[D'sP] The Arrow Shattered - Chapter 403 (Patreon)

Jim turns away from where the group detected a threat and towards the next island. “Well, do we just leave those be and work our way towards the obvious goal?”

Kelly, “It would probably be good to get an idea of what threads might be in the water, so right now while we’re the active party wouldn’t be the worst idea.”

Jim sighs, “I’m not going to force anyone to do this. So, are there any volunteers to poke the bear?”

The group looks back and forth, but no one steps forward. Jim nods, “Yeah, that’s about what I thought. We’re in the deepest floor ever delved. Let’s keep the danger to that which we can’t prevent.”

Jay nods at that, “We’ll have enough trouble if there are too many more aquatic enemies. I can’t sniff out such foes. Sure, we have other methods of detection, but an overlap of methods is exactly how you protect against the unexpected. An invisible creature that is magically silent might have a scent I can detect and the magic might be detectable.

“Sure, something above our level, especially with a high enough stealth skill, can likely escape notice. But that isn’t what we’re dealing with here. At least I don’t think it is? Kelly, has the research into an ‘analyze’ spell come along at all?”

Kelly shrugs, “Personal information is really hard to get, especially with numbers attached. However, this is a dungeon and some things seem consistent. I won’t bet on it or anything, but if this floor follows the pattern, the monsters will have five to ten levels on us.”

Jay raises an eyebrow, “That’s a pretty big range.”

Jeremy shakes his head at that, “That’s actually an amazing range. You’re looking at our current levels and comparing it to the range. Fair enough, but you have to remember how long people have to gain levels. Nevermind the fact that as kids grow up, they’ll have the potential to be in possession of skills many levels above our own at this point.

“I’m actually surprised we have it within a range of five levels. I would expect plus or minus five instead. And at higher levels? I wouldn’t be surprised if the range stays around, plus or minus ten percent of the level.”

Kelly, “Yes, that is true, but I would also like to point out that our actual ability to detect levels is much worse. The indicator is how much mystical power natively resides in a person. That means if they empty their pools and shut off any sort of power, what is left will give you an idea of their level. Oh, and if they have inbuilt stuff like a magical tattoo, that has to be accounted for as well.

“The reason we can guess at the dungeon monsters so accurately is because items are so much easier to analyze and dungeon drops seem to have a consistent density which has some relation to the monster it dropped from. Not to say the drops are copy paste clones or anything. This is especially apparent with the loot, which will be fitted for the one to grab it out of the loot portal.”

Jay shrugs, “So what does that get us? It isn’t like we are unique snowflakes when it comes to our levels. Well, Jim here and Ace being possible exceptions. Anyway, what matters is paths and stats.”

Kelly sighs, “While we don’t know their exact stats, we can get a feel for the level to level growth they experience. So, levels give us a general idea of how a monster will do, even if it isn’t as exact as something like getting to see the monster’s status panel.”

They go back and forth over this topic a bit, during which, Doyle turns to Ally, ‘How accurate are things like that in general?’

Ally nods towards Kelly, ‘She has it about right. The general spell to detect levels tends to have an error range ten percent plus or minus the level. There are methods to get more accurate readings, but none of them are stealthy and the best require consent in the first place. At which point, you might as well just have them share a view of just their level from their status.

‘Besides, knowing someone’s level within that range is more than enough. To be honest, people would be fine knowing which power of ten you’re closest to. After all, levels simply represent how developed your soul can be.

‘Oh, and the density of mystical energies, which is what they’re using to judge it, but that’s more of a side effect. Just remember how you got path blocked and had to level before spending any more path points. So while level doesn’t tell you how powerful someone is, it does give a general idea of how powerful they could be and where the average is.’

All the while, up on the 16th floor, the party finally gets themselves sorted out and are ready to delve the floor.

Jay, “So we decided to avoid the danger in the water, but we’re still having to cross this suspicious spit of sand connecting these two islands?”

Tess smacks him on the back of the head. “There’s a difference between going into an unneeded danger and having to progress. Besides, it should be fine. If you pay close enough attention, you’ll notice that the water doesn’t actually wash away the sand. There is some loose stuff being pushed around, but the actual sandbar might as well be a rock.”

Jay, “That’s stupid! We’re walking on it right now and it certainly feels like normal sand.”

Kelly sighs, “We’re in a dungeon, don’t expect it to make sense.”

At the front, Jim gestures for silence. In a whisper, he informs them that, “There should be some sort of goat about to come around the left side.”

Jay takes a deep breath through their nose and whispers back, “I’m not smelling anything.”

Kellinger then whispers, “I’m not seeing any overly active powers.”

Jim nods, “Okay, we’re likely facing the wood goats then. I’m also guessing there will be birds in the trees, but that’s just the pattern we’ve seen the last few floors. Ready your spells.”

Kelly and Kellinger both begin to channel a fire spell. Jim draws his bow and knocks an arrow. Then Tess casts an enhancement on the arrow.

Four slow heartbeats later and a wooden goat ambles out into view. The group holds. More goats come out of the forest. Still, they hold. No more goats, but hold. Then a final goat appears and joins the rest of them.

Jim lets his arrow fly, leaving a trail of embers in the air as it streaks straight at the last goat to appear. Though those embers might as well be an illusion as they dissipate instead of burning out, not even leaving ash behind. They are real though and if anyone ran through the trail for the short time it existed, they would feel it burn, even if they didn’t last long enough to cause any actual damage.

Though this special effect of Tess’s enhancement spell might as well not be there as the two spells released by Kelly and Kellinger easily draw all the attention. Those spells are a collection of five of Ruby’s classic fire ribbons. However, unlike the normally controlled fire ribbon spell, these ribbons are tumbling through the air and spreading out.

This is because this is a Kelly original. For about the same amount of Mana as a single fire ribbon, this spell casts out five ribbons. All at the cost of a loss of control and the ribbons being about a third as powerful. Mind you, this reduction in power isn’t a problem as the original fire ribbon was quite overpowered for the level and it scales or at least has so far.

They also provide quite the distraction, causing Jim’s target to miss its own doom approaching. The ember arrow lands on the wooden goat’s flank, but it doesn’t pierce. Instead, the arrow seems to shatter as it strikes and the bits of the arrow spray across the goats entire side. Oh, and it doesn’t stop burning.

In fact, instead of going out, each shard of the arrow sticks to the goat’s hide and begins to burn like an ember. This fire soon catches on the goat’s body. Then, with supernatural speed, like watching a log burn in a time lapse, each shard burns a large pit into the goat.

The goat’s distressing death however, as with the arrow, is overshadowed by the two spells. They spread out enough that when they hit the other goats, none of them escape. Sure, most of the damage is glancing, but the fire is magical and they’re weak to it.

Still, Jay and Jeremy need to get in there and finish them. The others held back on overwatch.

Jim lowered his bow, “Okay, now since we’re already avoiding danger, I’m all for not actually going into the trees. That’s just asking for trouble.”

The others agree with this and make their way around the side the goats came from. All the while, they stick to about the center point between the water and the trees. Though at one point, Jeremy gestures for everyone to stop and points at the water.

They can barely make out something of a decent size, slowly swim past them in the opposite direction.

Jim frowns, “That’s different from whatever was on the entrance island.”

Jeremy nods, “That seems more like a wandering threat while the other stuff at the start was waiting in ambush. Though in case any of you missed it, that wasn't the only one out there. I could just barely detect others deeper under the water.”

Jim shakes his head, “Not much we can do. Well, besides setting up an underwater training pool. Anyway, let’s get moving.”

And they did, managing to circle around the island with only two more fights. One more group of goats and a flock of hexku that had been resting in the saplings on the spit of sand leading to the next island.

Hexku put down, Jeremy frowns as he looks over at the next destination. I guess we can’t avoid the forest anymore. And what’s up with that giant tree trunk?”

Kelly shrugged, “Set decoration. The dungeon has a problem with trees or some such.”

Jay sighed, “Way too much set dressing.”

Jim, “Whatever the case, I expect more of the same, plus maybe a few more critters. Now, let’s go see what there is to see.”

The party makes their way across to the third island, only to arrive at a problem that neither they nor Doyle had considered. The “shore” of the island isn’t a cliff, but the “natural wear” has left a bit of a drop off where it goes from water to root. All the soil of the island being balanced on top of said roots, which meant that once the roots thinned enough, the soil and especially sand couldn’t stick.

It isn’t a big drop off. Everyone could easily hop up, except there was a flock of hexku sitting up in the trees above. All just daring the group to give it a try.

The group all back up and Jim begins to draw his bow. However, as he reaches for it, the hexku ruffle their feathers. Jim sighs, “This isn’t going to be a fun fight. On three.

“One,

“Two,

“Three!”, And he grabs his bow and an arrow as the hexku burst out of the trees and rush at them.

Kellinger stands back and takes time to prepare a spell, while Kelly fires off a barrage of embers like a sped up roman candle. Jim, knowing he didn’t have the time, held back as well, ready to take out whichever bird gets close first.

Jeremy and Jay step up past Jim with their weapons ready as the first hexku began to get burned by the embers. Only one of them fell to it though and that is simply because it was hit by three embers, all on one wing.

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