Chapter Nine: Shadows In The Knight

Zuglah Glun could not stop thinking about his new dagger. That was how he thought of it. Already his.

Ulbarth had two potions that he had never seen before, Vigorous Day and Hasty Decisions. They both sounded very helpful when Caldwell explained them to him, but Zuglah was still enamored with that dagger so he bought nothing. Besides, if Caldwell thought that he needed more potions, he would have made sure that he had them.

When they left the room, there was a very loud click as the door locked behind them. They rounded the corner, and peered through the stone archway. Across the narrow granite bridge was the platform. It was two hundred feet across and walled in by darkness all around. A single brazier was erected on a freestanding tripod, the gently glowing coals giving off almost no light. He wondered how Caldwell was faring. He didn’t have his jewel lit at all.

“The Spectre’s gone.” He waved them back, and everyone retreated into the huge corridor. He looked at Caldwell. “There’s three guys there. They smelled Human. They have armor and swords.” He took a deep breath, unsure about this next part. “You still have that Live on you?”

Looking surprised, Caldwell patted his breast. Presumably there was a vial in his doublet pocket, under his robes. He was wearing the purple ones today. “Of course,” was all he said.

“Good. I take it that if I…” He made a gesture, a knife across the throat, eyes crossed. “That can bring me back?” His mentor nodded. “Okay then. If things go badly here… let them go bad. I need to know sooner or later, right? Plus, we’re here to see so let’s see.” Caldwell didn’t exactly look convinced, but he nodded.

The length of the bridge was about twenty yards, perhaps a little more. The range on Dancing Mana and Ice Blade was eighteen. Blast of Frost was twelve. The three knights were perhaps fifteen yards from the foot of the stone bridge. He readied The Ice Blade but did not draw it, and crept forward.

It was clear that none of the three could see in the dark, because of the way they huddled around the brazier and craned their necks at every little sound. Zuglah stole to the foot of the stone bridge. He just knew he could get closer. He couldn’t resist. Redda Mo felt eager.

He made it to within five feet of them when all the lights came on.

All around the walls, torches sprang to life.It was not just this crudely carved-out stone cavern but also in the rooms ahead and behind. The man facing towards him pointed and yelled “Troll!” Zuglah thought that was a little rude.

One of the peculiarities of The Ice Blade was its speed. It was fast and it was slow. It was slow in that it took a long time to detonate and cause damage. Additional damage, because it couldn’t be pleasant to have a shard of ice that size inside you for any reason, much less that it had stabbed you. And slow because of the travel time. Dancing Mana bolts were a lot faster. But it was also quick to cast. Instant, even.

He used Redda Mo to bat the brazier towards the yeller, and stabbed the ones on the left and right with an Ice Blade each. Then he blinked.

He aimed for the crest of the stone bridge and had to wait. A moment later the first man reached the foot of the bridge, and Zuglah hit him with Blast of Frost. He just had time for an angry glare when The Ice Blade in his guts detonated, and so did the one behind him.

His arm and both legs were stuck to the stones, but that didn’t stop him from doubling over and clutching his stomach. When he looked up again, there was blood coming from the corner of his mouth, and running down his nose.

His eyes and his mouth flashed white and orange, as though someone had lit a bright candle in his throat, and he surged to his feet. “Hit him again, Zuggy!” Redda Mo screamed.

He complied. The man held his sword in front of himself in both hands. His Dancing Mana swooped in under both elbows and caught him, one after another, full in the chest. He died before the final explosion.

The one who leapt over his corpse slashed with his sword and somehow blocked Blast of Frost. With a bloodthirsty snarl on his face, he ran up the ramp with his colleague hot on his heels. He attacked three times in quick succession, a combination that he obviously practiced a lot.

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Only Redda Mo was not having any of it. “What was that?” He laughed, as he knocked away the first attack. “Oh come on.” Was his reaction to the second. And for the big finishing move, the overhand chop, he simply said, “No.” And he whirled in Zuglah’s hands as he knocked the sword away. The man lost his grip, and the weapon spun off into the darkness. He looked up in chagrin, which seemed to turn into genuine hurt, when Redda Mo started laughing.

Zuglah stuck two Ice Blades in him, then shoved him backwards, hard. He staggered into the last man of the bunch, who had no choice but to thrust him off of the bridge into the abyss below. He fell cursing.

The last man was more cautious, determined not to rush things. His friends had underestimated this lone Troll, and it had cost them dearly.

Zuglah blinked to the middle of the island. The knight took a second, then came running. This time his Blast of Frost had full effect. Instead of trying to push through, however, he raised his hand and cast a spell of his own. A translucent beam of nothingness connected the pair, and Zuglah felt his strength ebbing away. The knight looked visibly stronger, and broke apart the frost that was slowing him. He charged.

Zuglah needed both hands just to keep a hold of Redda Mo. He was in danger of buckling over, and couldn’t think of casting a spell. During a parry, Redda Mo clipped the man in the side of the helmet, and Zuglah instantly began to feel better. He could move his arms and legs freely again, and after a couple of deep breaths, he blinked.

As soon as he arrived at the foot of the stone bridge he launched Dancing Mana. He put everything he had left into it, and for ten full seconds the man was pummeled over and over with exploding blue pellets. Zuglah was never more relieved in his life as when he saw the man drop dead.

He was tired, but unhurt. By the time Caldwell arrived, he knew he could cast blink again if he wanted to. He definitely didn’t want to. He was so exhausted.

“How?” Caldwell demanded when he arrived. “How is it possible that you’ve improved already?” Zuglah gazed up at him.

“What are you talking about? I literally just did the same thing as I did in my first fight.”

“Yeah,” agreed Redda Mo. “Kicked everybody’s asses.”

“Look at you, there’s not a scratch on you. Did any of them even hit you?” Caldwell marveled.

Zuglah laughed. “Yeah. I’d be dead right now if it wasn’t for Redda Mo.”

“Nah,” the quarterstaff objected. “I told you, knives are my department. The rest was all you.”

Caldwell told him, “It is traditional to take a short rest, after a significant battle. Have a bite to eat, dress wounds. After you loot, of course.”

Zuglah grinned. “Of course. Only, this time let’s do it after we rest. If I remember correctly, there are still creatures over there, and over there. The ghouls and skeletons, remember? I would feel better clearing the room before we get distracted with all of the yummy mushrooms.”

Caldwell could find no fault with his reasoning. Zuglah collected the brazier and gathered what coals he could together. He lit them and put them on the floor where they sat. It helped cut the damp and the cold of the crypt.

In a couple of minutes, Zuglah’s curiosity got the better of him. He searched out the southern alcove where the ghouls had been and found nothing. He went quietly to the northern recess, but again, no skeletons. He turned to Caldwell. “I guess we’re clear to loot.”

Caldwell looked sheepish, but he summoned the body of the man who had fallen off of the bridge. He told Zuglah that it didn’t count as help, because Zuglah had defeated him fair and square. He just thought that he deserved to see what the man had in his pockets.

Zuglah suspected that Caldwell really wanted to see what the man had, but thought it wiser to keep that to himself. He followed along, doing what Caldwell did. He emptied pockets and pouch directly onto the man’s chest, then cast Detect Magic over everything. He found a ring that throbbed an angry red colour, and Caldwell came up with a dagger that pulsed green. They grinned at each other like fools, and ran to loot the third body together. That man had boots that peppered blue like raindrops.

“Ah! Sea Striders. One size fits all. These are fun.” He tossed the boots to Zuglah.

He had finally gotten his first pair of new boots, and now he had two. And these ones were magical. He tried them on right away. They fit perfectly.

When he showed Caldwell the ring, he said that the red meant it augmented his fire spells, or gave protection against fire. It depended on how it had pulsed. When Zuglah showed him, he said that it was protection. Zuglah shrugged and put it on. He was already resistant to fire, but more couldn’t hurt.

He inquired about the dagger, having seen it glowing green. “Poison?” he guessed.

“Among other things, yes. But this one is different. Instead of buffs or resistances, it imparts an ability. This one is brambles.” Zuglah whistled. Brambles were no joke. He had once seen a bull rampage for ten full minutes without getting any closer to freeing himself.

They also found a half dozen Totems and a red and yellow centipede that was as long as Caldwell’s arm. When Zuglah asked if he was going to eat it, he laughed and said not until it had been properly brewed.

Zuglah was ready to go. The short rest, the bit of meat and cheese, had done wonders for his fatigue. He felt good. Strong. Wait a minute, he felt too strong.

He could not stop breathing hard, but he wasn’t winded. In fact, it was the opposite. He needed to run. His arms kept flexing, they wanted to pick up something heavy and throw it. He wanted to let loose a barrage of Dancing Mana that never ended, like the one he had used against that guy. He felt like he was hyperventilating. “Something’s not right,” he told Caldwell.

The old adventurer was smiling and nodding. “I suspected as much. After a big scrap like that it can often take a short rest before you notice it. Better than, say, in the middle of your next encounter.”

“Notice what, Caldwell? Please, tell me what’s happening.”

He feigned surprise. “You mean you haven’t guessed it? Why, it’s nothing short of youn sazal, the second tier. Congratulations, Zuglah. You are now an Ascended Being.”