by Konrad Ryan
But Tad was in the eye of the storm, safe from the blades of her tongues.
Tad stabbed one last time as the extra speed of his cloak disappeared. *-48 Health* The boss’s health bar dropped to zero. The tongueblades fell from the air, lifeless. Music rang in Tad’s ears.
*You have leveled up!*
*You have leveled up!*
*You have leveled up!*
He had dispatched her without letting a single attack land. His bloody thigh, from ‘Raekast’s bite,’ stitched together as a wave of healing energy rejuvenated both health and mana.
“Blaze!” The voice belonged to Sara, the healer of the group. “It’s Ironfang! I can’t heal him!”
Tad found Ironfang bristling in tongueblades. The silver tongues were larger than the mossy ones, almost as big as Tad’s fist. They wriggled deep. They could only still be alive because they fed off the deer-man’s blood. They tore through his body, towards his heart. Ironfang screamed the horrific screams of a woodland creature.
“Heal other!”
Tad pressed his hands to Ironfang’s abdomen as an alert sounded.
*Harpy venom prevents healing.*
Chapter 8
Tad placed his hands on the furry underbelly of Ironfang. He had been waiting to use this spell.
“Neutralize poison!”
Fifty health ripped itself from Tad’s lungs. Green energy pooled from his fingers and sank deep into Ironfang’s flank. Slick green fluid dripped from the wounds where the tongues burrowed further. Tad slammed the deer-man with healing. At least he tried to.
*Harpy venom prevents healing.*
What? Didn’t Tad heal that? Green fluid continued to leak from the wounds. Something was wrong. He should be able to heal him since he had neutralized the poison! Flesh rippled and wriggled beneath the deerskin. Tad furrowed his brow. It had to be the tongues. They had been dripping with poison, but what if they made their own poison? Then they would poison Ironfang constantly, making ‘neutralize poison’ useless.
These tongues were clearly stronger than the regular ones.
No amount of casting ‘neutralize poison’ would heal him. Ironfang’s health bar dropped below sixty percent. Tad suddenly wished he hadn’t lost his silver dagger, he couldn’t use Raekast’s Fang, it would do too much damage.
Tad looked to Sara. “I need a dagger, or a knife.”
Sara pulled a small knife with a leather handle from beneath her robes.
“That will work. Do either of you have a resurrection vial?” Tad hadn’t visited Grimoire’s since his last dungeon. Hadn’t had time to replenish.
“I have one, in the pouch at my side, but what are you going to do?” Ironfang looked desperate, even as a deer.
“Surgery.”
“Surgery! We haven’t trained surgeons since they discovered rebirth!”
“Well, you better hope I’m a quick study.”
Tad squinted his eyes, ignoring the man-deer’s growing complaints. He focused on the wriggling under the skin. He had to be quick. Accurate.
Tad stabbed the knife where a tongue wriggled. Ironfang screamed. Red blood and green poison spilled from the wound. Tad cut deep, around the wriggling silvery tongue, Sara helped to hold the incision open. Once the tongue was visible, Tad summoned Raekast’s Fang, almost parallel to his arm, holding just the tip. He stabbed it into the silvery tongue, which died instantly. Tad then extracted the dead limp tongue, using the knife borrowed from Sara. Fire exploded all around them to keep the golems at bay. Blaze knocked two of the approaching twenty foot golems over. The tongues spilled over each other to reform. Tad squinted his eyes, trying to trace the next tongue, but they were deeper now. Tad cut deep, his entire hand disappeared inside Ironfang’s chest, where he summoned Raekast’s Fang by the tip once more, he was careful to push the flesh and make enough room for the blade, to not to stab the deer. He wasn’t completely successful.
Stab, stab, stab. Three more tongues died.
“You guys better move, the other boss is throwing another golem again.” Blaze’s voice rang through Tad’s head. Sara looked for clear ground then darted off in that direction, Tad lifted Ironfang’s body and leapt out of the way of the splashing tongue attack.
Explosions rocked the world around them, and Blaze destroyed the larger golems charging their way. Tad settled down for round two of surgery. Fifteen tongues later, Ironfang’s health had dropped to twenty percent. Blaze looked weary above, soaked in sweat. The boss was readying another tidal wave of tongues across the room. He had to fix this now, Blaze couldn’t buy them any more time.
He couldn’t see any more wriggling beneath the skin, still blood bubbled out from Tad’s incisions. Ironfang’s health was dropping rapidly, but speed was Tad’s ally. If he finished the extractions faster than Ironfang bled out, then he won. Tad closed his eyes and tried to feel any more. It was hard to sense them beneath Ironfang’s own strength, but he could sense three bubbles of foreign aura, sitting in place, unmoving. Raekast’s Fang pierced each. The knife dug them out.
“Neutralize poison.”
Sara jumped forward to heal Ironfang’s chest, but Tad gripped her hand to stop her. He had plans for her healing abilities and didn’t want them wasted here.
Ironfang’s health bar jumped to thirty percent as Tad’s health dropped to five hundred.
“Sara,” Tad grabbed the woman and put her on his back in preparation to dodge the next tongueball. “Heal me.”
Sara gripped his shoulders for balance. “Thanks, for earlier. I wouldn’t have made it if Tristan had been guarding us. Brace yourself.” Pain wracked through his body as the woman healed him. Apparently Sara was no more skilled at visualization than he was.
“Blaze! Reveal the boss, I won’t miss this time.”
The surrounding explosions stopped, redirected to the head of the eighty-foot golem. Tad flew into a killing frenzy as he dispatched golem after golem surrounding them. His speed enhanced his power and his power, his speed. They melded together in a deadly combination. Raekast’s Fang exploded entire golems.
Once there was a big enough opening, Tad stabbed Raekast’s Fang into the meat of his thigh. It drank, hungrily. He cast ‘heal,’ replenishing the life as it disappeared. When his own healing ran out, Sara, on his back, healed him instead. His life dropped with each pulse of his heart, but Sara’s healing fought the drain. Good. Feed it further. He no longer had ‘brilliant burst.’ He couldn’t use his stone step technique, to jump off the boulders, with his lower speed. He needed to end this in one blow. In a Raekast’s Bite, Backstab combination.
The dagger twisted and writhed in his hands as if alive. White letters appeared above the dagger. ‘1,000.’ Nice, it kept track, once it got high enough. Tad kept pouring health into the blade, Sara was covered in sweat, straining with effort. She could heal a surprising amount, had been quick on her feet too. Tad wouldn’t mind going into another dungeon with her again. Sometimes, even the weak shine so bright that it blinds you. Ironfang’s words reverberated in his mind. But Sara hadn’t been weak. Not truly weak. Not like Dolly, or Squeak. But without her, this one-shot strategy wouldn’t be possible. He wouldn’t forget that.
Ironfang might not have figured out how to save everyone, but Tad was different. He would find a way to protect people like Sara, the useful people. The competent people. Others didn’t belong inside dungeons. They were too dangerous. He had failed Dolly and Squeak because he hadn’t known their capabilities, or lack thereof. He wouldn’t make that mistake again.
Finally, the healing came to a stop, Sara rested on Tad’s back, each breath ragged from her intense effort. Blaze’s barrage of fireballs finally exposed the harpy who had used the full eighty-foot tall golem’s tongues as an expendable shield. Blaze looked completely wrung dry. Whatever deep stores of mana he had, they were drained.
Good thing Tad planned on ending this now.
The harpy exploded out of the golem as it sped toward Blaze, a vortex of hate and viole
nce, tongues flopped to the ground in her wake. Tad had no mana to cast ice vortex, he had used it all to feed his dagger. And without brilliant burst, the harpy was faster than Tad. She was fast enough that he might miss.
But Ironfang was fast enough. Tad found the deer-man shredding golems with fang and hoof alike.
“Ironfang, you’re not gonna like this, but I need you to be a horse once more.” Tad ran and leapt onto the back of the reluctant Ironfang, placing Sara in front of him. He stood on the back of the deer-like creature, his enhanced balance made the feat easy. He was the Stagsurfer. Master of roe and doe alike. Hartmaster. “Get me one hit on the boss. I just need one.”
Ironfang growled his dislike, but said nothing more. Sara gripped Ironfang’s hide for dear life. Ironfang sprang from the ground as golems swarmed around them. His speed was incredible. Finally he tore through the air at the harpy still chasing Blaze, its winged back exposed.
“Raekast’s Bite!” Tad howled. “Shadow Burst!”
*Shadow Burst. Charges 1/1. The shadow essence of your cloak disperses into a cloud of physical darkness for 10 seconds.*
Tad’s cloak exploded into a cloud of black cockroaches. The physical darkness wound around the three, Raekast’s Bite seemed to use it. The roaches were pulled apart, becoming a full panther, with shadowed fur, fangs, and tail speeding through the air. Gone was the deer, instead, it became the legs of the panther. A river of rage and violence spilled through Tad’s heart as he sunk his fang deep into the harpy’s back, and bit down with an audible crunch.
*Backstab.*
A white *-2887 Health* notification appeared above her head, her health bar dropping to 30% in an instant. Paws gripped air and kicked, shooting them upward faster. The stored power exploded like a rocket, shooting them upward towards the ceiling. Molten lava burned in Tad’s panther throat. He released the harpy from his jaws and unleashed the fire in a roar. Black magma erupted from the recesses of his soul. It washed across the harpy, disintegrating flesh and feather alike. The beam of death consumed the ceiling above in a flash. Finally, the ivory white harpy bone turned to dust in the black beam accompanied by a second damage notification. *-2415 Health.*
The boss’s health bar disappeared. It hadn’t even had time to cast its low-life spell. Tad rested on Ironfang’s back as they fell to the ground below. Where had that magma come from? Was it because he had charged the dagger so high? The wind washed the heat, the sweat away. A soft hand squeezed his own, Sara’s hand, but it was covered in black burns. Her attempts to heal it didn’t seem to help, her health bar was filling, but a sliver of black blocked the end. Had her max health lowered? Had it been Raekast’s Bite’s doing?
Tad cast heal other, her health bar filled, until it stopped at 95%. The black burns marred her pale skin, a side effect from his dagger’s technique.
It would consume friend and foe alike.
He would have to be careful with that.
Tension melted away as the expected notifications appeared before his eyes.
*You have leveled up!*
*You have leveled up!*
*You have leveled up!*
*You have leveled up!*
*Congratulations! The dungeon boss has been slain!*
*Warning! Boss defeated. Dungeon destabilized. Ten minutes until dungeon collapse.*
The remaining golems fell apart, their tongues flopped where they stood. With the bosses now defeated, they could no longer hold their form. Finally, the long fall to the floor came to a jarring finish. Ironfang grunted in pain, but his health bar didn’t move.
Big baby.
Tad dismounted from the deer, helping Sara down a moment later. She clung to his chest, lingering for a moment longer than necessary. Tad hoped she was okay.
“Holy hellfire, Hothead! What was that! I’ve never seen anything like that. First you summon rocks to leap on from thin air, then you dispatch a boss in one blow!” Blaze’s mindvoice was the loudest Tad had ever heard it, not to mention the man had a huge smile on his usual stoneface, covered in soot and weariness. “Welcome to the guild!”
Tad smiled weakly. “Thanks.”
Blaze laughed in his head, then blinked away, reappearing a moment later. Two harpy essences floated in a soul lantern. A small treasure chest sat on his lap. Gilded tongues, silver harpies, and ruby splashes of blood adorned its surface. Tad surveyed the rest of the room in surprise. Shouldn’t the golems have left essence too? But there were no glittering monsters above the golems remains or the tongues. The tongues must have been extensions of the boss.
What a dungeon.
A twinkle shone in Blaze’s eye. His mindvoice was full of excitement. “Should we find out what we won?”
Chapter 9
Tad eyed the ornate box. The last time the boss had dropped a treasure chest, he hadn’t received any of the loot. Somehow he didn’t think this time would be any different.
“Who gets the items?”
Blaze frowned. “Guild gets first dibs on whatever item it wants.” His frown flashed to a grin, and his wizard robe slowly rose magically, revealing dozens of trinkets, anklets, baubles, and more. “These all increase my magic or regeneration. There are some benefits for being the guild leader. But if its something that fits your kit, then you can fill out a form with Jannette, our secretary, to request it. But the order is guild, dungeon leader, then slayers that fought inside the dungeon. If still no one needs the item, then others can petition to request it, or we sell it for guild funds if we’re a little tight. Usually, sold monster essence is enough to keep us going. Dungeon items go fast though.”
The box popped open, seemingly by itself, but most likely it was Blaze, the man had all sorts of unseen utility magic. A golden shower of sparks drew everyone’s eyes.
Treasure.
Disappointment washed over Blaze’s face as a silvery floppy tongue floated in the air in front of them. The tastebuds were tiny silvery blades. It looked identical to the ones Tad had cut out of Ironfang, except it didn’t drip with poison. The underside of the appendage was blood red, a stark contrast to the gleaming silver.
“Of course. What else would it be?” The tongue fell back into the box, where it squished and flopped indifferently. “I’ll bring it to the identifier later, after my dinner date. Can’t imagine it would be very useful though.”
“I can identify it.” Tad reached out his hand. The item didn’t look very impressive, but the tiny mosquito ring had been the most powerful item, despite not being as flashy as the other two. Blaze’s eyebrows climbed in surprise, but the tongue floated to where Tad plucked it out of the air. Despite its silvery, almost metallic look, the appendage was moist and warm in his hand, like an actual freshly severed tongue.
“Identify.”
The tongue rose into the air. It glowed and rotated slowly, its properties revealed.
*Severed Tongue of Amaragoth:
Add-on item.
Attach this item to another item to increase maximum active ability charges by one.
Charges 1/1.
Charges refill at midnight.*
Tad wanted it.
He wanted it more than any item he’d seen before. It would double his cloak’s potential, giving him two casts of both brilliant and shadow burst.
“Well, Hothead, what does it do?” Blaze was perpetually impatient. Maybe because his speed was so high that everything seemed slow to him. Perhaps Blaze was really the hothead. His red hair did no favors to the allusion.
“You attach it to another item. If it can do any special abilities, it allows you to cast it a second time.” Tad paused. He wouldn’t let this item out of his hands. “This is mine. Consider it a signing bonus.”
Several voices spoke up at once, but Blaze’s mindvoice was the loudest. “Come now, Tad, let’s be reasonable.”
Sure, now Blaze uses his name when he wants something from him. They wouldn’t let him keep it. He could tell. Too bad. This was his, he had earned it.
Tad turne
d from the group and surveyed the empty dungeon. Tad summoned, and one of the enormous boulders materialized in an explosion of black mist. Everyone jumped back, and Tad banished the tongue to his void equipment slot.
Let’s see them take it from him now.
Everyone froze at the boulder’s appearance, surely reliving the aerial acrobatics from the first boss fight.
The room became silent, thick with implied danger. Blaze’s wheelchair rolled backward, creating more space between them. Ironfang’s skin glowed, returning once more to his transformed state. They were getting ready for battle. A cold wash of reality tested Tad’s resolve. Was it really worth fighting others over an item like this? Someone could get hurt, or worse. Tad steeled his resolve. His tongue gingerly explored his missing teeth. This item was worth a fight. In fact, if it came down to a fight, he could even attach the item to his cloak now, and use ‘brilliant burst’ once more. At his top speed, and with his extra stat points, he didn’t even think Ironfang could best him. He could save more lives with this item than without. Tad eyed the dungeon exit. It wasn’t too far away. Tad wouldn’t kill anyone, unless he had no other option. To Tad, this item was worth being kicked out of the guild.
Blaze cleared his throat, despite never speaking. Ironfang’s eyes shone steel, but Blaze’s was different, his eyes glittered with excitement. “Are you a summoner? I’ve never seen anyone with your skill set. Identify, summoning, hell, you even one shot that second boss with that cat transformation attack. If all it takes to get you to join our guild is that weird-ass tongue, then welcome to the guild.” A small emblem of a fiery phoenix appeared suddenly in Tad’s hand.
