Soulstone: Oblivion (World of Ruul Book 3)

by J. A. Cipriano

  33

  I never thought it would be weird to re-enter a room and find it the same as when I’d left it, but nothing had changed in the main chamber of the dungeon. Even though it definitely should have.

  Okay, one thing had. The fire crystal in the Shiva statue’s hand had lit up red, so now all four elemental crystals were glowing. But the statue didn’t move, and there were no monsters roaming the place. Just Big Stone Ugly, the white marble altar, the bonfire, and the closed doors leading to the elemental levels.

  There was also no portal out of this place.

  We took turns washing up at the pump and gathered around the bonfire. Nova had grabbed the boss drops, but I was in no hurry to identify them. We needed to rest and regen anyway, so there was time to just decompress for a moment. No one else wanted to do much of anything right away either. If the end boss was going to be nice enough to give us the moment, we were going to take it..

  Eventually Crash stirred, looked at his HUD and cracked a tired smile. “Hey, I hit level 20,” he said. “Having all these skill slots is crazy. I hardly even know what to do with them.” He glanced at Terra. “Maybe I’ll steal that Shadow Strike move of yours.”

  “Go ahead. It won’t work as well for you, though,” she said as she stretched her legs out. “Takes practice. Plus, it’s a warrior skill.”

  “Good thing I’m part warrior, then,” Crash said with a shrug.

  I looked at him as I scratched George’s ears, who’d curled up next to me. “Did you get a subclass too?” I asked.

  “Yeah. Holy Defender,” he said, staring at his screen again. “Priest and warrior.”

  George picked his head up a little. “You know, that actually sounds kind of cool for once.”

  I knew everyone was worn out when even George couldn’t muster an insult.

  While we were waiting for apparently nothing to happen, I decided to check my stats. I hadn’t really looked at them since I hit level 20, and I’d already gained two levels. Not to mention I had to think about a Branch skill for Revering Vendetta. I called up the screen and stared at the display:

  * * *

  CHARACTER: Kahn

  Alignment: Neutral

  Level: 22

  Health: 458

  Mana: 388

  Synchronization: 90%

  Strength: 20

  Dexterity: 20

  Constitution: 20

  Wisdom: 20

  Intelligence: 20

  * * *

  THE NUMBERS MADE me smile as I switched my focus off the HUD. No matter what came at us when we finally figured out how to finish this dungeon, I felt like I could actually kick ass and take names. I turned my attention to my Skills menu and brought up the glowing icon for Revering Vendetta next.

  There were Branch options for the four primary elements, Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water, but there were also options for Light and Shadow. The big issue I found as I stared at them was that you couldn’t change Branches once you picked them. Any of the four primary elements would be a help for at least some things but would be wasted on others. Light and Shadow, well, if Ruul worked like Titan Gate in that regard, were more broad reaching. Light damage was like holy spells, things that did more damage to demons and undead, while Shadow did more damage to angels, light elementals, that sort of thing.

  I didn’t want to pigeonhole myself, so I decided to put off the decision for the moment. After all, we were almost done here and who knew if the next big challenge would need the exact opposite element I chose on a whim here? I still got the core mechanical benefit of the level increase to Vendetta, so the smart move was to stay open and flexible.

  “So, how about you check these things out?” Nova said as she tossed me the items from the boss drop. “I’ve already split up the Rhuvians. Fifteen hundred each.”

  “Nice, thanks,” I said, and my heart actually sped up a little when I realized what the items were. A dagger and bracer, both black and red like they were a matched set. Maybe I’d finally have a second dagger that was worth something to use with my rogue skills.

  “Identify,” I said, and the item’s stats appeared on my screen.

  * * *

  TEMPERED DAGGER

  Damage (Small Monsters): 12

  Damage (Large Monsters): 11

  Range: 2

  Material: Obsidian, steel

  Durability: 200

  Bonus: 15% damage boost against Wind opponents

  Set bonus: All Rogue attack skills penetrate 2 Armor or 15% Magic Resistance.

  * * *

  TEMPERED BRACER

  Material: Obsidian, leather

  Durability: 200

  Bonus: 15% defense boost from Wind attacks

  Set bonus: +2% Evasion

  * * *

  “SWEET!” I said aloud without meaning to.

  “Let me guess. You’re keeping them,” Crash said as he turned a smile on me. “Kahn’s been looking for a second dagger since the starter town,” he explained to Terra and Nova.

  “Oh, that’s right. You’re part rogue,” Terra said with a shrug. “They’re all yours. I have no use for daggers.”

  “Nova?” I said as I looked at her.

  She blushed slightly. “No, you can keep them,” she said. “But thanks for asking.”

  I nodded and took a look at our completed Amulet of Oblivion. Now, all four sockets were filled with blazing elemental crystals.

  * * *

  AMULET OF OBLIVION

  Material: Gold and Crystal

  Durability: 300

  Bonus: +15 to Earth, Water, Wind, and Fire Resistance

  Bonus: +15% damage for all Earth, Water, Wind, and Fire element attacks

  * * *

  “IT’S a bum deal that I didn’t get an amulet,” George pointed out as he stirred and stretched, hopping a little closer to the fire. “I mean, I have been carrying this party. Thankfully, Nova gives good skritch, and the boss is pretty okay too.” His smirk was playful and I knew how much he really cared, so I wasn’t offended in the least. “So, now that everyone has the cool toys sorted out, how are we gonna get out of here?”

  “I have no idea,” I said as I stared around the chamber, hoping to spot something I’d missed. I looked at each of the four doors, and then something occurred to me. “Maybe it’s a puzzle. Every other level started with one,” I said, warming to the idea as I got to my feet. “And if this is supposed to be a final boss fight, it might be considered a level, too.”

  Terra was already standing, and Crash and Nova weren’t far behind.

  “Yes, that could be it,” Terra said as she made a slow turn, taking the place in again. “There could be something we’re not seeing. Like a trap we’re supposed to trigger?”

  “Can’t hurt to check. Detect Trap,” I said, holding a hand out as green light spread from my fingers. It took a while to cover the entire chamber, but when the light faded, nothing glowed green. “Okay, so it’s not a trap. Maybe there’s a sign.” I headed toward the giant four-armed statue. “Everybody, look around.”

  We split off in different directions, and George headed after me. Just as I passed the altar, George said from behind me, “Hey, boss! I think there’s some of that Sign Writing on this thing.”

  I laughed a little as I turned back and joined George in front of the altar. “Sign Language,” I said as I crouched to bunny level. There were symbols etched into the front of it. “Guys, over here.”

  As everyone gathered around, I called up my skill and read the sign.

  “If you wish to escape Oblivion, a sacrifice must be borne,” I read aloud as the blurry writing danced in front of my eyes. “You must bring all four together and challenge the Dungeon Lord.”

  “Man, this poetry is really awful,” Crash said as I finished reading. “Okay, so we need a sacrifice. Hopefully not a living one,” he added hastily. “Sacrifices usually involve altars, and there’s one right here…”

  Nova looked distant, and then smiled. “Bring all f
our together. We need something from each of the four elements, right?”

  “Yes, I think that’s it,” I said, frowning at the altar. “Were we supposed to bring monsters out here with us?”

  George tapped my leg with a paw. “What about all that stuff piled next to the doors?”

  “Right! I think you’re onto something,” I said as I twisted to look at the earth door behind us. “I’ll bet anything we need one of those skull-shaped rocks from the earth door.”

  “There’s an ice skull by the water door,” Terra said with excitement in her voice. “I know I saw it in a weird place. I’ll remember if I go over there and check.”

  I nodded, grinning. “I think I remember one over the fire door, too. I’m not sure about the wind area, but we’ll figure it out. Crash, can you grab a stone skull?”

  “No problem,” he said as he headed for the earth door.

  Terra went for the water area, and I walked past the statue toward the fire door. Nova came with me. “If you don’t mind, I’ll … uh, supervise, and then you can come to the wind door with me?”

  “Sure,” I said, flashing a smile at her. Maybe she just didn’t want to try anything alone after everything that happened in the fire level — or maybe she just enjoyed my company. I decided to believe that second one.

  The skull I remembered seeing was mounted on a ledge above the door. I had to jump straight up to get it, but the Leaping Cloak made that relatively easy. I grabbed it carefully, since the top of the skull was open and a flame burned inside, occasionally licking from the eye and nose sockets.

  It felt like actual bone — like this was really a person’s skull that had been hollowed out and permanently sat on fire.

  “Okay, let’s check the wind door,” I said as I carefully handled the skull with both hands. It wasn’t too hot on the sides, but I wouldn’t want to stick my fingers into the flames. They were definitely real.

  We walked to the shimmering door to the wind area and stared at it for a few minutes. There was nothing skull-shaped lying around. Nova frowned slightly, and then raised a hand and said, “Detect Invisible.”

  Instantly, white smoke started to swirl through the air in a spot just to the left of the door, forming a transparent, smoke-filled skull.

  “There you are,” Nova said as she plucked the strange skull from the air. “I really hope this works. I’m so ready to get out of here.”

  “Me, too,” I said as we headed back toward the altar.

  George had waited for us there, impatiently tapping a hind foot. “Come on, people, let’s get this show on the road!” he said with a grin. “I’m totally ready to take on the Big Boss.”

  Crash had one of the stone skulls, and Terra carried a frozen, crystalline one. Along with me and Nova, we placed the skulls on the altar at the same time and stepped back.

  The four skulls flashed with multicolored lights, and then burst into flames. They burned to ash within seconds. The black residue coated the top of the altar and started to spread, turning the white marble to a deep, glossy black.

  As we stared, the front edge of the top of the altar cranked up slowly on hidden hinges, opening like a clamshell. Something was rising from inside as the lid gaped up. The object popped into view, and it was … weird.

  Inside the altar was a foot-tall version of the huge carved statue, the Dungeon Lord, complete with tiny glowing crystals clutched in each of its four hands. Just when I started to think it couldn’t get any weirder, the mini-Dungeon Lord made rapid clicking sounds like someone winding up a clockwork toy, and then it started to spin and play a creepy, high-pitched, plunking tune.

  It was a music box.

  “Um. What’s happening?” Crash said as he peered at the slowly spinning mini-boss.

  I shook my head. I didn’t recognize the tune at all, but it still gave me goosebumps. It was downright chilling. As the creepy music box song slowed and began to plunk out the last few discordant notes, Nova tugged my sleeve and pointed up. “Look!”

  I followed her gesture to the big Dungeon Lord’s face. The eyes were open, and glowing.

  The music box tune stopped suddenly. As the Dungeon Lord figurine froze in place, corresponding beams of colored light surged from the tiny crystals and lit up the elemental doors with spotlights.

  All the doors opened at once, and elemental monsters started streaming through them into the main chamber.

  34

  We had clockwork knights coming from the earth door, ice monsters from the water door, evil tornadoes from the wind door, and of course, fucking spiders from the fire door.

  Nova immediately started throwing buffs, hitting everyone with all the elemental resist spells. The rest of us scattered. Crash went after the knights with Spectral Blades, George started blasting ice at the cyclones, and Terra started off big with Sparkle Death against the ice monster.

  I threw Chaotic River in the general direction of the fire door to keep the spiders back for a few seconds, and then went to help George.

  “How’s it going?” I half-shouted to the rabbit over the chaotic sounds of roaring monsters and attacks going off, as I drew my sword I still had equipped and shattered the frozen tornado. At least we already knew how to fight these things.

  George leaped up and ice blasted another grinning cyclone. “Great, how about you?” he shouted back.

  “Oh, you know. Killing monsters.” I sent off Fire Wall at a whirling funnel of ugly, and then caught a glimpse of a clockwork knight clunking in our direction from the earth door. “Be right back,” I told George as I ran toward the knight and hit it with Star Scream.

  It didn’t go down, so I charged with my sword. “Blade Rush!” I called, whacking the blade down into the knight’s shoulder joint. Its arm exploded off and the bronze knight toppled to the floor.

  A glance at Crash showed the priest crossing swords with a clockwork knight while another one advanced on him. I held out a hand toward the knight I’d just taken down.

  “Raise Golem!” I said, right before the system message told me I’d raised a metal golem with 1500 health. I sent the controlled monster over to help Crash, and then turned back to George.

  Just in time to see one of the evil tornadoes snatch him up with its ghost-skeleton arms and toss him into its funnel.

  “Put my rabbit down, asshole!” I screamed, running toward the monster. “Fire Forge!”

  My sword gleamed red, and I jumped and slammed it into the ground a few feet from the cyclone, where I could see George’s flickering shadow tumbling around inside. Flames leaped hungrily from the floor and blazed up the twisting funnel of wind, and the monster spit George out.

  I jumped for him, the Leaping Cloak carrying me far enough to catch his tiny body before he hit the ground.

  “You okay, George?” I said louder than necessary as I landed.

  He shook his head and made an angry face. “Lemme down, I’m gonna blast that windy bastard to smithereens.”

  “Don’t worry, I got him for you,” I said as I took stock. The lava spider had broken through the line of skeletons to advance on us, and three more cyclones were coming from the other side.

  I decided now was a good time to learn that Shadow Step move Terra had done.

  The torches in the main chamber provided plenty of shadows, including the one cast by the giant stone statue right behind me. I figured I’d have to target a shadow to step out of, so I looked toward Crash and focused on one cast by a clockwork knight.

  “Shadow Step!” I called out, and moved into the statue’s shadow, still holding George.

  My whole body seemed to pop like an eardrum at high altitudes. “You have learned the skill Shadow Step,” Elizabeth said, her voice sounding slurry because I was a little dizzy. “It is now available for use.”

  “What happened?” George cried as I stepped forward, and we were suddenly next to Crash. Who really looked like he could use a hand right now.

  “We’re fine, start freezing stuff!” I said as I s
et George on the floor and turned to Crash. He was on a knee, bleeding from a small gash in his forehead as he fended off a blow from the clockwork knight in front of him.

  As I grabbed my sword, a bolt of ice hit Crash in the back and knocked him to the ground.

  “Cone of Ice!” George shouted, blasting the clockwork knight into a frozen statue as it raised its weapon for another strike.

  I nodded and spun, using Fire Forge to roast the ice monster that was approaching at a shamble.

  “Level Up!” Elizabeth said as the ice monster died, startling me. I hadn’t even noticed how much EXP these things were giving. “You have reached level 23. You have gained 19 health and 18 mana.”

  “Cool,” I said as I went to help Crash up. But he was already on his feet, attacking another clockwork knight with a vengeance.

  I touched him on the shoulder, and he whirled and almost ran his sword through me. “Shit, Kahn, don’t do that!” he breathed as George shot a wave of ice as the knight. “How many of these things do we have to fight, anyway?”

  “I don’t know, but I think we should start fighting together,” I said, whirling to fling a Fireball at another ice monster. Near the water door, I saw Nova debuffing an ice creature while Terra fought it one-handed with a sword, and blasted Shadow Bolt at an oncoming spider with another. Across the room, a few tornadoes were whirling toward us from the wind door.

  Crash glanced over his shoulder and nodded. “Lemme just finish this guy,” he said as he blew the frozen clockwork knight apart with a single swing of his sword.

  I raised two more golems and as they charged toward the knights and tornadoes, I cast Reflecting Fog before heading toward the girls with Crash. “This way, George!” I called.

  “Coming!” he shouted back, sending a final Wind Blast at the crowd of monsters before he bounded after me.

  Just as we neared the sisters, Nova cast Sparkle Death. The multicolored attack lashed out and struck a bunch of ice monsters, blowing three of them into icy chunks, and a blue leveling glow surrounded her. Terra missed the levelling ligh, since she had her back turned as she used Shadow Strike on two spiders at once.