Marius
He’d be fine if he never saw another tunnel, cave system, or stalactite in his natural life.
It was – like most of his thoughts – wishful thinking. Misery and darkness were The Everloft’s specialties, and what’s more miserable than a dank, decrepit, piss-smelling cave?
The thought occurred to him as his feet sank ever deeper into the jelly-like Crocodilian spume that coated the final stretch of his journey. After using the item he'd won fairly from the chest, he thought he might as well take some of it - give himself a little chemical advantage in whatever lay ahead of him. So, he took the empty vial from the debased, singed pocket of his tattered pants and scooped up some slime for later. It was better than nothing.
That was slowly becoming his new philosophy.
The chattering chest hadn’t lied – he could see something glimmering at the end of this tunnel. A light – blinding and sharp – that defied the shroud that coated the deep reaches of the cavern.
Marius trudged on against the constant bleating in his head – something about a *LEVEL UP!* kept buzzing in his ear. An incessant *DING* like a thousand flies with cymbals shoved up their asses. He ignored it and walked on, acknowledging the rise in his HP with a subtle nod that revealed exactly how much he gave a damn about this. Right now, his focus was squarely fixed on the blazing white light ahead. He knew that must be it – what did the mushroom call it? – the Lux-something-whajda-magiggit? He didn’t care – it was what he’d been sent on this shit-licking journey for and its presence meant the promise of a reward was just that much closer.
He had no idea how much time had passed since he’d been down here. In that time, he’d survived way more than she ought to have – purely based on his own dumb luck and his natural feline-like proclivities for getting the fuck outta dodge when shit hit the fan.
Hey, old boy, he remarked to himself as he scraped excess slime off his right leg. It’s gotten you this far, ain’t it?
He finally stepped out of the tunnel and found himself in another sizable cavern oozing with more spume and flammable liquid – this place was totally coated with the stuff. Looking up, Marius saw the vile liquid dripping from every orifice of this underground chasm – stretching up into a seemingly infinite black abyss above him. Not even the glaring light of the gem lying at the end of the room could cast its radiance far enough to let him see where this tower of sludge ended. But he turned his attention from what loomed above. That wasn’t what he was here for.
What he had come for was the tiny glowing gem being clutched by the claw of something Marius could only describe as an arachnophobe’s worst nightmare: a being with a rotted carapace dripping green blood and bile beneath its eight armored legs, with a pincer-filled maw that remained stretched open in what must have been its death-knell. The thing was a bloated, fully-armored, and more muscular version of the little Crocarachnids he’d seen throughout his travels in the cavern, and so he made the not too impressive logical deduction that this was the foe he’d come here to face.
Never hurt to confirm what seemed obvious in this place, though:
Appraisal: Success
Morphology: Crocarachnid Matriarch
LVL: 3
HP: 0/135
"One hundred and thirty fucking five?" Marius scoffed aloud. The mushroom was a devilish little minx, after all. It expected a puny 15 HP Andy like him to best a beast of burden like this, that looked as though it could tear his asshole at least twelve new-ones.
He looked around the corpse, seeing the severed bodies of human limbs scattered around its grave.
How many people had that bloody shroom sent to their deaths down here?
The shining light of the gemstone behind the creature’s inert body shook such thoughts from his mind. With a smile still on his face despite it all, he clambered around the felled beast and crept towards his prize.
Or, at least, that had been the plan.
Uncanny Danger sense activated
He dropped to a roll on impulse and the scimitar that had just been sent spinning towards his back did nothing but graze the erect hairs on the top of his head.
As he watched the twirling blade embed itself into the cavern wall behind him, he allowed himself a fleeting moment of lucidity. As usual, his magpie eyes were on the prize, just like ma used to say. He never was great at looking past his desire to see the bigger picture.
If the bastard thing’s dead, then that means someone else killed it…
Just as the thought entered his mind, he heard a voice emanate from a shadowed crevice in the Matriarch’s layer.
"You."
It was less the statement of a human and more the declarative growl of a beast, throwing spittle from its grizzled lips into the ground beneath its bare feet. He stepped out of the dark like an avenging demon from one of the old tales – the ones where the bad guy’s won. His rippling muscles tensed in anticipation as he stalked towards the awestruck Marius, naked except for a loincloth of what looked like stitched human skin that hung loosely from his waist. His gargantuan arms ended into two silver axes gleaming in the darkness of the cave.
Only then did Marius look with his newfound eyes into the face of his new assailant, picking out the withered claw mark tattoos trailing down from his eyes. He staggered back as the realization finally struck him.
The ‘other guy’ the mushroom had talked about. The ‘Boss’ the digested kid had mentioned. The challenge that had gone on ahead of the Mimic – this was him. It had been him the whole time.
"Big Guy?"
The mass of meat and muscle smiled at him.
It was not the smile that could have belonged to any mortal man.
"You remember what I told you up there?"
Marius gulped once, slowly starting to retreat behind the Matriarch’s corpse to the closest shadow thrown by the cave wall.
"Hey, Big Guy," he stuttered. "Take it easy, yeah? How about we let bygones be bygones?"
The pulsing mound of muscle took a step forwards.
"I told you: 'I’m gonna cut you from head to dick and piss in your dead skull'"
Marius said nothing by way of reply. Instead, he focused in gathering what information he could:
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
Appraisal: Success
Morphology: Human
Class: Warrior
LVL: 3
HP: 46/55
Status: POSSESSED (VOID)
Literally none of that sounds good.
"You remember, don’t you?" Big Guy chuckled – hoarse and utterly without humor. A parody of joy. "You remember, and you came. You came just like the voice said you would."
Marius closed his eyes and prayed to whatever forces were at work in this pit to let him enter Stealth.
He snuck back towards the shadows and felt them embrace him like a child of their own.
"The others all died. Died like little baby flies. They didn’t scream good, not like the big bug."
Please. Please work.
With every inch he moved back, his assailant took two steps forward.
"But I think you’ll scream, won’t you? The voice says you’ll scream good."
Come on!
"SCREAM FOR ME, LITTLE MAN!"
The hulking brute threw himself forwards and brought both his axes down in a dual swing that had broken apart the skulls of the helpless Crocarchnids in one strike. They had died defending their queen, fighting to the last man.
But to the Big Guy’s frustration, all he slashed through was air.
Where the little man had been before, now only darkness remained.
"WHERE ARE YOU?!" he bellowed, like a child who had lost his favorite toy.
He began slicing through the air in wide arcs all around him, then barging at sections of wall that thundered at his touch.
All the while Marius slowly kept to the darkened corners of the cavern, hugging them for dear life.
Okay, he thought as he watched the beast tear up the cave. Now we’ve got a problem.
As he watched Big Guy slice through whole boulder with his blood-soaked blades, he suddenly felt that same *ding!* of his Level Up sound off in his brain.
Sticking to his hiding spot just under the Matriarch’s abdomen, he closed his eyes and visualized his new options:
LVL 2
NEW SKILL POINTS AVAILABLE
SKILL POINTS TO DISTRIBUTE: 1
He breathed slowly and silently as a mouse. Even with the backdrop of Big Guy’s destructive rampage, he allowed himself time to assess the situation.
His quest was over if he didn’t get that gem.
First option: he could chance sticking to the shadows, try to skirt round the guy, but looking at the glow given off by the gem, there was no way he wouldn’t be seen carrying it. In fact, the thing looked practically designed to mess up thief’s attempt at stealth.
Marius grimaced. That was probably the whole idea.
Second option: He could run away, tail between his legs, and admit defeat. Maybe make it out of this cave and find some other hole that was more appropriate for his abilities. Pick off some newbies like this guy clearly had done. Build up some strength and then come back later.
But then he remembered the swathes of dead boys and men he’d seen on his way here, and the way their limbs were twisted and torn, or their skin literally ripped from their bones.
Typical wounds left by an axe.
When he let himself surrender to the idiot notion barking from the back of his brain, he scowled and groaned like a wounded animal.
There was, of course, a third option to consider.
You’re a dumber bastard than you look (and smell like) if you’re gonna let yourself go down that route.
He could use his skill point and his environment – exactly as he had done already – to do what he did best: survive, and win. Bring this towering monster down, before he killed anyone else.
You’re a moron, he told himself. You’re a moron who just wants to feel like a hero. But you ain’t no hero, remember? You’re a disgrace to your family, your comrades, and your teachers. You’re a disappointment, a waste of good oxygen etc. etc.
He sighed his usual sigh of resignation as he unsheathed the bow from his back and checked the quiver of arrows.
"WHERE ARE YOU, YOU LITTLE SHIT! WHERE ARE YOU HIDING?"
Go up against the brute with almost double his HP. No healing items. Nothing but the dark shadows clinging to the corners of this pit on his side.
He smirked.
What else is new?
He decided, then and there, that if he was going to fight he could at least put some thought into it. He focused on bringing up his skillsets he’d glanced through earlier, blocking out the giant’s wails of fury as best he could.
Just concentrate, and…
Profession Skillset
Dirty Trick I/V Uncanny Danger Sense I/V Coup-de-Grace NULL Stealth I/V Sneak Attack I/V Hasty Retreat I/V Tumblersmithy NULL
Martial Skillset
Short blades I/VII Long Blades NULL Blunt Weapons NULL Archery NULL Shields NULL Unarmed NULL
Social Skillset
Persuasion I/VII Intimidation NULL Bartering NULL Performance NULL Appraisal I/VII
Glance Skillset
NULL
Okay, lets bench the ‘social’ stuff. I ain’t talking my way out of this one.
He reviewed the ‘martial’ skill list as Big Guy continued his rampage, edging closer to the foul smelling corpse of the Matriarch.
Okay, I could try dancing around him with a dagger, but I’m no duelist. Even combining that with a kick to the stones, the way he’s built that might just piss him off. Range is my best bet.
He looked down at his bow and appraised it quickly:
Weapon type: Shortbow (elm)
DMG: 1-8 (piercing)
RNG: 50 feet
Proficiency: NULL (1/2 DMG)
Okay, okay, okay – so he sucked with the bow. But then, he could pop his skillpoint in ‘Archery’ and hope his damage output would be better than this. Half damage looked like a shitty handicap. Even as he held the thing in his arms he felt his hands skidding around the weapon like he was a baby clawing at a bar of soap. If range was what he needed, then archery it was.
He gulped, forcing his eyes to focus on the Archery skill as an axe came crashing down behind him and broke apart the Crocarachnid Matriarch’s thick carapace:
Archery: +1
Archery: Level I/VII
LVL I Bonus: Can use this weapon type without penalty
He rolled out of the way of another strike and dove for the edge of the room, just managing to sequester himself amidst the shadows of the cavern walls again.
Big Guy turned, throwing pieces of the eviscerated corpse across the room, and charged blindly towards him.
He ran with speed unmatched by anything Marius had seen round here, and as Marius dropped to a crouch from his hiding spot and readied his bow, he not only felt that his grip on the weapon was far firmer than before, but something else blazed before his eyes:
LVL I Sneak Attack Damage Buff: x2
Attempt (ranged) sneak attack?
Marius felt the hot flush of his own sweat drip from his beads of ragged hair as he nocked an arrow.
The charging beast bellowed a cry of fury and leaped into the air, both axes raised.
Marius’ shaking aim followed him.
Marius, he thought. You were the dumbest bastard alive up there on Averix, and you’re an even dumber bastard down here.
He took the shot.