The caravan neared the entry to The Pass. I followed along silently, my [Passive Mana Detect] roaring in my head. The growing trees cast dark shadows over the entrance, and the path split into three directions. From all of them I could sense a myriad of lower ranked monsters.
My body moved like a gust of wind, silent and fast. I jumped down from the tree and hit the ground running, my speed blurring my form. I zigzagged through the escorts and moved ahead of the group, into the tunnel the Barbory inspector was leading everyone down.
Bulbous spore-filled sacks were hanging off the root systems that made up the walls of the tunnel-like path. I didn’t touch them. From three turns in the tunnel ahead I could sense a swarm of creatures. I started running faster.
When I turned the corner I found a wriggling tide of gray centipede monsters, each larger than a wolf. The air smelled of gore and rot; it gagged me. They were Rank 2 monsters, weak enough to be handled by the knights individually, but in numbers this large the caravan would be overrun.
My eyes started to water from the smell as I pulled my sword from my Spacefold Pack. Belial’s Blade thrummed with energy as the orange glow of flames covered it from hilt to tip. I charged forward and burned a path, leaving charred remains behind. My hood blew down from the wind of my dash and my hair trailed behind me; it looked like two black streaks playing tag.
The tide of bugs closed behind me as I advanced, the bugs cannibalizing one another immediately. In the thick of things the smell seemed to get stronger, as if it was trying to barrel through my nose and into my brain.
I focused.
[Combat State], one of my racial traits, activated for the first time in a long time. Immediately, the smell vanished. My eyes regained their clarity and my movements improved. From a robotic charge, my actions shifted into more of a dance. I cut down huge swaths of the creatures and, while mowing the way forward wondered just how the Inspectors from Barbory made it through this way.
Were they trying to lead the caravan down a harder path than the one they took? Or did they have a trick to surpass the tide of bugs?
Once I thinned the numbers enough I retreated to the side and hid in the darkest of shadows.
It took a few minutes, but eventually the leading inspector came into view. Behind him were the knights on horseback and Lily’s carriage.
The man from Barbory raised his hand and I could hear his voice from here.
“Up ahead are the centipede pits. I’ve got a special garlic incense here. When I burn this they will open a path for us,” said the man.
…
I wanted to kill something. My hands clenched so tight my knuckles turned white. I intended to clear out the obstacles ahead of the group to avoid any emergencies requiring me making a scene in front of the inspectors, but it seemed that by doing so I only ended up making a fool of myself…
The smell hit me again as [Combat State] finally started to wear off. I gagged and suffered in silence as the group passed by, unhindered by the remaining centipedes.
I followed behind, but I decided to let the guides to their jobs from that point forward. Secretly, far in the back, I pulled a few cleaning supplies from my item pack and tried to scrub off the smell of the bugs.
-
The paths continued on in twisted and strange ways. Every hundred yards or so the Barbory Inspector would stop the group, pull out a map, and reconfirm his direction. I desperately wanted that map, but I couldn’t justify stealing it. The Inspectors, against all my expectations, seemed to be genuinely leading the way forward.
“At this pace,” said the Inspector in the rear to one of the knights, “We’ll make it through the Pass in three or four days. That’s quite fast.”
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My heart dropped. I hadn’t realized The Pass would take that much time to get through. If every portion of this journey was as harrowing and heartbreaking as the centipede pits, I wasn’t sure if I could survive it!
-
The path ahead opened up into a round valley, shaped almost like a bowl. Water flowed from the top down into what looked to be a cistern, a manmade box of stone and steel. A few beams of light broke through the woven trees and rocks above, showing patches of distant sky.
“This is the first rest point,” called out the leading Inspector as he raised his hand up. “We will rest here for half a day, restock our water, and move to the next leg of the trip. You must all prepare yourselves, because we’ve been rather lucky so far. That luck won't last.”
“What needlessly ominous words,” I said as I snuck back into Lily’s carriage.
“Ominous is fine,” she replied. “I’d rather have everyone on edge rather than have them be careless.”
“They know I’m around,” I replied. “Their movements were too practiced and I left too many obvious signs.”
“You did? I didn’t notice anything,” said Lily, her tongue firmly in her cheek. I giggled, though. I didn’t bother to follow through the routine. Of course Lily didn’t see anything; she was inside the carriage the entire time, after all.
We’d only been traveling for about eight hours, and, if we were going to rest for half a day, that meant that the split would probably be split up between these ‘safe zones’.
The cistern water looked clean and several of the knights drank from it, not finding any issue. I decided to sneak back out and steal a few sips myself.
I dipped my hands into the clear water and brought it to my lips. It tasted good, like something straight from a mountain spring. Well, it was straight from a mountain spring.
I slipped off from the groups and walked up the slanted valley walls. I could see the small patches of sky through the overlapping tree roots above, and I wanted to see the area from a higher vantage point.
Cragged rocks tried to cut my hands but didn’t leave a mark. I jumped and grabbed a low-hanging branch. I pulled myself up and, from there, I could see the entire valley around the central cistern.
I looked down and watched the escort knights and maids scurry about as they set up camp. Lily was being helped out of the carriage and into her wheelchair and the free hands built a small bonfire.
My mana detection began to ping me and, despite my decision earlier to not interfere, I couldn’t stop myself this time. Something was coming towards the valley from a side path, something big. I could hear the distant thunder of its footsteps and I could see the swelling of the air around that tunnel.
Whatever beast it was, it neared the peak of Rank 9, almost bridging the gap to the next level beyond, almost touching upon Ascendancy.
I jumped through the air from the branch of the tree and threw my arms out. My Heaven Garb, still fashioned as a riding cloak, fluttered in the breeze. I wanted to cry out at the sensation, to let my stress free, but I couldn’t find the nerve.
I landed on the ground with nimble steps and vanished, running at my full speed towards that side entrance.
No light shined in the cave in front of me, but I didn’t stop my feet. One step at a time I walked into the dark tunnel, and all the world disappeared into shadow.
My eyes glowed with mana and I could make out the wide tunnel system ahead. Green moss glowed in the distance, showing the path forward.
I tracked the mana signature deeper and deeper, further and further away from the cistern vale. Soon I was so deep that even the moss stopped growing. A profound darkness surrounded me. A droplet of water fell somewhere in the distance, making a plinking sound. Nothing moved after. The silence hummed in my ears, broken only by the sound of my own heart beating like a drum.
The still air stirred. The monster took a deep breath, and the wind from its lungs threatened to pull me into its waiting maw.
The creature’s visage opened up before me like a storybook. Row upon row of teeth, each bigger than me, cut through the air.
I jumped back just in time to avoid the creature’s bite. The tunnel shook from the force of its blow. I stumbled back but caught myself. Belial’s Blade appeared in my hands. [Combat State] Roared to life and my frantic heart stopped beating.
This monster before me neared on the level of the Elder Nature Dragon I fought in the Calico Dungeon.
Broken scales marred its form and the traces of battles long won gave it the aura of a fierce warrior. With its sneak attack failed, the creature stopped hiding its noise. A heavy thunderous sound boomed; after a few moments it played again.
I recognized the noise as the beast’s own heartbeat.
Just as I panicked before, the monster was in a panic now. It recognized me as a threat. It could feel my mana surging just below my skin.
I realized my eyes were sore. I wondered for just how long I had been smiling. Belial’s Blade flashed in my hands, and my battle began.