NOVEL NEXT 0029 – Platforming (4)
Walking further down the passage, soon the next attack announced itself by the gnashing. Again she couldn't find any trigger, but she had been expecting it and the girl quickly ducked under the shard, yet the sound didn't stop. Moving back while changing her posture as unpredictable as possible, Sera evaded the next three projectiles which were quickly fired at her last position.
Unfortunately not even her attempt to get out of the area seemed to stop the attacks of the structure.
Further shards were formed and fired at her.
With the way back now being as dangerous as the way forward, she sacrificed her earlier caution for more speed and started to run through the corridor. For a few moments it seemed like whatever targeted her had issues adapting to her new speed, but it soon managed to adjust the attacks.
Dodging further stone projectiles, the girl had to take out her scythe-sword and use the much larger blade to deflect the shards. The additional weight of the weapon outside of its scabbard slowed her down, yet she concluded that it would be better than having one or two of the ever increasing number of stone spikes stuck in her body.
Weaving through the rain of stone, it didn't take long before Sera had to also rely on the armored parts of her clothing. Dodging tens of projectiles, she was slowly moving forward. Running had become impossible. Her stamina continued to drop under the relentless assault and the same was true for her health. Blocking or redirecting the projectiles helped in keeping the damage low, but the power behind each was still enough to hurt her. Not to mention that from time to time one managed to draw blood. Her coat would later probably be nothing more than a rag.
Quickly dismissing the random thought she focused back on the barrage.
Evading, redirecting and blocking the attacks, Sera fought. Without any enemies in sight, she could just press on, hoping that the passage would end. The thought of destroying the engravings to disrupt whatever was causing her current predicament did cross her mind, yet the shards did a far better job than she could achieve at the moment and shortly after those cracks would still be mended.
Another projectile formed, yet her weapon was already occupied and any direction she could have used to evade had their own projectiles aimed at. It felt a bit as if whatever was attacking her was slowly learning. Not willing to literally take the attack head on, she quickly shifted her body to move her left upper arm in its way, while still redirecting the other attacks. The pain came shortly after, though already being used to it, she just ignored it and fought on. The shard had taken a sizable chunk of her remaining health and slowed her arm down, however she refused to give up.
And what felt like an eternity later, she couldn't tell how long the assault actually lasted, it was over. A last projectile was half formed, yet nothing moved. There was no congratulating jingle, no sound of some foe dying or of a mechanism breaking down. It simply stopped. As if time had frozen.
Sera quickly dragged her battered body a few steps to the side, not that whatever managed this facility was playing some kind of trick, before analyzing her status.
[Sera Goldschmidt
Lv 11
Condition: Bleeding (minor), Pierced (left arm)
Hlth 42/510
Stmn 29/540
Snty 130/180
Mana 31/210
]
She was a bit surprised that her left arm wasn't broken, though she wouldn't question a positive message. Not that it being pierced and bleeding, which would continue to slowly drain her health, was actually positive.
All her actions hadn't even resulted in a level up, but maybe that was less surprising. Basically all of her classes were combat focused against a foe, who had been missing, needed some third party, also missing, or were creative, which had nothing to do with her current situation.
With the stone spike still stuck in her arm, a pierced arm was probably better than the risk of getting "Bleeding (major)" or whatever else came after minor, the girl slowly continued down the corridor. She would have liked to rest or apply some first aid to her wounds, yet without knowing when the attacks might resume, she would prefer to get to a safe place as soon as possible.
Walking deeper into the structure was maybe the wrong approach, but with all the dangers she went through she wanted some reward!
Her stamina was fortunately slowly recovering and soon the again endless seeming passage came to an abrupt end at a giant door. Half questioning whether some kind of lock or barrier would again prevent her from entering the area, Sera pressed her body against the structure. She should have probably used an arm instead to easier evade any possibly appearing spikes, yet with her left arm still useless for such heavy tasks and her right one holding onto her scythe-sword, she was out of options. At least the door opened.
A dark room greeted her, one which clearly screamed that there would be a boss. Though having come this far, she wanted to at least see what was waiting for her. Her sister had defeated the spider, so having the option to fight one for herself, even if it was outside of a dungeon, had quite the allure.
So she walked carefully deeper into the room, staying away from the potentially dangerous walls.
Then suddenly the lights went on, unveiling statues in armor and with weapons standing in the back half of the round chamber. Though what got the girl's focus immediately and made her regret her earlier greed was the being in the center.
Again a statue, yet this one was seated on a throne and with much more decorated armor. A great sword was stuck in front of it with its arms resting on top of the hilt. Furthermore, instead of a normal head, a light brown colored semi transparent sphere with a crown made from rock took its place. Though that wasn't exactly what caused her regret. The box floating next to it was.
[Rock Golem Lv 50]
And that it was slowly rising.
A quick look over her shoulder also confirmed that the entrance had been closed.
She wouldn't have necessarily minded fighting the golem, if she was in perfect condition and had one or two ways to escape from it, should it prove to be too much for her. However now already half dead, she started to doubt that there would be much of a fight.
Taking a deep breath, she banished those thoughts. She had been well aware that one day her rash and sometimes illegal actions could lead to such an outcome. Well, she hadn't thought it would happen this soon, but it wouldn't change what she would do.
Fight till the end and laugh when she would face death!
Looking back, the time in the realms and even this building, with its absurd difficulty curve and jump in genre from mystery to bullet hell to classic rpg, had been quite enjoyable though short.
Transforming her scythe, she wanted to use it at least once. Also just in case it would change anything, she activated her aura. Not that she had to save her mana.
Meanwhile the golem had also put itself into position, holding the great sword over its head with one hand like it weighted nothing. Moving its remaining hand in an inviting fashion it signaled the start of the fight.
"Fine, if you don't move first... I! Will!"
Her flame-clad body was still tired, yet without anything to lose and using up her last reserves, she dashed to her opponent. The golem in return also started to move. Not slow and leisurely like before, but even faster than Sera. Maybe she would have been surprised under normal circumstances, but now she could just laugh. Obviously a level 50 golem wouldn't be a slowly moving behemoth like in some movies and video games she had seen and played.
And then they met.
Even though the great sword was long, Sera still had a greater reach and pumping her mana into her scythe to stabilize the heavy weapon she swung the tip of her new weapon against the sphere-head of the golem. Surprisingly the golem didn't block, though its confidence was quickly proven as the soft glow of a barrier... fizzled out?
Neither Sera nor the golem could quite believe what happened. Though she could only assume the latter, as the sphere wasn't quite expressive.
Especially so now as it was shattered.
[You destroyed a Rock Golem Lv 50.]
The remaining movement of the artificial being however still remained and with her already wounded as well as exhausted body it still managed to graze her left arm. Though aside from more bleeding and 5 health less, no further damage was inflicted.
Worn out, the girl dropped to the ground next to her dead foe. Lying there, she spread her limbs.
"Damn, now my speech was totally useless and i didn't even get a level from it!"
[You learned the Insanity skill.]
[Insanity]
[For most just a status condition, you took it a step further. With a fickle and incomprehensible mind others will have a hard time manipulating you. While some might deem your actions unacceptable, unreasonable, shortsighted and suicidal, for you little should actually change. Targeted mental attack and controlling effects require high proficiency to actually affect you. Allows you to break external compulsions.]
"...thanks but... Argh! Fine! Whatever! I take it!"
The more she thought about the description of her new skill the more it was actually fitting for her. In the end she couldn't help but chuckle about the situation, no longer having any energy left to actually laugh.