The next room looked identical to the redemption section they had seen earlier in the dungeon. There was a small crimson enclosure in the center of the room, inside which were three altars. One for weapons, one for armor, and one for other items.
Tarn quickly called up his interface to remind himself how many blood points he had to spend.
//BLOOD POINTS: 200
Good, he thought to himself. The extra combats they had chosen were paying off. He could only hope he was right about Yarex making concessions on his way through, choosing the direct route in the hope of getting to the final battle first and using whatever advantage that provided.
Tarn put his arm around Isca’s shoulder for a moment, then released her. He could tell the urge to do more was there, but he knew it wasn’t the right time, even if she did lean into his brief embrace.
“Well, I’m glad to have you here, Grease Monkey. I don’t know that I can be trusted to make these choices on my own.”
“Thanks to all the fighting we’ve been doing, we have a lot of blood to spend. What are our options?”
Together they faced the quartet of podiums. As before, there was an item or weapon on each of the first three, with the fourth being available as a reset. Floating above each column was a crude image of the object available for purchase.
The display farthest to the left showed an ornate hat, while the middle looked like blocky items attached to a chain. The third pillar contained a vague drawing of a map. Tarn couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed. He was hoping for something that immediately suggested high-impact, like a sword or magic ring or something.
Well, I guess that’s what the reset is for.
Shrugging his shoulders, he focused his interface on the first item.
//Distinguished Hat
Usage cost: Wearer’s Max AP reduced by 10 while worn
Once per full camp: The wearer may use one ability twice in the same pulse, or have the ability’s effect doubled.
Ranged attacks against the wearer have to ‘spend’ 10 AP to target the wearer on their first attack. Melee attacks against the wearer have their damage reduced by 10 AP.
This item may be destroyed as an off-pulse action to gain the status effect on any one target within 40 feet.
At the hat party, mine will be the grandest of all!
Cost: 75 BP
The hat was ridiculous looking. Made of what looked like bright blue cloth, its wide brim was lined with a white leopard-skin print. A huge pink feather was attached to one side, and Tarn could see tiny green and red lights oscillating around the edge.
“I think that has Urthin written all over it,” Tarn said with a laugh. Isca began to giggle, as both of them pictured the stoic monk with such an outlandish headpiece on.
Silly or not, it seemed decently useful, and it was cheap too. He moved his focus to the second selection. Pictured upon the ‘weapon’ podium was a long, heavy-looking metallic chain with a lock fastened at its end.
//Padlock (Ranged/Any)
Usage cost: Lock out one of the user’s abilities.
Using one action, this may be thrown at an enemy within 20 feet. Upon impact, this will lock out one of the target’s abilities. By default, a random ability is locked out for one full round. The duration and specificity of the ability locked out may be modified as follows:
Duration changed to the remainder of battle – Cost 20 AP
Specify ability – Cost 30 AP
Restriction: One use per battle. Requires line of sight.
Charges: 2 (May not be recharged)
Each legend is a link, each song one that binds us to our past.
Cost: 100 BP
“That’s – incredibly powerful.” Isca whistled her approval. “Even at a high cost, you could take away… any ability from your enemy.”
“Powerful, and expensive,” Tarn said. “We’d have very little blood points left over if we used that. Still, I can see that one giving Yarex some real headaches.”
//Dungeon Map Reveal and Expansion (Timed) Cost: 75 BP
“’Reveal and Expansion’?” Tarn looked at the altar quizzically. The map shown in the image continued to morph and shift, a shimmering maze of changing passages and room. “Like, the whole of the Axe Dungeon?”
“Too bad we can’t communicate with the others.” Isca cast a look back to the gathered group. Bog and Narsol had finished comparing scars, and now seemed to be discussing something humorous with Lash. “Narsol may have seen this before.”
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
“Cost isn’t too high.” Tarn stroked his beard, trying to decide. In his mind, the cost for the padlock item was already spent, it was too good an item to pass up. If they bought this as well, the uh... ‘Distinguished Hat’ would be out of reach.
“It says it is timed, but doesn’t say for how long.” Isca ran her fingers through her hair. “I guess these dungeons don’t feel the need to tell us everything.”
“I think we should take what info we can get.” To know where they were going, to know more about the Axe and where it might lead. It was too good to pass up, timed or not. “Get ready to try and remember what you can. I don’t suppose those goggles of yours can record?”
“Afraid not,” Isca said with a laugh. “All I can offer is one tired but willing brain.”
“Make those two tired brains, then. Hopefully, between the two of us, we have one memory.”
Tarn moved his attention to the [Select] option inside his mind and focused. The words glowed gold for a moment, then disappeared. There was a sudden flash of light inside his mind, an explosion of reds, blues, and yellows.
The redemption chamber faded away, and for a moment Tarn found himself floating in what felt like a dark sea of stars. Isca was beside him still, her jaw agape as she looked around her. A thin teal line began to form in front of them, moving faster as it expanded. In a moment, there was a large square drawn in blue energy before them, a label for their current location written above it. Inside were small icons, crude representations of humans and orcs, as well as a tiny icon with big ears for Lash, and a winged human symbol for Isca.
“Okay, well that’s us.” Tarn stared at the room for a moment. “I guess we can use this to look ahead farther?”
As if the map could hear his request, the lines before them began to move again, drawing and shifting back and forth until the entire next section of the dungeon could be seen. Tarn quickly made note of what the next rooms contained, but that was information they could already gain.
Next to them both, Tarn could see a red line now appearing. It stretched up to what he would gauge was about eight feet, ending down at the level of the invisible floor they stood upon. The top of the crimson bar was descending, slowly but steadily.
“Okay, there’s our timer.” Tarn nodded at the red bar. “We need to use this well. Let’s widen the view more, please.”
He was unsure if the map was responding to his vocal commands, or just picking up on his intent. He supposed it didn’t matter, though if Urthin were here he’d surely want to investigate it. Isca’s practicality was focused on other matters.
“Hmm,” Isca said. “This is really strange.” She pointed at a room in Tier Six on the right-most side. The room had only a single path leading to it, and no solid path out. There was a faint line leading off beyond the margins of the map, extending not from a door but from the center of the room.
“What’s past that?” Tarn felt something beyond curiosity as he looked at the dotted line leading to seemingly nowhere. It wasn’t relevant to their mission to reach Ak-Thanon, that path was clearly lined out before them. But there was still about 25% left on the timer.
//Expand Map section?
Cost: 20 BP
Note: Additional 30 seconds will be added to the timer.
Tarn inputted the blood cost without a second thought. He felt the vial on his belt get lighter still, as the red timer to his left increased in height. The map began to slide to the right, following the broken line until there was nothing else left in his vison. While precious seconds ticked by, it finally connected with a large circular room with a simple label printed above it.
“Axe Hub”
There was a crude representation of a large crystal in the center of the room, reminding Tarn of the Sword Dungeon’s heart. Moving outward from the circle were dozens of other dotted lines, presumably leading to other wings of the Axe Hub. Each had a small symbol next to them.
The dotted line Tarn and Isca had followed was represented by a crude drawing of an orc. The timer still dwindling, Tarn’s gaze worked around the circle. Many of the shapes were unrecognizable, but he saw another that looked a lot like the tragic Thartark creatures they had fought outside the Sword.
A path to each exit of the dungeon? To other worlds?
Isca’s gasp told him the answer. There on one of the last paths on the circle was a small drawing of a Kithikin, with a broken line leading off into the ether.
“Home?” Barely a whisper, her voice was almost too quiet to hear. She put one trembling hand out, her gloved fingers passing through the drawing of the central chamber.
Though he could sense Isca’s growing tension next to him, Tarn’s mind was racing through the map. The red timer was almost out, but there was one thing left they needed to know. The route from this section of the dungeon to the Axe Hub was locked, and there had to be a key.
Isca cried out as he pushed the hub’s image away in his mind. Forcing all his will into the mental connection, the lines before them whirled as he raced back down the dotted line. There had been a lock there, he just needed to see the key.
The room around them became visible again, slowly coming in from the darkness as if a light were being turned on. Tarn’s mind furiously tried to remember the symbols he had seen, burning them into his memory.
A moon with three stars. Somewhere, in some other part of this dungeon, there was a key with that symbol. They just had to find it.
“I – I didn’t get it all.” He turned to her. Isca was still reaching out, her hands now grasping at empty air. “I saw the symbol though. We just have to find who has the key.”
“My home.” She turned to him, tears welling in her eyes. “My father. He might still be there – I had given up hope that there would actually be a way.”
“Isca.” Tarn put his hands on her shoulders, gently turning her to him. “We’ll find it. I promised you, and this is the first step on that path.”
“But right now we are on another path, Tarn. I understand that. We have a job to complete – for you, for Bog and Narsol, for everyone. And I am here to finish that. No matter what.”
“I know.” The urge to kiss her was nearly overwhelming, yet as the crimson walls of the redemption center faded away, he resisted it. “You’ve been with us every step of the way, and we will be with you. Once this is done, we’re going to find that path home for you. That’s a promise I will keep.”
She blushed as she looked at him, her antennas curving inward as she leaned forward to kiss him on his cheek.
“Someday,” she whispered in his ear. “There will be a day without promises, without jobs and missions. I look forward to it.”
With a laugh, he moved back to the armor podium and deposited the needed blood points. In seconds, he was holding the ridiculous hat in his hands. Unsurprisingly it even smelled unusual, with the fabric giving off the faint scent of lilac.
With the padlock item under one arm, he followed Isca out of the chamber and back to the expected team. Urthin eyed the strange headgear under Tarn’s arm with suspicion.
“Our latest acquisition?” he asked, eyebrow raised with enough sarcasm to scrape the ceiling.
“Simmer down, Smiley.” Tarn grinned. “If you’re nice I’ll let you wear it instead of Lash.”
“Is the elite fight next?” Aryo was walking slowly toward the far door, nervousness written across his face, though Tarn was unsure if the young Zephyr was worried about their next battle, or an argument between him and Urthin.
“That it is,” Tarn said, holding his arm out toward the only exit from the room. He wished he knew more about what they would face on the other side, but all he could go on was the status effects of ‘Summoner’, ‘Reflective’, and their opponent’s theatrical name.
“Let’s go meet ‘Garmera the Great’!”