I walked stealthily into the mine tunnel, reminding myself of the rules for dealing with basilisks: if I looked at a basilisk while it looked at me, I’d be turned to stone. As long as one of us wasn’t looking at the other, I’d be safe.

I consulted Virik’s crude map, which illustrated the main tunnel and its maze of shafts. The map didn’t show where the basilisks were, but I could see where the far end of the westernmost shaft connected to their lair.

If the basilisks had turned several miners to stone, it was likely that they were still eating the petrified lizardfolk. I hoped that meant they weren’t wandering through the mine. I also hoped I’d be able to hear them before I could see them.

I reached an intersection in which the main tunnel split into four branches. After setting a rope snare, I strapped my crossbow to my back and climbed up the wall. I didn’t like climbing upside-down, but as long as none of the rocks broke off, I’d be able to travel silently by clinging to the roof of the mine.

I decided to explore the mine from east to west. I couldn’t hear anything in the eastern shaft, and after climbing farther, I glanced inside. No basilisks, but a section of the ceiling had caved in, producing a wall of fallen rock. Anyone trying to enter the shaft would have to be able to climb the wall.

I returned to the intersection and started down another branch. After minutes of climbing, I heard a slurping sound followed by the crushing of stone. Keeping my head averted and my body pressed to the roof, I climbed until I was directly above the basilisk. So far, I hadn’t made a sound.

I looked down at the monster as it took another bite out of the petrified miner. It was the size of a walrus, yet it had the head, claws, and green scales of a lizard. Basilisks were deadly because of their petrification ability, but they weren’t known for being smart or fast.

I couldn’t fire my crossbow while clinging to the roof, so I extended my right hand and cast Illuminate on a nearby rock formation. It lit up as though I’d shone a flashlight on it. As I’d hoped, the basilisk stopped slurping and trotted toward the light. Once there, it clawed at the rocks with the fascination of a cat attacking the reflection of a laser pointer.

I checked to make sure that no other basilisks were around. Then, while the monster attacked the illuminated rocks, I lowered myself to the floor. The Illumination spell was reaching its end, so I cast another spell on the same spot. Then I loaded my crossbow.

“Head,” I whispered.

The bolt struck the base of the basilisk’s head, and it emitted a muffled roar as its head swiveled slowly from side to side. I hoped this meant that the creature was dazed. The beast slowly turned in my direction, and I sidestepped quickly to stay out of its gaze.

I reloaded and fired again, striking the basilisk in the back. Another roar, more sidestepping. I felt like a bullfighter, but instead of avoiding a bull's horns, my goal was to avoid the creature’s gaze. Another shot and the monster stopped moving, its health points having fallen to a third. I unsheathed Ebonclaw and stabbed the crosshairs that formed in the small of its back.

BACKSTAB! +1,600 XP!

Relieved, I sheathed my dagger, strapped on my crossbow, and returned to the roof. As I explored the mine, I killed two more basilisks using the same method I’d used to take out the first—approach with stealth, distract with Illuminate, and strike from behind with bolts and backstabs. +1,600 XP! +1,600 XP!

I got careless with the fourth basilisk. While climbing, I grabbed a rock that broke away, and I fell back-first onto the floor of the mine. The basilisk turned away from its statue, saw my prone figure, and roared. I got to my feet and ran to the mine entrance, keeping my eyes averted from the pursuing beast.

When I reached the intersection with the main tunnel, I jumped over the snare I’d set earlier. Behind me, the beast cried out as the rope snapped, which meant the trap had caught its target.

Even though the basilisk had fallen into my trap, its gaze had lost none of its lethality. I stepped ten paces away, held out the crossbow, and fired at the beast without looking at it. I loaded and fired as quickly as I could, and though I missed most of my shots, the beast howled whenever I landed a hit. After I'd fired nearly all of my regular bolts, the +1,600 XP! message appeared.

I recovered most of my bolts and reset the snare. Virik had said there were five basilisks in the mine, so only one remained. I suspected that it would be harder to kill than the others. So far, most monsters in this game had a boss, and I was confident the basilisks would be no exception.

⚔

I’d explored most of the mine, but I hadn’t reached the shaft that intersected the lair. That was, I assumed, where I’d find the fifth basilisk. I climbed toward the lair slowly and carefully, keeping my head averted and listening for movement.

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

The lair’s roof was higher than the roof of the mine, and its surface was rocky enough to support climbing. Below, I heard the chomping sounds of a basilisk feasting on a victim. It occurred to me that the basilisks might not have a boss. Maybe this one was just as mindless as the first four.

I climbed inside until I was directly above the monster. Then I cast Illuminate on a stalagmite near the entrance. The upturned stone glowed in the darkness, and the chomping stopped. But I couldn’t hear any footsteps.

“Is that the best you can do?” The voice below me was female and clearly disappointed. “Shine a light and attack me from behind? If I was your mother, I’d be ashamed.”

I kept my grip on the roof, but my hands, arms, and feet trembled. A talking basilisk? In all my years of fantasy gaming, I’d never heard of such a thing.

“Y-you can speak?” I asked.

“Of course! I’ve acquired the intelligence of every creature I’ve ever eaten, and I speak your language flawlessly, my crossbow-wielding friend. And may I say that it’s a shame that you keep your back to me instead of having a proper face-to-face conversation.”

I froze. When I’d planned my attack, I’d assumed that none of the basilisks would know I was coming. I hadn’t even considered the possibility that one of the beasts would not only see me but also be smart enough to know what I was doing.

A series of grunts and thrusts sounded as though the basilisk was doing calisthenics, but I didn’t dare look down. As the grunts grew louder, I realized what she was doing—the beast was jumping upward, likely trying with all her might to sink her teeth into my back.

“Oh, why won’t you come down? Then we could see each other! We could even have a proper conversation!”

I made my way toward the entrance as quickly as I could. Then I climbed out of the lair and entered the main branch of the mine. To my disappointment, the creature’s footsteps followed close behind.

“So you’re just going to visit my home and leave? Without so much as a word?” The basilisk continued. “That’s dreadfully impolite, but fear not. I’ll continue our conversation. In fact, I’ll even introduce myself. Everyone calls me Mama, and if you weren’t so bashful, I’m sure you’d do the same.”

I slowed my climbing, making sure to place my hands and feet correctly before continuing forward. All it would take was one misplaced hand, and Mama would turn me to stone.

“Playing hard to get?” Mama asked. “Very well. I’ll chase if I must. We both know you can’t stay on the roof forever.”

I came up with a vague plan for dealing with the basilisk, but I needed to get back to the caved-in shaft, which was at the other end of the mine. I climbed in that direction.

“You’re a human, are you not? I find it so hard to remember the races of surface dwellers. As I recall, orcs are pig-men, gnolls are hyena-men, and humans are monkey-men.”

Mama continued speaking as we continued eastward, but I didn’t dare respond; I just concentrated on each handhold and foothold, reminding myself that my first mistake would be my last.

“You’re not as brave as the other humans I’ve encountered, but you’re certainly the best climber. If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were part spider. I suppose that makes you a spider-monkey, doesn’t it?”

I continued onward, doing my best to ignore the basilisk’s voice. I climbed over the tunnel intersection, where I’d set the snare.

“What is this, a rope trap? You didn’t really think you’d catch me in such a crude contraption, did you?”

Avoiding the snare, Mama continued following me through the shaft. Moments later, she made a series of low, guttural noises. Then she raised her voice and then repeated the noises twice more.

“My boys aren’t speaking to me, spider-monkey. Why is that? What did you do to my beautiful boys?”

I stopped climbing. I began to sweat as the realization dawned on me—the four basilisks I’d killed had been Mama’s sons. Her voice lost its affability, and became filled with hate.

“I smell your sweat, murderer! You can’t live with your guilt, can you? You’re sweating so badly that you’re guaranteed to slip and fall. Guaranteed, spider-monkey!”

I focused on Palomir, and my thoughts cooled. When my sweating stopped, I continued eastward. Minutes later, I reached the shaft that had been partially closed off due to a cave-in. Like so many other beasts, Mama couldn’t follow me because she couldn’t climb.

“Don’t hide in there! Come out and play! Come to Mama!”

Once I climbed a safe distance into the caved-in shaft, I lowered myself to the ground. Then, keeping my back to Mama, I loaded a bolt of fire into my crossbow.

“I may not be able to climb,” Mama said, “but I can eat through these rocks. Oh yes, spider-monkey, I’ll see you soon!”

A loud slurping sounded she bit into the fallen rocks. I backstepped slowly toward her, and once I smelled her breath, I cast Blur. Then I spun around and cast Flash.

A bright light surrounded the area, and I desperately hoped Mama wouldn’t be able to petrify me while she was blinded. I opened my eyes slowly, focusing on the ground, and lifted my gaze upward until I made out the outline of her jaw. Then I aimed my crossbow.

“Eyes.”

The bolt of fire struck the monster’s face, and though I couldn’t be certain I’d blinded her, her head was surrounded by a cloud of fire. After taking a step back, I fired two bolts of poison into her chest. Then I walked to the other end of the shaft, keeping my back to the basilisk. And I waited.

“Poison? You poisoned me? And you call me a monster? You savage! You brute! If I was your mother, I’d—”

Mama’s voice grew softer, though her implacable hatred was still evident. As the poison did its work, her voice became so quiet that I could only barely hear her. I loaded a bolt of fire and prepared to step toward the beast, but her voice dwindled to silence. A message flashed in the upper right: +3,200 XP!

Another message scrolled along the bottom of my view: QUEST COMPLETED: SLAY THE BASILISKS IN THE ZELENKH MINE. +4,000 XP!

I dropped to my knees and fell onto the floor of the shaft, trembling. Once I caught my breath, I got to my feet and looked at Mama’s corpse. Her face was contorted with rage, agony, and deep sadness.

It occurred to me that, given Mama's intelligence and ability to speak, a peaceful solution might have been possible. But she hadn't spoken to the lizardfolk miners, had she? She and her sons had turned them to stone without warning or mercy.

I searched through the mine and the basilisk lair, but there was no loot to be found. The statues of their victims had no items that survived petrification. Figures. Disappointed, I returned to the door that led outside.