On the second morning following their adventure to perform some water bear population control they found themselves at the entrance to the Sunken Caverns once again.
Standing in a small cave they gathered in front of a large wooden door. Well…massive wooden door would be more like it. It was nearly 50 feet tall and as wide as the cavern they stood in. The door was made of colossal planks of solid alien jungle wood. It looked ancient and weathered. Scars were adorning the surface of the door as if it had resisted numerous attempts to batter it down over the years. Interestingly, there was no rot anywhere. This was surprising since the cave they were in was damp, covered in moss and crawling with all manner of insects and rodents.
Calvin looked up at the enormous portal, noting there were no handles and no obvious ways to open it. It was certainly much too large for their group to push their way through it.
“Maybe we should knock?” Marshall said.
While his comment was a joke, it wasn’t the worst option they’d heard. Calvin shrugged and stepped forward to give the door a good hard whack.
The moment his knuckles made contact with the ancient wood an energy field rippled across the door and a system prompt greeted the group
SUNKEN CAVERNS DUNGEON
Located deep within the rainforest, the Sunken Caverns are a labyrinthine network of ancient chambers pulsating with an unsettling energy emanating from their core – the Obsidian Heart. Legends whisper of the remnants of a lost civilization and a powerful artifact sealed within, promising knowledge and peril in equal measure.
This dungeon is an extreme test of your prowess within the tutorial. You will have 10 days to complete the dungeon. Once you enter, you will be able to exit through any established exit points, however, you will not be able to return. This challenge may only be attempted one time.
WILL YOU ENTER THE SUNKEN CAVERNS? (THIS ENTRANCE WILL CLOSE IN 59 MINUTES)
“Well shit, looks like we’re on a timer. Is everyone ready to roll?” Calvin asked.
“It’s now or never, let’s do it.” Said Marshall.
The group nodded in affirmation and Calvin confirmed their desire to enter the dungeon.
The massive door in front of them hummed to life, a blue shimmering field rippling over its surface.
Calvin experimentally prodded the door with his spear which seemed to pass through effortlessly. He looked back towards his friends, and then to the door again. Beads of sweat forming on the back of his neck in anxious tension. Steeling himself, he stepped forward into the blue light. His companions followed wordlessly.
Their journey…if you could call it that, was over in an instant. They appeared in a large, damp-smelling cavern not unlike the one they had just left, albeit much, much larger. Behind them, there was no sign that a door ever existed, almost as if they were teleported here. Teleporting is crazy though isn’t it? They stood high on a ledge and could see much of the cavern below. They were hundreds of feet up in the air and above them were hundreds more feet to the tall ceiling.
This place was like something out of a dream. Bioluminescent moss and mushrooms covered nearly every surface. The walls were a slick, glowing mass of flora, grasping for a hold in this surreal atmosphere. The feeling Ian had when they originally approached the cave was intensified to an unprecedented degree. The air here felt alive and purposeful. This was confirmed by Ian’s Nanite Analysis giving him the ability to sense nanite concentrations, and this place was teeming with energy.
Insects of all manner flitted and crawled their way through the landscape, the sight sending small shivers through them as Calvin and Marshall remembered back to their first encounter in this hell. The bugs around them though didn’t appear to be quite so dangerous, for now. They knew full well that was not going to last. The description of the dungeon upon entering made it very clear that this would be an extreme challenge. There’s no way they were just going to waltz in, steal the treasure and return with power.
The ledge they were on gradually sloped downward along the cavern walls almost like a spiral staircase leading them to the ground level. Surveying the lay of the land, they could see other ledges and cave entrances along the path.
“Let’s head down towards that ledge below.” Calvin pointed down towards a ledge on the opposite side of the cavern approximately 30 feet below their current elevation. “We’ll move slowly, and keep our eyes peeled. Freya keep that nose handy girl. Give us a woof if you sense anything.”
He didn’t need to speak directly to Freya, but he’d decided it was best that the group knew what he was asking her to do.
The path toward the other ledge would be just wide enough for the group to stand side by side, arms stretched without touching. It was made of solid stone and sloped gently making traversal not too perilous. It was slick with moss in several patches though and the edge of the path opened up to a free-fall to the cavern floor below. They would need to be careful.
Calvin dreaded the thought of having to fight on this path. Movement would be restricted and losing their footing would be a near guarantee in the fast-paced, frantic movements they typically experienced in their fights. As such, the group marched forward carefully two by two. They kept closer to the walls of the cavern, allowing plenty of leeway between themselves and the chasm below.
The journey to the ledge was mostly uneventful. The anxiety was high, with the group expecting something to leap out at them with every step they took. There was one minor hiccup in the journey where Seth almost died.
About a dozen steps along their harrowing march, a large worm that could only be described as nasty as hell slipped from its perch and landed on Seth’s arm with a sickening splosh.
“Auugh!” He screamed as the party quickly took battle stances, prepared to come to Seth’s aid.
“What did you see? What is it?” Calvin frantically called. Then noticing the worm on the ground began to relax.
Embarrassed, with his heart still hammering away in his chest Seth stomped on the worm that had caused him so much grief and waved for the group to carry on. Marshall was already thinking of something clever to say, although he held back, knowing their nerves were all fraying at the edges and Seth was just the unlucky one this time.
Arriving at their destination there were two things of note. An entrance to a tunnel made its way from the ledge into the cavern wall. Peering into the tunnel, it curved just a few feet in and they were unable to see what lay beyond. The ledge also continued downward on the sloping path towards yet another ledge with another tunnel opening.
This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.
The group quickly discussed their options.
“I say we head into the tunnel,” Marshall suggested. “It’s gotta be here for a reason right? If we keep going down that way toward the next ledge we may be missing something here.” He held up his javelin and tugged at his poorly patched shirt. “I’m ready to get some upgrades here.”
Calvin, Amy, and Seth deliberated in their heads about what to do, they all seemed to simultaneously agree that Marshall had a point.
“Agreed. We have 10 days in this place. I’m not sure if that’s a lot or a little, but we really should explore every nook and cranny. My first concern is that this could be a dangerous trap. But, hell, anywhere here could be a dangerous trap. I’m with Marshall…let’s poke our heads down this tunnel and see if we might find anything interesting in there. If it looks like it sucks, we’ll just pop back out here and carry on down the path.”
A unified group of nods greeted him back, followed by an excited yip from their best girl Freya.
They walked into the tunnel and immediately all of their doubts about whether this could be a dangerous trap were erased. Because as the last of them entered, a shimmering and impenetrable field sprang to life behind them, closing off the entrance.
“I hate this place already.” Amy groaned.
They nervously plodded down the tunnel which quickly opened up into another cavernous room. The makeup was similar to the cavern they came from. Moss and mushrooms dotted every surface, and dripping stalactites hung from the ceiling like gargantuan stone-carved teeth waiting to gobble them up. It was ominous for sure.
The roof of the cavern was sparsely dotted with what appeared to be more large bioluminescent plants or mushrooms, giving the cavern that signature eerie blue glow they’ve come to know and love from this place.
In the center of the room seemed to be their goal. A pedestal stood about 4 feet tall supporting what appeared to be an amethyst-colored crystal shard of some sort. It was emitting a high concentration of nanite energy according to Ian’s keen senses. Scoping out the room, they couldn’t see any other entrances or exits, suggesting that whatever they might need to open the way behind them was in front of them.
“This has bullshit written all over it Cal.” Marshall pointed out.
“Agreed.” Cal replied. “I don’t see anything immediately dangerous in here though. Freya, you got anything?”
She sniffed at the air and along the ground in front of her a bit, not wanting to step into the cavern just yet. She sat down and gave out a small whine.
“She’s got nothing. Let’s move slowly towards that glowing rock. Everyone keep your eyes peeled.”
Approaching the crystal, they could feel the power emanating from it. It released a pulsing rhythmic hum hinting at immense amounts of energy contained within. They slowly circled the pedestal, not wanting to get too close just yet. The sense of danger permeated every cell in Calvin’s body.
Calvin bent down and picked up a pebble from the cavern floor, tossing it gently at the crystal. Another barrier, similar to the one blocking the entrance rippled into view, obstructing the pebble’s path and then vanished again as if it had never been there.
ENCOUNTER GIANT LUMINESCENT SPIDER (X6)
“Oh what the hell man!” Marshall screamed out as the group took up a formation, scanning the room for danger. They didn’t immediately see anything, forcing confused looks to spring up on their features as they looked at each other expectantly.
Freya, being the best little guard dog she could, figured it out. She yipped in ferocious anger at the ceiling above them and the group collectively turned their attention skyward.
Those were NOT plants or mushrooms dotting the ceiling. Six absolutely disgusting, glowing spiders were rappelling from the cavern roof on thin strands of web like some sort of arachnid special forces.
The group retreated from the crystal, forming up near where they entered. Ian quickly rounded up six rounds of Rock Shot sending the projectiles rocketing up at the descending spiders.
It was a great opening salvo except for one thing, moving targets were a pain in the ass to hit. Five of the projectiles missed, shattering harmlessly above the spiders. One stone bullet found its mark though, striking a spider and piercing through its horrifying body. A spray of glowing blue ichor erupted from the wound as the spider detached from its web and plummeted the rest of the way to the cavern floor.
Seth was already in motion. Moving between the group and the descending spiders he placed his palms on the ground and channeled Runic Snare. A slight glow emitted from his hands as a rune no larger than a poster magically etched itself into the ground.
He repeated this process twice more leaving three such runes to divide the battlefield in front of them. This was something the team had practiced during their very fruitful training day.
Seth moved back to his position behind Calvin.
The spiders touched down, disconnecting their webs and skittering forwards towards the group with murderous hunger in their beady little spider eyes.
Ian had sent off a round of Enkindle, wreathing two of the approaching arachnids in a burst of flame. This clearly wounded them but did not bring them out of the fight. He desperately wanted to throw out a Storm Surge, flashing back to the events at Water Beartopia. They’d discussed this previously though, as a group they would need to face these challenges equally. With the long cooldown and high cost of that skill, they didn’t want Ian to blow his entire casting budget on a single encounter. They’d save skills like Storm Surge for when they really needed it.
Calvin and Freya were rushing toward the lead spider in the mass. They would have time to get a few strikes in before the other spiders arrived. Amy was already off, moving towards the periphery trying to blend in and get behind the creatures for an ambush.
Calvin stepped over the runes etched into the ground opting to leave them as a path to retreat through after he scored his initial hits. His movements were building energy within his Resonant Charge. Energy crackled visibly around the tip of his spear. Just feet from the lead spider, he leveled his spear tip for a vicious stab.
AWOOOOOO
Freya’s howl surged across the battlefield. The effect briefly stunned Calvin’s target and slowed the others down noticeably. The skill seemed attenuated by the distance.
Calvin’s crackling spear tip sank deep into the body of the lead spider, sending jolts of electricity through it. It spasmed violently as its legs curled up in violent contortions. He activated the second tool in his kit Chain Reaction. Electric arcs sprang off his target, leaping to two of the nearby spiders. The shocking surge forced them to the ground as the energy coursed through their bodies. The damage was evident, but not even remotely critical. He withdrew his spear from the spider at his feet and began a slow retreat as the two spiders, still smoking from the previous attack recovered and began their charge with renewed bloodlust.
Calvin was feeling an incredible surge of confidence from his opening strikes. So far, this fight was not even a contest for them. Ian had critically wounded one spider, and Calvin’s strike had torn another a new asshole. It couldn’t be this easy right?
DANGER! Surged through Calvin’s mind. His connection to Freya erupted to a crescendo. One of the spiders previously unaffected by Calvin’s skill had flanked him, finding an opening for a quick strike. It lunged towards him, fangs dripping with a caustic venom, and its legs aiming for a piercing strike.
Calvin stumbled backward, landing hard on his ass, about to take a spider claw right to the chest. In a flash, Freya appeared in front of him, intercepting the strike with her body. While sinking her teeth into the claw that now pierced her body. With a distressed yelp, the spider flung her off to the side. To the spider’s dismay, however, that leg went with her.
Calvin could sense that Freya was wounded, but it wasn’t critical. She would recover on her own, however she would likely be out of this fight. He scrambled to his feet and began a fighting retreat back across the runes Seth had left for them.
Looking over at Freya, Calvin could see that Marshall had quickly arrived at her side. He removed the still wriggling leg from her wound and slapped a leather bandage on it. The nanite infused medical oddity adhering itself to the wound and completely sealing the bleeding. He hit her with a Nanosurge Mist before taking up a position to protect her while she healed.
The battle moved frantically, barely toeing the edge between being a finely coordinated melee and completely dissolving into an utter shitshow. In a desperate effort to get things back on track, Calvin called out for Ian to focus his efforts on the now 7 legged spider. Ian happily obliged, pelting the creature in a relentless stream of earthen pellets. The spider succumbed to the unholy barrage; however, Ian’s mana was reaching dangerously low levels. Soon, he would be back on Javelin duty.
With two down and another critically wounded, things were finally getting back on track.