A shower of blood spattered the walls of the confined stairwell. The other skrells flinched in response to the unexpected gore. I cared not as I plunged my dagger into a monster's eye, sinking it to the hilt as I tore it out with a violent jerk.
I wanted carnage. I wanted to rage. The damn monsters had to die. They deserved to be torn to shreds. Their existence was an affront to me. I didn't even notice the pain as a skrell sliced into my upper thigh. I stabbed the monster in a frenzy, but it wouldn't let go. As the skrell held on, two more sunk their teeth into me. One was blocked by the hard leather bracer on my arm, while the other crunched on my left hand.
The crack of a bone was enough to pierce the haze of rage and brought some sanity back to my attention. I tried to pull my hand out of the monster's jaw, but it wrapped its arms around my wrist and held on. It was only when a plume of gold fire exploded from below me that the monster let go. As it tried to ineffectually dodge the incoming flames, I tugged my hand out of its mouth and grabbed onto its neck. The fire licked at my hands as it consumed the skrell's head.
A loud smack saw the release of the dying bastard clutched around my leg. Andrew's axe glowed dimly blue as it split the monster's skull. I slumped to the side as the others rushed in and mopped up the rest of the skrell. Áine landed on my shoulder and started running her mana through me. The little fairy radiated a sense of worry and concern, but she remained silent in my head.
The blinding rage subsided and fled once the last of the blood beasts were dispatched. At this point, I knew something was wrong. Never in my life had I felt myself a puppet to my anger. I needed to get out of here and talk to Brelten as soon as possible. Losing myself to my emotions was terrifying.
"What the fuck was that?!" Aaron yelled.
I looked the man in the eyes and gave a tired sigh. I didn't have an answer, Not one that would excuse me of my actions. With a shrug, I slipped the Ink Lord's Mask of Expression back onto my face. With it on, I could hide the worry I was feeling. The man already had issues trusting me, and I didn't need to deepen his concern.
"Carried away, I apologize. Let's go; the snakes are coming," I replied in a deadpan voice.
His face contorted in annoyance, but Andrew clapped a hand on his shoulder and motioned upwards. I positioned myself behind Andrew and Ruina, making sure to stay in front of Aaron in case he felt jumpy having me behind him. We rushed up the stairs in a hurry, the sound of our steps drowning out the hissing of the naga.
Zharia flew slightly ahead to be our spotter. We rushed for five minutes, wanting to put as much distance as possible between us and the tier-two monsters. When Zharia sent a mental cry of warning, I stopped everyone and waited for Zharia to fly back.
"Zharia, what's wrong?" I asked.
"Big battle! Large group of the red wart-men fighting a bigger group of grey wart-men," she replied.
I relayed what she said to the others and waited to see what they wanted to do. Andrew asked a few questions for clarification, and I had Zharia describe what she saw. A rough estimate of fifteen infected skrells facing off against twenty normal ones in a wide cave. She mentioned that there were a few blood puddles, likely indicating a few casualties on the infected side. While the grey skrell had two limping at the back with a third with half of its face chewed off.
I asked the first thing we needed to get out of the way. "There wouldn't happen to be any other routes to the entrance, would there?"
Oro shook his head. "No. That's the only way through the next section. The branching tunnels behind us all lead to dead ends," he stated.
"So we're fucked either way. What's the plan?"
Aaron pointed a finger at me, deliberately making sure to get my attention. "Are we going to have to deal with you rushing off again? Plans are useless if you go berserk," he said with an accusing tone.
"Aaron! Cut it out!" Ruina argued.
Andrew put up a hand and lowered Aaron's finger. "He's right. I'm sorry, Cyrus, but can we trust you not to rush out alone? Again?"
While Andrew's words lacked the point Aaron's had, the accusation was still present. The feeling of shame and anger bubbled beneath my skin, but I channeled my mana in response. The cold rush of frost spreading out from my chest and down my limbs helped calm me down.
"You can trust me."
It was all I said and all I needed to say. Andrew accepted my response and moved on. The next minute, we discussed our options. While Oro suggested waiting until one side won, Aaron quickly shut the idea down. The nagas were potentially behind us, and he put extra emphasis on reminding everyone that the witch would be able to track us.
Eventually, we settled on trying to sneak past them but to remain ready for combat if we were discovered. It wasn't the best plan, but it was all we got. It was the safest option, with our only other choice being to risk being ambushed or struggling to take on a massive pack of monsters.
Before we began our plan, I backed away several meters from the group. With a rush of mana, Zharia collapsed into motes of light and merged with me. I tried to quell the pillar of fire that erupted out of my body, succeeding in making it smaller and contained. As my skill's transformation settled over my body, I felt better. The inner warmth that came with the shift brought a grin to my face.
I rejoined the others and tried my best to ignore Aaron's white-knuckled grip on his sword. Ruina was the only one to stare at me with a face other than trepidation.
As we crept closer to the cave with the skrell, sounds of growling and high-pitched grunts sounded out. When we turned the corner, a shower of green droplets splashed onto the ground a foot before us. When I looked up, I saw two uninfected skrell tearing into the bigger red version of them. It was like watching two chihuahuas fight a bulldog.
The infected skrell was holding down one with two claws slicing into its skin. Its fangs were latched onto the top of the monster's head as it jerked back and forth. The other uninfected skrell slashed franticly at the red one's back in a desperate attempt to free its companion.
We made our way carefully, staying glued to the back wall. The other skrell were scattered across the cave, watching, glaring at each other. When one of the reds would move, two or three of the normal ones would step up to scare it off. Near the far side of the cave was a ball of tumbling limbs as seven skrell launched themselves at each other. Green and red blood mixed as it spilled onto the stone floor.
Sticking next to a large outcropping of rocks sticking out of the ground, we huddled close together and waited. The largest group of skrell stood in a face-off on opposite ends. The biggest and meanest of the two sides stood at the front. An ear-ringing squeal resounded from the right. The red skrell I dubbed as the leader watched as the infected skrell from earlier dragged the severed heads of the two uninfected skrells. The neckline at the base of the heads was a mess of lacerated meat. When the infected skrell walked up, it dropped the two heads at the leader's feet before slumping over and crashing to the ground. Crimson blood started to spill out as the monster finally succumbed to its wounds.
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In unison, a ragged cheer filled with snarls and grunts came from the infected side. The uninfected skrell started to cower back, but the leader roared and stomped on the ground, making them reluctantly stand their ground. The two leaders kept their glares trained on each other as the two sides started to work themselves up in a frenzy. When the crowd began to turn rabid, the leaders finally stalked forward. They skrell hooted and howled, blaring into the cave in a cacophony of chaos.
"By the gods, what the hell is going on?" Oro whispered.
"Don't those skrells remind you of something?" Aaron asked.
"Yeah, they do. They look like the spider we fought. The one you said came from a rift," Andrew answered solemnly.
I felt the weight of their stares as the question remained unasked. I cleared my throat and pointed at the infected leader circling around the uninfected skrell.
"I don't understand how or why these skrell are infected. They look like one of the blood beasts that were in the rift. The only thing is, there was never a monster in there that could affect others. I'm just as clueless as you guys."
"Then why are there rift monsters in the dungeon?! Where did you even come from? You talk about a rift, but you mentioned coming from the third floor. What are you not telling us?!" Aaron half shouted.
Ruina clamped her hand over his mouth as one of the nearest skrell turned their heads in our direction. Andrew raised his axe but lowered it when the skrell next to the monster grabbed its shoulder and started jumping up and down. The monster looked away and joined back in on the wild hooting.
"STUFF IT! When the fighting starts, we need to run. If we slow down, we'll end up as a pile of shredded meat. I don't want to be a pile of meat. I want to be alive and happily asleep in a bed. So cut it out! Ruina, you said your tier-up lets you aim your skill better?" Andrew cut in.
Ruina nodded her head. "Yes, I can narrow down the cone I project. I'm still limited by range, but I can target a specific spot now. From brief testing, give or take two handspans circumference."
"Good, good. If the two big ones haven't started fighting in the next dozen seconds, I want you to target the skrell nearest to that red one over there." He stopped and pointed at a skrell shifting from foot to foot as the infected skrell an arm's reach away swiped at the air with its claws. "Hit and stun it. Let the chaos begin, and we'll use the distraction to get out of here. If any chase us, we'll fight them off as we run. Oro, Cyrus, we'll rely on you to attack them with ranged skills."
We nodded our heads in acknowledgment and waited. I keep the dagger in my right hand, held tightly. The two leaders continued circling each other while making passes with their claws, but nothing connected. Ruina extended both arms with a slow inhale and held out her palms. At the last second, she exhaled, and I felt the familiar feeling of channeled mana.
The skrell, shifting foot to foot, spasmed as it clutched its head in both hands. As it fell forward, the infected skrell lunged and clawed out the skrell's throat. A splatter of green blood coated the monsters next to it and silenced the crowd. A heartbeat passed, and the screeching began. All the tension and running adrenaline boiled to a tipping point as the two sides charged at each other. The infected leader let out a throaty laugh as it attacked.
With the two sides distracted, we bolted for the tunnel entrance. When two of skrell tumbled over midair and crashed in front of me, I let out a small plume of fire as I jumped over them. Their pained screeches brought pleasure to my ears. A few skrell noticed us running to the tunnel and broke away from the mob running at us on all fours, their claws clacking against the stone.
A pair of light-green energy slashes flew through the air and cut off a couple of legs. Any monster that stood in the way of our charge was bashed aside with the flat end of Andrew's axe. Ruina would randomly pulse out her vibration skill to help stun any of the monsters that approached.
We made it near the exit when a flying body smashed into Andrew's side. The hit sent the man tumbling to the ground, and Aaron ran over with his sword drawn. The thrown body was the bleeding corpse of the uninfected skrell. Another wet, throaty howl sounded out as the infected leader stalked closer. It looked at us with a savage grin. The inside of its mouth was stained dark green, dripping freshly drawn blood.
The infected skrell raised its head to the air and released a trilling screech. All the skrell, infected and not, stopped and froze. The infected skrell screeched with their leader while the normal ones slowly lowered themselves to the ground. Four of the normal skrell lay dead while two piles of crimson blood covered the ground. The leader let out a series of growls, and the infected skrell grabbed all the skrell together and corralled them in one spot.
Oro stood next to his sister and held his staff in front of him. "Andrew, time to get up!" he yelled.
I readied my mana and kept an eye on the skrell leader. A twinge of anger flashed, but I silenced it before it could start. The leader stared at us but did not approach. Instead, it slowly backed off and screeched at one of its lackeys. The monster grabbed one of the cowering skrell by the neck and dragged it over to the leader. It dropped bonelessly to the ground and kept its head lowered. It seems that killing the other leader was a show of dominance. Even when one of the infected cut into one that was too slow to move out of its way, it kept its head low and shakily flinched in place.
I heard Andrew stand up, his metal boots creaking. I slowly stepped backward and edged nearer to the exit. "Run or fight?"
Andrew grunted while spitting out some blood. "Do you think you can take them?"
"Maybe. If they're as resilient as the one I killed in the stairwell, they'll probably rush me before I could wipe them out."
"That's a shame. Why the fuck are they not attacking?"
I wanted to make a sarcastic reply, but a sound of clopping feet started coming from the far tunnel. If I didn't have my mask on, the others would have seen my jaw drop to the floor at what I saw.
The monster that walked into the cave had horns scraping the ceiling with a line of sparks bouncing off. Its fur of crimson red ended in random tuffs of shaggy spikes. As it slowly trodded its way in, the skrell bowed almost reverently. The leader turned away from us and held up the shivering skrell in its claws.
The goat stopped and towered over the leader. Silence followed. Nothing in the room dared to make a sound. With a cracking of bone, the demonic goat snatched the skrell out of the leader's claws and crunched down. The sound of bones breaking and snapping as green blood sloshed out of the monster's mouth sent the remaining uninfected skrell into a whimpering keening.
"By all the... What the fuck is that..." Aaron muttered.
There was only one answer. The beast that walked in was a champion. A representation of sin. It also meant that there was no way we would win fighting it. We were truly and utterly fucked.
"Run," I whispered.
"What?" Oro asked.
"I said, run!"
I jumped backwards and turned to run. The skrell leader screeched and threw itself at me. I threw my dagger at it and watched it embed itself into its shoulder. The siblings threw out their skills at the crowd, and Andrew charged ahead. Before we could cross into the tunnel, the champion screamed.
A wave of red energy blasted out and pierced into my core. I couldn't tell what I was feeling. The aura from the champion sent my thoughts into a spiral of confusion. I felt the energy burn as my mana rushed to intercept it. The inner warmth from my chest turned into a searing pain as I felt the feathers adorning my body erupt with flames. Áine 's healing touch helped counteract the hostile mana.
My anger returned, and it tried to dominate my mind before it lost itself to a pulse of the champion's mana. Whatever my rage was, it was a smothered spark compared to the bonfire that assaulted me.
The others were pushing themselves off the floor as they shakily tried to stand. I saw Ruina activate her vibration skill only to watch her panic when her skill sputtered out. Unlike me, the others were overwhelmed by the energy. They broke out in a sweat while their eyes widened in terror.
I stood up on shaky legs and bit my tongue. The pain helped clear my mind further. By now, the champion walked towards us while crunching on another skrell's body. A torn-up, broken arm fell from its mouth, bouncing once off the floor.
I didn't know what to do, and I felt Zharia's fear. There weren't any options left but to fight or run. I really wanted to run, to leave these strangers behind. I screamed at my legs to move, to let the others be a distraction so I could run away. In the end, I took a step and braced my legs. The anger inside me flared again. I was sick of being useless. I was tired of sitting back. But to be honest with myself, I wanted power. I wanted control over my life and the situation, to be the conductor of my fate. The champion represented a lack of all that. It was a living example of what caused me to lose my best friend, my sister.
I held my hands out as I ground my teeth. The champion screamed again in a bleating pitch that caused me to stumble. I cursed in my head and channeled the lake of mana inside me. The champion now stood above me with its jaw cracked open. The teeth were not teeth you'd find in a goat. They were vicious fangs that lined the monster's mouth like a shark. Shredded flesh, pieces of bone, and green effluvia dripped down onto my head.
I urged my mana to go wild, and the flames started to billow out. A spear of glowing orange crystal pierced the monster's lower jaw. Before I could register what had happened, my golden flames met crystal, and an explosion rocketed me backward. The champion's aura disappeared, and the tunnel shook.
As I flew through the air, my eyes met a pair of amber slits from across the cave. The malicious grin plastered across the naga's face was the last thing I saw before I crashed into the far wall.