James launched a PSI Bolt. There was nowhere for her to hide, and if she wanted to get back into her hiding spot, she would have to get past him first. Even though she was fast, he was sure he could hit her at least three times before she found refuge. James had not considered the option that she would turn tail and run. And to James' surprise, that is just what she did.

James continued to launch PSI Bolts at her retreating form and was shocked when she turned right at the intersection and continued around the corner.

James turned to Rocko and looked at him with surprise, "What the hell?"

Rocko shrugged; he noticed he had been doing a lot of that, "They are only bound to the Dungeon, not the room."

Grumbling, James remained on guard for her return while quaffing a Potion of Healing. Once the potion had completed its healing and he noticed that she had not returned, he decided to finish searching the area. There was nothing to find in treasure or hidden caches of loot. He took a moment to draw the image that appeared on the control room walls when the lantern of revealing was lit. He wasn't sure what the pictures meant, but he was confident they were critical somehow. Either way, he was pleased with the notification.

Action Quest - Light all the Lanterns (4/5)

He considered using the portal to exit the Dungeon but then decided that there were at least three rats and a Spider Queen to kill.

Sitting on the metal walkway in front of the control room, James spends some time recovering his lost PSI. Rocko helped him pass the time by playing a game of Eye Spy. This was a game that he played in his training. Although it was a children's game, the difficulty was ramped up by doing it with their eyes closed. The purpose is to improve memory and spatial awareness. It wasn't as exciting as closing out a bar in Chile on a Saturday night, but it helped keep the Operator alert when they needed to be.

When he was back up to full PSI, he moved down the walkway and to the spot where he dropped his sword. He couldn't see much in the water, but he did notice that the water was moving faster here as it was drawn to the small drain in the centre of the room. James thought about removing his armour but decided against it. Instead, he lowered himself into the water, which was only chest-deep. He was quickly attacked by dozens of little fish who tried to eat his exposed flesh. Fortunately, the Harden Skin II Power was strong enough to keep the fish at bay. Using his feet, he moved around until he caught the hilt on his foot and raised it carefully to his hand. All this focus and attention made him miss the quick approach of a Giant Gar.

The Giant Gar was about four meters long and had a long narrow mouth with dozens of sharp tiny teeth. The creature slammed into James from behind, and its jaws wrapped around his head, crushing the helm as its jaws tightened. Once James recovered from the impact, he Shadow Stepped out of the Gar's mouth and onto the walkway. Fortunately, he had kept his hand on the Glrick Sword, and it arrived with him. The Gar slipped under the surface and disappeared with a flip of its tail.

"I am not liking this Dungeon!" James groaned as he activated the Power Heal Self II a couple of times.

"I think it is pretty well designed, except for the spiders." Rocko disagreed.

James removed his damaged helm and then buckled on his shield. Lowering himself into the water, he kept his back to the wall. The Giant Gar crested the water briefly as it approached for another attack.

Name: ?? Race: Gar - Giant Level: 12 Damage Range: 2d8 +24 Damage Type: Piercing Armour Rating: 32 Special: Bite: Crush, Hold Breathe, Swimming

"Thirty-two armour!" James called out to Rocko.

"That is what PSI Bolt is good for," Rocko reminded him.

The Gar didn't seem to care what James' concerns were as it moved directly toward him and tried to latch on this head once more. James raised his shield and activated Shield Bash. That ability connected, and the Giant Gar slid off the shield and fell back into the water. James aimed at its exposed underbelly and Thrust the Glick Sword into its throat. This was a direct hit, and James felt the blade cut through the creature's thick hide.

He wanted to continue the attack with PSI Bolt, but it was hard to see the creature underwater. Deciding to try PSI Ball, James aimed the Power two meters away from himself but close enough to the Giant Gar that it would hit. The creature thrashed like a fish on a hook a couple of seconds before the PSI Ball activated, but James tried to hold the beast in place. The Power went off, but the only real effect was to kill several of the fish still in the water around them. The Giant Gar continued to buck wildly as James pressed the blade through the back of its neck and into the bottom of the sewer. James tried to hold the Giant Gar in place desperately, but it finally broke free of James and swam away. In breaking free, the creature had torn open its own throat and was gushing blood, turning the water red.

James thrust his blade into the water where the Gar was supposed to be and felt his sword skip along the toughened hide of the beast. James pulled himself free out of the sewer water and sat down next to his helm, deciding enough was enough. Even though the helm was made of steel, several puncture marks from where the Gar's teeth had penetrated. The helm was seriously deformed and had lost more than half of its durability. While trying to bend the helm back into shape, James got another pop-up Notification.

Kill Quest - Kill Giant Gar 1/3

"Fuck me!" James groaned.

"This is good, James. You only need to kill two more, and you will gain considerable experience." Rocko consoled him.

"And if there is a Giant Boss Gar at the end?"

Rocko smiled, "Then even more experience."

James wasn't convinced. Putting the damaged helm back on his head, he used some drinking water to clean off some of the fecal matter stuck to his armour.

"You should check your other notifications before going too far," Rocko reminded James.

James pulled up his notifications and was pleased by what he saw.

Dexterity +1

Armour - Medium +1

Critical Strike - Sword +1

Evasion +1

Melee - Glrick Sword +1

PSI - Targeted

Resis - Debuff +1

Stealth +1

Congratulations! Evasion has reached level 10.

You have gained the Advantage Dodge. The Advantage requires that you activate the ability at the cost of 10 Stamina. This ability also negates the 'auto hit' effect of such Advantages as Slash, Thrust, and Puncture.

Congratulations! PSI - Targeted has reached level 10.

Your chance to hit with the attack has improved by 25%.

Your chance of landing a critical hit has improved by 4%.

This ability negates the 'auto block' effect of such Advantages as Dodge or Block.

James shared the excellent news with Rocko, "I like Dodge. I could have used that in the last fight."

Rocko agreed, "You can see how 'Auto Block' features negate 'Auto Hit' features. I always thought that was interesting. Later, at level 20 in the Skill, some advantages allow you to disregard the opposing feature."

"Until you run into someone who has the level 20 version of the opposing feature," James quipped.

Rocko laughed, "Exactly. The never-ending dance of opposing features."

James put the water skin away, "Do you think the Spider Queen went far?"

Before Rocko could answer, the Spider Queen in question stuck her head around the corner of the intersection and launched a Web Bolt at him.

James stepped to the side and was able to avoid the Web Bolt. Sending a PSI Bolt back in return, his attack missed as well, at the Spider Queen pulled back behind the wall corner. See his chance, James Shadow Stepped to the intersection, allowing him to see down all three tunnels. The Spider Queen had pulled back only a couple of meters from the corner, far enough away that she would not be hit with his PSI Ball.

Upon seeing him, she started casting a spell and moved to close with him. James PSI Bolt hit her just as she finished casting her spell. A thick field of webs surrounded her and spread out about 5 meters in all directions.

James was immobilized and was unable to move his arms or legs. On top of that, his visibility was reduced due to being surrounded by webs. The Spider Queen closed the distance and jabbed at him with her front leg. James activated Shield Bash and was amused that it still worked, even though he was immobilized. It didn't seem to stun her, but it did block the attack from her leg. As Luck would have it, it didn't stop the bite from her mandibles. The mandibles cut through the scale mail and left a deep gash across his stomach. It was no fun being on the receiving end of a Critical hit.

James dropped another Darkness from the shield and pulled back as much as possible. Magic Resistance didn't seem to help him against environmental effects such as the Webs. The Spider Queen attacked several times more, but James activated Dodge on them. James was finally able to use Shield Bash again after the timer reset and mashed the Spider Queen in the face. The Spider Queen reeled backwards and emitted a high-pitched scream. Finally working one of his arms free, James drew his Glick Sword and Thrust the blade as far as he could reach into her head. The Spider Queen thrashed around before its legs started to curl underneath it. With a final twitch, it fell off the walkway and into the water below.

Congratulations! You have defeated the Spider Queen!

A Boss of the Drowned Sewer Dungeon.

Reward - 200 (220) Experience and 10 (11) Free Advantage points

James held still while reading the pop-up notification, activating Heal Self III.

"Sill, no loot. The skeletons dropped a lot of gold and sometimes potions and scrolls. The goblins were the same, but with less gold and fewer potions. But so far, none of the creatures we have killed have dropped anything." James asked.

Rocko nodded, "Remember when I said that Dungeons have their own rules. This Dungeon may hold off on any rewards until you leave."

James looked up at the ceiling, "You better be worth the wait."

'That's what she said," Rocko muttered with a grin.

The tunnel behind James continued until it reached a dead end, so James backtracked to the first intersection where he had found the three rats, avoiding all the traps along the way. Moving past that point, James was back in the control room where he had first lit the lantern.

The lit lantern illuminated the room as James looked around. "Should we rest here?"

"Do you feel the need to rest?" Rocko asked.

"Not long rest, just a short one. To get something to eat, drink, and wash out some of the dried shit from my hair. That sort of thing."

"Makes sense. I don't require a break, so you do you."

James closed both doors to the control room and sat down on a tarp to avoid the rat droppings, which seemed to be everywhere. Leaning his head back to the door, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath.