By themselves, these Skills are pretty much useless in a fight with someone else of the same Tier who’s got a real combat Class. But that doesn’t mean that if you’ve just made Tier 1 you can go mouthing off to some Tier 3 civilian grandma. She may be a daft old biddie, as we used to say, but that biddie can probably still fuck you sideways with nothing but a kitchen knife. Never forget the tyranny of Attributes.
- Delver’s Guild Handbook, Section 8.4 – “General Weapons Skills”
Curious, I peered in, my eyes widening as I spotted the pistol inside. I carefully pulled it out and examined it. It was larger and weightier than my old Level 0 pistol and looked much more dangerous. I checked that it was unloaded before giving it to Raylan to hold onto as I pulled a few other items from the bag. There was a single loaded magazine, a leather holster with some straps on it, and a heavy paper box like the one my slugs had come in.
Raylan accepted the weapon with a pleased smile, and after a little creative work with one of his knives he strapped the holster to his right thigh over his cuisses. He fiddled with the draw a few times until he was satisfied. I was excited for us to find our first dungeon loot after a successful fight. Don’t get too cocky Az, this is definitely going to get a lot harder…
Unable to keep following the cliff, we started making our way into the woods along the side of the massive rockfall. We passed by the first, enormous, boulder, then several others, each smaller than the last. As we walked by a rock that was ‘only’ twice my height, I noticed that there was a large open area in front of us.
In the center of a grassy area at least a hundred and fifty yards across there was a single, massive tree. It was much thicker than any of the others we’d seen, and it had to be a couple hundred feet tall, towering over the trees that ringed the clearing. The huge trunk went straight up for at least a hundred feet before there were even any branches. I could see the stream of water parting and flowing around its wide base before continuing into the trees beyond.
“Wasted hells,” Raylan breathed out loud. I glared at him and he quickly apologized.
Shit! Level 5?! And it’s an ‘Elder’ – I don’t like the sound of that, at all. Are there others around? What does it even do? Can it move? I was suddenly suspicious of every tree around us, though none of them had done anything other than stand there so far.
Zaire and Elin spoke at the same time. I can’t tell if Zaire actually thinks I can come up with a plan for this… For once I agree with Elin.
As we cautiously moved closer, trying to find the end of the rockfall, the treant’s branches rustled ominously, like a strong wind had suddenly appeared. I froze in place, and the sound subsided. My heart was pounding.
Elin added helpfully.
I nodded, my throat tight with fear. Turning slowly around, I prepared to head back towards the cliff when I noticed something. The rockfall, which had appeared natural, from this angle looked almost like a giant staircase as each boulder was taller than the one before it. The many smaller rocks crammed into the gaps, and some plants growing on it here and there, had obscured the shape.
Getting on the first rock proved quite a challenge. There were shorter rocks closer to the monster, but we decided to stick with what seemed to be a safe distance and try to get up right where we were. Zaire claimed to have some experience climbing, and he proved it as he managed to find a way to make it up right at the curve where two large rocks met.
Watching him, I thought I could see what he’d done, but it proved to be much harder than it looked and I didn’t make it far before falling. My barrier protected me from the hard landing and a bruised tailbone, and slightly embarrassed, I waited for it to recharge.
Zaire laid down on top of the rock and extended a hand downwards. Together, Raylan and I boosted Elin up high enough to catch his hand and they managed to get her scrambling onto the rock beside him. I went next, leaping from Raylan’s cupped hands to catch Zaire and Elin’s wrists. Raylan insisted on trying to copy Zaire’s climb but suffered the same fate I had and we ended up lowering a rope for him to climb instead.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
From the top of the first rock, maybe ten or eleven feet off the ground, we started working our way up the rockfall, scrambling and clawing our way up the smaller rocks onto the next large boulder and the next. By the time we reached the halfway point, we were at least forty feet off the ground. I was grateful that the taller boulders were also wider or I would have been worried about falling off.
Zaire led the way up, demonstrating an agility that I hadn’t expected from the tall Mage. I wondered if there was any connection with the fact that he’d ended up with Earth as his first rune, but I didn’t feel comfortable asking. As we neared the edge of the cliff, I finally figured out something that should have been apparent before – there was no gap in the cliff left by falling rocks. It was as if they had just appeared next to the cliff rather than breaking off from it.
Two rocks from the top, I had everyone sit and rest for a few minutes, recovering some stamina as we drank a bit of water. The others were eager to continue, but I reminded them that we needed to stay in the dungeon for at least four hours anyway. I finally gave in and we continued when Elin, who’d used the most mana so far, had absorbed enough to be three-quarters full. My own mana was just a few points off of full since I’d been able to recover all the shells I’d fired at the wolves.
The last climb to the cliff level was perhaps another eight feet or so, and again Zaire went first, seeming to have no issues using what seemed like tiny ridges in the rock to place his hands and feet.
He cut off mid-sentence with a sudden shout, and then he was stumbling back and over the edge. Instinctively, I reached out for him, and he came crashing down onto Raylan and me, the three of us slamming to the ground in a flicker of energy as our barriers took the worst of the damage. As we untangled ourselves and scrambled to our feet I saw the top of a tree appear over the edge of the cliff.
Shit, that tree is coming closer – it must be another treant!
We retreated down to the next boulder as the treant advanced. As it came closer to the edge, I noticed that the branches weren’t bobbing up and down like a person walking would, instead it almost seemed to be gliding, though I couldn’t see the bottom of the thing from this angle. I had my gun out and ready but I wasn't sure where to aim – the monster had no face, no eyes or other obvious weak points. It didn’t even seem to have any hands or arm-like branches. It just looked like any of the other trees we’d passed below, though its branches were moving as if there was a strong wind.
One of Elin’s Pain Bolts smacked it in the trunk, not leaving a mark. A terrible sound, like wind shrieking through a poorly-fitting wooden shutter, indicated her attack had done something at least.
The treant’s next attack targeted Elin, who was able to block most of it with her shield before taking cover behind the first wall with Zaire. The next ball of dirt slammed into the Earth Wall, sending clumps of dirt and small rocks flying but barely leaving a scratch on the tough rock. A few seconds later, a second wall slid up next to the first, and as I ducked behind it, Tactical Reposition activated for the first time. I felt a small surge of mana flow into me and grinned.
Elin started to stand up, and I shouted for her to stop.
She crouched back down with a glare, but I ignored her. Careful not to drop any, I unloaded my gun, placing the six standard shells into Raylan’s cupped hands. I loaded my three slugs, then concentrated, infusing Ignite. By the time I was ready, a few more attacks had impacted helplessly against Zaire’s barrier. I waited for the next attack, then popped up and took aim at the center of the trunk.
BOOM! click-click
I watched with a vicious grin as my shot landed right on target, blasting out chunks of wood as it smashed into the monster with brutal force. The shrieking sound resumed, but this time it didn’t stop. The treant didn’t seem to need to breathe, and the sound was more painful than its weak Level 1 attacks.
I carefully extracted my expended shotshell, returning it to my bandolier, before racking in another slug and repeating my shot, aiming for the already wounded area. Then I ducked down and repeated my methodical reload.
He nodded, and I counted to thirty, then waited for the next attack. As soon as it hit, I darted out from behind my wall and towards the first wall, taking cover next to Elin as Zaire joined Raylan. My experiment failed to activate Tactical Reposition however. Shit, I was sure that was going to work! I guess all of Zaire’s walls count as the same cover? I’m sure it was more than a minute since the first time it triggered.
I peeked over the wall, looking at the terrain in front of me, and found a spot up against the next higher boulder where I was sure the treant wouldn’t be able to hit me. I darted out between the two walls, easily making it to the side of the boulder before a ball of dirt flew past me. This time I felt the rush of mana and grinned. This is great, my mana is almost full again! OK, one more test to go.
he replied. Plenty of time. I counted slowly to sixty, then repeated my dash back to Zaire’s walls. Nothing. Fuck, I can’t even go back to a previous position?!
BOOMBOOM! click-click
My third slug impacted just below the first two, triggering the sonic capacitor mod for good measure. I could see smoke coming out of the now-gaping hole blown into the treant’s trunk. I ducked back behind my cover as a ball of dirt and rocks sailed overhead. I had refreshed my slug and was preparing to shoot again when the shrieking sound finally stopped and I felt a surge of Essence almost as strong as we’d gotten from all the wolves combined. There was a crashing sound as the dead treant toppled over the cliff and landed with a shattering of branches on the rock above us.
“Level 3!” shouted Zaire, visibly excited for the first time since I’d met him. I stood, about to congratulate him, when suddenly there was another terrible howling shriek – only this one was ten times louder than the last, and it was coming from behind us!
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