Light (Buryoku Book 2)

by Aaron Oster

  “Phew,” Aika said, wiping her forehead. “Something was definitely off about those creatures, don’t you agree?”

  “You mean, aside from the walking bones part?” Roy asked wryly.

  “Yes, aside from that,” she replied with a grin. “How strong would you say they were?”

  “I don’t know,” Roy replied. “Maybe 2nd or 3rd Dan Yellow?”

  Her expression grew thoughtful then.

  “The ones I fought were either at or just below Base Green,” she said.

  “Then how was I able to beat them?”

  “I think…” she began, eyeing the piles of bones distrustfully. “That they’re being adjusted to just below our levels of advancement. That’s why you had an easier time of it than I did. While I’m at 1st Dan Green, you’re still at Base Orange, so if they’re setting them to be one level below you, there’s a full level of advancement’s difference. For me, though, they were just a single Dan below me. Therefore, they posed a much more difficult challenge.”

  “Do you really think the Dungeon is that specific and knowledgeable?” Roy asked in alarm.

  If it knew that much about them, it would be easy for them to be overwhelmed and killed.

  “No, I don’t think so,” Geon cut in. “It likely that it’s been automated by the Dungeon itself, with the Essence being supplied by an outside source. It wouldn’t leave an obvious trail back to it, so I’m guessing that the fastest way to stop these creatures is to follow the source and destroy whatever’s on the other end.”

  Roy repeated what the Dungeon Core told him, and Aika nodded along in agreement.

  “It makes sense, though I’m dying to find out what’s running this place. In all the time I’ve been going into Dungeons, I’ve never come across anything like this before.”

  Roy agreed wholeheartedly and followed her as she continued deeper into the ruin, in the direction in which they’d seen the Essence. This place was certainly strange, but Roy could feel the Power Essence practically trying to push itself into him, as though trying to escape the Dungeon. This made cultivating the ambient Essence much easier than he’d been expecting. The walking cultivation technique wasn’t as effective as the sitting one, so he’d been expecting to barely gain anything in terms of power while in here.

  The longer they walked, the easier the Essence entered his body. He made sure to stream it through the flower-like pattern surrounding his Core, purifying and strengthening the Essence to a degree which had previously been impossible. The Essence now glowed a rich gold when it finally entered his Core, being diluted down by a full ninety percent by the time he was done.

  Aside from the increased Essence cost to advance, he would only gain ten percent of the ambient Essence as usable power by the time he was done. He could now understand how it took some Martial Artists centuries to get anywhere. But, with his improved technique, he was able to pull Essence in much faster and in higher volume than before. He also had the advantage of having had his body cleansed by the Power Well, leaving him a clear path to Green-Belt.

  His body and channels were clear of all impurities, so all he needed to do was gather the requisite power to push his Core to the brink, then find a way to be allowed to test for his next Belt. For now, though, he would push for his 1st Dan.

  They ran into another few groups of skeletons, each containing between four and six fighters. Now that they knew how to effectively fight them, Aika hung back, serving as a distraction as Roy took them out. It was far more efficient this way, so he didn’t begrudge her for having to do all the fighting.

  “Think we’re getting close to the source?” he asked after they’d dispatched their fifth group.

  “We must be,” Aika replied. “The Essence here seems to be heavier than other parts of the Dungeon.”

  It turned out that she was right.

  As they climbed over a pile of rubble, the area before them opened up, revealing a massive stone tablet standing at the center of what had once been a tall tower. Blocks of cracked stone littered the area and water collected in small pools. However, it was the stone tablet that had caught both of their attentions.

  It was glowing with the same mixture of Essence as the skeletons and seemed to be giving off an ominous aura.

  “Never seen such a scary-looking rock before,” Roy said, staring down at the tablet below.

  “Tell me about it. Just looking at the thing gives me the creeps,” Aika admitted. “But if we want those skeletons to stop, we’ll likely have to destroy that thing.”

  “I doubt it’ll be easy, though. Something like this is sure to have some defenses in place.”

  “Oh, just get on with it!” Geon snapped as the two of them hesitated, making Roy jump.

  “Best get to it,” Roy said, taking a deep breath.

  The two of them slid down the pile of rubble, sending loose stone clattering around them. They came to a stop at the bottom, the sound of falling stones echoing eerily off the surrounding walls.

  They cautiously approached the tablet, feeling the aura of menace intensify as they did. The tablet looked ancient, with odd letters covering its surface. Roy had never seen writing like this and had to wonder just what it said. He was cut short of his pondering, because as they drew within a few yards, the ground beneath them trembled, then a massive pulse of Essence flashed from the tablet, washing over their surroundings.

  Both Aika and Roy flinched back as a roar shook the entire room, sending a few loose flakes of stone showering down from the ruined walls.

  “Guessing that that roar came this thing’s guard dog?” Roy asked nervously, placing his back to Aika’s.

  “Probably,” Aika said, her voice sounding tense.

  They didn’t know how on the nose Roy’s prediction was until a mass of bones exploded from the ground before the stone tablet. They quickly stepped back, placing their backs to one of the tall stone blocks spread throughout the room. Bones swirled in a mesmerizing pattern in front of the block, stacking together and building some monstrosity from the ground up.

  “Oh…That is not good,” Geon unhelpfully stated.

  The massive three-headed hound roared at them, bony mouths opening and spraying Wind, Water, and Fire Essence in a stream before them.

  “Really, really not good.”

  36

  “So. What are the chances this thing will be as easy for me to beat as the skeletons?” Roy asked as three pairs of eyes turned on them.

  Roy noted that each of the heads’ eyes matched their Essence type. Not that it really mattered, but in that moment, his mind needed to focus on something other than the terror of what stood before them.

  Aika didn’t answer, making a gesture and sending three spears of light flashing across the space between them. Roy watched as they slammed into the head on the far left, taking the creature in the neck. Instead of shattering the bone as he’d expected, the lances of light shattered against the toughened bone.

  The three-headed bone monster roared once again, and one of the heads blew a stream of fire at the two of them, scorching the ground before it a cherry red.

  “Aim for the joints!” Aika yelled as the two of them activated their movement techniques to avoid the attack.

  There was a loud boom as Roy flashed to one side, his muscles feeling powerful and compact as he channeled Essence into his Shockwave. The hound wasn’t about to let him get away, it seemed, and a blast of wind slammed into him, even as he attempted to flank it. Roy was thrown off his feet as what felt like thousands of tiny blades slashed at his skin.

  He hit the ground hard, rolling to try and lessen the force of the impact and springing back to his feet. His body was now covered in numerous tiny cuts, all bleeding. His new robes were once again ruined, but thankfully, he wasn’t hurt too badly.

  Aika was fighting on the creature’s left side, trying to break the joints on its legs but not having much luck. Light rippled around the areas where she struck, revealing that the creature had some kin
d of Armorer technique active.

  Another blast of wind shot from the hound’s mouth, and Roy hurled himself behind one of the stone blocks, feeling it shuddering under the force of the attack.

  “You know, you really should do something,” Geon commented. “Like running away. Running away is good.”

  Roy ignored his advice, whirling around the stone block, and hurling his Void Sphere at the creature. Unfortunately, the hound seemed to have a brain in its empty skulls, and it sent out another blast of wind, impacting and setting off his technique before it could reach it.

  He didn’t waste the opportunity the flashy technique gave him, though. Activating his Shockwave once again, Roy flashed from behind his cover, moving behind a block closer to the creature before it could get off another attack. A blast of wind slammed into the stone just as he reached it, followed a moment later by a stream of water.

  Roy yelped, diving to the side as the thin stream punched straight through the rock, slicing a path towards his head.

  He used Shockwave once more, despite his rapidly depleting Core, and dashed for the monster’s right flank. He was hounded by blasts of wind and water, but he used his Exploding Fist to send blasts of force outward, weakening the attacks enough so that they only did minimal damage as they landed.

  Finally, he reached the creature, diving forward to avoid yet another attack and came up near its front leg. The appendage was massive, each bone as thick around as his torso and probably twice as dense. Aika was still hammering away at the monster while avoiding blasts of fire.

  “Any ideas on how to take this thing down?” he asked Geon, as he too began throwing punches while dodging blasts of wind and swipes of the thing’s claws.

  “Run. You can’t win,” Geon helpfully replied.

  “You know what? You’re useless!” he yelled, throwing himself back and catching only a grazing wound from the hound’s claws.

  He screamed as the wound that had at first seemed shallow, burned white-hot. He fell to the ground, writhing in agony as the pain began to spread. A blast of wind hit him, tearing the robes from his chest and opening another dozen wounds, but he barely felt it through the agony radiating from that single, tiny scratch.

  Suddenly, Aika was there, deflecting attacks from all three heads, her face set tight in concentration.

  “Roy! That attack was infused with Fire Essence. You need to purge it from your body!” Aika yelled, while simultaneously attacking and defending.

  Roy coughed, gagging as bile rose up in his throat, and sweat beaded his brow. The pain was horrible but if what Aika said was true, he could make it stop. He didn’t have the fine control needed for precise targeting of the area. He couldn’t muster that much concentration through the agony, so he was forced to take a more costly approach.

  A scream escaped his throat as he flooded his body with Essence, forcing more and more to flow through him and venting it from his skin to avoid internal injuries. There was a series of explosions as golden power burst from his body, taking with it the invading Essence. The pain began to lessen, yet Roy continued venting Essence from his skin until he was positive it was all gone.

  This maneuver had been costly, and despite his considerable Essence capacity, he had his limits. His Core was nearly empty, and he had perhaps two or three techniques left in him before he’d be out. Aika still stood over him, her arms and body a blur as she fended off all the attacks aimed at him.

  She couldn’t seem to land a hit, at least not one that mattered. The hound had three heads and could attack from multiple directions at once. They could also cover each other’s blind spots, so surprise attacks were out of the question.

  Then, Roy noticed something he’d missed before. The hound’s back legs weren’t completely formed. In fact, they seemed to be fused with the ground. Neither of them had noticed, since the Beast had been keeping them so busy, but the creature had not so much as taken a single step forward.

  But how could that help them?

  So long as the hound stood before the tablet, it would continue defending it. And by the looks of things, it wouldn’t be growing tired anytime soon. Roy’s thoughts came to a screaming halt then as he realized how they could win.

  For this to work, they would have to be quick. Way quicker than he could be. Which meant…

  “Aika! I’ve got a plan, but it will all hinge on you. Are you listening?”

  Aika let out a grunt as she knocked aside a powerful jet of water, then retaliated with an attack that was blocked by the Fire head.

  “Do you think you can use the third stage of your movement technique? The plan hinges on that.”

  “I can, but it’ll be risky,” she replied. “I don’t have much Qi, so it’ll be a one-shot deal. This will be the only time I can use a Qi technique until I have time to create more.”

  Roy understood what that meant. Qi techniques were far more potent than Essence, meaning that their most powerful weapon would be all used up if she were to use it now. He knew she could use the Light Step-Dash using only Essence, but it would be too risky for her to perform as the pressure of the inferior energy could backfire, destroying her body.

  “Yes. Now on my count, I want you to dash between that thing’s legs and attack the tablet directly. I don’t think we can beat this thing, but if we destroy that, it should fall apart.”

  “I see what you’re getting at,” Aika replied, hands a blur as she deflected attacks. “But I can’t exactly let my guard down, or we’re both toast!”

  “Leave that to me,” Roy replied, getting slowly to his feet. “When I say so, close your eyes and make for that tablet. You don’t have to see to know where it is, right?”

  “No, but it would be good if I could. There’s a very good chance I’ll miss if I can’t see it.”

  “Great!” Roy replied, gathering all his remaining Essence into his hands. “Now!”

  Roy released all the remaining Essence out into the air, creating a brilliant and blinding flash as Power Essence exploded, nearly deafening them both. The monster roared, its attacks going wide as it flinched reflexively back, tearing chunks of stone from the walls and ground instead of blowing them both to pieces.

  At the same time, Aika dropped her guard, then exploded forward. Even as the hound was flinching back, she slammed into the tablet, unleashing all the force and momentum of her Qi-enhanced charge. The tablet exploded with the sound of a Green-level Power Core, sending bits of stone shrapnel flying in all directions.

  Roy dove to one side, but his left arm was still caught by a few of the fragments, and he hissed as it sliced through both skin and muscle, going nearly to the bone. Aika was much better off, as she had an Armorer technique going and only took a few minor cuts along her arm and one on her right cheek.

  The hound got the worst of the flying debris. As the tablet exploded, the Essence keeping it together fled. It was pelted with chunks of stone, ripping through its rib cage and rear legs. Roy got to his feet, coughing and clutching at his arm to try and staunch the bleeding, even as the hound collapsed forward, shattering into a thousand tiny pieces.

  Aika staggered to her feet as well, the explosion having thrown her a good distance, and pumped her fist in the air.

  “We did it!”

  Roy grinned as she began laughing, then winced as he realized how much blood he was losing. He tore a strip of material off his pant leg and quickly bound the arm. It would have to do until they could leave and use one of the Mending Pills. Why they hadn’t brought any with them, he had no idea. Aika had said something about portal travel messing with the Pill’s structural integrity, or something like that, so they couldn’t bring any along.

  Dust floated thick in the air as he turned his eyes to the pile of bones that had, just seconds ago, been trying to kill them both. It seemed his plan had worked, though he was now thoroughly exhausted and would need some time to recover at least a bit of Essence before going on. They still had to face this Dungeon’s Guardian, and if it wa
s the strongest thing here, he dreaded having to face it in the condition they were in right now.

  Geon’s voice sounded in his mind, breaking him from his thoughts.

  “You won. Now that was unexpected.”

  “Geon.”

  “Yes?”

  “Shut up.”

  37

  “What’s our next move?” Roy asked.

  He and Aika were sitting with their backs to one of the stone blocks as they tried to recover some of their lost Essence.

  While he was both physically and spiritually exhausted, Aika was only physically tired. Using her techniques had cost her quite a bit, but she still had plenty of Essence to use. Though, as she’d stated previously, she was completely out of Qi. And forming Qi from Essence was an intensive process that would take hours.

  “We go take down the Guardian and get that item Hermit wanted,” Aika replied.

  Roy was a bit jealous of her, if he were being honest. Here he was, beaten up and drained, while she just had a few minor scratches. Her robes, except for a patch near her right elbow, were whole and undamaged and not so much as a hair on her head was out of place.

  He, on the other hand, had lost most of his robe. All he had left now were a pair of pants with half of one leg missing. He was covered in cuts and bruises, and his left arm was bound tightly, the piece of material stained red with his blood. On top of that, she’d done almost all the work, while he’d just been beaten up. He was seriously growing tired of needing to be rescued all the time.

  He knew he couldn’t really be jealous of her. It wasn’t her fault that she was stronger than he was. And, he reminded himself, she had been training for far longer than he had. The fact that he was already an Orange-Belt was a miracle in and of itself. It was definitely something he’d never thought he’d see in his lifetime. Now, all he had to do was keep going until he was the strongest one around.