NOVEL NEXT Ch. 31: A Startling Encounter
Cass packed up her camp, sticking the hot vineroot back in her pocket for later and throwing her mat over one shoulder again. She checked the outer cavern with care and, upon finding it empty, squeezed out through the narrow entrance.
She stood in front of the crack for another minute or two, watching her stats. She needed to know how long her Focus would last with Soul Guard running. It didn’t drop, but it did not rise either. So it was being consumed at about the same speed as her Focus recovery then?
She could work with that. She should reserve about 50 Focus for an emergency Wind Step and an additional 20 for lighting a campfire with Elemental Manipulation. That left her 117 Focus available for her use.
That was 2 Wind Steps or 5 elemental summons with Elemental Manipulation. She could make that work, but avoiding fights for a while was probably best.
As ready as she could be, she Stealthed toward the crossroads again, gliding silently through the gloom.
There was a concern that the Centipede would be in that direction. Its lair was there after all, but there was also the other path, the one she’d felt moving wind down. If there was an exit, wouldn’t it be that way?
She could, she supposed, backtrack through cockroach territory to where she’d first landed down here. With Elemental Manipulation and Wind Step, she could probably ride a self-made gust of wind up and out again. Unless the natural downward currents were stronger than she could control.
It was worth keeping in mind, but for now, if there was a chance to walk out of here without her skills that was her preference.
She made quick progress through the areas she’d already been down. The hall was quiet and still, the breeze kicked up by Stealth the only movement as it rippled over the bare stone floor, but she slowed as she entered the areas beyond the crossroad.
Technically, she’d been down this way some as well, when the Herald had chased her and the Shadow Orb. But she hadn’t been watching too closely then and anything else that might have enjoyed a small Cass snack had had the good sense to hide from the Ancient Centipede too.
She didn’t know what might be down this way when it wasn’t around. Hell, for all she knew, the Centipede or one of its children was lurking around this corridor.
Cass shuddered at the thought. If she never saw a centipede again it would be too soon.
Are you planning on fighting the Lord of the Deep?
Cass jumped at the demon’s voice grating against her thoughts, a yelp of pain and shock escaping her lips. She clenched her fists around her staff, looking up and down the cavern.
Except for a pair of flat beetles pressed against the ceiling a couple yards back, which seemed as uninterested in her as they had a moment ago when she’d passed, there was nothing nearby.
“Don’t do that,” she hissed. She did another visual sweep of the cave, double and triple checking that nothing was about to jump out at her, before continuing, her voice still and angry stage whisper. “Why would I fight the Lord of the Deep? Do I look like I want to die?”
You beat its Herald.
“No, I escaped the Herald. Let's not pretend that was anything else. And all it got me was you. Which, by my count, means that stunt nearly killed me twice over.”
He was silent another moment. Perhaps thinking. Perhaps letting the pain from his previous words subside. It was definitely worse in quick bursts. She’d gone another couple of yards before he spoke again.
The weak do not survive.
She snorted at that. “You think I haven’t figured that one out? Thanks.”
The weak only become strong through risk and chance.
“And how is that working out for you?” she shot back. “Last I checked, you were level 4 and stuck in my head.”
Your Soul Well.
“What?”
There was a long pause. A silent debate over whether the pain was worth it? A plea for the resonance that caused the pain to dissipate some before he spoke again? Who knew what a demon thought.
I am stuck in your Soul Well. Not your head. We would both be in less pain if you let me back into the necklace.
Cass scowled. “So you can eat me in my sleep? We’ve been over this. No.”
Won’t eat you.
She actually laughed at that. The area was clear, she’d checked again; she could afford to be a little loud. “Thank you, Mr. Wolf. And I’m sure your great big eyes are just to look at me better.”
I’m not a wolf. There was a lot of confusion in those three words. She could feel there were more things he wanted to say, but the pain was mounting for both of them.
“I’m not that gullible, that’s all you need to know.”
Cass thought that was the end of that conversation. There had been finality to her tone. There was pain from their strained souls. There wasn’t much more to say. She didn’t trust him. He’d just have to try not attempting to kill his host next time if he wanted one to trust him.
She came up on a bend in the cave corridor. Atmospheric Sense said things were breathing just around the corner. Mana Sense picked out two balls of mana through the wall, pale green and hazy.
Cass sidled up against the wall to peek out with her eyes as well, though she could already hear a low growling noise. She inched her way along the wall, inch by silent inch. Her body tensed with every shuffled step. Her stomach did flips in her chest. Her heart was pounding in her ears.
What if I could help you kill the Lord of the Deep?
She jumped forward, a surprised shout on her lips. Intellectually, she knew it was just the demon, whispering his useless words from the core of her being. But the rational, intellectual voice was quite a bit slower than her tense gut.
That gut had already sent the commands: Run! Scream! Save yourself!
By the time reason had reasserted itself, she was standing in the middle of the pathway. In front of a pair of the largest rats she had ever seen.
They were huge. Like, Rodents of Unusual Size large. Like men-in-poorly-made-rat-costume-sized. And just as scraggly and awkward looking to boot, with beady eyes and long crooked teeth.
Depth Rat (lvl 15)
Depth Rat (lvl 12)
[One of many scavengers of the Deep. Depth Rats are known for their powerful bite and their viciously opportunistic nature. They are able to tread water for two weeks if necessary and are highly resistant to electricity and poison, making them an incorrigible scourge on the Uvana Valley.]
The level 15 broke the shocked stillness first, snarling and sprinting at her.
It’s jaws unhinged like a snake to swallow her whole.
Move!
She couldn’t say if that thought had been her own, the demon’s, or her skill Dodge pleading her to activate it. It might have been all three. She followed the advice, her heightened Dexterity letting her get out of the way despite how close the rat had already gotten.
Dodge has increased to level 4.
Closer dodges were worth more experience, her skill whispered in the back of her mind, unspoken but something she knew to be true to the core of her being.
She ignored that. She would be dodging as widely as possible, thank you very much.
Staff Mastery begged to be released next. She obliged, raining a hail of staff strikes on the rat as it thrashed after her.
It didn’t slow in its charge, not bothering to dodge or deflect her attacks. The blows bounced off harmlessly.
The second rat (the level 12 one) was only a step or two behind its larger, faster companion. It reared up on its back legs, its front ones reaching for her, its jaw hanging open to snap around her neck.
She blocked the incoming bite with her staff. It clamped down hard, its beady eyes right in her face. She shook it, trying to get it to release the staff to no avail.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Level 15 running at her again. She wrenched her body around, yanking Level 12 with her. It was heavier than she was and stronger to boot, it didn’t come easily. But she angled them enough that Level 15 barreled into Level 12 instead of her, dislodging it from her staff.
It was a short respite, barely a breath before the two were after her again. They snapped after her, their maws ravenous, bumping into each other as they tried to get to her as often as she shuffled out of their way. It was only their complete lack of coordination, that she stood any chance.
She backpedaled, her staff slapping away their snouts. She couldn’t keep up. Level 12 went for her face. Level 15 for her ankle.
She slapped aside 12.
Level 15 bit deep into her left leg. Its fangs cut through her pants and flesh, down to bone, like there was nothing there.
Pain erupted up her leg, escaping her throat as a scream.
She slammed her staff down on its head and it released her with a snarling hiss. She staggered back, stumbling as she put weight on her left leg.
She couldn’t do this. These things didn’t give her any time to breathe, much less counterattack. The strikes she snuck in didn’t seem to phase them in the slightest. She couldn’t hit them hard enough for blunt-force trauma to be effective.
Would things be different if she had a blade?
It was a useless question, she didn’t have one. She had to escape somehow.
She could Wind Step if she made herself a gust with Elemental Manipulation.
She dodged another snap of the rats’ jaws. One of the two got a piece of her jacket’s sleeve. The other got a staff to the snout.
She engaged Elemental Manipulation, grabbing as much air as she could comfortably hold at once. She was about to throw it down the hallway when another thought grabbed her.
Could she make it a blade instead? Like the cockroaches had? She already knew that she couldn’t throw a blade of wind, the air lost cohesion if it got too far away. Though, had she tried since she’d gotten her Range Buff from the Herald?
Was now the moment to experiment?
No, she decided as she slipped to the right of another rat bite. She followed it up with another staff strike to a rat skull to little effect.
But the other option was to run.
She pulled the air toward her, as she dodged around the rats. She could do this. Cockroaches could do it. She could do it.
How had they done it? They condensed it on their wings. Was that to give it shape? Would that be easier? She didn’t have wings, obviously, so she used her staff instead.
The air pooled around it, invisible to ordinary sight, but obvious to her Atmospheric Sense. It wasn’t enough to stockpile it though, she needed it sharp. She pressed it into the shape she wanted, imagining the air forming a long blade starting from just above her forward hand and extending beyond the staff’s tip.
Level 12 snapped at her. She swung her staff with its blade of wind. It was hard to keep the air blade stable as it swung. It was harder to keep it sharp as it collided.
Blood splattered her as flesh split and the rat squealed. It slunk back, a narrow gash on its right shoulder oozing with blood.
It wasn’t very deep, but it was something.
The rat paused, staring at her and her weapon. Reevaluating her viability as prey? Determining a new angle of attack?
Elemental Manipulation has increased to level 9.
[Elemental Manipulation has reached the First Step! Congratulations!
Your innovative use of Elemental Manipulation has opened choices.
Gain Skill: Wind Blade (lvl 1), Keep: Elemental Manipulation (lvl 5)
Gain Skill: Wind Manipulation (lvl 5), Forsake: Elemental Manipulation
Gain Skill: Shape Stone (lvl 5), Forsake: Elemental Manipulation
Keep: Elemental Manipulation (lvl 9)]
Cass’s eyes widened at the options. Would she get an option to alter her skills every time they reached level 9? Why 9?
There wasn’t a lot of time to debate her options. The two rats had pulled back, watching her closely. Were they debating running? She’d let them go if they did.
Stamina: 34/45
Focus: 161/216
Health: 12/32
Her little trick with Elemental Manipulation to form a blade and maintain its form while it sliced through the rat had cost 26 Focus. If she burned all her focus, she could only do that another 5 times, and then—
Focus: 160/216
Why was her Focus dropping? She wasn’t using any skills.
No, that wasn’t true.
Soul Guard was still running. But it had been running. It had been running before the fight and she hadn’t been losing Focus. Her regeneration had been able to keep up with the constant loss.
So why was it dropping now?
Focus: 159/216
Was her Focus regeneration lower right now for some reason? Because she was injured? Because she was fighting? Because she had a third or less Health? Because Stamina wasn’t full? Because a rest-related buff had just worn off?
There wasn’t time to figure this out. Her fight suddenly had a time limit. She still had plenty of time, but it was going to cut into how many skills she could use. And there was no guarantee that the loss over time would stop once the fight was over.
She needed to make camp ASAP.