Chess snapped awake choking on a scream and pawing at her arm and chest, her eyes wide. Her breathing quickened and her heart rate spiked. She went into a sort of lockdown, unbidden tears streaming down her face while her mind reeled.
“Chess!” Ashley yelled, rushing over and gripping her in a tight hug from behind. “It’s okay! You're safe; I healed you!” she reassured Chess between her own growing sobs and tears of relief.
Chess leaned forward and put her head between her raised knees, lifting Ashley from the ground in the process. She forced herself to breathe in through her nose and out through her mouth slowly as doctor Garibay had taught her shortly after Kira's murder when she'd suffered persistent panic attacks. I'm ok, she told her racing thoughts.
Ashley's back hug was the same as Kira used when their parents got into a knockdown dragged-out screaming match. Her breath hitched as another sob escaped with the vivid juxtaposition.
Kira, you would've called me an idiot for my choices lately. I miss your guidance; you were always the smart one, she thought as an old but painful pang settled into her chest next to the new scars she'd recently received. The painful thoughts of her lost twin combined with Ashley's crushing back hug helped to settle her galloping heart and circling mind and the panic attack faded.
“Shhh... Calm down. It's okay; we smashed the skeleton to bits,” Ashley told her, still holding on tight.
Chess spent several long minutes calming down with Ashley clinging to her back murmuring incoherent nothings. As much to calm herself as Chess at this point; the two of them relishing the relief that they were safe.
Chess cried not only about the day before but also about what she'd been through lately. The cry eased the building despair and tension that had been growing in her guts since she’d landed in this crazy and dangerous world.
As they separated, Chess came to realize that there was no pain; only a gentle ache in her arm where she remembered vicious wounds.
Chess took another long raspy breath and eased Ashley's grip, guiding her to the ground. Chess finally lifted her shirt and bra to inspect her wounds. Her breast flopped heavily from under the cloth and she saw only smooth unblemished skin and her perky nipple and areola. She stared at her boob for a long moment longer. It’s so strange, there it is like that's normal. A part of me, nothing more, nothing less. She tucked her exposed boob away frowning.
She inspected the matching six-inch-long neat scars on each side of her left arm. Neat rows of small dots lined each edge where stitches had been. She remembered Ashley’s healing ability and let out a long shuddering breath. No scar on my breast; saved by my fucking bra again. Hell, even my face feels good! she thought, raising a hand to prod at her once bruised face.
"Your healing is amazing," Chess told Ashley with a tinge of awe. Ashley smiled at her, the smile radiant on her tear-stained face, and Chess felt another surge of fondness for her adopted daughter.
As she lowered her hand to look around for the hitherto quiet Lynn a light blow knocked her head sideways.
"What the hell!" Chess cursed, leveraging herself back up straight before looking over then up into Lynn's livid red eyes.
Chess shifted backward instinctively at the rage she saw boiling in Lynn's eyes before straightening and meeting the gaze head-on. A waft of skunk spray filled the corridor as the Kin-woman’s rage burned, and Chess choked back the resultant nose-burning bile at the scent. It took everything Chess had not to retch. A nearby Ashley lost the battle, choking and sputtering.
"What was that for!" Chess demanded, rubbing her head while breathing through her mouth. Ashley scooted back from both of them, moving closer to the landing pool to escape.
"If you act like a stupid child you get treated like a stupid child," Lynn stated through a clenched jaw. "Your actions nearly killed us all! If you hadn't yelled when you did…" She seethed for a full minute further, breathing through her mouth, before continuing more calmly.
"I refuse to put my life in the hands of someone who insists on ignoring simple common sense. All our lives depend on us working together and being intelligent about it. No one can survive a dungeon alone no matter what the songs will tell you. Besides, you’re responsible for Ashley now, and you took that on willingly." Lynn shook her head in disgust.
“I didn't think... the last few weeks...” Chess started, trying not to draw breath against the pungent odor, her fingers moving to hold her nose.
“That’s the problem! You Don’t Think!” Lynn cut her off, her anger rekindled. “You spent all day yesterday complaining about being bored and playing with bloody skulls! We’re in a Luminous forsaken dungeon! Grow the fuck up! The last few weeks have been hard on everyone, but that's no excuse for you to be acting like some hero from a story that can solve every problem alone! You nobles are all the same. You always think it will be so easy and that nothing can go wrong because daddy gave you some tutors and magical gear. You’re just like him!” Lynn spat, waving at the nearby skeleton before cuffing Chess upside the head again. “A fool in over your head who doesn’t even know it!” Lynn finished in a scathing tone.
Chess flinched back and grabbed her head, her eyes promising murder. She clenched her teeth behind thin lips, with her fingernails pressing hard into her palms.
“Oh, don't be a baby, you deserve far worse than that,” Lynn said, before turning her back on Chess and folding her arms across her chest.
"I'm older than you!" Chess protested while rising.
"You're a dangerous child!" Lynn countered, not turning back to face her.
“Please…” Ashley said, rising from her corner, tears forming in her eyes.
Lynn turned back around to see Chess standing and still holding her head. “Oh don’t play it up, you are tougher than this. You barely complained about your bruised face before,” Lynn said with a dismissive snort.
“Guys…” Ashley pleaded, stepping between them and holding a hand to each of their chests. She looked ready to scurry back in retreat.
“That's different. I got hit in the face a lot when I was little,” Chess said, letting Ashley hold her back.
The statement threw Lynn off her righteous anger, and she deflated further under Ashley’s pleading look. Lynn looked horrified. “Why would your family take the chance of ruining you like that? Because you're a half-elf?” she asked, derailed by the sudden shift in the conversation.
Chess let out a rueful chuckle and shook her head. “No, nothing like that. The boys and I used to get into fights when they picked on my twin sister,” she explained.
Lynn took several long calming breaths through her mouth. “We are going to spend a few hours each day training and talking about proper delving tactics. You will listen and take them seriously, or a smack upside the head will be the least of your worries,” Lynn threatened in a calmer tone.
“I agree, that sounds great,” Chess capitulated immediately. Freya knows I need the help.
Lynn opened her mouth to continue her argument but shut it when she realized Chess had agreed without a further battle. They stared at each other for another minute, Ashley looking back and forth between them before Chess sighed and then choked on the smell.
“That smell makes fighting with you unfair," Chess grumbled and coughed, spitting in an attempt to clear the taste from her mouth before retreating to the furs.
Lynn had the grace to blush, her fur bushing up on her face. “I hate when that happens. Sometimes I can’t control it when I'm mad or scared, and believe me I hate the smell as much as you,” she grimaced, her fluffy tail hugging the ground.
Lynn moved closer to the tunnel's entrance and bent over to retrieve something.
“I can’t be this stupid again. There might not be a third or fourth. chance...” Chess mumbled under her breath after she'd sat back down against the wall. She thumped her head against its rough surface, the fight replaying in her mind. Thankfully, the others either didn’t hear her statement or pretended not to have, and Ashley soon joined her in sitting against the wall before leaning into Chess’ shoulder.
“First things first: you're making yourself armor someone else can remove. If you’d’ve fainted beforehand...” Lynn admonished, looming over Chess after she'd gathered herself further. Chess nodded in acquiescence.
Lynn dropped the skeleton’s blade into Chess’ lap and she frowned down at it. It had many nicks and dents in its cutting edge but still gleamed like new steel.
Penetrating Steel Rapier
Type: Piercing/Slashing
Rarity: Rare
Properties: A masterwork single-edged basket-hilted steel rapier.
This blade has seen extensive use and may have hidden weaknesses as a result.
Durability: 54.5/300
Enchantments:
Greater Penetrating: Reduces the puncture resistance of any non-magical material lesser than itself to 1/8th its natural resistance when used to pierce. It also reduces magical materials lesser than itself to ¾ of its natural puncture resistance if not enchanted to counteract this enchantment. Each penetrating stroke weakens the blade by .005%
Anti-Oxidation: Prevents Oxidation.
Chess knitted her brows at the description; these item descriptions are surprisingly detailed, she thought before looking back to Lynn. “What does the system tell you about it when you look at it?” she asked.
“Penetrating steel rapier, poor condition with an advanced penetrating and an anti-rust enchantment. It's a noble's weapon,” Lynn said, meeting her eyes. “There was no Delvers chain. Do you have room for his entire skeleton? Being a noble even if just a lost minor son he’ll likely be worth a fair amount intact if we can find his family. Even if it’s been centuries, as the cut of his clothes would suggest,” she asked.
I’ll have to ask Ashley later. That can’t be all it says for her, can it? No details? Chess thought.
“His?” Chess asked while doing as Lynn suggested and slipping the dismantled skeleton into the back of her vault with the growing skull wall.
“The clothes,” Lynn pointed out. “They’re self-repairing and cleaning. It's a common enchantment for wealthy nobles. You can have them if you want. I dislike clothes in general and only wear a shift for human societal reasons. Though I don't think the pantaloons will fit over your ample hips and you’ll have to leave the blouse mostly unbuttoned," Lynn added.
Chess raised an eyebrow and shook her head dismissing the idea.
“No, the best item he had was this,” Lynn said, with a greedy twinkle in her eyes, holding up a silver chain with a small amulet hanging from it. It resembled a small heater shield with a solid green gemstone tower topped with a brilliant ruby in relief on its face. The metal was a very distinct dark grey with a sheen of dark green/black coating it; almost like a translucent lacquer. One of the green gemstones near the top had a crack splitting its emerald-cut center. Lynn let it drop into Chess’s hand.
Dwarven Bulwarks Amulet
Type: Jewelry
Rarity: Epic
Properties: A exquisite adamantine, emerald, and ruby shield amulet on a runic silver chain.
One of the Emeralds is damaged beyond repair limiting the full enchantment.
Durability: 81/100
Minimum Requirements for enchantment activation:
Wearers must possess at least 1/4 Dwarven blood.
Natural willpower of 15
Natural constitution of 15
Natural shield skill of 20
One of the following: Active Shield Pyth over Rank 8, Shell Core over Rank 5, or Fortify Gem over Rank 3.
Enchantments:
Reduce force: Doubles the passive effect of your Shield Pyth, Shell Core, or Fortify Gem’s force reduction and all similar Class skills.
Bulwark: Any attack made against an ally's shield in the range of your Shield Pyth, Shell Core, or Fortify Gem's active skill radius receives ¼th of your total force reduction. This amount stacks with any similar class skills.
Giants Toughness: + 2 constitution. +1 strength(Reduced by damage to enchantment, from +4 constitution and +2 strength).
Grump’s Bulwark: Equipped shield loses durability at half the normal rate from attacks and repairs over time. Repair:(Constitution (mod) percent per day).
“Requirements?” Chess asked, baffled at seeing them for the first time, her gaze fixed on the beautiful but thick chain and pendant. A real rapper’s chain, she thought, hefting it.
“Some talented enchanters can put limits on their items, it allows for far stronger enchantments but usually costs them in other ways. Things like this are generally the life's work of a master. If I had to guess, whoever created this sacrificed part of his constitution, strength, and dwarven identity to add it to the enchantment,” Lynn explained with a slight shiver. She had grabbed a tub of something from her pack and moved to refill her canteen from the landing pool.
“I suggest we say we never recovered it,” Lynn continued with a smile over her shoulder rubbing ointment under her tail. Almost immediately her smell lost its potency. “I already talked to Ashley, she’ll be able to use it after some training. Thankfully willpower and constitution training often go hand in hand. She’ll have to start soon while she’s still young. There is no point in wasting free stat points needlessly," she said.
"You should also bind it soon with your Pyth ability, it is what the skill is for, after all," she said looking towards Ashley. Chess felt Ashley nod slowly against her shoulder.
“What’s in it for you?” Chess asked, eyeing the Kin woman. That, and we would need, what? 2550 doses of shield Pyth? That sounds beyond expensive. Maybe our share of the delvers we return will make a dent. Then again, we could always harvest his body and not bring him up to the Guild, Chess thought, her greedy hamster rubbing its paws together.
“I want a core if we find one in here and the first choice on other loot. If we don’t find a core, I want the second choice when we divide the loot later. Besides, Sholer wouldn’t appreciate it falling into the hands of the local dwarven clans. If we leave his inventory intact it shouldn't be questioned, even if they have records,” Lynn said.
“If we find something better or a Core that doesn't fit you well, we will talk about it,” Chess hedged.
“Okay, but only if it's better suited to either of you,” Lynn replied with a frown.
“Fine, you got a deal,” Chess conceded after thinking about it for a while. Am I complicit in something that will come to haunt me later now? she thought, a little nervous about accepting the expensive item that once belonged to some noble. Fuck it, finders' keepers. She gave her head a shake. Stop being morose, it's been ages since these people died.
“I hope you learned your lesson from the fight,” Lynn said, changing the subject.
You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.
Chess nodded, chastised. “I’ll wake you the next time I know an attack is coming. It was a stupid risk to take, and I paid for it,” she said rubbing at her new scars before grabbing and refastening her bracer that lay nearby to cover them. The others had cleaned the bracer while she was out, and she removed the holes with a flex of her magic before reclaiming her breastplate to do the same. They didn’t even slow the blow, if not for my bra… She looked back to Lynn. “How long was I out?” she asked.
“An hour. We should try to sleep a little longer before we try the other path. You should eat something in the meantime," Lynn suggested, turning her gaze to Ashley who had fallen asleep and was snoring softly on Chess’s shoulder. “You should tuck her in,” she said.
Chess looked down on her dozing daughter and the now familiar pang settling in her chest made her smile. She eased Ashley down into the furs before standing to collect a few things from their diminishing stores of food. Munching thoughtfully, she prepared to rework her armor and fix the bear shield, dragging what she needed in front of her before getting to work.
She and Lynn each took a pair of turns on watch and sleeping before they woke Ashley and got ready to set out again.
As they progressed through the tunnel Lynn started to instruct them on what trap signs she was looking for. Tripwires and pressure plates for basic traps and runic circles and trip runes for magical ones. According to Lynn, some advanced trip runes were impossible to spot without a well-honed mana sense. This made Chess lament her dismal skill level in the sense.
Lynn gave them detailed descriptions for each trap type and had them each repeat it back to her. She would randomly ask them about the ones they already covered as she instructed them on new ones.
Then she started teaching them the hand signs used by delvers. Some were similar to ones Chess had seen on earth, like a raised fist for stop, but others baffled her. Like a double tap on Lynn’s knee meant Chess had to kneel on that side and place her shield at 45° before her with its base braced on the ground. She also began to teach them small-group tactics and defensive formations. Lynn put a lot of emphasis on protecting Ashley as she was their main healer.
“We should’ve started this yesterday. I was a little unfair earlier; neither of you has any delver's training. I’m sorry for not starting sooner,” Lynn apologized after the first hour when they’d paused for a drink.
"It's fine," Chess allowed.
Ashley nodded her agreement. "Mom always said no one is perfect, even with practice," she said then grew quiet.
The morning otherwise progressed at a steady pace like the day before. With them killing six more fleshless skeletons armed with polearms of one sort or another. They acquired another Keen spearhead in the process, this one made from steel but in slightly better shape. Chess replaced Ashley's spearhead with it, happy that the transfer worked again.
The remaining tensions in their small group dissipated over the day, and their former amiability returned, their growing camaraderie bolstered by their increased fluidity as a group in downing their enemies under Lynn’s tutelage.
Eventually, their brisk progress led them to a fresh split in the winding tunnels, and the three paused to peer down each path. One continued upward at the same gentle incline they'd been on all morning and smelled humid and marshy. A light breeze pulled air from behind them into it. The other tunnel dipped significantly and smelled of stale air and old rot.
"I say we go down, it's likely a dead-end and I'd rather not have enemies sneaking up behind us," Lynn suggested twitching her catlike nose at the stale tunnel.
"You're the one with the knowledge," Chess conceded, still humbled by their earlier fight.
Ashley shrugged, not caring either way but wrinkled her nose at the path down.
They spent an hour passing through dank and increasingly putrid tunnels while checking for traps and killing a few skeletons. Coming around yet another sharp bend, they found the tunnel's end. A narrow inky pool with a rainbow sheen floating on its surface blocked their progress.
Ashley held a glowing arm close to its glass-smooth top, but the light only penetrated a few inches before the inky dark-green depths absorbed it.
Chess drew her gaze from the water and looked around at the surprising ecosystem surrounding the pool. White and translucent mosses and small mushrooms clung to the narrow ledges and walls to either side, all taking on the pale amber color given off by Ashley's glowing form.
“Freya’s ass, it smells worse than your spray down here," Chess complained, her fingers holding her nose closed as she took a pointed step back.
Lynn approached and dipped two fingers into the pool to the first knuckle and gave her a questioning look. Her fingers came out covered in dark green algae that oozed from the tips onto the rough floor.
"Just stagnant water with swamp growth, no burning," Lynn observed.
“No, just no, don't even think about it,” Chess shook her head and said in a nasal voice. “We check the other tunnel first,” Chess implored.
“Agreed,” Lynn said with a last long look at the pool, shaking the goo from her hand before they turned and retraced their steps to the last fork in the tunnel.
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This time they took the fresh-smelling path, dealing with a few more undead along the way. The skeletons all fell quickly to their practiced actions. Lynn would occupy one before someone managed to trip it up then would fall upon it with her shield, and Chess and Ashley would smash its bones with their maces.
When the humidity started to rise again, Chess got a sinking feeling in her stomach.
"Let me help," Chess implored Lynn. "We can hurry this along if I check for mechanical traps and you concentrate on the magical ones. I got a bad feeling about what's ahead," she insisted.
"Fine, grab your spear," Lynn said and showed her what to do.
----------------------------------------
As they neared another turn and the sound only got progressively louder, Chess's heart fell.
“This is a problem,” Chess yelled the obvious as they came out onto an unsettlingly familiar platform. It looked over an equally familiar sparkling and roaring wall of water and basin. A lump started to form in her throat, but she throttled it. This is beatable, at least the skeletons are destroyed. We have a couple of days of food left to figure this out, she told herself fighting the unease.
Now that she was looking for it, she could see the other balcony farther to their right a good 30 yards. Interestingly, there was another balcony about 90 yards from the next balcony over, and Chess noted it as a possible exit. Though it was missing the railing the other two had, and she couldn't think of a way to reach it.
Lynn nodded with a very grim look. “The rift is corrupt. It explains why a dungeon so close to a city as large as Portheel is abandoned and forgotten,” she said.
"There were a few very narrow side tunnels that we avoided that we could still check but I fear they won't lead anywhere. We’ll need to widen them significantly for even Ashley to fit through though," Chess said, trying to spark their dying hope. "Or there is that third balcony but I'm not sure how to reach it," she added pointing it out.
"We don't have the proper tools for that," Lynn cautioned.
Chess shook her head. "We loot all the skeleton's before we decide that. I'm sure we'll find something. There are nearly 30 now. Any more and I'm ditching a fur; they stink anyway," Chess said. "But seriously, fuck tradition and laws, we are harvesting them before we choose to sit down to die."
Lynn gave her a slow nod of agreement.
“Starvation is starting to look more like the reason for the Delvers' deaths,” Ashley reasoned.
“Oh, I don’t know, I’d rather jump or try my luck with that dark pool before letting myself starve to death,” Chess countered then shared a look and nod with Lynn.
“Worth a try, it's better than this fall. Even if we could get down safely the weight of water would crush us when we tried to pass under it,” Lynn yelled and shrugged before brushing past them and back into the tunnel. The others followed, and they retraced their steps toward the stale pool.
----------------------------------------
Standing once more at the edge of the inky algae pool an hour later, the group was quiet for a time.
“I’ll go first,” Chess offered, breathing through her mouth, “I’m a good swimmer," she continued in her nasal voice, thumb and forefinger pinching her nose.
“What’s your skill at?” the skunkkin asked.
“Five,” Chess said after checking.
“I’ll go. I’m a better swimmer. Besides, I still stink a little already from my accident, and my fur will protect me somewhat from the cool water," Lynn reasoned and set her shoulders before unlatching her armor, pulling her shift over her head, and stacking both in a neat pile with her pack.
Lynn sunk the end of her spear into the pool, testing for a bottom, but it was deeper than the spear could reach. Her hand soon followed her spear, disappearing into the depths after a nearly imperceptible pause, coming back up covered in the dark green gooey algae.
"How much string do we have left?" Lynn asked.
Chess shrugged, pulling the small coil of rope and Sprig from her inventory. She unstrung the bow adding the string to the coil with a fisherman's knot. "About 50 feet?" Chess guessed when she’d finished while handing an end to Lynn and laying out the rest.
"If I tug three times sharply, it means it's clear and I'm coming back. If I tug twice, you help pull me out. Four times means I'm tying it off. Okay?" Lynn said.
"Okay," Chess agreed, intent on her task.
“Wait!” Ashley said before giving the startled young skunkkin a tight hug. “Come back,” she implored.
Lynn nodded, patting her head before turning back to the pool. "No time like the present," she murmured.
Chess watched the naked skunk-kin woman gracefully dove into the inky water, spear held tight in one hand and string in the other, with rising apprehension.
Lynn returned less than a minute later shaking her head as she gripped the rock at the edge of the pool. She spent a minute cleaning her eyes before she focused on Chess and Ashley. “It’s too dark. I'll have to do this with my eyes shut. It's pointless, even with the stone,” she said between long breaths.
“Okay,” Lynn said before bobbing once and disappearing again. This time she didn’t resurface and Chess played with her tangled hair with one hand while the line played through the other; showing Lynn’s progress. Gradually, in spurts and starts, the line came to its end, and Chess’s stomach dropped when the last foot lifted from the ground. Then with only inches to spare it went slack and didn't continue.
Chess and Ashley shared a look and a sigh then waited with bated breath for long tense minutes. Ashley approached Chess then hugged her side as they waited, and Chess put her free arm around her daughter's shoulders. There were four sharp tugs, then the line went tight in Chess's grip as Lynn tied it off and then made her way back to them using Chess as an anchor.
Chess let out the breath she was holding when Lynn surfaced. Lynn had slime and lengths of pale stringy plants coating her. She staggered up onto the shelf before falling to her knees and coughing up some of the same sludge. Her spear was nowhere in sight.
Chess and Ashley gave her time to sort herself out before asking "so?" Nearly on top of each other.
Lynn shook herself like a dog, scattering slimy water everywhere then wiped at her eyes with a rag taken from her pack before answering them with a gasping smirk.
"It's far, I nearly turned back again before I noticed that blasted terror aura they all have. I thought the fear was from swimming in the dark at first," she said, spitting more phlegm and goo before coughing again. "There was another Luminous damned skeleton waiting on the other side with an enchanted helm. Luckiest damn thing, it was missing its legs and couldn't reach the water. Somehow it got trapped on a stalagmite. I was so shocked to see it that I accidentally sucked in some water. I used the bones and my spear to tie the line off. It's clear now as far as I can tell," she reported while scraping at the slime in her fur with her hands.
"The water is like swimming through soup, and these plants don't help. I nearly panicked a few times," she added, holding up a pale white length of the strangest seaweed Chess had ever seen.
Chess removed a strip from Lynn's shoulder to study it closely. It was a thin and flat length in a translucent blue that gave off a faint blue glow when she turned away from Ashley's glow and held it between her palms. Something that grows down here will be very useful. Even if only in water, she thought. I wonder if it's edible. She brought it to her nose but recoiled at the pungent smell.
"Alright," Chess said with a sigh. "I'll go next and empty the skulls and furs from my inventory. That should be enough space for all your stuff when I come back."
Reluctantly Chess stripped down to her bra and panties. After storing her stuff in her vault, she then approached the calm pool and stuck her toe into the chilly sludge. She shuddered before setting her shoulders and lowered herself up to her chin, her hands on the string and edge. The cloying depths wrapped her in their slimy embrace. Lynn held the free end of the string in both hands and gave her an encouraging nod.
"No time like the present," she said mirroring Lynn's earlier sentiments, her teeth near chattering as she steeled herself before taking a long deep inhale and submerging. She used the small ledge to push off, quickly pulling hand over hand along the line. With the guideline, Chess made good time and was pulling herself from the soup less than a minute later before she felt the desperate urge to breathe. A few of the thin white seaweeds gripped at her, but the line allowed her to easily pull free.
She clambered up the short rocky bank before she then summoned her vault with chattering teeth. She pulled out her shirt and used it to dry herself before wrapping herself in one of the rancid furs; fur on the inside of course. She forced herself to do some jumping jacks as well in an attempt to warm up faster.
Chess paced in a small circle while still slowly warming up before something in the corner of her eye caught her attention and made her finally look around properly. Her jaw fell open in wonder. Lynn didn't say anything about this! she thought, taking in the sights of the majestic underground garden before her.
The small Lightstone in her pocket was pointless as the huge cavern glowed softly, lit by luminous fungus and moss-covered stalagmites and stalactites. Muted blues, reds, and greens filled the place, and it felt like a Christmas eve spent under a blinking tree. It only needed the scent of pine to replace the pungent smells of the pool and the slime dripping from her body. The cavern soared many stories high and looked like a suspended mountain range reaching toward its silent mirror below. Moisture glistened from every surface, only further lending to the beauty laid out before her.
Chess spent a full minute gaping in awe before she gave her head a shake and searched around nearby for anything of importance.
She found the reported skeleton nearby, wedged between two short stalagmites, around which Lynn had tied the line. The skeleton was shorter but wider than the other skeletons they'd fought thus far. She prodded at it with a toe before bending to pick up the skull and removing its pot-shaped helm. The helm was a battered-looking bronze affair with six small clear crystals spaced equally around its rim. The one facing forward was marginally larger than its brothers. The skull had more heft to it than the others she'd collected so far and she set it carefully nearby before studying the helmet's window. Dwarven?
Dwarven Miners Helm
Type: Armor
Rarity: Uncommon
Properties: A well-crafted bronze mining helm. Designed to protect from blows from above.
This helm has seen many years and many owners. What stories could it tell?
Durability: 243/500
Enchantments:
Strengthen: Doubles base durability
Moderate light: When activated casts light in a 30-yard radius or in a forward cone of 60 yards. It can be used will(mod) times a day and will last will(mod)x30 minutes.
“Ha, it’s a hard hat,” Chess said with a small smile. She set the helm near the skull before busying herself with emptying items from her inventory to clear some space. She built a small wall from the skull blocks in the process. She was one skull short of a 5-foot-high by a 6-foot-wide wall that she placed in the path up and away from the pool, resting against two stalagmites. She left the space out of the middle so that she could see beyond without jumping.
After taking a half dozen deep slow release breaths, Chess forced herself to climb back into the soup and return to her companions.
On the trip back she made a point of diving down to see if she could touch the bottom but gave up after a few seconds when the line drew taut. Surfacing she climbed onto the rough cavern floor and stood blind. She felt a cloth quickly pressed into her hands and she used it to clear her eyes before scraping the slime from her body with the back edge of her hands. With her body now slightly less slimy than before, she was now ready to address the waiting pair. Gooseflesh rose across her body at the chill, and she hopped up and down, shaking her arms to stave off the cold.
“That sucked. I don’t know how you didn’t panic immediately. Alright, let's get this over with,” she said, making a gimme gesture with her hands and starting the spell to summon her vault. The pair passed her their things one at a time. Ashley stripped down to her shift and underthings and stood, hugging herself as they finished. Lynn hadn’t gotten redressed, simply passing Chess her gear from the ground.
“Okay, I’ll go first,” Lynn said and without preamble, she lowered herself into the pool and kicked off, disappearing below the inky surface with barely a ripple.
“Do you want to go next? Or do you want me to go so we can pull you through with the line?” Chess asked Ashley, a feeling of worry settling in her gut. The trip was scary under your own power.
“Pull? Please,” Ashley answered, eyeing the pool with her arms tightening about her.
“Okay. It’s not as bad as it looks,” Chess encouraged her. “I’ll give it two sharp tugs when I’m through and ready. Give it three when you are ready to go, and I’ll give it another pair right before we start so you can get a good breath,” Chess instructed.
Ashley gave her a slow nod before setting her spine and repeating the gesture with more confidence. Chess ruffled her hair before lowering herself into the pool once more.
“See you on the other side,” she said in parting.
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The trip back was cold and uneventful, and she quickly found herself scrapping the goo from her eyes and body again before repeating the plan to Lynn. Chess bent and gave the line two sharp tugs to signal Ashley. It wasn’t long before the line jerked in response, and they set themselves and started pulling her adopted daughter through with smooth long pulls.
Ashley surfaced with a gasp, and Chess pulled her onto the ledge before passing Ashley the already slimy blouse to wipe off. When Ash had gotten most of the slime off, Chess enwrapped her in the pelt of fur and drew her close so they could share their warmth.
“So, what do you think?” Chess asked Ashley a short while later, gesturing expansively about the large garden-filled cavern.
Ashley gapped at the sight before turning a smile upon Chess. “This! This is what Delvers delve for!” she said with wonder, escaping Chess’ embrace to turn and truly take it all in.
"Here," Chess said, bending to scoop up the dwarven helm and plopping it on Ashley's head. "You're the one with dwarven blood," she said, then laughed when it became clear the helm was vastly oversized for Ashley's young head. The front rim came down to cover her eyes, and she could fit a fist in the extra space left inside.
Ashley lifted it from her head and held it out in front of her, checking its window before passing it back to Chess who stored it in her vault after Lynn also turned it down.
“Okay, we should scout this cavern as best we can. I don’t feel any skeleton terror auras, but we need to find the exits and other dangers before we get comfortable,” Lynn said once they’d warmed up and gotten their bearings.
“You’re right,” Chess agreed and started removing their gear from her inventory and passing it out. They got ready, and Chess stored the furs and string before turning to her skull wall.
“Leave it, we’ll camp here later. It's at least defensible,” Lynn said gesturing at the small bowl that the small pool sat in and the small depressed shelf where they stood. The shelf was the only spot one could access the pool, and it was a good 10 feet down from the raised lip to the water's surface with the only path now blocked by Chess’ improvised wall.
“Fair enough, though the smell sucks,” Chess conceded reluctantly as they stepped around the wall, then made their way up the path with Lynn in the lead.
The path zigzagged up the slope at a gentle grade toward the center of the vast cavern. Chess felt a small headache start to form in the back of her head. She opened her mouth to ask Lynn if it was just her when the skunkkin who was only a few feet in front stumbled a step then fell forward to her hands and knees before scurrying backward. Lynn raised her hand to her forehead and lowered it to her waist twice forcefully. Chess tilted her head to Lynn, the movement made vertigo hit her, and she swayed before saying, "You never taught us that one," in an unexpected but distinctive high and squeaky voice.
"Hit the deck you fool," Lynn said, sounding like Simon from the chipmunks.
Chess and Ashley did so adroitly, before crab-walking back down the incline towards the pool followed by a sluggish Lynn.
Once back near the pool, they all sat around taking slow breaths and looking at each other.
“Bad air,” Lynn said, her voice still high.
"I…" Chess started to say but her voice still squeaked. Fucking helium. She took more long slow breaths of the rotten air before trying again. This time she sounded more normal again.
"Helium?" She asked in wood-elven, apparently, there was no word for the element in Brastian.
"Helium?" Lynn asked, tasting the word.
"Helium." Chess stated, letting go of the awkward position and falling flat on her back, her head downslope and nearly falling into the pool. "Fucking helium," she repeated putting her hands under her head.
"Helium sounds familiar? Doesn't it have something to do with Skystone?" Lynn said, and her brows drew together in thought.
"Skystone?" Ashley squeaked before glancing about with newly greedy eyes at the cavern.
Lynn shook her head in the negative. "No, there is none in here that I can see. I suspect it's far below this place if my fears are correct," Lynn said in a defeated tone.
This makes no sense. Helium would just escape through the water and stone, wouldn't it? Unless a lot is seeping in. Why is it safe to breathe here? She raised her head to look around baffled, then let it fall with a thump back into her hands. She watched as a bead of moisture flowed up a nearby stalagmite. Fucking magic, she thought, turning to stare at the wonderful fungus and lichen-filled expanse above. How can I use you?