System Lost: My Own Best Friend

By the time we get all geared up and ready to depart, I'm feeling a lot better thanks to Talla's spell—though Maggie is still raving like a lunatic. I'm pretty worried about her, but even if we knew a way to balance the mental strain more evenly between us, she seems determined to take it all on herself. It's not like I want to get all depressed or anything—in hindsight, I think some of my malaise in the first week might have been from magical strain. It's hard to say, though. I had no shortage of reasons to be a bit sad.

I'm just not sure what Maggie's doing is healthy. Then again, I'm not even sure what exactly she's doing. She refuses to explain, saying only that she's got it handled—you know, between megalomaniacal ranting, cackling like a witch, and the occasional bout of ominous silence.

All I can do for now is take her word for it and be ready to support her when she crashes down from whatever high she's on right now.

Progress is a lot slower now that they—or I guess we—are surveying the area rather than just scouting. I'm not entirely clear on the difference, but mostly it seems to mean stopping to let Talla scan the area and jot down a few sketches. I suspect they are also giving me time to adjust to their formations.

Based on the fact that I have a spear and shield—even though they're small ones—I've been placed in the front with Draga. Saban takes up the rear as a sniper, and I'm assured that friendly fire is not a concern. Talla takes position between us, with her safety being top priority—ostensibly because she's a mage and healer, but I bet her status plays a big part in it too. Even when pushing boundaries, I've noticed that Draga is a lot gentler with her than with me or Saban.

Brave Sir Nipper is bravely perched upon his new favorite spot across my shoulders, now that he's too big to bravely hide in my cloak pockets.

"[It looks like everything on this side of the stream has converged,]" Talla says as we cross through the Mushroom Cave. "[Allie, when you were inside, did you see the source of this stream?]"

I nod and point upstream with the spear. It's so awkward holding it left-handed, but I know that if we have to use it, Violet's going to be the one in front.

"[That will make for a good reference point to measure how large the inside is then,]" she comments. "[Draga?]"

"[I'll put an anchor point here,]" he says with a nod. "[When we find that spring, I'll cross reference it.]"

Huh. Sounds like he's got a similar skill to my [Inner Compass]. I guess that makes sense for a scout or ranger or whatever he is. Unlike Saban and Talla, Draga doesn't have an obvious specialization. He seems to just be kinda good at everything.

Or maybe I just haven't seen him in his element yet.

Either way, once he and Talla are finished with their survey, we form back up and start moving down the next tunnel.

"[So, kid, I can tell you're not too comfortable with that spear,]" Draga comments as we traverse the gloom. "[But trust me, it's a lot better than that dinky hunting knife you carry around. When the fighting starts, stay close to me, keep your spear pointed at the enemy, and keep your shield up. Let them come to you, and let the weapon do the work.]"

"I don't think a defensive strategy is smart against the laser geckos," Violet says. "Standing still and waiting for them to come to us sounds like a good way to get cooked."

"Please don't second-guess the expert, Vi," I groan. "I have to assume they know what they're doing, and we're supposed to be working as a team. We can't do that if we run off to do our own thing."

"Fine," she sighs. "Just be careful. Talla might have our back, but I'm not so sure about the other two."

Draga eyes me for a moment, then shakes his head. "[I'll just take that as a 'yes sir,' then,]" he mutters. "[Luckily, embergaze basilisks are very low tier threats compared to other subspecies. We should be able to handle a nest of them no problem.]"

"[As long as none have evolved,]" Talla adds, earning her annoyed glares from the other two rangers.

"[Blood and acid, Talla, don't jinx it!]" Saban complains.

"Do I want to know what happens when they evolve?" I sigh.

"Same thing that happens to us!" Maggie chuckles ominously. "They get stronger! Maybe they fire actual lasers from their eyes, or turn things to stone! I hope they turn things to stone!"

"Why would you want that?"

"So I can steal it!"

I sigh. Aside from her trick with [Message]—which is admittedly pretty slick even if it seems to be slowly driving her insane—Maggie has yet to actually replicate any useful spells or skills. I trust that she can eventually, but I think she's setting her sights a little too high. I'll have to talk to her about it later, though—this really isn't the time.

We stop at the branch briefly, but Talla doesn't do much more than give it a cursory glance to confirm that we're deeper into the convergence point and add it to her sketches before we're back on our way. This time, we head away from the chasm, towards where Draga spotted the lizard den.

"No sign of the stalker yet?" Vi asks as we creep down the tunnel.

I shake my head. "No, and thank goodness. Nipper hasn't been acting up either. You don't think it can cross the gorge, do you?"

"I'm not ruling it out," she sighs.

"Hah!" Maggie scoffs. "That invisible fucker has nothing on our Nipper. Who's a good little canary?"

Geez that's dark. Mags has a weird sense of humor at the best of times, but I'd rather not think about using Nipper's life as an early warning system. The weird little creature is kinda growing on me.

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It's starting to get a lot warmer, and sure enough Draga soon holds up a hand to bring us to a halt.

"[Alright, here's the plan,]" he says quietly. "[The nest is wide open and there's too many for us to box them all in. There are three hotspots and at least two other egress points, so this is going to be a little messy. Not ideal for a culling, but I'm putting our safety first.]"

He points down the tunnel with his sword.

"[We'll have line of sight after the next bend,]" he explains. "[Saban, I want you to take out as many as you can see before we even approach. Allie and I will hold off any that scramble our way, Talla stays on reserve to hit stragglers and watch our flank.]"

Saban and Talla nod affirmatively, but I just clutch the spear in a white-knuckle grip and listen like my life depends on it.

"[Once we've thinned them out, we'll move in to clean up the nest,]" he continues. "[There shouldn't be many left after that, but we don't fight them in the open. Fall back and let the stragglers either come to us or run away. Do not break formation.]"

He waits for another round of nods, then sighs and scratches at a beard-like patch of fur on his chin.

"[Talla, since you had to go and mention it, I want you to keep an eye out for any evolutions,]" he adds. "[Allie's still a rookie. If you see anything higher than tier three, call it out and we'll make a full retreat.]"

"[Got it,]" she confirms with a solemn nod.

"[Good. Let's move.]"

I clutch the spear tightly and take a deep breath, holding it for a moment before slowly releasing. My hands relax slightly—still firmly gripping my weapons, but not so tightly that my arms shake from the effort. I lift the wooden buckler up and level the spear as we advance, watching the dark corners for any signs of camouflaged lizards.

"You got this Vi!" Allie cheers. "Show them what you can do!"

That does draw a smile out of me, but I try to stay focused. The tunnel here is narrow and the footing is good, if a little loose. A good place to hold position, though I'm still worried about their eyes. We creep silently around the bend—no sign of any ambush.

No sign of the nest, either. Draga said we'd have line of sight, but when he brings us to a halt, I can't see anything except maybe a pinprick of dull orange light in the distance.

"[Saban?]" Draga whispers.

The sniper nocks an arrow and draws back his bow. "[I've got a shot.]"

"[Talla, wait until the first shot,]" Draga orders. "[Ready?]"

Wait for what? Ready for what? These are the kinds of details that they should have already shared, especially since we can't ask questions. I suppress my irritation and keep my eyes forward.

"[Ready,]" Talla confirms.

"[Loose.]"

Saban's bow cracks like a whip, the sound echoing off the tunnel walls around us. I can practically feel the displaced air as his arrow flies. I can't even tell whether his shot did anything, but he immediately nocks another arrow. At the same time as he looses his second shot, Talla's dim orb of light suddenly focuses into a more narrow cone and doubles its intensity, shrouding us in darkness while illuminating the entire tunnel ahead of us like a floodlight.

I hear them at the same time that I see them. A cacophony of hisses and squeaks mixed with the scrabbling of claws on stone as dozens of the mottled grey-orange lizards start charging down the tunnel towards us.

In my head there would be one or two at a time—maybe a particularly crowded four at once. The reality is far more unnerving. The lizards crawl along the walls and ceiling, they scramble over and under each other and pack the tunnel with their numbers. Saban fires another arrow.

Sweat runs down my back as I brace myself. The tunnel is already getting warmer, but despite the sheer number of them focusing their glowing orange gaze on us, the effect is gradual. Of course—the light! They can't look straight at us because Talla's light is blinding them. Not only that, but now that I can see them myself, every arrow Saban fires takes out an eye. Shot after shot, bullseye after bullseye with unerring accuracy. And he's still shooting from behind us.

I swallow nervously, remembering the arrow that nearly took our head off. He didn't miss, did he?

Even with his steady progress, I can tell it won't be enough. They're going to hit us soon and I have no idea how Draga and I are supposed to hold so many. The slow, docile creatures I'm used to are nowhere to be seen. This is a frenzied horde defending their nest, and they're about to crash right into me.

I hold my spear steady, drawing on everything [Retaliation] and [Protect the Innocent] will grant me. Who knows—maybe Nipper counts?

"Shield up, spear forward, let the weapon do the work," I repeat Draga's advice like a mantra, feeling like an idiot for ever questioning him.

"You can do this," Allie whispers, her phantom hands resting over mine to still their trembling. "We're right here with you."

"Fuck 'em up, Vi!" Maggie adds helpfully.

I don't have time to appreciate their support before the tide of lizards slams into me. Despite the enhancements of my class, the first wave nearly bowls me over. It takes everything I have just to stay on my feet and keep my arms up.

"Shield up, spear forward..."

Draga himself fares much better, the muscular goat man cuts and stabs with grim purpose and lethal efficiency, cutting down another lizard with each movement. Claws and teeth rake across his skin, leaving only faint red lines rather than the horrific gashes I expect.

The distraction nearly costs me a leg as a lizard springs out from beneath one of its fallen kin and scrambles toward me. Nipper hits it with a spray of sticky threads that cover its eyes and mouth, slowing it down enough for me to stab it in the head before it can snap its jaws down on my shins.

"[Keep that shield up, kid!]" Draga calls, causing me to jump.

I lift my arms up again just in time to block yet another gecko's attempt to take my head off with its claws even as it impales itself on my spear.

Everything becomes a blur. The air is thick and heavy with the metallic smell of blood, the noise echoing off of the tunnel walls becomes a cacophonous din, and all I can do is hold myself steady and keep repeating Draga's words.

Shield up. Spear forward. Let the weapon do the work. Block, thrust, nearly slip on the blood pooling at my feet. Shield up, spear forward—I don't need to thrust. Focus on remaining standing. Let the weapon do the work.

I can't thank him enough.

After what feels like an eternity, the numbers thin out, the barrier of corpses ahead of us making it impossible for more than a handful to squeeze through at a time. A short while later, they stop trying.

I stand stock still, panting for breath and barely able to stay on my feet. My arms burn as they hang limp at my sides, too exhausted to do much more than keep a trembling grip on my spear.

"[Not a bad first showing, kid,]" Draga congratulates me, snapping me out of my reverie.

Talla's light has already reverted back to a softly glowing orb, taking on an odd soothing quality, like my sore arms are being invisibly massaged back to life. Draga's shallow flesh wounds are already visibly closing, while I miraculously remain untouched. It was all a blur, but I have to assume they must have protected me in some way. I don't even know how we stopped the ones on the ceiling. Some have arrows sticking out of their backs, while others seem to have charred holes burned straight through them.

Talla? I was so focused on what was happening right in front of me that I didn't even see it.

"[Bet you gained a couple levels from that, eh?]" Draga says, nudging me with an elbow.

I blink and check.

[Level up!]

Savior is now level 2.

Pathfinder is now level 5.

+2 Resilience.

+2 Awareness (Allison).

+2 Ego.

+2 Will (Allison).

"Yeah," I confirm with an absent nod.

"[Great!]" he cheers, patting me on the shoulder. "[Now let's clear the path and head into the den to clean up any stragglers.]"

Huh? I grimace, suppressing a pained whine trying to escape my chest. That's right, isn't it? We're not done yet.

"Allie, Maggie," I wheeze, still a bit winded. "I'm starting to think that being a ranger is kind of hard."