As the hallway opened, you began slowly descending into the mine. If one doesn't pay attention, one wouldn't even notice the downward slope that begins the descent below down into the inner earth of the realm. As one descends, the mobs' power level is the opposite. With each mile down, several levels increase relative to the depth traversed.
Screams became cries, and booms became bashes as our pace quickened. As much as I wanted to be safe and take things slow, we no longer had a choice. Caverns and dungeons are beyond dangerous; they must be handled like eggs that could crack and leak out destruction. Until this point, I'd had my share of caverns gone wrong. Of death unexpected.
Thinking back, memories of pain and loss flooded in. Checking back, I looked into Rodgers's eyes. He didn't look worried; instead, his face looked grave and stern, like a man ready for war, coming to terms with the unfair circumstances that come with the chance at glory. There is always a cost, but when is the price not worth paying? The old lady's words reached me from a time that could as well have been a lifetime ago, a past life even.
Good, I thought.
Maybe he has gotten over that time.
Wide in front of us, the mine shaft opened up into a vast room with enough girth for 40 men to stand shoulder to shoulder. Enough room for beasts and bosses to spawn without the hindrance of space.
Not good, I grumbled.
Down in the middle of the arena, the two assassins battled a swarm of golem beetles. Large suckers, their eyes glowed green, and their limbs scattered in a flurry of blows. Rock-like and made of precious stones, some held sharp pinschers; others rammed like bludgeons, and some bashed with heads like battering rams—the myriad of attack patterns made for a nightmare fight. One would first have to learn the individual attack patterns, then learn again how to fight the patterns when weaved together in a chaotic dance of danger.
As skilled as those desert blades were, this was no kill job, not something that could end in a single strike. Dungeons were not to be taken lightly.
Let's move out. Like before, Rafael is at the rear casting buffs, Shadeo watches the front, and Rodger watches his sides. I will play point, ready to shift if the battle takes any sudden developments. Which it probably will. Fight with caution, and don't ever be afraid to retreat. Just sound a call and launch a signal flare. We aren't here to win. We fight to save them; then, we flee no matter if the odds change in our favor.
A slice caught one of the assassins dead on the back. A fire-red cut peeked out from his desert clothes. Then came the wail. I never thought I would hear a man of that cloth yell, let alone wail with that savage furiosity.
My feet became wind as I placed myself between the assassins and their assassins. With my head taut on the hilt, I brought a swing across the crablike golem. Preparing myself for the toughness of stone, I was dumbfounded when I was met with air instead. No, not air; I hit the creature clean. The creature was now half a bundle of rocks with its emerald eyes, which were now dull gray.
No resistance at all.
As if I sliced through, pierced through armor.
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Burning hot, I felt the power of the reaper course through me.
Above my head, a little red timer ticked away.
System Notification.
Grim Reaper Buff Activated.
180 seconds of Ultimate Armor piercing.
Grinning, I looked at the Reaper like a kid who had just found a new feature in his toy or an adventurer who had found a hidden passive locked away in the core of his weapon. How many more are left unlocked? I wondered as my thoughts began to peel away from the battlefield around me.
Captain, don't lose your head over one head.
Shadeo's words broke in as he and the rest of the squad maneuvered themselves in and began to fight off the scourge.
Rafael was already attending to the wounds of the boisterous assassins at the rear as Rodger and Shadeo took my flanks and were slaying foes in their own right. The massive swarm became workable in a matter of swings. What we thought would be death became another event in which we would come out on top.
The buggers were high-level.
In front of me, the two with mandibles that cut stone-like ribbons had levels in the 120s, and the ones that Shadeo and Rodger fought did not look much weaker. This content was either on the expansion to come or forgotten and left to grow like some plant that the system neglected but left with enough water and sun to flourish into what it was now.
Just as my confidence grew with each clean sweep of the Reaper, a boom and a crash filled the battlefield. A giant crater had opened up to our right, sending shrapnel and boulders everywhere. Red circles engulfed the area, and our battle with the emerald beetles became a game of stepping out of the redmarked terrain while defending our lives.
Move on out, dodge the AEO, and focus on retreating. The next stage is coming, and whatever it is, it's surely meant for 40, not 4.
Fleeing while dodging massive flying stone boulders and fighting off enemies with levels in the mid-100s was not an easy feat. More than once, we stumbled, only to be picked up by the other. More than once, a red circle indicator almost became a death screen. And thankfully, only once did I need to launch myself forward with a burst of speed that came from within, from the power that challenged the system. If it weren't for that, if I was another adventurer with only the system's blessing, I would be singing my tales at the Graveyard of Talos for anyone willing to listen to a ghost of the past.
Fuckin shit!
Fuckin shit, that's right, captain, you nearly got split in half.
Shadeo said this in between pants and laughs. Rodger was trailing behind Rafael and the two rigid bodies that had gotten us into this predicament. A proper tongue lashing was coming their way, and my jaw ached at the words that would spill like some complex spell once we were out of danger.
Luckily, the mobs stopped following and began to retreat to the area, which was currently opaque due to the dust cloud of fallen rock that filled its openings. Whatever caused that massive crater, I did not want to stick around and find out.
Overhead, a timer reminded me that my armor-piercing passive had expired. Shit, I mumbled as we continued our mad dash towards the exit; now, I didn't want to stick around and find out.
A piercing scream ricocheted off the cavern walls and jumbled up my mind. With both hands, I covered my ears, its piercing scream threatening to shatter my mind. Continuing my run, I blinked rapidly as if that would combat the noise that assaulted me.
Through glossy eyes, I turned to see that I had caught up to everyone. The only problem was that they, too, covered their ears; they didn't continue to move. As if stuck in time, they stood frozen, crying for help.
Shit…
We got to move. I tried to shove them, but they wouldn't budge; like stone, they were petrified.
Above, in words bold and gold, the system spelled out our doom.
Paralyzing Fear
(Stone Scared)
120 seconds remaining.
Turning, I saw what had produced the scream. From out of the dust mist, a creature made its way out into the battlefield. A stone golem with the body of a deranged beatle stepped forward. Its body was the size of the tallest tree nature had ever grown, its eyes a set of bright green emeralds the size of wagon wheels, and its pincers a magnificent display of refined power.
Through its mandibles, it spoke in the tongue of sedentary stone. Clicking and clacking, the other mobs resonated with the speech. Feeding off one another, the room began to grow thick with dew.
Behind me, the exit burned, called for me to join it. This was impossible. Surviving a dungeon boss with the 6 of us would already be a death sentence, but to fight it alone for 2 minutes…
Looking back, I saw fear and acceptance in my men's eyes. They knew the face of death all too well.
Shit, shit, shit.
Looking deep into my void, I found my soul's warren rushing with power and fear. It brimmed overfull. I would need it all—not a taste, not a morsel, but the full force of the energy I couldn't entirely control—all of that and more.
I reached down and did not touch it. I grabbed it with the greed of a man in need—a man who would die without it.