***
We’d finished eating by the time the sun had fully risen and were preparing to lay down to sleep when Yulli dropped from the top of the stone pillar she’d been using as a vantage point. “Chief, we got problems.”
“What’s up?” I asked.
“A group of creatures is approaching us from the direction of the fire we circled. It’s hard to see in this damn light, but I think there are at least ten of them. They probably saw the sandhawk attacking.”
“Shadow-crap,” I muttered. Anything living in this region was a decidedly higher level than us. There was a low chance we could fight off ten of them without sustaining casualties. “Can we outrun them?”
She nodded. “I think the bonetises are faster, but they’re already tired.”
“Let’s give it a try,” I decided. “Maybe we can shake them off.”
We quickly packed up our gear and got on our mounts. The bonetises made their chirping noise, protesting at the exertion we were putting them through, but then moved out at a quick jog.
I glanced behind me. The ravine we came out of separated us from a group of creatures that were running in our direction. The sun was everywhere now, so I couldn’t see them clearly, but they were large creatures, and their color resembled the ground.
We crested a small hill and stopped to gape at the sight below.
A huge camp, hundreds of meters across, composed of stone huts stretched before us. Numerous tall creatures walked the open ground. There was no way to cross the ravine unnoticed.
Ragnar chuckled evilly. “Looks like it’s hackin’ time! I’ll take the five on tha’ right.”
“I’m not sure your meat would suffice for that many,” Lirian said with a straight face. “They are large creatures.”
The drone stared at her in amazement, then started laughing. “Good one, girl.”
Lirian relaxed her face. “Father has been teaching me your traveler humor.”
“What do we do, High Priest?” Bek asked nervously. “We fight?”
I shook my head. “I don’t see the point. Even if we defeat the approaching group, there’s no way we’ll be able to make it through their camp afterward. It looks like we’ll need to spend a day searching for a way around it, and that’s assuming we’re not being chased. I think it’s time for us to teleport back to the army. We’ll have to fight our way through.”
The pursuing creatures closed in on us, and I was finally able to see them fully.
I recognized them from my previous life playing as Arladen. The bouldites were huge humanoids, standing close to three meters, taller and thicker than Ogres. Their tough gray skin was cracked, making it look like they were made of the same stone as the ground, but I knew they were living, breathing, and dangerous creatures. They had no eyes, relying instead on their innate affinity with stone to perceive their surroundings.
There were 14 bouldites in the pursuing group. Ten of them trailed back and spread out, forming a semi-circle, holding rocks the size of volleyballs. I knew they could launch those rocks with a strength and speed that would crush most armor like paper. The other four bouldites moved toward us, holding stone clubs in their hands. They were just out of my Analyze skill range, but I could tell by their information tendrils that the ones at the back were level 80, while the front fighters were 100, and their leader was level 130.
“Time to make a quick getaway,” I said. “Gather around me before they get into throwing range.”
Ragnar grunted something but he and everyone else moved to form a circle around me.
I had begun casting when, to my surprise, the bouldite leader shouted, “Who are you?”
I hesitated before completing the spell, looking at my companions. “What the … bouldites can’t talk, they’re just …” I trailed off.
“Monsters?” Ragnar asked. “Got it right in one, fugly.”
“Father?” Lirian asked. “Are we engaging?”
“Maybe bring army before talk?” Bek suggested hesitantly.
I lowered my arms, dissipating the spell. The closest bouldites had already gotten into rock-throwing range, but they hadn’t attacked. If we could somehow negotiate passage with them, we might be able to achieve our goal without having to fight every step of the way. “Lirian, keep back,” I said. “If they do attack, I want you to run away as fast as possible. Everyone else, make sure she gets away.” If the bouldites did decide to attack, I had to ensure my daughter would escape unharmed. Everyone else was expendable and could simply respawn. As for myself, the worst-case scenario was that my boss’s get-out-of-jail power would trigger and I would get away, pick up Lirian, and teleport both of us back to the clan.
“Yes, Father.”
“Yes, Chief,” the others said while Ragnar simply muttered, “Whatever.”
I disengaged from my party and cautiously walked toward the approaching giants. From up close they were more formidable than I’d remembered.
Despite them being three times my height, the four leading bouldites flinched as my boss aura, which I didn’t bother to subdue, hit them, causing all but the leader to drop their heads in respect.
“Greetings,” I said carefully. “My friends and I are simply passing by. Why are you chasing us?”
“Saw the sandhawk attacking something, came to check.” The leader’s voice was like gravel. His face tilted in the direction of the cougar fang around my neck, and I suppressed a grin as I realized the magical item helped mollify the dangerous monsters. “Why do goblins come to tribe Sandstone’s territory?”
“As I said, we’re just passing through.” Normal players would have been instantly attacked, but I was starting to believe I stood a chance to talk my way out of it. “Will you let us pass?”
“Hmmm,” the leader grunted. He raised his eyeless face to scan over my companions. “This is bouldite territory. Not goblin’s.”
I sensed the atmosphere becoming tense. These creatures, though obviously intelligent monsters, weren’t exactly sophisticated. I sent out a probing thought, activating my seldom-used Sense Emotion ability. The leader’s mind was as desolate as the ground around us, with simple emotions and simple desires. At the moment, he was merely curious.
“Maybe we can offer something in return for passing through your territory?” I suggested.
That drew his attention. “Offer what?”
I took a quick look at my inventory. I doubted the primitive creatures would be interested in gold or magic scrolls, but it didn’t hurt to try. “How about gold?”
“What is gold?” he asked, his emotions still flat.
I produced a single gold coin and offered it to him.
The bouldite “looked” at the small round item, then bit down on it. He shook his head, spitting away pieces of the crushed yellow metal. “Not taste good.”
“Can you tell me what you’d like, then?” I asked, sensing the question wouldn’t aggravate him.
He paused to consider. “Pretty rocks.”
I blinked at him, then shrugged and looked in my inventory again. I had a handful of uncut gems I’d taken a while ago from the kobold clan. I showed him one.
The bouldite grinned. “Yes, good. Two stones for each to pass.”
“How about one stone?” I countered.
The creature frowned, and I sensed his emotions fluctuating, but then my Barter skill kicked in, and his turmoil ceased. He nodded. “One for one to pass.”
Thankfully, I had eight gems in my inventory and gave six to him. The leader accepted them greedily. I half expected him to munch on them, but he just tucked them into a primitive pouch.
An idea came to me. “I’d love to meet your chief; is he down at your settlement?”
The lieutenant seemed bewildered. “Chief?”
“Yes, your leader?”
He frowned again. “King of all tribes not here. King says cave spirits say to kill outsiders.” He looked down at the gems I’d given him as if reconsidering our arrangement.
I felt it was prudent to change the subject. “Ah, I’m sure he didn’t mean fellow monsters. Anyway, I have more … friends … coming behind us. Will you let them pass as well?”
The leader looked at me then down at the pouch of gems, his avarice winning in the end. “One stone to pass, like you. No one else.”
Kaedric, I sent out my thoughts. Koboldtopia sends us a daily tribute of raw gems, right? How many do we have in store?”
That was a problem. My standing army had over 2,000 soldiers. I could probably use my new trade option to purchase more, but with a little maneuvering and used correctly, even 200 could turn around the course of a battle.
“Go, now,” the bouldite leader said. “I tell others not to attack.” He moved away while muttering something that sounded like, “Cave spirit won’t be happy …”
“We can move on,” I said when I returned to my companions. “But it looks like we’ll need to be creative to bring in the rest of the army.”
We descended toward the bouldite settlement. As vast as it had appeared from above, the place was sparsely populated. It seemed bouldites appreciated their space, and the stone huts were built dozens of meters apart. I estimated that no more than 300 bouldites lived in this place.
As we passed through, we noticed a huge stone pen. It looked suspiciously like the one in my clan, which we used to hold oxsaurians. This one, however, had several sandhawk heads peeking over its walls.
It had taken us a day of roundabout travel to get here from the border, but now that we knew the way, the rest of the army could make it here in several hours.
We passed through the settlement, found an out-of-the-way stone archway to camp underneath, and went to sleep.
***
No further attacks came during the day and we all made sure to scan the sky during our lookout while the others rested.
We pushed on the next night. According to the map, if uninterrupted, the distance to our destination should have taken us only two more days. Unfortunately, ‘uninterrupted’ was quickly proven to be a pipe dream.
“Damn,” I murmured as we came upon another bouldite tribe a few hours’ ride from the last one. This one was located on top of a kilometers-wide mound of raised stone. I had a strong hunch the bouldites’ sightless senses benefited from the elevated vantage point, which probably meant they covered a lot of the area around it. We’d have to spend another full day just to bypass it.
“What do we do, Chief?” Yulli asked.
“Any chance for us to sneak through across the edges?” I asked.
The scout shook her head. “They have several patrol groups out and around their settlement, probably to cover the settlement’s blind spots. We can try to sneak through, but I have no idea how sensitive their stone senses are.”
She was right. Being a creature of darkness made me used to sneaking by our enemies, but darkness had little use against foes who weren’t relying on sight.
“I could summon a shroud of viscous darkness around to mute our steps,” I suggested.
The scout shook her head. “I see several sandhawks flying over the mound. They do have eyes, and a blob of moving darkness would no doubt draw their attention.”
“I see a pretty isolated group right over there.” I pointed to our right.
“Yes,” Yulli agreed. “They’re far from their other patrols, but they overlook a large area. We won’t be able to slip by them.”
“That’s not what I was going for,” I said. I didn’t have enough gems to bribe our way through again, but violence might work where bribes would not. “If we somehow take those guys out, there’s no one else to notice, right? Then we could pass on.” I hadn’t originally intended to engage a patrol, but after encountering the first one, an idea started forming in my mind.
Yulli frowned. “Yes …”
“Let’s get closer to that group. Stay a little behind and let me approach alone. Be ready to attack.”
We moved on at a steady canter toward the bouldite campsite.
The large creatures noticed our approach and spread out in their familiar attack pattern; stone-throwers at the back, melee fighters and their leader at the front.
“Greetings!” I called out, slowing my bonetis to a light trot and motioning for my companions to remain behind.
“Who are you?” The squad leader stepped forward. Like the one before him, he looked suspicious but willing to talk.
“Just a fellow monster, passing through,” I said conversationally, moving closer so they could see my cougar necklace. They did, and their threatening stance eased. I used the opportunity to analyze their three types of fighters.
Bouldite Hurler
Level: 80
HP: 1,150
Resistances: Armor 180, Magic 50%
Skills: Throw 90
Traits: Rock Affinity
Description: Bouldite hurlers form the bulk of the bouldite forces. Despite being physically weaker than their frontline fighters, hurlers can devastate whole ranks of enemies with their powerful rock throws.
Bouldite Smasher
Level: 100
HP: 1,380
Resistances: Armor 200, Magic 50%
Skills: Club 110
Traits: Rock Affinity
Description: Frontline assault units whose powerful stone clubs can reduce most enemies to a broken pile of bones.
Bouldite Lieutenant
Level: 130
HP: 1,800
Resistances: Armor 230, Magic 50%
Skills: Club 110
Traits: Rock Affinity, Debilitating Smash Aura
Description: Frontline commander whose melee attacks hampers nearby enemies with additional mental assault
The bouldites were a formidable race; their innately high magic resistance severely reduced the effectiveness of my spells, and even the lowest-level of them had Expert-rank combat skills. I had to be careful.
“Say,” I continued once I got closer, “you wouldn’t be interested in pretty stones, would you?” I took out the remaining two gems from my inventory and held them up.
The leader passed his eyeless gaze over me. “Yes, pretty.”
“I don’t suppose you’d accept those in exchange for letting us though?” I continued my casual tone.
The leader shook his head. “This is tribe Flakestone’s territory. No strangers allowed through. Cave spirits forbid it.”
This was the second time a bouldite mentioned ‘cave spirits,’ and this time my offering seemed insufficient to risk their ire. “Who are the cave spirits?” I asked.
The leader turned his face toward me in surprise. “Powerful spirits, guardians. Tell us to block anyone from reaching their cave.”
“Is the cave you’re talking about that way?” I asked, pointing toward our destination.
Despite having no eyes, it was clear the bouldite was able to read the gesture, and he nodded. “Yes, must not let anyone get close.”
“What do those spirits look like?” I asked.
He shook his head. “Only elders know. No one else is allowed near the cave. Must not allow others to get close, or cave spirits be angry with us.”
“Not even for a sackful of pretty stones?” I asked innocently.
His expression lit up. “You have more pretty stones?”
“If you like, I can perform magic and make more,” I suggested. “It will give you all a lot of gems.”
Now all the bouldites’ faces were focused on me. “Yes,” the leader responded. “Do magic to give us many pretty stones, then you can go. But don’t tell the cave spirits.”
“No, definitely not,” I promised. “Alright, I’ll start. Tell your men to get closer.”
The lieutenant complied, and soon, 14 hulking bouldites surrounded me.
I started casting, summoning a small, concentrated dot of mana which quickly condensed into a Singularity. The
gravity pull was instantly noticeable, but I kept a tight leash on it, preventing it from expanding. “Once I move out of the way, hold up the gems I gave you,” I instructed. “The spell will pull them from your hands to make more. Then it will soon start spitting gems all around, so make sure to stand close to catch them all. Alright?”
“Yes,” the leader said while several others nodded eagerly.
“Okay, here we go.” I released the Singularity, letting it hover in the air at the center of the congregated giants.
I moved away in a hurry. I could feel the intensity of the Singularity increase exponentially as it sucked in the air, growing powerful enough to draw up sand and then small rocks.
I spurred my bonetis to increase its speed and we bolted away. Glancing back, I saw the bouldites eagerly watching the growing bead of gravity. Rocks and chunks of ground were freely flowing upward into the rift, but the powerful creatures seemed to be able to resist the pull, holding themselves back in eager anticipation. I chuckled and continued to put more distance between us.
“What tha’ hell did you do, fugly?” Ragnar asked.
I grinned at him. “Watch.”
We all turned to look at the boiling disaster. The Singularity had grown powerful enough to draw in the hurlers first. They fought against the pull but couldn’t keep themselves from sliding forward. The power intensified all at once, and the controlled slide turned into a helpless flight as half of the bouldites became airborne and collided painfully against each other. The leader and the smashers shouted in dismay, but a few seconds later their feet too left the ground, and the entire group became helplessly tangled, suspended in the air. I could see it didn’t cause too much damage, as their tough bodies were able to withstand the pressure and hurtling debris with minimal harm to them.
“Shouldn’t we run while they’re immobile?” Yulli asked.
“No,” I said. “It won’t hold them for long.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” Ragnar demanded.
“For this.” I raised my arm. The force of the Singularity had just reached its apex. The 14 tightly packed bouldites pressed even harder together while the ground tore apart below them, forming a crater. I summoned a direball and empowered it, taking my time to use my full tier 4 boss abilities to pour in four times the required mana. Then I launched it at the helpless bouldites.
Life Reset: Salvation (Life Reset - Neo Book 6) Page 21
