Chapter Seven

Apparently, as Will had been trying to train his Stats and plan his next move, Okembe had been doing something similar. Along with stitching up the rent torn into his robes as best he could, he’d been considering again the idea of taking on the Solo Dungeon.

“I have passed the Guardians once before, and though you seem to know what you are doing I would not feel right if I didn’t see you safely to your goal. After saving me from Jackal, it is the least I should do for you. The Boss is extremely difficult, and I fear you would not survive alone.”

Will tried to wave the man off, arguing that a Healing Potion and a reciprocal life-save was payment enough, but he didn’t resist too hard against the offer of help. Fighting Jackal had once again reminded him that he wasn’t the man he’d been at the end of the first timeline yet, and though skill and future knowledge could help there was always a need for actual gear and Stats if he wanted to compete. Okembe had a Subclass, and was significantly more powerful than Will himself right now so if he wanted to make clearing the Exit Boss easier that was a pretty good deal. Frankly, though it pained him to admit, he wasn’t actually sure he could handle the Exit Boss even with Okembe’s help after even the dryad had given him so much trouble.

“I can return to this Floor with my Sigil, and assault the Dungeon at the next opportunity. It is of no necessity at this moment.”

Will had to agree, and so it was with Okembe in tow that he began the trek to the old site of the transit hub. Thankfully, as Okembe only planned on accompanying him to Floor 2 and not further, he wasn’t going to have to worry about playing off or excusing his unnatural degree of knowledge about the Tower. Pretending that another chance meeting had led him to this route was already a lie he felt didn’t get believed completely, and having to think up more before he was ready wouldn’t be ideal. They mainly walked in companionable silence, thankfully, with Okembe showing the value of having Climbed higher as even his pure Caster build had enough physical Stats to keep up with Will’s own. Had they been in a forest, it would have been slightly better, but out here all he had was extra stamina and the feeling of his arm slowly fixing itself piece by piece.

“Are you informed about the nature of the 2nd Floor? You seem fairly well informed in general, but I would be happy to tell you what I learned in my time there.”

Even though he knew exactly what he was planning to do there and how everything important worked, Will couldn’t resist the urge to see what Okembe had figured out himself. It would be a good way to gauge how Climbers thought and what they knew this early in the timeline before he’d been involved himself.

“Yeah, that would be useful. I know it’s similar to this in that there’s a bunch of Exits, and I think the guy I spoke to earlier mentioned you don’t have to fight a Boss this time, but that’s about it.”

Okembe gave a nod as they casually stopped walking to cut down/psychically bludgeon two Diving Hawks that attempted to slow their progress.

“Yes, that’s correct. I myself found a staircase to the North, past a large group of huts occupied by Kobolds. They’re lizard-like creatures, small like the Goblins here but more vicious and tougher. Others I have spoken to have indicated that like these portals, the stairs move. I have only been to the 2nd Floor once, but I can give you the general lay of the land.”

They continued the journey across the plains of the inner ring, fighting a few more times but never against anything too threatening. Another 20 Coins finally pushed Will over the 100 barrier, which was nice though not specifically useful, and Okembe gave him a full rundown on what he knew about the Floor. It was generally all correct, and if Will had actually been a newbie would have been extremely helpful. Okembe had described the square, magically fenced in environment with a much higher density of settlements full of monsters or seemingly empty and abandoned. Some of these had saferooms like the shacks, whilst others were just traps or sites for combat and looting. The Floor was smaller than the 1st, though still large enough that one could not travel end to end in less than several days without some extra Skills or Stats. Monsters tended towards lizards, kobolds, Drakelings and similar but there were also some areas that reportedly had elemental Golems which could spawn and cause serious damage. Those were rare, essentially Roaming Minibosses, but formed out of the dirt-filled rocky wasteland environment of the 2nd Floor comprised of dirt, stone and sometimes even small amounts of magma.

Overall, Okembe had a good grasp on the 2nd Floor, one that didn’t teach Will anything new but also confirmed that he did have some catching up to do if he wanted to be at the head of the pack among Climbers anytime soon. Even miscellaneous randoms Will had no memory of from the first timeline were already figuring out important strategies and rules of how the Tower operated, and starting to format and systematise its’ structure and opportunities. Actually, it was quite a hope-inducing realisation for Will, as he felt some of the burden of guiding Humanity lift. Of course, just like in the first timeline, he wouldn’t be doing this alone. Even if he died right now, there would be heroes and legends like the S Rankers and the countless lower levelled soldiers that supported them, and even though they’d failed before they’d come damn close. By the time they reached the general area of the transit hub, Will had been given a detailed breakdown of everything Okembe knew and was feeling much more positive than he had been right after Jackal had tried to murder them.

“Okay, I think this is about where I was told the Portals usually spawned. We’ll probably have to keep walking around until we find one, but we shouldn’t have to go much further and we can double back if we get too far. They spawn randomly, right?”

Okembe nodded, and then raised a hand as he made a suggestion.

“I can attempt to use my Telepathy Spell to see if there are any other beings with minds nearby to assist the location of the Guardian, I believe.”

That was impressive. Having figured out that way of using the Spell this early, and having enough control to actually use it, meant that Okembe wasn’t just lucky or benefiting from getting here early. He had some real skill and intelligence, and Will started to rack his brains to see if he remembered anyone of this description among the B and A Rankers. Nothing came to mind immediately, which meant he didn’t have any memory at all. Thanks to the Coin’s passive effect of preserving his memories, if he’d have known anything about Okembe it would have come to mind by now.

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With a start, he realised the truth. Okembe must have been killed by Jackal, rather than saved, in the first timeline. Humanity had lost his potential, and Will had inadvertently saved it. Now that was a point in the win column, he reflected. Maybe it wouldn’t make a huge difference, but if he could repeat this on a larger scale, he could achieve his goal of saving Humanity.

Will agreed, and the two once again sank into silence as they wandered the roughly three mile square area. It had been 4 hours since they set out from the settlement, by the time they saw a Portal. Okembe had long since stopped using his Spell, wanting to conserve and recharge mana for the fight they’d inevitably have to engage in, and Will had resorted to using Conditioning [F] just to get some physical benefit from the slow paced walking back and forth. He dropped the Skill when the first glimpse of pulsing purple light became visible on the horizon. Although it was mostly masked by hills, given that they were currently in a small valley, he could see the tip of the portal undulating just over the crest. Okembe noticed it at the same time, nudging Will and pointing.

“Okay, any preparations you need to do before we head up there and take out the Ogre?”

Will asked, adjusting his pack on his belt and drawing his sword. He wished the Charm he’d picked up from Jackal’s sword would work, but he’d need to wait at least another 24 hours before he could Bond it himself.

“No, I am prepared. Be careful, the Ogre I fought seemed to possess a secondary form, which activated once it was injured. It grew significantly larger and its’ attacks began to be imbued with some magical energy I did not recognise. I will attempt to block it from hurting you, but without the consumable I used last time I will not be able to deal much of the damage. That responsibility will be your own.”

They arrived on the top of the hill, grassy with several large boulders and rock formations breaking up the flat peak, and took in the sight of the Portal. 12 feet tall, waving and rippling slightly, a tear in the world that shone with purple and blue light intertwining and separating. It was actually quite beautiful, and Will might have stopped to marvel if not for the 7 foot tall purple skinned humanoid with a club the length of Will’s body that immediately came charging towards them. It roared, the single horn and single eye that marked its’ face both seeming to twist and crumple as it snarled and charged to attack, club raised.

Okembe’s shield immediately soared past Will and pushed the Ogre back a step, but the creature simply roared again and battered it aside with a heavy blow. It kept running forwards, Okembe bringing the shield back around as Will darted in to begin attacking. Thankfully, though it was large and strong, the Ogre was fairly slow and stupid, without a great deal of actual toughness other than a rough leathery skin. It was a perfect Boss for the First Floor – dangerous enough to be a real threat, best handled by 2 or 3 people if you weren’t particularly strong, but trivial to dispose of once you’d been up a few Floors. Will landed two big slashes on the monsters’ torso, not cutting as deeply as he would have liked but still being rewarded with a groan of pain and a spray of blood. Okembe’s shield stopped a retaliatory bludgeon from caving in Will’s skull, and he called thanks to the man as he darted backwards.

Will dodged a swing of the club and cut into the tendons of the Ogre’s left arm, but got clipped by a haymaker it threw in reply and was sent sprawling to the ground, bruised. He leapt to his feet in good time, and saw that Okembe had added a flying sword to his repertoire, which jabbed at the Ogre’s single eye as the shield harassed its’ arms and torso. Whatever the man had been doing before he got a hold of the Psion Subclass, Will didn’t actually know, but he’d clearly taken to the new approach like a fish to water. He’d said Will would need to deal the damage, but his magical sword and shield were cutting deep gouges and battering heavy bruises onto the Ogre even despite Okembe’s frustrated grimace. It must have been taxing, and so Will stopped gawking and jumped in to continue assisting the fight. He used the opening created by Okembe knocking the Ogre’s club wide to the left and drove his scimitar deep into the flesh of the monster’s neck and shoulder, cleaving deeply into its’ body and having to tug his blade free to avoid being grabbed.

That attack, as well as the continued harassment of Okembe’s floating weapons, was enough to trigger the second form transformation. This was one of the Tower’s favourite Boss mechanics, one designed to punish those who didn’t conserve resources or let their guard down too early. The Ogre screamed, a blood-curdling sound that tore through the air of the Floor and made both Will and Okembe wince slightly. It began to swell, looking as though someone was jabbing pumps into its’ body at random and inflating the monster piece by piece. It bulged, twisted, surged and grew, evening out to become twice the size it had been before. Its’ club grew with it, and turned to a deep black from the simple rotting wood of earlier, at the same time that its’ horn sharpened and lengthened and its’ skin turned a much deeper and more vivid purple colour. Swinging its’ now even more massive club down towards the pair, Will dove aside as Okembe’s shield came up to block the blow.

Somehow, in a testament to the man’s power, his shield held, hovering in the air as the huge club clanged against it and caused the Ogre to stumble from the rebounding force. The sword dropped to the ground, and Okembe was forced to one knee by the impact against his defences, but it gave Will the opening he was looking for. He used one of the rock formations scattered atop the hill to give himself a boost and then leapt, forcing as much power into his legs as he could to bring himself level with the Ogre’s chest in the air. His sword flashed three times as rapidly as he could muster, and the Ogre’s skin split again in several places. Will landed on the ground and absorbed the fall with a hiss of pain, Okembe’s shield flying up to knock the Ogre’s knee with enough force that it was distracted and couldn’t step on Will before he ran back to safety. The floating sword was back up, harrying every part of the Ogre with small but insistent cuts and thrusts, but it was moving slower and the Ogre was more able to ignore it.

Once again cursing the lack of a forest to boost his Agility and Strength, Will contented himself with using his size and speed advantage to dash around the Ogre’s legs and drive deep long wounds that gushed blood. The monster dropped to one knee, as Okembe’s sword and shield kept him off balance and kept Will from being crushed in retaliation, and Will managed to leap and slice open a part of its’ face. That was too much, though, and before he could retreat again the Ogre’s club came round with surprising speed and once again cracked against Will to send him tumbling through the air. This time instead of spinning to a halt in the grass, bruised but okay, his ribs snapped under the force and he came to a violent stop slamming back first against a boulder which sent agonising shocks into his spine.

The helmet had prevented his brains from being scrambled, and the mail half-shirt had possibly helped a small amount, but Will was almost totally out of the fight from the injuries he’d sustained. The Ogre was looking bad, bleeding profusely from dozens of cuts across its’ giant form and holding the club with hands that seemed looser and weaker, and Okembe had continued dodging back and forth around the top of the hill, behind rocks as he used the sword and shield to keep the Ogre from following up against Will. Things hadn’t gone perfectly, but they weren’t dead yet and Will forced himself to stand and regain a grip on his sword.

“Keep the club busy!” He shouted, running towards the kneeling Ogre despite the shooting pain in his whole torso that it caused. Okembe shouted the affirmative and the sword and shield he controlled shot to the Ogre’s hand to batter its’ club this way and that. The monster dumbly kept trying to hit the small rapidly-moving objects, and turned its head to face them giving Will a blindspot to work with.

“Okay, better hope Okembe’s able to carry my ass through the Portal after this!”

He joked to himself through gritted teeth as he kicked off the Ogre’s leg and swiped his sword wildly at its’ single massive eye. His blade sank deep into the jelly-like substance and drew a vast gash that split the eye open and made the Ogre throw its’ head back and lose grip of its’ club. Targeting the weakspot was always the best strategy, but with Okembe unable to manage a shot on the eye from range it had required wearing the monster down till his head was vulnerable to pull off. Will landed in the grass, rolling away and resting behind a rock formation, hoping Okembe could finish the job as blackness encroached his vision and unconsciousness loomed.