The Wyrm was lying not 10 feet away, sprawled out on its side, unmoving. A deep crater in the side of its face distorted half its features, and a layer of molten stone armor made it nearly unrecognizable.
I did that? Alan thought in disbelief. {Suit of Anger} is really that powerful?! I killed it myself?
Upon laying eyes on the ruined beast, he glimpsed hazy flashes of what transpired, but it was all one messy blur of fragmented images and impressions. “Ugh, God's above, I feel worse than I did after playing drinking games with Uncle Alex.“ Alan rubbed his temples and pushed himself up off of his knees.
Aggrivated, and looking to get a bit of payback, even if it was a bit childish, Alan decided to stomp the shit out of the dead beast before the Dungeon could absorb its body, and take away his chance at vengeance. So he stomped it in the face, again, and again. “YOU.“ Thud. “STUPID.“ Stomp. “PIECE OF SHIT!!
I was sure this fucking thing was gonna kill me! The stress he'd been repressing finally overwhelmed him, and his Emotional Stockpile was taking it's sweet time to kick in.
You thought so too didn't you!! Alan's boot sank into the Wyrm's cheek, tore through the last flaps of skin holding it's jaw in place and came to a rough stop against its teeth.
“Gimme back me foot!!“ Alan shrieked. He tugged his leg back, the suction releasing a stomach-turning squelch. He braced his free leg against the beast's exposed jawbone and pulled his leg back as hard as he could. When nothing he tried worked, he steadied his roiling temper, and pointed his toes, making his foot as small as possible. Another resounding failure.
His frustration continued to build unabated. And by now, he was feeling pretty foolish. The two feelings clashed, and Alan what remained of his patience. He pulled his Basilisk Fang and cut deep into the tough muscle restraining his boot.
After cutting through a thick grouping of tendons, his boot slid free with a wet pop, and Alan tumbled to the floor.
Caught up in getting his sweet revenge, Alan climbed to his feet. The angry pulse in his ears kept him from noticing Su'ong's frenzied screams.
***
Su'ong didn't understand what that idiot Alan was doing. Although the Wyrm was most assuredly on it's last legs, it had yet to officially die.
Does he think it's already dead?! Su'ong pondered furiously, Does this fool not even bother reading his notifications??
“WHAT ARE YOU DOING YOU SIMPLETON?!" With the Party disbanded, Su'ong was forced to scream. Her idiot partner didn't even seem to notice. "IT'S STILL ALIVE ALAN!! As if it were synchronized to her voice, as the words left her lips, the Wyrm began to move. Alan was barely getting to his feet when its mangled head shot forward, aiming to devour him in a single bite.
Before Su'ong could even think about getting out another word of warning, the practically-dead beast shot toward Alan so fast she could hear its damaged spine creak.
Su'ong feared she was too late. For the briefest of moments, she actually saw the tiny Human inside of the Wyrm's sword-filled maw. She was close enough by now that she could feel the humidity of the Wyrm's fetid breath as Alan stared down into the depths of its seemingly unending gullet.
Her body flashed into motion without her consent, knocking the tiny Human out of the way right at the last minute. That damned Wraith!… Su'ong thought irritably. All thought came to a sudden and brutal halt. She screamed out an anguished cry as the Wyrm's countless teeth sank into her midsection, and blacked out.
***
When the Wyrm's mouth opened, Alan had no chance to react. “Oh Fuck m….“ When he felt a rough shove from the side, he bit his tongue, cutting short what he had believed would be his final utterance. As he tumbled across the floor, he heard a meaty crunch followed by a pained scream.
What happened next occurred too fast for Alan to fully come to terms with until long after the fact.
This couldn't be real. It had to be a dream! Horrified at his own stupidity, Alan climbed to his feet and was made to watch as the first floor Boss clamped it's jaws down right below Su'ong's abdomen. It adjusted it's mouth awkwardly, and finished off her [Vortex Shield].
Su'ong released a single piercing scream, thick with pain and surprise. She fell alarmingly silent as the beast remorselessly shook it's head from side to side, easily tearing deep furrows in her sturdy flesh and revealing several multicolored organs that Alan assumed HAD to be important.
"NO!" Alan screamed, as a cascade of blue/green blood poured from her wounds, falling by the gallon and pooling up on the floor beneath her. Another vicious shake of its head was all it took to send her limp upper body soaring clear across the room. Her torso struck the wall, painting it in with a streak of her off-colored blood as she slid unmoving to the hard stone floor.
It was only when Alan looked back to the Wyrm and saw Su'ong's sporadically twitching snake-half dangling from its tooth-filled maw that he realized that he too had begun to scream.
Oh no. Oh no oh NO! This…FUCK! This is all my fault..Alan clenched his fist, reminded yet again of his childhood fears. What the fuck was I thinking? This can't be happening… Why does it always end up like this?
The lights on the ceiling began to dim even further. The Wyrm swallowed a large lump of flesh, and a dark purple light blazed out from the deep fissures running the length of its charred and mangled body.
Alan activated [Examine], and was horrified to see the beast's HP had somehow begun to increase. It ate her flesh. And now it's recovering! I don't have time for this shit! Alan thought, his mind spinning circles, looking for options. I've got to get to Su'ong NOW…there might still be time. While he clung to the hope that she somehow still lived, he was already preparing for the worst.
The now-glowing Wyrm opened its cavernous mouth, dropping what remained of its prey to the floor at Alan's feet. It glared down at him with hatred plastered on its shredded face. He swore the beast tried to smirk at him. Ever so slowly, the first floor Boss lowered down, placing its face nearly nose-to-nose with Alan.
Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.
The Boss was bloodied, but not quite broken. Operating on fumes and adrenaline, but now beginning to heal, it screamed out in satisfaction. Once again bathing Alan in its now blood-drenched breath.
Alan was numb to everything in the world, other than his desperate need to get to his wounded companion. Shell-shocked, and acting out of pure desperation, Alan unequipped his Warlockwood Staff and replaced it with his Tower Shield. Hoisting the heavy shield, he turned it sideways and slammed it forward by throwing a strained punch. He crammed his shield as far as he could down between the Wyrm's jaws and twisted it. After skipping over several rows of teeth, it finally became lodged in place.
The Wrem first tried to bite down, hoping to crush the uninvited intruder in its mouth. Unable to exert the necessary force with its mangled face, the Wyrm lost all composure and slammed the side of its head into the ceiling. But try as it might, the shield refused to become dislodged. The Boss began to panic, writhing and thrashing, like a snake with it's head cut off. Using the beast's distraction as a chance to regroup with Su'ong, Alan activated {Meteoric Rush} and shot to her side.
Once he was moving, he canceled the Skill, not wanting to injure himself further. However the Skill was faster to deactivate that he anticipated. When his still-healing foot hit the floor, his overcharged leg muscles twitched violently and refused to carry the strain of his velocity.
Gravity kicked in, sending Alan tumbling head-first onto the floor. He face-planted next to Su'ong's mangled form, to which she coughed out a weak bout of laughter. Blood bubbles formed on her lips as Alan glanced at his Party tab. Her Statistics flashed across the screen, and he knew he had to act fast. Though he really wasn't sure what he could do. She already had less than 8% of her HP left.
For the slightest instant his inner penny-pincher condemned him for what he was about to do, but he shoved aside the hoarder within, and pulled her hand close. He stuck his finger in his mouth and tore off his Ring of the Phoenix' Rebirth. He spit it into the palm of his hand and shoved it onto her finger. She looked at him questioningly, and for a moment, he was sure he saw disgust in her eyes. “Yeah.. I didn't really have time to rinse it..“ Alan grumbled.
Right as he began to feel embarrassed, he heard the harsh squeal of his overstressed shield being chewed, followed closely by the sound of breaking of teeth. A hollow crack echoed out as the shield broke it's way out of the Wyrms mouth. It landed on the floor with a series of clangs that reverberated throughout the room, quickly becoming annoying.
Knowing he was out of time he pulled out his Warlockwood Staff, withdrawing what remained of its Mana. He stood between Su'ong and the enraged creature and cast a lightning-fast [Spectral Firebolt]. The Mana was sucked from his Mana Pool so fast it made him shudder, the spell forming nearly instantly.
Holy shit!! Alan stumbled forward a step. That [Daemonic Constitution] is no joke!
Right as the blind beast turned it's sunken face in his and Su'ong's direction, he unleashed his Spell. A beam of green fire blasted into the cavern that once housed the Wyrm's eye and exploded, stopping the beast in its tracks. As the Boss struggled to remain upright, Alan had one final card to play.
He was out of answers, tricks, and nearly out of Mana. Gaea, if for some reason you're listening, I could really use some help right about now. As he watched the glowing Boss burn, Alan tossed up a silent plea to the the only being he felt might offer assistance, and activated [Stamina Conversion].
He held nothing nothing back, sacrificing every bit of his energy all at once. The side effects were instantaneous and severe. The moment the Skill activated, he was hit with a powerful feeling of vertigo, and a crippling weakness. Using his Staff as a crutch, Alan managed to maintain his footing, though he could feel the muscles in his body beginning to give out. He glanced at his Statistics and saw he still lacked sufficient MP to cast the only Spell he had that might buy him the time he so desperately needed.
Remarkable! Your Skill (C)[Stamina Conversion] has grown to Level 4!
…
…
Remarkable! Your Skill (C)[Stamina Conversion] has grown to Level 5! + 1 Free Status Point!
Alan relaxed his muscles and dropped to the floor. After taking a weary breath, he activated [HP Conversion] and channeled his HP into additional MP at a very inefficient rate. A searing pain tore through his chest before spreading out through his limbs. Alan gasped in shock and grit his teeth as the pain began to settle. He had to sacrifice every bit of his Stamina and ninety-percent of his remaining HP, but before his [Spectral Firebolt] was done burning, he managed to recover enough MP to pull off the casting.
Remarkable! Your Skill (C)[Hp Conversion] has grown to Level 6!
…
…
Remarkable! Your Skill (C)[Hp Conversion] has grown to Level 7!
From where he sat on the floor, Alan began channeling all of his Mana into [Gaea's Tempest]. Although the situation was dire, he was curious as to how the Spell formed. He activated [Mana Management] and the moment the Skill activated, his eyes were met with a blinding light the likes of which he'd never imagined possible. In the span of a heartbeat, everything went white.
*WARNING!* You have been afflicted with the (Blind) Debuff. You are unable to see during the duration of Debuff.
Duration: 5 minutes
[Blind Resistance] has nullified penalties of (Blind) Debuff.
“Whatthefuck?! OUCH!“ Unable to bear the light any longer, Alan clasped his hand over his eyes and deactivated [Mana Management] right as an eerie moaning sounded throughout the cave.
Alan opened his eyes to a squint right as [Gaea's Benevolence] activated, taking the form of a shimmering orange dome surrounding his body. He turned around, and was relieved to see that Su'ong was also protected by a similar barrier. He heard a muffled clap, followed almost immediately by another. Each one was accompanied by bright flash of light that shone through the surface of {Gaea's Benevolence}, dying the floor a pale orange. Soon Alan was surrounded by a dazzling encore of muted phantom applause.
A roaring vortex of golden flames surrounded Su'ong, shocking Alan out of his stupor, and alerting him to the destruction of his Ring of the Phoenix' Rebirth. He looked at Su'ong's Stats, and was pleased to see her health had shot back up to twenty percent. But when he saw she was now unconscious, his worries reached an all-time high. As panic threatened to leave him paralyzed, his Emotional Stockpile blissfully started to devour all traces of his unnecessary emotions.
Through his orange dome, Alan could clearly see and hear the devastation created by his spell, but the kaleidoscopic flashes of color, and resounding explosions failed to register. Su'ong… Fuck man, how do I help you? What can I do?? I've gotta figure something out, and really fucking fast!
The only thing on his mind was his injured companion. When Alan's [Gaea's Benevolence] boon came into contact with the one covering Suong, like soap bubbles absorbing one-another, the two small barriers became a single large dome before expanding to nearly double in size. His difficulty remaining in a seated position left no doubt in his mind that the ground had begun to quake. But the sounds outside of the barrier were still strangely quiet.
Alan crawled the rest of the way on shaking limbs, and flopped down next Su'ong's mangled body. He grasped her limp hands and tried to put on a brave face. “It's gonna be okay Su'ong. I'm gonna figure this out, you just sleep… Holy fuck man…what do I do? What CAN I do. [Healing Fog] is still on cooldown. But I can't just watch her die…
“THIS IS ALL MY FAULT GODSDAMMIT!! Alan roared out, his voice thick with despair. His Stockpile was having trouble catching up to the torrent of overwhelming emotions assaulting his mind. “I swear…” Alan whispered, “I'll do whatever it takes…” As tears streamed down his face, he realized that himself and Su'ong were suddenly located in the center of a crackling orange sphere.. A curtain of static electricity lifted Alan's patchy hair up off his head right as a notification flashed across his vision.
*WARNING!* TEMPORAL DISTORTIONS HAVE BEEN DETECTED! NOW ATTEMPTING TO PINPOINT LOCATION.... ERRO#@&^€¢£