Chapter 90

Gold Rank Ales

Abigail

Avoiding the delta would have cost me a few days of travel. Cost me the chance to run into monsters that lurked, hiding in the yellow sediment that stretched for miles. Cost me the chance to take in the beauty where the river smoothed the land and veined into the sea. Where the sun was gold and bounced off the delta in colors of brass, bronze, gold, and steel. And when the sun fell low, it turned red; the sky, turquoise; the delta, orange.

There were human skeletons half buried in the sediment. Faded belongings were scattered near each one, sure to fall apart as the rivers ebbed. Weapons and coin were scattered in piles, tempting adventurers to go after them, but I saw the lure that they were.

I saw the eyes of monsters that baited adventurers with shiny things. Eyes that barely broke the surface of water or sediment. Unblinking eyes.

Holldam was barely a mirage on the horizon. A city built upon piers, where the men and women knew how to drink, how to brawl, and how to age. They were known for their taverns and I would spend more than a week there. That was the plan.

Worried the effect would wear off, I took another sip of my Light Foot attribute wheat ale. I was nearly halfway through the bottle.

Painted by the setting sun and watercolor landscape, the foam of the beer glowed a light pink. It tasted of cold, unfiltered wheat. A perfume of the skin of mangoes and bananas surrounded me. It was a jolly beer that enlivened my spirits, and buoyed my body above the sediment.

The next step I took made no indentation on the ground. When I crossed over one of the many veins of water, I switched to a Water Skimmer attribute Barley Wine ale.

The bottle was small. 250ml. The beer was syrupy. Almost sickly sweet and angrily bitter. A strong ale enjoyed only through experience and understanding. It was young for a barley wine, but they sold for 250 gold a bottle. That’s why I brewed them.

The foam was a thick spread of hazelnut. So thick, it was almost a paste having been applied by butter knife. The beer was opaque. Brown like maple syrup. The alcohol was high at nearly 13%.

I skated across broken rivers, skimmed across the sediment, and nearly floated over the delta. When I’d come too close to monsters that stalked their traps, huge mouths opened, flinging earth. The monsters were quick and accurate, sporting 6 dozen teeth. Each tooth as tall as me. With a simple turn of their neck, they threw their open mouths to the side and scooped up chunks of the delta. I was always just out of reach, and they screeched angrily at missing me.

As I continued, more monsters snapped their long mouths out. Giant mouths that flung open to either side of me, sending sediment to rain down moments later. Skeletons went flying. Coins and items scattered and landed in new places. Monsters shifted beneath the sediment in tandem. They writhed to reposition their traps. Emitted low hums that reversed the effect of density and made the items of adventurers rise to the surface so that I would be tempted to trade my life for a handful of gold.

Every time the monsters repositioned, I had to stop and pick my path anew.

Annoying.

I realized I might have to fight them, so I took stock of my inventory and readied some items. There were two beers I kept handy in case of battle.

[Metamorphic Imperial Stout.]

[Gold Rank. 41/100 Lesser Mythic.]

[Brewed by Abigail Yak.]

[Conditioned in ebony wood barrels. Tastes of slate, heavily roasted malts, the darkest chocolate, rich molasses, with hints of oak-moss, jasmine, and boasts a marshmallow fluff head.]

[Special Attribute: Stone Skin. Imbues the drinker with a weightless coat of stone armor that breaks and reforms to allow for movement. Armor rating of Special Attribute is equal to the rank of beer.]

[BOMB! Sour Ale.]

[Gold Rank. 67/100 Chimeric.]

[Brewed by Abigail Yak.]

[Coolship fermented cherry and beet sour ale. Tastes of sweet cherries; beet cake; unfiltered barley from mountainous, desert, jungle, and island terrain; 200% carbonated; with the foam appearing as a column of tiny sparks and fireworks.]

[Special Attribute: Explosive Touch. User can deliver giant explosions with the touch of their fingers. User is immune to damage caused by Explosive Touch. Warning, attribute effect is heavy on mana.]

One bottle of each beer hung from clasps at my belt. The monsters were fast and I would only survive by being faster.

It was a good thing I was prepared because I’d picked a path where treasure was absent, which a monster had used as a lure. It’s mouth had burst up from the delta like a flipped open coffin lid, its bottom jaw a resting place. A shower of sediment and water stormed around me. The jaw snapped shut around me and I drank from my attribute beers.

I became a golem of rock and explosions. When I moved, my armor broke at the joints, grinding and fracturing. Stone replaced crushed stone. Everything I touched exploded. The tongue of the monster. The gum. Teeth. More teeth. Until the monster opened its hole filled mouth and threw me aside.

Dripping saliva, landing off path, I was attacked again and again until most monsters tired of me and became wary. Others waited for another chance to attack. They came at me, writhing beneath the ground. I put a hand to the delta and surrounded myself with continuous explosions until the air cleared of debris and the monsters had backed off.

I was weightless, but the sound of my armor continuously breaking and cracking was deafening. I made haste across the rest of the delta as night fell.

I figured I’d miss out on a night of sleep. I could have taken the week to travel around the delta, but a part of me wanted the danger. Perhaps that was why I couldn’t stop smiling. It wasn't often that a brewer found themselves wading through giant monsters. I owed myself the pleasure of danger and adventure every now and then. It wasn’t anything I couldn't handle.

And I got to avoid humans on the road.

By near morning, I’d crossed most of the delta. The stars were bright, vivid, and I could see wisps of deep space. The quiet waters reflected the night sky perfectly and it felt as though I walked among the stars when I skimmed over water.

I arrived at Holldam when the sun rose.