Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 10 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 161!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 12 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 149!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 12 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 137!
I had earlier assumed that this spell wasn't a particularly powerful one, but it's stronger than I had realized. Before, she had just sent a single spark my way, but now it's continuous, repeatedly surging through my body, dealing significant damage. I collapse, panting, fur singed, thin plumes of grey smoke rising from it.
"Get up." Vile says with an annoyed voice. "Endurance training isn't just about taking damage, it's about mental resistance as well. You need to stay upright and will yourself to accept it, no matter how painful it might be."
"It hurts..." I whimper as I awkwardly rise to my feet, legs still shaking.
"Oh, please. This is nothing compared to what I do to Slave. I thought that dogs were supposed to be tougher than cats?"
I look to the black feline, sitting upright in the distance (well, not much distance, as the dome is far from massive, but she's still giving us as much space as she can), who gives a nod of agreement. I know full well that I can't hold myself to her standards for enduring punishment, but it still does leave me feeling ashamed. If Slave can endure far more than this simply for recreation, clearly I can suffer through a little bit of pain in order to save all of our lives. I stand back upright, take a deep breath and close my eyes.
"You are going to be taking a lot of attacks from all sides." Vile tells me, "Ideally, we would be training your agility to help you evade as many of them as possible, but I can't think of any feasible way to safely do so within this enclosed space. Instead, we'll focus on both your strength and endurance. Ideally, you'll be able to take out many of the death weavers at once with a single divine strike, and I will continuously wear down those coming from behind. I'm not sure exactly how much of a difference that a few days training will make, and we can't afford to remain much longer than that, but the more that we can reduce the damage of each individual attack, the longer you'll be able to keep fighting, and the greater our chances of survival will be."
"Got it." I reply, finding myself motivated once again. Even putting necessity aside, I have to admit that this is far less stressful than the math quizzes.
"Good. Now, stay upright, don't cry out, don't try to guard yourself and only heal yourself when necessary. As I said, it's not about taking damage, it's about enduring it. Overcoming it."
I'm about to answer affirmatively, but it's a good thing I that didn't. Otherwise, I might have bitten my tongue.
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 11 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 126!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 13 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 113!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 9 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 104!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 10 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 94!
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Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 12 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 82!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 11 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 71!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 10 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 61!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 12 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 49!
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 10 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 39!
Squire uses Lay on Paws!
102 HP recovered!
Technically, I could have waited a little bit longer to use it, but with the ability of the spell to strike multiple times within a single round, I didn't really want to take any chances. Vile doesn't seem to mind, anyways. While fairly strong, it's clear that the spell has little range, with the rat coming just short of touching me. It could still be useful in a fight, if used by a somewhat sturdier attacker, but I could scarcely imagine a situation where it would be considered viable for her to enter melee range with an opponent.
This continues for quite a while. As it does, not one of the countless arachnids encircling us moves so much as an inch. Eventually, I have no idea of just how long it has been, as it's difficult to judge time while being constantly electrocuted, I'm finally able to enjoy the fruits of my labor.
Base endurance has increased by 1!
Base hit points have increased by 2!
I'm both excited to see the text appear, and relieved for the opportunity to take a break. I look to Vile, smiling proudly, only to be met with an annoyed frown which immediately dampened my enthusiasm.
"It's not enough." The rat says, "This is going way too slowly."
"I'm sorry." I meekly respond, ears lowered.
"Ugh, stop apologizing all the time! I swear, even my slave doesn't apologize as much as you!" she grumbles.
"I'm sorry." I say once again, forcing a bit of a smile in order to pretend that I was in on the joke. In reality, I had said that purely as a reflex, but didn't wish to disappoint Vile any further.
"Training is a slow process. It can take a while. Achieving such gains in only a few hours is quite impressive." Slave says, speaking up in my defense.
"It doesn't matter how impressive it is. What matters if it's enough. At this rate, Squire will end up cut into ribbons within a few rounds, and we'll all die." the rat says, looking me up and down in a way that makes me very uncomfortable. "We'll need to ramp up the training."
I'm unable to question her logic, as I'm sure that she has a greater understanding of the situation than I do, but I still can't help but whine as I rise back up to my feet.
"Lie down. We're going to try a different approach." Vile says. I'm happy to do so, the muscles in my legs still cramping from the earlier electricity which surged through my entire body. "Rest your head on the ground and open your mouth wide."
Confused, I make no objections, even as I fear the worst. I do as instructed, opening my mouth wide, and am shocked when the rat steps forward, into my open mouth, crouching down beneath my upper fangs, and standing upon my tongue, I nearly gag from the foul taste upon it, but I know that biting down isn't an option. It is all the less so as she drapes her long, furless gray tail across my teeth. I look over to Slave expecting some sort of encouraging or understanding expression. Instead she looks horrified.
"Hitting you with stronger spells won't do any good." Vile says, her voice echoing somewhat within my mouth. "Instead, we'll focus on the self control aspect. If you bite down, well... I won't die and can be healed, but I'll be very, very unhappy." the rat says. I'm not so sure. I mean I'm sure that she'll be unhappy, but I'm not so positive that she can live through the situation, or that she won't suffer damage beyond her tail.
Electricity hurts, but beyond that, it also makes every muscle in your body tense up, including your jaw, of course. I want to object, but a natural effect of having a rat standing on top of your tongue is that it makes talking impossible. This is crazy! She's putting her life in my hands, and for what? Well, for the survival of all of us, I suppose. Sure, maybe I'm the one feeling pain, but clearly she's willing to take a risk in order to keep all of us safe as well. She's willing to trust me with the safety of her tail, which, again, I'm not the least bit confident that my healing ability could regrow. I have no intention of letting her down. I make a little throaty noise which I hope sounds like agreement, and brace myself.
Vile casts Electrical Arc!
Squire suffers 12 point(s) of damage!
Squire's HP is now 129!
Just a sudden quick flash of it as a test. I'm glad that I don't have to endure a long surge at once. Every instinct screams at me to clamp my jaws down and grit my teeth against the spell, but I dare not move, nor relax my locked position in the slightest. I pant through my open mouth, trembling all over.
"Good girl." Vile says, reaching over to stroke a tooth. I can't help wag my tail in response. "By the way: Your breath smells terrible."
I can't deny that I'm just a little bit hurt by the second comment. Not nearly so hurt as I am by the torrent of energy which comes later and just refuses to stop as she pressed her paw down against my tongue. Even aside from my aching jaw, even if the damage numbers are comparable, it proves to be far more painful than when it was when focused on my paw.
Base endurance has increased by 3!
Base hit points have increased by 6!
---
DeathWeaver: ...
Slave: "I don't really understand the ellipses."
Squire: "What's not to understand about them?"
Slave: "I mean right here: What's the point of them?"
Squire: "It's so that we know that the deathweaver isn't saying anything!"
Slave: "Again, I get the core concept, but why? Why do we need to draw attention to the fact that the creature isn't talking? At any given time, lots of things aren't talking. For instance, Mistress isn't talking either. It just doesn't make sense."
Vile: "I think it's usually meant to denote the fact that someone is abruptly silenced, by frustration or embarrassment or something."
Slave: "Okay, maybe I sort of see that as the punch-line of a joke, even if it's still a little redundant, but why do monsters do it? I don't think they're reacting to anything. I don't think they talk at all, so why specify it at any given moment?"
Squire: "You're overthinking it. Everyone knows that ellipses are just cool!"
Vile: "That may be the wisest thing that you have ever said, Squire."
Slave: ...