Chapter 373 - Elemental Forces (Patreon)

“This is unnatural,” said Eta, looking around.

Jasper resisted the urge to sigh at her obvious statement. “Was it the stone trees that gave it away?” he asked under his breath.

Obviously, his voice wasn’t as quiet as he’d hoped, because she said, “Yes. There is no life in them.”

The dark elf just shook his head. It wasn’t his first time in a dungeon, so while he’d been surprised when the ground fell out from under them, he’d quickly adjusted his mindset. Still, he had to admit that the stone forest was more than a little unnerving. Nervously, he tapped his fingers against the pommel of the sword at his waist, keeping a beat only he could hear.

“How do you want to do this?” he asked, still looking around. There really wasn’t much to see, largely because of how dense the rocky foliage was. It wasn’t just the trees, either. Everything from the leaves on the ground to the scrubby bushes between the trees looked like realistic statues. “Do you know which way we should go?”

Silik, the third member of their party, pointed to Jasper’s left and said, “That way.”

“How do you know that?” Jasper asked. He still wasn’t entirely comfortable with the kobolds. Mostly, that was because, as a miner, he’d been subjected to multiple attacks from the overgrown lizards. He hadn’t forgotten the vicious attacks that had ended up killing countless of his fellow slaves.

But Silik was a powerful entity and an ally, so Jasper forced himself to push his discomfort aside.

“I feel it,” Silik said. The monstrous lizard-man was powerful and, Jasper had learned, reasonably intelligent. But articulate, he was not. Like the bearkin that was Zeke’s closest companion, Silik clearly wasn’t comfortable speaking his mind.

“We are surrounded by earth mana,” Eta stated. “His senses are likely our most reliable means of navigation.”

The dryad was different. She had no issues voicing her opinions, but her time as a slave had left her traumatized. So, she often fell into long periods of silence. Zeke could pull her out, but Jasper was ill-equipped to play therapist to a depressed dryad.

Not for the first time, he cursed his luck at being stuck with the two mostly silent companions. He’d have preferred Zeke. Or the boarkin girl. Anyone but an overgrown lizard and a despondent dryad.

“Do we know what is out there?” Jasper asked.

“Enemies,” said Silik.

“I was hoping for something a little more specific than that,” Jasper stated.

“Strong enemies,” Silik elaborated.

Jasper sighed, then ran a hand through his long, white hair. As he continued to look around, he went over his skills, trying to find something appropriate for the situation. Some, like [Rhythm of the March] were largely pointless in such a closely packed area. It was useful when they were on the march, but in short areas, it wouldn’t do much good.

Others, like [Dirge of the Seasons] could be useful if attacked, but for now, would just be a waste of mana. However, his newest skill, called [Mantle of the Banshee] was probably just what they needed. So, he retrieved the set of reed pipes he’d only recently made, then said, “I’ll try to mask our presence. No sudden moves or loud noises.”

Both Eta and Silik nodded their agreement, and Jasper started playing a haunting melody on the pipes. The instrument wasn’t well-made, but Jasper was a talented enough bard that he could make do. As such, the sound was passable, if a little raw. A second after he started playing, he and his allies faded from view. They were still visible, but only barely. Jasper likened the effect to looking through a poorly made pane of glass.

In any case, the skill’s effects weren’t limited to the visual spectrum. Instead, it would muffle the sound of their passage as well as dissuade enemies from noticing them. Hopefully, it would be enough.

After a few seconds, Jasper motioned for Silik to lead the way. The big kobold complied, stepping over a stone bush as he plunged deeper into the rocky forest. Jasper followed, with Eta bringing up the rear. And just like that, they were on their way.

It didn’t take them long to see their first enemy. Twisted around a stone branch was what looked like a sculpted snake. Jasper held his breath as they passed beneath the monster, and he nearly devolved into panic when he heard the thing moving overhead. However, they soon left it behind, giving him leave to let out a shuddering breath.

Jasper had never considered himself a coward. And going back to childhood, he’d often thrown himself into one dangerous situation after another. But each of those situations had featured known enemies. Since following Zeke into the depths of the dwarven mine, he’d encountered one new, incredibly dangerous, and terrifying threat after another. It was one thing to fight against a ship full of merchants’ guards, but it was something else altogether to find himself facing off against ancient wyrms.

But he kept coming back for more.

He could have left with the other former slaves.  Indeed, his instincts had screamed at him to do just that. But he’d chosen to stay, and he knew why. Following Zeke was probably going to get him killed, but if it didn’t, he would grow far more powerful than he ever could have imagined.

Jasper wasn’t special. He knew that, and he’d accepted it. Certainly, his mother had never let him forget just how mundane he was, especially after he’d chosen his class. But his friendship with Zeke gave him the opportunity to ascend far beyond his natural limits. Already, he’d reaped the benefits by escaping slavery and gaining multiple levels. All he had to do was survive, and he’d continue to climb.

If he ever returned to Tesh, he intended to do so as a powerful warrior with even stronger friends. That would show everyone who’d ever doubted him – including his mother – that he was more than they’d ever given him credit for.

But for now, Jasper needed to survive, which, given the setting, seemed less assured than ever.

As they made their way through the stone forest, Jasper focused on his song. One missed note, and the skill would fail. His abilities weren’t like others’. Instead of simply funneling mana into a skill and moving on, he had to continuously empower it with music and mana. If the music – whether it was singing or simply keeping a beat with his fingers – stopped, the effects of the skill would end only a few seconds later.

The tradeoff was that his mana regeneration outpaced his usage, which meant that, so long as the music didn’t stop, his skills could remain in effect indefinitely. From time to time, he’d experimented with empowering more than one at a time. Sometimes, that took the form of singing and playing an instrument, but other times, he’d try to string skills together in a loop. The results were mixed, and he still hadn’t even begun to approach mastery.

So, for now, he was limited to one skill at a time.

Thankfully, the skill in question, [Mantle of the Banshee], was up to the task at hand, and the group remained undetected as they traversed the stone forest. Along the way, Jasper saw other stone versions of various monsters. There were plenty of snakes, but he also saw enlarged squirrels with incredibly sharp teeth, a couple of giant stags, and even a few wolves. Thankfully, none of the stone monsters were capable of seeing through [Mantle of the Banshee].

After a few hours, they finally reached the edge of the forest only to find an immense grassland stretching out ahead of them. However, instead of the ubiquitous stone of the forest, the grass was made of fire. Jasper and Eta stepped forward to study the fiery grassland while Silik took the rear in order to protect them in case one of the stone monsters had followed.

“I think I know what this is,” he said.

“What?” asked Eta.

“Earth,” he said, pointing back to the forest. Then, he gestured toward the grassland, saying, “Fire. And I’m willing to bet we’ll find water and air. The four natural elements.”

Eta tapped her lip with one bark-like finger. “Interesting,” she said. “What do you think –”

Before she could finish her question, something crashed through the stone forest and rammed into Silik, sending him skidding across the ground and into the fiery grassland. Jasper immediately empowered [Accelerating Crescendo], letting out a wordless war chant. His muscles twitched with unrestrained speed as he sprang into motion, drawing his rapier and parrying dagger in quick succession.

Meanwhile, Eta raised her hands to the sky as mana swirled around her. A moment later, thick vines erupted from the ground, encircling the legs of the attacking monster. It tried to rip free, but the vines continued to replenish until it could scarcely move. That gave Jasper a chance to get a good look at it.

“A moose?” he muttered, using his inspection ability.

The King of the Forest – Level 51

Given its obvious power, the name seemed like an adequate descriptor, and like all the other animals they’d passed along the way, it looked much like its mundane counterpart, save that instead of being made of flesh and blood, it seemed to be completely composed of rock. Green moss grew along its back and around its antlers, giving Jasper the impression that it had long been dormant.

The creature was only stationary for a couple of seconds before it managed to rip free of the vines. When it did, it sighted in on Eta and charged. The dryad dove out of its path, but the moose still managed to clip her with its lowered antlers. She went spinning through the air only to hit one of the stone trees before crashing to the ground.

Before the moose could turn around, Jasper dashed forward, slashing his rapier across the monster’s back legs. The weapon wasn’t really made for cutting attacks, but it still had a suitably sharp edge, so he’d hoped it would at least slow the thing down. However, the blow was almost entirely useless, and it only managed to chip a few shards of rocky skin from the creature’s back leg.

But it did accomplish his other goal, which was to get the creature’s attention.

It wheeled around, and with a great roar that sounded more appropriate for a bear than for a herbivore, it charged Jasper. With [Accelerating Crescendo] fueling his agility, he bounded backwards, narrowly avoiding its sweeping antlers. He lashed out again, stabbing the monster in the nose. Again, it was useless in terms of damage, but it kept the thing’s attention squarely where Jasper wanted it.

So, the moose never saw the massive kobold leaping onto its back.

Silik was at least ten feet tall, and with muscle to spare, but the moose was so large that it made the kobold on its back look like a child by comparison. But Silik was more than mere muscle mass, as evidenced by the sudden twisting tendrils of light suddenly encasing his body. He’d lost his spear, so he was forced to use his natural weapons.

Thankfully, a kobold’s claws were tailor made for carving through stone.

As Silik tore through the moose’s back, Eta recovered enough to add her own vines to the mix. As a primary attack, they weren’t capable of doing more than stall the huge creature, but with it distracted by Silik’s attacks, they were more than enough to entangle its legs and send it toppling to the ground.

When it hit, Jasper dashed forward and used his least-favored skill, [Dissonance]. A high-pitched scream tore free from his lips, ripping into moose and shattering the stone on its face. He took a deep breath, then did it again. And again. Each time drained a good portion of his available mana, but Jasper kept it up until, at last, the monster fell apart.

Silik didn’t stop, though. Not until he’d shattered the enormous creature into a million pieces. Even then, he looked as if he wanted to keep going, and he only stopped when Eta laid a hand on his shoulder.

Meanwhile, Jasper sank to the ground and tried to catch his breath.

When he finally looked up, he saw something wholly surprising.

The stone forest had begun to transform. Piece by piece, the stone flaked off to reveal the more natural textures beneath. In the space of only a few moments, a normal forest stood where the statue-like woods had once been.

“I think we can safely take that as a hint,” he mumbled, pushing himself to his feet. His mana was still dangerously low, but he had enough to empower a few songs.

“What do you think it means?” asked Eta, who’d taken the opportunity to use a different skill. This one prompted the growth of an enormous sunflower. When it reached maturity and spread its petals wide, a soothing aura of vitality blanketed the immediate area. Jasper basked in the life-giving energy and felt his fatigue dissipating. At the same time, Silik’s and Eta’s wounds had begun to heal.

“There are two options,” Jasper said. “We can fight through the dungeon as it was intended, or we can try to skip ahead.”

Indeed, he’d seen such situations before, and though the nature of the dungeon seemed far more foreboding than any he’d encountered in the past, he suspected that the mechanics were fairly similar.

“I believe that each biome will have a leader,” he said. “When it is defeated, its territory will revert to a more natural state.”

“And when all four are conquered?”

“I believe a path will open up,” he said. “Perhaps we will be reunited with our friends at that point.”

After a little discussion, the other two agreed. So, with that, Jasper used [Dirge of the Seasons] to increase his and his companions’ elemental resistances before they set off into the fiery grasslands. Thankfully, there were no lurking fire-themed animals, but after an hour or so, they were assaulted by a giant raptor with wings of flame. Once again, Silik took the lead, and though they were all injured by the bird’s fiery talons, the creature’s attacks were blunted by [Dirge of the Seasons]. Still, it took the trio quite some time to wear the monster down. In the end, Silik killed it by leaping onto its back and literally ripping one of its wings off. After that, the group fell on it with all the might they could bring to bear, and it died soon after.

At the edge of the grassland, they found another forest. However, instead of being made of stone or more natural materials, it was entirely composed of water. Jasper touched one of the trees, and his hand passed into the watery trunk like it’d been dipped into a lake. However, only a moment later, a tiny piranha tore through one of his fingers. He yanked his hand back just in time to avoid losing the digit, and the diminutive but obviously deadly fish swam up through the tree trunk, disappearing into the branches.

The guardian of that biome proved to be a monster made of water that was called a kelpie. Fighting it proved to be incredibly difficult, largely because it consciously shifted forms. One second, it was a horse, and the next, it became a giant lizard. Each attack came from a different form, which made adjusting to it a nightmare.

In the end, Silik once again proved his worth when he simply evaporated the thing by repeatedly using [Spear of Memories]. It took a while, but the kobold was tireless in his efforts. However, by the time he finally killed the thing, his sleek scales had become a mass of bloody wounds.

After spending a few hours healing via Eta’s [Sunflower] ability, the trio set out once again, soon finding themselves at the edge of the last biome.

“I’m at a loss,” said Eta, staring over the cliff. The water forest had transformed into a jungle that ended with a steep cliff.

Jasper looked over the edge, but he couldn’t see the bottom. Nor was there anything above them. It was all just a vast expanse of nothing.

Clearly, they needed to defeat some sort of air monster, but Jasper had no idea how to even find it. He said as much, asking for his companions’ opinions on how to solve the problem.

Silik said, “It will find us.”

Then, without warning, he began to bombard the empty air with repeated usage of [Spear of Memories]. Lances of light tore through the space, and at first, Jasper thought the kobold was merely wasting his mana. However, after only a couple of minutes, a cool breeze began to blow.

That breeze became a steady wind, which in turn evolved into a ceaseless hurricane gust that heralded the arrival of the last guardian.

It presented itself in the form of a giant, winged serpent wreathed in lightning. Silik responded to its arrival predictably by shooting it with spears of light. Unfortunately, the skill passed right through the thing as if it wasn’t even there.

“Lead it inland!” Jasper shouted, hoping that removing it from its habitat would help their efforts. As it turned out, he was right, and though it took quite some time, every foot they traveled inland turned the thing a little more solid until, when they reached the edge of the grassland, it was corporeal enough for their attacks to affect it.

After that, it was a simple task of piling on until, at last, it fell. When it did, the world shook, and a gaping chasm opened up at their feet. Soon enough, that chasm became a tunnel that led further underground.

“I think this might be the way to go,” Jasper said. “I just hope the others figured their own puzzles out.”

Eta shook her head. “If I know Zeke, he probably just charged ahead and tried to bash his way through with a hammer.”

“That is disturbingly likely,” Jasper said. “What is even more distressing is that he will probably make it work.”

Eta summoned her sunflower, and the three settled in to regenerate. An hour or so later, they headed down the tunnel, hoping that they would soon be reunited with the others.