Aspiring consumed.
Echo of the Dead has been augmented for the situation.
Additional aspect temporarily gained: Arboreal Bane.
Arboreal Bane: Echo of the Dead’s flames ignite in a glorious blaze that can rapidly spread through any living plant matter. Damage against plant-based entities increased by 400%
The maw erupted in a glorious pyre of inflammatory vines as Nathan’s fist crunched into it. It started emerald green, but quickly morphed to fiery red and burning orange as it consumed the plant material of the nightshade maw.
The heat was immense, blowing back out toward him like a furnace as the plant monster screeched and writhed in pain. Fire and flame quickly moved through the maw’s fibrous body, burning it from the inside out. Flesh blackened and burnt, creating holes that burst forth with yet more emerald flame.
Licks of fire spit from the monster’s mouth as pieces of its floral flesh fell like molten rain. And then Nathan started to fall with them.
His flames did not burn him, but apparently once they caught something else on fire – like the nightshade maw – those normal, orange flames were more than capable. He fell through the inferno, his skin already prickling with a glistening sweat. The ground had seemed so far away while he was climbing, but he was quickly coming to realize just how close it was. And it was only getting closer.
Nathan spun in the air, his fingers reaching out for something to grab hold of. They found nothing but the warm, slick sides of thick fines as they writhed around. Up above, he heard the main body of the nightshade maw burning and shrieking, flames spilling from its tooth-filled mouth. A terrible sight, like a portal to hell.
A fiery vine came at him, swinging from his left. Nathan watched it for a moment before it hit him in the side. He immediately took action, wrapping his legs around it, gripping tightly despite the flames that were burning through the vine’s insides. It was grabbing a metal pole that had been baking in the hot sun.
More cries lit the air and rocks fell from above, causing the room to rumble and shake, but he held on tight. The alternative would be falling to his death.
He needed to get down. Staying on the vine would either cause him to burn to death, or get crushed once the maw finally died and fell from the ceiling.
The vine Nathan was riding moved to crush him into the wall. He doubted that the monster was trying to kill him, probably just wildly waving its limbs in pain, but that didn’t make him feel any better. His hands burning, he grabbed the small crossbow that was hanging at his waist and quickly loaded a bolt.
Then, with a quick prayer to any god that may be watching – hopefully not one that was friends with the Ferryman he killed – he leapt from the vine, throwing himself back out into the air, and back into the mercy of gravity. For a blessed moment, he felt free, soaring through the air like a bird untethered. The moment was short lived.
Most of the vines had become engulfed in flames from the inside out. They writhed and thrashed like the dozens of tongues of some infernal demon. He was starting to regret his idea of jumping, or of catching the damned creature on fire in the first place.
Nathan located the vine right in front of him that he was falling toward, aimed his crossbow with one hand, and fired. The bolt sailed true, streaking through the smoky expanse and plunging itself deeply into the flesh of the creature.
Nathan continued to fall toward the vine, reaching it not long after the bolt. He hit hard, his hands sliding across the scalding surface of the creature, scrabbling at its hot, slick, smooth skin. Grasping desperately for the shaft of the bolt, for something.
Shit, shit, shit.
Then he clutched it. The bolt, sticking out from the vine, his lifeline. He swung back and forth from it by one hand, hanging still much too far above the ground for his comfort.
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He let out a breath, giving himself a moment of rest despite the urgency of the situation. Not that it was that great a rest – hanging precariously above certain death, flesh hotter than a stovetop.
Limbs were beginning to fall now, great thick vines of the nightshade maw, crashing to the ground like tree trunks, sending scatterings of ash and flame everywhere. He was lower than before, but not by much.
The ground was so far. Far and filled with a bonfire. He’d be burned alive even if he somehow survived the fall. God, why had his flames had to travel across the maw’s body so fast?
Dammit. Where are Cleo and Saleh?
Nathan looked around, squinting his against the ash and smoke that was beginning to fill the cavern. There. He spotted them further away, standing against a wall of the cavern, coughing and hacking, but otherwise safe.
He needed to keep going down, leaping from vine to vine, slowly inching his way toward the ground before the maw died and dropped onto him. It felt like he was trapped in a burning building with no way out. His clothes hung heavy to his skin with sweat.
The end of the bolt was beginning to smoke, its wood blackening. The fire inside of the vine must have been burning the shaft. Soon, it could snap, sending Nathan falling toward a fiery death. And Cleo, too. Why did he almost feel bad about that? If it wouldn’t have killed her, Cleo would gladly have pushed him into this fire herself.
He felt it slip, heard a slight crack, then an idea came to mind.
A stupid one, but it couldn’t be stupider than playing hopscotch on flaming vines. “God, I hope Echoes take fall damage.”
Nathan summoned his ghostly flames, then called upon an Echo.
A figure of pure fire green materialized in the air. Smooth translucent skin of flame pulled taught over sinuous muscles. Claws like superheated knives. Eyes of molten emerald. Strong, lean, and powerful.
Then, with nothing for it to stand on, the Echo plummeted to the fires below.
Nathan watched it fall, a bead of gleaming green wildly flailing in the air as it became overwhelmed by orange. It only took moments for him to sense that it had been killed.
Sorry, buddy. Have fun in your next life.
Lunar Lynx Echo Ushered.
Power gained: Increasing agility permanently by 5%
Ability temporarily gained: Moonlit Leap
Moonlit Leap: Heavy as the falling moonlight. You can leap, becoming a blur of silvery radiance that can soar through the air, unbound by gravity.
Echoes Stored: [2/5]
Total Echoes Ushered: [4/5]
Nathan smiled, letting out a slow breath. He felt the shaft of the bolt snap in his grip, finally burnt in two, and began to fall.
***
Cleo coughed and coughed, spitting up dry saliva, dark with ash. She leaned back against the stony wall of the cavern, relishing the coldness of it against her back. For a while there, it had felt like she’d never be cold again.
Ahead of her, the room still baked. The air was hazy, distorting everything it touched, like asphalt on a hot day. It was all a mess of fire and stupid plant. And somewhere in there was the one person that she couldn’t let die above anyone else. The one person that she wanted to kill above anyone else.
Fate had an annoying sense of humor.
She brushed at her eyes, wiping away the tears. They were wet from stinging smoke, not emotion. Never emotion.
“Do you think he’ll make it back to us alive?” Saleh asked from beside her. He leaned casually back against the wall, his uniform barely flecked with ash. How had he kept it so clean? Hers was practically black instead of blue now.
“He’d better,” she growled.
“I must say, I agree. His untimely death would be rather unfortunate. We don’t know how much more we will face in this dungeon and I don’t relish the idea of going it with just you… despite your lovely personality.” Saleh stroked his chin, pursing his lips. “Maybe I could go back and tell those guild members at the door to do the fighting for us?”
Us. There would be no us, if Nathan died. Cleo would be dragged back to death along with the old bastard. But then, at least she wouldn’t be alone. She supposed that even Nathan’s incessant badgering, annoying comments, and punchable face was better than that.
Saleh peered up into the orange glow. “How he did so much damage to the thing so quickly is quite impressive, I must say. The rumors about you two must be true.” He shot a reassuring smile toward Cleo. “Quite strong,” he muttered. “Quite strong, indeed.”
“Yeah,” Cleo replied, not taking her eyes off the direction Nathan was in. “He is.”
She didn’t trust Saleh. Not in the slightest. He’d shown up unannounced, known too much, and disclosed too little. That meant he was dangerous, but also that he could be used. Nothing worth getting had ever been achieved without risk.
A loud shriek and crack split the air, a plume of smoke and glittering motes of embers spewing up as a colossal limb crashed to the cavern floor. The entire cavern shook, as if the mountains themselves were furious. It couldn’t be long now until the creature died.
She could feel the intense heat even from where she was standing. Her throat parched, skin burned, eyes stung. How Nathan wasn’t dead yet was beyond her. Though she knew he was alive – because she was as well.
“What is that?” Saleh asked, pointing.
Cleo followed his gaze and saw it too. In the raging glow of angry red, was a single, cool, silver light.