Chapter 9

Man and fox stood at the entrance to a cave. The sunlight that broke through the canopy overhead did little to illuminate the entrance. The dark expanse spread before them. The man held a staff in a relaxed way, but ready to snap to attention at any moment. The fox held the limp body of a monster that it playfully shook back and forth. The fox froze. The monstrous chew toy fell to the ground. Yip! The fox shot forward into the cave. Yip! Yip. yip, Its enthusiastic calls echoed as it disappeared into the darkness.

“Wait!” Danny yelled after it. What the hell are you doing?! Danny trepidly stepped into the maw of the cave. The darkness hung in the air, preventing Danny from seeing more than a few feet in front of him. He took a nearby branch and pulled one of the extra robes from his pack. He tore off the sleeve and wrapped it around the end of the branch. He wished he had some sort of fuel to soak it in for a longer-lasting light source, but hopefully, he wouldn’t be in the cave too long. Danny used a firestarter from his pack to light the torch. The smooth walls of the cave were illuminated by an orange glow as he entered.

Danny crept carefully through the cave on high alert. His eyes were beginning to adjust to the low light, but only enough that he could avoid tripping over himself. Danny was again pleased to find that the dizzy spell and profuse bleeding caused by the Horror earlier was only temporary. Must have been some sort of effect that would incapacitate prey. I was almost prey. Danny shivered at the thought. As he went on, Danny began to wonder exactly how far this cave would go. So far the cave had been a straight shot, so he was somewhat confident he could retreat if he ran out of light.

This was supposed to be a nest, but Danny had yet to see any of the Horrors. That only added to his anxiety. Then there was the matter of that hair-brained fox. I swear, Danny thought to himself, afraid to speak aloud, I don’t know what I am going to do with that thing. Maybe it was a good thing we didn’t Bond after all… Danny noticed movement ahead. And a soft green glow. The green light cast the cavern in a sickly color. The light source flickered as a shadow kept moving around it erratically. Danny heard the something ahead clatter and skitter on the stones. As Danny got closer the shadow formed a silhouette, one rushing back and forth and around, fixated on the apple-sized orb that was glowing green. The silhouette came into clearer focus as Danny crept forward, trying his best to be silent. Then Danny saw the streak of orange and realized he recognized the shadowy form.

The fox was excitedly trotting around the source of the glow, but there was still no sign of any monster. Danny had expected more from the nest. The fox scampered over to down and jumped to a halt. It crouched low and let out a Yip! Then the fox continued to hop around the chamber, fully satisfied with itself. I guess this green thing was what caused him to take off like that. It still seemed odd to Danny. He had no idea what this thing was, or what use it would be to the fox. Danny walked closer to the orb. It was a smooth, polished-looking stone. The jade-esque ball was lit from within, a swirling galaxy was locked inside. It captured Danny’s gaze and he began to lean forward. A nervous Yip! pulled Danny back to Earth. The ground around the polished stone began to shake. A crustacean the color of slate rose from the ground. The green glow remained attached to the top of its body like an angler fish. Danny realized he had fallen for the oldest trick in the book.

Pincers the length of Danny’s arm snapped menacingly. In place of eye stalks the monster had two long, tubular mouths, ringed with teeth. [Level 15 Horror Matriarch] Yeah, probably should have done that sooner, Danny thought in hindsight. Thick armored legs lifted the Matriarch’s body into the air. A terrible screeching, the nails-on-chalkboard kind, reverberated through the cave. Danny gaped. Quickly, Danny put some distance between himself and the creature and settled into his stance. The guardian of the nest did not keep him waiting.

The impact of the claw on the cavern floor sent Danny stumbling. A panicked Yip! echoed several feet away as the fox turned tail. So much for getting help. Danny felt a grim determination. It was him against this oversized crab. Never was a fan of seafood. Danny’s staff collided with one of the monster’s leg joints with a crack. It didn’t budge. Oh sh—

Danny dodged to the side. A massive, monstrous pincer claw hurtled into the stone floor, passing through where Danny had been standing. It left cracks in the cave floor. Getting hit is not an option. Weaving around another miss from the Matriarch, Danny tested a full-power strike on one of the monster’s mouths. A dull thud was the result. Followed by another ear-piercing screech. She did not like that. Danny hurriedly backpedaled a few steps as the monster lowered its torso and tried to bodyslam him. Danny had managed to gain enough distance that he was unbothered at the attempt, but the Horror had the range advantage. The devastating claws that would surely shatter bones if they connected would be much easier to utilize with Danny at arm’s length. He had to get in close.

Danny hurdled over a low sweep. He closed the gap and began to swing his staff, building momentum. He pivoted and spun, narrowly avoiding another pincer. Danny used the speed he he had built up with his staff to throw a devastating horizontal swing toward the mouth stalk he had hit earlier. This time, the thick grey skin split at the point of contact, causing the mouth to tremble and ichor to dribble onto the Matriarch’s shell. This time the monster didn’t screech. A claw came out of Danny’s blind spot and caught him in the side. Danny was flung backward as he felt his ribs fracturing. The skin on Danny’s elbows was flayed as he slid against the hard uneven, rocky surface. Danny grunted as he was stopped by a stalagmite.

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Danny pushed himself up with his hands and took a moment to think. He had been thrown fairly far away, and the Matriarch did not seem in a hurry to press him. The monster had not gone unscathed. The pulverized mouth hung uselessly and Danny noticed discoloration on the claws from all the slamming into the hard cave floor. Ok, this thing is a lower level than me, but it is bigger, stronger, and harder to hurt, reasoned Danny. I have to change it up, try something different. What would I do if this was a video game? Danny took in a deep breath. And winced. His right side burned like a dozen cuts being made on the inside of his body. Danny readied himself. He charged.

The monster clicked its claws together as Danny approached in some sort of taunt or battle cry. A pincer opened and shot out to Danny’s midsection. Then it slammed shut, trying to bisect him. But Danny had already slid to the ground and was fast approaching. The second claw came from above. Danny leapt backward as it crashed down. The collision echoed off the walls of the cave. He then jumped onto the claw. The Matriarch had not expected this and was slow to react. Danny began to run up the monster’s arm, but it reminded Danny of trying to balance on the sidewalk curb when he was a kid. Except the sidewalk was a monstrous crab queen trying to kill you. Danny propelled himself off his tenuous balancing beam just in time to dodge the monster’s other claw. A snapping sound was heard as the Horror broke its arm in an attempt to catch the annoying gnat that was Danny. Danny lifted his staff over his head as he flew. With a shout, he brought the weapon down on the glowing green orb on the top of the crab-like body. It shattered.

Danny tumbled unceremoniously to the ground behind the Matriarch. She screeched the loudest screech so far. One that echoed intensely in the cavern, causing Danny to cover his ears with his hands. He realized they were raw from the relentless swinging of his staff. The cry had to be heard from miles away, by Danny’s estimation. It finally stopped. Danny looked upon the monstrous crustacean and found that it had collapsed. Both mouths now dangled unresponsive and those once surprisingly fast claws were still. Danny smiled. Alright! Just like a video game. If the monster has something glowing on it, just break it. Danny was quite proud of all those nights spent playing RPGs now instead of doing homework. His sleep schedule might have suffered, but now it was finally paying off. “Speaking of video games.”

He walked over to where the Horror Matriarch had emerged from. Where there was a boss, there would be loot. It was the gospel truth of all video games, and what better place to hide it than where the boss itself laid hidden? Sure enough, Danny found a small jade necklace lying in the crater the monster had left behind. [Necklace of Rejuvenation]. It looked to be made of the same green material that the orb on the Matriarch’s head had been made of, without the glow. It was shaped like an oval disk with a leather cord adorned with small wooden beads. Danny picked it up and Identified it closer. The System gifted him with…

[Necklace of Rejuvenation This necklace is made with the Spirit Orb of a Horror Matriarch. This particular Life Orb grants a passive boost to the regeneration and healing of the wearer. Qi can be channeled into it for greater effect.]

Danny figured that there was no better time than the present to test his latest find. He put it around his neck and immediately felt…nothing. Waiting a few moments, Danny expected to feel a change, maybe less pain for a start. There was nothing. Nothing that he could feel, anyway. Danny decided to try out the second feature. He had never heard of items that could interact with his Qi before… although the guide was not exactly a font of information. Danny began to breathe according to the Gentle Body, Heavenly Soul method. This time, instead of sending the collected Qi to soften the blockages on his gates, Danny directed it to the necklace.

Except, Danny couldn’t feel the necklace at all. Like when he tried to form a Bond with the fox, Danny had no idea where the item was in relation to his Qi. He could feel his Heart Gate and the Gate of Breath, along with the body gates in his shoulders and hips, but not the Necklace of Rejuvenation. He tried guessing, but there was no reaction. Danny could feel where his Heart Gate was, and it was about the same area as where the necklace hung, about his neck. Danny used the gate as a guide. He pushed the Qi into the direction he knew the necklace to be, but it seemed to dissipate into the air, like smoke. If moving the Qi in his body was moving water, then manipulating Qi outside his body was moving steam. It just couldn’t be done.

Danny had one last idea. He borrowed the tactic he used to break open his gates and pushed the Qi in his Heart Gate down into a sphere. He kept building the pressure until he felt he couldn’t comfortably squeeze any harder. Then, Danny shot the pressured stream of Qi in the necklace’s direction. It was effective. Sort of. Most of the Qi dissipated like earlier, but a small, wispy strand of the energy made it to its destination. The green stone glowed the same hue as the Matriarch’s orb and Danny felt energy wash over his body. The power sought out his injuries, the skinned elbows, torn hands; then, the energy flowed deeper into him, soreness he hadn’t noticed in the heat of battle was relieved, the burning, stinging pain in his side lessened, but that marked the end of the necklace’s effect. The necklace didn’t seem to have a limit. But Danny did. The Qi he had collected was gone. He hadn’t pushed the issue too hard, so Danny could tell he would be able to cultivate later tonight, once he had a bit of rest.

A skittering sound grew louder and louder from the direction of the entrance. Danny readied himself for a fight, appreciating the fact that it no longer hurt to breathe. With a squawk, a fox slid to a stop in front of Danny. “So now that it’s over, you come back?” Danny relaxed. “You are such a little punk.” The fox yipped at him. “Don’t backtalk me.” Yip! Yip! was the answer. “Well, see if I ever bring you monster meat again.” The fox whipped its head towards the entrance. Ears back, it barked at the darkness and then scampered behind Danny, hiding. “I already killed the big one, what’s wrong?” Danny grew worried. The fox whimpered from behind him. Danny remembered the death cry the Matriarch had let out before it succumbed to its injuries. “Was that the sound of the thing dying, or was it summoning its minions?” The scraping of a hundred spidery legs was the only answer Danny received.