An arrow pierced through the thorax of a flying locust with enough force that the impact sent the insect buzzing backwards in erratic spirals before it went still and plummeted to the sandstone brick floor a few meters away from the field of pressure ptes, its body adding to the growing pile of chitin and hemolymph that had been accumuting there for the past hour, and it was quickly accompanied by three more locusts dying in a simir fashion with arrows embedded deep in their segmented bodies.
Deacon lowered the arm holding the Echoform Reliquary in its recurve bow form, the familiar weight of the weapon fading as it shifted back into its dormant state and slid into its sheath beside his quiver.
He couldn’t help but notice that his quiver, which had been full when they’d started this whole endeavor, was now empty, forcing him to swap it out for a backup. The arrows had either been buried in locust bodies or embedded in the walls amid the chaos of kiting cluster after cluster of ravenous chimera locusts, which surprisingly had the ability to self-detonate if they weren’t killed in a single strike, back to their safe zone.
Turning to survey the aftermath of their test pull, he saw that the remaining locusts from the activated cluster had met their end in a variety of ways; some encased entirely in thick blocks of ice, others sheared cleanly in half by arcs of wind, and a few more impaled on earth spears that had erupted from the ground.
We’ve milked them as much as we can, Deacon mused to himself, and we’re starting to hit a pteau on levels from the chimeric locusts.
He pulled open the barrage of System notifications he’d been deliberately ignoring for the past couple of hours, letting them stack up on each other rather than disturb him while he focused on triggering pressure ptes with Jass, carefully ushering them out of the field of pressure ptes before killing them with his team and repeating the process.
*[Chimeric Locust Lv 24] has been sin – Partial XP has been given.*****[Chimeric Locust Lv 23] has been sin – XP has been given.*
*Your Css has reached Lv 21 – Points allocated, +1 Free Point*****Your Css has reached Lv 24 – Points allocated, +1 Free Point*
*Your Race has reached Lv 22 – Points allocated, +1 Free Point*****Your Race has reached Lv 24 – Points allocated, +1 Free Point*
Dismissing the notifications with a thought and let his gaze flick back toward his Party members, taking in how much more confident they all looked now that they'd gotten several levels under their belts and were settling in for a brief rest after clearing out another cluster of the locusts, the tension that had been riding all of them earlier having eased into something closer to cautious optimism.
Jass and Sam were in the middle of what looked like a heated argument over lunch provisions, both of them fighting over the single remaining container of fried chicken chunks with rice and barbecue sauce. The only other option for the day were the containers of chili with beans that neither of them seemed remotely enthusiastic about, and sat ignored between them.
From the way their voices were starting to rise, Deacon suspected they’d be at this for a while unless someone intervened.
To their left, Bonehead was sitting cross-legged in front of his portable cauldron, looking absolutely giddy given that he looked to be on the verge of a breakthrough. His skeletal fingers occasionally reach out to stir the bubbling, sludgy mixture or to add a pinch of some powdered ingredient he'd ground from antlion cores.
Sensing Deacon’s gaze on him, he gave him a double thumbs up, informing him that he was nearing completion on the Anti-Insectoid Grease.
Esmerelda had settled a few feet away from Bonehead, close enough that they could freely talk, but far enough not to be in his way as he brewed. Her knees were drawn up slightly as she watched him work, her posture still tight and guarded but no longer on the verge of colpse.
The constant tremor in her hands had lessened, even if the tension hadn’t fully left her eyes.
Progress, Deacon reminded himself as he looked away from his Party and turned his attention back toward the field of pressure ptes that formed a spiral pattern around the bound dryad statue at the center of the room.
He felt a small surge of satisfaction as he took in how much ground they’d managed to cover. Only two rows of ptes now separated them from the dryad statue, with the party’s banner embedded in the ground just behind them, which, hopefully, once they managed to reach the dryad, would reveal to them the next room they’d need to go through to advance through the temple.
Walking over toward the four meal containers scattered on the ground beside where Jass and Sam were still bickering over who deserved the fried chicken rice and barbeque meal, Deacon grabbed two of the chili with beans containers and headed toward where Esmerelda sat watching Bonehead work, passing one to her before plopping down on the sandstone floor beside her with enough force that the impact would have caused the dirt mound Esmerelda had her back against crumble if it wasn’t for her quickly reinforcing the dirt with a wave of her wand
Just as he settled in and was about to pry open the lid of his container, Bonehead let out a whoop of joy that echoed throughout the chamber as he killed the fme crystals beneath his cauldron with a flourish that seemed entirely unnecessary but very much in character for him.
"Anti-Insectoid Grease complete!" he announced as he reached into the still-bubbling mixture without any apparent concern to extract whatever he'd created.
The decration was met with whistles and cheers from everyone in the Ravenlight Party, the sound bouncing off the walls in a way that felt almost celebratory, given the tension they'd all been operating under for the past few hours.
Bonehead basked in the cheers and whistles with no ounce of shame as he watched System Notifications flicker into existence around him.
Combined with the contributions he made to killing the locusts, the XP he gained for successfully brewing a new consumable managed to push his Race all the way to Level 24 – joining the rest of the Ravenlight Party members in being a singur level from receiving their Racial Trait.
A moment ter, a chunk of Anti-Insectoid grease came flying through the air, tossed by Bonehead. Deacon caught it without thinking, his fingers closing around the dense, soap-like substance. He quickly noticed that it had a dull yellow-green tint, and it was still feeling slightly warm due to its recent creation.
He pulled up Identify almost reflexively, wanting to see exactly what Bonehead had managed to produce, and nodded in approval as the information scrolled across his vision before he tucked the grease into a sizable pouch on his hip for ease of use.
Item Name: Anti-Insectoid GreaseType: Consumable – Weapon CoatingRarity: UncommonEffect: Temporarily increases damage dealt to Insectoids and reduces the effectiveness of chitin-based defenses.Description:A dense, soap-like block of alchemical grease with a dull yellow-green tint. Made by Bennett Graves, a prodigious Tier 1 Alchemist. When applied to a bde, the grease weakens Insectoid armor on contact, allowing physical strikes to bite deeper. The coating remains effective for approximately forty strikes before degrading and requiring reapplication.
Deacon was just about to finally dig into his food, his stomach having spent the past thirty minutes reminding him that he hadn’t eaten anything substantial since before they’d entered the portal, when the sound of shattering gss resounded within their minds – it was unmistakable, and immediately understood by everyone present.
The barrier that had been holding back the antlions outside had been breached, which meant the creatures would be flooding toward the portal any second now, and there was no time left for eating or resting or anything else that didn't involve immediate pushing through the temple, getting the fuck out of it.
Deacon tossed his opened container aside without a second thought, stuffing the wrapped grano bar in his mouth without wasting a second as he lunged toward the campfire they'd set up earlier, along with the rest of his Party, everyone moving with the kind of uncoordinated-coordinated urgency.
Bnk pieces of parchment were thrown into the fmes in rapid succession, each one catching fire and transforming into a Status Page that shot back into the air and revealed to them the fruits of their bor.
Deacon snatched his out of the air before the edges could curl too much from the heat, his eyes already scanning past the Updates Tab and back to the main page where his unallocated points waited while his mind ran through the calcutions of where they'd be most useful.
He assigned eight of his Free Points with quick mental commands, five into Wisdom to bring it up to 70, and three into Perception to push it to 65. Both stats that would help him react faster and notice details that might save his life in whatever was about to come crashing through that portal, and he stuffed the Status Page back into his bag before the numbers had even finished updating.
Skill Gained: [Basic Archery Mastery (Initiate)]Skill Upgrade: [Basic Archery Mastery (Initiate → Common)]
Deacon Surtr HayesRace: J?tunn Lv 24Css: Warrior Lv 24Health: 2350/2350Mana: 693/700Stamina: 1680/1761Stats:Vitality: 220 (231) +4 (Lesser Heart-Fire Ritual)Strength: 209 (219)Endurance: 163 (171) +5 (Lesser Heart-Fire Ritual)Agility: 92Intelligence: 65Wisdom: 70Willpower: 99Perception: 65 (68)Free Points: 0Racial Traits:General Skills: Identify (Initiate), Meditation (Initiate)Css Skills: [One-Handed Weapon Mastery (Uncommon+)], Shield Mastery (Uncommon), Academy of Beginnings Sword Style (Rare), Blistering Fmes (Rare), Power Strike (Uncommon), Basic Archery Mastery (Initiate)Spell Masteries: Fire [Spark (Initiate), Ignis (Uncommon), Fme Armament (Uncommon), Fme Mine (Rare), Fme Art: Fme Steps (Uncommon)], Water [Water Ball (Initiate), Cleanse (Common)], Earth [Gouge Ground (Common)], Blood: [Blood Sense(Common)], BloodFme: [Ignis Sanguinis: BloodFme Armament (Epic)]Affinity: Fire (High) – Innate skill: Undying Fme, Blood (High) – Innate skill: LockedAchievements: Finder of the Hidden III [+15 All Stats], Saga Walker I [+10 All Stats & 5% to Perception]
They all rushed toward where their banner stood embedded in the ground, its protective enchantments still glowing faintly as it created the anti-projectile dome that had kept them safe during their careful advancement through the pressure pte field.
As they ran, Bonehead pulled out several gss vials of insecticide from his Spatial Satchel and tossed them over his shoulder, the containers shattering against the stone to release their toxic contents in clouds that would hopefully slow down the antlions when they came pouring through.
Standing within the shimmering dome barrier created by the banner, Deacon and Jass exchanged a single gnce before they unceremoniously stepped onto the st two pressure ptes in their path that sat directly in front of the bound dryad on a cross.
The reaction was immediate.
From Deacon's left, a barrage of darts erupted from hidden mechanisms in the wall and pelted against the side of the barrier with enough force that he heard them thudding against the magical shield, but none of them pierced through the banner's enchantments, holding strong just as they'd hoped it would.
Simultaneously, the dryad statue itself began to shine with a bright color that made Deacon's eyes water slightly from the intensity, and with the help of his Talisman of the Inner Mind that had been hiding beneath his bracers.
He recognized the glow for exactly what it was – an illusory wall.
“Run through it!” Deacon shouted at his Party as he grabbed a hold of the Ravenlight Banner and began pushing it back into his Spatial Satchel. Watching out of the corner of his eye were Jass and Sam, who sprinted right into the bound dryad’s legs and disappeared right through before Bonehead sprinted right after them.
As the banner fully disappeared into his Spatial Sling Bag, Deacon muttered a muffled curse as he saw Esmerelda remain ramrod straight in front of the statue.
Rushing forward, Deacon picked her up into a princess carry without missing a step and charged through the statue – not noticing how Esmerelda’s eyes had once more gained golden irises.
Thraksius
