by Jamey Sultan
The glow got brighter and solidified into crystalline ice armor that protected its shins, head, and forearms. There was a brief lull in the fight as James’ party watched, entranced, as the ice crept along the Ogre’s tree weapon, reshaping the wood into an ice-coated club. The Ability reminded James of the Vampire’s similar ability back at the Coliseum. The only difference was that the Ogre’s ability seemed rougher, less refined. Briefly, James wondered if it was a standard ice spell, or if it was something that powerful Undead could just use.
The Ogre, now partially clad in icy armor, bellowed a defiant roar, a challenge to the puny Humans who dared hurt it. Foul smelling green smoke billowed out from its open mouth.
You are affected by [Ogre’s Breath].
Side effects may include nausea, dizziness, dry mouth, and paralysis.
When the noxious fumes reached James, he dropped to his knees, retching. He tried to stand up, but when he moved, his vision blurred. He coughed and wished he’d had the foresight to create a few antidote potions.
There was a sound like boulders grinding together. It took a moment for James to realize that it was the sound of the Ogre laughing.
Arik was unconscious, and Nidra was on the ground like James. Even Karim was somewhat affected by the poison, although it didn’t seem to do as much to him. He was on one knee, firing so quickly that his hands were a blur, but his arrows were too small to be more than annoyances to the Ogre.
Every once in a while, he’d fire off an arrow imbued with magic that tore through the Ogre’s skin, but even those arrows could barely penetrate the Ogre’s ice armor, so Karim had focused his fire on the Ogre’s unprotected chest.
The Ogre’s chest was a mess of wounds. It looked like it was part zombie and part Swiss cheese. Undeterred, it lumbered forward and raised its club to smash down on Karim.
James did his best to keep his head still as he reached for his pouch. He withdrew a vial of liquid and threw it to Karim.
The Hunter didn’t even look up as he snatched the vial out of the air. It was one of the bottles of Fiend’s Bane that James had made before the trip.
Raising a hand, James blasted three Arcane Missiles at the Ogre, but instead of targeting the creature’s head, he targeted its weapon. The missiles hit the club just as it was about to hit Karim. The hunter rolled out of the way and smashed the vial of poison over his arrows before unsteadily getting back to his knee and resuming his bombardment. This time, the arrows penetrated deeper, leaving huge craters in his skin.
James joined in, throwing vials of the liquid at the Ogre. The first one went wide as a wave of nausea hit James and he doubled over to vomit mid-throw. The next two, however, hit the Ogre dead center. Wherever the liquid splashed, the Ogre’s skin bubbled and popped. The holes peppered across its chest expanded as the potion ate away at its skin.
With a disgusting slurping and tearing sound, the Ogre’s upper body crashed to the ground, too heavy for its barely-intact torso to support.
The now legless torso crawled toward James, leaving a trail of putrid-smelling black viscera in its wake. James looked to the side to see Karim with a new bow. This one was taller than the Dwarf, and Karim had to brace it against the ground with his foot to keep in place as he pulled the string back. He tensed and fired an abnormally shaped arrow with a corkscrew head towards the Ogre.
The arrow emitted a high-pitched whistling noise as it spun through the air. By the time it reached the Ogre, it had tripled in size.
Instead of losing most of its momentum when it hit the ice, like his other arrows had, this arrow drilled deep into the Ogre’s icy helm. The corpse collapsed, its outstretched hand still reaching for James. Instantly, the nauseating fog disappeared.
James waited for the experience notification, then remembered that his group wasn’t a true party yet, so they didn’t share kill experience. He checked to make sure the Ogre was dead and then turned to address Arik and Nidra. “Okay, I’ve been meaning to talk to you all about this. I know Karim is heading off on his own when we leave the Old City, but the rest of us agreed to stay together. I think we should find a Life Mage to bind us into a party. If we’re sticking together for a while, it’s probably a good decision.”
“I agree.” Arik nodded. He’d regained consciousness toward the end of the fight and was leaning against the side of the bridge, nursing a health potion. “I was a bit weary of committing before, but we’ve been through a lot now and I think it’s safe to say we’ll be together for a while longer.”
“Agreed,” Nidra said.
With that taken care of, James eyed the rotting corpse. He’d cut up a lot of monsters since arriving in Novis, and monster anatomy fascinated him, but the Zombie Ogre was the most disgusting thing he’d ever laid eyes on. It smelled so strongly of rotted flesh that he could taste it in the back of his throat.
“Hang on,” James said, holding his breath as he flipped the Zombie Ogre onto its back. Its chest was a mess, with flaking skin everywhere his potion had splashed. It was as if the magic holding it together had weakened so much that when James tried to cut into the creature, its skin tore into unusable fragments.
After a frustrating few minutes dealing with half-liquefied organs, James realized that the only bits he’d be able to save were the bones, which were dark and greying. Still, maybe they’d be useful ground into potion ingredients.
While harvesting the bones, James found a strange black crystal. He looked up to show it to his companions, and realized they’d all walked a good distance away so that they didn’t need to smell him. He sighed and examined his loot.
Zombie Bone (x206):
Rank: Common
These bones belong to a Zombie, one of the weakest forms of the undead. They have been stained through exposure to dark energy.
Interestingly, the Zombie Ogre had 206 bones, the same amount as a Human or a gorilla. The bones themselves were much larger and different proportionally. Its ribs especially were much thicker and longer than they should have been because of its barrel chest.
The bones might have been interesting, but it was the crystal that drew James’ attention the most.
Undead Elite Crystal:
Rank: Unusual
When an Undead has gained enough strength, it starts to gain sentience in the form of a crystal heart. As the Undead grows, so too does the crystal. If the crystal is strong enough, the Undead could break free of its master and regain a semblance of life.
Now that was interesting. James made a note to learn more about the Undead, but it would probably be a while because he had so much else to do.
Once he packed everything into his pouch, James went to rejoin his group, but they refused to let him within fifty feet of them until he’d bathed, so he had them anchor him with a rope while he let the fast-flowing river carry away his grime.
James would’ve hesitated to enter such cold water back on Earth, but with an effective Resilience of 19, he barely felt the cold.
Once he’d cleaned himself thoroughly, he rejoined his companions, and they took in the Boneyard.
From ground height, the fog appeared even thicker than it had looked at the top of the valley. They could barely see twenty feet away, but hopefully that would apply to the enemy too. From what they could see, the ground was mostly flat and filled with gravestones of all types. Interspersed amongst the gravestones were larger mausoleums.
James shivered, but not from the cold. The fog was oppressive, but not like the Witchwood, where it felt like there were eyes on him. This fog felt more natural, but at the same time not. He couldn’t explain it.
“Come on,” Karim said in a hushed whisper.
The group followed him along the river toward the exit. According to their map, they’d follow the river to the cliff side and then just follow the cliff for a few minutes.
“So, Karim,” James said, his voice dampened by the thick fog. “Why didn’t you use that bow earlier?”
“Well, I only have a few of those
arrows, and they’re expensive and hard to get.”
James nodded, that made sense, but what didn’t make sense to him was why it had been so difficult to kill the Ogre. Karim should have been able to take care of it easily; he was a much higher level than it was. “How come you had so much trouble taking it down, though? It was twenty levels below you.”
“Levels aren’t everything,” Karim said. “First off, I’m a Hunter specialized in tracking and traps. Second of all, that thing was huge. No matter how high of a level I am, there’s only so much damage I can do if my arrows are the size of bee stingers to him.”
James had to admit that made sense. If Karim had been fighting a normal-sized monster, his arrows would have absolutely destroyed it.
***
They’d been walking along the river for about ten minutes without issue when they stumbled across a dark shadow hunched over a gravestone.
Name: Damien Kleir
Race: Gnome
Level: 41
Class: Archaeologist
Karim raised his bow and nocked an arrow. In one smooth motion, he drew back the bowstring, but just as he released his arrow, James slapped the bow, sending it into a nearby gravestone.
Chapter 28
The hooded figure gave a startled shout and tried to run, but promptly tripped over a backpack on the ground behind him. He rolled over twice before hopping to his feet and pointing a trembling dagger at them.
From the front, James could see that the Gnome was about three feet tall, smaller even than the Dwarves. He had a neatly trimmed beard that ended in a sharp point and was clothed in black robes with a bone medallion across his chest.
“What… What do you want?” he asked in a squeaky voice that trembled with terror.
James took a step forward with both hands up. “Whoa, sorry we startled you there. We’re just passing by and honestly a bit surprised to see someone else around here.”
Damien eyed them suspiciously, his eyes darting back and forth looking for traps. “What’re you all doing here?”
“We’re just trying to get out of here,” James replied. “The exit’s not far, right?”
The Gnome was still eyeing them suspiciously, but he dropped the dagger. “It’s not too far. Just a few miles back that way.” He gestured with a thumb over his shoulder.
“Thanks.” James grinned. “So what are you doing here? Seems a bit dangerous for a lone adventurer.” From what he could see, the Gnome had been studying a pyramid-shaped mausoleum on the bank of the river.
As soon as he’d asked what the Gnome was doing, James knew he’d made a mistake. Damien’s eyes narrowed and he threw a glass marble at the ground that shattered into a thick cloud of smoke. James couldn’t see anything, but he heard a thudding noise, a curse, and then the sound of running footsteps. When the smoke cleared, the Gnome was gone, along with his bag and all of his supplies.
James chuckled. “Well, that was weird.”
Arik shrugged. “Curious little bastards get into everything. They’re always running some experiment or another and guard their research furiously. Best to ignore it.”
“Well, now I’m a bit curious,” James said, examining the mausoleum.
The pyramidal structure was about fifteen feet high and the entire thing looked to be cut from a single piece of a white and grey patterned marble. A single crack ran from the tip of the pyramid down to the base, and there were fresh flowers poking out of the ground in front. It was the only grave to have flowers.
Gingerly, James reached down to pluck one of the flowers, but before he touched it, he felt the hair on the back of his hand stand up.
You have gained 3 Skill Ranks in Sixth Sense.
You are now Skill Rank 7.
James gulped, suddenly glad he hadn’t touched the plant. Instead, he examined it closer, taking care not to make contact with it. The plant had a black stem, and four heart-shaped silver petals with a skull pattern. He’d seen something like it before, he was sure of it. It had to have been in one of his poison books, and he wracked his brains trying to remember which one. Suddenly, it came to him. A passage from Strange Ingredients in Folklore.
The Deathgrip Clover is one of the only plants that is deadlier in nature than when refined into a poison. One touch of a living plant will kill most beings while, once plucked, it becomes nothing more than an emetic. Numerous studies have been conducted on the reasons behind this, and data points to the living plant’s ability to refine and expel high concentrations of Death Mana.
A living Deathgrip Clover is a valuable commodity because of the challenges that come from transporting such a dangerous plant. They cannot be stored in a dimensional pouch, because they would die. In addition, they need to be planted on thrice hallowed ground and can only grow in the presence of Death Mana.
They are most commonly found in graveyards; however, it is of the utmost importance not to remove one from a marked grave. It is an essential component in a revenge ritual to Vither and considered sacred. Removing one will mark a person with the brand Vither’s Tear, and anyone who recognizes it will receive the quest Vengeance for Vither, which will reward them for bringing the branded to justice.
James hadn’t tried to examine unharvested plans or ingredients yet, so he was surprised to see that he could, with a bit of effort, read the Deathgrip Clover’s status page.
Deathgrip Clover:
Rank: Epic
Goodnight.
A sharp voice brought James out of his reverie. “James,” Nidra snapped. “Did you forget that we’re in the middle of a graveyard?” In a softer voice she muttered, “Just like a fucking Gnome…”
“Right. Sorry about that.” He pointed at the flower. “Don’t pick that.”
The three of them ignored him, and he hurried to catch up to them before they faded away into the mist.
***
“All right, we’re close, so keep a sharp eye out for the tunnel,” Karim said. They’d just reached the point where the river ran back into the mountain. They’d run into a few lone skeletons over the past hour, but none of them were a higher level than 25, and the party hadn’t had any trouble dispatching them quietly. Now, they were almost to the exit. Soon they’d be in Human territory again and they’d be able to start their search for Lucien. He’d taken the palace gate, which also let out into Hedgehog Valley, but they weren’t sure where.
They weaved their way through the graveyard as close to the edge of the valley as they could. After about five minutes, James started to feel that strange electrical feeling again, the same feeling he’d had back in the tunnels when they’d been close to the exit.
“I can feel that we’re getting close.” James said, his excitement building. “It feels just like the entrance to the Old City. There’s a barrier somewhere around here.”
Sure enough, a few minutes later they found it.
It wasn’t a tunnel like they’d expected. Instead, the exit was a ravine cut through the mountains, with a thick stone archway marking the entrance. A magical barrier pulsed inside the arch, sending out motes of purple light that illuminated the graveyard around.
James held his breath as he stepped over the threshold, expecting something bad to happen.
Chapter 29
The mountains loomed over them on both sides, casting the ravine into perpetual twilight. In the dim light, James saw bits of red stone poking from the dirt, the only remains of an ancient road. James recognized a few strands of Red Silkweed growing out of cracks in the stone. The slippery red plant was one of the key components for a few Health Potion recipes, so he plucked the few strands within reach as they passed them.
The cloud of dread that had hung over the party since they’d entered the tunnels was gone, replaced with a budding excitement at the thought of finally being able to rest without worrying about anyone chasing them.
It was only another twenty minutes before the tunnel started to slope downward, meandering in a zigzag pattern down the mountains and into th
e valley below.
“Oh wow, look at this.” James called his companions over. They were about halfway down the mountain and he’d found a scenic overlook with an unobstructed view of the valley.
Before him stretched a beautiful valley nestled peacefully in the shadow of the Crimson Mountains, which curved to encircle half of the valley. The other side of the valley was protected by a mountain range of greying rock that glimmered magically in the sunlight. The two sets of mountains were separated by a massive lake, and together encircled the valley in an almost egg-shaped enclosure.
There was one other large body of water in the valley, this one to James’s right. It was an oval basin at the base of the Crimson Mountains called Syreus’ Shelter. James couldn’t see it, but he knew that the Witchwood was on the other side of Syreus’ Shelter, the two separated by miles of mountain.
Clumps of trees dotted the valley like toys and James could see a smattering of villages surrounded by large swathes of farmland and connected by worn dirt roads, but they were too far away to see any details.
“That’s so green,” Karim said, wiping away a tear.
James had never seen the Dwarf so stunned.
James glanced up at the sun; their journey through the Old City had taken most of the day and night was about to fall. “Why don’t we camp here for the night?” he suggested.
The others agreed and they all set up camp. They decided to celebrate their escape with a fire and warm, cooked food, something that they hadn’t been able to do in the tunnels. They’d be able to see if anyone was coming from miles away from where they were. Soon, they were relaxing around a crackling fire, grilling thick cuts of meat, and swapping stories.