Did you know that Gold Elves hate the cold? It’s baked into our genetics like the love of sunlight is on the positive side of the equation. All of that is to say that when I felt the chill of the area seep in, before I even opened my eyes, I knew I was going to have a bad time on the second floor of the Tower.
Looking around, I found my party had been split up, but not by very much. We were only separated by a quarter mile per person, at least according to the Party Interface, which had the direction and distance each party member was from the party leader. It surprised me that it included Volta, Voltaire, and Arlian alongside my other companions. With a twist of the usual Mana for the Skill, I drew back a series of red [Light Arrows] and sent them soaring into the air above me in a fan.
As I waited for everyone to meet up on me, I took in the scene before me and was terrified. “That is the biggest mountain I’ve ever seen…” My jaw dropped as I leaned back to try and take as much of it in as I could. “It has to be at least fifty miles high! How the hell are we going to climb–”
A sudden freezing impact in my gut sent me sprawling backward, clutching my stomach. I hurried to reapply [Sun Armor] and [Arcane Armor] as I rolled to the side to dodge the barrage of icy boulders being hurled my way from a spot in the distance I couldn’t see, even with my mostly elven eyesight. That didn’t stop me from hurling [Light Arrows] in that general direction in a bit to at least slow the attacks down.
I guess I should have just told everyone how far they were from me through the chat, huh. Despite the situation I found myself in, I still found time to beat myself up about it. I really need to take a week, or even just a day or two, and get a hold on everything the Party Interface can really do. It’s been missing from the world for so long–
Despite my [Evasion] triggering half a dozen times to slide me slightly out of the way of the barrage coming my way, another icy boulder slammed into my left leg with a definitive crunch, shaking me out of my internal reflection as a scream ripped itself free of my lungs at full volume.
From my left I heard something, but couldn’t make it out. It was quickly made clear what it was when I got a message from Jaegan. ‘Use [Wall of Force], it’ll drain a bit of your HP, but it’s better than getting your legs broken. We’re already going to need healing, so hurry up. We’re all about to converge on you and we need a safe place to land.’
“How did I not think of that!” My scream of frustration morphed into a whimper as the [Wall of Force] sprang into existence before me. It was forty feet by ten feet and I slumped against it as I took a good look at my leg.
It didn’t look great. Despite the double layer of armor Spells and my Rare armor, I could already tell it was at least sprained, if not broken by the slight misalignment versus the other leg. Before I could dive too deeply into fixing my leg, Jaegan and Ylsa arrived on a sled I’d never seen before, careening into the snow behind my [Wall of Force].
“Uncommon [Healing Potion], now.” Jaegan’s gaunt face was twisted into a grimace. “Ylsa took a pair of those ice boulders to the head as she moved to cover me.”
Potion in hand, I turned to check Ylsa and found her unconscious with thready, irregular, breathing. Propping her head up on my good leg, I poured the potion into her mouth, but she didn’t swallow and looked like she was going to choke it up.
“Massage her throat!” The old [Mage] howled as he focused on the [Arcane Battery] he’d summoned above my wall. “It’ll force her to inhale it!” He raised his staff and pointed at the mountain before us. “Three second bursts spaced half a yard apart. Find that bastard boulder chucker my precious!”
Doing as my Dungeon and Tower mentor said, I gently massaged Ylsa’s throat and, half a second later she started choking the potion down. I worried for a second about her inhaling it versus drinking it, but the effect was nearly instantaneous as her eyes flashed open a few seconds after she started choking on it.
By sheer force of will, she stopped choking and swallowed the rest of the potion with a grimace. She tried to stand, but instead fell off the sled she’d been resting on, holding her head in both hands. “Is Jaegan OK?” She slurred her words quite a bit, but I knew what she’d be worried about.
“He’s fine, but you took a couple hits to the head. Rest up a minute while I grab another Uncommon [Healing Potion] for my leg. I think it’s busted.” I slipped the vial of red liquid from my ring, but before I could drink it, Ylsa stopped me.
“Let me set your leg first. There’s no use letting it set poorly, or you’ll have to have it broken again to heal it properly later.”
I protested briefly, but the boulders pounding on the wall connected to my lifeforce, draining my HP, coupled with her massive size stopped me from getting my way.
The pain as she set my leg against the wood of the sled was nearly transcendent and I think I blacked out for a bit. It wasn’t until I heard ice thunk into the sled next to my leg that I sprang awake. Without looking, I threw up another [Wall of Force] to my fully assembled party’s grateful gasps.
Behind me, Jaegan slumped against my wall as he let his own fade. “Check your Status, having your leg set shouldn’t have knocked someone with over a hundred [Toughness] out. Something else has to be going on.” I did as he recommended and was horrified at what I found.
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[Current Status Conditions:
Elemental Pactlord
Icebound Agony (Left Leg) - 58 Minutes Remaining]
“What the hell is [Icebound Agony]?” I muttered before tapping the name for more information.
[Icebound Agony - Icebound Agony is a debilitating condition that causes the victim to experience extreme pain and sensitivity to the afflicted location. Those afflicted with Icebound Agony find that even the slightest touch can be excruciating, and their bodies may react violently to even the slightest touch.]
“Well, fuck us I guess.” I threw the description over to the rest of our party, though I’m sure Raiju avoided reading it as she hurled bolts of lightning from her [Thunderhead] where it floated above us.
Ylsa frowned. “I can’t get any more information about the condition, but you can.” She shrugged. “If my liege knows, I needn’t worry.” She bowed to me. “I also took the liberty of saving the potion you nearly dropped and got it down your throat. Your leg should be fine, minus the condition, now.”
Slowly levering myself from the sled, I put some weight on my left leg and found it felt fine, though I didn’t like the way my armor rested against it. “Makes me itch, but with [Icebound Agony] on it, I guess that’s to be expected.”
Behind me, Jaegan grunted before spitting. “I’m glad you’re up, m’boy, but we need to get going if we’re going to finish this floor in time. Check the clear condition.” Focusing on the corner of my vision, I did as he requested.
[Tower of Trials - Chalcedony Floor 2:
Clear Condition - Reach the top of the mountain in one week or less.
Penalty for Failure - Death.
Bonus - Reach the top of the mountain in three days or less.]
“If we fly–”
I started until Raiju barked to cut me off. “I can’t fly here, just like that Raid Boss fight. All flight abilities have been locked.” She swung her head toward where Volta and Voltaire were darting out from around the [Wall of Force] to send arrows of lightning toward whatever it was that was throwing ice boulders at us. “Even they can’t fly and they’re made of air, fire, and lightning.”
Volta motioned for her brother to continue before walking over and bowing deeply. “Honored Raiju is correct.” The wolf yipped happily despite herself. “My brother and I are presently unable to fly more than six inches from the ground. It turns out,” she shivered,” that snow and lightning do not in fact, mix. I made the mistake of trying to stand upon the stuff and the agony I felt was more than any I’ve ever experienced.”
That got my mind whirling. “That’s the trick to the floor. The last one was about endurance, but this one’s about tenacity.” I moved to get everyone in my field of vision before continuing. “Think about it, the last floor had us killing hundreds of monsters in intense heat, some of which had access to spirit attacks,” I glanced over at Jaegan, who shrugged despite his situation, “while this one only asks us to reach a destination, but has us under a near constant assault from above.”
I checked the loot tab of the Party Interface and chuckled, earning me a few strange looks. “We’ve been attacking our aggressors for a few minutes. Hell, Jaegan unleashed his second biggest attack, and we haven’t received a single piece of loot. Not a piece of fur, claw, or anything. We’re not dealing with a monster here, we’re fighting the mountain itself!”
“How are we supposed to fight a mountain?” Raiju panted as she let the cloud above us fade.
“That’s the beauty of it,” I grinned wickedly, “we’re not!”
What followed in the next hour was an absolutely glorious mess. With the help of Ylsa’s [Sledding] and [Woodworking] we were able to cobble together something I hoped would let us accomplish our goal, with one big problem.
“I refuse to pull your sled wearing that ugly piece of garbage you’re calling armor.”
My bound companion stomped her foot and looked away from the hodgepodge of armor pieces, cloth, and leather we’d put together to protect her as she pulled the twenty foot long sled with walls made from [Magmen] leather from the previous floor that pulled up to make a tent covered sled. We’d tested it against the unending rain of attacks and it seemed the [Magmen] leather was far tougher than the creatures themselves had been. With tent poles made from the frame of a [Flame Golem], our sled was rock solid, even if it was Ugly with a capital U.
“Raiju,” I walked around in front of her, “it’s OK if you’re scared. We all are–”
She snarled. “I’m not scared of those puny boulders, I can dodge them easier than you walk up stairs.” Her ears laid down dangerously. “I’m just saying I don’t want to be seen wearing something so…inelegant. It doesn’t suit me at all.”
From the back of the sled, Jaegan snorted, but wisely kept his mouth shut. Ylsa, on the other hand, padded over to assist. She knelt and bowed until her head nearly touched the ground.
“Storm-Runner, may I speak my piece?”
Ever the sucker for flattery, Raiju nodded imperiously. “You may.”
“I thank you for the opportunity.” Ylsa sat back on her knees to take in Raiju in all her glory. “You could complete this floor on your own within a few hours, completely unharmed, of that I have no doubt.” She laid it on thick and Raiju lapped it up. “But what of your companions? None of us are even half as fast or strong as you, not even me, and without you…Jaegan is doomed to die here on this mountain.”
I clenched my teeth at the reminder. Jaegan’s soul wound hadn’t improved, which meant even if we made it to the top of the mountain in a week, he’d already be dead.
“But, but, but…it’s so ugly!” The white wolf went full drama mode. “Look at how sleek I am, with that thing on I’ll be like a running boulder. How can I go fast looking like a boulder?!”
“I mean, that’s how we’re being attacked, right? Flying boulders.” I deadpanned. “If you were as fast as those? I’d be really happy.”
She stared at me with something I’d never seen before from her, hatred, however briefly it lasted. Without a second thought, she turned around and unleashed a dozen [Lightning Bolts] on the clunky cloak we’d put together for her in less than half that many seconds. Ylsa and I watched in horror as the metal ribs melted out into the snow while the monster leather was left with huge holes in it.
She turned to me with an evil smile. “I know what we can do instead!”
Something told me I wasn’t going to like her idea.