Libriohexer (Wolfman Warlock Book 2) - Chapter Seventeen (Patreon)

Two days later, Sam and company decided to try their hand against the toughest Guardian Junction the Irondown Burrows had to offer. Yesterday, with Finn and Sphinx back in the fold, they’d taken a run at the Training Hall, presided over by a mechanical, faceless training dummy clad in heavy steel armor. The training automaton had fought with a blunted sword in one hand and a flanged mace in the other, but he hadn’t stood a chance against the Wolf Pack’s combine might and magic. They’d handily mopped the floor with the creature, claiming his monster core before activating the room’s junction.

After all of the trials they’d gone through so far, taking out the faceless trainer had felt like a badly needed win and one that had put a spring into everyone’s step. The victory was a reminder that although they were powerful alone, they were nearly unbeatable when they worked together. As Sam’s father often said when on a construction site, teamwork makes the dream work. And the rewards for their gamble had been excellent. Now they had an archery range, a sparing ring, and an agility room perfect for leveling up dexterity related abilities. Sam probably wouldn’t be spending too much time trying to perfect his tumbling skills, but he was excited to have a space to work on his blade work with Bill.

The whole team was floating on cloud nine from their string of victories. Not only had they managed to capture three of nine Junctions, but Sam had managed to get his chicken farm up and running and they were on the verge of a breakthrough with the LAW. It seemed like they couldn’t lose, which is exactly when Kai off-handily suggested that they take a shot at the worst the Dungeon had to offer. Chances were high they would die, but they would never know what they were really up against until they rolled the dice. Besides, what if they didn’t lose?

As Dizzy reminded them often, they were in a war, and currently on the weaker side. If they wanted to survive what was going to happen when the tensions between the Wolfmen and the Humans escalated to open conflict, they would need to take some risks.

The worst this place had to offer was the Flame Forge Armory. According to the Compendium that was where the master of the Irondowns dwelled. The place was to be avoided at all costs “if you value your life”. Sam was a little worried, but he also had some awesome new spells that he hadn’t really had a chance to try out and what better opportunity than against the Dungeon Boss of the Irondowns? Arrow had seemed the most reluctant of the bunch, but then Dizzy had helpfully pointed out that Dungeon Boss meant both experience and also epic loot. So far, they hadn’t found much by way of loot.

If the Dwarven folk who had once called this place home had left anything behind, it was bound to be stashed away in the Armory.

So, rested, bright-eyed, and fully equipped, Sam and the other made their way to the second level of the Irondown Burrows, past the wild assortment of deadly traps, and to the north-western most corner of the dungeon. The final room and the home to the Keeper of the Forge. At the end of a long hallway were a set of double steel double doors, ten feet tall, and studded with bronze rivets. Even with the doors shut to the world, Sam could feel the heat rolling out from the room on the other side and could hear the faint clang of metal on metal.

“We sure this is the right choice?” Bill asked as they crept steadily closer. “I mean, it’s no skin off my teeth either way since I don’t exactly have skin or teeth, but I’m getting some serious TPK vibes off this place.”

“This is a risk,” Dizzy said, “but everything in life is a risk. My mom used to tell me that the best thing you could do is get the hardest task out of the way first thing in the morning, and then everything else would be easier from there.”

“That’s great advice for doing the dishes or hitting the gym,” Arrow said softly, “but I’m not sure that same logic holds to dungeon bosses.”

“But think about how far ahead this will put us,” Dizzy said, stealing a sidelong glance at the reluctant Ranger. “We take this thing out and we’re golden. And I mean that in more ways than one. There is probably a literal ton of gold stashed away in there, plus think about all of the things we could do with our own Forge. I already picked up Blacksmithing as my secondary profession. With access to my own Dwarven forge I’ll be able to make us some killer gear. Or at the very least repair the stuff we have.”

“I’m with Dizzy on this one, bro,” Kai said with a shrug. “The worst thing that happens is we die and lose half a day. The best thing that happens is we take out the Irondown BBEG and make off like kings. Let’s do this.”

They lined up outside the massive doors, while Sphinx took point, carefully investigating for any hidden traps, switches, or mechanisms. The rest of the team used the opportunity to prepare for whatever they might find on the other side. Velkan checked and doubled checked his simple leather armor. Arrow inspected his quiver—he had at least three different types of shafts, though by far the most numerous were the arrows tipped with the glass acid vials, so effective against metal. Kai chanted softly under his breath, eyes closed, one fist pressed against the other. A soft white light enveloped him. That was his Zen Trance ability, which increased his chance to land a critical hit by 15% for ten minutes.

Sam used the opportunity to activate Papier-Mache Mage, plastering himself in conquistador-style armor, then double checked his newest item—the cloak hanging around his shoulders and trailing down to the back of his knees. Crafting it had been a nightmare, even with his formidable skills as a bookbinder, but he was extremely pleased with the outcome. The interior of the cloak itself was carefully stitched together from fifty sheets of the highest quality mana-infused vellum, all stained with a deep black dye. A thousand mana-infused feathers had carefully been affixed to the outside of the leather, in a painstaking process that had taken most of the night.

Hopefully all the time and effort would be worth it.

Sphinx straightened and shook her head. “Huh, who woulda guess? I can’t find a gosh darn thing,”she said, sounding more than a little bit perplexed. “You’d think whoever designed this place would put at least a few traps on the final Boss Room.”

“Unless the Keeper of the Forge is all the defense the room needs,” Bill offered helpfully.

“I guess we’ll find out,” Dizzy said, fingers flexing around the heft of her war maul. “Now remember, Velkan and Finn, you two can’t respawn, so no heroics.” Her words were sharp, but her gaze lingered for an extra beat of Finn. The noble had a serious crush on her and didn’t bother to hide it. She’d never really acknowledged it, but the way she looked at him spoke volumes to Sam. Studying body language really had paid some serious dividends. She cleared her throat and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“I’m serious,” she continued. “You too play it safe. Linger toward the back and make sure you get the heck out of dodge if things start to go sideways.”

“You can count on me,” Finn said with a cheeky grin. Velkan just nodded his understanding, his golden eyes never leaving the oversized doors. His posture spoke of wariness and reluctance, but he would do his part.

“Everyone, follow my lead.” Dizzy took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, then slammed a foot against the doors, fling them open with a *clang* that reverberated throughout the room. The ringing of steel on steel abruptly cut off, the abrupt silence rather ominous. Dizzy stalked forward, Kai on her right, Sphinx on her left, already scanning for any traps that might await them on the other side of the door. Sam, Finn, and Arrow came up the center, with Velkan playing rear guard—making sure nothing nasty got the drop on the spellcasters. Like an assassin with the ability to slip undetected through the shadows.

A sense of awe washed over Sam as he got his first good look at the Irondown Forge. He’d been expecting a simple blacksmith workshop—a few workbenches, some tool racks, a smelter and forge, barrels for quenching—but he couldn’t have been more wrong. The room was a natural cavern, the ceiling and walls were rough natural stone. Ahead, a stone bridge connected to a circular stone platform, fifty feet in diameter. Below, was a moat of churning magma, which lit the room with a harsh orange glow. Another bridge arched away from the platform, connecting to a wide gate, protected by an iron portcullis. Even from a distance it was easy to see the weapons and armor piled up inside the protected vault.

That and the gold. A small fortune.

Getting to it wasn’t going to be easy, though.

Waiting for them in the center of the circular platform was the Keeper of the Forge and the Guardian of the Irondown Burrows. Twelve feet tall and eight feet across the shoulders, was a steel golem. A hulking contraption of iron and steel and spikes, all engraved with elaborate runes and sigils of power that glowed with fiery golden light. A great helmet with curved horns sat atop its frame. Peeking out from between the joints and from behind the helmet’s faceplate was nothing but brilliant magma. Not a steel golem at all, Sam thought after a second, but rather a greater fire elemental contained in steel armor. The creature carried a glowing golden hammer six feet long with a hammer face as large as a hubcap.

“Yeah,” Bill said, “I’m going to go on record and say that this is a terrible idea. We should turn around and call it a day. And if you all really have a death wish, Sam and I can give you a thousand paper cuts, which will still probably hurt less than whatever that thing is going to do to us.”

“Lo! I bid you welcome travelers,” the creature boomed, its voice deep and inhuman but surprisingly jovial.

That caught everyone completely off guard. So far, the automatons of the Irondowns were powerful and clearly intelligent in their own way, but none had spoken.

“Divine above,” the elemental said, “but it truly has been a long age since I’ve had a proper visitor to the Forge. It truly warms my heart, which is no easy thing since my heart burns at twenty-two hundred degrees Fahrenheit! Zing! Sadly, though, I must earnestly encourage you to listen to your compatriot there. The floating book fellow. Much as I hate to inform you of this—because I would love a little company—but if you lot cross that bridge there, I’ll have to kill you all in a horrible fashion. Missing limbs. Disembowelment. Roasted alive. Very unpleasant. So best just keep your distance, I’m thinking.”

Everyone looked to Dizzy, but she looked just as flabbergasted by this strange turn of events as anyone else. Sam straightened and cleared his throat.

“Why do you have to kill us if we cross the bridge?” Sam asked. “I mean, you clearly don’t want to, so why not just let us in?”

“Wish that I could,” the elemental replied. “I’m not much for killing or maiming. Even rending doesn’t sit quite right with me, not on the gut level if you get my meaning. I’m a creature of creation and inspiration by nature. Everyone thinks fire is destructive, but I like to think of it as transformative. I’m an agent of change, applying heat and pressure and force to transform things into the best version of themselves. Never was built for war. Problem is this.” He reached up and tapped a thick metal figure against a sigil burning on his chest. “This is a command rune. Sort of like a set of magical instructions that compel me to do certain things. In this case, defend the Forge and the Armory from intruders—which you are. Unless of course the masters clear you.” It faltered. “I don’t suppose the master did clear, you? What an enormous relief that would be.”

“I’ve got some bad news, Kemosabe,” Bill blurted out, “but your masters are long gone. The Dwarves that called this place home once upon a time have moved on.”

The creature tapped thoughtfully at its chin.

“You know, that makes so much sense. The smith who created me, Kizmark Grumblebeard, said he was just stepping out for a cup of coffee—but that was five hundred years ago. Five hundred years does seem like a bit on the long side for a coffee run.”

“Would it change anything if we told you we were trying to become the new masters of the Irondowns?” Dizzy asked. “We’ve laid a claim to the territory and have already managed to capture three other junctions.”

“Does that change anything?” the elemental said, “well of course it does! That’s great news. It would be so nice to have someone around here to tell me what to do. I’ve just been forging and creating and forging and creating.” He hooked a thumb toward the armory. “I’ve made enough weapons and armor to equip a small army. Just kept building it because no one told me to stop.”

“Wait, so you’re just like gonna let us pass?” Kai asked.

“What? No, not at all,” the elemental guffawed. “If anything, I’m going to try to murder you even more.” He tapped another rune. “My masters were wise and left me with a set of instructions in case something should happen to them. My job is to protect the armory and test any would be contenders who would lay a claim the Irondowns. Make sure they’re worthy of my master’s legacy. That sort of thing.”

“You sound surprisingly chipper about killing us for a guy who doesn’t like violence or killing,” Sam said.

“Why wouldn’t I be chipper? Destruction for the sake for the sake of destruction is just a shame,” the elemental said simply. “But as I said, my purpose is transformation. If you would be the new Masters of the Irondown, I aim to transform you into the best version of yourself to make sure you’re worthy. And nothing transforms like the forge’s fire. The flames purify and the hammer shapes with each blow. Admittedly, sometimes a piece of iron breaks in the forging, but that only demonstrates there’s a flaw in the metal.” It shrugged huge mechanical shoulders. “My job is to make sure you aren’t flawed and fix you if you are.”

Everyone glanced to Dizzy, waiting for her cue.

“Form up,” she growled under her breath, a look of raw determination etched into the lines of her face. “Our biggest problem is going to be getting onto the platform. That thing is as wide as the bridge itself—probably designed that way to form a choke point, so the guardian can hold off a superior force indefinitely. If we can encircle it, though, and come at it from multiple angels we’ll probably have a better chance.”

“Leave that to me,” Sam said. “I’ve got a new trick up my sleeve and I think I’ll be able to draw him off. Just be ready to move as soon as you see an opening.”

Steeling his resolve, Sam pushed his way to the front of the group and started slowly padding toward the looming hulk of iron and fire.

“Good for you!” The elemental cheered. “And best of luck. I sincerely hope I don’t crush your skull like an overripe tomato!”

<I hope you know what you’re doing,> Bill sent.

<Me too,> Sam replied as he called forth his tomes from Bill’s Soul Space.