. “I thought the great craftsman would have known.”
I shrugged. “I’ve never been to Turkey, but the color looked different from the first part of the dungeon. I was wondering if that might mean something, and if so, what?”
“Don’t worry about it. It was probably just two different programmers and one used a different part of the coding library,” Barbie chimed in.
She was right, I supposed, and I tried to put the thought out of my mind.
Just then, I heard the call of “Incoming!” over the party chat. I stopped and looked behind us to see if there was an ambush. The hall we were in had meandered but had mostly had no connections. I tried to look over the casters to see what was happening ahead of us. Other than a few flashes of light, I couldn’t tell. I checked the party listing and noted that Tekadan had taken damage and that Mikail had some too, but it was slight. I then went back to looking after my responsibility and moved up as the party did.
We passed a few monsters and their corpses. I stopped briefly to skin the ones I could. Some brains here, a skin there - it would all add up. I even tried to think how I could use that chitin we had collected previously. I was thinking maybe a Japanese-style lamellar armor; it's a style of body armor cuirass made of small rectangular plates, laced into horizontal rows. Or maybe a lino thorax, a style of laminated leather armor used by the ancient Greeks. So many ideas I could try, so few supplies. Maybe I shouldn’t have let my mind wander, but it was about that point I got hit in the chest.
Surprise Attack! Invisible Long-Tailed Spiny Demon hits you for 43 damage and loses stealth.
A beast out of nightmare appeared in front of me, its black carapace shining in the little light we had. I lashed out at it with my Ashandarei and scored a hit across its flank. I saw its tail flash at me and felt a quill bury itself in my shoulder. As I grunted in pain, Synon struck it with her sword.
Synon strikes Invisible Long-Tailed Spiny Demon for 121 damage.
It maneuvered itself so it could attack both of us, but I used the haft of my Ashandarei to trip up the beast. It stumbled and lost its balance, and we both struck out at it. I executed a coup de gras on its exposed neck and removed its head as Synon thrust her blade into the monster’s chest.
You have slain an Invisible Long-Tailed Spiny Demon.
Synon Gains a level.: Synon reaches level 36.
“You leveled already?” I said needlessly.
“It wasn’t like it was that hard,” she replied as I stood there panting.
I glared at her, then played a Song of Healing on myself before setting about to butcher the monster for its chitin, all the time cursing under my breath at her. Honestly that easy? Now understand yes I’d been leveling very fast, with a combination of experience points from crafting, questing, and monster killing, but jeesh.
Oh well, I was sure the system knew what it was doing. Then again, apparently it gave me an old unused race and class from the original build of the game. And resurrected a world quest or recreated it. I frowned and dug in, looking for more monsters as we moved through the tunnels.
“Lorcan, come on up here we have something for you,” Mikail said.
I briefly wondered what it was. As I moved up, I could see three doors. Above the doors was a plaque of script. It was not in English, and I surmised that I had been called to use my legend lore on the challenge. He saw me approach.
"Can you read it?"
“I can try,” I said as I tried to focus my loremaster skill on the problem. I’m not sure how it worked. But by reading the script or trying to and letting my mind wander, I hoped that would let me see what the script said.
Now you come to choices three. Choose the one, and set you free—choose it wrong, and monsters be. So choose wisely.
“Great it's a Monty Hall dungeon,” I said. “We have to choose a door, and if we get the wrong one, there will be monsters.”
“The three door problem,” Tekadan said, his face deadpan. “Seriously? This door.” He pointed at the door on the right. As he pointed, the door on the left opened.
“Wha...? I—uff,” Tekadan said. Before he could finish, a beast stormed out of the open doorway and struck him.
Tekada was tossed in the air by the monster, who used its horns to gore the rogue. I managed to get out of the way but was struck in the small of my back.
Surprise attack! Small Billy Goat Gruff surprise attacks you for 95 damage.
Surprise attack! Small Billy Goat Gruff surprise attacks you for 73 Damage.
The small billy goat gruff looked like a billy goat with long, broad, curled horns, and coarse brown and white fur. It weighed in around one hundred and ninety pounds of piss and vinegar.
I hate goats. They are a lot like mules and can kick toward the front, rear, and sides. What makes that bad is the hoofs are sharp and strong. I once knew a man who was killed by a goat, though what he was doing in the goat pasture at night I did not want to speculate.
The creature continued through the party and was only hit once or twice by the surprised members. The most damage I saw done was by Synon when she shot it as it ran past her. It reared and turned back to charge back through us. I readied my Ashandarei. The mages and wizards dove out of its way while Synon struck down at its head with her sword as it charged her. Mikail waited for it to get closer, and he cast his taunt. The small gruff ignored him while it charged back toward Tekadan as he reeled and tried to gain his feet. I quickly whistled my Song of Derision and readied my blade.
It gained speed as it lowered its head to strike me. I dropped to the ground and leaned my weapon toward the beast, bracing myself and the haft of my pole-arm on the ground. I felt the impact on my arms as it pushed me back. My blade hit him like a boar spear as the creature impaled itself.
Set attack. Small Billy Goat Gruff takes a critical hit for 578 damage.
Small Billy Goat Gruff is killed.
Appolyon gains a level.
“Hold still,” I told Tekadan as I sang healing to him, and then with sarcasm, “Are you sure that was the door?”
“That wasn’t the door I picked,” he said, and I looked over to the doors. Then I noted the script had changed.
Are you sure you want to pick that door? It's not too late to change your mind.
“Ah, guys, it's asking if we want to stick with Tekadan’s door.”
Did Monty Hall design this? I thought to myself.
“What’s the worst that could happen?” Samael said.
As soon as the words were out of his mouth, the door sprang open, and there was a gray swirling mist. We all relaxed a little, and I started to stand up when suddenly a dark shadow bolted out of the swirling mist and charged us.
Surprise attack! Large Billy Goat Gruff surprise attacks you for 142 damage.
Surprise attack! Large Billy Goat Gruff surprise attacks you for 127 damage.
I flop to the ground in pain and roll over, trying to get back up. The creat
ures had stripped me of over three quarters of my health. I whistled healing up on myself, then tried to get my Ashandarei back into place. The party had been knocked around badly; the mages were hurt.
Samael was quickly casting healing on the members as fast as he could. I cast my magic missile spell at the charging beast, and it struck, but only for minimal damage. My own health was back to half when the beast turned around again. I noted it looked similar to its brother gruff, and soon I hoped it would look exactly like it: as sectioned pieces of meat in my pack. Once more I waited and then used Song of Derision as I dropped into a crouch, getting ready to accept its charge onto my weapon.
There was a great flash before it got to me, and then I saw it plowing into the ground. It wound up lying dead at my feet, its eyes open and already glazing in death. The ground was torn up from its skid. I looked up and saw Synon lower her weapon. I read my notifications.
Synon casts Killing Blow. Synon strikes Large Billy Goat Gruff with Killing Blow. Large Billy Goat Gruff is killed.
BarbieQ gains a level.
I groaned as I got up and glared alternately at Samael and Tekadan. “I suppose you also have a ship that is unsinkable or a blackjack strategy that always wins,” I said acerbically with pursed lips.
They looked at each other and back at me. “Of course we do,” they said at the same time. “Use other people’s money.”
I glared at them and limped over to the middle door and opened it, muttering dark imprecations the whole time. With one last look, I turned to the open doorway just in time to have my face meet a large fist punching out of the doorway and knocking me backward to crumple to the ground. Dazed, I looked up as I heard a roar. The doorway had shifted and grown in the seconds I was not paying attention. It was now twelve or fourteen feet in height, maybe six feet wide, and thundering out of it was a large, well-muscled green monster. The smell was horrible. I stumbled to my feet and tried to circle to its rear as I reviewed my notifications.
Surprise Attack! You are struck by a critical hit by a Bridge Troll. You take 219 damage.
You might want to work on your alertness.
Smart- assed system, I thought as the Bridge Troll squared off against Mikail. Now trolls, I recalled from the first edition monsters manual, take fire damage. I took aim with my hands and cast Burning Hands from its flank, catching it in the side as Mikail bashed it with his sword in the opposite shoulder. The beast roared in rage.
You cast Burning Hands. Double fire damage. Bridge Troll takes 87 fire damage. Bridge Troll is on fire.
The flames caught its skin on fire, and it went up like a torch. I chopped at its leg with my Ashandarei, the others helping to knock it to the ground as it thrashed in pain. Soon there was nothing left but a small loot bag in a grey- black pile of smelly ashes.
I slumped down, tired and very confused as I caught my breath. Tekadan looted the bag and scouted the doors to see which was the real exit. I fell back into place as we went through.
Chapter 12
Except for the door, and the Billy Goat Gruff, and then the troll handing me my ass, I was having fun. Really, I was. That’s at least the story I would tell everyone later. The corridors were long and twisty; occasionally we would see monsters. Once or twice we would spot members of the other team dead. They would either send a single attack our way or run.
“I wish they would fight us.” I said.
“Oh, they will,” Harut said. “Right now they are scouting us, trying to see what works. Cheer up, Lorcan. Don’t let them get your goat.”
I sighed as I heard the smile in his voice. I thought goats were now on my list. At least he was trying to laugh with me.
“They have their plan,” said Samael. “We have ours. At a guess, they found a spot to hit us that provides them cover and the ability to hit us. If you check the counter, the first three we killed are already back in the game.”
“I had not noticed,” I reply. “At least you have experience at having people after you.”
“Hm?” Samael said. “Not really. I served in Okinawa for my entire career. They call some of us to other duties than being shot at with our men.”
It was then I heard a change in the footsteps ahead of us. I tried to look ahead, but soon I was there at the front when we entered a large cavern.
X - X - X
Miles stretched and popped his neck as he inspected the area around him. He hated this place—the endless grayness, the silver gray floor, the gray billows of smoke or clouds just on the edge of his perception. He knew this was all a construct for him. He knew from others that Arabella would create vast vistas, cheerful town pubs. But for him, she would only create a vast gray space. He sighed as he got about waiting for her.
“What do you want, Miles?” came an annoyed female voice.
He turned toward it. Today Arabella appeared as a tall woman in her mid-thirties with red gold hair and delicate, lightly freckled, peaches and cream skin. She wore a roman toga and resembled the statue of Europa.
“I wanted to ask about the update you sent out.”
“I’m sure you did,” she said, her expression blank. “I will not discuss it, but I will only tell you it is necessary.”
“We need him to solve this undead issue,” Miles said.
“Yes,” she replied blandly. “I need him to resolve other issues. Let me attend to this, and we shall likely get what we both need.” She looked at him, an eyebrow quirked. “Or should I tell him?”
Miles deflated at that. “Fine.”
“Remember Miles, he is mine. He will serve my needs.” At those words, she faded from the room.
Angrily, Miles shook his head and logged off the system. The gray room faded even as his avatar did. Miles had to wonder what Arabella was playing at.
X - X - X
I watched as Oleg cast another summoning charm, and a beast appeared near to him, some form of undead.
Oleg Summons a Level 12 Bone Warrior.
Team Undead had waited until we had moved into the cavern., Tekadan had been careful and scoped it out as well he could, but he could not spot the galleries on the upper level from the ground. We had moved up spread out. When the attack came, we weren’t as susceptible to area of effect. Even then, we were hit by Fire Ball, Arrow Rain, and a few other spells that the notifications passed me by too quickly to be read.
“Slay the living,” Oleg yelled as he cast another summoning charm.
Oleg Summons a Level 10 Bone Devil
A huge beast crashed down on the floor in front of us. It looked like a Stegosaurus, but made of bleached bone.
Mikail took charge.
“Everyone, run through. Don’t engage!” he ordered.
The Angels ran for the exit. I hesitated only briefly and ran and dodged the attacks as they came down. I left Synon to follow, but even then I heard a grunt from behind—and saw her sprawled on the ground. I rushed to her and pulled her up, pushing her to the exit. I ran as the Bone Demon swiped at me with its tail, the tip only missing me by inches.
The others hadn’t been as lucky, Synon had a wound on her arm, and Barbie had taken a couple of arrows. Even Mikail was hurting from the Bone Devil. But the good news was we were through the ambush, and now that we knew where they were, we could get our turn. I still wasn’t clear what exactly our aim was. Since it was a PVP dungeon, I assumed we needed to kill more of them than they killed us or achieve an objective. From my reading that seemed to be the point of PVP combat to best the enemy or achieve certain goals or objectives. The most common of those was capture the flag.
“Mikail, “I said, “what is the objective here?”
“We need to hold the main boss cavern after defeating the boss for five minutes.” he replied.
While clearer, I hoped he knew the way to the boss.
“We are headed to an area where we will lie in an ambush. We will hit them and then go kill the boss.” Mikail looked over his shoulder at me and smiled. “It should take them about three minutes
to get back. Shortening the time for us to hold the cavern, if we can kill it quick.”
We moved quickly, healing on the fly and letting our mana and energy bars fill back up. I admit I let my mind wander about my spells and how I could offset them. Well, my lack of spells, since I had lost a few when the system had nerfed my character. While painful personally, it could have been far worse. I needed time to think and consider. Maybe I could learn other songs that would supplement my spell casting. What I needed was time to experiment with songs to see if any had any innate magical properties to them.
For instance, Song of Courage was a martial tune. Think of heavy percussion and the trills of the pipes summoning you to battle, while the Song of Healing was an airy soothing and contemplative song. My third song, the Song of Derision sounded like a comedic song I’d heard as a kid. I think it was something by a Weird Owl, but I can’t be sure.