Floor 4 Room 3
The storm clouds bellowed their threats of winter, flakes of snow drifted with the wind against the rocky cliff sides of the foot of the mountain. Alien evergreens broke the rage of winter, filling the cliff side with the sound of rustling pine. Between the shadow of the rustling giants Kelford forged his way along the worn path distinctly miserable. What was left clothes provided little protection from the elements so worn from bloody battles and traps. His shirt was now little better than rags, so torn up from constant battles that it barely covered his torso. His pants had long rents down the sides and even his boots had a hole in them ! Every inch of his body was stained in blood, and dark scabs where [Ring of Minor Regeneration ] hadn’t perfectly healed his skin marred his flesh.Kelford’s appearance only made the relics stand out that much more.A belt of fur and bones wrapped around his waist while a dormant wooden pendant rested against his chest. His ring on his right hand contrasted the dark knuckles clasped around the light brown of the spear. Each radiated essence but Kelford could barely see the wispy energy that infused them. Instead, his eyes would inevitably turn upwards in awe at the sight hidden by needles,bark, and clouds.
Kelford had never really gotten the point of mountain climbing. Regardless of whether it was the sheer danger of free climbing or just walking nature trails for the scenery. It all seemed so positively mundane. To risk your life climbing was unthinkable when he was growing up and seemed wildly unnecessary. He’d once gone on a walk with some old friends before and while everyone ooh’d and took photos of the view, he’d been unimpressed. He could appreciate that everyone had their own desires and Kelford could appreciate a good view. He had never really experienced the shear desire to experience the view and challenge of getting to a mountain peak.That was until now. The tree cover broke away until Kelford could finally see the full unrestricted view of the mountain above him.
“Perhaps this is what everyone else was feeling” it made him dizzy just to look at it, so large that it was more a craggy wall with no end then a natural wonder. Heavy cloud cover high in what must be the stratosphere hid the peak and most of the upper portion. Snow and rocky outcroppings dotted its surface like wrinkles on a wizened face. It bore down on him, making the storm and himself seem small. Insignificant to just the hint of nature's true majesty. This was just the foot of the mountain and there was so much further to climb. The noise of breathing brought Kelford’s attention back to the path before him as in the distance he could see a herd of some kind of animal wandering in the ruins of what seemed to be a town. Farther up a massive structure dominated the end of the path,miniscule in comparison to the mountain but still big enough to cast a shadow over the small vale Kelford was about to enter. The cold wind was now cutting and Kelford shivered slightly.
“ I wonder if [Enhanced Constitution] helps with colds” The wind blew harder and Kelford shivered again. Maybe he would find out if he lived past this room. He made his way towards the creatures as they meander around, the path winding downwards into the clearing. The ruins of the village were against a rocky cliff side and as Kelford grew closer he began to be more cautious. Ruins of large buildings gave him cover as he began to watch the small groups of these creatures walk in small groups blissfully aware of his presence.
Kill The 20 Ice-Horned Sheep
Kelford stared in shock as the words disappeared, “ Those things are supposed to be sheep?” Each was thick with muscle, with brown hair thick enough to protect them from the worst of the cold. They walked around grazing, some with their children and others in small groups of 4 to 5 adults.Their horns were small but with a strange crystalline sheen to them. They were to lean in some ways then earth sheep, and too thick in others. Their faces were more moose than earth sheep. It threw Kelford off but the alien nature of the sheep were the least of his problems.The real problem was the rams. There were three of them, and each was bigger than the last. Long twisting horns gave over a light bluish glow as two of them grazed with a group of ewes and the last napped in the ruins of a big stone house. Kelford shrugged his shoulders as he tried to gauge how he was going to pass the challenge room. With his improved constitution from [Belt of Fortitude] he should be tough enough to take any of the hits these monsters could dish out. His rare relic was filling him with strength and he could still feel the increase in his strength from earlier. He could just run in and kill them all, fighting them until none were left.
“That’s what got me killed the first time” He shook his head as he moved towards an isolated pair. He’d test himself against the smaller groups, rush in fast and with [Hard Stab] to end the fight as fast as possible. He began to move as stealthy as he could, moving closer to the two sheep. He cringed at the loud crunches of his steps as he maneuvered closer. One of them flicked an ear in his direction and he hid behind a crumbling piece of masonry. He held his breath for long moments before he dared to poke his head around the corner. His eyes locked with ewes and immediately it opened its mouth to scream. Cursing Kelford rushed forward, spear in hand as the rest of the herd raised their heads .
[Hard Stab]
His spear took the ewe in the chest and to his shock passed right through it’s boney chest bursting through the other side. The ghostly after image of [ The Spear of Spirit Strikes] was already beginning to pierce the ewe again leaving the weakened creature dead. Kelford froze as he stared at the beast, just how strong had he gotten. Pain pierced his hip as he was beaten out of his thoughts as the young sheep next to headbutted him. Piercing cold made Kelford wince as he grabbed the little gremlin and threw it into the closest sheep he could see. They fell in a pile of brown fur and stilling the rest of the herd. They stared at him with dead square eyes as most of the herd were now staring down the intruder in their midst. All were quiet until the sound of heavy footfalls echoed along worn stone. The biggest ram pushed aside the others staring Kelford down as it finally woke from its slumber. Each of the sheep seemed to be emboldened baying at Kelford more aggressively seemingly working themselves up into a rage.
“ Well I guess stealth really isn’t my strong suite.” He glanced down at the corpse that his spear was currently stuck in before pulling the sheep into his [Inventory]. The baying ceased as a bright light scared the wild animals. Kelford flipped the spear into his hand before a thought occurred to him.
“ I probably should have taken that opportunity to attack or something.” No soon had the words left his mouth then 5 sheep were charging at him, their entire herd not far after.
Kelford leaped to the side already dodging the first flying headbutts before retaliating with blindingly fast spear thrusts.
[Hard Stab]
The skill responded with none of the exhaustion as bleeding bodies fell in Kelford’s wake as he swung his spear all around him. Tiny horns were narrowly dodged as his increased strength led speed to his stride and momentum to his blurring spear. Muscles burned with exertion as the power of [Hard Stab] lent Kelford even more speed as he impaled another monster. The momentum drove him past glacial blue horns as the first ram to enter the fray charged past Kelford. Wind ripped at his clothes nearly fouling his footsteps as Kelford clumsily claimed another corpse for his [Inventory]. A rocking boom echoed as the ram collided with the stone cliff enough to make Kelford jump. Several sheep immediately capitalized on the distraction forcing Kelford to dash away as his eyes only got peeks at the damage the ram had done to the cliff.
“ What the hell? '' The ram was almost 2 feet in the stone! These things were monstrously strong if it could bury its horns in pure rock! Small cuts and bruises were beginning to build up so Kelford focused back in as the other rams were closing in. Kelford balanced on the edge as he tried to keep to just the edges of the herd, playing the most dangerous game of keep away he’d ever played. He leapt through ruined houses and huts, keeping the sheep just barely away. He leapt through a broken window already feeling the herd just a few breaths behind. Two sheep tried leaping through the window after him getting in each other's way as they collided into each other. Kelford landed and turned speartip already searching for their lives. Blood spilled against the floor before the entire wall exploded outwards sending Kelford stumbling back. Dirt and stone obscured everything until glacial blue horns beat the wind out of Kelford’s lungs. Something cracked as Kelford broke through the next wall as the ram continued its charge. Pain and rage clouded reason as the spear disappeared in a flash light before hands wrapped themselves around freezing horns. Kelford dug his feet in, contesting strength for strength with the charging ram before with a roar he finally stopped its charge by lifting it from its feet! What remnants of the horde were left charged fearlessly forward as Kelford swung the bucking Ram into their faces!
[Hard Smash]
The body turned into a meaty club as he slammed it into the others.
“ Again!” Kelford’s back and chest hurt but he wasn’t done! [Hard Smash] empowered his blows as he ruthlessly slammed the ram again and again into the herd. Its backside was a mess of blood and bones as Kelford threw it aside. Frost was creeping up his legs and chest now but he tried to power through. [Spear of Spirit Strikes] filled his hands again as he slowly fell into a ready position again. There were only 5 left. He grinned as the rest paced nervously back and forth. They were wary of him now and looking at the battlefield he couldn’t blame them. Blood and corpses strewn the field leaving the battlefield red. His hands shook but Kelford was still in fighting shape. He charged forward feeling as if he was moving at half his real speed.The cold had gone from an annoyance to a crippling problem as Kelford had to fight to keep his teeth from chattering. The power had gone out of his charge and the sheep were able to dodge away from his slowed movements. He stopped, conserving his strength as they made their counters. Only one Ram was left and it was the biggest one. It watched as the rest continued to harry Kelford forcing him to back up against the cliff wall. It snorted, charging forward pulling power to its horns that doubled the cold in the area twice over! The other sheep disengaged before following in their own charge ready to attack should the human try to flee.
The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
What could he do? Kelford’s back was against the wall and he wasn’t looking forward to taking a charge to the chest again. He couldn’t go left or right so that left only one option. The Ram charged forward and in that moment of danger Kelford’s body acted. [ Enhanced Strength] flooded his legs with power as he leapt over the charging ram. For a moment Kelford hung in the air, the wind whipping in the monster's wake tore at his clothes as it passed beneath him. Kelford hit the ground in a tangle of limbs just before the entire cliff shook from the calamitous impact. The ram had buried its head fully into the cliff, its legs hung limply while blood poured from the cracks in the cliff face. Relief stole through Kelford but quickly left as he saw the rest of the herd surrounding him. That’s when the crock reverberated through the valley. Kelford and the herd both turned to the cliff at the exact same time as large chunks of rock and dirt fell in a tide of death. The sheep screamed as they tried to run before the boulders fell upon them. Kelford could only watch as the rest of the monsters died all around him. He was going to die if he didn’t do something! He pulled from his [Inventory] as corpses upon corpses appeared around him before the avalanche covered him as well.
Silence fell upon the field, all the sheep and town ruins buried under rubble. Time passed as slowly snowflakes began to fall on the battlefield. The silence was punctuated by a low thumping and slowly rock began to move.The thumping became louder and louder untilKelford emerged in an explosion of dirt and blood. Gasping, he wiped at his eyes as his lungs took in the clean air. He pulled his bruised body out of the pit as pieces of [Sabertooth Youngling] flesh fell from his now completely ruined clothing. T.U.I materialized as Kelford fell to his hands and knees.
“ Congratulations on completing another room, Kelford!”
“Just give me a minute..just a minute” Kelford took a deep breath. Already the numbness from his ring was healing his wounds. All of the corpses he had collected were barely enough to mitigate the falling rock and even then Kelford was sure that the only reason he lived was from [Enhanced Constitution]. He’d woken up completely trapped in darkness with the broken bodies on top of him. It was less than pleasant but with the power of his [Hard Smash] and increased strength he’d be able to climb his way out. The numbness began to fade but pain still radiated from his right arm, Kelford looked down to see it swelling. His fingers wouldn’t move and for a moment he was confused.
“ Oh that’s right, [ Ring of Minor Regeneration] can’t fix broken bones.” The horror of that barely seemed to phase him after all that he’d been through. He pulled himself to his feet using [Spear of Spirit Strikes] to help him. His right fingers wouldn’t respond so he held his arm close to his torso. Essence strengthened mind and body seemed to dull the pain or at least make it more manageable as he dismissed the words congratulating him on completing this area. T.U.I hovered patiently as Kelford wrestled with the words that seemed to stick in his throat.
“ T.U.I I don’t know if I’m going to make it much farther” The words came in a whisper, “ I don’t know if I can even make it pass the next room like this” Kelford couldn’t look at her as he hung his head. All his progress and relics would be gone in an instant, just cause he wasn’t good enough.
“ That’s okay” T.U.I floated right to him, “ All you gotta do is try again”
“ You’re… not mad at me?”
“ No silly, why would I be mad at you? You’re improving and as long as your civilization improves at a consistent rate you will all survive.” T.U.I floated to his face, “ As long as you keep trying there’s nothing to be made about.”
A lump seemed to form in Kelford’s throat but he pushed it down. Wouldn’t do to cry over something like this. He nodded at T.U.I before pushing forward as the snow began to fall in earnest. The cold seemed to crawl into his skin leaving his arm aching and his movements stiff. The path continued, and the large fortress loomed ever bigger as the injured human made his way along the beaten path. Other towns were on the way, with broken ruins all that remained of their once sturdy construction. Kelford passed them barely aware of the broken symbols [ Languages of the Mountain] seemed to want to translate. Instead Kelford stumbled forward as the storm clouds in the distance began to loom closer than ever before , a thick wall that threatened to cover everything. Finally, T.U.I faded away as the last room of the 4th floor expanded before him.
At the foot of the mountain and the fortress now looming large above was clearing of broken buildings and stalls. Kelford stumbled passed the cold stopping any hint of curiosity at the leftovers of a once thriving market. He passed them by as he traveled deeper into the market before he was greeted by the sight of an incline leading up and up to the broken gates of the fortress above. To its left was an altar much like that on the 3rd, except many times more intricate and grand. Power seemed to radiate off of it, with many glowing runes on carved bone and rock. Ram horn, large fangs, and finally at its pinnacle was the sculpture of a monster Kelford had never even seen. Time had worn down much of the detail but the creature was still clearly made to be utterly terrifying. Horns more like rock than bone jutted from the sides of its equally craggy skull. 4 limbs gave it a hunched stature as its forelimbs were many times bigger. Its eyes glowed an icy blue as the runes all along its body were powered by a jagged hunk of crystal that dominated its heart. Golden words filled Kelford’s vision as he took in the breathtaking monument.
Choose
Sacrifice An Uncommon Relic or greater
Or
Defeat the Guardian
It was no question and simply fortunate that the option was there. Kelford pulled from his neck the [Amulet of Minor Barkskin] and placed it in front of the altar. The crystal pulsed with power and Kelford’s relic faded into golden light. Just like that the 4th floor was complete. The usual thrill of victory was far behind as Kelford already was making his way up the incline. The snow was coming down hard now and though Kelford couldn’t see it, many parts of his body were already darkened by the frost. He just had to make it to this last floor and then he could stop, no regeneration was there to save his skin from the growing cold.
Quest Complete!
The Fourth Floor
Description:
Complete the Fourth Floor!
Reward:
40 Karma
New Quest!
The Fifth Floor
Description:
Complete the Fifth Floor
Reward: 50 Karma
Quest Updated!
Jack of All Trades
Description:
Reach to At Least the 5th Floor With Every Class
1 out of 5
Reward:
1 Class Slot
Kelford dismissed the notification as he finally climbed to the broken gates only to see the first enemies of the fifth floor waiting for him. They snickered and leered as they pulled their weapons from hoisters and prepped spears. Growling sabertooths prowled, much bigger than their younger siblings from the floor below. They were in a loose formation and Kelford could count 10 even as his brain fought past the cold and pain.
“ Gnoblars again huh” Kelford held out his spear as the gnoblars and their pets began to move towards him, “ Figures”.
Gnoblar Gorger Hunter
Description:
Gnoblars that have consumed enough meat have grown their awareness
Enough to be given responsibilities. They Hunt in the wilds for their food training to join proper society
Trained Sabertooth
Description:
Sabertooths trained to hunt and listen to orders.
Each of the gorgers wore layers of hide much better maintained then the rags the gnoblars underground had worn. They moved with a smooth, cautious gate that spoke of experience fighting. Throwing spears in the back while others approached with bone clubs and knives. Kelford was so tired but his spear never wavered as his body roused itself for one final clash. He couldn’t use his right arm, and the cold had stolen much of his strength. Still, he’d give this run all he had before he was forced to respawn. The gnoblars hesitated as they saw him prepare to fight before they smiled.
“ This gonna be good training don’t you think?”
“ Yea, bet it’s gonna scream for long time”
“ Shut up you fools!” The others backed away as the biggest of their number moved forward, the gnoblar eyed Kelford up and down. “ Yes, this one is injured. Droret and Urog will kill this one while the rest of you prepare to save them should they be in trouble.”
Groans and complaints echoed the command as the lead gnoblar kept its eyes on Kelford before narrowing.
“ What you looking at ugly!” Kelford’s voice caused the conversation to die as the gnoblars stared in shock.
“ You can speak the tongue of the mountain?” The lead Gnoblar asked, “ I not hear of any other creatures speaking the tongue of the trueborn even before these times.”
“ Yea, I can though if we can come to some kind of-”
“ It is good now you can understand my words when I tell you this.” The gnoblar interrupted Kelford as it pulled out it’s own club, “ You will die screaming as we prove ourselves to the Great Father of Winter”
Kelford could barely consider the words before they were on him. They threw themselves at him with animalistic fury as they screamed their bloodlust into the sky. Kelford stood his ground, conviction still undaunted faced with the odds. Despite all of his efforts the gnoblar weapons still bit into his skin. In the end the gnoblar leader was right, Kelford died screaming.