by A F Kay
Standing straight, Ruwen didn’t give the guard time to recover, and struck at his unprotected neck. Ruwen’s Fortified hands were like steel mallets. His Worker ability Brawl added twenty percent to his unarmed damage, the Fighter ability Honed increased it by ten percent, and his ninety-five levels of Unarmed Combat skill added another forty-seven and a half percent. His Warlord Banner buff Havoc increased his damage by twenty-five percent, and the five levels in Warlord’s Warcry provided another fifty percent damage bonus.
Ruwen’s eighty-four levels of Viper Step training had increased his Critical Strike chance to eighty-nine percent, and with a stunned target, made it a certainty, doubling his damage.
The unarmed strike did one hundred six damage and shattered the guard’s neck. Ruwen struck the guard another four times, all critical strikes, and killed him before he hit the ground.
Ruwen tossed both hammers into the lake and then dragged the body with him into the oil. As the guard sank to the bottom, Ruwen stayed submerged ten feet under. He activated Survey and Stone Echo, studying the overlay for any signs the others had discovered him.
But everything remained the same in the other cavern, and after thirty seconds, Ruwen crawled back out of the oil lake, and crept toward the tunnel.
Now that Ruwen had left the lake, the pain from the Coiled Lightning rings should have disappeared, but one ring still damaged him for one Health point every second. The human cutout at the bottom right of his vision now had a yellow finger. Opening his Inventory, he looked at the Coiled Lightning ring on that finger. The durability had dropped to under ten percent of its maximum.
Quickly glancing at a few pieces of gear, Ruwen saw everything had taken a durability hit. The acid from the sludge had done more than just dissolve his clothes. The Coiled Lightning rings had taken the worst of it, but only one had dropped far enough to trigger a warning and cause pain. He decided to leave it on, as five Energy per second more than balanced the one Health it damaged him.
Curiously, the pain from the ring decreased every thirty seconds, and it took Ruwen a moment to understand why. His Revolving Ring of Elemental Immunity cycled through the four elements, giving immunity to an element for fifteen seconds. Air and Fire were next to each other in the rotation, providing some relief to the lightning damage for thirty seconds.
Survey, Stone Echo, and Sixth Sense combined to paint a detailed picture of everything near him. He left the yellow overlay visible in case the dim light completely disappeared.
The tunnel to the main cavern angled slightly downward, and a small pipe ran along the bottom right edge in a depression made for it. The pipe connected to the lake and transported oil down the tunnel. The two hundred feet from the lake to the main cavern felt much longer with nothing to hide him. He missed his Observer Skills that had given him some options for remaining unnoticed.
But Ruwen’s map overlay gave him the confidence to continue, displaying no one near the exit of the tunnel. His Mana dropped by twenty-five as he finished the three second cast for Grasp Crate. It would help counteract the slickness of the oil that dripped off his arms and covered his hands in case he needed to use a Bamboo Step.
Crouching, and trusting the accuracy of the map overlay, Ruwen moved out of the tunnel and behind a stack of crates twice his height. The cavern’s ceiling was only thirty feet from the surface. He focused on the air in front of him and pictured the magnifying glass of Analyze. Four seconds later it returned.
Target: Methane Blend
Type: Resource
Components: Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen, Sulfide
Health: Asphyxiant
Alchemy: Flammable (requires 12% Oxygen)
Uses: Explosives, Fire
The air here would kill him if not for his Fresh Air spell, and it explained why the Stone Breaker’s armor and weapons were bronze. Neither would create a spark and cause an accidental fire. Sixth Sense provided him a detailed breakdown of the air components and only trace amounts of oxygen were present. It appeared they wanted the oxygen levels too low here to worry about an explosion.
Analyze had proven useful, but the four second delay already irritated Ruwen. Rarely would he have four seconds to wait for critical information, and he felt foolish for not recognizing that immediately. Many fights would be over in that timeframe. He added another four Ability Points to Analyze, advancing it to level five and making it instant.
Verifying on the map overlay that no one had wandered too close, Ruwen peeked out from around the crates. In the middle of the cavern, the twenty oblong structures sat evenly spaced in a large circle. A cord or rope exited each one and led to man-sized rectangle structure in the center. The entire thing looked like a wheel and spokes. The pipe from the oil lake ended in the central rectangle.
A robed man stood staring at the central rectangle, and four other robed figures moved between the twenty tubs. The remaining ten people all looked like Fighters and most sat or napped. They certainly didn’t look like they expected trouble.
He focused on the nearest oblong tub and triggered Analyze. Information immediately appeared.
Target: Naktos Revival Pool
Type: Structure
Strengths: High Durability
Weaknesses: Resource Dependent, Power Connection
Uses: Recreate a Naktos follower with last synchronized values.
The only other tunnel in the cavern was to Ruwen’s left, and it sloped downward past the range of Stone Echo. It probably led to sleeping quarters and more Fighters. His Perception confirmed what he’d guessed. The five cloaked figures around the central circle were Naktos equivalent of Priests. The remaining Naktos Class equivalents were one Observer, two Mages, two Workers, and five Fighters.
While most of those present ranged from level fifteen to twenty-five, two of the Fighters, one Mage, and the central Priest were over level fifty. Even with the vast difference in level, Ruwen believed he could defeat one of those higher-level enemies one on one. The benefits of his Fortification, his dual Class, and all the extra Attribute Points made him far stronger than what his level appeared.
But four of them at the same time would be almost impossible.
Ruwen spoke to Rami. I think it’s time to go. We can come back later with a larger force.
Those added points in Wisdom have finally resulted in some common sense.
As Ruwen moved toward the tunnel, a metal door fell from the entrance top and slammed into the ground. His heart raced, and he forced himself to calm down. Had they discovered him?
Chapter 19
Stone Echo showed little movement and none toward Ruwen’s location. He Analyzed the door.
Target: Security Gate
Type: Structure
Strengths: Extreme Durability, Elemental Resistance
Weaknesses: Anchor Points, Acid
Uses: War grade protection impervious to elemental attacks and blunt force.
“Hey! What are you doing?” a male voice shouted.
Ruwen returned to the side of the crate and peered around it. One of the high-level Fighters had stepped up to the outer circle. The methane sack around his neck looked too big, and Ruwen thought he looked like a rooster.
The Priest in the middle, who Ruwen figured was probably the High Priest here, responded. “Two of your Fighters just queued for revival. We might be under attack.”
“Who?” Rooster asked.
“Chummo and Zhano,” the High Priest said.
Ruwen ducked back behind the crate as Rooster looked in his direction. He cursed himself for not thinking the death of those guards through. Of course the people guarding this mobile temple would bind here. So much for common sense.
“They were guarding the oil,” Rooster said. “Open the door and we’ll investigate.”
“No,” the High Priest said. “We follow protocol. Naster, the Digger.”
Ruwen peered around the crates again and watched as the high-level Mage named Naster summoned what looked like an arm-sized porcu
pine worm. The High Priest opened the cover on the pipe leading to the oil, and Naster shoved the Digger into the pipe. Closing his eyes, the Mage stood very still.
“The Digger has reached the lake,” Naster said. “Moving it to the surface. I see no enemies on shore.”
“Misting the cavern,” the High Priest said as he pushed a button. “They might be cloaked.”
“Misting confirmed,” Naster said, his eyes still closed as he controlled the Digger. “Still no enemy force.”
“Okay,” the High Priest said, sounding a little more relaxed. “Check the lake.”
“Reentering the lake,” Naster said.
What would they do when they found the bodies? They already knew the guards were dead. They would certainly search this cavern as a next step, and both exits had large metal doors blocking them. Analyze had said the doors were weak to acid, and Ruwen had just received ten gallons.
Ruwen removed the Enormous Acid Gland from his Void Band, opened the tube on top and squirted a little acid on the door’s corner. He returned the acid gland to his Inventory and studied the reaction. As the acid ate into the door, green smoke rose, and Ruwen quickly pulled the smoke into his Void Band to keep it from giving him away.
After a few seconds, Ruwen’s hopes were dashed. The acid had affected the door, and maybe with all ten gallons and just as many minutes, it would make a proper opening. But he wouldn’t have ten minutes. He thought of the Observer spell Blink, and how it would make his escape trivial. He’d never missed a spell more in his life.
When they searched this cavern, he had no way to hide, and he thought about his War Marshal’s Suffocation Bracer. If he started Fortifying with it on, it would make him invisible. But they could still trip over him, and the bigger issue was having to use his Spirit to activate the invisibility. If they discovered he could Harvest Naktos would learn of it, and that led to the apocalypse.
Ruwen knew that using his Spirit, he could kill everyone in this room and destroy the revival baths. But if even one of them hadn’t bound here, his secret would be out. And it was highly likely not all of them had bound here. If there was an attack on this mobile temple, someone needed to revive to explain what happened.
“I found the guards' bodies,” Naster said.
“Does it look like a sludge attack?” Rooster asked.
“They don’t appear damaged enough,” Naster replied. “But it is hard to tell with just touch. I’m confident there isn’t anyone else in the lake. Checking the access tunnel to the main reservoir.”
Ruwen had little time left. He cleared his mind to give his Cleverness Attribute room in his thoughts.
“Tunnel seems empty,” Naster said.
“Okay,” Rooster said. “It doesn’t appear like an assault. But a Spy or Assassin is still possible. Let’s search the caverns.”
Ruwen fought the growing panic and triggered Last Breath to speed his thoughts and give him a little extra time to think. He channeled fifty Energy into Sixth Sense to provide the most detailed information possible on the surrounding resource nodes.
Most of what surrounded Ruwen was granite, and small flakes of terium and other precious metals were scattered through the rock. The stone had cracked two hundred feet away and methane leaked upward, but that didn’t do him any good. A vein of obsidian snaked its way to the surface, but even if he dug through the brittle glass, he couldn’t fit through the opening.
Movement on his overlay meant his time was almost up. It looked like he’d need to fight after all. While his body could take significant damage, and his Regen was respectable, the concentrated damage he’d receive would overwhelm both. Just like with the Bone Sculptor, he weighed the risk of exposing his Harvesting abilities or dying. At least this time he would only cause his own death.
To buy a little extra time, Ruwen cast Minion, and three seconds and one hundred Mana later a granite figure emerged from the rock. Minions, constructed from nearby materials, would help the Worker with simple monotonous tasks. It had vague features and couldn’t fight, but he hoped it would be a distraction.
Ruwen immediately channeled twenty-five Energy into Fallen Heroes, and a level twenty Fighter appeared next to him dressed in black plate and a cloak. Its face, through the slits in its helmet, looked like black fog. Ruwen and his level formed the template for the apparition. Since his body had the durability of plate, it made sense the apparition would materialize that way. It concerned him that the apparition didn’t have a weapon, but there wasn’t anything he could do.
There were enemies coming from both directions. Ruwen pointed at his minion and whispered. “Run as fast as you can and avoid contact with others.”
The minion turned and dashed out from behind the crates. Shouts echoed in the cavern as the minion flew by the closest guards. Ruwen turned to the apparition. “Attack the priest in the middle of the room.”
The apparition disappeared around the crates, and a few seconds later more shouts filled the cavern. Ruwen knew his Minion and Fallen Hero wouldn’t last long, but he still didn’t know how to escape, and needed their distraction to buy time. And another idea occurred to him that might give him an extra minute.
Verifying with Stone Echo that no one stood next to the crates, Ruwen moved fifteen feet along the wall, until he’d reached the far edge of the metal door. He cast Shed, picturing no windows in the structure and the door against the metal gate. A second later his Mana dropped by fifty and once again darkness surrounded him.
Ruwen triggered Glow and looked in satisfaction at his ten by ten by ten stone room. He stepped up to each wall and channeled one hundred Energy into his level five Harden spell, transforming the granite into diamond. Moving from wall to wall and the ceiling and floor, in just seconds he had encased himself in a diamond cube.
Sitting cross-legged, Ruwen again cleared his mind. There had to be a way out of here. His shed shook as something large struck the wall. Probably one of the Mages unleashing their power. He thought again about using the acid, but he didn’t think his shed would survive long enough. Tunneling might work, but even maxing out his Dig spell at fifty Energy per second, he couldn’t move the dense granite fast enough to avoid being swarmed and killed.
Ruwen wished he’d stored air in his Void Band. With enough air, he could raise the oxygen level past twelve percent, which would make the methane out there flammable. But who would store something like that in their Inventory? He realized Bliz probably had. It didn’t matter, though, the fire would kill him as well.
The entire shed shook again, and a loud crack echoed like thunder inside the small space. He probably had less than a minute left. Standing, he prepared himself to fight.
The pain from his Coiled Lightning ring decreased and Ruwen smiled at the small blessing. He had entered the fifteen seconds of elemental air immunity, and fire would be next. That last thought bounced around his head.
Ruwen’s Cleverness Attribute triggered, making his brain feel like ice. Stone Echo’s overlay, Sixth Sense, Dig, Warm Welcome, and the Revolving Ring of Elemental Immunity spun like a tornado in his mind, providing a possible solution to his situation, and he only had ten seconds to prepare.
With a thought, Ruwen dismissed the roof of his shed. Using Stone Echo and Sixth Sense, he found the location of the obsidian seam in the ceiling and channeled fifty Energy into Dig. It only took him five seconds to tunnel through the thirty feet of brittle glass to the surface.
As the fifteen second fire invulnerability started, Ruwen raised his left arm, Void Band open, and sucked in the surrounding methane with a hundred Energy per second. The vast displacement of air made his ears pop, and a loud whistle made him wince as outside air rushed downward through the hole. His Void Band had created a massive negative pressure, and he hoped enough air from the surface had replaced the consumed methane.
Ruwen’s shed shattered and fell away. His Minion and Fallen Hero had long since been destroyed and all fifteen enemies stood in a semi-circle around him. Three s
tuns and six roots struck him, and one root succeeded.
Only six seconds remained of the fire invulnerability.
Ruwen triggered Tunnel Vision, clearing all crowd controlling effects, and granting one second of immunity.
Finally, he cast Warm Welcome for twenty Mana. The level five Fighter spell instantly created a burning dagger which would stun its target. Ruwen only cared about the fire and threw the magical dagger at the tunnel he’d made in the ceiling.
As the last seconds of fire invulnerability ticked down, the world turned orange. An explosion so loud Ruwen’s ear drums burst, arrived with a blow that knocked the air from his lungs.
Ruwen flew upward, rising on a sea of fire.
Chapter 20
As Ruwen sailed through the air, he cast Massage. The level five spell would heal thirty-two Health per second for the next thirty seconds. He had only lost one hundred thirty-three Health, but his ears had taken much of that damage. As his ascent stopped and he started falling, his hearing returned.
Ruwen turned his body to face the ground. Thankfully, Last Breath remained active, and it stopped Ruwen’s panic from swamping his brain. The explosion had thrown him almost three hundred feet high, but he knew it would only take four seconds to hit the ground, even from this height. Last Breath had sped his thoughts, stretching each second and allowing him time to appreciate his terrible situation.
Ruwen opened his Void Band a few inches, and channeled two-hundred Energy through it, but it barely slowed him. The air just didn’t have enough density to slow him, and he closed his Void Band with an angry thought.
Four years of constantly avoiding hard falls during Step training with Rami had earned Ruwen seventy-one skill levels in Tumbling, reducing his fall damage by thirty-five and a half percent. His Gold Fortified body made his entire body, including his organs, at least as strong as plate armor. But a fall from this height would probably still kill him. And if he landed poorly and took critical damage, he didn’t have a chance.
