by Sarah Lin
The room dimmed as lightning arced around her arms, gathering in a sphere of power just in front of her axe. She unleashed it in a bolt of raw force that would have blinded him if he hadn't shielded his eyes. He heard the wolf yelp in pain and hit the wall, then the floor. Bloodwraith smiled in grim satisfaction and prepared to finish it off.
But though it was injured, the wolf was still on its feet. When Bloodwraith checked its box, he discovered that it still had a large amount of Health remaining. Cursing under his breath, Bloodwraith swung his sword in another empowered Sword of Rage to draw his attention.
At first the wolf focused on him, but without warning it darted away from him and instead lunged toward Gharavi. Danniah got in the way, but the wolf leapt over her, bouncing off the opposite wall. All at once it was in front of Gharavi, raising one of those terrible claws before she could cast a spell.
Her staff went into the creature's eye, using the axe blades as an actual axe for once. The wolf howled and blood spurted from the wound, but its response was to lash out in rage. One blow tore the axe staff in half and the other sent Gharavi to the ground in a trail of blood.
Danniah tried to jump in again, but the wolf knocked her away with a kick of one of its back legs. Bloodwraith was trying to move to arrive in time, yet it was already closing in on Gharavi's falling form, its jaws opening to finish her off...
Meara flickered in front of it, copies of her body flashing in every direction. The wolf pulled up to a halt, startled, and then let out a howl and began to charge again.
Though Bloodwraith wanted to jump to stop it, he knew that he would be too slow and he would only slow it down. His only hope was to trust in his allies and use this time for something else. He propped his sword against his side and began downing every healing potion he had, plus some of Meara's unique potions.
Meanwhile, Danniah slammed her shield into the wolf from behind, reinforcing her attack with mana. This managed to stagger the wolf a step, but only one step. It turned on her with a scornful growl.
So Danniah hit it in the face again. Recognizing that they couldn't afford to hold anything back, Danniah kept hitting the wolf with everything she had. Yet though she kept it staggered and further disoriented the beast, Bloodwraith knew that it wouldn't be enough. Each use of the skill cost her 2 Mana and so she could only use it five times...
Bloodwraith tossed aside the last potion and picked up his sword with both hands. His arm was still partially broken and it ached, but he could use it. Unfortunately, he was afraid that he would be too late.
When Danniah ran out of mana she tried to shield bash the wolf normally, but it pushed through the blow. Headbutting her shield, it knocked her onto her back, then leapt on top. She managed to raise her shield to defend her face, but the wolf began to slash down, gouging her shield and threatening to knock it away at any moment. Though Bloodwraith had poured mana into his sword again, he just wasn't ready...
At that moment, Izzy bit the wolf's back leg. Though she was small compared to its bulky muscle, when her teeth snapped down, a large chunk of flesh tore away. The wolf let out a roar and whirled, knocking her aside and then rushing in for the kill.
Before it could, Bloodwraith intercepted it and drove his sword directly into the beast's gaping maw.
Propelled by the monster's own strength, his thrust managed to penetrate half-way into its body. Yet to his shock, even with the sword sticking out of its jaws, the wolf kept moving. In fact, it threatened to tear the sword out of his hands and it was all he could do to keep his grip and hold it in place.
Could he resist long enough for it to bleed out? Yet his arm felt like it had broken again and he was exhausted, plus the wolf just had too much Health left. It might be close to dying, but the bleeding wouldn't finish it. All he could do was keep his grip, though, because if the wolf got free...
"Bloodwraith... let go..." The words were Gharavi's, barely audible over the wolf's pained snarls. Though he didn't understand, Bloodwraith let go of his sword and leapt back.
The next moment a burst of lightning coursed down his sword and directly into the core of the wolf's body. Gharavi launched a second bolt, then a third, but after that she collapsed to the floor, her eyes closing.
For a long moment, all of them just stared at the scorched body. He was almost certain that he saw it twitch and that it would keep coming at him, but the box said it had 0 Health and it was no longer moving...
[Victory! You received 7408 EXP and one Fellwolf Pelt.]
This was no victory. Bloodwraith's broken arm hung limply and his other barely had the strength to pull his sword free.
"Umm..." Though Danniah looked a bit scraped up, she was able to get to her feet. "Was that some kind of special wolf?"
"I don't think it was." Bloodwraith slowly and painfully put his sword back on his back. "They like to make wolves the base enemy. I think that's just how dangerous this place is."
"Oh, gods... that can't be true, can it?"
As if to mock her, at that moment they heard a howling sound echo through the corridors, answered by several others. This time, the chill that came with the sound was more than an effect of the mana. There was absolutely no way they could face even a second Fellwolf, much less more than one at the same time.
He didn't need to sound the retreat, it was just the obvious decision. Meara scooped up both halves of Izzy's body, while Bloodwraith lifted Gharavi and the pieces of her staff in his arms. She was covered in her own blood, but according to her box she was still alive. At least for now, because the sound of the wolves was getting closer.
They ran for it, rushing down the corridor the way they had come. Bloodwraith didn't look back, knowing that it would do little good and just focusing on running. Yet as they reached the stairs back up, he couldn't help it. Far down the corridor, partially lit by the mana lanterns, he saw several pairs of eyes glowing in the shadows.
As soon as they tumbled into the tavern, they collapsed. Danniah came in last, shoving aside the propping pieces of wood and slamming the trap door closed. Bloodwraith stared at it, wondering if he would hear the wolves scrabbling at it... then realized he had a better option. He reached for the box and found it easily this time, hitting the appropriate symbol and then deactivating the entrance.
The trap door winked out of existence and everyone fell back in relief.
It took them a long time just to catch their breath. Eventually Danniah looked over at him with wide eyes. "Bloodwraith... what do we do now?"
"I don't know." He fell onto his back and just stared up at the ceiling.
Chapter 11
As the others lingered in the tavern, Meara drifted along the walls. She wanted to reprimand Bloodwraith for sulking, but didn't feel that she had the right: while the others had been risking their lives, she had barely been able to help. Truthfully, she had been afraid to participate even as much as she did, because a single attack from a monster like that might kill her instantly.
Bloodwraith sat in one corner, his helm still on his head. Though she couldn't see his face, she knew the deep frustration that must be there. She walked over to him and began pulling potions from her cloak, setting them down on the table in front of him.
"These should restore the potions you used in the fight."
He only grunted.
"Do you want to consider an alternate way out?"
Another grunt. Seeing that he wasn't ready to talk, Meara let him be alone and instead moved to look at the others.
Without bodies to eat, Izzy was regrowing only slowly. Since Meara had taken both halves of her body, she lay with them positioned to grow back together, but there was considerable damage to repair. She was tapping her hands on the floor restlessly, obviously wanting to move around, so Meara moved to her next.
"How are you feeling, Izzy?"
"I wish I was stronger." Izzy frowned up at her. "I wanna be able to help Da and Danniah. And I wanna eat that wolf thing."
"That's a good att
itude." Meara sat cross-legged on the floor beside her and stroked Izzy's gray hair. "I was wondering if I could help you heal. Would you like to try some potions?"
"Gimme!" Izzy raised her hands eagerly, so Meara handed her a Mana Potion and a Health Potion. After sipping the first cautiously, Izzy then drank it down eagerly. When she drank the Health Potion, however, she blanched and spat it out. "That one tastes bad."
"Yeah, I wondered if that would happen." Meara closed her eyes and reached inside herself, intentionally botching the creation of another potion.
Except... she understood what she was doing better now. She wasn't making failed potions, she was making glitched potions. Many of the words the Earthian Outsider had said were strange to her, but that one resonated. What he considered an error was a fundamental part of her being now. While her potions weren't normal, they worked on some people.
"Try this one." Meara handed Izzy the glowing orange potion. The girl sniffed at this one more suspiciously and stuck her tongue into the bottle. She spent a while smacking her lips, as if not quite sure, but abruptly she drank the whole potion.
"It tastes like Da!"
"Hmm." Meara raised an eyebrow and - after deciding not to joke around with the poor girl - considered her statement. Perhaps her glitched potions only worked on other people who were glitched? She remembered how violently Daek the Knife had reacted, after all. It also might explain why Danniah reacted negatively at first, but later was able to drink the potions, assuming that the glitch spread. If so, since Izzy had been born from Bloodwraith's manipulations, it was no surprise that Izzy could drink them.
"Gimme more!" The ghoul squirmed up to put her head in Meara's lap. Meara would have thought that would make her tear apart again, but it looked like her torso was fusing together properly.
"Wait a bit. It takes me more time to make these." She stuck a hand in her cloak, trying to form the next potion.
"That's normal." Izzy nodded seriously, as if she was understanding something. "I said they taste like Da but I think maybe they taste more like you. Except I don't know what you taste like because you're not my Da. But I ate your pain and I remember it a bit."
Instead of trying to answer that, Meara pulled a larger potion from her cloak. Izzy eagerly took it with both hands and began gulping it down. When she was done she gave a sigh that revealed her sharp teeth and snuggled further into Meara's lap.
"That was nice. You're nice. I like you, Meara... but I'm getting sleepy... I don't usually get sleepy..."
Meara stayed there and stroked Izzy's hair until she fell asleep, assuming a ghoul could actually sleep. Whatever the case, Meara felt that the girl's body was mending. She slowly extricated herself from under Izzy's head and eased her to the floor, then moved away toward the others.
Since she had spent time with Izzy... Danniah and Gharavi had begun fighting? They were on the far end of the tavern, so Meara had time to stare at them as she approached.
No, they weren't fighting. Danniah wasn't wearing her armor, instead stripped down to just light clothes. Gharavi was hurling spheres of flame at her, but not using any of her stronger bolt attacks. The flames made Danniah wince in pain, but she kept moving forward while Gharavi kept striking her with new spells. It seemed that she could still cast without her staff, though the spells weren't as powerful. Meara would need access to Bloodwraith's boxes to be sure how much weaker.
When Meara approached, they stopped and turned to her. Danniah winced, looking over the burns on her body. "Good timing, Meara. Do you have more potions for me?"
"That's why I'm here." Meara handed Danniah several potions without looking at them, instead glancing between the two women. "What exactly are you trying to do?"
"I'm, uh... grinding Vitality." Danniah managed to answer in between gulps of potion. "It hurts, but I think I'm getting a bit tougher. Hopefully I'll be able to do better if we have to fight more of those wolves."
"As for me," Gharavi said, "I felt mentally unprepared to deal with an opponent who could shrug off spells so easily. My hope is that I can practice with Danniah and become more accustomed to such threats."
"Though I'm not exactly fast. I was hoping maybe we could practice with Izzy later."
Gharavi nodded grimly. "Having her come straight at me with those teeth would certainly test my concentration."
Those were rational actions, so Meara wasn't sure what she could say to them. Before she could say much more, Danniah finished her potions and then glanced in Bloodwraith's direction. Her gaze shifted back to Meara. "Is... is Bloodwraith okay? Is he trying to think of another way out?"
"I'm not sure." Meara sighed and glanced at him one more time before returning her full focus to the others. "Ignore him for now. What we need to do is prepare, just as you've been doing."
"I agree... but I'm not sure what exactly we can do."
"We'll figure it out one step at a time." Meara formed another unique potion and pulled it out of her cloak before handing it to Gharavi. "Would you try drinking this?"
Though Gharavi took it, she frowned at the liquid. "This looks like an improperly brewed potion."
"Please just try."
"If you insist." Gharavi took a sip and made a face. "I don't think that will help. It might not be actively harmful, but it feels like a strange mix of effects."
"That's fine... have Danniah try it next."
While Meara watched, Gharavi handed the potion to Danniah. She took a hesitant sip, then smiled and drank the rest. "Tastes great to me! Not exactly healing or magic, but I'm full of energy now!"
Gharavi stared at her in surprise, then shot Meara a thoughtful glance. "What exactly is this?"
"I think the potions I make are..." Meara hesitated a moment, searching for the right words that the others would understand. "Almost another form of Outsider magic, I think. They contain beneficial power, but it's not suited to this world. However, for people who have Outsider systems, like Bloodwraith, they can provide a boost."
"If that's true, then why do they work on Danniah?"
"I think Bloodwraith has rubbed off on her... if you know what I mean."
Danniah blushed furiously and Meara smirked. Nailed it.
Meanwhile, Gharavi ignored her quip and just focused on the issue at hand. "So if the potions work on people who have been fundamentally changed along the lines of the system, then I haven't been changed in that way?"
"Perhaps not enough," Meara said. "According to the boxes you're 'in our party' but I don't know if there's more to it than that. But I want to keep trying with you and see if you gain the ability to drink the potions over time."
"Hmm. If these potions are from your essence, and your essence is capable of resisting the magical systems used by the Outsiders... do you think you could create one that would give us some protection against their power?"
"That... is a good thought." Meara paused to consider it. "Ever since I used the artifact during the fight against Raigar, my core abilities have been stronger. I've managed to create potions that provide resistance against magic, for example. But to resist that kind of fundamental magic that can pierce between worlds... actually, I might need your help with that."
"I'll do what I can." Gharavi nodded seriously.
"On that note, is there anything I can do to help you with your axe staff? At least, I don't see you working on it."
"I won't be able to repair it like this. I don't suppose you can create magical components?"
"Sorry, but no. If you needed wood for the staff itself, or other materials a normal merchant might sell, I can give you endless amounts. But anything rare is... probably impossible for me, I think."
"That's a shame, but we'll just have to find something else to repair it. Or perhaps it would be simpler in the end to just forge a new one."
Danniah had been listening silently during their conversation, but now looked between them uncomfortably. "What are we going to do next? Unless there's some other way out... or do we have to find a
way through that 'dungeon' thing? Because if that was just the start..."
"I'm not sure." Meara put a hand on each of the other women's shoulders and gave them a smile without smirking for once. "But one option we don't have is sitting and giving up. We need to escape this place and strike back against the box gods... and we'll need power to do it. So keep working to improve yourselves and I'll do my best to think of something."
"Just hearing that makes me feel better. Thanks, Meara." Danniah turned away and grinned at Gharavi. "Alright, now throw fireballs at my face!"
Though Meara strongly considered making some kind of crack about Danniah getting into kinky stuff, in the end she decided against it. Instead she wandered away, leaving the two of them to their training. She didn't need to be concerned about them, or about Izzy: they were all strong in their own way. But Bloodwraith...
Meara drifted toward him, barely feeling the floor beneath her feet. Though their time together hadn't truly been so long, she felt as though she'd known him forever. He was an incredibly sharp blade, but that razor edge left it vulnerable to other kinds of stress. Unfortunately, she couldn't think of anything to say to him. So instead she just came and stood beside him.
Eventually, he looked up at her, eyes hard through his helm. "I don't think we're going to find another way out."
"It doesn't seem likely."
"That means that we're going to need to go through." His gauntlet hit the table hard. "I don't think we have what it takes."
"Maybe not now, but we will." Meara moved to stand behind him, turning his head to look toward the others. "They're all working as hard as they can to become stronger so that we can find a way through."
"That's admirable, but... this location was designed for players of much higher Level than we are..."
"Good thing we're not players, then, huh?"
Bloodwraith stared at her for a long moment, then chuckled. He rose to his feet, his hands coming down heavily on her shoulders. "You're right, Meara. For a moment, I forgot myself."
She smiled up at him. "You just need someone to remind you that there's an evil lich in that meaty barbarian skull of yours. You're the Great Defiler of Puppies, remember?"
