Birds Of A Feather 3
The sky sure is blue
Such an idle thought passed through Jens mind, no doubt prompted by the endless azure heavens that stretched out as far as her eyes could see. A group of white clouds had parked themselves just in front of the sun, absorbing its blazing rays before they could fall on Jens face. The woman didnt like clouds. Sure, they looked fluffy and mysterious from afar, but up close they were nothing more than an unpleasant mist that always made her feel sweaty whenever she passed through them. They were also cold, but that she could just ignore, unlike the borderline slimy sensation they left on her skin.
Balls of condensed water aside, there did seem to be sothing else in view. Two things, to be exact. Long, narrow, and boring in coloration, they bobbed in and out of the bottom edge of her view. They looked suspiciously like feet, but that cant have been right. Feet have no place up there. She couldve just tilted her head to get a better look at these foreign objects, but didnt feel like it. Not only was the sky so superbly blue today, but the wind whipping by her ears was ever so relaxing. She just wished she knew why her nose tasted of blood, or why her teeth-
*THUD*
Jen hit the ground head-first before she could finish that thought, putting an end to her brief flight. It was a fall that wouldve injured most people, but the Monk was left relatively unscathed. Her body was so inhumanly tough for its relatively light weight that she could fight off gravity magic that had been amplified to ten tis its normal strength. Simply falling for ten or twenty ters wasnt nearly enough to cause any lasting damage.
It still hurt like mad, though. Enough to snap her out of her groggy, borderline delusional state as she rose from the stone tiles her noggin had cracked. She began treating herself by applying her Healing Hand Skill to her dislocated jaw. She looked around, noticing a smirking feline-eared redhead staring at her while leaning against the wall of the old temple. Looking up a bit, Jen could just barely make out a cloud of dust and a new hole in the slanted roof of the building, no doubt made by her sudden departure from its premises.
You alright over there?
Jen didnt dignify Keiras gleeful taunt with a response as she was too busy trying to piece together how and why she found herself in this position. It took her slightly concussed brain a few monts, but she was able to rember she had just struck a deal with that mithril golem. Fizzy would assist her in conquering The Gauntlet, but only if Jen allowed her to take one free shot at her. She had clearly underestimated just how much power that tiny fra could put out, as she did not expect to vacate the area.
Thinking back on the swing itself though, the Monk couldnt help but feel impressed. Her short-term mory was a bit spotty at the mont, but she was sure the blow was delivered with immaculate form. From start to finish, it was a perfect orthodox uppercut that would make her old hand-to-hand instructor grunt and nod in approval. There was no way she could be mad about such a pleasant surprise, as she had trouble rembering when was the last ti she got hit that hard. If this was the sort of output that golem was capable of, then she would be a great fit for the actual dungeon run.
The radiant construct in question poked her shiny head out of a smashed-up window on the side of the church with a scowl on her shiny face.
Tsk. Still kicking, huh? she mumbled in a disappointed tone. Deals a deal, I suppose. So, when do you wanna head out towards the dungeon, atbag?
Requesting imdiate departure, Jen said in her usual flat tone.
Fine by . The sooner we get this over with, the better.
The two won then set off into the jungle while Keira returned to town. That said, Boxxy hadnt exactly left them alone, as it had both Xera and Drea accompany the pair. The djinn assud the form of a mature elf huntress while the webstalker disappeared completely and escorted them from the shadows. Their master had told the angelic Monk in no uncertain terms that these two were there to support Fizzy should Jen get any stupid ideas. The human was not all too thrilled with that though, mostly because the demons in question were a sneaky assassin and a mystic trickster. Not the sort of people that would accept a head-to-head duel to pass the ti.
Which was, to put it in a certain chest-obsessed monsters words, not tasty.
The four of them made their way through the jungle, forging their way south at a rapid pace. According to Jen, The Gauntlet was several hundred kiloters away, deep in the heart of the jungle and would take more than a days travel to reach on foot. And, true to her word, it wasnt until near sunset on the next day that the quartet arrived at their destination - a massive pyramid-shaped building that was roughly forty ters tall at its highest point. The stone structure was a dull orange in color, and had a depressingly long staircase leading to its zenith. It was also obviously much more than so random ruin, as the structure looked both ancient and in perfect condition at the sa ti.
This the place, then? Fizzy asked as she sized the architectural wonder up and down.
Affirmative. Presenting the Temple of the First Crusader.
Sounds fancy. Whats it doing all the way out here in the middle of nowhere?
The place was so remote that Xera and Drea could not follow them here because it was too far from their contractor. As for Boxxy, it said that it would be busy preparing to depart Velos, which was why it hadnt co personally.
Unknown, Jen replied. Assud to be built and abandoned millennia ago by raptor ancestors.
Uh-huh. You say that, but isnt that dwarven stonework? the golem asked while stroking one of the countless smooth bricks. Architecture may not be my strong point, but Ive seen enough of their masonry to know it when I see it.
Irrelevant, the Monk said flatly. Requesting that we go inside.
Alright, but how? I dont see a door or anything.
The Gauntlet is accessible from the apex.
The angel then unfurled her wings and flew straight to the top, leaving Fizzy to climb up the old-fashioned way.
Ugh, stairs. Whyd it have to be stairs?
The golem wasnt sure why, but agonizingly long staircases were more common in dungeons than one would think. Granted, she hadnt been in all that many of them, but Boxxy had, and it confird her assertion that an average of two out of three dungeons had an overabundance of steps. And she hated every single one of them. They were never built with people of her stature in mind, which made climbing them an awkward and ti-consuming process. Thankfully these steps were outside the dungeon itself, so there were no boobytraps, pitfalls, ambushes or the like to slow her down, allowing her to reach the top in a few minutes.
The temples apex was a small square platform about six ters wide on each side, with two circular pedestals in the middle of it. Jen was already standing on one of them, weapon in hand. Having lost her original staff during her last encounter with Boxxys crew, she had been forced to use a subpar substitute. It was still a pitch-black rod of solid adamantite, but the enchantnts it held were nowhere near as potent. Most important of all, it lacked the unique property of being able to deflect magical projectiles, aning her defense against Spells was much weaker than it used to be two years ago.
So, what now? the golem asked. I stand in the circle and itll take us inside?
Affirmative.
Fizzy confidently stepped on the small round platform, making it click audibly under her weight. Most likely so sort of chanism than it simply breaking. Jen then clapped her hands together, closed her eyes and began saying a long-winded prayer in a very dry and thodical manner. The flowery words she used basically boiled down to her requesting permission to enter Axels dungeon and undergo its trials. anwhile Fizzy just stood there and had a mind-chat with Null on the subject of creating a teleportation device for the express purpose of instantly going up and down stairs.
The internal dialogue was cut short when a ring of pale yellow light suddenly enveloped both her and Jen, instantly teleporting them to their destination.
You have entered The Gauntlet of Eb-Kurah.
The room the two of them found themselves in was tiny, almost like a prison cell. Every surface was made from the sa flawless brickwork as the outside, and was also completely barren save for the two glowing circles on the floor and a lit torch on the far wall. The exit was an empty rectangular doorway, leading into a long, wide and tall hall with yet more torches lighting the way. Countless tiny holes dotted the length of the passages walls and ceiling, which caught Fizzys attention.
Are those dart traps? she asked in disbelief. Who uses freaking dart traps anymore!? Are you sure this is even a challenge?
Affirmative. Observe.
Jen reached into one of the pouches strapped to her waist and produced a small stone about the size of her fist. She casually tossed it through the doorway and into the hall, and in doing so triggered the traps strewn about the place. There was series of squirting and hissing noises as needle-thin jets of liquid shot out of the walls and ceiling, converging on the tiny projectile. A few of them hit spot on, dissolving it into a hissing pile of sludge before it even hit the ground. The foul liquid then disappeared monts after, leaving no evidence of the hallway being disturbed.
Well, crap.
It would appear that, rather than fire poison tipped darts, these traps drenched their victims in an extrely caustic acid. This was a problem, as corrosive substances were one of Fizzys weaknesses. Technically it was more accurate to say it was one of the few ways to effectively damage her, but semantics aside it was still a relatively dangerous environnt for her to walk into. The sa naturally went for Jen, as imbuing her skin with Ki was not an effective defense against spray-type attacks.
Especially those of a magical nature, which this hallway undoubtedly employed.
So, this is what you ant when you said the dungeon changes to et the challenger, huh?
Affirmative. Since we are both highly resistant to toxins, The Gauntlet is using acid. If the challenger was strong against acid as well, it would use sothing else.
It was also safe to assu that whatever traps were employed, they would be scaled in intensity so that it was a real threat to both invaders. Fizzy scoffed lightly, as she was left with the impression that Axel was quite the busybody if he had the spare ti to micromanage a dungeon to this extent. Well, either that or he had found himself a fanatically devoted dungeon master who didnt mind wasting away in this remote location. Either way the female pairs objective remained the sa.
So how do we get past that? the golem asked warily.
Like this.
Jen bolted through the door the instant she said those words. The countless traps started showering her with acid from all sides, forcing her to dodge and weave between the streams. It beca apparent that only a dozen or so of the holes could fire at once, and there was a limit to how much of that nasty stuff they could shoot out before needing to recharge. They were also designed to aim for where the intruder was going rather than where they currently were.
Which was why running in a straight line was sothing Jen avoided doing. Though she was moving forward, she constantly changed direction in an uneven zig-zag pattern by sidestepping erratically. At one point she even stopped dead in her tracks, jerked back a few steps, then bolted forward while the traps in front were still recharging. However, the farther in she went, the more jets were simultaneously fired at her. She had to resort to jumping and bouncing from the walls and ceiling like a Level 100 rubber ball, and even then got sprayed a few tis. She still made it to the end though, even if several patches of skin on her thigh, arm and neck were lted clean off.
While the Monk was treating her injuries as best she could, Fizzy was still thinking about what her own approach would be. Dodging and weaving through the passage like Jen did was not an option, as she was nowhere light enough on her feet to pull that off. Not to ntion she couldnt see the firing chanisms themselves, so Champion of Chaos was not able to predict when and where those sprays would be coming from. That was fine though, as it was possible to not get hit even without dodging anything.
She just didnt want to reveal what she was truly capable of in front of Jen if at all possible, but it seed as if that wasnt option. With a sigh, Fizzy activated her Physical Augntation Module, making her body warp and transform into a new configuration. Her already impressive armored shell grew one size thicker and wider as the plates stretched to close as many of the gaps between them as possible. The power cables that ran in the gap between her outer and inner shells were completely concealed and her armor beca so bulky that she looked more like a slightly malford dwarf than a robotic gno. A very short one at that, as this shape was fifteen centiters or so below her usual one-thirty.
Fortress Mode is now active.
All damage taken reduced by 20%.
All damage dealt reduced by 20%.
The effectiveness of the AGI Attribute has been reduced by 20%.
Proficiency level decreased. Static Field is now Level 0. INT -40. WIS -20.
Proficiency level increased. Static Shield is now Level 10. INT 40. WIS 20.
Fizzy Fortress Mode
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