Between a Rock and a Rock
The darkness made it difficult for Janus to tell when he slipped in and out of sleep. His dreams and nightmares melded with reality, subjecting him to a surreal collage of everything that had happened in the past days.
Thirst tugged at Janus, pulling him from the depths of sleep. As he stretched out his mana sense, he immediately detected Lenny's lifeless form nearby. The sight of the corpse snapped everything back into focus, and Janus retched, the memory of the events of the previous night flooding back with nauseating clarity.
He reined in his mana sense, limiting its reach to conceal the corpse from view. Rising to his feet, Janus made his way toward the ledge overlooking the rushing water below. Finally, he cupped his hands and dipped them into the cool stream.
As the refreshing liquid flowed down his parched throat, a euphoric sensation enveloped Janus. It dawned on him that this might have been the longest he had ever gone without water.
Even though he didn’t feel particularly hungry, Janus recognized that it had been too long since he had eaten anything substantial. Stepping back from the ledge, he moved around until his mana sense revealed his pack, propped up against Lenny’s own pack.
After rummaging through his pack, which had been thoroughly jumbled, Janus finally located a compressed bar of oats. It took him nearly a minute to find it. Some of his earlier anger at Lenny resurfaced as he searched, but it quickly dissipated. The thief had already met his unfortunate fate.
Pragmatism demanded that Janus search Lenny’s pack, too. But he couldn’t bring himself to do it with the man’s corpse so close by. Instead, he remained seated in the darkness, quietly consuming the oat bar, while mentally readying himself for the journey ahead.
He filled every container he had with water and began to haul himself up the ladder, a task made challenging by the weight of both his and Lenny’s packs. Although he considered searching the [Hermit]'s corpse, the thought nearly induced another bout of vomiting. Regardless of how he rationalized his actions, Janus couldn't shake the feeling that Lenny, despite his theft and attack, didn't deserve to die.
In the darkness, Janus grappled with his conscience. He felt a pressing need to put distance between himself and the stream where he had left Lenny's body. After trekking for about half an hour, he settled down once more. Taking inventory of his pack, he noticed only a small amount of food was missing.
Lenny’s pack was a mess of fabric and poorly wrapped food. After a few minutes of searching, Janus’ hand closed around a small pouch. He took the pouch out and opened it. A bright light shone from the opening, revealing a few [Torchstones] within.
In Lenny's pack, there appeared to be enough food to sustain someone for about a week. After the incident with the mushroom paste, though, Janus wasn’t sure if he could trust any of it. He suspected that it was the fungal mush that put him to sleep in the first place. His exhaustion had been catching up to him, but he was sure he hadn’t been that tied.
Janus emptied Lenny’s pack, finding it surprisingly clean and well-preserved. He couldn't shake the thought that it might have belonged to another unfortunate victim. Since the pack was larger than his own, he transferred his food and water into it.
He checked his map, noting which direction to travel and what landmarks would help lead him. He shifted the newly filled pack on his back and started on his way down the tunnel once more.
-
The days, or at least what Janus imagined must be days, slid by. So far, the map had been accurate. The appropriate landmarks would always appear, eventually. He found himself intrigued by the diversity of tunnels he encountered. Some were fortified and well-illuminated, while others were simply hewn from smooth stone. Some featured rugged, rocky walls, while still others were steep, with stairs carved directly into the ground.
The variety helped break up what would otherwise be an incredibly monotonous journey. The soreness in Janus' muscles receded to a dull ache as he pressed on. Amidst his trek, one thought persisted: the longing for a proper shower. He resolved that upon reaching Bear Station, cleansing himself thoroughly would be his first order of business.
The worst parts of the trip were always caves and caverns. They lacked the smooth walkways of the tunnels and could take hours to crawl, climb, and otherwise maneuver through. And he couldn't shake the fear that any of those caverns might have recently formed, leading him astray as he mistook it for a mapped-out feature.
He couldn’t be certain, but everything he saw still seemed to line up with the map. The only thing he could do was assume that he was on the right track. That's why it was surprising when a cavern appeared instead of the expected intersection of tunnels.
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The unexpected appearance of the cavern did not guarantee that he was off course, but his map would be less helpful. Much of the time, newly formed caverns would simply cut through an existing tunnel. In those cases, delver’s would cross the cavern and enter the tunnel on the other side.
The tunnel Janus was in wasn’t lit, however, and his [Torchstone] only revealed an abyss below and nothing across. Climbing down would be dangerous. The stone was rough and had plenty of handholds, but he wasn’t confident that his foot wouldn’t slip.
Janus weighed his options, squinting at his map. After a few moments of consideration, he tightened the straps on his pack and lowered himself over the side.
[Your Bravery skill has gained 1 level]
Ten agonizing minutes passed as Janus carefully made his way down, marking the longest climb of his journey yet. Jagged rocks protruded from the surface, offering precarious footholds for he as he carefully navigated the cavern wall. Sweat beaded on his brow despite the chill of the tunnels, his muscles straining with the effort of maintaining his grip on the rocky terrain. As he approached the ground, a chilling notification flashed in his mind.
[You have entered the Deepstone Ravine dungeon]
Janus immediately cupped one hand over his [Torchstone] and hung from the wall with the other, hoping that nothing dangerous had discovered him yet. The ravine was eerily silent. With little time to survey his surroundings, he hastily dispersed mana, relying on his the extra sense to detect any potential threats. Sensing nothing within range, he cautiously lowered himself to the ground.
He stood motionless, wondering if he should make his way back up the cavern wall. Suddenly, he heard a shuffling sound to his left. Whatever it was, it still hadn’t come withing range of his mana sense. He unclasped his hand, allowing the soft glow of the [Torchstone] to illuminate the area. If something was nearby, it would be better to face it with light instead of just his mana sense.
The sight of the creature caused Janus to nearly drop the [Torchstone] in shock. Before he could fully comprehend the situation, the enormous snake lunged forward, sinking its fangs into his arm. Momentarily frozen, Janus could only think of the [Uktena] from the last dungeon he had visited. He stumbled backward, his mind racing as he tried to free himself from the serpent's grip. However, the snake held fast, its powerful jaws clamped tightly around his arm, and he could feel the warmth of blood seeping through his sleeve.
The remainder of the snake’s body coiled around his torso as he struggled on the ground, and he created bars of reinforced mana between his own body and the serpents. With effort, he pushed the bars of mana outward from himself to loosen the snakes iron grip. The attempt left him a moment to suck in a mouthful of air before the snake constricted once more, shattering the reinforced mana.
He formed more bars of mana, this time in an attempt to pry the monsters jaws apart and free his arm. The levering force bruised his arm, and he had to suppress a scream as a hot flash of pain surged from the bite. Acting quickly, he reached out with his newly liberated limb, seizing the base of the snake's head and pushing it back as far as he could manage.
The creature slackened its grip on Janus's torso as he pried its jaws from his arm, giving him a moment to struggle backwards, hands scrabbling on the serpent’s scales that surrounded him. With a grunt, he redoubled his effort and formed a condensed bead of loose mana. As he released his hold on the mana, it surged outward, and he gave one last mighty push with his uninjured arm. The force of the blast helped shove the creature off of him, but also sent him tumbling backward.
On his knees, Janus cast a wary glance back at the monster. It was still massive for a snake, but not nearly on the scale of the [Uktena]. Barely any time had passed before the snake lunged back at him sailing through the air.
Janus instinctively raised his hands to shield his face as the snake flashed forward. The snake slammed into his palms and he grabbed at it. To his amazement, he managed to catch the creature's head between his palms. Despite its furious thrashing, he held firm, exerting pressure to force its jaws shut.
His breathing was rapid as he identified the monster.
[Rock Constrictor - Level 20]
It isn’t even a higher level than me!
He hurled the creature away from him, watching as it thudded onto the ground. With practiced precision, he conjured multiple replica arrow point spells, surrounding the writhing snake with a barrage of mana arrows. In a matter of seconds, he received a notification.
[You have defeated an enemy: Rock Constrictor]
He cautiously scanned the area with his [Torchstone], vigilant for any other lurking threats. Now that he had time to properly scan his surroundings, he was surprised to find himself at the bottom of a narrow ravine of stone. He could even see the rocky wall across from where he had climbed down. Climbing out, though, would pose a challenge, especially with his wounded arm.
Janus weighed his options carefully. Continuing up the other side of the ravine might lead him to the other end of the tunnel, allowing him to continue his journey. However, if luck was not on his side, he could find himself lost in other parts of the dungeon or miss the tunnel exit altogether. Climbing back to the tunnel he had come from would leave him no choice but to backtrack and find another way around the ravine, but it was less of a risk.
Erring on the side of caution, he opted to climb back up the way he came. However, it soon became apparent that his injured arm would not be up to the task. Blood from the snake bite made his handholds slippery, and the pain with each attempt to grip at a piece of stone forced him to grit his teeth.
With a frustrated sigh, he lowered himself back down to the floor of the ravine. Once there, he pulled off his pack and removed his blanket. Using a small knife, he cut strips from the fabric. He rolled up his sleeve and did his best to wrap the fabric around his wound.
Reaching for his quarterstaff, he fumbled with the clasps securing it to his back.
Don’t panic, Janus. Delvers aren’t supposed to panic.