by Wolfe Locke
"Oh boy," Ash said, her red eyes glowing as she stared throw the wall at the same mob of monsters Sven was hearing. "I think we got to handle this. They won’t make it if we don’t."
Sven hated to admit it, but he was excited. He hadn’t taken on this many reapers in quite some time. It’ll be good to limber myself up a bit.
They ran ahead, and Ash grabbed his hand and shouted [Jeepers Creepers], and their already invisible forms became translucent. The two of them passed through the door, instead of opening having to open it. Each smiling, ready to fight. Ash struck out first. She used [Shock] to take out the nearest group of reapers. White lightning poured out of her fingers, enveloping the monsters in crackling stream of magic.
The monsters screamed and shuddered as the magic tore through their spectral bodies. They dropped to the ground as their skeletal faces of the reapers began to dissolve, reabsorbed by the dungeon.
Ash grimaced and turned up her nose. "If I didn’t know they’d just respawn in a few minutes, I might almost feel sort of bad for them!"
Sven shrugged. He did sometimes feel sorry for the beasts he killed, but he had his limits. Reapers, spiders, and brownies, not to be confused with the edibles, creeped him out.
"My turn! [Blessing Upon You],” he said, drawing his [Broad Sword] that shone with holy attribute.
Sven sprinted into a large cluster of reapers, striking out with his blade in all directions. Creature after creature fell dying, slashed into two or three pieces. When he was finished, he was surrounded by a pile of rapidly disintegrating reapers. He roared victoriously, his blood boiling.
"Oh, I get it!" Ash said brightly. "It’s a competition! Challenge accepted Sven, prepare to lose!"
She whispered something that Sven couldn’t hear, and a purple orb of magic appeared in her palms. She raised her hands, palm up, and the sphere splintered into pieces and shot out at the screeching reapers, rapid-fire, as if she were throwing rocks. Each one hit a reaper square in the head, right between the eyes. They dropped like flies, screeching.
Sven knew he had to one-up her. That’s going to be hard to beat, though, I would rather die than admit it, but I’m impressed. She’s on my level and beyond, but who is she really? "Fine, let’s see it." He dropped his sword to the ground and flexed his muscles, letting the power within him well up in his fists as they began to glow. He launched himself at the nearest group of reapers. He struck out with his fists, shattering the essence of two of the reapers as they disintegrated into nothing more than a shadowy mist.
Something screeched behind him, and he whirled around, kicking high as a trail of light was left in the arc of his attack. His boot connected and another reaper disappeared completely. That’s good, but not good enough to beat her. He turned towards another reaper and headbutted the surprised monster. It, too, passed away, reabsorbed by the dungeon.
"Wow, Sven!" Ash said, clapping her hands. "You’re sure fishing for easy points! But we’d better wrap this up. The kids are coming."
"So soon?" Sven said, disappointed. He’d been having fun. "Okay, I admit it, you win this round. Go ahead and use your magic to finish it off?"
"[Final’e]!” she shouted with glee and a wide smile as her purple magic joined with the white energy he had disbursed through the room to create a massive shockwave that reverberated into a flashpoint and then spread.
Her purple joined with his white magic to create a massive shockwave that reverberated throughout the entire room, destroying every reaper in its path. When their joint attack subsided, the floor was covered with ectoplasm and disintegrated monsters. Sven was impressed—Ash was a good comrade. And it had been a while since he’d had a fight like this, too. He still had it.
"Victory! A surprise combo attack too. I name it [The Power of Ash]." she said with a laugh, striking a pose.
Sven just grinned crookedly. This was good. This feels good. "Alright, Sven, back to it. [Voyeur’s Cloak]," Ash said as the magic washed over them both, and they waited in the now silent room for the amateurs. "We’ve still got a way to go before those kids make it out of here safe."
Chapter 16: The Archer
Shortly after the massacre, the party of four stumbled into the room that was full of ectoplasm and smelled of battle.
"Wha—what happened here?" the cyclops said, staring. "It reeks. There must be dozens of piles in here."
"Was its some sort of spontaneous death event?" the elf replied, kneeling down to inspect the closest pile of ectoplasm. "A mass suicide? Maybe they were all afraid of us, knew we would beat them? It's recent though, the dungeon hasn't even finished absorbing them yet."
Sven buried his head in his hands. "I don't even know how to respond to that," he said to Ash. "How can they possibly come to that conclusion."
"Stop complaining, Sven, and focus on the awesome battle we had!" Ash said as the party picked their way through the left behind loot, each filling up their [Spacial Rings] with the various drops.
The rest of the dungeon went much the same way. The party of amateurs were completely oblivious from that point on of the inherent nature of the dungeon. That might have been a mistake, but it's allowed me and Ash to take on almost every monster in the dungeon unencumbered. They occasionally let the party take on some reapers, but only one or two at a time and only in controlled situations.
"Does it feel like this is too…easy?" the archer said at one point. "Where are all the monsters? The tavern owner said this was one of the hardest dungeons he'd run. But we've barely seen anything!"
A reaper suddenly flew at her, coming through the stone ceiling with a shriek. The archer jumped backward and shot a [Light Arrow] wildly in its direction. Ash magically nudged the bolt so that it hit its target. The reaper dropped lifelessly to the ground, and the archer beamed with pride.
"Well done! See? No problem at all. I don't know about that guy," the night elf said. "Maybe he was wrong. He seemed sort of suspect, anyway. Like he had no idea what he was talking about. Sven, the Shatterfist, have you ever heard of such a guy?"
The archer shook her head. "I heard the name when I was a girl about the heroes who went and defeated the last Demon Lord, and then the name again for the first time a few months ago in Woodward. But nothing else. Let's talk about that later though and focus on what we're doing here. The Big Book of Dungeons said this one wasn't for beginners."
Sven's blood started to boil; a sense of vertigo shook his body. Haven't heard of me? Is the guild teaching these kids nothing anymore? "I was there when the seven of us defeated the Demon Lord Mannon. I was there."
Sven braced himself against a wall, his heart pounding as flashes of fragmented memories danced just out of reach in his mind of dark wings and heroes. Of his friends. His beloved comrades that fell in battle.
The moment passed, and Sven turned to Ash. "How could they not know me? I'm S-Ranked. There are only a handful of us left. Is the guild teaching them nothing? I bet this is all Galen's doing."
Ash looked at him with a half-smile and walked over to put a hand on his shoulder, comforting him. "It's ok. I know who you are. You're a good man Sven. Don't pay any attention to them."
"You’re right," Sven replied. Even though he was still uneasy, he was ready to put the moment behind him. "Let’s try and get ahead of them and clear the way."
"Like I said, I don't know," the elf shrugged. "Maybe we're just doing really well?” A reaper floated toward Sven. He stepped aside and let it get to the night elf. It screeched and launched itself forward.
"What!" the elf cried, hacking at the air with his shiny new sword. "Ah! Stop! What do I do? Hit it with an arrow! Help!"
"Sven," Ash said, wagging her finger at him. "You shouldn't have done that. That reaper could kill him!"
"No, it won't!" Sven said, yawning. "I'll stop it eventually. Just want to let that elf run around for a while."
The night elf ran back and forth across the room, with the reaper chasing behind it until Ash finally took the reaper down wi
th a [Magic Bolt].
She shook her head. "That was mean, Sven. You know better than that."
Sven shrugged. If it got the elf to do more thinking and less talking, he considered it worth the effort. Besides, he was being mean, and he accepted that.
As the party passed through room after empty room, the dungeon got darker and darker. The torches that lit the way burned low, and Ash and Sven found it harder to see the reapers coming. More monsters got through their blockade than before, and Sven had a chance to observe the party's fighting styles.
The night elf was useless—the worst kind of coddled rich adventurer. He wouldn't last long. The goblin was clever but seemed better suited to a life of study than a life of battle. He had clearly memorized their dungeon guidebook and often quoted entire passages from memory. Experience is the one of the best teachers, you can't substitute that.
The cyclops had strength but no brains. He'd do well as the brute force of a party, maybe, but he needed stronger leadership than he had here and a few abilities to boost his defensive capabilities. The three of them all had major flaws that would likely keep them from a long-term adventuring career.
The archer, though—the archer showed potential. She clearly lacked training, but she was aware of her surroundings and light on her feet. She kept her head on a swivel and was less likely to jump at the sight of a reaper. Raw and untrained, she did well enough. Sven made a mental note to offer her guidance after they left the dungeon. I’ll make sure you survive. Your friends too. None of you need to know what it’s like to lose your teammates. Not yet, not this early.
Chapter 17: The Void Wraith
After several hours, they reached the lowest level of Infinite Sorrow. The Lair of the Void Wraith. The party gathered outside the massive door to the boss’ chamber. It was intricately carved, all in the same green marble that made up the structure aboveground. The door’s central panel depicted the wraith that ran the dungeon in a large full-body portrait. It was holding a wicked scythe that looked both glamorous and terrifying.
"Are you sure this is a good idea?" the helmeted archer said, hoping the party would turn around. "I still think this was too easy."
"No," Sven muttered under his breath. "It’s not a good idea."
"We’ve come this far!" declared the night elf. "And we defeated all the dungeon monsters with our bare hands."
"That’s the thing though, you didn’t," said Sven shaking his head. "You’ve literally almost died ten times over since you’ve been in here."
"Yeah, don’t be scared. I think we’re ready!" the goblin said.
"You aren’t," said Sven uselessly. "This isn’t a fight you can win. Ash, we made a mistake letting them get this far. We should have stopped them."
"Stop it!" snapped Ash, her red eyes flashing with anger. “I’m trying to have fun over here! You can be a such negative Nancy sometimes."
"All right," said the archer, sounding uncertain. "Do you want to knock, or should I?"
The elf didn’t even bother to respond, just stepped up to the door and banged on it with an armored glove. It swung open silently. Unlike the Dungeon of the Wood's hydra, the void wraith got straight to the point and straight to the destruction.
The party crept into the boss’ lair, wide eyed and anxious, each twitching with nervous, fearful energy. Sven and Ash followed, slipping inside just as the door closed.
It was almost pitch-black in the wraith’s chambers, and the floor was covered with low-lying purple fog. The wraith himself was nowhere to be seen, but Sven knew the fog meant that he was close by. He peered around in the gloom as his eyes adjusted, trying to see into the shadows.
"You see him?" Sven whispered to Ash. "He’s a boss. I can’t sense his aura like I can with the reapers."
"Hmmm," she said blinking. Her eyes glowed like a cat’s in the darkness. "I don’t. Wait! I think I do! On the ceiling in the corner!"
Sven looked in the direction she was pointing, just as a dark and thunderous laugh echoed through the room and the wraith dropped to the ground like a spider.
"Welcome," the massive wraith boomed. Its skeletal body covered by a cloak.
"You’re in the Dungeon of Infinite Sorrow. Do you know what infinite means?” The wraith asked?
The cyclops blinked. "Infinite means forever.... is this some kind of riddle?"
"He’s not literally asking you what it means!" Sven shouted. "He’s just trying to mess with you! Get out of here!"
"Must I remind you, Sven, they can’t hear you," Ash said wryly. "I cloaked us, remember?"
"And ‘forever’ is how long you’re going to regret coming here!" the wraith continued. "You’re in my dungeon now, and I’m going to enslave your souls and feast on the ashes of your pitiful bodies! [Fear of the Wraith King]."
The party was frozen, quaking with fear. Only the archer seemed to be thinking about attacking the wraith. She had her bow out and was notching an arrow to the string.
"That won’t work," the wraith chuckled and spoke. "Your weapons are no good against me! Also, I can see you two back there. It’s been a long, long while since I’ve seen you, Shatterfist. Though I had heard whispers..."
The party whirled around, trying to see who the wraith was talking to. The archer kept her eyes fixed on the boss, arrow still at the ready.
"These C-Rankers are under my protection," Sven said. "If you hurt them, you’ll have to answer to me."
The wraith laughed. "And then what? What do you think you’re going to do? Keep following them from dungeon to dungeon? You know the ways of this world. What—"
A [Light Arrow] flew past the wraith’s head, and it hissed. It whipped around and turned on the archer, bug-eyed and snarling. She tried to notch another arrow to her bowstring, but her hands were shaking too hard.
"You’ll die first," the wraith snarled, drawing itself up to its full towering height. The air was thick with purple fog.
"Feels like it’s time for us to step in!" Ash said brightly. "Time to be a hero!"
"Yeah," Sven said. "But we need to get the amateurs out of the way first. They’ll just slow things down."
"I’ve got it!" the mage said, throwing the [Voyeur’s Cloak] spell off with a flourish. The party blinked with surprise as Ash and Sven appeared out of nowhere.
Before they could take action or say anything, Ash was already working a spell.
"[Super Sleeper Slumber Party]!" she cried, hitting them with a blast of purple magic.
Blue confetti exploded into the air when her spell made contact. When the confetti cleared, the entire party was on the ground, fast asleep. Ash did a victorious little dance.
Sven looked at her flatly. "’Super Sleeper Slumber Party’? Did you name that yourself?
"Shut up!" Ash said, blushing. "If it works, it works!"
Sven bit back a laugh, and Ash stomped her foot angrily.
"What are you doing? Go save those kids from the big scary monster. Be the hero!" she said. "Isn’t that what we came here for?"
The party looked almost sweet lying prone on the ground, fast asleep. Sven could almost forget how annoying they’d been up to that point. The void wraith loomed over them.
"Turn around and leave!" the wraith boomed. "I know you’re a powerful warrior. You have nothing to prove here. Leave these adventurers to me and let me suck out their souls. It will cost you nothing! Leave in peace. You have nothing to gain here. My dungeon offers you no wealth and no power."
Sven shook his head. "No, sorry. I made a promise, and I keep my promises. These kids are under my protection."
"Shatterfist… you know the ancient ways. I will grant you safe passage back through the dungeon and an item from my personal stock. Even one to restore the long dead! No reaper will touch you." The void wraith said beseechingly.
"I’m not afraid of your reapers. The dead should stay dead. I’ll not disturb them." Sven answered, thinking of his slain companions.
"Its only four pretty souls," the wraith cackled.
"Easy pickings. If you’ll just get out of the way."
"Not going to happen," Sven said with an air of finality. "You can’t have them. You’d have to go through me first, and if you remember from the other times I fought you, I’m not that easy to beat. How many times have I killed you already?"
"There’s a first time for everything," the wraith said, starting to glow blue as it prepared a [Death-Touch Attack].
Sven remembered this particular wraith from the other times he’d run the dungeon, and he knew he didn’t have much time to stop it. Its attacks were nasty—they stripped the flesh from everything they touched, turning even brave warriors into nothing more than dry and desiccated skeletons.
"Sven!" Ash cried out. "You need to move now!"
"I’m aware," Sven said, clenching his fists.
[Tremor Blast]. But this time, he wasn’t going to hold back.
He could feel the power building within him as he gathered the magic, trying to focus it as best he could. Fine control wasn’t his strong-suit, but he could try to keep it from hitting Ash. Not that she needed his protection.
