Rain poured around him and he looked desperately for any place to escape the deluge. The entire nest was empty except for the egg mounds and a small, mud caked hovel. Ethan held his arm over his eyes in a futile effort to block the rain and see through the downpour as he sloshed through the mud towards the shelter. 

The inside of the tiny hut was lit by a single torch directly across from the entrance. In the middle of the single room was a hole, the entrance to a cavern system where Ethan could finish the quest line. Large granite tiles had been placed around the edges of the pit and a plinth of the same stone as the tiles sat under the torch bracket. Whatever statue had adorned the large block was gone and a chain that trailed into the cavern below had been attached. 

He took advantage of the dryness and relative safety by getting some food from his inventory. He hadn’t taken a significant amount of damage from the bullywugs yet, but he needed to recover his almost completely depleted stamina. He thought for a few minutes as he ate, trying to recall what exactly there was down here. He knew there were several adds and one boss, but he was still so tired from fighting he couldn’t focus on anything but eating. 

With both his health and stamina full, he rose to his feet and walked to the cavern entrance. The hole was only 15 feet deep, he could have dropped down but he’d broken an ankle on a drop of that size before and this was a terrible place to think about being trapped. That left the chain to climb down. 

The cavern he lowered himself into was the size of a football field, but ovular. The only way Ethan knew that was that torches were lit every 10-15 feet, which gave an added effect of the room being more humid than outside. The center of the room was unlit and the light from the torches did not reach the middle. At the far end from him, he could see more lit torches and bullywugs moving. Their croaking reminded him of bullfrogs in the summer, the effect was magnified from the echoes in the chamber. 

Ethan made to move to the left wall, but hesitated. All day his alerts and notifications had been coming at weird times, especially if he’d been in combat. With a little tweaking he managed to change it so the only alerts he received while in combat were health and stamina related. Anything else could wait until he was done. 

Satisfied with the changes, he hugged the left wall trying his best to remain hidden. Whatever the bullywugs were doing had them distracted and he was able to move quickly. The bullywug Elder Shaman patrolled around the fire lit area with its arms crossed. Ethan couldn’t make out any details, but he thought he remembered the boss had small horns. 

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But wasn’t it hella fat and moved on four legs? Ethan paused in fear as he finally remembered the encounter. This was where he’d died for the very first time, back when he’d logged initially as a Druid. There were four channelers that had to be killed within a minute of entering the room or they summoned a giant frog god. It was killable, but hard. Every time since then he’d raced across the room, killed the channelers and then engaged with the Elder Shaman.

Ethan started to panic as he sprinted across the cavern, he wasn’t sure how long he had left before the boss was summoned but he knew it wasn’t much time. 

The channeling bullywugs were weak, they just needed one or two hits to kill. But the Elder Shaman was significantly stronger. The room was set up in a manner that would trick most players: go for the stronger mob first and then kill the weaker adds. But there was no way to kill the Elder Shaman before the one minute timer ran out and also kill the summoners. 

As soon as he was close enough, he activated his charge and slammed into the first bullywug summoner. His momentum knocked it to the ground in addition to the stun. A powerful downward strike with his axe killed the bullywug instantly. Using the rage he’d generated, he leapt at the next one. Once again, killing it with the first blow. In combat and low rage meant no more movement boosts, so he sprinted again to the third. 

Unsure he’d luck out again with a crit, he hurled a throwing axe at his target hoping to weaken it before he got in range. The attack went off wide, completely missing. Ethan didn’t hear it land but he didn’t have time to worry about a lost throwing weapon. 

His first strike caught the third summoner in the shoulder forcing it to his knees. He finished it off as quickly as he could with a blow to the back of the head. He prayed he still had enough time to kill the last one. 

Five feet from his target, electricity surged through his body, locking his muscles and causing him to tumble forward and drop his axe. As he rolled he saw the bullywug Elder Shaman gesturing at him, sparks arcing off its webbed fingers. A shallow gash bled down his chest. 

Comprehension hit him at the same time as a follow up shock from the large bullywug. His throwing axe had hit the Elder Shaman, prematurely pulling it. 

Ethan scrambled to his feet, grabbing his axe from where it fell in front of him and continued to the summoner. He could survive the meager damage from the boss for a few hits, but he did not want to fight the frog god. 

Swinging his axe with every ounce of strength he could muster he landed a blow that severed a webbed hand, his axe wedging itself in the frogman’s femur. When he jerked it free the bullywugs remaining hand was no longer glowing, but it wasn’t dead yet either. 

“Ho ho ho ho ho ho ho.” A deep guttural voice echoed in the cavern, shaking rocks and debris shaking rocks and dirt from the walls. The summoner had completed its ritual.