Cursing, I activated my cloak and teleported the rest of the way to the mouth of the tunnel where I’d left my minions, the instant travel combining with my vertigo was enough to send me crashing to the ground.
I crawled through Chevy’s legs and used Steve as a makeshift ladder to regain my feet and prepare for battle. The sound of claws scrambling on stone echoed up the tunnel, and as the first laeshhound came into view, it let out a piercing screech that was soon answered by five others.
Chief took a knee at my direction, allowing Steve to fire arrows at the advancing beasts. I couldn’t see past my minions, but an echoing yelp told me at least one of the creatures had been wounded.
The scratching of claws on stone grew louder, so I commanded the front line to engage. With a loud clash, the first hound collided with Chief’s tower shield, its claws scrambling for purchase at the top before the combined swings of the flanking skeletons crashed down.
That small glimpse was enough for me. My Rot spell slowly took form as I fought to control my hands while they moved through the spell gestures.
Mid-spell I lost my balance and stumbled to the side, wasting both mana and time. My equilibrium was still shot from the creature’s sonic attack, so even the simple gestures of the spells were proving to be a challenge when the world refused to stay still.
I braced myself against the wall as more creatures engaged my front line, trying to shake off the disorienting effect.
Chief let out a shout that drew the creatures’ attention, likely a taunt granted by his tank specialization.
I caught a glimpse of the shattered remains of the first hound laying on the ground at my minions’ feet and grinned. My staff didn’t require any intricate gestures, just point and click.
A pulse of dark purple suffused the fallen hound and transformed it into a ghoul, its already powerful claws and teeth becoming even more deadly as it bit into its former pack mates.
A series of yelps echoed from the middle of the enemy and the pressure on my minions let up briefly. Through the gap between Chief and Chevy I could see a pile of the beasts, biting and snapping at something underneath.
The sonic dissonance debuff wore off, and I was finally able to cast again, targeting a hound in the middle of the pack with Cripple just as they finished off my ghoul.
Laeshhound Ghoul has been destroyed!
I completed the casting, breaking a leg bone in two, and watched as the improved form of Cripple took hold.
The targeted beast visibly slowed as a dark purple tint spread throughout its body and settled on in its limbs. The afflicted creature was slow to join its friends on the line, snapping and clawing at my minions but finding it difficult to reach beyond Chief’s tower shield.
The coloring made it easier for me to keep track of the creature, allowing for a quick application of Rot and then Miasma, spreading the afflictions to the entire pack.
I moved closer until my aura overlapped the enemy, the effects of the spell ramping up the power of both Rot and Cripple to do a number on the enemy.
Since Steve wasn’t doing anything useful at the time, I dismissed him to free up enough of my minion pool to allow for some ghoulish shenanigans.
Two more laeshhounds fell to the mace wielding amigos and then arose as ghouls as I expended the remaining charges in my staff. The fresh undead ripped into their former pack mates, adding poison and sheer savagery to the mix and turning the tide firmly in my favor until with a yelp, the last hound fell.
You have killed 7x Laeshhound! You have gained 840xp!
Quest update: Cave Cleared: 45%
Sending my minions to form a defensive wall on the far side of the pile of corpses, I rushed in to try for some souls.
I activated Dissection on the first and smiled when the option for the soul appeared alongside the standard beast bits, and something called ganglia, which I guessed were their weird quills based on the picture.
With only three gems available, and expensive ones at that, I had a dilemma. I didn’t really want to waste them on animal souls. Sure, the laeshhounds were pretty scary predators, but unless they could mine, I doubted they would be worth more than a human or dwarf soul.
I decided to forgo the souls for the time being and stuck to the material bits. After all was said and done, I was only able to salvage a few pieces of hide and ganglia due to the rotten nature of the bodies, but I was able to get four skeletons, eight chunks of meat and twelve doses of blood from the less damaged ones.
I set the remaining ghouls to guard us and fed Chief some chunks of ant meat while I repaired the skeletons, recast Dark Shield, and then rested to replenish my mana.
My mana regen was a bit slower due to the maintenance cost of the Aura buff, but it had proven that it was worth the cost.
Chief led the way forward and down to the nests, the other minions circling the area in case of any roaming critters.
The nests were, as I suspected, made from the bones and equipment of some unfortunates who’d fallen prey to the hunting pack. I took a while to search through the ragged piles, hoping for something to trigger my Scavenger skill, but luck wasn’t with me. After about ten minutes I decided to give up and continue further into the cave. After all, there was more to kill.
A tunnel continued deeper into the earth to the northeast, its walls so narrow that we were forced to move single file as we descended into the darkness. I sent the ghouls roving ahead to trigger any traps or other hazards that might be in the way and then followed behind, my bound minions in tow.
A chorus of shrieks rang out from further up the tunnel and the dissonance debuff appeared on the status bars of my ghouls. The shrieks were quickly followed by the sounds of rending and tearing flesh as the ghouls went on the offensive.
I rushed down the tunnel and into an elongated cavern to see my ghouls wrestling with another half dozen of the same type of laeshhounds from the first cavern. Behind them, standing twice as tall was a bigger, nastier looking beast, its name a worrisome orange.
< Laeshhound Alpha Mother >
I sent Chief and the two summoned amigos forward just as the first of the ghouls fell.
Laeshhound Ghoul has been destroyed!
Laeshhound Ghoul has been destroyed!
As soon as the points were available, I summoned Steve from his skull and sent him forward to join in the fun and started casting my debuffs onto the hounds, planting Cripple and Rot like a seed in one and then spreading the love to the rest of the pack with Miasma.
The Alpha Mother was standing back, letting her minions do her dirty work as her own crest stood tall, filling the room with a low vibration that seemed to enhance the lesser hounds.
Chief taunted the pack as the three skeletons took down two of the laeshhounds that had been wounded by the ghouls. I reanimated one with the last charge from my staff and then switched to Necromantic Bolts.
The newly risen ghoul was quickly put down, the other hounds turning on it in a coordinated effort. Its brief unlife did serve its purpose though, distracting them while my minions and spells put an end to the rest of the pack.
As the last hound fell, the Alpha Mother barreled in, her crest of flaring out and pulsating with a sonic attack.
I covered my ears, hoping to avoid a repeat of the dizzies to no avail. A wave of force blasted into me, sending me flying through the air, a fresh application of sonic dissonance taunting me from my status bar.
A small stalagmite put a halt to my flight, the impact dropping me to less than a third of my hit points as I slid to the ground.
As soon as I could get the vial to my mouth, I downed a minor healing potion, sighing as my cracked bones and bruised flesh knit back together.
Orc Skeleton (Steve) has been destroyed! Your bound mana has been returned!
I glanced up in time to see the Alpha Mother’s jaws finish crushing my minion’s now inert form and shake him like a rag doll before tossing him to the side.
Chief rushed forward and smashed his to
wer shield into the beast’s flank, sending it stumbling a step before it reared back and let loose another wave of sound, this time focused on the zombie.
I watched his rotting flesh disintegrate from his bones as the sound waves washed over him, dropping his hit points by the second.
The focused attack stopped suddenly when the beast’s head was knocked to the side by a mighty hit from a mace. Blood sprayed across the ground as the mace tore through the raised crest.
Slowly, making sure to keep each motion as controlled as possible under the dissonance debuff, I struggled my way through the Cripple spell, almost fumbling the final step where I snapped a leg bone in half.
The magic sank into the Alpha Mother’s flesh and slowed her strikes. Her thick scaled hide slowly changed color as the secondary effect took hold.
Glaring at the time remaining on sonic dissonance, I started working my way through the Rot spell.
A swipe of her forelimb sent Chevy crashing to the ground, hit points close to zero and her follow up bite removed the skeleton’s head, helm and all.
Orc Skeleton (Chevy) has been destroyed! Your bound mana has been returned!
The debuff finally wore off and I finished casting Rot, adding some additional damage and robbing the laeshhound of some of her strength.
Hoping I wasn’t going to live to regret it later, I pulled Gimli’s skull out of my bag and summoned him forth to assist his brothers.
Martin and Chief had done a number on the beast and it was down to less than forty percent. Luckily the damn thing wasn’t a boss, just a powerful mob.
The dwarven skeleton charged in and drove his axe into the beast’s flank, taking off another chunk of its health while Chief focused the monster’s attention on him.
I cast bolt after bolt into the hound, and my remaining skeletons continued to attack as it writhed in pain.
A wild attack knocked Chief away, dropping his health to almost nothing. I quickly unsummoned the zombie to preserve him for future battles and then redoubled my efforts.
Gimli sunk his axe into the Alpha’s neck as it snapped at him, ripping his shield away and breaking several ribs with a rake of its claw.
From the opposite flank Martin’s mace crashed in, slamming into the beast’s head and knocking it to the ground, near death.
One last Necromantic Bolt blasted into the Alpha Mother, finally ending the fight.
You have killed 6x Laeshhound! You have gained 720xp!
You have killed a Laeshhound Alpha Mother! You have gained 250xp!
Quest update: Cave Cleared: 99%
CONGRATULATIONS! You have reached Level 14!
You have gained 2 Intelligence!
You have gained 3 Attribute points and 16 Skill points!
Your Hit Points, Mana, And Endurance pools have increased!
After the pulse of energy from leveling up had passed, I rushed to the Alpha mother’s body, draining its soul into one of my three gems. That much power was worth saving, even if it didn’t have thumbs.
I sighed with relief when the gem didn’t explode in my face, and with the soul timer no longer a consideration, I sat down to catch my breath and read through my messages.
At level fourteen there was a good chance that I’d be able to handle that mountain orc that had one-shotted me on my last trip to the Sunken Forge, though I’d still have a problem if they had any friends nearby. But it was progress.
I allocated my points to the normal stats, then increased my skills as well, bringing my core abilities on up to fourteen, leaving ten to spread around.
I’d likely get another spell or two the next time I stopped at the guild, so I wanted to keep some points in reserve, but not too many.
If I put one more point in Create Undead I’d have the pool necessary to have all of my current battle minions out and raise two ghouls, so that was definitely in.
I considered what else to raise, but a glance at my minions’ health bars and the thought of how many times I was going to have to cast Mend Bone to fix all the damage answered the question for me. It was time to upgrade Mend Bone.
I closed my eyes and spent the points, trying not to think of what else they might have been used for. My minion pool rose to the magic number of seventeen and Mend Bone to rank ten, leaving me a single, solitary point in reserve for whatever skills I might learn upon my return to the guild.
You have reached Rank 10 in the Mend Bone spell!
This spell has been renamed “Mend Flesh and Bone” and will now work on all summoned minion types. Additionally, the range of this spell has been increased to 20 feet.
“Yes!” I yelled and then immediately covered my mouth, looking around worriedly at what my outburst might have attracted. There was still one percent of the cavern left to clear and there was no telling what kind of monster that one percent might be.
I looked back over at the corpses, sighed, and got to work. I had bills to pay, and the pile of lizard-pups was a trove of potential gold.
I dissected as many skeletons and hides as I could get my hands on, and as much blood and meat as I could get.
I repaired Gimli, returned him to the bench, and then summoned and healed Chief with a mixture of some Ant meat and my new spell.
It was still more efficient to let the Zombie feast on the flesh of my enemies to heal, but the spell would work to repair my minions in the middle of battle if needed.
Martin had been created from the last of my orcish skeletons. All I had left were humans, a moon elf, and a collection of larger skeletons that were beyond my ability to control.
I repaired Martin and then sent him to guard while I used some human skeletons to create some replacement amigos, giving them the full treatment: animation, binding, and Dark Blessing.
The new Chevy and Steve were both shorter than Martin, which was even more amusing considering their namesakes.
They equipped their gear while I refreshed Dark Shield on everyone and then it was time to move forward.
Towards the end of the room, I noticed another pile of ruined equipment, this time with a small clutch of eggs.
Much to my surprise, I saw one of the eggs sparkling with the glittering light of my Scavenger ability. I reached out gingerly and took hold of the egg, examining the object as it was copied into my hand.
< Laeshhound Egg >
The other eggs started to crack and I jumped back, smashing them with my staff before a misstep sent me tumbling down the side of the nest to land hard on a pile of split and broken bones.
Quest Update: Cave Cleared: 100%
Quest Complete: Something’s in there!
You have gained 400xp!
See the innkeeper for your material rewards.
While reading the update text a metallic glint caught my eye, drawing my attention to a small gap in the cavern wall that hadn’t been visible from up above. A closer look revealed the metal to be a chain, hanging down from somewhere on the other side of the stone.
I reached out and gave the chain a tug and the entire cave started to shake.
The natural stone of the cave wall split and opened like a door, revealing a hallway of worked stone.
“Well… damn,” I said, regaining my feet and looking into the new area.
Quest Available: The Forgotten Tomb [D]
You have discovered a hidden entrance to a long-forgotten tomb. Will you discover the mysteries held in its depths?
Criteria: Explore the Forgotten Tomb.
Rewards: 1000xp
Accept? (Yes/No)
“Yes!” I said out loud, accepting the quest.
A full thousand XP for the quest, plus whatever I could find in the dungeon itself… It’s perfect, I thought. But I am definitely going to need a party to tackle this… I really hope Cedric studied for that test.
Several seconds later, the stone rumbled again as the opening closed, leaving no trace of the door on the stone wall.
Looking into the crack I could still see the chain, and another tug
confirmed it would continue to open the door.
Just in case anyone else ventured into the area, I piled some rocks and bones into the crack to hide the chain from view and climbed out of the bone pit, daydreaming about what the tomb could hold as I made my way out of the cave and back to town to collect my quest reward before dinner and a night full of mining for Malachite.
***
48
As soon as I got back to Sommervale, I went directly to the Necromancers guild. I had no interest in a repeat of last time where I’d gone through an entire dungeon without a critical skill. The Guildmaster was as always, studying behind his desk and was happy to turn over the spell scroll that had become available when I hit level fourteen.
Vampiric Link
Range: Touch
Type: Enchantment
Requirements: Verbal, Material (Required): A piece of the target
Enchants the target weapon with the ability to transfer part of damage done by the weapon to the target of the spell. Lifesteal granted: 1% per 5 ranks of this skill.
A target may be affected by only a single instance of this spell per 10 ranks in this spell.
This spell may be active on 1 weapon-target pair for every 5 ranks in this skill.
At Current Rank: 1 instance for 1% Lifesteal.
It was an amazing spell that could do wonders for Chief’s survivability, or Cedric. Hell, especially Cedric. Enchanting Kelikk’s axe to funnel health to Cedric would mean we could take on even tougher opponents without putting more of a strain on Leilani’s healing skills.
A grin still plastered on my face from the new spell, I wandered over to the inn to turn in my quest.
When I arrived, the place was completely full, packed with PCs and NPCs alike. It was dinner time, so the NPC presence made some sense, but I wasn’t sure why players would be waiting in line for some fake food, and then I heard the music.
“Ahh,” I said, listening as the inn quieted down and a stringed instrument of some sort started playing. I approached the door, leaning close to the hostess and whispering. “Can I go inside to talk to the innkeeper? I’ve got a quest to turn in.
Extra Credit Page 35
