“Ryu!” Sylfie called out to him in worry.

“Gaaahhh! Freyja, save me!”

“Never mind, he can save himself,” the elf scoffed.

“What are you doing?! We have to go after him!” Wisteria exclaimed.

The adventurers rushed into the Dungeon Master’s Lair, a pale blue aura emitting from the slippery, frozen floor beneath them. Pillars of ice provided support for the ceiling above, which was dotted with large icicles precariously positioned over the boss arena. It seemed like one good shake would dislodge the ice and send it crashing down onto the party below.

The adventurers charged at the boss, weapons ablaze. They yelled at the top of their lungs, envigorated by Wisteria’s spells. Sylfie raised her bow incanting a spell that engulfed her arrow in a brilliant aura of orange and red.

“Burn to Ash and Cinder: [Phoenix Fire]!”

She released the arrow, aiming for the paw that had Ryu grasped tightly in its clutches. The boss, its white fur frosted with blue ice, roared mightily, swiping at the adventurers with claws as long and sharp as swords.

The enormous polar bear-like creature snarled, turning its back to Sylfie’s arrow. A raging fire engulfed the creature, causing the Dark Elf to panic. Had she just incinerated Ryu by accident?

Her worries were alleviated, however, when the boss flicked its long tail, covered in spiked icicles. A frosty mist enveloped the battlefield, smothering the fire.

“Are you trying to kill me?!” Ryu screamed.

“Hey, I’m not the one that got caught immediately by the boss!” Sylfie retorted.

“Save the bickering for later, you two!” Freyja shouted, shielding herself from another of the boss’ claw swipes. A layer of frost started to form in the gouge marks on her shield. “Sh*t! It’s attacks will freeze you if they land!” she warned.

“Not a problem, haha!” Jörm called out, swiping furiously at the beast’s hide with his burning axe.

The beast retaliated by swatting away the Viking with the back of its hand, sending him flying through an ice pillar.

“Jörm!” Ryu called out.

“Not to worry, friend! I’m alright!” he grinned, one arm flopping to the side.

Wisteria’s eyes flashed, trying to get a better read on the boss. “Ursa Glacius! It’s a high-tier Snow Tailed Ursa! Its defense stats are through the roof!” she grimaced. Something else caught her eye. “Wait a minute! It has a [Frost Lock] shield; we’ll need to remove the incantation to do any damage to it!”

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“So that’s why fire isn’t working on the boss? Wisteria, how do we remove its shield?” Sylfie asked.

Wisteria bit her nail, her eyes darting across the room. “Unlike a regular magic shield, it’s not something that can be removed with another incantation. We’ll need to find the artifacts that the shield is tethered to and destroy them,” she explained.

“Forget that! We must rescue Ryu first!” Jörm exclaimed.

“I agree!” Tyr joined in.

“You fools! We can’t save him if we don’t remove that shield!” Freyja reprimanded them.

Jörm and Tyr exchanged a glance, looking back at Freyja with obnoxious smiles.

“Says you,” Jörm replied.

“They hate us 'cause they ain’t us,” Tyr smirked.

“They hate us 'cause they ain’t us,” Jörm parroted him with a grin.

“They hate us 'cause they ain’t us!” they bellowed in unison.

“Let’s go!” Tyr charged forward.

“Right behind you!” Jörm announced.

They both took off in a fervor, howling and hooting as they faced the Ursa Glacius in a heated clash of burning steel and freezing keratin.

“Argh! You buffoons! Wait till I get my hands on you!” Freyja screamed.

Sparks flew as the violent combination of ice and fire covered the area in a blanket of steam, adding to the mist's already cumbersome effect on visibility.

“Men! Stay back!” Freyja ordered the others. “Wait for my command! Once the Ursa’s shielding has been removed I will signal for you to attack!” She turned to Wisteria for a solution. “Where do we find these artifacts you mentioned? What do they look like?”

“They should look like floating sapphires. The thing is, I don’t see them anywhere,” she answered, growing anxious.

“Are they blue and round?” Aurora inquired.

“Yes! Do you know where they are?” Wisteria replied, shocked.

Aurora pointed to a pillar of ice. “I saw a blue ball in there, nya!”

“The pillars, of course! Good job, Aurora!”

“Yes, that’s right, praise me more!” Aurora smiled smugly as Wisteria gave her a pat on the head.

“Freyja—”

“On it!” Freyja responded, unable to wait for Wisteria to finish her sentence. She grinned, a wild look in her eyes. “The sooner we remove this shield, the sooner we can take down this overgrown prick.”

She unsheathed her blade, fastening a chain around the hilt and pommel and wrapping the rest of it tightly around her arm. Using the chain as a rope, she twirled the blade around deftly.

She spun the sword in a circle, striking the ground until it caught fire. Freyja released the blade, giving the chain some slack. It launched across the room cleaving the ice pillar Aurora had pointed out, splitting the sapphire artifact inside without any resistance.

The Ursa roared in anguish as Tyr and Jörm managed to pierce the palm of its free paw.

“It’s working!” Tyr stated in surprise.

“A mere shield cannot hold us back, old friend!” Jörm laughed heartily. “It seems Freyja was wrong once again!”

They both laughed, hacking away at the beast’s open paw.

“You idiots! I’m the one making it possible for you to hit that thing!” Freyja fumed.

The Ursa recoiled, throwing Ryu to the side and slamming an enclosed fist into Tyr and Jörm. The adventurers flew over Freyja’s head, hitting the back wall and crumpling to the floor. They wheezed heavily, trying to regain their breath after having the wind knocked out of them.

Ryu bolted away before the Ursa had a chance to recapture him and return him to its clutches. He invoked [Swift Foot] and [Aqua Glide], skating across the arena with inhuman speed. As he reunited with the rest of the group, Ryu steeled himself. He turned back to the beast, exhaling slowly.

The real boss battle started now.