With those words, the race was on.

Well, if it could be called a race.

The five of them didn’t waste any time turning tail and heading for the lake biome proper. Myles just smiled as he began to keep pace with the others. Well, most of the others. Dahoom was the fastest thing Myles had ever seen on two legs outside of some Beastkin. Despite what he looked like, the half-giant could move like a greased stick of butter on a hot pan when he wanted.

Once they all reached the coast, the Runners split up and began their search for the grass knots. Myles had seen them before in a few of the prior runs, so he knew what to look for. They were small things, only a little bigger than the ambush rabbits. Not that he was going to waste time looking for them. Still, if he found any, he’d be sure to take care of them.

The smile stuck around long after the others were out of sight.

Myles?

For a moment, Myles paused. No tamer, no master? That was a nice change.

“Yes, Ashra?”

Why aren’t you looking like the others?

He grinned a bit wider, looking around to be sure no one was watching before he made his move towards the reedy bank. “Because we don’t need to go hunting to win this.”

For once, Mists, for the first time in the dungeon, Myles was ahead of the game. He may not have been a [Gardener] or an [Alchemist], but he had to gather life weed more than once during his young life for baking.

Life weed was useful for making healing salves and potions, but that wasn’t all it was used for. It had a unique flavor that went perfectly with herbal breads. It was an acquire taste by itself, a sweeter basil almost with a bitter finish, but mixed with the right spices, it was just enough to give their grain bread the perfect flavor.

And since the local [Herbalist]s and [Alchemist]s were too expensive…

Myles only took a few moments to bend over and brush a few reeds aside to find the small, blue green leafy shoots growing from the muddy soil. As his hand snapped the stem at the root, his lore skill confirmed his success.

—

Life weed

Value: 15

Crafting Material

Description: A bitter, small, teal plant with four leaves.

Detail: Lifeweed is an integral part of healing potions and salves. Once distilled in large quantities, the extract can enhance the natural healing functions of the body. Too much in too short of a time however can lead to a condition commonly called ‘Healer’s Bane’.

Life weed can also be dried and used to season foods such as breads, meats, and as a garnish for vegetarian dishes or to calm an upset stomach.

—

Again and again, Myles snapped the stems of his newly discovered plants and stored them in his inventory. After only a few minutes, he was well on his way.

Three down, and two more to go.

When he exhausted the area around him, Myles walked to another of the lakeside clusters of grass and reeds. He could practically taste victory, but he tried to keep his mind on the task. Since he could sense Ashra’s pride at his work, it took a bit more than usual to keep himself grounded.

Despite the danger, Myles had to admit that the lake biome was pretty nice. The smells of water and fresh mud were a welcomed change of pace. It almost beckoned him to do more, to jump in and swim, to enjoy the sun warming water on his skin, but he knew better. Even from the banks of the lake, Myles could see dark shapes swimming in the deeper recesses where the sun barely touched.

Picking another stalk of the weed, Myles stepped back and moved further from the bank. They were getting closer still, and even with Ashra, he didn’t want to run the risk of going under.

Ashra moved closer, keeping herself within arm’s reach as if to calm his fear, but there wasn’t much either of them could do if the other went under. Well, Myles could try to put her in the stasis gem, but in reality, it was easier just not to tempt it.

Still, it had only been a few minutes, and he was already up four life weed. All he had to do was keep to the edges, make sure he didn’t get caught, and get back first.

Simple, right?

Right?

***

By the time he reached the next patch of mud, he cursed himself and his luck. The creatures below the water were following him and getting braver with every passing moment.

Whatever was under the surface had taking an interest in Myles and was more than willing to get closer to keep him from hunting through the reeds again. Despite his concentration, Myles couldn’t get a read on it either. Even when it almost broke the surface tension, the shadows from the deep clung to it.

He didn’t want to know what was waiting for him.

That left him with two options, try to catch up with the others and hunt in earnest, or take a risk with the shadowy horror below the surface.

It wasn’t a hard decision.

***

—

Monster Lore Unlocked!

Twig Guardian information obtained!

Twig Guardian

Dungeon Creature - Small Construct (Supernatural)

Rand D Threat level

Best trait - Speed

Preferred Method of Attack - Spear attacks

Known Drops - Twig, ectoplasm

Encounter seven more Twig Guardians to complete this entry.

—

Ashra’s punch landed with a deafening crack as her metal knuckles broke the wooden bone of the strange scarecrow-like creature.

The twig guardians weren’t exactly dangerous, but there were plenty of them. It seemed like every rogue stick near the forest edge was one of the blasted things waiting for him today. This one was particularity nimble and had its hollow, glowing eyes on him.

“Myles!”

The wooden jaw of the creature clattered excitedly as it pulled back it’s sharpened spear-like arm to stab at him as it danced past Ashra. He could see it aimed for his chest, but it wouldn’t get the chance to try a second time.

Myles wasn’t a slouch.

Three days ago, Myles would have been dead to rights, but he wasn’t the Myles of three days ago. Now, his innate knowledge of his dagger helped him use the tool to knock the weapon’s head to the side, almost totally clear of his body. It did manage to nick his leather, but it didn’t cut deep enough to hit skin.

Before the twig guardian had a chance to strike with the broke stalk of an arm, the short blade slashed through the missing gut and separated the creature’s glimmering spine from its lower body. The gravity of the situation made the creature lean forward, clattering it’s jaw in his face. Myles didn’t scream, and with a grunt, he pushed it backwards with his free hand before it could attack again.

Pantheon above, he loved having a weapon mastery.

Despite the experience Ashra and him were getting working together, having to fight everything under the sun was slowing them down. They’d yet to find a single glade knot, and the sun was already getting high in the sky. It wouldn’t be long before it started to set, and the others could have already found

Bending down to pick up another silvery glob of ectoplasm, Myles examined it.

—

Ectoplasm

Value: 6

Crafting Material

Description: The remnants of a minor supernatural being.

Detail: Ectoplasm is a silvery, semi-transparent material made up of a thick, slime-like substance not unlike that of a normal slime. However, ectoplasm is not from this realm and does not obey the normal laws that apply. No matter the temperature, ectoplasm is always slightly chilled, making it great for preserving perishable items.

Ectoplasm is safe to eat, but it is not recommended.

—

Nope, nothing different about this one either.

Myles sighed and turned to Ashra. “I think we need to go back to the shoreline. We still haven’t seen a single grass knot.”

Ashra gave a curt nod in reply. “They may sense the hunters targeting them and have gone into hiding. It would take water or fire to flush them out of any hiding spots.”

That just wouldn’t do, but could they handle the lake itself if it decided to come at them?

It had been quiet, but could they still count on that?

The walk had been quiet, but as they reached the nearest bank, the body that suddenly splashed to the surface made sure they had their answer as the glinting metal of the [Master of Arms] painted the mud with a lung full of water. She didn’t remove her helmet as water gushed from the helm’s mouthpiece, and only a moment later, the surface was breached a second time.

In a spray of gore, a monster gurgled, waving its limbs or ruined stumps and tentacles alike and whistled angerly as it began pulling itself out of the water. It didn’t take Myles more than a moment to see where it was going.

Ashra was already on the move before Myles had to put his emotions to words.

As a practiced pair, Myles went for the coughing warrior while Ashra fended off the beast’s remaining arms.

Flesh ripped from the limbs as the slow bulk, expecting an easy meal, wasn’t able to keep up with the land-based monsterkin. Blood painted her fur as the metal covered fists ripped and tore, doing everything in her power to draw the attention to her and away from the halfling.

Myles was at Lyna’s side trailing Ashra. He wasn’t the strongest, but the halfling in armor only weight a bit more than the average person would. His hand went under her arm pulling her to her feet to the tune of, “Come on!”

She could only cough in reply as Myles practically dragged her from the shoreline. Ashra was still bobbing and weaving between attacks easily as she felt Myles intent again and began to back off from the large waterborn monster. It wasn’t the priority.

Myles had only gotten them a few feet out of the beast’s range before Lyna worked herself back to her reality proper and began fighting back.

“What are you doing, ya git! I’m not done with it yet!”

It was enough to make Myles stop. “You aren’t done yet?”

“No!” She spat, more water than venom as her lungs cleared again. “No. It took Rocky!”

“Rocky?” The… pet… rock…?

Lyna nodded, her helm betraying nothing, and her voice as steely as her armor. “Help me, and I’ll make it worth your while.”

Is she serious?

“She looks it. Can you keep that up?”

Easily.

Myles nodded to his new ally. “Party?”

To his surprise, he could feel something accompany his words. In a moment, the feeling rebounded, and a new window of information materialize at the side of his vision.

—

Party Created!

Party Settings Unlocked

Titles Gained: Recruiter, Leader

—

Party Name: None [Update?]

Leader: Myles Chase

Members: Lyna Hugea, Ashra Snowpelt

Party Buff: None

Party Hex: None

Loot Preference: Need before Greed [Toggle?]

Loot Holding: None [Toggle?]

Friendly Fire: Disabled [Locked]

—

When his attention went back to the field, the information faded from view. He’d have to explore those options later and see if that title did anything useful.

The field had exploded into activity as Lyna went with her hammer drawn and slammed one of the bloodied limbs into gore. The splash zone was a bit much, and Ashra gave her own scowl before the creature whistled again. The pain was driving it back into the muck, and as the hammer dropped and a pair of swords were drawn, Lyna was having none of that.

“Eh! Where do you think you’re going?” she yelled at the top of her lungs, the words radiating a visible aura that flashed across the creature’s body. “Fight me!”

Without a moment’s hesitation, the giant creature’s fight or flight instinct was overwhelmed, and its body lurched up, revealing a sharp, blue beak clicking in a way that only a pissed off animal could.

Twin swords slashed at limbs and underbelly, and Myles realized what she was doing. She’d taunted it.

As the beak moved in, Ashra did as well. Her fist slamming into the horror’s mouth and shattering the upper jaw before following up with a glowing second strike and exploding the second. If Lyna was impressed, she didn’t show it. Another pair of limbs fell from the beast.

Myles focused on the battle. His eyes were as important as Ashra’s strikes, giving her a wider view of the field, sending warning as a limb tried to move in, or if the beast made another attempt to run.

That wasn’t going to happen.

Swords stabbed deeply into the ruined mouth, and a pair of daggers followed a moment later in the creature’s large, black eyes. They didn’t go deep, but they didn’t have to as the creature lost its sight.

A crushing fist and a hammer blow to the head followed the daggers, ending it’s life.

Ashra and Lyna were panting heavily as the beast’s body burst into luminous dust and took to the winds, but Myles was the one who’d nearly been knocked out as a shower of loot found it’s way into his inventory then vanished just as quickly via the party system.

—

Rare Monster [Serene Kraken] has been defeated.

Combat Analyzed - Bonus Awarded for Rare Monster Annihilation

Treasure Distribution has been set to Need before Greed

Assigned treasure:

Ashra Snowpelt - +2 Coral Knuckles (Rare)

Lyna Hugea - Rocky, The First to Fall (Unique), 1 Gold Coin, 7 Building Vouchers (Comfort Supply), 2 Lifeweed

Myles Chast - Skill Stone (Uncommon), 50 Silver Coins, 10 Building Vouchers (Comfort Supply), 2 Lifeweed

—

Soul Bond Complexity Increased!

Ashra Snowpelt, Ambush Rabbit Princess has grown to see you as an equal in combat.

Soul Bond complexity has increased from Tempered(+) to Refined.

A new ability path has been unlocked.

—

Myles had to stop himself from dropping his jaw at the messages. Sure, he’d have to explore the ability path, whatever that was, but the loot! There was so much of it!

Ashra made a quick action of equipping her new knuckles without much show as Lyna came over, reached an arm up, and gave Myles a hearty pat on the shoulder.

“Ya did good, Tamer.”

Myles shook off the surprise and gave her a reassured smile. “It was mostly Ashra…”

“Who was directed by you, yeah?” Lyna interjected before opening her own inventory, pulling out Rocky, and putting it back onto her head. “If it weren’t for you coming along, I’d probably have lost more than my buddy here. Isn’t that right, Rocky?”

Rocky stared at Myles from atop his perch on Lyna’s head nearly eye level with him, saying nothing, but the sapphire eyes moved slightly from side to side, probably from Lyna’s breathing.

“Sorry, he’s a bit shy around strangers.”

“It was good practice,” he admitted, glad for more than just the experience for once. His feet were itching to move though. It was over! He had done it and with more than enough to spare! “Did you have any luck with grass knots?”

Lyna shook her head. “Nah, haven’t seen a one. Those were my first life weed, ya?”

Shifting slightly as Ashra rejoined him, Myles shrugged. “Been luckier than most.”

It was hard to read someone from behind an iron mask, but he just managed to make out a sigh before she began re-sheathing and storing her weapons. “If anyone deserves to join that group, I’m glad it’s someone like you. We need more heroes.”

The words were like a punch to his gut. “Isn’t that what we’re all trying to be?”

Lyna just shrugged, grabbing the last sword and strapping it back to her side. “Some more than others. Think of it like this, ya didn’t hesitate to help me, did ya?”

Myles shook his head. It was the right thing to do, so why would he have?

“Others would have let me drown or die to remove the competition.” She snapped her fingers for emphasis. “Just like that.”

The thought hadn’t really occurred to leave her behind, but the words made sense. “Oh.”

“Oh,” she repeated, giving Ashra a once over and a slight bow. “I hope we meet again.”

“Same,” Myles admitted. She was a fierce warrior, and he was happy to have helped.

“It has been an honor fighting by your side,” Ashra added, returning the bow.

We need to return to the quest master.

“I know.”

With that, Lyna opened her interface, something Myles noted as unusual, and felt the party disband with a slight recoil as the [Master of Arms] went back on her quest for life weed.

For their part, Myles and Ashra turned tail and bolted back to where they’d first arrived.

They had a quest to win.