Heket Enchantress - Third Level

Prowess Marker Bonuses:

* Vitality: + 1

* Potency: + 1

* Deftness: + 1

* Intellect: + 1

* Clarity: + 1

* Perception: + 2

* Attunement: + 2

* Adaptability: + 1

Gain additional Curse Invocation (Wither)

Zeni regarded the changes she’d just been handed, and her heart did a happy little dance in her chest. She’d reached another level, and gained a whole lot of benefits to her class—and by osmosis, herself. She looked over her details with a curious eye, content to see the gains her death-defying battle had wrought.

Prowess Markers:

* Vitality: 2

* Potency: 2

* Deftness: 4

* Intellect: 6

* Clarity: 5

* Perception: 4

* Influence: 1

* Attunement: 3

* Adaptability: 2

“Hm,” she said aloud, realizing that, other than screams of ferocity, she hadn’t spoken in a while. She cleared her throat.

“This is…excellent,” she said, her voice raw and scratchy. “And really, the only thing that I didn’t raise was my Influence…”

She was excited by this prospect. Combat had made her stronger, and apparently fighting blind against a strong foe had allowed her several advancements that she didn’t think she would normally receive. She considered her boost of two to Perception and Attunement, and had to believe it was because of the way she’d channeled her Ka in the battle. Perhaps that also had raised her Adaptability. She wasn’t sure, but she’d ask Neith once she returned.

She was delighted to find that she was now the bearer of another Curse as well, and she examined its details.

Wither: This Curse causes a target's limbs to feel heavy and weak, significantly slowing their movement and reducing their ability to attack or defend effectively. The effect lasts for a short period of time, making it a useful tool for gaining a tactical advantage in combat.

However, despite her feelings of accomplishment, the adrenaline from the fight had finally faded, leaving in its wake a heavy dose of reality. Zeni suddenly became acutely aware of her battered body. She could only see vague intimations of the wounds she’d sustained in the dim light, but they throbbed with a ferocity that was impossible to ignore.

"Gods be good," channeling the spirit of Hesira from a situation weeks ago with a particularly prickly bush. "I appear to be in something of a spot."

Quickly, she fumbled for one of the few pre-made potions that Hesira had stowed away for her, with a hastily scrawled label that read: For Emergencies or When Zeni Gets Herself into Trouble.

Zeni couldn't help but smirk, even as pain radiated through her.

She drank it down without hesitation—not trusting that she wouldn’t accidentally poison herself if she tried to make her own in this low light. The taste was foul, like swallowing a mouthful of pond water and expired cough syrup. She wiped her lips with her borrowed sleeves and released a loud “ah!” of satisfaction after glugging down the dram, her face contorting in a grimace at the aftertaste.

Even so, the effect was immediate, and her cuts and bruises knitted themselves back together in only a moment’s time. It was a strange sensation, like her skin was being tickled by a thousand tiny spiders, but it was undeniably effective.

“Damn,” she said, looking down where she’d seen a big gash on her wrist before. “Hesira, you do good work!”

Zeni couldn't help but imagine her mentor's voice, full of sarcastic pride, responding, "Of course I do, you silly girl. It's not like I taught you all this just so you could wander around getting injured for fun, now is it? Now, get moving. Being lazy is unbecoming."

With that, she took a step forward, and through the veil that separated the darkness from the light.

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

As she suspected, the shadow gave way to sudden illumination, a searing brilliance that felt like a lance of fire to Zeni's unprepared eyes. She squinted against the radiance, shielding her face as her vision swam with tears. The light was still a bit dim, she realized as her eyes adjusted, but after the…Duatian abyss—if she was using a term she’d heard around here correctly—it felt as if she had been thrust into the heart of the sun itself.

As her sight cleared, Zeni found herself gazing upon a sight both wondrous and horrifying in equal measure. She gaped. A vast chamber spread out before her, a massive, undulating labyrinth of sand, reminiscent of a living, breathing entity. It was as if the grains of sand themselves were each a tiny puzzle piece, locked together in a dance that seemed to defy all reason. A waterfall cascaded down the center, its waters crystal-clear, plunging into a shimmering lake below. The sound of the rushing water echoed throughout the chamber, lending a musical backdrop to the otherwise eerie silence.

The ceiling, a grand tapestry of stone, was punctured by a hole that revealed a beautiful blue sky, its brilliance a stark contrast to the nightmare she had just endured. Sunlight streamed through the opening, casting an ethereal glow upon the shifting sands below. It was as if the heavens themselves had chosen to shine a spotlight on this otherworldly place.

The walls of the chamber were alive with motion, shifting and swirling with sand, an ever-changing organism of form and texture that confounded the senses. Sand fell like a golden rain, vanishing into the depths as if drawn into an unseen vortex, a maelstrom her mind couldn’t quite comprehend. The sand seemed to ebb and flow like the tide, its movements both mesmerizing and disconcerting.

And there, high above the cavernous room, Zeni stood at the edge of a precipice, her heart pounding as she took in the scene below. The beauty of the chamber was marred by a grotesque sight: a massive beast lying dead beside the lake. She blinked, her mind struggling to process the enormity of the creature. It was…an ogre? Or something akin to it. She thought she recalled Basim mentioning something awful called a shagallu that seemed to fit the description. This was a massive humanoid-shaped beast, its slate-blue skin a stark contrast to the vibrant colors of the chamber. The thing was easily fifteen feet tall, its lifeless form apparently having fallen victim to the other dangers that lurked within this treacherous dungeon.

The chamber was dotted with an array of flora and fauna that defied logic, as if the sands themselves had given birth to a bizarre garden. Exotic plants sprouted from the ever-shifting sands, their vibrant colors and strange shapes adding an air of whimsy to the otherwise somber scene. Small, skittering creatures darted in and out of the shadows, their tiny footprints briefly marking the sands before being swallowed up by the relentless dance of the grains.

As Zeni observed her surroundings, she couldn't shake the feeling that her connection to Ka had somehow…intensified in this chamber. It was as if the air itself were woven with wisps of it, and it was more potent, more ethereal, the very essence of the chamber was entwined with its power. She was still fresh on the path of Ka—all things considered, but this experience was unparalleled. The sensation enveloped her, akin to standing on a windy hill in a valley as a powerful gale whispered ancient secrets in her ear. The Ka was old, and was tinged with the same ancient colors the map had emitted. Whatever it was, it was strong and as she considered it, could feel the vast channels of this Ka interconnected with the rest of the dungeon. It was as if this chamber was an open vein, the life blood of the dungeon itself exposed and raw leading to its writhing innards.

The feeling both exhilarated and unnerved her. She was drawn to it, a moth to the flame of this mysterious force that seemed to pulse through the very heart of the dungeon, a cascade of energy that played upon her very soul. She wanted to grasp on to it—something about its feeling was so inviting, welcoming, and she found herself, as if in a trance, trying to connect to the river of Ka before she realized what she was doing and cut herself off, releasing a breath in a panic.

“What…was that?” She wondered. She’d never in her life felt such a strong compulsion to drop a line into Ka and try to fish for something. It was worse, though, because she wasn’t even sure what it was she was hoping to snare. She shook her head, forcing the covetous sensation out of her mind as best she could.

Zeni’s attention returned to the fallen giant, her momentary awe replaced with dread. She knew that she must navigate this living sand puzzle and face whatever monstrous foe had laid the shagallu low, but the fear that clawed at her heart was a beast in its own right.

Zeni regarded the descent before her, wondering if there was any merit in attempting to harvest something from the monster’s corpse. She recalled a conversation with Hesira a few months ago, who had animatedly expounded on the variety of things one could pilfer from large creatures as they’d stood over the corpse of an enormous beast called a dune bear.

"Zeni, my dear," Hesira had said, her hands fluttering like a pair of agitated butterflies as she'd lectured her apprentice, "you'd be astonished at the variety of bits and bobs one can pilfer from big, nasty creatures like that. Some call them monsters, but I prefer to think of them as a walking library of alchemical ingredients."

Hesira had paused before adopting a self-satisfied smirk.

"Of course, you'll have to get past the teeth, claws, and other assorted nastiness. But that's just part of the fun, isn't it?"

Zeni remembered the encounter fondly, and they’d truly received a pharaoh’s ransom of goodies from the creature by the time they’d finished. The thought of more potential alchemical components tantalized Zeni, despite the uncertainty of her situation. Perhaps she’d find something even Hesira hadn’t seen before? Had the old woman ever even ventured into a dungeon? The thought made her laugh as she imagined the cantankerous apothecary shuffling about in the dark, daring anything to provoke her with a damaging mean-mug.

She wanted to make Hesira proud—or rather, she wanted all of Kephri’s Rest to admire her courage and daring as she returned to the village and she wanted Hesira to guffaw with delight as she dumped an armful of exotic ingredients at her feet. That would make everything worth it. But even more, she wanted to protect the village—and that started with completing this challenge.

With a determined nod, she began to climb down the shifting sand, her movements slow and measured as she sought secure footholds amidst the ever-changing terrain. The sand whispered against her, a subtle sibilance that seemed to mock her efforts as it constantly churned under her weight. Zeni couldn't help but think that the universe had a rather wicked sense of humor, providing her with a challenge tailor-made to test her nerves after the soul-crushing darkness she had just endured.

Her progress was slow, a careful and deliberate battle with gravity as she attempted to outmaneuver the rebellious sands. But as she moved, her foot slipped, betraying her at the most inopportune moment. Suddenly, Zeni found herself in freefall, her heart leaping into her throat as she plummeted toward the ground below. The sand seemed to cackle around her, an unseen chorus of derisive laughter as she tumbled helplessly through the air.

In that split second, Zeni couldn't help but wonder if Hesira had ever mentioned any ingredients that might help with falling from great heights.