Chapter 024 - Time to Run

Anna was on her feet and still grumbling about the new skill in her repertoire when she made her way back to the first intersection in the hallway. Her stealth skill had just popped up almost immediately back in the precinct. It was weeks later and she was just now getting Athletics. At first it had irritated her, it would have come in handy back during her trial in the Forest of Blood. After giving it some thought, though, she had to begrudgingly accept that the System wasn’t screwing with her this time.

All I did in the forest was a lot of running around and smacking things, she thought. On the other hand, I managed to hide from a creature that can see life force and sneak around it. Obviously progress towards a skill or leveling it up has a lot to do with difficulty as well as use. She frowned, I guess that hasn’t really been proven yet since I haven’t improved Stealth since getting it.

She mulled it over a little while longer while she walked down the final pathway she hadn’t checked. There was a small pool of mana off to the right that opened into another passageway. One glance with her glowstone told her that there was nothing at the end of it, though, so she kept moving towards the second source of light in that lengthy hallway. Another pool of mana blocked her way when she reached the end and it only took a quick glance to note that the hallway continued turning to the right immediately after the obstruction.

It’s not a big leap, she thought and looked up at the ceiling, No loops to hold on to. This one’s all about physique.

She took one moment to turn in a circle and scan the ceiling and hallway for any signs of the choker that had run away. Satisfied it was gone she shifted over to get a good angle on the path on the opposite side of the pool and pulled back to get some running room. Alright, new skill. Let’s go. She tried activating Athletics but nothing seemed to change very much. Huh, maybe it’s passive. Lame. She rolled her shoulder and checked one last time to make sure it was feeling better before breaking into a sprint, the following leap carried her clear across the glowing pool and nearly into the wall.

A split second decision resulted in her snapping a foot out to catch herself, bouncing off the wall and landing on her feet. She stumbled a step and caught her balance. “Woah,” Anna muttered and looked down at her boots, “That was… better?”

Not catlike by any means, she thought wryly, But way better than before. The skill is definitely passive, it seems like it just generally improves my athletic ability. I’m still doing everything myself though. Not bad, but better than I expected.

Satisfied she turned her attention to the new hallway before her. More dark space stretched out up ahead and she couldn’t make out the ending from where she was standing. Fortunately there were no signs of monsters so she started walking, keeping her eyes on the floor and ceiling in case there was another trap. The walk was uneventful, though, and she arrived at the end after just a few minutes. It turned once again she found a slightly shorter hall going east before pivoting northward. 

I’m not liking how quiet it is here, she thought, wandering over to the next corner and peering around it. Another turn up ahead and still no sources of light. Just a winding path. Is this section just intended to wear me down? There’s nothing here, she thought irritably as she walked over to the next corner and stopped again. She craned her neck around and felt her heart leap into her throat. She threw herself back around the corner and slid a few feet just to be safe as her heart pounded in her ears. “Oh… fuck that.”

Just around the bend was yet another hall. The first thing she’d spotted was the short trapless path leading straight towards yet another pedestal. That would have been great if not for the ten foot tall monstrosity standing in an adjoining passage in silent vigil over the hallway. 

It was huge, its height didn’t do it justice. Its shoulders were so broad and its arms so long that if it swung its arms too violently it might just hit both sides of the passage. Its skin was jet black like the chokers and it had the same forelimbs ending in a quad of tentacle-like fingers adorned with suction cups. Its back was covered in lengthy oily tendrils and its dark saucer-like eyes were devoid of even the frantic emotion that the other chokers seemed to experience. 

Then there was its level.

Stygian Choker Behemoth (Boss) - Level 12 

Oh goody, it’s the boss, She closed her eyes and rubbed the bridge of her nose and ran the numbers in her head. The boss of the Forest of Blood was level 8. This thing had seven levels on her. There is no way I’m killing it, not as I am now, or at least not without paying dearly for it. She frowned and considered what to do, sliding down to sit and think. Obviously it’s there for a reason, which means I might need to get past it one way or another. There’s a token right there too. Is this a trap?

She felt her blood start to boil and took a steadying breath. Yeah, big nasty would be an exciting fight but there’s a hard line between chasing a few thrills and being suicidal. She scoffed as her blood cooled down a bit, Not biting off more than I can chew, fuck that. 

She pursed her lips and shifted over a bit to crane her neck around again and look at the beast. Without the faint illumination of her glowstone it was hard to make out though she could definitely still smell it. For the most part everything smelled like ozone and sugar here, it made it hard to differentiate anything. This guy, on the other hand, reeked of something between bile and oil. It made her eyes burn.

Anna resisted the urge to clear her throat as the scent tugged at the back of her nostrils and pulled back to her hiding spot. The token is right there though! 

From what she could see, the big beastie wasn’t paying her any mind. It didn’t even react to the glowstone earlier when I rounded the corner. Shouldn’t have done that, she thought. I need to be more careful. Still. If he’s not moving, I’m going to at least test the waters before I double back.

It was the best plan she could come up with on short notice. She knew nothing about the creature’s behaviors or mentality so she had to go with her gut. Would it react to a distraction? If she shot a fire bat over its shoulder would it follow the bat or the direction of the source? She frowned, Bad idea. It’s not reacting to me so it’s better to not give it a reason to. Either I sneak past it or I make a break for it. Given how regularly she was finding these tokens there had to be more in the other parts of the dungeon. If she had to, she’d turn tail, run, wait things out in the lobby, and come back.

You can do this Anna, she reminded herself and slipped into a crouch, activating stealth and dialing down her presence all the way until it was muted. She knew what direction she needed to go, so there was no point in drawing attention to herself with a glowstone either. She put her glowstone into her inventory and slowly, very slowly, started to creep forward. She stayed pressed against the left side of the passage and took each step with as much care as she could.

Each step felt like an eternity. Every breath sounded just a little too loud in her own ears. Despite that, though, as she crossed the spot directly in front of the behemoth it didn’t even look her way. 

Okay then, I’ll just be moving on…

KRRRK…

Eh?

KRRRRKKHH…

Every rational thought in her head told her that she should just keep moving. Yet that sound made her so incredulous she had to see it for herself. She looked up at the monster, it’s body framed slightly by a glow somewhere far behind it that hadn’t been visible from the corner. Its chest was rising and falling slowly as it stood unmoving in the middle of the path.

You are shitting me. 

KRRKKHHH…

IT’S ASLEEP? Oh come on, I got worked up over nothing! She wanted to groan but stifled the feeling, picking up her pace slightly and easing across the final distance towards the pedestal. In the near darkness of the place she had to fumble a bit before wrapping her fingers around the third and final token. Got it. Okay,  not done yet, turn around slowly.

KRRKKRKKK RRKKK-K-K

I don’t like the sound of that, Anna thought and picked up the pace even more. Her steady crouched walk turned into more of a loping dash as a notification popped into her vision.

Bonus Condition Update!
Bonus Condition: Bring the three Completion tokens to the heart of the dungeon. Warning! You are being hunted. 

Shhhieeeittttt!

Anna dropped all pretense of stealth the moment she read the notification, breaking into a full run as the steady snoring of the beast broke and it let out a confused rumble. She was already around the corner when it let out a roar that shook the walls and sent dust falling down on top of her. Next came a loud thud followed by another and she pumped her legs harder, banking right and then racing to the long hall that led down to the corner pool of mana.

No stopping, make the jump and keep going!

She was at a full sprint by the time something slammed into a wall a good distance behind her.

KREEIIIIKAAAAAKK!

The shriek of fury was quickly answered by several more just as she hit the corner pool. She hurled herself across it, the heavy thuds of the pursuing boss quickly gaining on her. She was already heading down the hall leading to the crossroad where she’d found the second token. She passed the small pool of mana on the north side of the hall. She had a split second to think, Jump over? She glanced back and changed her mind immediately as the behemoth stepped over the corner pool like it was nothing, its suction-cup fingers allowing it to steady it’s path without issue.

Right. It can still do that even if it’s big.

She glanced to the right towards the path leading south, There’s an option! She grinned and pumped her legs, darting down and into the trap hall where the second token had been. The booming footsteps of the creature in hot pursuit thundered in her ears while the shrieks of its comrades drew closer and closer. She crossed the mosaic and followed her original path over the prime-number plates as the big beastie rounded the corner. Come on, come on! It was easier this time but it still took a split second now and then to find her next step. She was three quarters of the way across when it reached the mosaic. Screw it!

She charged forward and leaped, covering the rest of the distance with a jump.

TOK!

She wrapped her arms around the pedestal at the end.

WHRRRROOOOOOSHHHH

The fan blades began to spin, the wind ripping past her in a quickly growing maelstrom. She looked down, her legs already dangling in the whirlwind as the behemoth pressed forward in a forced march. Chokers scrambled into the hall and were immediately swept up, slapping against the rear wall and falling into the pit of mana. She clung tighter, hugging the pedestal while the thundering steps began to slow. 

KEEEEAK! KEEEEAAAAAAKK!

She looked down again, the behemoth was walking in place, struggling with each step before it finally dislodged from the ground. Even its suction-cup feet were not enough to keep it affixed. It flew back and hit the wall, sliding into the already crowded pool of mana and letting out a horrific howl of pain. It was already grabbing onto the walls around it, though, and trying to pull itself free from the toxic water.

Oh this is going to hurt, she sighed and set her jaw tight. She strained her arms and hurled herself to the north side of the hallway, hitting the wall and sliding with the wind. An instant later she hit the opening just like before but with far more force. Her arm bent and her shoulder cracked loudly as she rolled into the safety of the adjacent passage. Her health dropped precipitously but she didn’t have time to stop, she scrambled to her feet and kept running.

She ran north and hit the turn going east, Forward from here, south, then west, then I’m back at the entrance. I need to find a place to hide if I want to keep looking for the heart of the dungeon. Her arm throbbed but she fought down the agony, pushing the pain off with stubborn will as she hit the first intersection. 

KREEIK! KRIEEEEK!

A half dozen chokers scrambled out of the hallway ahead of her and she slid to a stop. Motherfucker! Going back would mean running into the big guy as soon as he got out of the trap, she doubted he’d die. North there’s that really long pool and a dead end. Damn it! No choice. She cranked her presence and blasted it out, causing the chokers to hesitate momentarily in their charge. Aura Snap! Her presence flickered and weakened as one of the chokers popped like a balloon. Three firebats flew from her gauntlet a moment later, blowing up against her attackers and sending them into a temporary disarray. She turned north and kept running.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

Here it comes!

Anna passed the path to the pool of mana, between a broken arm and the damaged hoops above it there was no way for her to try crossing it. She rounded into the dead end with the ruined mural, pressed herself into the corner, and dialed down her presence while activating stealth. The latter happened, the former did not. She didn’t feel the subtle change as her aura spluttered against her will. I knew I couldn’t turn it back up after Aura Snap but I can’t turn it down either? Oh shit.

BOOM BOOM BOOM!

The behemoth rounded the corner. Its rank body odor was eclipsed by an intense stink of ozone. Portions of its legs were burned beyond recognition and bone was exposed on one calf. Its chest was heaving as its wide, wild eyes met hers. Her blood roared to life as it looked down on her. She grit her teeth and reached for her club as one massive arm shot towards her. She didn’t even get a chance to make a pithy remark as powerful fingers wrapped around her torso and she was slammed into the worn down wall.

As masonry fell around her, roars echoing in her ears, her vision went black.