Grand Game 260: The Maze of Traps (Patreon)

I didn’t stay under long. When I judged myself a safe distance from the coral hag, I resurfaced.

“There he is!”

Three sea witches were directly ahead of me, only one of whom was protected by an ice shield. Not troubling to analyze my targets, I let fly with my astral daggers.

Your attack has failed! Your target’s spell has blocked your attack.

Your attack has failed! Your target’s spell has repelled your attack.

Not unexpectedly, both ethereal blades failed to score a hit. More surprisingly, one of my daggers was heading straight back at me. Diving left, I threw myself out of the way.

Unfortunately, that put me squarely in the path of another projectile, one fired by an unseen hag to my rear.

You have been hit by an ice dart.

You have failed a magical resistance check! You are frozen. Duration: 3 seconds.

“Got him!” a hag crowed.

In an eyeblink, ice encased me, freezing my limbs and robbing me of forward momentum. Like a stone, I dropped back into the marsh. But while I was immobilized, I was not stunned, and the dark water provided plenty of cover. Drawing on the shadows, I concealed myself.

You are hidden.

A block of ice on the marsh floor, I waited. The hags were surely rushing in to finish me. Would they find me?

It did not take long to find out.

You have been hit by 4 frost rays.

You have evaded the assault of 6 unknown hostiles.

Lines of ice crisscrossed the water as the hags fired blindly into the marsh. I was struck thrice, but thankfully the frozen debuff was not renewed.

A moment later, I was free. Immediately, I released the psi I’d been holding ready.

You have cast windborne.

I shot out of the water, propelled upward by a near-vertical ramp of air. The converging hags, astonished by my sudden appearance, shrank back.

I ignored them. It was time to enter my maze of traps. Focusing on a more distant foe, I blinked.

You have teleported into the shadow of a coral hag.

The sea witch behind whom I’d appeared spun around, but she was too late. I’d already submerged myself in the marsh again.

You are hidden.

Magical projectiles pounded furiously at the water. I paid them no heed. It was less than ten yards to the first trap trigger. Swimming underwater, I slipped past the sound glass and resurfaced.

Peeking out of the water, I checked my rear. A second witch had joined the coral hag, and both were scanning the marsh for me. My lips turned down. I had been hoping to snare more of my foes.

But two would do.

Releasing the shadows wrapped around me, I waited for the hags to spot me. They did so almost immediately and gave chase without a second thought.

Still, I waited.

A heartbeat later, the pair fell into the invisible circle marking the trapped area. This time, I’d made sure to separate trap and trigger by a large distance, ensuring I would be unaffected.

“Come and get me!” I roared.

You have activated a trap!

A tidal hag’s spell: impervious ice has triggered.

A coral hag’s spell: water shield has triggered.

Plumes of green gas billowed out, swallowing my pursuers, but they came on, undeterred by the toxins biting at their defenses. Spinning around, I recloaked myself and continued my flight.

An ice dart flew over my shoulder.

I didn’t turn around. My stealth was intact, and the hags were firing blindly. The pair were catching up, though.

But I didn’t mind that.

Scanning the area, I identified the next closest group of hags. They were forty yards to my right. Not near enough to pose any threat, I decided. Glancing over my shoulder, I locked gazes with my chosen target and, in one motion, blinked and struck.

You have teleported into the shadow of a tidal hag.

You have backstabbed your target for 2.5x more damage!

You have killed a tidal hag with a fatal blow.

One down.

Yanking ebonheart free from the corpse, I drew stamina and psi again and wove a second flurry of spells.

You have cast whirlwind, piercing strike, and windborne.

The second hag was slow to realize the danger and was still half-turned away. Materializing the windslide in a tightly wound arc about her, I launched an all-out offensive and struck at the witch from multiple directions—all seemingly at once.

Your target’s shield has blocked your attacks.

Your target’s shield has blocked your attacks.

Your target’s shield has…

…

Halfway through my speedy spiral, the astonished hag’s defenses crumbled, and I buried ebonheart hilt-deep in her chest.

You have killed a tidal hag with a fatal blow.

A frost dagger whizzed past.

Flinging my head up, I glanced in the direction it had come from. The other hags were converging fast.

Time to reposition.

Diving into the marsh, I headed towards my next trap.

✵ ✵ ✵

A minute later, I was hunkered down in the reeds beside the third sound glass, uncloaked and waiting.

Spells and angry cries from the hags filled the air, but so far, they’d failed to find me, but not from a lack of trying. The murky water made hiding easy, and I took full advantage, popping in and out of the marsh at every opportunity to launch stinging attacks whose purpose was to irritate rather than hurt.

Now, a pair of green clouds hung low over the marsh—from the dispersing toxins of the first two traps. The twenty hags on my tail plunged heedlessly through. They weren’t afraid of the poison; their spelled defenses saw to it that the damage was minimized or nullified entirely.

Multiple hostile entities have detected you! You are no longer hidden.

“Found him!” Malina crowed from the front of the pack. Exhorting those behind her to greater speed, she raised her hands and prepared a casting. The sea witch had joined the hunt a while back, but of the hag mother, there was no sign yet.

Pity, I thought. The next bit promised to be… interesting.

The volume of spells coloring the air increased. I paid them no heed, though, as I watched my pursuers through narrowed eyes. Crossing over an invisible line etched in my mind, the hags entered the killing ground.

That’s far enough, I decided, crushing the sound glass in my hand.

The trigger activated.

A pulse raced down the magical weave connecting the trigger to the trap element ten yards away. The fire enchantment ignited, and flames gushed out. The fire was not large. Small and contained, it barely singed the hags, but that was not the flames’ purpose.

A tongue of fire touched the poison cloud.

My vision flashed orange.

A split-second sound later, an avalanche of sound and air rolled over me—the toxic gasses had ignited.

Hags were tossed asunder. Here and there, a spelled shield winked out, and I carefully marked each position. A moment later, thick black plumes swallowed the sea witches, and silence descended upon the marsh.

Rising to my feet, I slipped into the smoke.

It was time to get killing.

✵ ✵ ✵

Even blinded by smoke and dazed by the explosion, the hags did not make for easy prey. I could not see them nor track them with mindsight, but my sharp hearing did not let me down, and I soon located my first target.

It was Malina.

“Caulis, get rid of this wretched smoke! The rest of you, call on your—”

Drawing up behind the sea witch, I wrapped my left hand around her mouth and slashed open her throat.

You have killed Malina with a fatal blow!

Letting the corpse sink, I ducked back into the water.

“Malina?” someone hollered. “What’s wrong?”

There was no answer, of course, and more cries followed, some perplexed, a few scared, but most angry. The hags were scattered and confused but regrouping fast. I judged I had just enough time for two more kills.

“Answer me, sister! Where are you?”

I waded silently toward the speaker. If memory served, it was a hag whose shield had failed.

A drop touched my face. Then another. I looked up.

It was raining.

I frowned. Rain from a cloudless sky? It was no natural weather phenomenon. This is the hags’ doing. The black smoke was already dispersing, pushed aside by cooling streams of water and air.

I was not going to reach my target in time, I realized.

A half dozen mindglows appeared in my mindsight.

My frown deepened. Now what? Reaching out with my will, I analyzed one of the invisible shapes.

The target is a level 109 water elemental.

I grinned, worry forgotten.

The hags had summoned additional support, but unfortunately for them, their ploy had backfired. Their helpers’ minds were unshielded, providing me with convenient navigational beacons. Drawing in psi, I shadow blinked to one of the new entrants.

You have teleported into an ice elemental’s shadow.

I emerged from the aether still cloaked and less than two yards from my intended victim. Raising ebonheart, I crept up behind the hag.

Perhaps, I will score more kills after all.

✵ ✵ ✵

You have killed a coral hag with a fatal blow!

You have killed a tidal hag with a fatal blow!

You have killed a tempest hag with a fatal blow!

I slew three more of my pursuers before the smoke dispersed entirely. By this time, the hags had drawn together for mutual protection, looks of grim determination replacing their cries of outrage.

I may have hurt my foes, but they were far from done.

Hidden amongst the reeds around the next trap trigger, I observed the hags from fifty yards away. Would they be so foolish as to keep pursuing me? I wondered.

“Malina, where are you, you misbegotten toad? When I get my hands on you, I swear I will wring your bloody neck!”

At the screeched command, I turned in the direction of the speaker.  It was the hag mother accompanied by another pair of sea witches.

The coven’s leader had finally made an appearance.

“She is dead, mother,” one of the hags from the huddled group said.

The hag mother snorted. “Good riddance. She’s botched things enough already. Report, Caulis.”

“Eight dead in total.  Twelve remaining.” Caulis’ gaze slid to the hag mother and her companions. “Now fifteen.”

The hag mother scowled. “Then what are you fools doing cowering over there? Spread out and find him!”

Caulis’ mouth worked soundlessly, but she didn’t protest the order. “As you wish, mother.”

Smiling, I readied myself. The game was still on.

✵ ✵ ✵

Five minutes later, all my traps were triggered, transforming a large section of the grove into a smog field.

The hags called down more rainstorms, but given the increased smoke and patches of reeds that had caught fire, they were less successful in clearing the air.

Not everything went my way, however. My previous ambush had made my foes wary. Changing tactics, they hung on the fringes of the smoke patches while they tried clearing them with jets of water and ice. But complying with their leader’s orders, the sea witches had spread out—giving me a few choice targets.

I was done hunting lesser prey, though. It was time to land the big fish: the hag mother herself.

The coven’s leader was still on the battlefield. Accompanied by her two bodyguards, she stood unconcerned in the center of the smog field—water walking again—and studied her followers with a jaundiced gaze. All three witches were wrapped in ice shields. Ordinarily, that would suffice as protection against a sneak attack.

But I had a plan.

Hidden in a nearby clump of reeds, I began my assault. First, the distraction. Drawing on my stores of energy, I wove a spell of deception.

You have cast ventro.

“What?” I whispered mockingly. “Still, can’t find me?”

The trio’s gazes whipped in the direction my voice had emanated from—conveniently turning their backs on my true position.

I rose out of the water. Second, a blitzed approach. Not waiting to see what further action the coven leader took, I released my next spell.

You have cast windborne.

Spell winds formed at my back, propelling me upwards. I was too far to reach the hag mother directly by windslide, but I didn’t need to. Rocketing off the currents of air, I arced silently through the smoke-filled sky.

I’d plotted my trajectory perfectly.

Through slitted eyes, I watched the top of the hag mother’s shield rushing up.  She remained oblivious to my descending form.

Third, the strike. Raising my blades, I empowered them with stamina.

You have cast whirlwind, increasing your attack speed by 100% for 3 seconds.

You have cast piercing strike, doubling the damage dealt on the next attack.

I drew level with the hag mother—passing just inches behind the rear of her shield—and struck, moving in a blur.

You have backstabbed a hag mother for 5x more damage!

Your target’s shield has blocked your attacks.

Ebonheart clanged off the hag’s shield. Undaunted, I struck again with my second sword.

You have backstabbed a hag mother for 2.5x more damage!

Your target’s shield has blocked your attacks.

A hostile entity has detected you! You are no longer hidden.

An instant later, my feet hit the marsh’s surface. Whipping past my target, I plunged through the water and struck the mud floor beneath. In a pre-coordinated move, I pulled the shadows about me.

You are hidden. Multiple hostile entities have failed to detect you!

Fourth, rinse and repeat.

Pushing off the marsh floor, I surged upward through the water to strike at the hag mother from below.

You have backstabbed a hag mother for 2.5x more damage!

Your target’s shield has blocked your attacks.

You have backstabbed a hag mother for 2.5x more damage!

Your target’s shield has been destroyed! You are no longer hidden.

My lips twitched upward in a satisfied smirk. I’d done it. I’d broken through the hag mother’s defenses. Now for the final step. Finish her. With a contemptuous glance at the downturned palms of the three hags—and the attacks they were likely directing my way—I shadow blinked.

You have teleported into the shadow of a hag mother.

Frost and ice splashed harmlessly into the water at my abandoned position. At the same time, I brought ebonheart and the stygian sword curving inwards.

Both blades met at the hag mother’s neck.

Cold steel cut through skin, bone, and flesh effortlessly, and a moment later, the sea witch’s headless corpse dropped at my feet.

You have killed a hag mother with a fatal blow.

Now, that’s how you—

Twin jets of water and ice struck me from either side, cutting short my celebrations. Spinning around, I turned to face the closer of the bodyguards.

The battle was far from over.

Hefting my blades, I threw myself at the hag.