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To Slay Leviathan
CHAPTER 13 Beware of Trojan horses full of chocolate (published as chapter 12)

CHAPTER 13 Beware of Trojan horses full of chocolate (published as chapter 12)

Nara Piper Sophrona sank into a low crouch and activated her thief talents, stealth and vanish. Automatically taking several steps backwards, a habit she had developed to throw off observers. Backpedaling a dozen paces she came to an earthen stairway. Steps carved into the dirt for the farmer to move from one terrace to the one above.

Piper paused halfway to the next terrace, stopping at a random step. Another habit to evade observers.

One, two,... She thought, silently counting to sixty.

Her vanish talent allowed for temporary invisibility. Meaning that both monsters and allies would be unable to see her. It was the first major talent she had ever learned, learned when we was eight years old and her pointy ears grew too past her hair. That was when the adults began to throw rocks at her, taunting her or cursing her parents.

Vanish was useful for avoiding those sorts of incidents. Though it came with a number of downsides. Firstly, the invisibility was short lived and lasted an incalculable amount of time. Often no more than four or five seconds, and never more than twenty. Vanish also had a cooldown of 240 seconds, four full minutes before it could be used again. Attacking or physically touching an enemy or ally would result in the invisibility breaking.

Vanish, move, hide, and reappear. For Piper’s practiced movements, four seconds was almost too long.

With a minute gone she began to move. There was little danger outside a new dungeon, monsters needed time to form, and more time to absorb mana from the dungeon. It should be weeks before any could venture far from the dungeon’s life giving powers.

That did not mean they could not. A fact Piper had seen first hand. Overconfidence made adventurers take risks they knew not to, jumping into peril with their talents on cooldown.

The dungeon wasn’t far, and she could reach it in a few seconds if she ran, but she wanted to approach it stealthily, arriving at the doors with vanish ready for a second use.

She stepped towards the doors, relying on her stealth talent to keep her concealed. Stealth was the polar opposite of vanish. Making her harder to see directly by blurring her outline and quieting her steps. With a cooldown of thirty seconds and an uptime that lasted until she was detected, it was a skill she tended to keep activated, even around her allies.

Her allies for this expedition were a strange bunch. Odd sorts that she doubted could be counted on. Konrad probably set her up, the old man or orange haired girl were almost guaranteed to die.

When one of them fell, Konrad could revoke her license. Stranger still was the old man’s insistence on waiting to introduce themselves. Refusing to give his name or converse on the road to the dungeon. Then there was Eric, the ax wielder who returned alone more often then Piper. Unlike Piper, he was always covered in blood.

Eric claimed it was monster blood, but Piper’s elven nose knew the scent of human blood. It’s acrid sting that lacked the electric tingle on mana. He should have been expelled from the guild, yet here he was at her side. Humans always seemed to give each other second and third and fourth chances.

The fools.

They unsettled her. As if every word they spoke was a half truth. It was clear enough that the girl was a diviner, and the old man was the guild observer but this party was beyond discordant. None of their presumed abilities synergized, nor did they have enough adventurers to properly scout a new dungeon.

This is my own accursed fault for joining that last band of rookies. They just had to walk into an ambush of goblins and get wiped out. Really! Who dies to goblins? If only Guildmaster Roark didn’t require recertifications for lone survivors.

Frowning at her ill fate, she took two steps up, her padded shoes silently elevating her vantage and providing the perspective she had been sent to find. Nara, or Piper as she preferred to be called by the humans, strode across the terrace’s edge. Keeping a watchful eye on the murky waters contained within. Despite the shallow nature of the rice terrace, she knew monsters often had stealth skills of their own, far greater abilities that might allow them to conceal themselves in next to nothing. Including the eighteen inches of muck beside her.

Passing the trio of supposed allies she took in the farm. Dozens of terraces grew every sort of crop. Higher terraces grew pulses like peas and lentils, requiring less water than the thirsty rice patties of the lowest terraces. This method of overflow farming meant the farmer could be more efficient with their water.

Not that it mattered with a new dungeon. Soon this farm would be a bustling fortress. Royal engineers and local soldiers would swarm this farm, building palisades and towers at first. Fortifications that would eventually be replaced with stone walls and steel gates.

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A hundred feet in front of her lay two marble doors, polished and carved with enough skill to bring the bah relief of an angry dwarf to life. His furrowed brow and sneering maw would chase away any casual observers.

Rice grew on most of the lower terraces, but every fourth terrace was solid, providing the farmer with an opportunity to grow an assortment of beans, corn, and gourds. Piper knew there was a reason for the mixed crops, but could not be bothered to learn. Adventuring was her profession, the road to her redemption. No meager humans would waylay her along this path. She would succeed here, no matter who had to die.

Hattie watched the half elf vanish from sight. Blinking rapidly as the gorgeous brunette’s figure seemed to wiggle and evaporate before her eyes. Activating her divine talents, she tried to follow the half elf, but her outline quickly faded in a wave of sparkles.

“Wow.” Whispered Hattie, unable to contain her awe.

“Always a tragedy to see a fine woman vanish. We didn’t even get to see her hips sway on the way out.” Said the ax wielder.

He shook his head, feigning sorrow. Though Hattie saw the jovial intent in his warm brown eyes. At twenty three he wasn’t much older than her. A fact she had gleaned from his extended status window on the way to the dungeon.

She felt drawn to the man’s good looks and exuberant personality. Which only deepened her guilt at having peeked at his statuses. Nestor saw the yearning in her eyes and cleared his throat.

“Ahem. As I said before, your certifications began this morning. Do not get distracted by a flight of fancy. We count on diviners to keep us alive. With guidance and healing. Stay focused or we may all perish here.” He warned, strangling the budding mood before it could be planted.

“Oh, uhm yes, sorry. I can’t see anything yet...” She said apprehensively, uncertain as to what he expected from her.

“For your first quiz, give me the names and abilities of our companions. Include any magic items you detected as well.” Ordered Nestor.

“Okay, that’s easy enough. This man is Eric Bardick, a level thirty seven warrior, uhm, pure warrior class. His major talents are berserker, lifesteal, and ability surge for strength. For the minor talents I see quick strike, double strike, heavy strike, enhanced strike, endurance, onslaught, and weapon proficiency-” Offered Hattie, listing off the man’s abilities with ease.

Eric’s warm smile cooled as she spoke, twisting into a frown as she listed every single one of his talents in order. Hattie caught on to the shift in attitude and shut her mouth. Ending the list abruptly as she feared offending him further.

“Oh don’t mind me! Eric Bardick at your service. You are dead on the money with my talents. With your talents you would see right through a bluff and call every hand I could play.” Said Eric, opening a small pouch on his backpack to display two decks of well worn playing cards.

Nestor’s stoic mouth tugged downward in disapproval. Extraneous items like cards should have been left at the guild. For him to bring not just one deck, but two, irritated Nestor deeply. Gambling was a fine pastime when done in the guild’s main hall, and a flagrant act of stupidity when done in the bowels of a dungeon.

“Onto his equipment.” Encouraged Nestor, driving the conversation forward.

Nestor knew that making an enemy of Eric before they entered the dungeon would harden Hattie’s heart against him. A risk he would not take. Not with Diana and Henry dead.

Hattie wilted under his question like a schoolgirl who had been called on while passing a note.

“Uhm, yes. Equipment… That he is carrying. Magical equipment.” She stammered.

Nestor raised an eyebrow at his granddaughter. Displeased with the source of her distraction.

“His ax is magical! Enhanced lifesteal and extra damage. The breastplate he wears gives magical resistance as well as negating one attack. His bracers increase attack speed. There are two daggers that are part of a set, they give attack speed I think… but the enchantment is complicated. I know there is more but I can’t tell what it is. Maybe it has a concealment enchantment? Oh and he has a bunch of magic in his backpack. All their auras are overlapping though… I can’t tell what he has…” Said Hattie, looking away from Nestor as she admitted her failure.

She winced, waiting for the admonishment she was about to hear.

“Excellent work!” Exclaimed Nestor.

Hattie’s eyes snapped to his, confused at the unfamiliar praise. His beaming smile confounded her further.

“Those daggers are a guild treasure! I remember a quest given to recover them after a party got wiped out. This scar is from that day, when Konrad zigged instead of zagged.” Said Nestor, pulling up his sleeve and indicating a foot long scar that ran from his thumb to his elbow.

“They have a concealment on them as well as an exceptionally rare passive. They boost the carrier's attack speed even when sheathed. I can count on one hand how many weapons I've found with passive enchantments.” Educated Nestor.

“Guildmaster Roark often uses them to test people claiming to be high level diviners. And seeing as how I have a table reserved for card games he lent them to me. Put me out in front of the guild hall as a plant.” Offered Eric, grinning mischievously.

“Once saw a level twenty four fail to appraise them. Ha! I’ll never forget how he cried blood after trying to appraise the daggers. It eases my mind to know I have a diviner of your quality guiding us.” Continued Eric, giving Hattie a winning smile.

Blood rushed to Hattie’s face. Turning her cheeks bright red and making her ears burn with embarrassment at the unrequited praise. Nestor tried not to frown, frustrated by Hattie’s burgeoning adolescence. He considered beheading Eric then and there.

It would take more than one strike, but his talents and levels would guarantee the outcome in a few seconds. Nestor bit his tongue, Hattie needed his compassion, not his fury. Her parents were dead, of course she was vulnerable to attention from the baser sex.

Worse still, Eric was an attractive man, taller than Nestor had been in his prime and well muscled. With a Jaw sharp enough to slay goblins.

“As a guild observer, I must take up the rear. What will be our marching formation and our roles within that formation?” Pressed Nestor, trying to keep his granddaughter focused.

Hattie’s brow wrinkled in confusion. Too hindered by her obvious attraction towards Eric to think clearly. She pulled her hair back, gathering it into a ponytail as she collected her wits.

“There are four of us, and you have to be in the rear. So a line seems the most reasonable. Eric’s abilities are about attack speed and damage, so he is a melee damage dealer. Uhm, he also has the largest health pool and the best armor so he should be in front. Nara - I mean the archer, has stealth but no detection, and her abilities all focus on ranged damage so she should be third behind me.” Reasoned Hattie.

“Why would you take second place?” Prodded Nestor.

“I have talents for combat and stealth… oh…” Answered Hattie, her voice fading as she spoke.

Nestor did not need to correct her. Hattie ground her teeth together. Reminded by her own foolish answer of the truth. The talents and levels she once had were gone, she was a worthless, useless, level one. Practically an infant! Sure the Oracle class came with some nice perks like healing magic and divination, but when it came to combat she may as well be a mouse.

No, a mouse would at least be harder to hit.