Rune Seeker

The rest of the Grower party filed onto the platform behind him, all eyes on the purple pillar looking back at them.

“Wild guess here, but that’s what we need to stop,” Yanily said.

“Just six Shamans?” Hiral asked, checking out the rest of the platform.

At about a hundred feet square, there wasn’t much more to it. No other Troblins. No buildings. No places for more secret doors, unless they came out of the floor itself. Just the seated Shamans chanting at the central pillar.

Okay, maybe the thing in the glowing pillar of evil doesn’t qualify as a “just.”

“Five minutes,” Vix said.

“They aren’t even paying attention to us,” Wule said.

“Start with the closest one—there, Nivian,” Seena said, pointing at a Shaman on the left. “Watch out for any tricks; this seems too easy.” Then she turned her attention to the closest Shaman on their right and began channeling solar energy.

“Left, keep an eye out on the bridge behind us,” Hiral instructed, and his double went to the edge of the platform.

“Here I go,” Nivian called, snapping out his whip. The spiked weapon lashed through the air, cutting through the purple light like it was just smoke, and tore into the Shaman’s shoulder.

If the Shaman felt the usual anger toward Nivian—or even pain from the strike—it didn’t show it.

It didn’t shift. Didn’t stir. Didn’t stop chanting.

Nivian looked at his twin, shrugged, and tried again. Another trail of blood formed next to the first, but the Shaman showed no sign of even noticing.

At that moment, Seena’s Spearing Roots burst from the platform and impaled the TroblinShaman on the right, lifting it clear off the ground to hang limply in the air.

“Its lips are still moving…” Hiral said, his eyes wide as he looked at the obviously fatal damage, but the energy flowing from the Shaman weakened, growing so faint, it was barely there.

Did she do it? Then, something moved within the pillar of purple smoke—just shadows at first, until two forms burst out and launched themselves at Seena.

Humanoid, mostly, they seemed made from the writhing purple smoke, their hands with wicked claws on their too-long arms, and torn, bat-like wings on their backs. A streamer of the smoky purple light connected their heads to the pillar, and a circular maw and eyes made them look like they were constantly screaming.

And they were fast!

The first lashed out at Seena before anybody even had a chance to react, its claws slashing across her chest. The leather armor she wore seemed to absorb some of the damage, but blood blossomed near her collarbone, and she fell back with a shout of pain.

The second smoke monster darted left then right around its compatriot, bearing down on Seena even as she fell to the wood flooring of the platform, completely defenseless. Its clawed hands went out wide, and then drove in with inhuman speed.

Crack. Wood splintered as Hiral yanked Seena out of the way—just barely—with his Rune of Attraction, and then Nivian slammed into the smoke monster from the side, shield first. The pair tumbled to the ground, the smoke monster more solid than it first looked, but Nivian had learned from rushing the Troblins. He quickly rolled off before it could get around his shield or toss him off balance. Out lashed his whip, scoring one hit, then two, in quick succession across the monster’s side and strange wing.

Hiral, meanwhile, ran forward to Seena, Wule arriving a split second later. “Are you okay?” he asked her, and Seena touched her hand to the blood running down her armor and grimaced.

“I’ll take care of her,” Wule said.

“Okay,” Hiral replied, getting to his feet.

Yanily had already moved to aid Nivian, his spear lashing out in a flurry, and he scored two solid hits. That still left the other monster, but Vix and Right firmly had its attention.

The two pugilists danced in and out, deftly—and narrowly—evading the creature’s claws while throwing punches and kicks at every opening, while the vines from their shoulders struck like snapping serpents. Each time the monster turned its attention to Vix, Right would slide in and hit it with a staggering combo, getting its attention, which let Vix slip in on the other side and score a combo of his own. Both men fed off each other’s momentum, working their way around the monster that never had enough time to focus on one of them without getting punished for it.

Lines of thin smoke streamed from both monsters in short order, but they refused to fall, and the timer continued to tick down. Apparently feeling the pressure, Yanily charged after the first monster as it lunged at Nivian.

But the lunge was a feint. The monster twisted around like it didn’t have a bone in its body, and it was suddenly within Yanily’s guard.

The spearman tried to get his weapon between himself and the monster, but he wasn’t fast enough, and the claws came across—one, two. Blood splashed from four gashes across his thigh, and the second claw caught his wrist. Taking the hits from the vines on Yanily’s shoulders, the monster twisted and pulled, lifting Yanily from the ground, and hurled him straight into Vix’s unsuspecting back.

The two Growers went to the ground in a heap, the second monster turning its full attention on Right, while the first lunged at the prone and defenseless pair. Up went its claw, holding it for a moment as if savoring it, and then down for the coup de grace like a lightning bolt.

Hiral’s feet skidded along the wooden flooring as he slid between the monster and the fallen Growers, his sword up just in time to catch the falling claw. Still, the blow came with enough force that it drove him to his knee, and then a snap of the monster’s waist smashed a kick into his exposed side.

“Ooof,” he grunted, the air getting blasted from his lungs for a second time in short order.

His Lashing Vines scored a pair of hits on the smoke monster before he was tossed aside. He rolled with the force, though it still sent him a good ten feet, and scrambled to his feet to prepare for a follow-up attack.

Except the monster had turned its attention back to Vix and Yanily, who were just now pulling themselves apart. Again, its claw went into the air, preparing to strike, but Nivian’s whip caught its wrist like it had a mind of its own. Around and around the whip wrapped the arm, thorns digging deep into the hazy flesh and drawing streamers of smoke.

The creature turned its attention back on the tank, anger simmering in the solid black eyes.

Then half a dozen Spearing Roots drove straight into it. Three struck it in the chest, one in the leg, another the arm, and the final one directly through its round mouth. Pinned and unable to move, the opening gave Vix and Yanily the chance they needed to get their feet under them.

“Get the other one,” Seena shouted, and a pulse of solar energy rippled off her.

All at once, something seemed to flash in Yanily’s, Vix’s, and Right’s eyes, their focus turning toward the remaining smoke monster.

It tried to turn as it sensed Vix and Yanily coming from behind, but Right dove in at the moment’s distraction, punches landing like a staccato drum across its torso. His vines lashed across its arm and face, and as soon as it looked back in his direction, a spear punched through its shoulder from behind. Held for a heartbeat like that, Vix swept its legs out from under it, bringing it to its back on the ground while the spear tore out of its shoulder.

The second it landed on the wooden floor, Right brought his glowing fist up and then down directly on the creature’s face. The head exploded like a popped balloon, the limbs and body of the monster tensing straight, twitching, and then falling still.

Then, just like that, both monsters completely vanished.

All eyes turned to the Shaman hanging still on the Spearing Roots from earlier.

“Left, I need you to…” Hiral started, and then trailed off as the roots vanished.

The Shaman was once again sitting in place, its body clear of injuries.

“What in the…?” Nivian said. “Should we kill one of the other ones?”

“Hold up, let’s think about this. We have…” Seena said, her eyes glancing to the side. “Three minutes. Wule, see to Yanily.”

“Got it, boss,” Wule said, hurrying over to the spearman.

“We must have to kill the Shamans here to stop this ritual,” Vix said.

“I don’t want to fight ten more of those things,” Nivian said. “We had a hard enough time with two.”

“We know what’s coming with the next one,” Yanily said, his thigh wound closing up as Wule healed him.

“But it’s not just the next one,” Seena said. “This first one is fine again. No, there must be something more to it. I killed this one, the energy got weaker, then a few seconds later, those monsters came out of the pillar.”

“Are they an illusion?” Wule asked. “Is only one of them real?”

“Sure didn’t feel like an illusion,” Yanily said, poking at the bloody armor on his thigh.

“Troblins!” Left shouted, and Hiral turned to see him pointing down the bridge toward where they’d just come from. “More secret doors. At least a dozen of them.”

“Of course there are,” Yanily said.

“We can’t fight a dozen of those and figure this out,” Wule said. “Boss?”

Hiral looked from the six Shamans to the edge of the platform where the bridge connected. Wule was right. How could they…?

“Six Shamans. Six party members. We need to kill them all at the same time,” Seena said. “That has to be it. The energy got weaker, and then there was a delay between when I killed it and when the monsters came out.”

“And if you’re wrong? If we kill them all at once and we get twelve of those things?” Vix asked.

“I’m not wrong,” Seena said, steel in her voice. “I’m sure of it.”

“I’m willing to give it a try,” Yanily said, glancing somewhat nervously at the pillar.

“I don’t think I can do enough damage to kill one as fast as you guys,” Wule said.

“That’s okay,” Hiral said. “Left and Right, take Wule’s spot and mine.”

“What are you going to do?” Seena asked, but the Growers were already moving to take positions around the sitting Shamans.

They really do trust her absolutely.

“What do you think? Hold off the other Troblins,” Hiral said as he passed Left. “Go on.”

Left gave him a look that seemed to say, “Are you sure?” but he didn’t speak up, and instead ran over to one of the Troblins.

“Everybody, my Spearing Roots will be your cue to go,” Seena instructed behind Hiral as he took up position ten feet back from the bridge, the first Troblins already on the platform and glaring at him. “Nivian, you got something to do this with?”

“I’m good,” Nivian called.

“Less than two minutes now!” Vix shouted.

“Shouldn’t you be on the bridge to block them?” Wule asked from beside Hiral. “I’ll keep you healed up. If it’s only one or two of them at a time, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“I’ve got a better idea,” Hiral said as the next pair of Troblins crested the bridge and stepped onto the platform.

“What’s that?” Wule asked, stepping back as two more Troblins joined the first group.

“Just wait a second,” Hiral said, a seventh and eighth Troblin making it to the platform.

The eight sets of eyes settled on Hiral, and the group of monsters charged at him as more ran off the bridge.

“Got you,” Hiral said, flooding power into his Rune of Rejection.

The cone of concussive force hit the gathered Troblins like a bowling ball, tossing them into the air and hurling them off the side of the platform in a chorus of surprised, breathy shrieks.

Two more Troblins peeked over the lip of the platform, obviously wondering what had just happened, and Hiral hit them with a wave from his Rune of Rejection as well.

“I guess that works,” Wule admitted.

“NOW!” Seena shouted, and Hiral glanced back to see her Spearing Roots punch through the seated Shaman she’d impaled before.

At the same time, the other five laid into their unmoving Shamans as well. Yanily, Vix, Right, and Left made short work of theirs with decisive blows.

Nivian, without any such powerful attacks, simply reached into the purple light and grabbed the Shaman’s head. Then he twisted it so violently, it almost came off.

The smoky purple light coming from the Shamans’ bodies flickered and weakened, and all the Growers quickly circled around, gathering as something moved within the shadowy pillar.

“It didn’t work!” Yanily said, leveling his spear at where he expected a dozen murderous smoke monsters to burst out of.

“Wait!” Seena said, holding her hand out to the side, though Nivian had his shield back in position, and Wule rushed to join the group.

Hiral, meanwhile, glanced at the bridge up to the platform.

No more Troblins coming up. For now. He turned back to the ritual.

Another flicker, the smoky trails from the Shamans vanished, and something within the central pillar roared its clear displeasure. Exploding upwards, the purple energy washed across the underside of the canopy above while the thing inside wailed loud enough to shake the entire tree. Hundreds of leaves rained down all around.

Hiral put his hands to his ears as the cacophony continued, long seconds passing as the timer continued to tick down.

Under a minute!

And then, all at once, it stopped.

The pillar of purple energy vanished with a pop, and a blue screen appeared in front of Hiral.

Dynamic Quest Complete

The Ritual of Summoning has been thwarted.

Congratulations. Achievement unlocked – Unsullied and Unsummoned

You prevented an ancient evil from being summoned into the world (for 3 hours).

Please access a Dungeon Interface to unlock class-specific reward.

“Did you all just get a… dynamic quest complete notice? Along with an achievement?” Hiral asked, and by the glazed-over looks on their faces, he had his answer.

“What is a quest?” Yanily asked. “I mean, I know what the word is… but… why are our PIMs giving us quests?”

“So, those aren’t normal?” Hiral asked.

“First one I’ve ever seen,” Seena said, but she had a smile on her face. “And, everybody, good job. Hiral, Troblins?”

Hiral jogged cautiously to the edge of the platform—the Troblins had used crossbows, after all—and looked over the side. Bodies littered the ground far below, where he’d tossed them with his rune, but other than that…

“Clear for now,” Hiral said. “Looks like we’ve got a minute to take a breather.”