Mind's Journey 2: Of Monsters and Men (A Gamelit Fantasy Adventure - Book 2)

by William H. Dewayne

  With the earlier practice, the strange words appear before my eyes faster than I expected. Courage catches my attention. The number is so large that I gulp. “Don’t let it touch you,” I cry. “One punch from it, and you won’t stand a chance.” I expected someone to challenge me, but to my surprise, they all nod.

  “Fan out,” David yells, taking charge of the situation. “There’s no chance that it can move fast. As long as there are more targets to hit, we can keep hitting it from opposing sides and confuse it. Just like with the Orthrus.” In this heated situation, no one challenges David’s experience and follows his advice though I can’t imagine that Queen won’t have something to say later.

  Every movement of the Golem is slow and deliberate, but now is not the time to become overconfident. If we make a single slipup, we risk ruining everything. The shaking is the worst part. It’s hard to gain any footing with it making the ground shift with every movement of its colossal body. Zero wastes no time and serves as a great diversion, darting around the battlefield. This might be the first time that everyone has seen his true fighting prowess. I hear Queen whistle as he strikes all four of its main joints within a few seconds of one another. He keeps the monster guessing. It is so busy trying to predict his next attack that it doesn’t pay any attention to the rest of us, who are doing damage the entire time it ignores us.

  We begin by darting in with minor attacks. G. stays close to it. Harva focuses on throwing her shield. David stays back, firing his slingshot. Maris struggles to fight against her motion sickness. I keep my eyes on the bar, watching it descend with each blow, great and small. Despite its enormous size, it’s not as powerful as our past foes, or perhaps we’re becoming stronger. Whatever it has in power, it lacks in defense. We can use that to our advantage.

  In frustration, the Golem raises both fists over its head. “Move,” G. barks. Glad he noticed what was about to happen. We scatter in every direction, putting as much distance between ourselves and our foe. When its fists strike the ground, I’m sure the earth itself would cave in. A shockwave blasts underneath my feet and hurls me away from the battle. I crash to the ground in a heap.

  My bar depletes a little, but not as much as I expected. I spring back to my feet and grab my staff in both hands. Now is the perfect time to unleash a more powerful attack. Since I have plenty of practice, it can’t be too difficult. What would I want to do? It’d be great if I could wipe that horrible grin off its face. As a matter-of-fact, I think I will.

  My staff takes on a faint glow. You used Jawbreaker, the Voice announces. I charge forward and aim for its eerie face. My staff strikes it right across the skeletal mouth. The pole rips through the gross body, tearing the mouth off and leaving a crater in its face. Looking at the H.P., I balk as I see the bar drop further than I expected. A grin breaks out across my face. This is one of the best moments of my life.

  “Felix. Move,” G. shouts. I snap back to reality to see the Golem’s giant hand swinging at me. Before I can move, G. jumps in the way and knocks its hand away with an excellent counterattack. “Don’t let it move,” he yells. Zero is glad for the chance to keep showing off. At G.’s request, he darts around the creature, striking it with his bo from every angle imaginable. They aren’t powerful, but the point is to be fast and distract, nothing else. My eyes stop looking at Zero and focus on G. What did he have in mind?

  G. used Heavenly Rain, the Voice announces. He hurls his spear high into the air. Without looking at it, he clasps his hands together, as if he were in prayer. Above us, his spear glows with the inner light. At his silent command, the spear creates multiples of itself. At least a dozen hang in the sky, waiting for the next command. G. takes a deep breath and orders, “Skewer him.”

  His spears rain down on the Golem in a blinding flurry of stabs. As soon as they strike, they pull themselves free from the body and stab again. The Golem flails its arms, desperate to stop the attack, but how could it destroy weapons composed of light and air? If anything weaker faced that, it would have a hundred deep holes ripped through its body. The Golem had little visible damage, but its health was depleting faster by the moment.

  “One more,” G. hisses, sweat breaking out on his brow. His clasped hands break free from one another, and he raises them high above his head. The spears stop moving, and the Golem watches, waiting for what G. had prepared next. With a grin, G.’s hands come down, and the spears with them. Each stabs deep into the Golem’s earthen body. G. used Heaven’s Punishment, the Voice declares.

  In a brilliant flash, the light spears explode while G.’s spear flies back into his hand. He stabs it into the ground, muttering, “That should do it.” His legs cave underneath him, and he leans against the spear to stay on his feet. “Go on without me,” he calls, waving the rest of us to finish it. In the wake of his attack, the Golem’s body shows the first signs of true damage. Its body deteriorates.

  The Golem falls forward, crashing onto the ground. G.’s assault reduced the legs to nothing but rubble. H.P. is low. A few more hits, and this thing will be nothing but a pile of mud. “Don’t let up,” I yell. “We’ve almost got it.” Running forward with my staff, I hit it atop the head as many times as I can. I hear Queen and Harva doing the same thing with sharp clangs ringing out from their chisels and shield. Each blow does minor damage, but that doesn’t matter. Does strategy even matter now? My eyes don’t leave the bar as it turns red, blinks, and disappears. “Yes,” I shout, springing into the air. Though there is no Memento at stake, it’s wonderful to know that we overcame this obstacle with relative ease.

  I celebrated too soon. The Golem’s body collapses, but it doesn’t vanish nor does it fall into a pile of mud. Instead, the Voice chimes, Golem used Eternal Life. The moment I hear this, I know that nothing good can come from it. My eyes blink in disbelief as I watch the health bar reappear and fill back up to its starting point. In kind, the Golem’s body reforms. It rises far more terrifying, having far more dead bones than before. Some bones protrude from its body as if the monster hoped someone would skewer themselves on a sharp one. It pushes itself back on its earthen feet and towers above us again, ready to keep fighting. I gulp as the words Stats Boost: Courage +10, Brawn +15 appear. What other hideous forms could it take, and how much more powerful could it become?

  “You’ve got to be kidding me,” Queen screams, kicking up a clump of leftover dirt.

  “What do we do?” Harva exclaims, retreating.

  I turn to find David standing with his jaw hanging open. G. leans against his spear while hanging his head. Both of them are at a loss and making no attempts to hide it. How are we supposed to deal with this? “Look out,” Maris yells. Her voice cuts short as her stomach churns. Her warning was not fast enough as Zero lets out a sudden cry. I spin around to find him gripping the side of his arm as a long stick protrudes from it. An arrow.

  “Gah,” I yelp as an arrow cuts by my elbow, burying itself into the ground. Blood runs down to my left hand.

  “Woah,” Queen cries. Turning, I find David pulling her by the collar. Queen collapses on the ground and begins to yell at him, but stops short. David’s decisive action saved her from having three arrows sticking out of her body. She lays on the ground, looking up at him in stunned silence. I look up, turning toward the towering wall. Lifting my gaze as high as I can, I witness the proof that Raka’s guards spotted us: a volley of arrows rains down on us. I hope he can save the rest of us because those arrows aren’t going to let up anytime soon.

  “Look out!” I scream.

  As they fall toward us, I wonder how many arrows were needed to kill us. Did it have to be a large number like ten? Is one in the right place all it would take? In a matter of seconds, I would find out. Behind me, the others try to face down the Golem, not able to focus on the death raining down on us. That leaves me to stand against the archers. I want to dive out of the way but it’ll do no good. There’s no escape. They are falling too fast and cover too much ground. When running isn’t an opti
on, fighting is all that’s left. Gripping my staff, I hope that I have the skill to knock the bolts aside before they skewer me.

  Just as the plummeting arrows are about to complete their short journey, they stop moving a good ten feet above our heads. A second later, they scatter about and not a single arrow harms us. My mouth drops open in relieved surprise. Harva used Divine Protection, the Voice announces. Turning, I find the girl standing with her arms in the air. She flashes a grin my way before dropping to her knees. “That will protect us for one minute, I think; but I know I can’t do that again,” she pants, wiping sweat off her forehead. “Any ideas?”

  “Archers. Perfect. We have enough to deal with today. This is getting ridiculous,” David exclaims. He puts two rocks into his slingshot and aims up to the top of the wall. David used Explosive Diversion, the Voice announces. The projectiles dart up to the top of the wall, vanishing from our sight long before reaching their destination. After a short pause, a large cloud of smoke clouds the top of the wall. An ear-piercing explosion follows. Even from here, we can hear the shocked cries of our enemies. The archers’ arrows don’t retaliate. From the look on David’s face, that is only a temporary solution. It won’t take long for the smoke to dissipate and for the guards to regroup. We must take what respite we can because there’s little chance that we can win a battle on two fronts.

  Looking up at the top of the wall, a smile stretches on Zero’s face. “You deal with this one,” he says, pointing at the Golem. “Zero will deal with those gnats.” He didn’t wait for approval, but did he ever? Bo in hand, he sprints toward the wall. A high-pitched whistle echoes around us. Defying gravity, he runs twenty feet up the wall. A black and yellow creature flies overhead. It is Zero’s steed. The mighty bird answers his call, swooping down from above. The bird’s wings are the size of two men. Its talons are long and sharp. Opening its long beak, it cries out a welcome greeting to the master it hasn’t seen in a month. Zero whoops in return, not paying attention to the arrow sticking out of his arm. That’s another one of his lessons. Focus on one obstacle at a time. He set his sights for the enemies at the top of the wall. The arrow could wait.

  One jump and he’s on the bird’s back, holding on to its feathery neck. It spins in the air and ascends, aiming for the top of the wall. They look like a black speck from that high, just before they fade into the smoke. For one moment, everything is quiet, or as quiet as a large Golem will allow. Then, I hear the cries of men. “I think that took care of it.” Glancing at the staff in my hand, I still hope it’s a promise that I can be as strong as him one day. Turning my attention back to the fight, I see the Golem preparing to strike the ground again.

  “Not this time,” Maris blurts. Taking a hand off her mouth, she places her hands together, mimicking G.’s posture from earlier. Maris used Binding Darts. She whirls her rope dart around in a rapid circle. With each turn, it seems as if another rope has appeared opposite of it. She changes the swing’s direction, and with each rotation, a dart flies from the circle. The multiple rope darts swing around the Golem’s body and latch on to the ground and wall. There had to be close to fifty, and all of them tie around the monster’s body. The Golem realizes what Maris is doing and pulls against the ropes, but it’s too late. With each movement of its body, the ropes tighten. When Maris’s attack reaches its end, the Golem cannot move.

  “That should hold it,” Maris gasps, remaining in her pose, with the end of her ropes in hands. “But if we can’t destroy this thing soon, we’re gonna end up back at square one.”

  “Felix,” G. yells, tossing me his lantern. “Go get Aurora. As soon as you’re back, we have to get out of here.” No one argues against this point.

  They didn’t need to tell me twice. “Be careful,” I yell. My eyes cut toward Queen and Harva. The little girl keeps smiling while Queen rolls her eyes. Spinning on my heel, I take off and the concerns I held off during the fight flood into my mind. What was taking Aurora so long? She chased after one man. How could he be giving her trouble? I wonder why I’m the one they sent. If I have more time, I might overthink everything, but not today. This time, I force my mind to go blank, just as Zero would do. It isn’t easy, but it must be done. I have to act in the moment, and to get out of this, I can’t afford to waste a second.

  The cave’s opening gapes just like the Serpopards’ mouths. If I’m not careful, with no guide, it’ll swallow me whole this time. As soon as I step inside, I ignite the lantern and gasp. The tunnel is different this time. All of the paths are going in different directions from before. Some spiral up or down into the dark. One loops back and ends at the cave’s wall. All of them are pulsing in a silent rhythm. The sight chills my blood.

  I focus and try to conjure up a map, but, like before, it’s useless. There’s only one way I can do this. I have to rely on my senses and hope that once I find Aurora, I can get us back to the entrance. “Aurora,” I shout. Listening, I wait for her to yell back, but she doesn’t. Instead, the sound of clashing weapons answers. Without waiting a second more, I steel my nerves and follow the noise, taking careful steps on the path. I want to hurry, but I can’t. The path underneath keeps shifting underneath me. Unlike with Daisuke, there is nothing keeping it from making my foot pass through an open spot, spending me plummeting into the abyss. The cave wants to kill me. Only by placing my feet in the right place can I falling into the cave’s endless darkness, but who knows how long I can do that. With each step, I’m sure that it’ll be my last. Keeping my nerves under control, I make myself to keep walking. A strange sensation brushes against me. Could it be a warning from Death? I hope not.

  Always looking over my shoulder, I watch the exit. If I can see it, everything will turn out fine. The instant that disappears, I know that we’ll have a serious problem. Looking at it, I gulp; though I’ve only walked forward, it’s already five feet higher than I am and even farther off to the side. Where will that end up when I find Aurora? If I couldn’t hear their loud, always louder, fighting, would I have turned back? It’s hard to say, and I’d rather not think about it. I focus on the matter at hand and keep moving.

  The direction of their fighting changes the further I go. Before it sounded ahead, now they seem to be coming below me. I glance at the edge of the path, which has a slight slickness to it. Hesitant, I drop on my hands and knees to look over the side, shining down my light. I found her.

  On a lower, dimer path, Aurora battles with Daisuke. In his hands, he carries that same strange pole. The mounted ring jingles the smaller rings from side to side with each motion. Aurora’s scythe whirls around, swinging to hack her foe in half. Daisuke blocks the attacks with relative ease. Sparks fly about. Both of them stand on a rock path that has no walls to enclose them.

  My muscles tense. All it would take is one push or a slip of her foot, and Aurora would plunge into the deep, a place where no one would find her. I lock my jaw shut, holding in a scream. No matter how much I want to tell Aurora to run, I can’t afford to make her lose focus. If that thief gains the upper hand, she will be a goner. I focus my vision and look at the necessary information on Aurora and Daisuke. Their health is half the original size. To no surprise, Aurora’s stats are superior. If I can handle Daisuke, she should have no problem with him, but he holds his ground. From my vantage point, it looks like Aurora is losing.

  While the two battle, it is clear that Daisuke has an advantage. As a guide, he can navigate through this cave while she can’t. Aurora moves from around, trying to keep her footing as the path tries to drop out from under her. Her strikes are wild, as if she can’t see. She misses more often than Daisuke blocks. It doesn’t matter if she’s stronger if she can’t hit him. To make matters worse, there aren’t any plants for Aurora to use, where all of her most powerful attacks come from. As long as they are down here, she’s playing his game, and I doubt that she can keep it up much longer.

  They exchange words, but I can’t hear them. Whatever was said made Aurora angry because her swinging becom
es wilder. She needs help. From where I perch, I look for a way down there, but the tunnel is impossible to navigate. The only way I could get down there is with a guide, which I don’t have. All I can do is watch and hope that that G.’s lamp is helping her see. As soon as she defeats him, we can force him to help us escape. I just need to be patient and not panic.

  Daisuke’s staff lashes out. He lands a blow across Aurora’s neck. Her short scream echoes through the cave. My heart drops. No. She stumbles. “Aurora,” I cry, fearful that her death was imminent. To my surprise, and Daisuke’s, the end of her scythe lashes out and pushes against the ground before it could move. She regains her footing her as her weapon glows. A flash of fear crosses Daisuke’s face. I feel the same way. The scythe is a dangerous weapon. If she fights too hard, she’ll end up killing him. My mind flashes back to the dead of the caravan. Don’t worry. Aurora won’t kill him.

  Aurora used Mirage Blade, the Voice declares. In a flash, two Auroras stand in front of Daisuke. This takes him aback. I can’t tell which one is the real Aurora. Even focusing on her stats doesn’t help. They are the same. A tense pause holds between the three of them. I hold my breath. Daisuke prepares a counterattack, but it is already too late. Both Auroras rush him, scythes swinging at him. He raises his staff toward the one on the left. Her scythe passes through him, vanishing as it does, along with its owner. A flash of resigned terror crosses his face as the real one delivers its blow. The scythe reaches the end of its swing, and Daisuke’s shriek pierces my ears.

  Perched on the side, I can’t believe what I’m seeing. With his health fast depleting, Daisuke drops to the ground, flailing around as he grips his left shoulder. Dark red blood floods through his fingers. My eyes dart to the side as I watch his staff and limp arm falling into the dark. I don’t want to look back, but I have to. Aurora stands above him, her scythe resting on her shoulder, blood dripping from it. Did she just maim him? How can sweet, loving Aurora do that? For the first time since meeting her, Aurora scares me.