Chapter 2 – Earthen Grave

Cinza lunged at me, using a spell to propel her body forward. I managed to get my dagger in front of me to deflect her sword, but she used her off hand to punch me in the gut.

I stepped back, trying to catch my breath and ignore the thirty HP her punch had knocked off of my health.

I moved too slowly, though, and Cinza spread her fingers, then brought them back together, launching a small Fire Bolt at me.

I took it in the chest, causing me to take another step back. It didn’t set me on fire, thankfully, but it did pack some serious force.

I rotated my wrist, made a series of complex gestures with my right hand, then snapped my fingers.

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Spell: Dark Barricade

The Darkness made manifest into physical form, Dark Magic coalesces instantaneously into a wall of magic, preventing those who are not classed as Dark Wizards from passing through. This includes Monsters, Daemons, Humans, and Familiars.

Spell Category: Dark Magic

Spell Class: Tier I

Mana Cost: 75 MP

Casting Time: Instant

Range: 10 Feet

Effect: Produces an impassable wall of Dark Magic that persists for the duration of the spell

Duration: 1 Minute, or until Dispelled.

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A wall of Darkness appeared between us, and Cinza ran into it, head-first.

She bounced off of the wall, and shook her head, an angry look on her face.

I laughed, though I knew that, as soon as the wall failed, she would be back on the assault.

“Got any quick ideas, Leese?” I asked, watching Cinza pace back and forth behind the Barrier. She held a ball of flame in one hand while she rested her sword on her shoulder.

“I asked you to let me out, but you said no, so I’m not going to help you this time.” Leese shot back.

“If I release you, do you promise not to leave me?” I asked, not realizing what I had just asked until it was already out of my mouth.

Why did I want her to stay? What did I care? I didn’t need a Familiar. I didn’t need anyone.

“I can’t promise that, but I’ll try.” She said, her voice soft and thoughtful.

“Good enough.” I snapped my fingers and the glass dome that held Leese in her prison shattered, filling my rucksack with broken glass.

In hindsight, probably not the best idea.

Leese chirped happily, then flew out of my rucksack and landed on my shoulder. She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek, then darted off down the hallway, the way I had come.

She left me here, and I could hardly blame her.

“Leese…” I said, sadly.

“Ten seconds, Grimm.” Nari reminded me, regarding my barrier.

“Whatever.” I spat, pulling my second dagger from my belt and refreshing the enchantment on that one.

I held them up and tilted my head to the side, popping my neck. Cinza needed to die for me to accomplish this, and I’d do it with, or without, Leese.

I had an advantage that Cinza didn’t: I knew exactly when my barrier was going to collapse, and I intended to use it.

The barrier fell and I lunged forward, both of my daggers extended, slashing across Cinza’s chest.

Her robe tore and the daggers bit deep into her skin. She wasn’t going to catch on fire, because an advantage of a Fire Witch was immunity to fire damage, but the Dark Damage was sufficient to boost the dagger’s strike.

She shrieked and tried to step back, but I used my momentum to turn my body, giving her a swift kick in the chest, where I had just slashed her.

She stumbled backward, her balance thrown off. The fire in her hand disappeared, her focus broken.

I pushed my attack, turning my roundhouse kick into a rotating leg sweep, taking further advantage of her lack of balance.

Her leg snapped out from under her, and she fell to the ground with a crash, her sword bouncing out of her hand and skittering across the stone floor.

I leapt on top of her, straddling her chest and holding my daggers to her throat.

“You wouldn’t.” She said, her eyes wide and furious.

“Oh, I would.” I pulled the twin blades across her throat, watching the bright blood pour from her now open throat.

It spattered as she coughed, her eyes crazed as she fought against the weight of me on top of her.

Finally, only a few seconds later, her wild flailing stopped and the light in her eyes faded.

Her AMHUD chirped, starting her countdown to resurrection.

Not willing to allow things to ever continue the way they had for years since meeting her, I buried a dagger deep into the AMHUD, sending sparks flying as the metal punched through the technology.

“Fuck you.” I said, standing up and kicking her in the side. “Enjoy the Underneath.”

My AMHUD chirped, throwing a notification up into my vision.

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Secondary Objective: Kill five fellow Wizards: (1/5)

>>>

It felt great to know that Cinza would never come back, though I had just committed the very same heinous act I was berating her for only moments ago.

I was no better than her, but trading one evil for the prevention of future evil seemed reasonable to me.

I placed my hand on her head and triggered Siphon, draining her of six-hundred ninety-five EXP, pushing me over the cap for the next level.

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Congratulations! You have Leveled up!

Level Up x1!

You have gained (4) Attribute Points!

You have gained (4) Skill Points!

You have gained (1) Ability Point!

You are now level 5!

EXP to Level 6: 3800

>>>

The notification was welcome, but I didn’t have a Kiosk to allocate my points at, so it would have to wait.

I stripped Cinza of useful gear, taking her robe, her excess outer armor, her sword, and her potions. Then, I dumped her body in a nearby alcove. She was heavy, even dessicated, but I got the job done.

Looking over her items, I was surprised to see the quality of both the robe and the sword, though her armor was nothing to be impressed about.

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Robe of Unending Sparks

Armor Type: Light

Armor Slot: Chest

Armor Class: Rare

Physical Armor Rating: 12

Magical Resistance Rating: 25

Effect: Increases Outgoing Fire Magic Damage by 15%

Effect 2: Reduces Incoming Fire Magic Damage by 25%

Effect 3: Increases Incoming Water Magic Damage by 25%

Effect 4: Reduces Mana Cost of Fire Magic by 5%

Restrictions: Fire Witch

~You do know that this isn’t waterproof, right?~

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Rapier of Slipstrike

Weapon Type: Long Sword, 1-Handed

Weapon Class: Rare

Attack Rating: 20

Effect: Slipstrike

Slipstrike – Move up to 20 feet quickly in a direction of your choice, ending the movement with a thrust attack that does 100% Attack Rating plus ½ Dexterity in Raw Damage.

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Well, the Slipstrike explained how she moved so fast. But she won’t be needing the sword any longer.

Her armor was basic leather gear, nothing too impressive. Easily purchased at any of the Guild Shops. It didn’t stop me from slitting her throat, though, so it was clearly useless.

Pushing down the self-loathing I now felt inside myself for destroying her AMHUD, I continued through the dungeon.

I wandered through the halls, killing the various monsters and inexplainable horrors that attacked me with little care for anything aside from destroying the feeling inside me that I had permanently killed a fellow Wizard.

Monsters would respawn, no matter how many times you killed them. Wizards were different. The AMHUD kept us alive well beyond our usefulness. It felt different.

I reached the end of the first floor and stared down the stairs. Second floor, higher level monsters, more things to destroy.

I traversed the stairs, watching the eerie green torches flicker. I was getting tired of the constant green everywhere. I would change that when I ruled this dungeon.

A pair of Wizards leapt out from behind a corner, swords in their hands and magic at the ready.

I sighed and immediately annihilated one with a thrown dagger to the throat.

The second one, however, posed more of a threat.

A rush of freezing air blew over me, slowing my movements and making my body shiver.

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Debuff Added

Chilled: You have been buffeted by a blast of freezing air, causing ice crystals to form on your body and reduce your movement speed. Dexterity, Endurance, and Strength reduced by 1; Duration: 2 minutes.

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The Frost Wizard continued to blast me with frigid air, but I continued to push forward despite the pain that was creeping into my limbs.

The Wizard’s eyes were wide as I continued to push toward him. He backed up, his hands up as he channeled the spell, but he backed himself into a corner.

When his focus faltered and the spell fizzled, I struck, slashing him across the upper arm with my dagger, restoring twelve points of my lost health from the ice magic, and dealing a reasonable amount of damage to him in the process.

“No, please!” He squeeled as I jammed my dagger into his eye, pushing his head against the wall.

He howled for a moment before his body gave up and his AMHUD chirped.

Another satisfied customer.

I narrowed my eyes and pulled the blade from his eye socket.

Three Wizards down, two to go. I had a feeling that I would have plenty of opportunity to reach my goal well before arriving at the Dungeon Lord.

I moved on, collecting my dagger from the throat of the first Wizard, and turning a corner.

The floor fell out from underneath me and I tumbled through the air, my body turning uncontrollably, before I hit a hard surface, landing on my side.

My ribs crunched and my head struck the floor with a wet thwack. My vision swam and everything hurt.

Notifications piled up in my vision, pulsing red as Debuffs always did.

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Debuffs Added

Cracked Rib (x4): You have cracked ribs, reducing your health and stamina regeneration by 15%, and causing severe pain when you breathe. Duration: 3 minutes.

Concussion: You have sustained a severe head injury, reducing your Intellect and Wisdom by 1 and causing dizziness and disorientation. Duration: 5 minutes.

Fractured Arm (Left): Your left arm is fractured and is disabled. You are unable to cast Wizard Spells that require both hands, and cannot use your left arm. Duration: 5 minutes.

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Well, this was a shitty way to die. The fall knocked one-hundred sixty HP off my bar, leaving me with a measly forty-seven after my interaction with the Wizards.

The room I landed in was almost completely black, aside from a faint, green light that flickered sporadically far away, down what appeared to be another hallway.

This entire dungeon was just a mass of hallways, and I hated it. Hallways were a terrible way to direct people. You wanted open spaces, where people could easily make mistakes, feel comfortable, and die horribly in unexpected ways.

I mused about how I would fix everything about this dungeon when I killed the Dungeon Lord, but I lay still in the darkness for a while to let my debuffs wear off, doing nothing more than building up my anger for the creature I would undoubtedly slaughter.

“Eventually.” I said with a scowl, hoping to be free of my life working for the Guild.

One major complication was finally out of my way, only to have fallen through a stupid trap door.

A couple more minutes passed, and my debuffs finally wore off. My Health regenerated to full as well, thankfully. I had no idea what I would find now that I was in a lower floor, but I wanted to be prepared.

After standing and verifying that my body worked the way it was supposed to, I pulled a torch from my rucksack and held it out.

“Ignition.” I said, snapping my fingers next to the torch.

It bloomed to life, bathing everything around me in an orange glow. Not green, not sickly, but light and easy on the eyes.

“Torches should put out red or orange light, you moron.” I yelled into the darkness that was the hallway in front of me, doubting that the Dungeon Lord would ever hear my words.

I sighed and walked on, paying better attention to the ground, walls, and ceiling now to ensure that I didn’t tumble further into the dungeon without making the choice myself.

After several minutes of walking, followed by more walking, and then some additional walking just for good measure, I came to a dead end.

“Are you kidding me!?” Frustrated, I kicked the stone wall in front of me, stubbing my toe through my thick leather boots.

The pain in my toe just made me more irritated, though.

“Everything about this place sucks!” I didn’t feel like walking back all the way to where I had fallen through, so I just sat down with my back against the wall and stared off into the darkness.

“This was a shit idea, and Leese didn’t even stay.” I muttered, kicking at a chunk of brick that had come loose from the floor. “Some friend she was.”

Friends will only disappoint you. A voice, deep and grating, pushed through the defenses in my mind and stroked the edges of my brain like a thorny vine.

“Get out of my head, Daemon.” I gritted my teeth and tried to force the voice out, strengthening my defenses in the process.

I must have let my defenses slip some. My wards were typically airtight.

You won’t be rid of me so easily. You are within my domain. The voice said, pushing further into my thoughts. I see, you wish to take over my home…

I cringed as it continued to push through my thoughts, memories, and plans.

“Stop.” I said, angrily, my head pounding from the intrusion.

Fine, come find me, and we will settle this like adults. Come prepared. The voice echoed like a laugh in an empty room, and the wall I was leaning against shifted and rumbled.

I stood up quickly, holding the side of my head from the pain of the creature’s intrusion.

The wall slid down into the floor, disappearing into a crevice and becoming completely smooth against the stone floor.

“Hidden doors, now we’re talking.” I said, the smirk I plastered on my face turning into a wince when a sudden throb of pain pulsed through my head.

The door had opened up an entire alcove, which was completely different from the other hallways and rooms I had been in on the upper floors of the dungeon. This one was filled with broken furniture, burned out torches, and various decaying detritus.

I picked my way through the room, being careful not to knock anything over. After all, I wanted to be able to use all of the resources I could. If, of course, that was how any of this worked at all.

The sound of gurgling came from up ahead and I pulled my daggers, waiting for my opponent to show itself.

A small pool of dark green ooze slowly crept its way toward me, bubbling as it traveled.

“A Slime?” I rolled my eyes, then gestured at it like I was shooting it with my fingers, firing off a small, low-level Fire Bolt.

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Spell: Fire Bolt

A simple, yet effective, Fire Magic spell, involving the transmutation of oxygen, a spark, and the coalescence of power. It is quick, small, and highly powerful in large numbers.

Spell Category: Fire Magic

Spell Class: Cantrip

Mana Cost: 15 MP

Casting Time: Instant

Range: 35 Feet

Effect: Produces a small, dense ball of flame that can punch through armor, clothing, and flesh.

Effect 2: Reduce target’s Health Regen by 5%

Earth, Wind, Fire, Water. Which moves the fastest? Fire. Which consumes the greatest amount of matter? Fire. What, therefore, is more powerful? Probably not Fire, but that’s not what I’m supposed to tell you all. Eh, I don’t care. ~Master Fire Wizard, Aldonis

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It slammed into the puddle of goop and, with the sound of a rubber ball deflating, burning gas erupted from the hole the Fire Bolt punched through the Slime.

“Meh.” I said, shrugging and noticing the small “5 EXP” number rising from its now flattened corpse.

A gurgling sound followed after the first Slime deflated and the screeching ended.

There was a lot of gurgling. More than I wanted to hear. I didn’t like it.

From the darkness of the tunnel came a proverbial wall of slimes of different colors, all bubbling and oozing and glopping as they poured over one another, heading directly toward me.

“Ah shit.” I said, twisting the fingers on both of my hands, simultaneously, working toward a fire spell that I knew would decimate the slimes.

If only I could cast it before they flooded over me.

Red, green, brown, yellow, black, silver, purple. Every color you could imagine, there was a slime for. And it was a huge, pulsating, terrifying, yet beautiful, occurrence.

“What in the Underneath!?” At the back of the river of slimes, an extremely large mass of gelatinous goo, taking up the entire width of the hallway, slid behind them.

It wobbled and jiggled, moving slowly, but surely.

My fingers wouldn’t work fast enough, I needed them to go quicker. I should have invested in that Spell Casting Speed implant instead of the Thickened Skin one.

Finally, my fingers completed the gestures and I brought my hands together, clapping my palms, then spreading out my hands like a wall.

“Flare Wall!” I shouted, triggering the Verbal component of the tier two Fire Magic spell.

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Spell: Flare Wall

Conjuring the power of the Aether and altering the oxygen level in a specified line, Flare Wall allows a Wizard to create a literal wall of flame, which will burn any creature or entity that attempts to pass through it, dealing considerable fire damage, and setting them alight.

Spell Category: Fire Magic

Spell Class: Tier II

Mana Cost: 125 MP

Casting Time: 15 Seconds

Range: 50 Feet

Effect: Produces a wall of Magical Fire, causing 25 Fire Damage to enemies passing through the wall.

Effect 2: Ignites targets that survive the initial damage, dealing 4 Fire Damage per second for 6 Seconds.

Duration: 45 Seconds, or until Cancelled

Fire Fire Everywhere, Let’s See If It Burns Your Hair ~Early-Education Fire Wizard Poem

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A gout of flames erupted from the stone at the entrance to the room, broiling slimes as they attempted to pass through it.

The smell was horrendous, like scorched flesh, but also kind of rubbery.

A few of the slimes made it through, but I took care of those with a few quick Fire Bolts.

My MP was beginning to wane after the high-powered Flare Wall spell, and I worried that, at the rate that the cube slime thing was moving, my wall would collapse before it ran through it.

I pulled a small glass vial of blue fluid from my belt and chugged it, waiting for my MP to regenerate while sticking a few of the straggling Slimes with my dagger.

Even though the EXP for each kill was low, there were a good number of slimes that were dying, en masse, providing me with a constant stream of EXP.

The delightful sound of fire, coupled with the horrid sound of slimes shrieking and hissing from being on fire, slowed, then disappeared as my Flare Wall collapsed.

I looked down the hallway to where the enormous cube of gel was still alive. It wasn’t even halfway down the hall yet.

“Grand.” I sighed, watching it slowly, inevitably, approach.

I would have to kill it, because it was completely blocking my path further into the dungeon. But I was a little annoyed with how slowly it was moving.

I focused on it, and a name tag popped up over it, denoting it as [Venom, Lord of Gelatin].

Ah crap, it had a unique name. It was a Floor Boss.