The door swung open. And a cave troll arm swung with it.

Luke dove without thinking, having him go in between the legs of the thing. Shoving the talkative compass in his pocket, Luke found himself on the run again. Sooty flew forward, seeming like she knew a way ahead. Luke followed; Sooty had already saved his ass once, anyway. The irritated cave troll was yawning for some reason. After another short chase, it couldn't bother to continue and went back to its napping spot. Pausing at the spot Sooty landed after a few minutes, Luke caught his breath. Peering over at his right side field of vision, a short screen popped up.

[Cave Troll] (Elite)

Level: 6

HP: 120

A perfectly fine baby cave troll that was taking a nap. Its favorite door opened and woke it up.

As if meeting a condition, another short screen popped up after that.

[Quest: Escape the Cave Troll!]

Reward: 10 XP, 1 Skill Point

It was nice to have a reward attached to something he was already trying to do. Using the limited visibility, Luke gazed around. At least for now, they were alone. You’d think that meant the quest would be complete, but it hadn’t been. He took the talkative compass back out of his pocket.

"Lad, a little bit of courtesy, aye? You stick me in your pocket like I'm nothing but a trinket? Use me chain, and hang me around your neck where I belong! I helped you navigate this hellscape, and this is how you repay me?" Wayfinder said.

"And why shouldn't I leave you here? Your way out of this cave nearly got Sooty and I killed." Luke said.

"I've told you once, and I won't tell you again: this is your only way out, got it? Aye, that baby of a cave troll might've given you a run for your coin, but let's be clear, —you're stuck in this godforsaken place, and danger's part and parcel of it." Wayfinder changed gears, "Pointing your finger at me is useless; it's not me who's put you in this mess. Will you discard me like a piece of trash after I've guided you?"

Hearing that, Luke began to doubt himself. A bit later, he shook his head. "Fine, you've got a point. Whatever put me in this cave, it wasn't you." Luke put the compass around his neck with its chain. Sooty had long returned to his shoulder, intently peering at the compass.

"The conversations over. Sooty, let's move forward. Only one way for now."

The fear of the situation was getting to him, but having Sooty around let Luke focus when he had to, like now. The cave path Luke had followed Sooty into didn’t branch off, so they could only press forward for a while. Sooty let out a soft caw into Luke's ear. That's all it took for Luke to understand something else was here. Luke put Infusion on Sooty and got some rocks out. Then, the sound of a faint scurrying came towards Luke. Sooty flew off, out of the range of Luke's vision. He trusted his crow pal but worried about her; besides throwing rocks, there wasn't much else he could do when Infusion was on cooldown. The source of the scurrying made itself known: a few cave rats.

[Cave Rat]

Level: 1

HP 10/10

Cave rats are about as weak as they come. If you can’t beat these, hurry up and reincarnate.

Three cave rats, to be precise. One was already running off in fear from Sooty; it wouldn't be long before it was down. The other two came running at Luke. Taking the rock in his hand, Luke jammed it at the rat Sooty had injured. The rock did its job faithfully and killed it. Mentally thinking about the stone, another automatically appeared out of his Inventory. As the other two rats were going towards him, Luke threw a rock with no Infusion this time at one and side-stepped the other. Sooty and Luke worked together, taking them down one by one. When they were finally down to the last cave rat, he used his ability on the rock again, and the extra power behind it smashed the rat against the wall. Luke felt an energy return.

With the battle over, some notifications came up in the battle log. Each rat granted a mere one exp. But the real reward was Luke’s Infusion had its stat steal go off; he stole one agility from the final rat.

"Thanks, Sooty. I'm not sure what I'd do down here without you."

Sooty rewarded Luke by landing on his upper back and doing a long rattle. She began sifting through his hair with her beak. Moving a bit, the extra agility point was noticeable. Luke felt like he was lighter on his feet. Timely dives and dodges would be easier from now on. It was a welcome change since he'd been running from most things he met here. Sooty pecked at his hands, which Luke took as Sooty asking for his ability. Luke infused Sooty once again, and the crow flew off. Luke walked forward after putting the two rats in his inventory. They didn't drop any extra loot, unfortunately.

"Look, lad, you've got to get a grip on yourself when it comes to fighting. If it weren't for that brave birdie of yours, you'd be nothing but a snack for them cave rats." Shifting to direct guidance, Wayfinder continued, "But listen, I reckon we can help each other. If you can funnel some of your experience into me, what I gain could very well turn the tables for you. What do you say, lad?"

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

Luke heard Sooty's caws up ahead. Judging by the sound, she was already tangling with something. Fearing the worst, Luke rushed up, forgetting to respond to Wayfinder. It was cave rats again, this time four of them. Deciding to try something, Luke used Infusion on Wayfinder and threw him.

"Who tosses a thinking artifact like myself? Nearly got a dent, I did, and that bloody rat didn't help none, scraping up me sides,” Wayfinder said.

Despite Wayfinder's comments, all it took was one hit to take down the rat. Luke took out multiple rocks from his Inventory and acted like a stone-throwing machine. The extra agility point helped his speed and coordination. Add on him and Sooty getting used to fighting together, and the four rats were more manageable than the first trio they met. Unfortunately, Luke didn't get any extra stats this time. When he approached the rat he chucked Wayfinder at, a bronze glow flashed once he put it in his inventory. Luke glanced over.

[Tattered Leather Gloves]

Quality: Common

Armor: 1

Well, it's better than nothing. At least you'll have something on your hands.

Luke chose to be happy he got something usable to drop. Putting on the gloves, he picked up Wayfinder, who was raining down fiery wrath towards Luke with his words.

"You think I'm what, a boomerang? Lad, I'm a compass, not a weapon. All this has got me hungrier than a sailor after a fortnight at sea. Hand over some of your experience, and I promise it'll be a fair trade, aye?" Wayfinder started trying to persuade Luke again.

Feeling bad about throwing Wayfinder without much thought, Luke decided to humor him.

"Fine, how much do you need, compass?" Luke relented.

"Compass? The name's Wayfinder, lad. I'm the Pathfinder, the way-shower, one of the numbered. A minuscule five points from you, and it'll be a game-changer, I swear on me needle. As a show of good faith, I'll keep my trap shut when you're trying to catch some shut-eye later. How about it?" Wayfinder chirped, eager to strike a deal.

With the four rats he and Sooty had taken down, Luke had nine points of experience. Before asking "how" to do that, Luke decided to hold the compass in one hand and think about giving it some of his experience points. It worked like a charm.

"Ah, cheers, lad! Now, feast your eyes on me newfound gleam, eh? If that doesn't tickle your fancy, well, I reckon one of me newfangled abilities might catch your drift instead," Wayfinder said, a sense of pride and excitement palpable in its voice.

Luke glanced over, hoping handing over those precious experience points was well worth it.

[Wayfinder]

Level: 2

Quality: Artifact

Stats: None

Devil’s Needle: Guides user to what they seek. Sometimes.

Cooldown: 7 Days

Passive - Twilight Vanguard: +10 to vision, 5% Accuracy, 5% Chance to Critically Strike

A sentient compass adjusting to his new owner. Happy to have more than a fish for company again after centuries.

Luke immediately noticed the new passive of Wayfinder. After a short adjustment, his eyes could see yards further than before. As for how much extra accuracy and critical strike chance would help, he’d find out sooner rather than later. Or rather, right now. A tremor sounded, and a nest of snake-like creatures with lizard limbs came into Luke’s newly expanded vision.

[Baby Serpentizer]

Level 2

HP 15/15

"Stumbled upon a bloody Serpentizer nest, have you? Best put those new peepers to good use, if you don't want us to end up as dinner," Wayfinder said.

Luke chose to think of it as a grave warning about the sudden deadly situation. There were over ten of these things coming towards Sooty and him. Thinking on his feet, Luke shot Sooty a look and put Infusion onto Sooty. A nervous caw later, she flew in the other direction of the Serpentizers, waiting. Luke ran for some distance and turned a corner; he spotted a large stone and placed it right where the corner was.

Upon moving the oversized stone, he found some loose soil under it. Instead of putting the soil in his Inventory, Luke took a few handfuls and shoved some into his pants' pockets. Right after, he also took the stray stones around the patch of earth, this time going into his Inventory. Luke used Infusion on Wayfinder this time to get used to the internal cooldown hitting zero.

Best to use whatever advantage I can. Luke calculated.

“What are you using that blasted ability on me for? I'm no weapon,” Wayfinder said.

“Insurance,” Luke answered, without any intention of saying more.

The Baby Serpentizers were here. One turned the corner and slammed into the rock Luke placed there. Sooty swooped down to the Serpentizer, dazed by smashing into the well-placed rock; her beak glinted. Striking true, her beak pierced an eye and the brain behind it. Luke backed his feathered friend up. Two other Serpentizers were waiting to strike Sooty as she would land her attack.

Not on his compass.

Sending a mental command, a rock appeared in each of his hands. Luke’s body tried to converge on one goal: to win. Forcing down his rapidly beating heart, he half succeeded in calming his mind. Luke's newly sharpened eyes from twilight vanguard widened with an expanded awareness.

The two rocks flew with uncanny accuracy. The first smacked into the jaw of one preparing to bite Sooty. The other hit in the softest part of its neck. The strike sounded far louder than naturally possible, tearing the neck of the Serpentizer to shreds. Sooty took off, aware more of these Serpentizers were coming. Pumping his legs, Luke created more distance, with his makeshift barrier out of his range of vision. His senses were straining; the remaining Serpentizers were close behind and closing distance. Luke immediately used Infusion off cooldown, having his trusty rocks ready. Sooty let out a squawk.

“No further, huh? I thought it’d be longer before we’d run into something else.”

Plenty of hungry Serpentizers were in front, and going any further behind, he'd run into the cave troll and its everyday cave monster friends. Luke took in his entire surroundings, and with his vision, he could see an unusual spot. The blue, glowing roots went around a patch of stalactites. Luke took out his rocks and Infused another one. He started to throw the ordinary rocks at the stalactites; they were coming loose. The rushing of movement was coming close. The small group of Serpentizers was in sight now.

“A little more...”

Luke pelted all the rocks he had left at the stalactites. While they showed signs of being ready to fall, they needed a final push. The monsters before him were almost under the patch of stalactites above. Emboldened by catching up to their prey, the Serpentizers charged with no sense of caution.

“Time for the insurance.”

Taking the chain off his neck, Luke took a throwing stance with Wayfinder in his grasp.

“Don’t you throw me again. Me sides still haven’t recovered. If you dare thro-“

Luke threw the compass as hard as he could. Sending over a silent sorry to Wayfinder as he did so. The compass landed a critical strike on the stalactites, and they rained death on the small group of monsters. Sooty flapped beside him. Luke used Infusion on her again; her beak was noticeably brighter this time. He must be getting better at using his ability.

The two were ready and waiting, straining to see what would come from the newly created dust cloud.