The monstrous limb slammed down onto the floor, followed quickly by another arm. The ground rumbled, quaking and sending everyone staggering away. Jade managed to keep her feet, but most of her companions weren't so fortunate. The two skeletal limbs heaved as if they were doing a push up and the ground cracked again, louder this time, debris flying in every direction as a massive form ripped itself free from beneath the floor.
Jade dove to the side, narrowly avoiding a chunk of stone that went hurtling past her head. A loud CRASH echoed through the chamber, and she looked up just in time to see a large part of the far wall crumble, falling outward. Sunlight poured through the breach, banishing the shadows cast by the dancing green flames. The sudden brightness was so unexpected that Jade had to shield her eyes from it and blink away stars.
By the time she'd regained her bearings, the monster was standing fully upright. As the dust began to clear, Jade got her first good look at it. The creature was, unsurprisingly, comprised of bone and had a humanoid form, but its similarities to the other skeletons ended there. What Jade had taken for a single, enormous forearm was actually comprised of hundreds, maybe thousands of smaller, human sized bones. All of them were fused together, interwoven to create a larger whole. Its entire body was formed in that manner, the melded remains of untold masses combined to create a single, terrifying, 20-foot-tall monstrosity.
* Incomplete Bone Titan (43%)
* Level: 24
* Creature Type: Undead (Monster - Quadrant Boss)
* Origin: Summoned
* Note: This monster is a quest target.
Level 24?!
Aylin had mentioned this stronghold was unusually powerful for the second floor, but the mage had been confident that the monsters within wouldn't be C rank. Apparently, she'd been mistaken. The one saving grace was that, true to its title, the monster appeared incomplete. Its left arm was missing a hand, merely ending at the wrist. Half of its ribs were missing, and even a large chunk of its skull-like face appeared to be absent. Even as Jade watched, a cascade of the monster's constituent bones fell away in a white wave, clattering to the ground with a series of disturbing clicking sounds.
"Are you sure we can fight this?!" Fenrin called. The half-elf was nearby, one of the few apart from Jade who hadn't been knocked to the ground by the heaving floor.
"We can!" Aylin replied, regaining her feet and smoothing out her robe. She cast a critical eye at their foe. "It's weaker than it looks."
"You know what they say…" Luis said, hefting his new enchanted sword. "The bigger they are…"
Before Luis could finish, the monster brought one of its arms down in a heavy slam that shook the room again. Its large mouth opened, and black smoke billowed out, sweeping across the chamber in an expanding cloud that clung to the ground. Jade braced herself as the dark mist rushed past her, but all she felt was a slight chill. For a moment, she relaxed slightly. Perhaps it really was weaker than it looked, in its incomplete state.
Movement caught the corner of her eye, and she turned to see one of the cultist's bodies bubbling. She watched in growing horror as the corpse dissolved, leaving only a pile of bones that began to slide towards the enormous monster, pulled by some invisible force. A similar scene played out all around the room, every lifeless body the mist touched melted away and the remains drawn to the bone titan, assimilating into its form.
Jade and her friends remained unaffected, as did most of the captured townspeople they'd come to save. Two of them, though, joined the cultists' fate. Jade was pretty sure they'd already been dead, at the very least neither of them had moved during the rescue, but the sight was still profoundly disturbing.
Aylin shouted a command and, before the newly collected bones were even fully assimilated into the titan's body, they all began raining attacks on the monstrous undead. Blasts of fire and magical energy impacted its chest, and Fenrin's arrows slammed into its head. Jade swallowed her fear and dashed forward, weapons at the ready. Vamir joined her, curved sword drawn. Her light hammer seemed wholly inadequate in the face of such a vast creature, but even the first volley of attacks was having a noticeable effect on their foe. It staggered back under the barrage, fractured bones raining down to splinter against the stone tiles.
Aylin's right. Jade realized as she closed with the monster. She had to be mindful of its footfalls, as they were likely powerful enough to crush her. It's weak. We can take it!
Weak was a relative term, but the monster's 'incomplete' status was obviously inhibiting it. Jade finally drew close enough to strike but had only just started hammering away at the creature when it did something completely unexpected. Rather than striking back, responding to their attacks with powerful swipes or more dark magic, the bone titan turned away from them. Moving with surprising speed considering its size, it crashed its way through the new gap in the chamber wall, exiting the hall and forcing its way outside the dungeon.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
Jade skidded to a stop next to Vamir, confused into inaction at the sudden turn of events. Her heart was still pounding in anticipation of a climactic battle. Was it repositioning to a better place to strike them from? No, it really was leaving. Jade watched as the monster squeezed its way through the large gap, turned, and disappeared out of sight. She glanced around the chamber, seeing that everyone else looked just as confused as she did.
"Hey! Come back here!" Nythis shouted, running after the monster. "I'm not done with you!"
"Uhh… Where's it going?" Luis asked, sword still held at the ready.
"I don't know, but it's far too dangerous to let it get away." Aylin said, making to follow the elven druid. "After it!"
Before they made it more than a few steps, a chill wind swirled through the chamber. Violet light began coalescing above the dark puddles that were all that remained of the corpses the titan had harvested, quickly forming into a humanoid shape. One of them was only a dozen feet from Jade, the spectral form twisting and growling as it dragged itself up from the pool.
* Specter
* Level: 4
* Creature Type: Undead
* Origin: Labyrinth-born
"That doesn't look good!" Naomi called, still running for the breach with Aylin.
"Leave them!" The mage shouted. "If it can make more of them, we need to destroy it before it does!"
"What if they go after the elves?!" Jade said, hesitating. She looked between the emerging form of the shade, her departing friends, and the tunnel through which they'd been escorting the rescued prisoners. Those people were weak, and none of them were in any shape to run, let alone fight spirits.
Aylin slowed, cursing. Before she could reply, Vamir spoke.
"I'll stay." He said, changing course to intercept the closest of the newly risen monsters. "Go!"
The elf's curved blade flashed in a silver arc, a ripple of energy separating from the weapon and slicing into the specter. It exploded in a burst of purple light, leaving behind only an echoing wail.
That was enough for Jade. She took off at a sprint, chasing after the fleeing boss monster with the rest of her party.
----------------------------------------
Luis didn't know where the giant monster was going, but he doubted the undead monstrosity intended to live a life of peace. He was the first one to emerge from the newly created breach in the pyramid wall and was just in time to see the lumbering form of the bone titan disappear around the closest corner of the structure.
"This way!" He pointed, running after it. He needn't have bothered, the monster's footfalls were sending noticeable tremors through the ground. None of them were in danger of losing track of it.
"Are boss monsters usually this shy?" He asked Fenrin, who was right behind him, as they charged after their retreating foe.
"Not in my experience!" He said, bow in hand. "Mimi, keep an eye on it!"
The multicolored bird chirped once, launching from the half-elf's shoulder and taking to the sky.
"Was it something I said?"
"Not the time, Luis." Jade panted, catching up to them. Her face bore a worried expression. "I think we're at the back of the pyramid."
"Yeah? So?"
"It's going towards the front."
Fenrin's eyes widened.
"The reserve team!"
Now Luis understood. He pumped his legs harder, speeding up to full on sprint as he rounded the corner of the massive structure. The giant was already most of the way to the front of the stronghold, and the gap wasn't shrinking quickly. With such long strides, it was difficult to keep up with. He tried anyway, pulling away from the rest of the party as he fought to catch up. The hulking monster disappeared around the next corner, but Luis was hot on its tail.
Just a little more!
He didn't have time to think about what would happen if this thing ran into the group of novices they'd left to watch their backs, but he knew it wouldn't be good. They didn't have enchanted armor, or a suite of combat spells and magical weapons. He rounded the corner seconds after his quarry, closely followed by his companions.
Immediately, Luis noticed that the bone titan wasn't making for the rear guard, most of whom were fearfully retreating from the unexpected arrival of the stronghold boss itself. Instead, it made a beeline for the battlefield in front of the fortress where they'd fought their way into the structure. It wasn't until it slammed its fist down and summoned another cloud of black smoke that he finally realized what it was doing.
It's looking for more parts!
Sure enough, the scattered bones of the defeated skeletons began sliding towards the creature, animated as soon as a tendril of necrotic mist brushed them. They clattered into place on its body, melding into the greater whole like pieces of a macabre puzzle coming together.
Click clack click clack!
Luis was simultaneously relieved the monster wasn't massacring the people they'd left to watch the entrance and deeply worried at the rate at which it was assembling itself into a more complete form. Pulling up its status window as he ran, Luis saw that the percentage next to its name had increased to (61%).
He had no intention of waiting to find out what happened when that number reached (100%). Now that the monster had stopped to do… whatever creepy magic it was doing, the gap between them was closing quickly. Luis squeezed the hilt of his new enchanted weapon, steeling himself to charge into battle. It wasn't something he could have done on his own, but he had trusted companions at his back. Before he could reach the creature, though, motion caught his eye.
Two figures separated from the main body of the retreating group and were charging the bone titan. It was two of the younger elves, the pair that Luis had seen Fenrin get out of trouble during the initial clash. The woman brandished her hammer and shouted something at the boss, which had just finished assimilating the last of the scattered remains into its form. They rushed it, hacking at its legs with powerful blows that sent small, hairline cracks spreading across its lower body.
"Get back!" Luis shouted, pumping mana into his legs and activating 'Guardian Burst'. He leapt forward in a sudden burst of speed, changing course to intercept the two reckless warriors. "Wait for us!"
He was too slow. The bone titan turned its head to regard the pair of trainees with its dark, empty eye sockets. Then, with a speed that belied its great bulk, it lifted its foot, and sent it crashing down on them.