Dungeon Menagerie 9 (Patreon)

Commissioned by InfiniteChaosRei

Dungeon Menagerie

Chapter 9

-VB-

Vanessa looked down at the spear in her hand. 

It was a generic spear provided by the Guild, even if spears weren’t exactly a common weapon among the adventurers. Spears, as it had been explained to her by both the Guild advisor and her goddess Athena, was a weapon of peasant and professional soldiers. 

A spear worked best when used with other spears to get around barriers like spears and barricades. It had longer reach and better center of gravity than any other weapon. A spear thrust didn’t change the weapon’s center of gravity as much as axes, longswords, and maces experienced. 

Oh, and she didn’t know how to use it.

“And that is a good thing,” Athena spoke up as she abit into a lamb jerky, which was one of the cheaper meat products in the city. “If you knew how to use other weapons, then you would have a harder time learn how to use the spear. A spear is different from swords, axes, and bows. It is a weapon of control. And I’ll be teaching you how to use it properly.”

Vanessa looked up at her goddess and then froze. Her goddess looked … scary. 

“Umm. So I have to go find a teacher?” she asked warily. 

“Find a teacher?” Athena drawled as she stood up. Even though she looked young and stood shorter than Vanessa, her goddess looked … dangerous. And maybe a little pissed. “You have the goddess of war as your parent god, and you dare ask to go find another teacher?!” She grabbed a stick from the ground at the backyard of the inn that they stood in. And then she lashed out. “Guard!” 

Vanessa shrieked in surprise and backpedaled, only for her diminutive goddess to come barreling in and smacking her over the head. 

She oofed and rolled before coming down on her ass. “What was that for?!” she whined as she got back, ignoring the dirt all over her clothes now. Her goddess had warned her before so she wasn’t wearing her good clothes, just her tough dungeon diving clothes. She got over herself on getting dirty weeks ago. 

“Surprise attack,” Athena grinned maliciously even though she looked like a straight-backed duelist. 

And then attacked her again without announcing this time. 

But Vanessa was ready -! 

Not.

“YIP!” she yelped as she got another bonk to her head. 

“No, no, no. You are supposed to keep me away with the tip of your spear! Get up and point that spear at me!” 

“Wait, I didn’t sign up for - GACK!”

“You did! Hurry it up, Vanessa! You’re not leaving here until I say so!” Athena singsang. And then she struck again.

“YIP!”

“Stop barking like a dog and start pointing that spear at me!” 

-VB-

Later that week, she was back in the dungeon. But now, she had her spear with her, a bunch of kobolds in front of her, and Mori behind her. 

Vanessa looked over her shoulder while keeping her hands tightly around the shaft of her spear. 

“Mori, why are you doing this? Did Athena goad you into it? Did she finally convince you to betray me?!”

Mori, her first friend in this cruel and cold world, cawed. She snapped back to her front and saw a kbold jumping at her. 

“Noo!” she yelled as she -.

-thrust her spear forward? 

She attacked accurately, too, to her own surprise and she watched a little numbingly shocked as her spear punched through the first kobold’s chest. It gurgled as it weakly grasped the spear quickly but ultimately futilely. Even with her hands shaking on the spear shaft, she swung to force the kobold off of her spear and slashed at the next goblin. 

Even though she swung in a small arc with her left hand while keeping her right hand still and planted on her waist, the spear tip swung in a much wider arc quickly. The second kobold barely had any time to react before her attack slashed across its face. It tried to duck under the attack but it didn’t save its face when the tip of her spear sliced through flesh and bone alike. It howled as it collapsed onto the floor. 

She backpedaled as the third kobold and a goblin jumped over the downed kobold and shrieked as they came at her. 

She whined a little even as she thrust her spear forward even though she knew it wouldn’t hit. 

But the threatening attack got the third kobold to back off. The goblin, however, didn’t. It tried to rush past her spear tip but all that did was allow her to pull her spear back and stick it with its own reckless momentum. 

The goblin shrieked as it struggled on the spear and then fell. 

She quickly pulled her spear out as the last kobold charged me after being shook out of its fear of death by the goblin’s death.

And she struck.

The goblin went down with a gurgle.

“Yatta! I did it!” she cheered with shuddering gasps.

“CAW!” 

“Huh, Mori, what-?”

And then she heard it.

The wall right next to her cracked.

She whirled around with the spear just in time to see a war shadow. 

It towered over her as it clawed its way out of the wall. Oh. It just spawned. 

Her eyes widened. She needed to mov-!

Her spear broke.

She felt something slash her stomach.

She coughed and fell, rolling and clutching her stomach as white hot pain blasted her every thought. She heard rapid thumps before Mori’s enraged caws. She looked up just in time to see Mori jump on the war shadow, and despite how fragile he looked with its reedy legs and neck, he powered through the war shadows attacks and utterly smashed it to bits with his legs. With tears running down her face, she watched a little deliriously as green light dimly pulsed right as the war shadow was killed under Mori’s talons and a dim pulse of the same green light lit around her stomach.

And suddenly, she didn’t feel as bad as before. 

Still a little in pain and cramped, she pushed herself off of the dungeon floor with shaking hands and arms and looked down.

Her shirt had been slashed open, and where there was a pain gash before, there was now a thin, fraile line.

Did … Did Mori heal her? 

“Caw!” 

She looked up and winced. 

Mori looked pissed.

“CAW!” 

She winced. “Sorry! I know! I should’ve have moved!” 

He “glared” at her before huffing. He cawed lightly at her and waited for her to get up.

She struggled a little on her shaky legs as she got up.

… She nearly died. 

If it wasn’t for Mori, then she would have died. 

“Let’s … let’s go back up, Mori.”

Her best friend ruffled his feathers and then got down to the floor, inviting her to ride him. She didn’t hesitate - it was normal for her now - and allowed herself to rest as he rose up after she got on and lightly jogged back up the stairs. 

She felt like passing out from the sheer relief she felt… but then paused as the Celestial Menagerie blossomed again inside of her and reached out to something, grabbed it, and dragged it back down.

There was a poof, and she looked to her right.

Oh.

That’s a big bug.

She let her eyes roll over and fully surrendered herself to sleep.

Her future self can deal with the big bug.

-VB-

Current Companions:

Judgement Bird - “Mori” - Lobotomy Corporation

The Bubbles - N/A - Card Captor Sakura

Charus - N/A - Elder Scrolls