Chapter 32

“You think that’s all of them” I was breathing heavy, drenched in sweat. We’d been fighting for what felt like a lifetime. Nyle slumped against a rock. Our clothes were torn and tattered, and we’d been bleeding mere moments before. Lyn had used two of her heal spells to close those wounds and push our HP back to full.

“I didn’t see any more.” Lyn commented. She had a distracted look on her face. I was pretty sure she was counting arrows.

Whoever landed the final blow on the wolves seemed to get the monsters added to their inventory. The wolf I’d killed with arrows in it, had ended up placing those arrows in my inventory, though one had broken. I didn’t know how many quivers she’d rented from Alexandra at Climber’s Rest, nor how many arrows the quiver that mysterious cloaked figure had given her, but the battle against the wolves had likely made her use quite a few.

“You think it’s safe to check out that cave then?” I didn’t really want to. But considering how many of the beasts had come out, nineteen in total based on how much Tower Essence I currently had, I was curious what had been so special about that particular cave.

“Might as well after all the effort we put in.” Nyle confirmed. He pulled out a potion and drank deeply. “Last one.” He said as he finished. “Just in case.”

“Smart,” I nodded. “Just like Commander Phyr always said,”

“Be prepared for the worst.” We all chimed in, “and you’ll be prepared for the rest.” We shared smiles. Our small team quickly felt like we were becoming fast friends. Was this how Ryker felt with his Clan? I could get used to it. And I knew full well without them, I’d never have been able to take down so many wolves in a single go.

I groaned slightly as I made my way down the slope towards the cave. There were signs of our battle all around. Torn ground, burnt bushes, trees, and grass. And blood. The whole area was slick with it.

“Watch your steps,” I said as I felt my boot slide on a bloody patch. The blood made the grass especially slick. When combined with the light spray of water from the stream, the slippery surface became even more precarious. Had we tried to fight the wolves on their own territory, it would have quickly turned against us.

“How many more hours are we in here today?” Nyle asked as we slowly worked our way down. “Because I swear if I have to put up with this smell for too long, I’m going to be sick.”

He had a good point. The heal spell was great at healing. But it didn’t fix our clothes. Nor did it wash the blood and grime from us. Mixed in with sweat, and somehow imprinted with the smell of burning fur and flesh, we reeked.

“You two really could use a bath.” Lyn said. “I’m keeping my distance purely for self-preservation now.” She was indeed a good ten feet behind us as we walked. Though I had a feeling that had more to do with her role as our ranged attacker, considering Nyle was still holding onto her short sword.

“Well did anyone bring soap and spare set of clothes?” I countered. We’d reached the rocks that served as the entrance to the cave. “If so, I’ll trade a wolf carcass for a wash.”

“I knew I forgot to pack something.” Nyle said, “guess I left my soap back in my room.” We all chuckled, knowing full well none of us had any such items. All the new Climber’s had confirmed, last night and this morning, that the Cathedral had taken everything from us, in exchange for the Climber’s Regalia. All we had to our names, were those clothes.

“I really hope we can repair these clothes for cheap.” I said as I held my shirt away from my body. A wolf had managed to grab hold of it, tearing a good chunk from it. My stomach was currently uncovered as a result, my thin, muscled frame and pale white skin a stark contrast to the black material. Water droplets sent chills across my body as they splashed against my bare skin.

Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.

“Do you think the cathedral will handle that? Or will we need to go to one of the other guilds? Should we ask Alexandra for advice?” Lyn listed the questions rapid fire.

“I’ll ask Ryker when we get back to him.” I said, peering into the mouth of the dark cave. “We should head back soon anyways to check in.”

“Good point.” Nyle came to stand beside me, peering into the dark cave as well. “You uh, able to see anything in there?”

“It gets really dark, really fast.” I said as I shook my head. “Anyone see any good sticks for a torch?”

Lyn hurried off towards the trees without a word, and came back a few moments later with a suitable branch.

“Here you go,” she handed it to me, crinkling her nose as she did. “One branch, as requested.”

“Thanks,” I took it, sheathing my parrying dagger in the process. The branch was sturdy and thick, reminding me of the goblin’s club. I still hadn’t seen any of them today. “Now we just,”

Lyn’s hands were on my shirt, tearing it even as I spoke. I started to protest but she shot me a look, smirking as she continued.

“Your shirts already ruined,” she laughed as she wrapped the material around the top of the stick, creating a heavy ball of cloth, “might as well put it to good use.”

“It didn’t have to be my shirt,” I grumbled, looking at Nyle who was holding back his laughter. “Nyle’s has more cloth remaining than mine.”

“Which is exactly why I didn’t grab from his. Yours is beyond repair. His may still be salvaged.” She looked at the now cloth wrapped stick in my hand, and sighed. Without warning a wolf carcass appeared on the ground at my feet. She grabbed the stick from my hand and shoved it into the carcass, rolling it about in the blood and fat of the creature.

“It’s not perfect,” she handed it back to me, and the carcass disappeared, “but there, there’s your torch.”

I looked at Nyle, and he shrugged. We’d all had lessons on survival within the Tower. We’d been shown various basic survival tricks and trades. But Lyn had been surprisingly quick thinking in her efforts.

“I spent a lot of time reading Climber’s Notes.” She said with a shrug. “Especially the parts about surviving the night in the tower.”

“Oh yeah?” I asked, holding the stick towards Nyle. Since he’d just topped off his magic, I figured he was the best one to light it. I didn’t need to say anything, and quickly he had the top of the makeshift torch burning. “How come?”

“Because I plan to spend a lot of time in the Tower.” Lyn said. “I want to push as high as possible. I’m eager to see what each floor looks like, and I know that means there’s always the chance of being stuck here overnight.” She shuddered, “I’m, not a fan of the dark, and so I paid a lot of attention to how to make different long term light sources and the like for survival.”

I held the torch forward into the dark cave and glanced back at her. “Do you want to hang back then?” The light from the torch burned brightly, illuminating about fifteen feet into the cave. It was rare, but not unheard of, for people to be scared of the dark. The Tower provided a constant glow to the city at all hours of the day. Meaning while not extremely bright, there very rarely came a time when we had to experience complete darkness.

“I’ll be fine,” she said as she took a deep breath. “Someone needs to watch your backs after all.” She made a fake gagging sound. “Though hurry up. Between you two and that torch, I think I’ll die from suffocation if we spend too much time in the cave.”

We laughed as we made our way into the cave. It was eerie, watching the flames flicker and dance around the walls. And it quickly became clear that this wasn’t a small cave. It extended far past what we’d been able to see from the entrance, winding and slanting as it went. Before long, the light from the exit faded, and we were surrounded by darkness, the torch our only source of light. Every single part of me tensed as we walked on and on. The air grew heavier, and the stench, partially from our battles, and partially from deeper within the cave, intensified.

“You guys don’t think,” I started, but I cut off immediately, as a sound from further within the cave interrupted me. It sounded like heavy breathing.

“That something’s down here?” Nyle whispered. He shot me an uncertain smile. Lyn was behind us, her bow in hand, her eyes wide. She was doing her best to stay calm, but ever since the entrance had disappeared, I’d felt her getting more and more restless.

I nodded.

“Nope. What would give you that idea?” Nyle chuckled, as the heavy breathing from within continued.

“You’re right,” I said, taking another step forward. “I guess I’m just hearing things.” Another step, and another deep, heavy breath from within. Nyle’s rapier and sword were drawn. I had my scimitar out in my right hand, my torch held high in my left. And behind me, I heard the sound of Lyn knocking an arrow.

Technically, we could head back. But I was curious to see just what lay ahead, and I knew Nyle was just as curious. And Lyn, well, I knew she wouldn’t leave us. Partially because as she’d just said, she was interested in learning about the floors and all they had. Partially because we were a team. And partially, maybe a big part, because I had the only light source in this cave. Either way, the three of us continued downward, into the unknown. Probably, arguably… a very, very, poor life choice.