Kain snorted and shook his head. "Do I feel the same way? I want to love you, but I also want to rip you from limb to limb. But no, I'm not going to do that. You deserve it, but I will not give you what you are asking for," Kain spat and went quiet, his eyes darting here and there.
"I see," she replied in turn.
"Wait. What do you mean over a thousand years? It's the thousandth year now." Kain replied, not quite understanding what she was hinting at.
The woman chuckled and shook her head sadly. "I have been here far longer than you or that imposter black widow. In fact, ever since I gave birth… to our little angel, he brought me here and did this to me. My daughter would play her purpose, after which you would be brought here and taken care of as well. His cruelty knows no bounds and never will."
"B-Bardos did what?" he asked, turning toward his new companion as if asking him to confirm what he just heard.
The woman started crying and fell to the cold stone floor. "He knew all along what you and that idiot of a deity would do. Bardos thought one of his five planned to betray him, so he used us for his little scheme!" She slammed her fists onto her knees.
"I had… no idea," Kain muttered, his fists clenched, eyes downcast.
"He has been visiting me for a while, telling me about the outer world. Thousands of dungeons he visits every day have innocents, no matter their race, being tortured, pitted against each other, suffering a fate worse than death. To him, this is just a game. However, something unexpected has happened and he has been frustrated the last few days. Maybe somewhere in another dungeon or another world? Who knows? I do not know what, but I have a feeling you will find out soon enough."
"What do you mean with him being frustrated? Did he tell you anything?" Kaden asked, interrupting the two and earning himself a growl.
"I have no idea. He just seemed distraught." She went quiet and smiled, looking at Kaden. "You sure are a young one. I'm glad that my husband found himself such a good monster friend. I hope that the two of you will always have each other’s backs. Now, let me find peace, I beg of you. I have been crying for over a thousand years, isn’t that enough for a crime I never committed?"
Hearing those words, Kain let out a blood-curdling scream which made Kaden close his eyes and pray for death without even being conscious of it.
"Bardos!" Kain screamed. "Come here you filth! Show your face!"
As if on cue, a voice rang out all around them. It laughed and mocked. "Once your wife is dead, the upper floor will open and you can come for me, dog!" Bardos spat out spitefully.
Kain closed his eyes and buried his face in his massive paws, shaking his head. After a few moments passed, he stood up and walked over towards the woman, taking her in his arms. He pressed his face into her neck, smelling her familiar yet strange scent. "I'll never forget you," he whispered. She chuckled and hugged him back.
"Do it for her, do it for us. I'll wait for you together with our little angel, Kain," she whispered.
"How can you expect me to kill you just like that?" he almost whimpered.
"I'm bound to this room, and that door," she replied pointing toward a massive stone entry. "You will never be able to get to her unless you stop my heart. No matter how long you stay here, It won’t change a thing for us. But for that boy," she whispered, "it means everything."
Kain closed his eyes and kissed her forehead. "Forgive me," he growled as his claw dug into her chest, ripping her heart out with one fluid motion. Their eyes met for a last split second, in which she told him everything he needed, everything he wanted. Kill that bastard, do to him what he has done to us!
Kain turned around and growled at Kaden, his chest bloodied with a mask of rage. "You and I have a dance with the devil today, my friend. If we succeed, I'll be your servant until one of us dies. Help me kill that bastard!"
Kaden smiled back at him, weakly. "My friend, we will get even with him. Trust my words. He will pay one way or another, that much I can promise you."
"As there is no need for a burial, I'll leave you here, my love," Kain said, carrying the dead woman towards the center pedestal and placing her atop of it. "Wait for me in the afterlife," he whispered once more before turning towards the newly opened stairway.
Chapter 23
The trip only took them about ten minutes from the center towards the exit and up the stairs. Bardos had made it easy for them, for once. They hadn’t even said a single word until they stood at the top, staring into an army of spiders. There were easily thousands of them, scurrying around as if they weren’t even present.
Kaden looked around the enormous area, it had to be a few hundred metres across, at least. There was no source of light, but everything was perfectly visible to them. In the midst of the horde stood a giant black widow streaked with red stripes and circles. She looked hideous and fascinating at the same time.
Her head tilted slightly, and she seemed to smile at the newcomers. "Welcome, my dear friends. You have no idea how long I have yearned for you to come here, so we could finally end this farce."
"Oh, yes, we’ll finish this, Morgana, or whatever your name actually is. It ends here and now. You better say your prayers!" Kain roared, preparing to lunge at the horde.
Kaden’s hand stayed him as he strode forwards, smiling wickedly at the giant spider. He stood there and raised his hands towards the black widow, letting loose dual [Magic Bolts].
He had no illusions that it would hurt the creature, but it would serve to annoy her and send her swarm out. And that's exactly what happened. The distance was quite large, but the spiders closed in on them quite fast.
Shrugging, he opened his skill tab and chose [Ice Age]. Of his remaining fifteen skill points, the first level up used two and the second three skill points.
[Ice Age, Level 3: Summon ice storm and inflict 14700 damage and additional 5300 per large and 2400 per small ice shard. Add a number of Frostbite or Slow stacks. Skill cooldown: 5 minutes]
"Morgana! I give you a present from this poor mortal. Here, I present you with my [Ice Age]!" A raging storm was the result of his rage and hatred toward Bardos. Chunks of ice flew in every direction, slamming wherever it pleased.
Thousands of spiders died within the first moments, and what was left alive slowly froze over due to the negative effects of [Ice Age]. A giant mountain of ice was all that was left after the skill had laid waste to the enemy. Only the black widow was left standing in the center. The ice started cracking, slowly at first, and then the explosion sent chunks flying in every direction. Luckily, the mountain was quite far off and didn’t hit the two who stood there with their mouths gaping open, in pure terror and shock at what Kaden had just unleashed. It hadn’t been any different than with the worm, but when shards start flying, things get serious.
Kaden looked at the message that had popped up and smirked.
Rupture. Level: 2. 1,495,317/2,500,000 critical damage inflicted.
Monster slayer. Level: 3. 6,713/15,000 monsters killed.
"Cursed creatures! You dare hurt me?" the black widow bellowed, darting forward.
[Dark Moon Rising]
You have gained +20% Attack, +20% Defense and +50% to movement speed.
[Howl of Darkness]
You have gained +20% Health Power Drain and +25% to Physical Resistance.
"Good luck, my friend!" Kaden yelled as the furious Wolfman charged at the black widow. He used the time off to inspect the spider rushing towards them.
"Oh dear lord, how much health did she have before the spell hit her?" he muttered to himself.
Just then, the two giants clashed. Kain’s smaller size didn’t mean anything in this battle, as he would let his rage fuel him until he died or killed the spider.
[Onslaught]
He hit her with the standard multi-attack skill, draining the spider for a few thousand damage each time. His movements and attacks were too fast to track, so Kaden didn’t even bother. Instead, he focused on the spider’s health bar which was going
down steadily. Every few seconds, Kain’s own health took a dip and then went up again slowly as his own attacks and resistance would let him regenerate it back up.
Kaden checked her health again a few minutes later, only to be astonished. She was at 2.741.854 health left when Kain suddenly got launched into a wall. His skin started glowing red and blood flowed out of his ears, but he stood up. With a ferocious growl, he got larger and much uglier than mere moments before. Is he transforming somehow? What the hell is going on with him? Kaden wondered.
Kain let out a deafening howl, causing the black widow to step back in fear. The expression on her face was priceless. His however, wasn’t. The two clashed anew, but this time he was big enough to tackle her. One at a time, he tore a few of her limbs off, leaving her lying there weeping and screaming from pain.
She spit a poison ball that hit the giant Wolfman face first and tackled him to the ground. A kind of spider thread left her mouth and enveloped him partially, bringing down the remaining legs on top of him, draining his health.
Kain, not able to move, just lay there until Kaden finally decided to step in.
[Frozen Land]
Morgana reared back and fell over onto the ice. To his luck, only the slightest edge of his spell had hit the wolfman, and shredded the thread, giving him the chance to get up again as the ice exploded on the giant spider.
You have inflicted 3.992 damage to Black Widow Morgana.
The little bit of damage didn’t mean much, but it was enough to distract her.
With a renewed howl, he jumped on top of her and cut into her vulnerable belly with his massive claws, ripping her wide open. Morgana the black widow was dead within a few more minutes.
"Is it finally over?" Kaden dared to utter, just before the cavern started to shake. "Oh shit I knew it was too easy to be true!"
Kain jumped off her corpse and stepped back. Morgana’s remains dissolved into a million tiny, pitch-black spiders. With practiced ease, they climbed atop of each other and condensed into a large mass. Slowly but surely, it took on the form of a humanoid standing tall on two legs.
Everyone went silent except for Morgana’s laughter, which somehow lingered in the air. Kaden knew that this was bad news.
Kain returned to his ordinary, smaller form and dropped motionless to the ground. The spider knight just stared at the wolf as if saying, why don’t you get up already? I’m waiting for you.
"Kain! Wake up! Don’t make me piss on you!" Kaden yelled, trying to rouse the wolfman. Luckily, the words were enough to get him to move. He stood on shaky legs and laughed.
"Fuck you, Human, I'll piss on you whenever I feel like it!" he replied with a growl, moving towards his friend. His health started rising again, and the way he held himself improved radically over the next few seconds. The knight saw this as well, and turned towards the Wolfman, ready to charge at him.
[Flood]
The spell rose between the charging knight and Kain, who steadily started to walk. The water held the knight back just long enough for Kain to regenerate his health. Just then, he cast an orb into the flood, causing it to freeze over and explode. The spider creature lunged towards Kain and got shredded by the ice blast. Small chunks of ice shards ripped into his body, but moments later the holes were filled by new spiders. However, Kain had gotten the needed time to lunge at the thing and hit him feet first in the chest.
Kaden however, was taken aback by the use of his skills. He sure had a lot to learn about his powers and how to use them to their best.
The knight flew backwards, only to stop himself after a dozen metres. He then propelled his body towards Kain, who was ready to do real battle. The one weapon he possessed, a large spider sword, narrowly missed Kain as it struck a few centimetres to his right. Using the situation and the spider’s momentum, Kain grabbed his arms and swung the creature around three times before sending him off into an oncoming [Flood]. It somehow had refreshed without waiting for three minutes, but instead only one.
You have inflicted 3.912 damage to Black Spider Knight.
You have inflicted 943 damage to black Spider Knight.
"Nice throw!" Kaden exclaimed, as he watched the knight struggle within the spell and went over his damage notifications. Kain moved towards the thing and darted in again, just as the water drained into nothingness. With his massive claws, the Wolfman tore into the spider creature, ripping out groups of merged spiders.
Each slash was faster than the last as he built up momentum with the damage stacking up nicely. With inhuman speed, the spider stepped backwards and lifted his sword. It came down even faster, but it was deflected by [Magic Bolts] that slammed into his wrist. The knight dropped his sword and looked at the damaged hand, then he cocked his head to the right as if he didn’t quite understand what was going on. An [Ice Orb] struck his head, crushing the faceplate with massive force. A part of his head exploded and showered Kain in spider grimes.
"Nice one!" Kain growled in appreciation. If the sword hadn’t been deflected, a good part of his health would have been drained for sure and depending on the damage, he would remain incapacitated for a few seconds at worst.
"No problem," Kaden replied, inspecting the creature. A grin forced itself on his face, even though the situation wasn’t quite in their favour. Even if they defeated this thing, there was no guarantee he was the final boss.
"His health is just above 400,000. Keep him distracted for two minutes and I can cast my [Ice Age] again."
Suddenly, the spider rearranged himself; he jumped backwards and started twitching strangely. Only a few seconds in, it stopped and looked like it had shattered, as the spiders disengaged. Then, a strange thing happened as the tiny creatures separated themselves in two groups and ultimately arranged themselves in two different spider knights. A quick inspect revealed that both knights had the same health points, look and stats.
"Kain? I think that thing is going to kill me!" he said, not knowing what to do. If he was supporting someone, he could do it without a problem, but now it was a different story. They had to deal with two spider knights at the same time.
Kain never replied, though he moved between the two spiders and Kaden, trying to shield the Human with his bulk.
"Try to stay alive, my friend."
"Right, I got some aces up my sleeve as well," Kaden replied, grinning. "Kain, come here, let me give you a small gift!" Without a reply, the Wolfman stood in front of him within seconds. "Hold out your claws," he ordered, and used [Imbue Magic] and [Frozen Armour] on both of them.
He wasn’t sure what good it would do him to imbue magic into the Wolfman’s paws, but he had a feeling it would be of some help. Kain’s body turned a shade of white as the armour bound itself to him; his claws started glowing faintly. The wolf shuddered but his eyes turned amber, a sign he was once more thirsty for battle.
"Try to survive until I get rid of my own spider," he said, running toward his opponent on the right that was eagerly awaiting him. The left one walked slowly towards Kaden.
"Oh shit, oh shit!" He held out his palms in front of him and cast his [Magic Bolts], one right after the other. The bolts flew instantaneously without the need for a cooldown. "What the hell?" he murmured to himself as he began unleashing spell after spell.
You have inflicted 2.578 damage to Black Spider Knight.
You have inflicted 2.877 damage to Black Spider Knight.
An idea formed in his head as his hands started hurting from the rapid release of bolts. Within ten seconds he had unleashed ten dual bolts; they had worked so well, the spider knight staggered backwards and fell onto his back. His health had been dented in only by about 27.000 points, but it had bought Kaden some time. [Ice Orb]. The round orb slammed into the knight's right leg, shattering it up to the knee and freezing the rest.
From what he had observed and understood, the knights were made out of tiny spiders. But what if those tiny spiders couldn’t form something bigger? Say because it was frozen over?
The other knight took Kain’s hits head-on. Frostbite and Slow stacks racked up to 14 within a minute, and made him lose about 1000 health points a second solely from the Frostbite debuff. The Slow stacks helped a lot as well, as the spider knight started darting all over the place. It was as if he wasn’t thinking at all, his instinct was unpredictable.
Kain got knocked into the wall two times within the minute as the spider knight continuously drained his health with each successive hit, negating the Frostbite. Kain steadied himself and listened for movement while observing the way it jumped from place to place, his eyes barely keeping up.
He slashed once, then three seconds later he slashed at Kain again. He attacked a third time another five seconds later. Just then, Kain evaded the fourth and grabbed his arm, dragging the knight to the ground. His claws ripped into the creature’s back, shredding at the remaining health.
Kaden’s hands rested for a few seconds, regaining some energy as he was too tired and hurt to fight at full capacity. In the meantime, the pain disappeared. It was like a machine gun: the more you fire it, the hotter it becomes and threatens to explode. But he had nothing else to give for that moment, all he could do was play soldier and shoot the thing.
He repeated the process two more times and cast Ice Orbs after a barrage to help cool down his hands. He gained a little more time and a short break to figure out how to proceed. Just as the spider dropped again from the barrage of bolts, the second spider knight slammed into the first, sending them both crashing into the wall.
"Hah! Good job my friend!" he called out at the Wolfman. [Flood], [Ice Age]. The two spells, cast quickly one after the other, created something wonderful. The water soaked the area around the knights, as well as their own bodies, freezing them from the inside, entombing the two spider knights in an icy coffin.
"A-oooooo!’ howled his friend upon seeing the carnage being dealt against the spiders. They got shredded into pieces, taking most of their remaining health. The weaker spider knight died during the onslaught, while the second one barely survived.
Maelstrom Page 26