The chamber with the lake had three other exits on it. Through those exits the four ran into some more skeletons but without the element of surprise on their side and with the group's zombie slashers they were of little consequence. All three exits led to a hallway that connected to the other exits. The four returned to the lake chamber and as they continued to search that room, keeping an eye on the hungry-looking turtle monsters as they did so, they found one other chest they had almost missed while focusing on the island. Inside that chest was another peculiar item.
"Is that… a giant cat suit?" asked Ron, bewildered.
"Looks like it," said Suzanne. "Probably another red herring like the rest of the chests here."
"Actually, this suit has some interesting magic in it," said Alice as she began to examine the suit. "I've read about these. They're called animal suits. Creative name, isn't it? Anyway, if you put on the suit it'll actually transform you into the animal the suit looks like. You'll retain your regular mind and will be able to take it off whenever you wish."
"Transformation magic seems to be a specialty around these parts," said Suzanne. "Well anything that can serve as a disguise could be of use. Let's take it with us."
The four returned to the floor above and redid their search. They returned to the large chamber on that floor and found that there was a small hallway in the southeast corner they had overlooked before. Having seen the trail of chests on arriving in that chamber and the obvious exit on the southwest corner they had forgotten to look in the southeast corner. A small ways in and they found the hole Ron had seen from below.
Alice had more than enough magic left to slow the group's fall but they wanted to give themselves as many escape routes as they could and so they still lowered four ropes down. Unfortunately, lowering the ropes gained the attention of the monsters below. Several of them eyed the ropes suspiciously. Nevertheless, the four jumped down the hole, with Alice's magic slowing their descent.
As soon as their feet hit the ground the monsters were on the move. Alice quickly ran to the treasure chest and checked it out. Finding that it was safe, except for its environment, she opened it and took out a beautiful mirror. There was no time to admire it, the enemy was upon them. There also was no time to climb up the ropes the group had left. It looked as though the entire lake was emptying itself to attack them. Legions of turtle monsters were coming at the group.
"Guys, over here! We have a way out!" called Thomas. He was looking down at the ground. The other three rushed over to him to look at what he found. There was another hole in the ground. Seeing no other way to escape in time Alice quickly cast her spell again and the four jumped into the hole just before the first wave of monsters reached them. They landed safely on the floor below them.
"Alice, begin casting the teleportation spell! We'll keep them off you!" yelled Suzanne.
Some of the turtle monsters began dropping through the hole. Once again, the monsters' lack of athleticism on land worked to the group's advantage. Two of the turtle monsters landed on their shells. This kept the fall from hurting them but left them vulnerable. Suzanne and Ron were easily able to behead them. Another turtle landed on two of its four feet. The impact caused it noticeable pain and it was unable to stand up on those two legs. Thomas further disabled it by slashing its other two legs and the creature was practically defenseless after that.
A few more turtles came down the hole after the group but proved no more able to make a graceful landing than their brethren. Suzanne, Ron, and Thomas dispatched them with ease. After that, the turtles looking through the hole from above saw the fate that awaited them and so decided to back off. With no more immediate threats Alice was able to finish her spell and teleport the group out of the cave.
"There they are! Get them!"
Another ambush awaited the group after their escape from the cave. There were four Samanaon soldiers ready and waiting for them. Along with the soldiers were four floating slimes with tentacles. They looked like men o' war except they were red. What made it worse is that they had teleported into the middle of the poisonous swamp; the four could feel the burning liquid on their legs. The floating slimes were obviously unaffected by this but Suzanne realized that the soldiers were not. Instead of retreating back into the cave to get away from the poisonous swamp she decided on a different approach.
"Alice! Use your levitation spell on us! Then you and Tom focus on the slimes!" ordered Suzanne.
Alice did as she was told and the four were soon floating just above the surface of the harmful terrain, now immune to its effects. Thomas cast a spell of his own and a large cloud of purple smoke emerged underneath the flying slimes. From the purple smoke emerged additional smoke-shaped clouds that engulfed the four slimes. The purple smoke quickly dissipated and when it did three of the slimes were lying on the ground. The slime that was still floating did not appear to have any wounds but seemed shaken by the spell.
This left Suzanne and Ron to take on the four soldiers by themselves. With Alice's spell keeping them out of the poisonous swamp the terrain was now a huge advantage to the two. Not only were they no longer being harmed by the swamp but it also was not hampering their movement. The four soldiers had difficulty moving which is why Suzanne and Ron were able to keep them away from Thomas and Alice.
Remembering that the soldiers had some magic skill of their own Suzanne decided to press the offensive. She took one of the soldier's strikes, her armor taking most of the pain for her, and struck with all her might. The blow went through the man's armor and into his shoulder causing him to drop his shield and howl in pain. The other man tried to strike Suzanne but the swamp kept him from setting his feet properly and so Suzanne was able to get her shield up in time to block the blow.
Ron also decided to take an aggressive approach. Ron faked a charge right at the man, causing him to focus on blocking Ron while his partner readied a vicious attack of his own. Then Ron performed a daring stunt in which he jumped, kicked off the first soldier's shield in order to change to direction of his flight, and delivered a punishing slash to the other soldier's head. Like Suzanne's attack, Ron managed to break through the man's helmet and into his skull, causing him to crumple on the spot. The only penalty for Ron's move was that he was left off balance on his landing allowing the unwounded soldier to shield bash him. Ron fell over and if it were not for Alice's spell would have caught a mouthful of poisonous swamp.
The surviving slime came to its senses and cast a spell of its own. A large burst of bright light surrounded the soldier Suzanne had wounded while small streams of green light swirled around him. The wound Suzanne had inflicted erased itself right before the group's eyes and were it not for the damage to his armor there would have been no sign he had ever been wounded.
Continuing to sling the magic, Alice completed another spell. A huge explosion engulfed the battle, dealing severe wounds to the slime and one of the three surviving soldiers while the four and the other two soldiers were left unharmed; the spell had been designed to ignore the four but the soldier's magic armor had saved them as well. The slime fell to the ground dead. Ron quickly ran at the wounded soldier. The man was still staggering from Alice's spell which allowed Ron to land a terrific blow to his head. The man fell to the ground dead.
Thomas took out his sword and ran at one of the soldiers Suzanne had been fighting. He opened with a shield bash and managed to put the man on his back. The man yelled in pain as the poisonous swamp engulfed him and that provided the distraction Thomas needed. He finished the soldier quickly. Next to Thomas, Suzanne had just finished destroying her foe's sword arm again. Soon after that, Suzanne destroyed her foe.
The four took little time to relax after their fight was over. "They knew we were here," said Suzanne. "We need to return to the king, quickly."
Samanao Castle was on full alert, even more so than usual. For the past few years the soldiers had always been told to be alert at all times for suspicious activity. If they saw a person who even look
ed like he was thinking angry thoughts against the king they were told to arrest that person. Because of this, most people made sure to steer clear of the castle; it was a good way to get arrested and getting arrested was a good way to get executed.
But the Castle seemed to be on higher alert than usual this night. There were more guards on duty at all visible stations. These days, it was very dangerous to spread any rumors about the castle or the king but there were so many rumors floating about that the people could not help themselves. The most recent gossip said that a small collection of people had managed to escape the castle recently, an uncommon event as most prisoners were executed long before they could even think of an escape plan. Increased activity around the castle town, including search parties, seemed to confirm that suspicion. The people believed the soldiers were looking for the escapees.
Suddenly, a yell broke the air, "Fire! Fire in the throne room!"
Having been ordered to investigate any disturbance en masse, a large group of soldiers left their posts to investigate the throne room. The paintings in the room had been set ablaze.
"Heads will roll if His Majesty's paintings aren't saved!" yelled one of the soldiers, likely a commander. "What are you waiting for? Fetch water! And search for the villain who did this!"
The calm, collected demeanor of the soldiers had been broken. The king had not trained his men very well. Chaos erupted among the soldiers. Water was spilt and the search was unorganized. Areas meant to be guarded at all times were left unwatched. All this happened in a desperate bid to save the paintings and find the culprit.
Nobody paid any attention to the cat that left the throne room soon after the fire had been started.
The chaos of the burning paintings allowed the four, the king-like man, and Matthew to sneak onto the roof of the castle with two captives in tow. One captive was the captain of the castle guard, taken during the chaos. The king-like man had identified the captain as an honorable man who must have been deceived by the imposter's enchanting women. The other captive was a man on the higher levels of the rebellion. The large group managed to sneak into quarters meant for the king.
The captives were sat down in front of the king's bed, upon which lied the man who had been sitting on the throne every day for the past few years. The kingly man with the tattered robes stood next to the bed. Matthew stood by the captives. Suzanne put on the animal suit the four had found in the cave, which turned her into a cat. Ron, Thomas, and Alice stood next to her.
It was Ron who spoke, making sure to whisper to avoid disturbing the man laying upon the bed or alerting any of the guards still scrambling downstairs, "We apologize for the rough treatment we have given you gentlemen, but we needed witnesses for what is about to happen. For I declare that this man lying upon the bed, who has been ruling this nation for the last few years, is really an imposter. The man standing next to the bed in the tattered robes is the true king, King Crayton the Fourth."
The general struggled against his bonds and tried to yell through the gag that had been placed in his mouth. He was clearly not convinced. The rebel looked with suspicion at Ron.
Ron drew forth the Mirror the four had found in the cave. They had already tested the Mirror with the animal suit. The mirror had shown the image of Suzanne even while she wore the suit and appeared to be a cat. Now Ron demonstrated for the two captive witnesses.
"You have seen my friend transform before your very eyes so you know her true form," declared Ron. "But in this mirror you see not the cat she transformed into but her true form. Now you must know that this is the Mirror of Ra."
"We apologize for disrespecting your customs, but we had no other choice. We had to use the Mirror to put the true king back on the throne," explained Ron. "Now, without further ado, let us see the true forms of these two men."
Ron held the mirror so that all assembled could see the reflections of the two kingly men inside it. The man in the tattered robes appeared unchanged in the Mirror. The man sleeping upon the bed looked like a huge, grotesque, humanoid monster with green skin. The two witnesses could be heard gasping, even through their gags, where they sat. Their eyes showed a look of utter disbelief.
Then a shrill voice pierced the air, "Wake up you idiot! They've revealed your true form!"
The voice came from the diminutive form of Alex, the man who had betrayed the four when they had first came to the castle town. Upon seeing him Alice immediately drew her sword and made to attack Alex. Alex ran away squealing.
"Assassins!" yelled Alex. "They're trying to assassinate the king!"
Meanwhile, the imposter had woken up and crawled out of bed. His eyes no longer had pupils and now appeared as nothing more than solid yellow.
"You've seen my true form!" said the imposter. Before the eyes of all assembled, he suddenly ballooned up to ten times his size. His skin had turned green and somehow a giant club had appeared in the monster's hand.
"None of you can be allowed to live! I've waited so long to tear apart humans again!" cackled the beast.
"King Crayton! Matthew!" called Suzanne. "Get our two guests out of here! Leave this to us!"
King Crayton and Matthew pulled out a couple knives and quickly cut the bonds on the two captives. The troll moved towards them, trying to kill the king before he could escape but was soon met with Alice's blade sinking into its leg. The wound Alice left was little more than a scratch to the huge monster but the troll yelped in pain anyway. The troll could not believe this tiny thing would dare hurt it. It was not about to let this miserable little human go unpunished.
In her attempt to distract the troll from King Crayton, Matthew, and the captives Alice had put all her strength into driving her blade into the troll's flesh. This left her unable to dodge the troll's attack. The troll swung its club in a great arc down at Alice. Alice was only able to back up a step before it hit her, avoiding the middle of the club. But being hit by the side of such a giant weapon still caused incredible damage. The club crushed Alice's armor and sent her flying into one of the stone walls. Her bloodied and broken body felt limply to the ground.
"We'll keep the troll busy, Tom! Save Alice!" yelled Suzanne as she and Ron rushed the troll. Thomas wanted to stop them, having seen what the creature had done to Alice when she attacked it. But Thomas trusted Suzanne's judgment and ran over to where Alice had fallen.
Ron plunged his blade into the same spot Alice had struck. The wound Alice had caused had almost closed up completely; the troll had regenerative abilities. The troll cackled as it prepared to smash Ron in a similar manner. Its club arm was then hit by a bolt of lightning, conjured up by Suzanne. The troll halted its attack and howled in pain.
Thomas cast a spell on Alice as she was fading away fast. A beam of light came into the room down towards Alice. However, the beam of light stopped short of Alice's body and then returned into the ceiling in which it came with no effect on her.
"Damn it!" swore Thomas. The spell he had attempted to cast was a very powerful, and very complicated, healing spell. He had made a mistake in its casting which had caused it to fail.
The troll finally managed to lay its club upon Ron. However, Suzanne's spell had allowed Ron to adopt a defensive position in preparation for the attack. He tried to jump backwards but the club was so large that it was still able to hit him. Ron was sent sprawling to the ground but was quickly able to get back up. The wound caused by Alice and Ron was once again almost gone and Ron knew he could not keep hitting the same spot. He ran back up to the creature and made a jumping slash to its knee. The wound still should not have been too serious but the troll once again demonstrated its intolerance of pain by staggering. This allowed Suzanne to make a jumping slash to the back of the same knee, making the troll stagger further.
Thomas calmed himself down and attempted his spell again. Once again, a beam of light came down from the ceiling towards Alice. Once again, the spell failed to reach Alice and disappeared without restoring her. Thomas swore a more vicious oath this
time. Alice did not have much time left.
Suzanne and Ron were now meeting with more success. Although the troll's wounds were still closing themselves the troll still felt enough pain in its knee to limp. This caused its next attack to come slower and with less force. Ron was almost able to get out of the club's way and the attack, though still painful, was only able to spin him around this time rather than send him to the ground. He and Suzanne renewed their efforts on the creature's legs, this time focusing on the other leg. If they could damage its legs enough they might be able to get it to fall down, reducing its advantage immensely.
For the third time, Thomas cast his healing spell upon Alice. For the third time, a beam of light came down from the ceiling towards Alice. For the first time, the beam managed to reach all the way to the ground and Alice's broken body was mended considerably. Though she still did not look well, her blood no longer flowed upon the ground and she was able to shakily get back to her feet.
"Third time's the charm," muttered Thomas with a smirk.
Noticing that Alice was back on her feet, Suzanne called out to her, "Alice! Ron and I need your magic to hurt this thing!"
Unable to watch for Alice's response, Suzanne did not see the blank stare that Alice gave her. Her mind was still catching up to the action. While Suzanne and Ron still tried to take out the troll's knees, and with both being sent into a nearby wall by a vicious club attack, Thomas cast another healing spell upon Alice. She had now gone from near death to almost perfect health in about fifteen seconds.
Alice was then able to return to her senses. She cast a spell upon Ron and he was engulfed in crimson light. His strength was no enhanced and his next strike to the troll's knee cut deep into its thick skin, which was now little deterrent to Ron's blade. The creature fell over, though it managed to swipe Ron with its arm as it fell. They were both in bad shape now.
Dragon Quest Novel Page 37
