Chapter Eighty-Two - Casus Bellyache

“Um,” I said.

“That’s not the way it was,” Moon Moon said.

All four of us stared up at the thing standing in the middle of the next corridor. There was a bit more floor space here, the area widening into a large square that squeezed back down into a corridor at the far end. If I stretched my neck I could see the door that was presumably the exit and another device with arms and mirrors and such next to it.

All that was set dressing for the thing in the middle of the room. Ten feet tall, nearly as wide, and with six legs that were nearly Broccoli-sized, the monster stood in the centre of the room like a gigantic glass guardian. Its body was a multi-faceted ball of glass, red veins running deep within and shifting about like a stingy lava-lamp.

“Insight?”

A Glass Horror, level 7.

“That thing’s only level seven?” I asked.

“Even dragons are only level one at some point,” Amaryllis said. “And yet you wouldn’t want to fight them.”

“Because they’re still dragons?”

“And because they have mothers,” Amaryllis said. She shifted, still eyeing the monstrosity taking up a sizable portion of the room. “Hitting that is going to be hard. I can’t see any big weaknesses on it.”

“Awa, it’s also tall,” Awen said.

“We could focus on the legs?” I tried. “But it has six, so that’ll take some effort. Any idea what kind of stuff it can do?”

“At level seven it should only have four skills,” Amaryllis said. “Probably similar to the ones the glass golems had, but don’t bet on it.”

“So, giant lasers, it can reflect spells and, uh, it can make the ground turn into spikes? Can’t remember the others.”

“That’s the gist of it,” Amaryllis said. She twirled her little dagger around. “So, lunch?”

“Huh?”

The harpy rolled her eyes. “It won’t move until we get closer, the ones behind us shouldn’t reappear until we leave the floor and wait nearly a whole day. So we have time to sit back and relax a little.”

“Well, um, alright?”

It was a little strange, but I didn’t complain. Instead I fetched my backpack (and Orange) and brought it over to the second corridor where we spread a blanket on the ground and got to eating. It was mostly hardtack and cheese and water, but the company made up for the bland food. That, and it allowed my stamina and mana to climb back up to full before the fight, which would probably come in handy.

“So, Moon Moon, how long have you been in the Best Pack?” I asked as I gnawed on some bread.

“Very very long,” Moon Moon said. “Since I was born.”

“Cool! How did you get your name?”

“I like the moon,” Moon Moon said. He flicked a piece of cheese into his mouth and swallowed it whole. “Mmm, this smells nice.”

I nodded. That made perfect sense. “I like the way you name yourselves, it’s cute. Are all the drolls named that way?”

“Yes yes,” Moon Moon said. “Except for the Pretty Good pack, they have silly names, like Brian and Matt.”

“Ah,” I said. “The anthropologists in this world must have their plates full, huh?”

“This world?” Awen asked.

I felt my smile grow a little stiff. “Ah-hah, nevermind. Um, so, has anyone figured out how to take out that big beastie?”

“No,” Amaryllis said. “I hate how ill-suited my magic is to this kind of situation. I didn’t decide to become a Thunder Mage only to be trumped by the first large foe I come across.”

“Yeah. My magic’s no good either,” I said.

“I can still bite things hard,” Moon Moon said with a wag of his tail.

Awen shifted a little. She had sat down with her legs folded together to one side, as if she were wearing a big dress instead of comfy pants. “Awa, I think I have an idea.”

“Oh, do tell!” I said.

“The device can aim its beam. I think it can be used as a weapon, of sorts.” She fiddled with her bottle of water. “Um, I’m not sure if it will hurt it though. My uncle said that a lot of dungeons had solutions to their floors. Um, he said they were boring and he likes hitting things better, but we can try?”

“We could always start the fight with that,” I said before taking a swallow from my own bottle. We only had a few with us. I didn’t think we’d be in the dungeon for more than a day at most though, so it would probably be okay. “Right, should we get going?”

A bit of packing later and we set all of our gear aside around the second intersection just in case before forming up near to the room with the Glass Horror. Awen rushed over to the device and turned some of the rings a little. It made the laser-like beam of light move up and down. “R-ready!” she said.

We all got ready in our own ways. Amaryllis ran a talon across the sparking edge of her magic dagger. I shifted the grip on my spade and looked up to see if I had clearance to jump around with, and Moon Moon bent over double to sniff at his own crotch.

I decided to not pay attention to the last.

“Starting!” Awen said.

I crouched a little, the muscles in my thighs and calves tightening as I got ready to move.

The device Awen was working on clicked and clacked and the beam of light shooting across the room slowly moved and jumped and started until, finally, it was pointing right at the glass horror’s core.

The little red veins within wiggled and twisted like coiling snakes. The golem shivered.

“Um,” I said.

Cracks started to form where the red squiggles on the inside moved, but the glass horror was also starting to glow.

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“It’s buffing it!” Amaryllis yelled.

Awen did something and the beam cut off, but it was too late. The horror shot forwards at a speed that nothing that size should have had. It raised one large leg and Moon Moon had to roll forwards to avoid being pulped.

I shot to the air, aiming from the golem’s body with my spade ready to spear into it.

Three separate beams of light smashed into my chest from the legs on the side of the golem’s body I was on.

I yelped as searing pain cut into my tummy and sides.

The beams were painful, but they didn’t have any actual kinetic strength to them, nothing that made my course change. I crashed into the construct and landed awkwardly on my hands and knees.

My first instinct was to wince and press a hand against the wounds in my sides. I regretted it as soon as I touched the sensitive skin there. “Burned through my armour,” I muttered. “Rude.”

Getting up on wobbly legs, I raised my spade high above my head, then smacked it down where the cracks within it were close to the surface. Bits and pieces of glass sloughed off with every blow, but for all the damage I was doing, it was obvious that the horror had enough mass to take the blows without being destroyed.

Then the horror stomped one foot to the ground and the nearest wall turned into a bed of jaggedy glass spikes.

I saw Amaryllis just barely rolling out of the way of a spike that would have skewered her. “Get off there!” she yelled at me.

“Got it!” I said as I hopped off.

The moment I was off the golem’s back a thunderclap sounded out and I had to cover my ears to block out the sound of it. One of the horror’s legs cracked, a splinter running from its base to the joint where it connected to its body.

“Nice wo--” I started to say, but Amaryllis wasn’t done. Another flash of light, and a searing electrical beam smashed into another leg on the same side. Then a third and one of the rearmost legs burst apart into a million glassy shards.

“Keep hitting it!” Amaryllis said. She was panting, and her hair-feathers were plastered to her forehead by sweat.

“I’ll try and distract it!” I called out as I moved under the horror with my spade. “Moon Moon, smash those legs!”

“Yes yes!” Moon Moon said as he ran over to one of the damaged legs and started gnawing at it.

I had to keep the horror’s focus on me to give the others time to bring it down. I wove between its legs, smacking each one as hard as I could with my spade while avoiding the glassy caltrops it had left behind when it summoned all those glassy spikes. “Hey ugly, I’m here!” I screamed up to it.

Mocking someone for being ugly was really, really bad, but this was more of a something than a someone, so maybe the insult would mostly land at the feet of its creator. Still rude, but a bit less so.

My spade made quite the clamor as I banged it around. I must have caught the horror’s attention because it began smashing its legs around where I was standing. I felt myself grinning as I hopped back and out of the way of a leg, then skipped to the side to avoid a swipe. It was almost like a game, and even if it was a little risky, I was having quite a bit of fun.

Then the horror’s legs glowed and a beam of magical light hit me square in the face.

I screamed as I felt a searing slice pass from my nose to my forehead, the stench of burning flesh filled my senses and I had to close my eyes against the too bright light.

“Broc, duck!” Amaryllis called.

It was too late.

Something, probably one of the horror’s huge legs, smashed into me and sent me flying back. The air was batted out of my lungs and I saw a wash of stars crossing my vision as I was thrown back.

My flight ended with a jolt and what had to be the worst pain I ever felt as something pushed into my back.

I blinked dumbly, trying to figure out just what was going on.

That’s when I saw the glassy spike sticking out of my lower abdomen. Just a handspan of glass, decorated in dark red liquid.

“Oh,” I said.

“Broccoli!” Awen said as she ran over to me. Glass was kicked aside as she came and fell to my side, then she stared at my chest with muted horror.

“Potion!” Amaryllis screamed.

That kicked Awen into gear and she started to fumble around her jacket.

“It’s okay,” I said.

It didn’t really feel okay. It felt very not okay.

“It was a fun adventure.”

“You, you idiot!” Amaryllis screamed.

The air began to whisper around, and the smell of burnt flesh faded to be replaced by the electron tang of ozone.

The room darkened, every shadowy corner becoming a dark pit as a wind whipped around the entire arena.

“You bastard!” Amaryllis screeched.

White. Everything went white. There was a noise, but I couldn’t hear it over the sharp, painful ringing in my ears.

When things returned to normal Amaryllis was panting, every breath sounding like a wheeze, her wings were limp by her sides and she was bent over double.

The horror had a hole going through it from front to back, wide enough that I could have placed both fists in it side by side with room to spare. The glass round the hole was glowing, thin smoke pouring out of it.

“Nice shot,” I said.

“I-idiot,” she said.

Awen pushed something against my lips. “Drink, please, please drink.”

I smiled at her as I drank the potion, then the world darkened just a little.

***