At that, the wall abruptly shifted from wood to visage. A lush, verdant jungle seen through bubbly, translucent mana materialized. A small portion of the substance immediately flowed out to envelop Brook; his form twisted and refracted from within the blob.
“It’s not anything to worry about, Ash. The dungeon has just hidden him from view of its inhabitants and traps,” Vera let him know, having noticed him tense up. “We, also, won’t be able to see him, but he’ll step in if absolutely necessary.”
He sighed in relief, glad to hear that Animosity hadn’t decided Brook would make for a tasty snack.
The professor let out a hearty chortle. “In we go, then.”
Finn strode in after him, with Vera slinking along in tow, followed shortly by Brook’s newest apprentice.
The portal dissipated behind them, a massive jungle appearing in its stead. It was the most colorful thing Ash had ever seen; obscene, succulent fruits hung from gargantuan vined wood that stretched into a canopy too high for the eye to see. Brilliant shades of ruby, emerald, and sapphire lined the forest floor and the trees; strange flowers and plants Ash could have never conceived of were absolutely everywhere.
“When did you go and turn into a goblin?” Vera quipped, giggling at Ash’s awestruck state.
“Don’t act like you didn’t react the same way when you saw it,” Finn said, exasperated.
Vera’s expression soured.
“No, you’re right, it’s my bad, Finn,” she started. “I’m so sorry that I didn’t grow up in the lap of luxury like you, milord. Y’know, not all of us are privy to ripe Azures and freshly killed Prards for breakfast, Finn. We’re not all invited to weddings littered with the flowers of a deadly dungeon,” she spat back.
“Sorry,” Finn muttered, turning away. The very moment he did, a gigantic mosquito came flying out of the nearby bush, completely silent in spite of its highly aerodynamic movements. According to all known laws of aviation, there was no way that thing could fly. Before Ash could process the fact that it was laying its barbed feet down directly onto Finn’s skull, Vera had flashed forward and to his side, eliminating it in one swift slice of her kerambit.
Finn smiled at her dorkily, insect gore running down his chin. “My hero,” he said, spitting out the foul substance.
“Well… someone needs to save you, huh?”
Ash couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity of what had just happened, but he was interrupted by a system message.
-1 Intelligence.
Finn had barely finished cleaning mosquito blood off of his face when he turned and ran straight into Ash, knocking him into the ground, then unsheathing his longsword to deal a devastating blow to the empty space above Ash’s head — well, what he thought was empty space, anyway. Ash jumped forward in shock as the blade came down, yelling some obscenity as he hit the ground in front of him. A golden patch of greenery, stained with his own blood, was left on the ground like some kind of morbid stamp where he had been mere moments ago. In the smear of his own ichor, a barbed mosquito leg lay.
As he watched, his blood bubbled up and then disappeared like it had been dissolved, apparently eaten by the dungeon.
The various strewn about parts of the mosquito, however, floated together, recomposing into a perfect, undamaged corpse of a giant brain-eating mosquito. The corpse then blipped out of existence, compressed into a sphere that would fit easily into his hand. He picked the orb up, satisfying some primal urge. It was warm within his hands, and as he looked closer he thought he could see a mosquito, beating its wings pointlessly. Is this a… mosquito soul? he wondered. Didn’t Finn just kill this thing?
“Sorry about that, Ash. I was worried you’d gone fully braindead on us for a second there,” Finn said, brushing himself off and drawing Ash out of his deep, contemplative state.
“Those mosquitoes produce a powerful local anesthetic on their legs,” Vera said. “You’ve got to pay more attention to your senses, Ash. You can still feel the pressure of the barbs entering your skin as it hovers.”
“No wonder that fruit costs so much,” Ash said, the air only beginning to return to his lungs.
“Come here,” Finn said, pulling him to his feet. “It’s our fault. It’s our shared responsibility to look after each other, after all.” Finn’s hands began to glow the purest of whites; he held them up to Ash’s forehead and performed similar motions to what Ash had seen the healers do before, washing his mana over Ash’s damaged skin in waves. Five seconds of this had not yet passed when Ash heard a guttural voice emanating from one of the nearby bushes.
“I smell blood, brother. Human blood…”
“Flesh, flesh to gorge ourselves on, brother…” Ash heard from a bush behind him.
“Lovely marrow, bones to chew…” a third voice came from another direction.
“Who’s there!? Show yourself!” Ash yelled at both the voices, garnering strange looks from the other two members of his party. His plea came out much quieter than he expected. To his surprise, though, they did show themselves.
A creature emerged from the bush in front of him. It resembled a hyena, if a bit larger, with shiny, metallic teeth and claws. He assumed it was one of the Prard Vera had mentioned earlier. Ash stepped forward, putting a hand in front of Vera and Finn.
“What floor are you from? Why are you here, traveling with those beginner adventurers?” the Prard asked.
Apparently these things qualify as sentient. Just how broken was that blessing Manori gave me?
“I am from floor three,” Ash said, still speaking to the Prard, “and I was sent here by Animosity specifically to eliminate these adventurers. Now, take your pack and leave. This is my kill,” Ash finished, seriously doubting his plan would work.
The creature looked conflicted, and growling murmurs sounded from all around the party; there had to be at least thirty Prard surrounding them, if not more. Finally, it nodded, howling as it trotted away, the rest of the pack in tow.
Suddenly, Ash felt a familiar presence engulfing his mind. His hair stood on end, and shivers ran down his spine. He was certain: Animosity was listening.
“What was that?” Finn asked, mortified.
A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
“I think… I think I can speak with the dungeon monsters — at least the sentient ones,” Ash relented, knowing the dungeon could hear him.
“That should come in handy,” Vera said, letting out a sigh. “They usually run in packs of three, maybe four. We would’ve been pulp. What did you say?”
“I told it you two were my prey.”
Vera stifled a laugh. “Yeah, right.”
Ash forced a smirk in response, the presence intensifying. His mind was like a sponge, compressed down to nothing by the dungeon’s will.
“That reminds me,” Finn cheerfully added, “You’re supposed to be developing a skill or a spell today, if you can. Most people can’t use magic, but your mana is much thicker than anything I’ve ever seen an uncaster toting around.” Ash nodded his approval at Finn, only just starting to visibly shake from the dungeon’s presence. Can’t they feel this?
“No they cannot, you INSOLENT child.” The words were garbled and distorted, clearly in a completely different language from the one Vera and Finn spoke in. Even with his blessing, he could barely understand. The message was laced with rage, cutting into the deepest recesses of Ash’s identity.
Ash responded in the same dialect, horrified to find he didn’t have the strength to draw in a breath; the pressure was too much. “I can’t breathe. Stop!”
“WHO ARE YOU THAT YOU DARE SPEAK TO ME IN THE IMMORTAL TONGUE?” the dungeon screamed within him, golden blood dripping from Ash’s eyes and ears once again. He was scared he would lose his mind if this went on for much longer, so he desperately tried to imagine a wall between his consciousness and the creature impeding upon it — a wall of thick, golden mana.
Mental Resistance: Acquired discipline.
Mindwall: Acquired skill.
Mindwall? He would’ve laughed if the situation wasn’t so dire. The pressure eased up slightly, though, and he could breathe again. This small victory, however, seemed to only intensify the dungeon’s efforts; the wall was shredded to pieces in a mere moment.
“Foolish mortal,” the dungeon said, its words echoing in Ash’s mind, “Command my creations again and I will show you far worse than a little blood.” At that, the presence disappeared completely. The extreme release of pressure was elating like nothing else.
“Ash!” Vera exclaimed, looking at the blood dribbling out of every hole in his face. “Are you okay!?”
“I…” he began, “I’m not sure. The dungeon didn’t like that, I guess.”
“Then you should probably avoid commandeering the monsters, huh?” Finn said.
Vera pulled a clean rag out of her backpack. “Use this. Oh, and don’t be afraid to litter while we’re here. The dungeon absorbs everything.”
Ash accepted the cloth, gingerly wiping the blood out of his eyes. “Got it, thanks.” The cloth quickly faded into nothingness when it hit the ground. “That’s pretty eerie.”
Finn laughed lightly. “Yeah, I suppose it is.”
“Let’s keep exploring,” Vera said. “The more Ash can see of this floor today, the better. If we’re ever going to beat it, we’ll need your help.”
—
“Ash, duck!” Vera yelled, jumping off of his back on her way to a mosquito hovering high in the air above him. She masterfully carved one of its wings off with her kerambit, sending it plummeting to the ground. A gaseous, green substance wafted over the rest of the body, originating from the area that she had cut; the creature only struggled for a moment before succumbing to its fate.
Beside Ash, Finn was preparing to slice into a Prard that had taken the opportunity to attack. It bared its metal teeth, then leaped toward him. Finn thrust his sword forward, and the beast was impaled upon it, held at arms length. More Prard growled from the foliage around them, eager to follow up their comrade’s death. A particularly large one charged Ash, forcing him to the ground. He desperately held his staff against the creature, as if he was pleading with it to do something. A metallic claw found purchase in his tunic, and he could feel his mana being sucked out to power the protection spell.
Mana Manipulation: Progressed to Beginner III.
Ash concentrated on the feeling of mana drain, and then tried his best to replicate it, focusing on inputting raw power into his staff. Meanwhile, the creature howled in rage as its forceful swipes were pushed back time and time again by his robe. It realized its mistake, and began trying to overpower Ash’s hold on the staff in a last-ditch effort to reach his face — the only exposed part of his body that remained unprotected by the robe. It was too late for the Prard, however. Ash had been charging the staff, and the quartz ball on the top of the staff was now glowing with imbued energy.
I hope this works. With a jolt, he released the energy from the staff, attempting with all of his might to focus his intent into a spell — a spell he had been considering for hours, now. Lacerate, he had aptly named it.
Lacerate: Acquired skill.
Intelligence +1.
At first, it seemed like nothing had happened at all. That changed quickly, however. As the golden swath of energy found its way onto the beast, it began to consume its flesh. Golden lines formed in the air where the spell acted, dissolving the very skin off its body. The creature began to howl in pain, quickly rolling off Ash’s chest. It was a bloody mess. He wasn’t entirely sure of his capabilities, but he hadn’t expected this. The spell had continued casting until the Prard was entirely unrecognizable; he could sense his mana pool was running low, but he hadn’t quite known when to stop. All that was left of the creature was a bloody mess; unconnected parts lying in a pool of ichor on the ground.
It was utterly disgusting.
Ash vomited.
Wisdom +1.
Mana Manipulation: Progressed to Beginner VI.
Cellular Manipulation: Progressed to Beginner V.
He knew that the creature would’ve done the same to him if it had the chance, but… he was beginning to question if he was cut out for this sort of thing.
“Nice one, Ash. Catch!” Vera shouted, throwing a small white vial. She had clearly been observing him, despite the fact that she was currently trading blows with a swarm of terrifying primordial insects. To his surprise, he caught it easily. “Drink up!” she said simply.
He obliged her, bringing the liquid to his lips. It smelled of cinnamon and sugar, and more wafted than flowed into his mouth. Instantly, he felt his senses amplify. He hadn’t felt them dulling, but he was more alert than ever; even his nausea had disappeared. He scooped up the monster core, then rushed to help Vera with the armada of flying creatures she was fighting. He stopped just short of her, and began casting.
“What was that?” Ash asked, temporarily diverting his focus from sending golden lacerative orbs onto the insects. Each time they impacted, they would explode into a flurry of blows, unlike the close range channeling he had enacted upon the Prard. The attacks were smaller, but they broke through the hard shells exoskeletons of the creatures easily; after all, it wasn’t an actual laceration. He was dissolving their body.
“Mana potion,” she responded, slicing off another wing. “They’re pretty expensive, but so is death. Thanks for the help.”
With that, Vera finished off the last of the mosquitoes. A number of Prard corpses lay at Finn’s feet, sporting long cuts and singed hides.
“I’m glad we all made it out of that. Why don’t we call it a day?” Finn offered, picking up the monster cores.
“Sounds good to me,” Vera replied. “You ready, Ash?”
“Yes,” he said quickly.
A spot behind them shimmered with mana as the dungeon opened a portal, and they all returned to Sarefell safely.
“That was a good showing, my dear apprentices,” Brook began, a translucent cloud of mana falling off him in a sheet, rushing back into the portal. “Ash, that new spell of yours is truly nightmare fuel. I’m so proud. I have some feedback, nonetheless.” He proceeded to… to giggle?
Ash was a little taken aback at this. “Thank… you?”
“You’re welcome,” he responded in a smug tone. “Although I would advise against exerting yourself to such extremes of mana deprivation in the future. You lost a lot of fluid.”
Ash blushed, not entirely convinced it was mana deprivation that had caused him to vomit. He appreciated the easy explanation, though, and nodded.
“Turn around, Finn,” the professor requested. He reluctantly obeyed, exposing a long streak of bloodied armor.
“It’d do you all well to be more aware of your enemies, but you rely on your self healing too much, Finn. Take less hits. Immortals above, you’re a paladin, not some sort of divine, fireball-wielding tank.
“And Vera, it’d do you well to rely on the other students more. It’s great that you can fight a swarm of insects on your own, and I’m proud, but you exerted yourself to a dangerous level. Learn to disengage.”
Ash was a little confused at this; to him, Vera had seemed perfectly fine to keep fighting.
Brook noticed his expression. “She’s a Primal caster, Ash. She can, essentially, use her mana as stamina, which is why she didn’t show any signs of exhaustion. Her levels, though, ran even lower than yours. I was observing closely.”
It was Vera’s turn to blush. “They weren’t that low.”
“You almost died.”