Jared groaned in frustration for the 23rd time since being in the dungeon. “We have been here for days! I thought it wasn’t supposed to take this long to complete a simple Tier 2 Dungeon!”
Evie sighed, “Jared. I will tell you one. Last. Time.” She punctuated each word. “We are here to get you to all levels if you survive making it across the sea.”
“I mean, technically we have already been across one sea. What is so bad about this one?” Pierre thoughtfully asked.
Aldrin queued in to listen to the answer, “The sea to get to the Forbidden Continent is filled with monsters that would make Aldrin look like a kitten compared to them, for one. For two, Magnurians are said to roam the area. For three, you just need levels to begin with. We have been stagnant, or at least I have been for a while, and I’m beginning to get the itch to level up again.” Evie answered.
“What are Magnurians?” Pierre asked.
“Sea people, I suppose? They mostly live undersea, but some are amphibious and live in coastal towns.” She said, pushing a low hanging vine out of her way. “And for the record, Jared, one day here is equal to 2 hours outside the dungeon.”
“WAIT! THERE ARE MERMAIDS HERE?!” Jared’s eyes lit up, taking over any form of exhaustion he exhibited. “Well, why didn’t you say so! Let’s hurry up and level!” He marched ahead, taking the lead from Evie, who only smirked and shook her head at him.
“Is he normally this simple?” Evie skeptically asked.
Pierre chuckled, “Unfortunately, but fortunately,” he offhandedly said.
Aldrin looked onwards at Jared, who had taken on a renewed vigor as he power walked to their next encounter. They were close to gaining another level, which Aldrin was excited for as they were nearing their 3rd Tier Classes. Looking back on how he started to current, his mind was clouded from what happened to him versus the discovery and potential that lay ahead of him. Only now, with his mind cleared, could he be excited to rank up and see what he would unlock.
That excitement was short-lived when something brushed against Aldrin’s sense sphere, causing him to stop and alert the others. “I think it’s another Ambusher,” he whispered, his eyes angling towards the nearby dense bit of brush. The presence in his sphere reacted to him in the same way, as it stopped, mirroring its body towards the group of four, then bolted forward.
Aldrin felt it whisk closer in his sphere right “Everyone! Get ready!” he readied his sword.
It dashed out of the bush at a blurring speed, knocking straight into Aldrin, making him fall on his back. He briefly got a quick look at it before it used its speed to blur off him.
“Well, that was fast,” Jared said, nocking another arrow.
“Did you see what it was, Evie?” Pierre asked.
“Barely, which is strange that I even couldn’t see it. But here,” Evie said as she scrunched her eyebrows downwards, sharing the information when she caught it with Inspect.
Jade Trickster Fox
Tier 2
Level 27
Lore: The fox is meant to keep any prying visitors from the Monk
“So, is it on our side or not?” Jared asked, helping Aldrin up to his feet.
Aldrin brushed off the dirt from the impact off his chest, quickly thanking Jared, “I don’t know, but it packs a punch, though.” He said, dusting the remaining dirt off him.
“Right, note to self, don’t get hit by it.” Jared said, eyes scanning the surroundings.
Aldrin tried to sense it again within his sphere, but it moved too quick for him to actually pinpoint. “Back to back! It’s too fast for me to actually sense!” he commanded.
The group heeded the instruction as they formed a circle, swiveling their heads at each bush that moved when the fox ran. Suddenly, the fox vanished from his sphere altogether, causing Aldrin to grip the hilt of his sword tighter. Then he felt something enter above him as the fox was suddenly there, floating with three orbs of jade orbiting around it.
They lit up, firing green, searing bolts of energy at them. “Scatter!” Pierre yelled, tucking and rolling away from where he once stood as the bolt impacted, scorching the bit of dried leaves.
Evie dove away, coming to a stop in a kneeling position before throwing one of her runes upwards at the floating fox. The runestone broke apart, leaking smoke from it that obscured them from the fox.
The bolts blindly pierced through the smoke, striking the ground where the group once stood, causing large gouges to be formed. Aldrin looked at where they hit to see the ground sizzle and smoke from them. Part of him instinctively knew that those would harm him, as his Undead Body wasn’t upgraded to handle magical attacks.
Through the smoky haze, he felt the fox charge its orbs again. He rushed from his spot under the guise of the smoke, then used shapechange to form his swarm of bats. Furthermore, he flew into the trees, weaving around them as the fox was still focused on his group. Quickly maneuvering himself behind the fox, he flew upwards before the fox could react and finish charging the orbs he reformed in midair. Inhaling, he used the Roar of the Apex to cancel out the charging orbs. The skill also had the effect of canceling whatever ability the fox was using to float in the air as it plummeted to the ground.
Aldrin reformed into bats, following closely behind it as the fox twisted and turned in the air to right itself. Jared saw his chance, firing arrow after arrow at the falling fox. Evie quickly rummaged through her pouch at her side, pulling out a light blue gem this time, then throwing it at the estimated area the fox would land. The gem hit the ground, breaking into pieces as it sprung out an electric net that fanned out. The fox, unable to move out of the way, resigned itself to falling into the net as it closed in around it.
It tried to wriggle out of it, but each time it did, the net sent shocks that briefly paralyzed the fox. “Is this considered animal cruelty?” Jared asked, slowly approaching.
Evie scoffed, “No, it's a dungeon monster, and it tried to kill us.”
Wordlessly, Pierre walked up to the struggling monster. It eyed him with eerily acute intelligence as it intensified its wiggles. Aldrin reformed next to Pierre as he, too, watched the monster slowly succumb to the net.
Congratulations!
You have defeated: Jade Trickster Fox Level 27
Dungeon Loot Earned!
98 copper gained!
2 Jade fragments gained!
Dungeon Warning!
Jade Golem Ambushers: Active
This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.
Enchanted Toad Golems: Nullified due to capturing their statue
???: Active
???: Active
Jade Trickster Foxes: Active
Aldrin read the new notification, then looked to each of the others, who nodded grimly as they read the same. He knew from here on out that the dungeon was about to get a lot worse. With their heads on swivels, they trekked through the dense jungle, fighting against ambushers that threatened to come up but never being able to defeat as they would run off once their health reached a midpoint.
Haggard and jumpy, they stumbled into another clearing with mossy stone buildings that were partially overgrown with vines. “This feels and looks like a mini boss area,” Pierre said, eyeing his surroundings carefully.
Aldrin wasn’t picking up anything from his sense sphere that encircled 10 feet around him, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t something here to begin with in his mind. Carefully, they strode into the middle plaza of the area towards a tall, pointed obelisk. Evie brushed her hand along the base of it, wiping away some of the dirt and grime that accumulated on it.
“Emmerock Village, home of the Jade Carvers,” she read aloud.
The words set their teeth on edge as they continued to look around for any ambushers, as they knew this would be a perfect place and more than likely where they originated from. A loud crash that sounded like pottery being smashed came from one of the nearby stone abodes, making the group raise their weapons and call forth their magic. Aldrin cautiously stepped forward as something smashed through the vines that covered the doorway, coming to a tumbling stop.
Like a puppet on strings, it jerked itself upright. Aldrin figured it used to be human, but now it was a blackened skeleton with sharp jagged jade edges that protruded from its joints, acting almost like armor. Its eye sockets held the similar eerily green flames of the toads. It screeched, like nails on a chalkboard, into the sky, making them all flinch at noise, flailing its arms about as its bony feet slapped against the cobbled stone, running towards them.
Name: Fallen Jade Carver
Tier 2
Level 29
Lore: The Jade Carvers were once renowned golem smiths until their magical craft took them down a dark path as their need for better runes became their obsession.
Evie was the first to act as she threw a glowing red stone that exploded on impact with the Fallen Jade Carver. It splintered into pieces before any of them could react. Unfortunately, the explosion had the opposite effects as more screeches filled the air as more started tumbling from the stone abodes and brutally ripping their way upwards from beneath the broken cobbled roads.
Jared gulped loudly. “So this is what the people of Lor-Vold felt like.” Aldrin shot him a pointed look in response, but Jared paid it no mind as his eyes were scanning each of the new enemies that dragged themselves out of the abodes and out of the dirt, chattering their teeth in a hungered frenzy.
Pierre was the first this time to fling into action as he threw an arc of phantom knives. Aldrin followed closely behind the knives to his first opponent that blocked his strike with its jade armored elbow. It punched in return, forcing Aldrin to block, sending a shock up his arms from its strength. In return, Aldrin pushed back, trying to get it off balance before coming with an overhead strike. The Fallen Jade Carver was slightly quicker on recovery as it swirled around the blade, sending a backhand into Aldrin’s face that staggered him.
Arrows whizzed by Aldrin into the oncoming attacking Carver, but to no avail as the arrows harmlessly plunked off it. Dropping Sin-Screamer, he blocked his face again, but the Carver went for a body shot that even he felt through his armor and Undead Body. The sudden realization came from each of the hits that Aldrin was no longer the top dog when facing his enemies.
They traded blow for blow as Aldrin ceaselessly fought back, ignoring the cries of his teammates as they, too, fought against their own adversaries. It wasn’t until another Jade Carver joined the fray of ganging up on Aldrin that he thought of retreating.
“We have to run!” Aldrin said between dodging blows.
Evie was doing fine since she was the highest level there, but she could only do so much as more Carvers joined the melee. She quickly took out a grey-colored runestone, threw it on the ground, forcing a dense smokescreen. The surrounding creatures screeched even louder as their vision disappeared. The sounds of battle were cut as the others disengaged from the monsters. Quietly, she slipped away and into the brush, where she waited for any movement to be seen.
The smokescreen didn’t last long as it dissipated, revealing the carvers angrily searching and screeching in rage and disappointment. She didn’t see any of the others, so she backed away as quietly as she could. Her plan would be to regroup away from the ruined village and possibly, if need be, to head back to the place they camped at previously. Quickly and quietly she stalked through the brush, avoiding any noise in case the Carvers had acute hearing until she was completely sure she was far enough. It wasn’t long until Aldrin found her, dropping from the sky and reshaping himself from the bats he used to escape.
He huffed and gave her a deadpanned look, “That could have gone so much better,” he dryly said while rubbing the sore spots on his abdomen. His leather armor he wore offered no protection and in hindsight decided that he would invest in possibly medium if not heavy armor the next time he could. Light armor for him wasn’t cutting it any longer as his body grew more accustomed to its new state.
Evie puffed her cheeks in relief, “You’re telling me. Although I could have solo’d all of them if you guys weren’t there. My Class is meant for crowd control and damage after all, but they were too cluttered for me without wanting to risk hitting any of you in the crossfire.”
Aldrin thought for a moment with the new information, tapping his chin as ideas ran through his head, “Duly noted.”
“Where are the other two?” She asked, changing the subject.
Aldrin closed his eyes, searching for the tethers of the Servant bond he shared with them. “That way,” he said, pointing in the direction that led diagonally against the village.
Opening his eyes, he saw Evie staring at him, a small smile on her face. “You’re really getting better at this,” she complimented.
“Oh? At what?” He asked over his shoulder once they started walking.
Evie hummed, “Oh you know… being a vampire.” She said, reinforcing her compliment from their lake conversation and eyeing him for his reaction.
He stopped mid stride as he pondered on what she said. Evie frowned as she stopped too. “I’m not sure if it's the levels, abilities I get with SP, or some unknown factor to being one, but it's coming a lot easier now. It’s kind of scary, honestly.” He revealed to her.
“To be fair, you have been going from one crisis to another without any time to really come to terms with anything. You have been in constant flight or fight mode since you have been one. I think I know that you have a better handle on yourself. You’re coming out of the darkness that you think,” she tapped his chest where his heart was, “that this is,” she finished.
Aldrin shrugged, “Maybe.” he said, then continued to walk along towards his friends.
Evie frowned and crossed her arms, “Ok Captain Pessimistic,” she muttered to which Aldrin blatantly ignored, stifling his chuckle with a forced cough.
They avoided the village as the screeches from the Carvers bellowed outward the closer they got to it. Luckily Jared and Pierre had the sense to keep moving as the tether for them both shortened yet remained at a constant length once they skipped past the village, meaning they were still on the move, albeit slowly. Still, Aldrin and Evie remained vigilant, especially once Aldrin pulled up the Dungeon monster list.
Dungeon Warning!
Jade Golem Ambushers: Active
Enchanted Toad Golems: Nullified due to capturing their statue
Fallen Jade Carver: Active
???: Active
Jade Trickster Foxes: Active
They both wondered what the last monster could be, unsure if it would be another golem or mutated monster. Alas, they finally came out of the thick brush they found themselves into wide open plains of swaying purple cat tailed plants.
“Well, that is a sudden change,” Aldrin commented.
“It’s a dungeon, sudden and random go hand in hand,” she laughed, then studied the plains, “Strange though, as I thought cattails only grew near the edges of water?”
Stepping forward into the waist high plains, Aldrin brushed against them, making the pollen scatter.
Hypnotism effect resisted!
Sleep effect resisted!
Poison effect resisted!
Before Aldrin could even utter a warning, Evie sneezed, then wrinkled her nose in displeasure. “Of course, the pretty field is dangerous.” She said sarcastically.
Whatever warning he had died on his lips, then he smirked at her, “It's a dungeon, sudden and random go hand in hand.” he said, echoing her words that earned him a smirk in return.
“Alright, fair.” She replied, still with a smirk, waving him off.