Ultimate Level 1 - 203 - Blue Balls (Patreon)

“That is so smooth,” Tom said with a soft sigh.  “We should definitely have him tell us more things like this.”

All three of them laughed as they took their time, sipping the vintage the Faction leader almost never shared.

“I can’t really have word get out that you are making legendary weapons,” Everett said slowly as he spun his glass on the desk.  “Which means Joshua is still going to need to be the one making them.”

“Sorry,” Max replied. “I figured it wouldn’t be an issue once I was strong enough that it wouldn’t matter if people learned that I had a skill like that.”

Both men nodded, knowing he was right.  Power allowed people to do things that weren’t possible when they were weak.

“So you still want to keep making items?”

Nodding, Max shrugged.

“I need to find materials that will allow me to one day craft a weapon worthy of this tooth. If it's possible to make more than one from it, then I’ll gladly do that, but right now, I can’t even cut it. There hasn’t been a single thing I’ve seen that will mesh with it or affect it.”

“You don’t think it’s a godly ranked skill, do you?” Tom asked.

“No one’s seen a dragon’s tooth in so long I doubt there is a book or scroll with knowledge of what is needed,” Everett replied. “That means we’re doing this blind.  I’ve got a few items in our vault that he could look through, but trying to explain to the others why we might be using them would cause some problems.”

“Everett, can I ask a question?”

The Faction leader nodded at Max as he lifted his glass to his lips.

“Am I worth the trouble?”

Choking on the small sip he took, it took the older man a moment to catch his breath, the liquor having gone down the wrong hole and causing a different sensation than desired.

Tom attempted to cover his mouth as he laughed, but the alcohol had already made that task fail.

“Why would you ask that?” Everett finally gasped.  

“A certain sect of elves wants me dead, someone else outside them tried to kill me, possibly a noble, and I’ve just pissed off your highest-ranked fighter in the Faction.  Now you hear I’ve got secrets I can’t share, see the item I won’t share, and know I’m looking to raid the guild vault to make something from it.”

Tom snorted, and his smile looked like it was struggling to stay in place.

“He’s right,” the trainer said, his speech having a hint of slurring. “He is a pain in my arse.”

Everett turned so he could sit straight.

“Seth, listen to me.  I can’t imagine what you’re handling.  Tom shares some of what he sees, and I know there is a lot more going on under the surface than you’ll share.  Even Cordellia, which I’m certain you now know was meant to help us learn more about you, is committed to you completely.  This speaks highly of who you are and what you can do.  That damn ranger even turned down an item when I offered to trade it for some knowledge, and it wasn’t one most would have resisted.”

Tapping the desk with his finger, Everett grinned. 

“She didn’t even hesitate to tell me where I could stick it.  Politely, of course.”

Hearing that made Max feel better, knowing that Cordellia had done that for him.

“The truth is I’ve been mostly honest since the beginning, and you know that our desire is to see you reach the fiftieth floor. After that…” he paused and frowned. If you and your group can make it further, we want to support you, but again, our fear is what lies beyond that level. The fifty-first floor is a beast that some never survive to decide is too much. One mistake on that level has slaughtered parties who didn’t believe the warnings.  The monsters jump exponentially in power.  The small curve that is there now changes drastically.”

Tom began to stand and didn’t make it, falling back into his chair.

“Man, the room is spinning,” he muttered, his speech greatly slurring now.

Everett laughed, holding up his cup and showing Max that he still had two-thirds left while Tom had already drunk everything.

“Do you need to help him?”

Shaking his head, Everett held up ten fingers and slowly lowered them. At five, the clattering of a glass cup on the floors rang out, and when all his fingers were lowered, Tom let out a soft snore.

“He never learns… that’s why I don’t drink it that often. Now, I won’t keep you.  No doubt the whole Faction is up in arms, and I doubt Dexic has done anything to alleviate that problem.  Go and see your members and take care of that shopping. Tom told me you five need to take care of.”

Max stood up and nodded.  Holding the cup in his hand, he smiled.

“Can I keep this and share it with someone? I’ll bring the glass back.”

Grinning, the older man nodded, and Max made his way out of the room, choosing not to slam it as the one before him had.

-----

“Are you certain we don’t need to put you in hiding?” Fowl asked as Max tried to convince them all that, for the tenth time, everything was okay.

“We will be fine. Now we need to go shopping. Tomorrow is going to be a big day, and I want to make sure we’re a bit more prepared than before.”

They all nodded, heading in the direction of the Faction store while Tanila and Max walked a little slower in the back.

“You sure everything is ok?”

Max nodded and kissed her on the back of her hand as they walked.

“Better in some ways.  I’ll tell you later when it’s just the two of us.”

Frowning, the beautiful elf with green hair and red eyes hip-checked him and laughed as he tripped over his feet.

-----

Each of them were putting items into their storage, surprised at what all they had taken out on loan or purchased outright.

“Someone definitely didn’t do this place justice,” Batrire called out from the counter she was at, pulling things out of the box they had brought her. “I could have not sweated in places I don’t want to mention if we had these cloaks.”

Corellia nodded as she finished storing all the arrows she had acquired, filling up the empty quivers and sticking baskets with hundreds in as well.

“You were right,” Fowl whispered as he stood next to Max, watching the others. None of the equipment we could borrow was really worth it. “I mean, maybe two rings, but Cordellia took those, and I didn’t really need the dexterity that much.”

“Eventually, we’ll need to borrow some, or it might look bad.”

“I was thinking the same thing. So tomorrow, what’s the plan?”

“Besides defeating the boss and moving on?” Max replied with a grin. “I mean, is there anything else to plan?”

“Just making sure there wasn’t some other plan you might have come up with since Tom beat the crap out of you both on and off the training field.”

Both of them were chuckling as the three women joined them, wondering what was so funny.

“Should I ask?” Batrire asked as she studied Fowl’s face.

“No,” Max replied. “We’re just laughing at how I got my arse handed to me today.”

“And I for one am grateful to see that is actually possible,” Cordellia said with a grin. “For a while I was beginning to doubt it could be done.”

The group left the store, laughing and smiling, finding joy in the time they had together and what they had each learned today.

-----

Standing before the tower entrance, the party watched as three other groups before them slowly moved ahead.

“We should have gotten here earlier, but someone was struggling to move from that drink Seth gave him last night.”

Fowl ignored the look Batrire was giving him, nodding slowly as he rubbed his temples.

“Even with that healing, I can’t believe how fast that knocked me out… dwarves would disown me if they saw me go down from such a small amount.”

“Focus,” Tanila said as they moved up another spot.

Max nodded and smiled at her, glad that she felt what he had told Tom and Everett was a good decision for now.  As Tom had shown them all yesterday, they were weak, and a group out there would easily dominate them.

“We taking bets on what the floor will be?”

“That feels wrong,” Cordellia replied, causing Fowl to grunt. “What if the tower can hear us and modifies it to what we don’t want or makes it even worse?”

Faster than a star shooting across the sky, Fowl snapped his head up. He looked at the tower before him and frowned.

“I guess it’s too late to say I want to bet it's a one-inch mouse that dies after one hit, can’t move, and can’t attack.”

Max ignored the playful banter and considered what today would hold.  The first boss had been overwhelmingly difficult.  It had taken every one of their skills and all of their cooldowns to win.  For a moment, part of him wanted to return to the Faction house and craft each of them weapons that would help make this easier.

“That face doesn’t instill confidence,” Tanila whispered. “What are you thinking?”

“I’m done playing, and we’re going to have to get serious.  I don’t want to risk you again, and after we get back, I’m going to talk to Everett about taking him up on that offer.”

Biting her lip slightly, she nodded and motioned to the tower.

“We’re up,” Max said, moving toward the entrance.

“Good luck today adventurers, and return home safe.”

They each nodded at the guard who motioned them ahead and stood as one before the massive portal.

“I’ll go first.”

No one said anything, but each of them smiled when Fowl volunteered and stepped up and went inside.  

-----

“I take it back. I’m okay with sweating,” Fowl grumbled as he began digging through his storage, seeking the same ring everyone else was looking for.

Beneath the ramp they stood on with the portal back outside was a domain of ice, no warmth of any kind to note present.  Each of their breaths caused a vapor cloud to come forth.  

“Gods, it's freezing,” Cordellia muttered as she slipped the ring on her finger, letting a sigh out after it began to stop some of the cold that assaulted them.

Tanila had her fire familiar out, providing a little more warmth for those who stood near it.  

“No cloaks to prevent freezing one’s arse,” Fowl muttered as he pointed to where Max was staring.

“That looks intimidating. A castle made out of ice?”

Max nodded, his eyes scanning the wasteland before them.  No snow was present that he could see, not even flakes in the wind that blew.  Instead, everything was frozen; it was simply ice.  The ground appeared to have just enough texture to it and cover that it wasn’t one where right now they would have to worry about sliding Fowl along it.

“Three miles to the castle,” Cordellia said as she stood next to Max.  “Maybe a little more, but I’d bet gold on it.”

“You see what I see down there?”

She scoffed and nodded.

“You figure out how tall they are yet?”

“Fifteen to twenty feet, and I’d bet gold on that also,” Max replied.

“Giants?” Batrire asked a tinge of fear in her voice.

“No… those aren’t giants, and that’s what bothers me,” Max said slowly. “Whatever the boss is, it's inside the castle, and judging from what I see right now, I can only imagine what it will be.”

“We’re not turning back, are we?” Fowl asked, surprised when everyone turned to look at him.

“Gods no!” exclaimed Cordellia, holding her bow ready as she adjusted the arrows in her quiver.  “We’re never turning back again.  Got it?”

Nodding, Fowl grinned and then tucked his beard a little more into his plate armor.

“Lead on mighty dwarf.”

Fowl grinned at Max and took the first steps down the ramp, making sure with each step that he wasn’t about to end up sliding down on his arse.