(RoS) Into Dredd's Tomb - Ch. 69 (Patreon)

Unsurprisingly, it wasn’t too hard for them to find the actual tomb. The entrance was at the far side of the city, separated by a thick stone wall positively teeming with guards. Maya’s crew stopped before the large black iron gate guarding the tomb.

“Well, that’s not intimidating,” Maya said. “Real inviting place.”

“Good thing we’re not here to enjoy its hospitality,” Humbol said, adjusting a ruby ring on his finger before stepping towards a guard beside the gate.

“Good day,” the guard said, tilting his helmed head slightly in greeting. “Entering the tomb?”

“We are,” Cyll said. The rest of the crew moved to join Humbol in front of the guard.

“Fantastic. Due to fresh orders, the tomb is now available until the lowest level. However, if this is your first time braving it, I highly recommend you stay within the first three. You don’t get to go deeper if you die.”

“Thanks for the advice,” Maya said seriously. “Is there anything else we need to know before going in?”

“At the moment, fifteen percent of your gold earnings belong to the city of Dredd’s Tomb as tax. You may keep any magical items you find, or sell them to us for a fair price,” the guard replied. “And that’s about it. I’d tell you not to bother the other dungeon delvers, but the dungeon is pretty good at keeping you away from other humans.”

The guard stepped to the side, waving for them to move on. They stepped under the dense stone wall and made their way past several more guards before arriving at the end of a small line before the entrance to the tomb.

It was a large crevice of brown stone, about fifteen feet in diameter. Faded runes and designs adorned the edges of the rock, but the passage of time had made them impossible to make out. Darkness filled the mouth of the tomb completely. It was impossible to see inside it.

One by one, parties of three to five people stepped into the entrance and vanished from sight. It didn’t take long for Maya’s crew to arrive at the front of the line.

“Remember that it’s only safe to rest in designated areas,” a guard at the entrance warned them. “Don’t try sleeping anywhere else. You won’t wake up.”

Maya didn’t have time to ask what the guard meant. Cyll and Humbol stepped forward, so she and Patty rushed to keep up with them. The dark abyss swallowed them whole. The city’s light and sound popped out of existance.

The darkness gave way to a dim brownish yellow light as Maya found herself standing in a small room. Her head spun for a few moments before abruptly snapping back to normal like a string being pulled taut. Her crew stood around her, all bearing slightly confused expressions.

“Well, that’s new,” Maya said. “I don’t recall that happening in the other dungeons we’ve gone to.”

“They’re all unique,” Cyll replied. “It’s been so long that I forgot Dredd’s Tomb teleports you to a random spot on the first floor when you enter. This is the only spot we can leave from as well, if I recall correctly.”

The immortal pirate gestured behind them. A dull grey door sat nestled within the rocks. It was covered with scars and pits, as if someone had attacked it with a pickaxe.

“Good to know,” Humbol said. “Is this one of those safe rest areas the guard mentioned?”

“I don’t think so,” Cyll replied with a curt shake of his head. “Those have green light. Normal rooms have the ugly yellow-brown we’re seeing now, and bosses have red.”

“So this room isn’t necessarily safe,” Patty said, drumming her fingers on the handle of her axe. “Can you say what we could run into as we go deeper?”

Cyll’s lips pursed as he concentrated, but after a few moments he sighed and shrugged helplessly.

“I’m sorry,” he said. “I can’t remember. It’s been too long. The only thing I remember about it is the final boss.”

“Better than nothing,” Maya said. “Tell us about that.”

“It’s a huge bone golem,” Cyll said. “It’s very hard to damage, but it’s rather slow. Just don’t get hit by it and we should be fine. It was an annoying fight, but that was just because the stupid thing wouldn’t die.”

As they spoke, Cyll made his way to the front of the room, where another grey door separated them from the rest of the dungeon. A thin arrow had been carved into the floor, pointing in the door’s direction.

“Are we ready?” Cyll asked.

“Always,” Humbol replied. He drew the thin sword from his side and let his hand rest easily at his side.

Maya and Patty drew their own weapons. They fell in behind Cyll as the immortal pirate pushed the door open.

The stench of rotting meat hit them like a rogue wave. Maya and Cyll gagged, while Humbol and Patty just looked mildly perturbed.

The new room was two to three times larger than the first one and quite spacious. The floor was bumpy and rough, as if something had burned through it. At the far side of the room, a insectile creature watched them with six green eyes.

It had grey armor, with jagged legs that resembled swords and a wickedly pointed stinger. The scorpion let out a chittering cry and darted towards them.

It was disturbingly fast, covering the distance in a matter of seconds. Patty was the first to react, leaping in front of Cyll and bringing her axe whistling downwards. The scorpion abruptly changed directions, dodging out of the way and lashing out at her with its stinger.

Cyll jumped in front of the puppet, batting the stinger away from her. The scorpion let out a hiss and lunged towards him, rearing back and slashing Cyll across the chest with its forelegs.

Humbol leapt past Cyll and thrust his sword at the creature’s carapace. It bit into the thin line between the armored plates and sunk several inches in. The scorpion spun, forcing the undead man to pull his sword out and dance back.

Patty swung her axe again before Maya could even move. With a crunch, the heavy weapon slammed right onto the creature’s back. The armor didn’t break as much as bend, crushing the scorpion’s innards through blunt force.

Patty swung her weapon again. The creature’s cries went silent.