Dungeon Bound 2

by Bastian Knight

  Can’t believe I remembered the glyphs from one read through.

  All three mages released their spells as one.

  Gabriel smirked at the look of horror on the unwounded man’s face.

  Shouldn’t have cast two cloud spells, idiot. I couldn’t have countered them both if one had made a missile attack.

  The powerful gust of wind he’d unleashed forced both spell constructs back toward their creators.

  The mages coughed and gagged at the horrid stench of the green cloud. Few casters bothered to prepare a defense so tight that it would block such a gaseous attack since it cut off your air supply as well.

  Still not as dangerous as that Acidic Fog. Damn lucky I could counter it. Really need to create and attune some Mantle Anchors for us.

  Hazy gray shields shimmered around them as the slower moving yellow miasma washed over them. The acidic gas scoured the magical barriers. Both men went pale as their own magic settled in around them.

  ‘Yes. Make them suffer.’

  Gabriel’s grin fell. The voice’s pleased tone sent a shiver of revulsion through his body. He wasted precious seconds fighting down the sense of wrongness, staring at the pair as they worked to dispel their foul creations.

  A voice cried out in terror. The pained scream overwhelmed the clamor of battle, then cut off in a flash.

  Gabriel ignored the silenced life. It wasn’t one of his girls.

  My girls?

  He shook his head and dove into another spell. The air blast had been a stop-gap measure, nothing more. The mages would survive, and he needed to be ready.

  What to cast… Can I conceal an Aetheric Lance while countering?

  Gabriel dashed to one side and hid behind the nearest pillar. He knew it wouldn’t provide much protection from their attacks. But it would force them to turn away from the battle.

  While most magic was aimed through the Weave of Creation, physically seeing the target made it far easier to locate. If he was lucky, they’d split up, and he could deal with one at a time.

  The magical clouds vanished in a flash of unbound mana, and the scowling, snot-faced mages staggered toward Gabriel.

  Sthuza, can you three handle the soldiers?

  ‘I think so… Be careful.’

  He risked a glance toward the savage melee. Six guards surrounded Reyna and Cindra as the pair fought back to back. The lycan bled from several wounds, but Cindra looked unharmed.

  Several black arrows stuck out from each of the armored men, but they continued to fight. Gabriel didn’t see the last two, but he trusted Sthuza to cover anyone that got loose.

  He leaned out to the right as he started a dual circle Aetheric Lance to his left.

  Mana 28%

  He tapped his pool and harnessed mana to power the spell. It would take longer than his previous magic, but if they thought he was outclassed, they might underestimate him and give him the room to finish.

  Gabriel turned his attention back to his opponents in time to watch the one Sthuza shot pull out a potion and quaff it.

  His partner drew another wand and aimed it at Gabriel. It was far more ornate than the ones they had used earlier. A faceted yellow gem capped its engraved silver shaft. The man sneered at him, then muttered a word.

  Shit. Gabriel cursed and ducked back behind the pillar.

  Everything went white as the world exploded.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  The black pillar shattered, and Gabriel flew.

  Dust and stone pelted him as he slammed into the wall with a heavy thud. The impact blasted the breath from his lungs, and he sucked in marble dust when he opened his mouth.

  Glad they didn’t use that on the others.

  Everything ached. Gabriel inhaled a lungful of dusty air and coughed before he rolled to his stomach.

  The world around him was shades of white. Blinded, Gabriel strained to hear over the din of battle.

  Swords clashed and rang. Furry monster girls growled and roared. Stones crashed down, and someone wailed piteously.

  Sthuza, can you hear me?

  “Massster!” his Prime screamed aloud.

  Multiple people raised their voices at her panicked cry. Gabriel shut it all out and climbed to his feet.

  He closed his eyes, and the brightness dimmed. Off to his left, he heard one of the mages intoning harsh syllables.

  Not good.

  He still hadn’t been able to draw a full breath, and his chest ached even as he wracked his brain to figure out where he stood.

  The second mage started speaking arcane words.

  Think!

  Gabriel grinned and rushed the casting for a spell he’d never used before.

  Still hate the man, but Kelith’s spellbook was worth its weight in mithril.

  One of the mages finished a spell first. Gabriel’s breath caught in his throat, but he forced himself to continue when nothing struck him.

  To his surprise, Gabriel found it no harder to visualize the glyphs while blinded. He anchored the spell to himself, and then the second it was complete, he released it and saw no change.

  Hope Reyna can see in the dark.

  “Was that you, ya big-dicked bastard?” the lycan growled. Then a man screamed.

  “Yeah, figured if I can’t see, it’s only fair they can’t either,” Gabriel replied.

  “Excellent idea, Master,” Sthuza said. She loosed an arrow, and another guard wailed before crashing down.

  There was more muttered spellcasting, but Gabriel blocked it out and worked to restore his shield. While he recast it, he realized he’d also lost the Haste spell when the lightning blasted him.

  Don’t have time to restore it. One of those assholes will dispel the darkness soon.

  The stinging brightness dimmed as he worked. By the time he’d replaced his spellshield, he could sort of see where people were with his Darkvision.

  Gabriel staggered toward another pillar.

  One of the mages finished his incantation, and the darkness brightened. It faded away slowly, and both mages cursed.

  That’s… not how dispelling should have worked.

  More harsh words drew Gabriel’s attention. He turned in time to catch an acidic green spray across the chest as the man unleashed another attack spell.

  Again his shield flared into view, longer this time as the magical acid clung to the field and sizzled, struggling to burn through the mana he’d tied to the spell.

  It only took a second for Gabriel to realize the shield wouldn’t hold. He swallowed, then dove backward and dismissed it.

  A couple droplets of acid splashed on his coat, but he dodged most of it and landed in a painful roll.

  The magical acid sizzled for several seconds and filled his nose with a horrid stench before dissipating.

  Gabriel staggered back to his feet and squared off against the two casters.

  Both mages were deep into another spell.

  An arrow flashed by, and Gabriel frowned when it deflected off the hazy wall of hexagons that surrounded one of the mages.

  He glanced back at his Prime and saw Sthuza was splitting her attacks between his targets and the crowd that still tried to overwhelm the furious pair of beastkin.

  “Perhaps you should use your sword this time,” Sthuza called out.

  Gabriel blinked at her suggestion.

  She usually gets angry when I charge in like a brute.

  Then he grinned as her meaning became clear.

  An object’s mass greatly affects the strength of its enchantment. While her arrows were magical, the small projectiles could only hold so much power. His sword had far more surface to imbue with runes and could be empowered to a much greater degree.

  Which is why close-quarters combat is so common for adventurers. It’s a lot easier to pierce a monster’s hide with a magical spear than an enchanted arrow.

  Gabriel grinned at the mages and broke into a trot. One of them finished his latest spell.

  A wall of flames manifested i
n between them.

  For a second, fear slowed Gabriel, but the flames called to him. All he could see was fire. He took a deep breath and charged through the magical flames.

  They were hot. As hot as Cindra’s mouth. The flames flickered and danced—then he was through.

  Guess her bond helped me.

  Both mages stared at him, wide-eyed.

  Let’s see how their shields fare against this.

  Gabriel raised his sword in a two-handed grip. He put his entire body into the strike, drawing power from his core—just like his mother had taught him.

  To the mage’s credit, the hazy, arcane shield held up for three strikes. The first two rebounded painfully, sending pulses of agony up Gabriel’s arm when the blade scored the dull hexagons that formed the shield.

  His third strike landed on top of the X he’d scratched across their barrier. The tinkling of shattered glass was muted and soft compared to the wounded mage’s pained scream as the silvery sword carved deep into his chest.

  Gabriel blew out a breath and pulled his sword from the dying man—or tried to. He almost lost his sweat-soaked grip on the hilt when the blade caught tight in the man’s ribs.

  It took three tries and bracing his foot on the gasping man before Gabriel managed to tug it free.

  He screamed louder when I pulled it out than going in.

  “Who the hells are you?” the other mage asked in a tremulous voice. Again the sound of glass breaking rang out.

  Gabriel had no witty remark. He raised his blade again and turned to face the man.

  He wasn’t there.

  It took Gabriel a second to spot the fleeing mage. The man had already crossed half the hall and was headed straight for the doors. He glanced back over his shoulder, spotted Gabriel, and his eyes widened.

  Gabriel paused and stared at the terrified man who turned away and continued to run away.

  The robed mage was three steps from the threshold when a black-feathered arrow took him in the back of the head. He went boneless and collapsed in a sprawl.

  Nice shot.

  ‘I try, Master.’

  Slightly sickened by the stench of the eviscerated mage at his feet, Gabriel turned to the larger melee.

  Cindra had held her own, though she was leaning on her greatsword as she sucked in huge breaths. Three more men were down on her side. Two of them had been chopped to pieces. The third was a misshapen lump of steel and meat.

  Reyna hadn’t fared as well. The short, muscular werebadger looked worse than some of the zombies they’d faced back in the dungeon. Blood flowed freely from dozens of injuries. One along her hairline spilled enough across her face that he was surprised she could still see to fight.

  Or is she just flailing away at random?

  Two armored men were down near her feet, but she still had one to go.

  Before Gabriel could assist her, Sthuza landed another amazing shot and speared the last guard’s knee with an arrow.

  He staggered and started to fall. The gory lycan seemed to hit a second wind and leapt on him, riding the guard to the ground.

  Reyna had one hand wrapped around the man’s sword arm, and she pinned it to the bloody carpet. She grabbed his helmet and jerked it back to expose his neck.

  The man screamed. Reyna snapped forward and bit down with bloody fangs.

  It didn’t take her long to rip his throat out; surprisingly, she actually stopped when he died.

  Cindra limped over to Gabriel. She wrapped him in a powerful hug, lowered her face to his hair, and inhaled deeply.

  “I’m glad you’re safe too, Cindra,” he said affectionately as he rubbed her back. He glanced at Sthuza, who now aimed at the baron. “Thanks for the shooting.”

  “You are most welcome, Master,” the still disguised gorgon replied without taking her eyes off the grieving man.

  Gabriel paused when he noticed the bastard still sat motionless where he’d last seen the noble. The man showed no inclination to fight or flee, so Gabriel looked around.

  The thick carpet was charred black around Reyna’s battle site, and soggy with puddles of blood. Eight armored guards, all male, lay dead or dying about the ostentatious audience hall. The pitiful whimper of one who called for his wife clawed at Gabriel’s conscience.

  The man spent his dying breath begging for his wife.

  ‘He dared threaten you. You must punish. Punish them all. The rich one. Hurt him. Hurt his female. Make him beg. Then devour their souls.’

  Gabriel shuddered at the horrid voice in his head. He squeezed his eyes shut and clamped down on his mind.

  Someone spoke, but he didn’t understand the words. A hand shook his shoulder.

  Gabriel turned and saw his Prime. He flashed her a weak smile, then looked toward the pair of nobles. Baron Alberik sat staring blankly at the far wall, but it was the devastated expression on the baroness’ face that genuinely gave Gabriel pause.

  Tears traced down her sharp cheeks, but her clouded eyes stared sightlessly at the baron. Her lips moved like she wanted to speak, but no words came out.

  He opened his mind to Sthuza. Did they love Kelith? She looks absolutely destroyed. Hells, so does the baron. Like nothing I could do to them would be worse than what’s already happened.

  ‘It was not your fault, Master. They brought all of this upon themselves.’

  No. No, it’s not my fault. He started this; I’m just finishing it. But I’ve had enough of this.

  ‘What do you mean, Master?’ Her thoughts rushed out to him now and carried an undertone of worry.

  He walked over to his Prime. “Relax, Sthuza, it’s not what you think.”

  “Massster?”

  “I’m done with this self-centered prick. Alberik destroyed gods know how many lives like he did mine. But it all came back and brought him more misery than I ever could. I don’t need to punish them.”

  A sliver of doubt flashed through his mind, and he half-expected the sinister voice to speak again. To call him a liar, but it didn’t.

  Gabriel wrapped an arm around the wide-eyed gorgon and pulled her close, which caused her to lower her bow.

  “Look at him. Look at his wife.” Gabriel pointed at the distraught nobles. “I can’t think of anything I could do to cause them more pain than they already feel. And honestly, I don’t care. They’re not worth my time.”

  “That’s fine if you ain’t got the stomach for any more, ya crazy bastard,” Reyna growled. “But I still got some bones to pick with that sadistic rapist, and I’m gonna see if I can’t make them both squeal a bit more.”

  “P-please don’t kill her,” the baron whispered. His weak voice was so quiet Gabriel thought he’d imagined it.

  “Why shouldn’t I kill her? Don’t think it’s fair to hurt your woman like you hurt us ‘animals’?” Reyna snarled, spitting foam as she stomped toward the dais. “Did the thought ever cross that inbred, maggot-flavored, limp-dicked mind of yours that what goes around comes around?”

  “Don’t like maggots,” Cindra muttered.

  The baroness stared at Alberik with wide eyes. He looked up at her but flinched away from her intense gaze.

  “I’m sorry,” he mumbled.

  Reyna rocked back like she’d been punched, then leaned closer. “The hells do you think you’re doing? Saying your fucking sorry. I don’t want to hear anything but your screams as I peel your flesh off, you mealy-mouthed bastard!”

  “Elaine, I’m so sorry. I never thought he’d be in any danger. It was supposed to be a simple thing to go in after the adventurers and steal the Core,” the baron said, his voice breaking.

  “Did you tell anyone else about your plan?” Gabriel asked.

  “What? You mean where the Co—” Alberik started to say. He snapped his mouth shut and swallowed when he saw Gabriel’s harsh glare. Instead, he shook his head.

  Good. The last thing we need is anyone else hunting Meri.

  ‘That is a relief, Master. Once we deal with Estrial, Lady Merideva sho
uld be quite safe.’

  “Why did you send our little boy into that dungeon? And to steal something? Were you that desperate for more money?” Elaine asked, her brittle voice filling with anger as she spoke.

  The baron gulped and flinched back, but he met her gaze. “It was going to change everything. The dungeon is dying, the Guildmaster was talking about closing down and leaving the city. We’d be nothing without their presence,” he muttered.

  Reyna snickered. “Yeah, you’re pretty much less than nothing now, you gods-damned twat waffle. Probably shoulda tried something like actually working instead of torturing beastkin girls to get your jollies, huh?”

  Gabriel shook his head and sighed.

  The longer this goes on, the less interested in revenge I am. He’s a self-centered asshole, and his wife went along with everything until it affected her personally. Still, I’m not the type that enjoys hurting others. Am I?

  ‘Relax, Master. If you do not want to make them suffer, tell Miss Reyna. Though I doubt she would agree to spare him. She craves his death more than her own life.’

  He nodded and turned his attention back to the angry lycan.

  “Reyna,” he called firmly, and she turned to focus a harsh glare on him. “Let his wife go.”

  “What? No way!”

  Gabriel stared at Reyna, but she just snarled at him, baring her fangs.

  “She had nothing to do with what he did to your sister,” Gabriel said.

  Reyna sniffled at the mention of her sister and looked away.

  “He’s the one that wronged you, and Sthuza has the crystal to help you properly punish him. Let his wife go.”

  Sthuza stepped away from Gabriel and approached the lycan. “Master is correct, Miss Reyna. Besides, she has to carry her loss for the rest of her days. Is that not punishment enough for her sins?”

  The werebadger narrowed her eyes at Gabriel but finally nodded. “Fine, skanky, pole-bean bitch can get lost.”

  Tears streamed down the baron’s face as he dropped to his knees. “Thank you.”

  “Didn’t do it for you fuck-face,” Reyna snarled, gnashing her bloody fangs. Bits of foamy pink spittle flew toward the pitiful man.

  “Elaine, hurry and escape,” he said, then paused before continuing quieter. “I’m sorry, my love… for everything.”