Drew and his berserker friend advance down the hallway in search of their next target when they come to a large set of double doors with a monstrous skull mounted above it. Having learnt not to throw caution to the wind, they slowed their pace down and carefully approached the strange doorway.
https%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2FuajrM7J.jpg [https://i.imgur.com/uajrM7J.jpg]
Once they were within a few yards of the door, the eye sockets of the skull started to glow a cyan hue as life seemed to seep back into its motionless structure.
“Opponents of the Dungeon Hidden Behind the Falls, congratulations on making it this far. Ahead lies the final boss of the first floor. Defeat it and you will be appropriately awarded according to your most sincere desires. However, before the final conflict can begin, you must overcome a challenge of intellect appropriate to your group's skill level.”
The booming voice sounded chipper in a way Drew thought was not possible for such a monstrous and evil looking skull.
“Are you ready to begin this mind bending challenge?”
Nurgle raised his weapons in confirmation and so the task began. A large table appeared in the middle of the path leading to the door. It was adorned with colorful shapes made in the likeness of various objects. Some were similar to stars while others seemed like skulls that were present around the dungeon.
Drew lifted Nurgle up onto the table to see what was going on. Holes of various shapes lined the table and he immediately understood the goal.
“You have until the hourglass runs out to solve this puzzle. Failure means death so I wish you the best. Enjoy the near rhyme and good luck.”
“This is literally a game meant for toddlers. How dumb does this dungeon think we are if it thinks this is an appropriate difficulty level?" A quick glance over at Nurgle answered his question. He was looking at this puzzle like the first skeleton he ever saw, in absolute terror. “Really?”
The little creature scratched and pulled at its hair trying to understand the challenge placed before him. He first lifted a piece up and stair at it intently before sitting it down and wailing into the air in abject horror.
“Calm down dude. We got this.” Despite his attempts to relax the distraught creature, its wailing persisted. “Look, this is how you do it.”
Drew picked a star piece up and slotted it into the star shaped hole under Nurgles careful watch. A satisfying thunk confirmed the move as the shape lit up on the table. The progress lightened the cyclops mood immensely and , with guidance, slotted in his own shape.
He slapped his side in joy and went about trying to slot in shapes into holes that obviously didn’t fit the object till he finally found one that worked. The hourglass was massive and there wasn’t even a fifth gone when they successfully completed the puzzle. With all shapes slotted into the appropriate holes, the picture came to life.
It depicted a violent war fought between skeletons and humans underneath the night sky with large skeletal beasts fighting war elephants ridden by humans. The intense image dimmed completely after a few seconds and the table faded out of existence before their eyes, leaving Nurgle to fall to the ground on his butt.
“Congratulations on finishing the puzzle. I truly believe you can succeed in your journey. Carry on ahead and fight the final challenge of the first floor. Good luck!”
The skull’s eye sockets dimmed till it looked lifeless once again and the double doors ahead made a loud sound akin to a vault door unwinding its locking mechanism. The pair approached the ominous door.
“Let’s kill this thing, Nurgle.”The cyclops slammed his weapons together while Drew checked his gear before moving to the door. He went to push open the ornate doors and stumbled forward, expecting the massive slabs of wood to put up some resistance. Much like the doors in the abandoned city, he was let through with no resistance and was brought face to face with the final monster they had to defeat.
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https%3A%2F%2Fi.imgur.com%2F83rpsB0.jpg [https://i.imgur.com/83rpsB0.jpg]
The macabre monster came to life, stood taller and stared at the entrance. The brightly lit room showcased the sheer terror the monster induced. The backwards facing legs and clawed feet supported the 8 foot tall frame and metal armor. It held a spinal club in a clawed hand while the other was free to slice anything that came close.
The imposing figure stood still, glaring through them rather than at them. The stare chilled Drew to the core while Nurgle froze as soon as he entered behind him.
“We are so dead.”
The monster took the first step forwards with a fluidity that was unmatched by any of the other skeletons. The clawed feet scraped the ground every time it moved ahead. Once it had reached twenty paced from the pair, it picked its pace up and started running at them with its club raised.
The fear propelled Drew to act first. He readied his ax and shield before deciding the massive monster was too much to take head on. He darted to the side to rob the creature of momentum and positioned himself between Nurgle and the evil incarnate. It slammed its club down where Drew had been standing with Nurgle getting showered with shards of stone.
“This is not fair. That thing looks like a demon.”
Nurgle was entirely ignored by the monster as it turned from where it had him pinned and started moving back to where Drew had moved. It was impossible. Even without the blood, guts, and muscle, the creature had to weigh twice what he did. It was Death and it had Drew’s number.
He backed up as the creature started moving in his direction before halting its run as his enemy backpedaled away. It seemed to slow down to a crawl then speed back up to intercept Drew’s path of retreat. The man turned his back on the beast as it got within ten feet and ran to the opposite side of the large room while the beast smashed the floor where he once stood.
The beast picked the club up from the ground and seemed to wait for something to happen. Drew couldn’t help but think it tried to be as imposing as possible. The stare down it was having with the wall he had been standing at carried on for seconds before Drew started to approach the monster.
The mere act of approaching it seemed to offend it as it turned around and once again approached in the same way it had done so twice before. The slow gait picked up pace till it started running. Drew kept his slow walk forward purposeful and calculated, waiting for the monster to approach.
It got within range of him and swung its mighty club down onto the ground, missing due to the virtue of the nimble man’s quick reaction time. In retaliation, he brought the ax down on the skull with as much force as he could muster with two hands.
The blade came down and seemed to shave off a small part of the skull but left very little damage beyond that. With his strongest attack failed, Drew gained space while creature swung with a wide arc around it, completely missing where he had been standing
Had the earlier grace of its run been a fluke and its actual motor skill were much more poor than they let on? The creature once again stood still after both fighters finished their attack. Unsure of what to do, Drew attempted to get closer to attack again with a few heavy steps.
The echoing steps appeared to anger the monster as it swiped in his direction just like before. This time Drew attempted to take the blow with his shield while backing up. This decision quickly proved poor as his shield was battered away and his arm ached from the contact.
Nurgle gained some courage in the time the fight had taken place and charged forward with his small feet pattering against the floor in nearly inaudible thuds. The monster did not react to the incoming threat before it was struck despite being in clear view of its eye sockets.
The foolproof method of tripping skeletal enemies proved a poor tactic against the creature. Its clawed feet barely shifted on the floor as they raked lines in the hard stone. The monster struck out at waist height at little Nurgle, missing him entirely. The whistling of air coming off the club and shattered stone that littered the battlefield was enough proof that one hit would cream the little man.
In fear of his companion dying to the beast, Drew pressed the attack and once again smashed the skull with his full force before retreating. The creature turned to follow him while Nurgle followed behind at its rear.
The creature sent out a flurry of swings and swipes to crush or gut its opponent to no avail. Drew watched the skeleton approach while backpedaling. Repeatedly. The strikes seemed to be as random as any attack could be beyond being in his general direction.
Another swipe forward required his shield to come forward and block the powerful strike. The side of the mace snagged itself on the shield and tore the stitching that held it together. The lack of support and force of the blow sent the shield flying like a frisbee.
A loud clang sounded off as metal met stone. The large boss monster turned to the source of the noise and advanced on it rapidly. A path to victory was born in Drew's mind..