The family reunion was cut short as a chunk of flesh flew past. Blood splattering Edan. He gagged as he felt things crawl against his flesh and started beating at it. Sanik and Reema rushed to help.
“What was that!” he asked, incredulously.
The tip of a snake's tail lay twitching beside the pool of Vitalis. Edan watched in morbid curiosity as the flesh seemed to stretch oddly, like grasping fingers, before falling still. The dark blood flowing from it slowed.
“That, son, is a problem.” Sanik began to herd Edan towards the stairs. Reema, still clutching Edan close to her was pulled along as well.
“If that's the tail, how bigs the damn snake?”
“Very big. Also very smelly. Hurry up!” Sanik answered tersely, his eyes flicking to the darkened room. “Luckily, Tali has it handled.”
Edan craned his neck to see around his father. If Tali was fighting she might need help. The sound of destruction shifted, moving further away before suddenly sounding like it was just behind them. Edan ducked on instinct and kept moving.
Laughter echoed around the room, making the hair on Edans arms stand up.
“That's a creepy ass snake,” he said, fighting a shiver. “Why does it keep laughing?”
“Uhhh…sure. The snake. Creepy.”
They were almost to the stairs when Sanik asked. “Son, where’s your clothes?”
—----------
The fight had shifted. Neither could hurt the other with just basic attacks. The first to use a skill had been Tali. [Genesis] had the ability to rewind a fight to the beginning. Tali’s resources and health would revert back to what it was at that time as well, while her opponents wouldn’t.
The Rhodan Viper responded with a skill of its own. The scales along its neck and head flashed red and when it struck next it left a trail of shadows behind.
The shadows shifted and solidified into more heads, each an echo of the vipers. The shadowy heads attacked, each moving independently of the other.
Suddenly faced with multiple attacks at once, Tali punched the ground. [Balwark] activated and a slab of the ground came free, Tali caught it and using brute strength lifted it as a shield.
Her shield turned to rubble under the viper's attack, but it had done its job. The shadow attacks melted away. Grabbing a piece of her shield, Tali threw it. The Viper swayed and the rock missed. It hit the ceiling with a boom showering them both in dust.
[Engage].
Tali burst forward, moving faster than she had before. She lowered her head and angled her shoulder. Like a wrecking ball, she slammed into the side of the snake. It hissed as it flopped over.
[Resonance]
Tali punched the ground, her hand sinking deep into the rock. When she pulled it back a gauntlet had formed around her fist, made of the same dark rock as the floor. A vicious spike adorned the top of her gauntlet and she drove it into the serpent like a dagger.
Thrashing violently the Viper tore the wound further. Laughing, Tali held on, sawing her hand back and forth as she helped open up the wound. With a snick, the tip of the snake's tail was cut off. Tali flicked it behind her out of the way.
[Resonance]
Once more Tali punched the ground. The gauntlet on her hand fell apart. This time she pulled free a sword as long as her arm, its edge was jagged, like chipped rock, but shone with incredible sharpness. With wild abandon, she renewed her attacks.
The snake twisted out of her way, its thick form sliding between pillars with astonishing quickness. Frustrated, Tali threw her stone sword at it and reached towards the ground again.
Quick as thought the snake lashed out, its now regrown tail leaking a black fluid that splattered across Tali’s robes as it struck. Thrown back, Tali rolled like a doll across the ground before coming to a stop next to the glowing pool of Vitalis.
Springing back to her feet Tali looked down. The front of her robes had been dissolved by whatever the snake secreted. She could see the dark form of her markings covering her torso through the holes.
Laughing Tali ripped the robe from her body, letting it drift down behind her. Her markings had grown so thick that it looked like she wore a body suit of black ink beneath a chest wrap of white cloth and long brown pants. A thick belt circled her waist, and various trinkets made of expensive metals hung from them.
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Her body swelled with energy. Her muscles stood out in sharp relief as she ground her heels into the rock beneath her. Leaning forward she allowed her fingertips to rest gently on the ground.
Many of her tribe had wondered if she cultivated a third Path. One of war and battle, but she didn't. Her main Path required too much work that she barely had time to walk a second. A third was beyond her. No, her love for battle was all her own.
[Engage] sent Tali surging forward. The snake lunged for her, its fangs dripping venom. She canceled the skill with raw strength, her legs digging furrows in the ground. The snake's mouth closed on empty air.
Tali activated [Engage] once more. [Resonance] pulled stone from the ground to wrap her form.
Tali slammed into the snake before it had pulled its head all the way back. Its fangs shattered as she slammed a stone fist into its mouth. The same black liquid from earlier now coated every inch of the snake, it seeped from between scales and beaded the exposed flesh like sweat. Where the liquid touched stone it sizzled and spat, foul-smelling fumes filling the air.
The snake’s head dropped to the ground under the hail of fists. Bones broke and scales cracked.
Tali dug her foot into the ground. [Resonance] activated once more. The rock covering her body fell away as she transferred her will to the hard ground by her feet. She kicked a war hammer of stone into the air. Catching it she twirled it around, gaining momentum, before bringing it crashing down on the Viper's head.
It popped like a ripe melon. Gore and putrid blood burst across the floor. Wriggling masses of worms crawled over each other in the liquid, flopping about uselessly. The snake's body spasmed, bits of black liquid landing on Tali’s markings. She could feel the heat, but they couldn’t break through and rolled down like raindrops.
Tali frowned and swiped at it as it chewed through her pants.
She waited, the hammer still held in her hand. She had expected to receive a notification from the System. She should have received some experience.
Nothing.
The worms had begun to burrow into the ground, their pale flesh bright in the surrounding gloom.
Satisfied with the fight, even if she hadn’t received anything for it. Tali pulled another robe from her spatial belt and threw it over her shoulders. The markings along her body began to recede as she felt the heat within her cool.
Burning her blood acted as a boosting skill. Once she let it go, exhaustion hit her. Tali let the hammer fall from her fingers. It broke apart before it hit the ground. She sorted through her memories of the fight. Most of it was a haze, but she thought she remembered seeing Sanik and Reema huddled around the smaller form of Edan.
A wide smile split her face. Tali cast one look around before turning to the stairs. She had taken three steps when she stopped. Dashing back deeper into the room she stopped near the workstation. Much of it had been destroyed in the scuffle, but shifting through it quickly Tali found what looked like a metal rod, as thick as her wrist, and covered in enchantments. She slipped it into her storage belt and after a second, tossed a small bound notebook in to join it.
Turning back to the stairs Tali was happy to leave the room behind.
—--------
Edan hustled up the stairs, making sure to keep as far from the edge as possible. Sanik led the way and Reema brought up the rear. The sounds of battle beneath them had grown quiet and Edan hopped it meant Tali had won.
Sanik and Reema didn’t seem to doubt it for a second and it was only Sanik’s reassurance that she would join them shortly that kept Edan moving.
Going up was much quicker than heading down. They didn’t have to stop to search every floor. Thanks to Edan’s higher stats he was a lot faster than before and his endurance showed as he kept up with the pace set by his parents. He only tripped a few times.
Luckily Sanik had given him some clothes out of his storage ring as soon as they were out of immediate danger. It was way too big, but Edan was happy to have something between him main boys and the monsters of the dungeon.
Tali did join them eventually. She still wore her usual brown robes. Other than her disheveled hair she didn’t look any different. Edan wanted to talk to her. He wanted to thank her for coming. He wanted to yell at her for not telling him about the Four Star Heavenly Sect. He wanted so much but now wasn’t the time.
He settled for a brief nod and a thankful smile. The smile he got in return was warm and left him feeling guilty for being angry with her.
They finally slowed when the floor numbers reached the single digits and Sanik dropped back enough to talk to Tali over Edan and Reema’s heads.
“Do you think we’ll have any problems waiting outside?”
“What problems?” Edan butted in.
“There will be no one waiting,” Tali reassured Sanik. “The guardian may have left to speak with the Academy Administrators, but he will be required to wait until their return from the Star Castle.”
“What problems?” Edan asked again, glancing between the two.
“Not now. We can talk when we get home.” Reema said, giving Sanik a pointed look.
That sounded good to Edan.
They passed the third floor and the area of the steps Edan had been pushed off of. He felt something ugly twist in the pit of his stomach as he remembered the fear and panic he had felt…it felt like ages ago.
“Mum, Dad, how long was I gone?”
“A few hours,” Reema replied quietly. “I’m so sorry baby, we would have come sooner but Tali had to tell us. The res-”
“A few hours!” Edan yelled in shock. It had felt like days. He saw the guilt on Reema’s face and the rest of her words finally caught up to him. Feeling like an ass Edan quickly added “You lot move fast! Thanks, Mum.”
It wasn’t the greatest show of appreciation, and it fell a little flat. Reema gave a weak smile. Edan made a mental note to thank all three of them later.
The squad of four burst from the stairs onto the first floor of the dungeon. The cavern with its familiar bone ceiling stretched out around them.
Edan realized with a start that those were the bones of the Flare Calf Kiba had killed.
Kicking up little puffs of flame in their wake, the group moved quickly towards the exit.