A few minutes later, I had a plan.

My primary goal was to get to the exit portal and to do that, I needed to defeat the savant acolyte and the magma elementals. Given their positioning, it was clear they guarded the exit.

Still, it would be foolish for me to descend into the basin just yet. Better to whittle down my foes’ numbers from above first, I thought.

My gaze fixed on one of the savants. He would be my first target. Given the fire slugs’ low levels, I foresaw no problems charming them. The savants, though, were an unknown quantity. Given the Game’s description of them as talented mind users, I suspected I would not be able to charm or otherwise mentally assault the savants.

But I needed to be certain.

Slinking along the rim, I crept away from the door to a spot where the shadows were thickest and readied myself.

You have cast reaction buff, increasing your Dexterity by +4 ranks for 20 minutes.

My target stood idle atop one of the closer magma outcroppings and was clearly visible. Summoning psi, I began casting slaysight.

Of all my mental abilities, slaysight was the one that succeeded most often, and if any of my mind spells were going to work against the savants, it would be it.

Searching tendrils of my will expanded towards my target and, entering his mind, attempted to erase me from the creature’s awareness.

A savant scholar has passed a mental resistance check! You have failed to hide your presence from your target. Your mental intrusion has been detected!

I sighed. The spell’s critical failure confirmed my fears—to slay the savants, I would have to get up close. My gaze drifted back to my target. The savant was turning about in frantic circles, searching for his attacker.

A hostile entity has failed to detect you!

Failing to pinpoint his foe, the savant threw back his head and emitted an unearthly shriek. Well, that’s not good, I thought, suspecting what was about to happen next.

The basin bestirred itself.

The fire slugs cut through the lava fields, the magma elements dashed about their tiny islands, and the other savants executed their own pirouettes.

Multiple hostile entities have failed to detect you!

But despite the dungeon denizens’ sudden flurry of activity, their search was undirected. They had no idea where to find me. Safe in the shadows, I stayed put, watching keenly to see if any of the creatures would leave the basin.

None did.

Better, I thought. As long as my foes couldn’t find me or leave the basin, my plan was workable.

My relief was short-lived, though.

Perhaps grasping the futility of their search, the savant acolyte changed tactics. Raising his hands, the creature sounded out the words of a spell in a sibilant, unintelligible hiss. A moment later, a ball of blinding white light sailed over the basin to splash onto the wall above the doorway.

The orb exploded on contact.

And for a stark instant, the area was set ablaze with light.

A savant acolyte has cast revealing light. You have failed a magical resistance check! Multiple hostile entities have detected you! You are no longer hidden.

Uh-oh. Time to go.

My eyes still dancing with afterimages from the dazzling light, I rose to my feet. In the same motion, the heads of the three savants swung my way, and in what was an almost choreographed move, they raised their arms together.

A heartbeat later, three new orbs of light arced over the basin. But this time, they churned with shades of angry orange and red.

Fireballs.

Head down, I raced along the basin’s rim, making for the safety of the entry chamber. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed the fireballs shift trajectories.

Damnit! They were tracking me.

Realizing I wouldn’t reach safety in time, I readied myself to meet the flaming projectiles.

The first fireball rushed nearer. A second before it could make contact, I dove forward. The fireball hurtled past to splash onto the cavern wall.

You have evaded a savant scholar’s magical projectile.

The raging torrent of fire had missed me by less than a foot, and the back of my head and shoulders felt as if they had been burned raw by the heat alone.

I had no time to see to my injuries, though. The next projectile was closing rapidly. Grimacing against the pain, I sprung back to my feet and cast two-step.

The second fireball accelerated across the final stretch. Dashing forward on steps of solidified air, I climbed up and over the magic missile as it exploded against bare rock.

You have evaded a savant acolyte’s magical projectile.

The heat was no less scorching from above than it had been from below. But despite a sudden outbreak of sweat, I was unaffected. Somersaulting off my airy perch, I resumed my flight.

The last fireball screamed through the air, homing in on me. At the last second, I skidded to a stop and let the inferno screech past.

You have evaded a savant mage’s magical projectile.

The wall and ground ahead turned sullen red as angry flames hissed and spat across them. But there was no time to delay. The savants had already launched another volley.

Gritting my teeth against the pain, I pounded across the heated surface. Out of the corner of my eye, I tracked the second wave of projectiles.

They would not reach me in time.

Flinging myself into the entry chamber, I slammed the metal door closed and retreated to the far end of the room.

A moment later, the chamber shook under the impact of three resounding thuds.

But despite turning an angry red, the door held.

Exhaling in relief, I panted for breath. I was safe—for now. Wondering what the savants would do next, I drew my blades and waited.

~~~

The dungeon denizens did not abandon the basin to pursue me. Perhaps they couldn’t. Or perhaps they saw no need.

Whatever the case, five long minutes went by as the door rebuffed fireball after fireball. During that time, I remained hidden in the corner, watching both the door and where the portal opened.

But neither the mantises nor any other foes entered the chamber.

Eventually the magical assault on the door subsided. I waited five more minutes before rising to my feet and tiptoeing to the door. Despite causing me to flee, my opening foray had been… educational.

I knew my mind tricks wouldn’t work on the savants, but I’d also learned hiding from them was possible. It gave me the opening I needed. I realized, too, that there was going to be no quick resolution to the upcoming confrontation. It would take time and patient work to whittle down the sector’s denizens.

Time, I might not have, I thought, my gaze darting to the entrance portal. Better get started, then. With my bare fingers, I tested the door handle. It was cool to the touch.

Cranking the handle down, I slid the door ajar. Only a little.

Poised for flight or fight, I waited.

But despite the revealing slit of magelight emanating from the doorway, no attack followed. Tensing in anticipation, I pushed the door open farther, just enough to slip through.

Still nothing.

Judging it safe enough, I dashed through the opening and immediately sidled left, putting some distance between me and the door.

I covered a dozen yards without incident, then another, but I kept going. I’d realized that the entrance chamber, despite serving as a refuge, was also a magnet for the savant’s attacks. Being the spot from which their enemies always emerged, it was the first place the creatures would look for me, and I was determined not to be found again. When I put sufficient distance between me and the door, I let my gaze drift back to the basin.

The occupants’ attention had waned.

The fire slugs had resumed their glacial glides through the lava, and the elementals had stilled. Only the savants showed any sign of agitation. Occasionally one of the trio would raise his head to restlessly scan the basin’s rim. Despite this, I went undetected.

Let’s keep it that way. Drawing on my will, I began my second assault.

This time around, I targeted a group of fire slugs wandering aimlessly near the center of the basin and, coincidentally, close by the savant mage. The tendrils of psi I sent the creatures’ way slipped past their defenses and wrenched control of their minds without resistance.

You have cast mass charm. 5 Fire slugs have failed a mental resistance check! You have charmed 5 of 5 targets for 10 seconds.

Well, that was easy, I thought with a delighted grin. Now, to see what they can do.

Tugging on the mental leashes wrapped around my minions’ minds, I ordered them to attack the nearby savant. As one, the fire slugs swung around to face their designated target and unleashed a torrent of flame.

Five jets of fire spewed from the slugs’ mouths to bathe the savant mage in flames, and in a heartbeat, the hapless creature was the center of a roaring inferno.

I rocked back on my heels, amazed by the unexpected violence and suddenness of the attack. My minions’ victim was similarly surprised.

But he was not shrieking in agony.

Instead, the savant was turning—slowly—to face his attackers, seeming only slightly inconvenienced by the torrent of fire pouring into him.

I grimaced as I realized why.

A savant mage has passed a magical resistance check, reducing the damage he has sustained from your minions’ attacks.

My attack had stirred up the basin’s other inhabitants too. Flinging up his hands, the acolyte cast revealing light. Not bothering to move, I watched the white orb sail over the basin.

A moment later, the entrance chamber and its immediate surroundings were lit up brighter than a street under a noonday sun, causing all three savants to swing that way. They were almost quivering in their eagerness to get at their foe.

But, of course, I was nowhere near the blaze of light, and their search turned up empty.

I couldn’t see their savants’ faces, but their body language was easy enough to read. The creatures were perplexed. Angry. Bewildered. I almost laughed, my good humor restored by my foes’ confusion.

The acolyte flung a second ball of light at the same spot again—as if that would make a difference—while the scholar began throwing fireballs in random directions.

The mage, meanwhile, had turned back to face the fire slugs. He was still bathed in fire from their attacks but appeared only a little worse for wear. Raising his right arm, the savant waved his hand negligently in the direction of one of my minions.

A savant mage has cast mental domination. You have lost control over a level 125 fire slug.

My eyebrows shot up. The mage had not just broken my hold on the slug; he had taken control of it himself. He didn’t stop with the one, either. Pointing at each slug in turn, the savant dominated them in quick succession.

Holding back from taking further action, I waited to see what the savant would do next. But after capturing the slugs’ minds and stopping them from drenching him in fire, the mage seemed to lose interest in his new pets. Turning around to scan the basin’s rim, he joined his fellows in throwing fireballs at the unoffending cavern walls.

The basin was too large and attacks too scattered to pose any real danger to me, though, and I barely paid the fireballs any heed. Instead, I continued to observe the dominated slugs.

It was a full thirty seconds before creatures broke free from the frozen poses they’d fallen into after being dominated and resumed their slow, aimless path through the lava fields.

My ploy, it seemed, was in shambles.

The mage had not died in fiery agony as I’d planned. In fact, he’d barely sustained any damage. Worse yet, I’d quickly lost control of my minions.

So how was I going to kill the savants? If I can’t use the fire slugs to—

I paused. Did it mean that?

My gaze slid back to the savant mage. He was hunched over ever-so-slightly. My eyes narrowed. Was he still hurt? Reaching out with my will, I reinspected the creature, this time querying his health status.

The target is a savant mage. He is barely injured.

He hadn’t healed.

Was that because he couldn’t? Or because the damage was too minor to bother with? Let’s hope it’s the former, I thought, my eyes gleaming with new hope. It would be a slow grind to kill the savants with the fire slugs, but if they were unable to heal themselves, then with some effort, I could see it done.

Drawing on my will, I got to work again.