He hoped that the deftness and efficiency would continue to be useful. Picking up the torch the goblin had dropped, he lit it with another match. Though it would give their position away, if he hadn’t had the torch, he wouldn’t have been able to fight as well as he had.
There was a room a little further ahead. The door was open and Alejander paused, letting Hera go on ahead. She poked her nose through the door and let out a soft huff. Alejander crept up behind her. He couldn’t hear any noises, and nobody had come out to protect her, but that didn’t mean there wouldn’t be anything in there.
Slowly pushing open the door, Alejander could see a table in the center of the room piled with dirty dishes and flies buzzing around. There were a couple of counters, dirty with grime and blood, and a few chairs scattered around, some of them tipped over. There was a large stove at the back of the room, and as Alejander pushed the door the rest of the way, the smell hit him, making his stomach roll. He retched, covering his nose with his hand. God, there couldn’t have been anything in the room worth wanting.
Hera seemed to have other ideas. She pushed into the room, sniffing at the floor. Alejander didn’t know how she could stand to, given how badly it was affecting him, but she made her way towards the back. When she barked, Alejander ducked his head and followed her, picking his way across the dirty floor. He hoped nobody was using the kitchen to cook and eat anything. Even with a fire, he doubted they could get rid of whatever diseases and bacteria were building up.
When he approached Hera, he could see her standing over a pile of rags shoved haphazardly into the corner. There was a sack of something in front of them, so if it hadn’t been for Hera, he wouldn’t have known it was there. Alejander sighed, hoping it was just meat under there. Tentatively, standing as far away from it as he possibly could, he tossed the rags aside. There was a lockbox underneath, a tarnished bronze color, with a lock. It was half underneath the sack, so Alejander tried to knock it over. Leaning the torch against the counter, away from as much flammable stuff as possible, he shoved at the sack, straining. It was probably using up stamina he couldn’t afford to lose, but he was determined to get the lockbox.
With a huge shove, and a little help from Hera, he managed to dislodge the sack enough that he could tug the lockbox out from under it. He wondered if the key the daragoblin was holding would open it, but as he tried to slot it into the lockbox, it didn’t fit.
He did, however, have lockpicking skills. Crouching down on the floor, refusing to sit down given the dirt and stains he had no interest in learning the origin of, he dug out his lockpicking tools, and he started working on the lock. He’d never done anything like this before, but Matthew had, and he was sure his skill in lockpicking was contributing some to his efforts to break into the lockbox.
After making some headway, he heard a click and something shifting in the lock. The box opened part way, but there was still a part of the lock to get through. Alejander scowled, gritting his teeth and picking a different tool, sliding it into the lock. At his side, Hera turned on her heel, growling at the doorway.
There was a prickling on the back of Alejander’s neck and he slid the lockbox back under the rags, peering back over his shoulder. There was a shadow on the wall just inside the room, and then a head poked around the door. It was skeletal, thin and gaunt, and not something Alejander really wanted to fight, especially with how close he was getting to opening the lockbox, but Hera was already racing for the door, snapping and snarling.
The door shoved itself open and where Alejander had seen only one, two skeletal figures walked into the room.
Drowskell
Level: 3
Description: Raised from the dead, these former humanoids have all the bravery of a creature that’s experienced its doom!
Hit Points: {unknown}
Damage: ? {knife}
Reach: Close
Only level 3. Alejander put them in the same threat-level as the daragoblin; they were both armed and would probably be just as difficult to bring down. Hera had knocked one off-balance and it hit the wall, almost falling right over. Hera’s claw swiped out, slashing at the drowskell’s stomach. The other had a sword in his hand and was approaching Alejander with a horrible grin on its face.
Alejander didn’t really want to let it get close, especially given the injury he was already carrying, so he ran his eyes over the closest counter. Sacrificing the torch was out of the question – they needed the light – so Alejander grabbed for a disgusting meat cleaver, still partially bloody and grim on the handle. He fought down his own disgust and ducked under the sword as it slashed down at his arm. It caught his sleeve, but thankfully not him. Hacking with the cleaver, Alejander heard – and felt – the satisfying crunch as it lodged in the drowskell’s leg.
The cleaver lodged tight and Alejander didn’t want to stick close enough to try and get it out. The drowskell seemed unaffected with pain but it was dragging its leg as it swung again, seemingly no finesse to its movements. It had strength where Alejander did not, and boxed him in against the counter, the sword pommel hitting Alejander on the shoulder.
You have lost: 5HP
Alejander grabbed a couple of bowls and slammed them against the drowskell’s chest. He would have to improvise; his daggers weren’t going to have any effect against a skeleton. He hardly dared risk a glance at Hera, would have to trust that she could hold her own.
There was a huge pot on the stove and a quick look told Alejander it was empty. The drowskell lunged for him and Alejander ducked under his swing, feeling the sword slash the back of his head.
You have lost: 10HP
He tipped forward, grabbed the pot from the stove, and though it wrenched his shoulders, a little too heavy for his low strength, he managed to give it some swing and released, hearing it slam into the drowskell’s skull, who stumbled and collapsed. The cleaver lodged deeper into the drowskell’s thigh and it let out a horrible noise.
Alejander dodged around the table. Hera was pinned beneath the other drowskell, gnawing on its arm, the drowskell’s sword lodged in its own ribcage. Alejander didn’t know how she’d managed it, but he grabbed a chair, smashing it over the drowskell’s back. The drowskell let out a similar screech to its friend; that was enough to create an opening for Hera. She leaped up, getting a hold of the drowskell’s neck and shook hard. It snapped and the rest of the drowskell’s body collapsed to the floor in a heap.
Drowskells (lv 3) have died
You have earned 700 experience points. Congratulations!
You have leveled up to Level 5!
You have earned 5 stat points, 30 base HP, 10 base stamina, 10 points to any skill(s). Your weapons all receive +1 to their damage.
There was nothing to be obtained from them, so Alejander spared the other potion he’d retrieved from the goblin to give both himself and Hera another little boost.
He quickly assigned one point to everything, except acuity, and added the ten points to lockpicking and stealth respectively. The stealth had done him favors already and he wanted to keep it up.
You have assigned:
Acuity: 6
Constitution: 6
Deftness: 7
Efficiency: 8
Endurance: 6
Strength: 4
You have added: 5 points to Lockpicking and 5 points to Stealth
HP: 80/110
Stamina: 25/45
Skill Points: 85 + 12
{Dagger +6
Dagger: +6)
Existing skills: Riding {10}, Stealth {25}, Lockpicking {20}, Perception {15} Survival {15}.
Hera seemed ready to leave, but Alejander darted back for the lockbox. He shoved it in his satchel, not wanting to get caught unawares again, and swiped the torch before following Hera out of the room. The hall was deserted as they stayed close to the wall but Alejander was less afraid than he had been; he was a level higher, he had a lockbox, and he was determined to get through the rest of this dungeon.
Hera was much more cautious as they continued through the dungeon. She kept close to Alejander, her shoulder to his leg, and he had his own hand on one of his daggers, the other clutching the torch tightly. The light gave him a wider view of the dungeon and though he couldn’t remember just what his stats were, he was breathing a sigh of relief that he’d thought to increase his perception when he had to put a hand on Hera’s neck to halt her.
With a whine, she tried fighting against him, but something about the corridor up ahead didn’t feel right and Alejander didn’t want her getting unnecessarily injured.
Crouching down low, he could see a groove in the wall that didn’t seem to match with the rest of the cavern. Hera was thankfully content to sit back on her haunches, head cocked as she watched him run his eyes over the wall, brow furrowed. It was a trap of some kind, that much he knew for sure. Grabbing a stone from the base of the wall, he tossed it over the line. Nothing happened. Standing back up, he threw his satchel across the line at head height. Immediately, two arrows shot out across the hall, each hitting the opposite wall with a dull thud and falling to the ground.
Alejander could see where the arrows had come from. The next rock he threw was at waist height. Again, two arrows erupted from the wall, hitting the floor with a thud when they encountered the other wall. Crouching back down, Alejander ran his finger along the base of the wall near to the groove. He remembered some electronic traps he had to disarm when he’d been breaking into safes and museums, and this had a similar set-up. There was a mechanism in the wall that, when touched, had a clicking sound running up the wall and ceiling.
You have acquired a new skill!
Attuned to the structure and world around you, you are adept at picking out man-made interference and you have learned the Disabling Traps skill!
Skill Points: 95 + 12
{Dagger +6
Dagger: +6)
Existing skills: Disabling Traps {10} Lockpicking {20}, Perception {15} Riding {10}, Stealth {25}, Survival {15}.
When Alejander threw the rock this time, nothing happened. Waving an arm, something he could probably sacrifice, again nothing happened. Tapping Hera’s back, Alejander ploughed forward, sucking in a breath, but both he and Hera made it past the line without incident. He paused long enough to pick up the arrows, hoping they would come in handy at some point.
You have acquired: 4 poisoned arrows.
Damage: 8 {piercing}
Weapon Durability: 20/20
Reach: Close
Quality: Good
The arrows could have taken a good chunk out of his remaining HP, so he was thankful that his skills had translated into the game. Though it gave Alejander an idea; if the actions and methods he had employed in breaking into safes, museums and the kind of illicit activities that had landed him in jail could be used in-game, he could advance much quicker than he’d previously considered.
Stowing the arrows in his belt, making sure they weren’t going to accidentally poke him while he walked, he thought of something. Taking the bottle of poison from his satchel, he coated the ends of both daggers.
You have adapted: Dagger(s)
to: Poisoned Dagger
Damage: 10 (piercing, with bonus)
Weapon Durability: 30/30
Reach: Close/Ranged {Loss}
Quality: Average
You have relinquished: Poison
Usage: 8
“Let’s go,” Alejander said, gesturing for Hera to go first. She cocked her head at him but loped off down the corridor. Picking up his speed but trying not to sacrifice safety for haste. That was easier said than done, with only Hera’s tail flicking in the light of his torch. He didn’t want to call her back, wary of the noise traveling, so he bit back on any words, and kept his pace even, a swell of his guilt in his chest at leaving her to her own devices, but he had to be sure the way was clear. It was possible that she might not trigger traps where he would; he didn’t know if there were any monsters in the non-player characters, or if they would have trained theirs to attack, so Hera might have some ease of access in corridors that would be death traps for him.
A few meters up ahead, Hera had paused, belly low to the ground, tail swishing like a dog waiting to pounce on prey. Alejander immediately took a defensive stance, creeping quietly up the corridor. On the ground, curled into a fetal position, was a dwarf who looked eerily like Feralas, though he was bloody, bruised, and had most of his beard torn out. Four arrowheads protruded from his chest. It was clearly another trap like the one that Alejander had disabled. And as he looked for the mechanism, he could see it had already been dispatched; disabling the mechanism did nothing, but it gave him a boost in his trap skill.
You have added: 5 points to Disabling Traps
Skill Points: 100 + 20
{Poisoned Dagger +10
Poisoned Dagger: +10)
Existing skills: Disabling Traps {15} Lockpicking {20}, Perception {15} Riding {10}, Stealth {25}, Survival {15}.
As he got closer, Alejander retched, covering his mouth and nose to prevent breathing in the foul odor of death. The dwarf had clearly been here for a while – whatever that meant in dungeon times – but he was decaying, skin starting to flake away, and bones were protruding. Alejander wanted to walk straight by, ignoring his own need to root through the body for whatever he might be hiding, but he couldn’t.
Hera took the decision out of his hands; she darted forward, nose to the body and Alejander retched again, adamant that he would be cleaning her muzzle and face before she went anywhere near him, but she tugged something out of the man’s cloak; there were two pieces of parchment, rolled up and tied with a piece of twine. She tugged them back, and though they were stained brown, Alejander immediately took them from her.
He hesitated, but Hera was already darting back, this time pulling a coin purse from his pocket. She snuffled and rooted around but nothing else came out. Alejander held onto the items only as long as it took to get around the body and a few feet down the corridor. Dropping everything on the floor, he took a bottle of water from his satchel and emptied half of it onto Hera’s muzzle. She whined and snapped in protest, but Alejander held on so he could clean her, getting nipped in the process.
You have lost: 10HP
Shaking his head, Alejander released Hera and she danced away, shaking her head, water droplets hitting the ground around her and the bottom of Alejander’s cloak. He rolled his eyes, running water gently over the coin purse, cleaning it of anything that might have been left over from the dwarf’s dead body. If she had caused 10HP from that alone, she was clearly leveling up as fast as he was. That would come in handy.
You have acquired: Coin
Inventory: 30 copper, 5 silver, 3 gold
Total Currency: 50 copper, 40 silver, 34 gold, 8 electrum
The two scrolls were different. Slowly, Alejander unraveled them.
You have acquired: Scroll of Celestial Touch {Tradable} {Rare}
Teaches the Paladin ability: Celestial Touch
Level: Level 20 Paladin only
Description: Touch a creature and their HP will automatically half.
Cast Time: 10 minutes
Cooldown: 4 hours
You have acquired: Scroll of Spectral Agility {Tradable} {Common}
Teaches the Rogue ability: Spectral Agility
Level: Level 5 Rogue only
Description: You may sink into the shadows and teleport anywhere else in the room
Cast Time: Five seconds
Cooldown: Once per fight
Alejander’s eyebrows rose. He liked the Spectral Agility skill. It would be an advantage. The other wasn’t something he could use but he thought of Sardonya and wondered what level she was. He thought of the fact that they were friends.
Sardonya Nareya
Level: 20
Description: “Get the hell off my profile!”
Hit Points: 856/880
Damage: 142 {sword} 95 {ha
mmer}
Armor: 77 {shield + heavy plate + helm}
Reach: Close/Range {hammer}
Woah.
Alejander wondered what his own profile looked like.
Alejander
Level: 5
Description:
Hit Points: 70/110 (92/140, grey wolf cub)
Damage: 20 {daggers}, 15 {grey wolf cub}
Armor:
Reach: Close/Range {daggers}
Somehow the game knew that Hera was fighting with him, or at the very least traveling with him, and he wondered what would happen if she decided to leave. He had to find a way to improve his weapon skills just in case. It was also clear he needed to find some sort of armor.
Stowing the Paladin scroll, he stared down at the Scroll of Spectral Agility and concentrated on learning it.
You have acquired a new ABILITY!
Utilizing the Scroll of Spectral Agility, you can slip in and out of the shadows once per fight!
Nothing else happened, so Alejander assumed that he now knew the skill. The only thing for it would be getting involved in a new fight and seeing whether or not he could do it. Hera was getting restless, snapping at the air down the corridor and Alejander grabbed the torch, checking he had everything and then taking off after her.
The rest of the corridor turned to the left and if Alejander was remembering the map right, they would be coming back to the main path at the beginning of the dungeon. Instead of heading for the entrance to the dungeon, he took the other trail and went back deeper into the dungeon. There was only another room here and what had looked like a well when he’d checked the map.
The corridor was just as dark and smelt musty, and Alejander was once again glad for the torch. Hera’s hackles started to rise a few meters down, and she immediately yowled just as a scratching noise erupted from behind them.
Alejander whirled in time to see two giant spiders, one on the wall, the other racing up the corridor behind them. He dropped the torch as carefully as he could in his haste, and it flickered a bit and died. Damn.
Rogue Games Page 13
