When fighting most beasts, Bunty knew what weak points to target. Thanks to his martial prowess, he’d have little trouble using hit-and-run tactics to attack them directly. As a result, the fights never laster too long, and his opponents fell before inflicting major injuries to him. Unfortunately, the tortoise lived within an impenetrable shell and spun much too fast for him to focus on one spot. He tried hacking at the limbs with his axe, but the blade failed to penetrate the scaley hide. So, Bunty retreated while Oss danced around the creature while bashing the sides of its head with his bone-club.

If the creature’s head and limbs weren’t hidden, Bunty was sure the glowing weapon would’ve done severe damage. He wasn’t sure what Oss had done or what manner of spell he had used. It looked more like a utility spell than an augmentation—spells provided power in an instantaneous or short burst while augmentations persisted for a long time. Oss probably needed time to charge the magic up again, and keeping the tortoise busy made that impossible.

Fortunately, the monster struggled with forward and lateral movements. Bunty guessed that the limbs struggled to bear its weight after a long time of inactivity. When the creature spun, it partially retracted its limbs into the shell and pivoted rapidly using its bottom shell’s curve. It’s unusually long and thick tail helped the creature rapidly accelerate and slow its rotations.

Bunty and Gwyneth agreed that they needed to take advantage of the creature’s immobility. They got on opposite sides of the monster, and she charged her spear’s Spiderleg tip with lightning before poking at the creature’s limbs. Much to her disappointment, it didn’t bother the tortoise as much as she hoped. The charged blade failed to penetrate the scaly skin and only left minor burn marks in its wake.

While his companions annoyed the beast, Bunty prepared a new weapon. He returned the axe to its resting place by his hip and grew a new staff out of the pen’s nib. Once he had the desired thickness and length, Bunty planted the fountain pen atop it and called forth the Frost Blade, creating a spear. Bunty hadn’t used a spear since the ground floor, and goose pimples sprouted all over his back and arms as his fingers tightened around the weapon. He missed using pole-weapons. They were his favourite, and the Frost Blade felt like the perfect spell for such a summon.

Since Oss was still dancing around the tortoise’s head, Bunty stayed away from it. He hadn’t experimented with the Frost Blade enough and didn’t want to hit Oss accidentally. So, he flanked the creature, got around to its rear and stabbed at its tail. Bunty hoped that injuring the limb would lower the animal’s already limited mobility. Much to his disappointment, the creature whipped the appendage before he could land his blow, slapping the spear’s side and throwing it off its mark. The fountain pen’s enlarged nib scraped shell, cutting a deep groove into it. Frost bordered the cut but didn’t leave any other damage in its wake.

The missed attack didn’t discourage Bunty. If the Frost Blade spell could damage the creature’s shell, he was sure it would pierce the scaly hide. So, he hopped back, adjusted his footing, and aimed for the moving tail’s base. He wasn’t sure whether he had the strength to send the weapon deep into the beast, but he’d settle for damaging a blood vessel or nerve cluster. Before he could attack again, the turtle spun again, making miss a two-handed attack. Bunty caught a glimpse of him staggering backwards as one of the tortoise’s meaty limbs swung into him. Bunty was forced to jump back as the tortoise’s giant metal-lined maw snapped at him the next moment.

Blood dripped from cracks in the monster’s scaley hide. Oss’s attacks hadn’t cracked its skull but had sufficiently bruised the dry skin to make it split. A corner of the creature’s beak was now bent too. Bunty couldn’t help but wonder how much strength Oss’s blows packed. If he had enough strength to damage the tortoise’s half-metal face, then he could’ve beaten Bunty during their initial fight.

When the tortoise’s head stretched outwards to snap at Bunty’s army, he warded it back by stabbing at the creature’s eye. The monster jerked its head to the side, making the attack missed. Bunty struck the shell once again, cutting another deep groove into it. A loud smack sounded from behind the creature, and the tortoise spun away to face the perpetrator. Bunty caught a glimpse of glowing red bone, before the shell obscured his vision again.

A loud thud echoed off the carved stone when Oss landed an empowered blow on the monster’s skull. The tortoise hissed, and its half-retracted limbs shot out of the shell. As the creature struggled to lift its own weight, the tail’s movements slowed, and Bunty jumped at the opportunity. He tightened his grip on the spear, planted his feet firmly on the ground, and lunged, putting his weight into the attack. The Frost Blade grazed along the tail’s length slicing open the hide before disappearing into the meat underneath. The monster shrieked, whipping its tail once again, and Bunty released his weapon to avoid losing his balance. He reasoned that the spell’s chilling effect would continue to inflict damage if he left the spear in their opponent.

Bunty guessed that the armoured monster wasn’t used to cuts and lacerations. Its giant body must’ve developed long ago to help it avoid significant injuries and absorb everything as blunt-force trauma. The tortoise dropped onto its shell, and the monstrous legs retracted to safety. The tail tried to flee too, but Bunty lunged forward and grabbed the spear. The Frost Blade was now firmly stuck in the tortoise’s flesh. Bunty imagined the flesh had frozen around the pen’s nib and was now holding it in place. If he wanted it back, Bunty could summon the pen, but the spell was killing the beast from the inside for the time being. The creature pulled, but it didn’t have its previous strength. The spell’s chilling effect was more potent than he expected, and Bunty couldn’t be happier.

“Hit the spear with lightning, Gwyn!” He exclaimed. As Bunty struggled to maintain his footing, He made a note to update the ink-coat afterwards. A couple of Spiderlegs on arm-long chords of Slimeskin could double up as tethers and additional weapons.

“Get clear!” She called.

Bunty released the spear and leapt backwards. A crackling lance of lightning shot over his shoulder before changing trajectory and jumping towards the pen’s nib. It struck the open wound on the tortoise’s shell just as it retreated into the shell. The monster shrieked once again, and Bunty’s instincts demanded he withdraw too. When Oss leapt away from the beast, Bunty knew that he needed to as well. Just as he got out of the way, the tortoise’s hard exterior hummed. A second later, metal shards burst out of where the top shell met the bottom.

“We need to flip this bastard!” Bunty yelled.

“Good idea, Bunty Sen,” Oss replied before charging at the beast.

Before he could get close, the humming pieces of jagged metal shot outwards. They cut their way through the grass before embedding themselves in the stone steps beyond the field. One of them grazed Oss’s side, and Bunty spotted a flash of red as the odd Climber continued his charge. He planted his club’s skinny end and used it as a lever trying to fit the beast.

“I’m going to need a hand with this!” He yelled, and Bunty rushed to his aid.

While the pair worked, liquid metal seeped out from the gaps in the giant tortoise’s shell, forming barbed spikes all over its back. It didn’t deter them, though. While tucked away within its shell, the monster couldn’t move, and as a result, didn’t have the momentum to use the spikes as weapons. Bunty trusted his coat to protect him from them, so he didn’t bother with defensive measures and summoned the fountain pen into his hand. The inky shaft sticking out of the tortoise’s tail disappeared as the spirit manifested in his hand.

The familiar wave of exhaustion from dispelling the Frost Blade washed over Bunty, but he had no trouble ignoring it. Instead, he used the adrenaline pumping through his veins to pump Slimeskin into the gap Oss had created under the tortoise. Once the pen’s inkwell was near empty, he willed the material to expand. Shards of metal jutted out of the tortoise’s shell where Bunty stood, and he whispered, “Stiffen.” The Slimeskin coat hardened immediately, protecting him from most of the deadly points. One scratched his lower jaw, and another shredded through coat’s sleeve, but Bunty got away mostly unharmed. His attacked forced the tortoise into a harsh angle, and then Oss took over.

Every bit of bone on Oss’s person glowed red, and suddenly, his strength doubled. He lifted the titanic creature until the shell stood on its edge at a right-angle to the ground. Then Bunty gave it the final push to tip the tortoise onto its back. The bottom half of the shell bulged in the middle over a shining metal cap. Bunty recognised it as the spot the creature used to spin rapidly. Gwyneth struck it with her lightning spell without hesitation, and the tortoise shrieked again. She charged her spear’s tip with a spark and threw it to Bunty. He thrust it into the opening that housed the tortoises head, and much to his surprise, didn’t feel much resistance.

“Hit it again, Gwyn!” Bunty yelled. “It can’t harden the metal when struck by lightning!”

She did as requested, and the shiny cap on the shell rippled, looking like mercury for a second. Oss scrambled onto the beast, held his club’s thicker half with both hands, and thrust the pointy end into the liquid metal. The tortoise screeched one last time before going still. A loud gurgling blossomed within the shell before blood, and the mercury-like substance gushed out of every opening in the shell. The mixture of two bodily fluids sprayed Bunty and Oss. Then cracks spider-webbed across the shell from the bits Oss had struck. It collapsed around the turtle, exposing its giant organs and the sack of shiny fluid.

Oss looked back at Gwyneth, grinning. “Claim the Core,” he said. “I’ll bet the tortoise’s skull that it will get you a spell or summon you can utilise.”

“I don’t want the skull, though,” Gwyneth replied. She flumped down on to her bottom, panting heavily. Bunty hoped the new Core would increase her energy pool and diversify her range of spells. Even though the lightning spells packed a mean punch, he hated it when Gwyneth used multiple in quick succession. They left her much too worn out.

“But I do. If I’m wrong, you can sell the tortoise’s skull and buy us a drink.”

Gwyneth laughed. Oss was starting to speak her language. She pressed a palm to the tortoise’s skull, and her lamp’s luminosity increased until it hurt Bunty’s eyes to look at it. When the glow dimmed, Gwyneth stood wide-eyed, holding a Core as big as Uzeth’s. Green light and liquid metal swirled within. Bunty was sure Oss would win the bet.

Before starting their journey, Bunty had prepared sandwiches for their trip. He and Gwyneth feasted while Oss impressed them with his butchering skills. It took Bunty several minutes to figure out that Oss was peeling flesh and hide off the bones with his bare hands. The hunting knife he held only served to sever the bonds between skin and muscle. Since Oss hadn’t used his bone moulding abilities while the beast was still alive, Bunty assumed Oss could only manipulate the bones of dead creatures.

Within an hour, Oss had created four piles: shell fragments, hide, bones, and flesh. None of the trio had any interest in eating the old monster’s tough meat. The Frost Blade had shredded the hide around the tail, and the frost had damaged it even further. Since the bits around the head were just as damaged, Bunty only rolled up the skin from the limbs. It was tough but light. New Calcutta’s craftsmen would have little trouble turning it into protective garments for Gwyneth. He picked through the shell fragments too and chose the larger undamaged pieces. He hoped the FTF would buy them off him for a reasonable price.

Cracks covered Oss’s bone-club. Bashing the tortoise’s shell had severely damaged the weapon. Bunty assumed Oss would use his bone-softening abilities to patch the damage. The man shed the club, though. He picked through the creature’s giant bones and picked one from the front limbs. It was bigger and thicker than the last. Bunty tried lifting one of the others out of curiosity, and just making the bone budge was a struggle.

Oss exhaled loudly and held the bone with both hands. Bunty watched it soften, and red mush oozed out of the pores. Then the Oss massaged his new weapon, shaping it to match the one he had just shed. The new bone-club shrunk as he compressed it. Bunty watched the compressed material shift around the metal woven into it. When Oss finished, the club was almost as tall as him and instead of a round, weighted head, it ended in a thick hook. The tip glinted with the shine of metal. It was a nasty tool for sure. Oss claimed the skull bones, saying he’d work on it later.

“Where’s the door to the next floor?” Bunty asked, looking around the titanic structure. “That thing was big enough to warrant a door.”

“Perhaps its down there,” Gwyneth said, pointing at the crater where the tortoise used to lay. Stones and the loose dirt from the field had filled in the opening during the fight. The tortoise’s spinning and slamming had destroyed the grass and moved the soil around.

“Well, that’s not pleasant.” Bunty sighed, toeing the area. The tortoise’s weight had densely packed the earth. Digging would take too long and didn’t guarantee results. “So, we have no other choice but to head to the FTF settlement.”

”It’s a shame,” Oss stated. “I don’t like the thought of abandoning all of these bones.”