Sentenced to troll 3, p.10
Sentenced to Troll 3, page 10
This wasn’t the most difficult hallway I’ve experienced, but who knows how we would have fared without Jon’s clones and my horrors. Not every hero comes with a set of test-dummies.
The door at the end of the hall is different from the others. There’s no lock, but instead, it has a large rune carved into the wood.
“Any idea what it means?” I ask.
Taryn shakes his head.
Jon scrunches his nose. “Doesn’t look like any of the runes I’ve encountered.”
“Let me stock up on my horrors before we enter. If there is a special rune on this door, then I want to be prepared.”
After taking time to summon a full army of horrors, I press my hand to the door. The rune flares a bright white and a crash rumbles from the other side. The door creaks open, revealing a circular room with a massive white turtle standing in the center. Torches line the wall, filled with blue flames that cast the room in an eerie glow.
Halite Tortoise. Unique Monster. Level 25. Known as the Salt Turtle to the Ivory Dwarves, the Halite Tortoise is a symbol of luck and prosperity for miners.
The turtle’s skin and shell are milky white and translucent, almost like it was carved out of salt, with icy blue eyes that follow us as we enter. Its thick legs and shell are covered in murky gemstones, providing it with natural armor. My horrors spread around the room, surrounding the turtle on all sides.
I take a step back when the turtle opens its mouth and speaks.
“It has been many years since someone has trespassed into my mines. Many years since I have had a worthy opponent.” The words that trickle out are raspy and deep.
The door behind us closes with a slam. The turtle clicks his beak a few times before speaking again.
“Perhaps we should make this a fair fight.”
The tortoise lowers its shell to the floor and retracts its legs. Once they are inside the shell, white smoke spills out of the holes. It’s thick and heavy, lingering on the ground. My horrors cough as it overwhelms them, and I feel their HP draining by the second. The horrors with the lowest HP vanish from existence.
“What is this?” Taryn asks as he backs closer to the wall.
The smoke touches my skin, but it doesn’t burn or otherwise affect me. The smoke continues to pour out until a thick layer coats the bottom two feet of the room. My horrors continue to cough and die.
“I don’t know, but it looks like it only affects you if you breathe it in.”
Half of my horrors have died and the rest will join them soon if I don’t do something. Instead of letting them go to waste, I cast Sacrifice and gain a buff for each horror as it explodes into the ether. My muscles bulge as I’m filled with bonus Strength and Constitution for the next few minutes. I even feel quicker on my feet from the influx of Dexterity.
As soon as the horrors are gone, the smoke that has coated the floor vacuums back into the turtle’s shell.
“Ah.” Its legs extend and lift the enormous body off the ground. “Much better.” It clicks its beak a few more times.
Taryn and I exchange glances. So it looks like my horrors are a no-go this round.
“What’s happening?” asks Jon.
“It seems the turtle isn’t a fan of my minions. Everyone spread out. Taryn, how about you get this party started?”
We move to four separate areas around the room. The turtle doesn’t move, but its eyes follow me. Does it view me as the primary threat?
Taryn raises his staff and a bolt of lightning arcs toward the turtle. At the moment before impact, the turtle retracts into its shell. A single tile on the shell opens and swallows the lightning bolt inside. The shell shakes, rumbling against the stone floor before several tiles along the edge of the shell open and four bolts of lightning shoot out.
The action is so surprising that none of us dodge the attack. The lightning bursts out with as much force as it entered with. A bolt hits me in the chest, dropping five percent of my HP and setting my hair on end.
“Ouch, ouch, ouch!” Jon screams as he jumps around, shaking as if he is having a seizure.
Berry groans, his frizzy hair making him look more like a teddy bear than the ferocious beast he is.
Taryn taps the butt of his staff against the floor. The passive from Nature’s Aegis gives him immunity to elemental effects, but he still lost fifteen percent of his health. “I’m not gonna lie, that was pretty awesome. Any idea how we are supposed to beat this thing?”
I give Destroyer a few spins against my palm. “Anybody in the mood for turtle stew?”
The turtle is back standing, and I take off running toward it with my warhammer raised over my shoulder. I bring it down on the turtle’s shell with as much force as I can muster. The turtle retracts its body into the shell, and when I hit it, the turtle shoots off like a rocket, ricocheting off the wall and colliding with Berry. The shell hits Berry with enough force to knock him off his feet, plowing straight through him and hitting the wall again before zooming toward Jon.
The spindly man barely moves out of the way before the shell bounces off the wall. The turtle extends its legs, flipping itself into the air and landing with a thunk near the center of the room.
Well played, turtle. Well played indeed.
It stares at me with its piercing blue eyes, and I’m almost certain it smiles.
“What the hell? This thing is unkillable!” I fight back the urge to smash my warhammer into the floor.
Taryn’s lightning doesn’t work. The turtle destroyed my horrors, and my own attacks turn it into a cannonball. How are we supposed to defeat this thing?
“Maybe if we flip it over, the underside will be softer,” offers Taryn.
That’s actually a brilliant idea. “Alright, get ready. I’m going in!”
I rush toward the turtle, intent on flipping it upside down. When I’m a few steps away, it retracts into its shell. Perfect! I can flip it over without worrying about having my hand bitten off.
I reach out to grab the bottom of the shell, but it starts spinning. In a matter of seconds, the turtle shell spins in a blur. I try to stop it, but the rough edges of the shell rip into my palm, tearing at my flesh. I recoil at the pain, and blood streaks down my arm.
Before I have a chance to complain, the turtle barrels into me like a bumper car, knocking me to the floor. It zooms toward Jon, hovering inches off the ground.
Jon tries to escape, but the shell runs him down, smashing him into the wall and dropping half of his HP in a single hit. Berry and Taryn both rush to his aid as the shell continues bouncing around the circular room.
Jon hobbles delicately, supported on one side by Taryn.
I run over to them just as the shell stops spinning and the turtle emerges once again.
“I’ve got a plan, but it’s going to take all three of you out of the fight.”
“Dude, no way.” Taryn shakes his head. “That thing will kill you.”
“One more hit and it’s going to kill Jon.” I grab Taryn by the shoulder. “Trust me on this.”
He nods.
“I need you to use Transform and turn into a duplicate of Berry. Jon, I want you on Berry’s back. Then I want you to make as many clones as you can. One of them is going to ride Taryn. Scatter the others around the room.”
“And what are you going to be doing?” asks Jon.
“I’m getting us the hell out of this dungeon.”
I stalk toward the turtle with my hammer raised, and just as I predict, the turtle retracts into its shell. Destroyer smashes into the hard exterior, sending it off like a rocket once again. The reptilian projectile crushes into the knees of one of Jon’s clones, hyperextending them and launching him like a rag-doll.
I watch as the shell hits the wall and ricochets. I follow the pattern as it hits another wall and another, waiting for the perfect moment to implement my plan.
The shell soars between both versions of Berry and Jon, and I’m not quite sure which one is which. The turtle hits the wall again and comes straight in my direction.
I stand my ground as it comes barreling toward me. When it is half a dozen feet away, I summon three horrors and explode them right as the shell makes impact. The force from the explosion flips the shell end over end, and it comes to a grating halt right beside me.
Turtle legs extend and grasp at the air as it tries to flip itself over. The underbelly of the beast is slick and shiny. The first hit with Destroyer does little damage, but as Inferno builds with each hit, growing hotter, the shell eventually cracks and the turtle’s struggles cease.
Notifications flash across my vision, but I ignore them for now.
The blue flames on the wall change to orange, and the door into the room clicks open. A chest made of driftwood appears next to the turtle’s corpse, right beside a portal that will take us to the entrance.
“How is everyone feeling?” I ask. I’m sure this is more action than Jon has seen in a while.
Taryn returns to his dwarven form and casts Restoration on Berry.
Jon chugs a health potion as he hobbles over. “Who cares about how I’m feeling. Let’s see what’s in the chest.”
He shuffles past me and hovers over the weathered treasure.
“Go ahead; do the honors.” I point at the chest. He’s earned it.
He lifts the lid and a soft white glow emanates from within. A wide smile creeps across his face. “Nice!”
“What is it?” Asks Taryn.
“Man, this is so cool! Way better than any of the items I’ve found on my own.” He grins from ear to ear.
“Alright, let’s have a look.” I reach down in the chest and find an assortment of items and take a moment to inspect each one.
Item. Halite Shield. A lightweight translucent shield capable of taking damage without reducing visibility.
The shield looks like a replica of the tortoise’s shell. Salt crystals cover the edge and center, but the majority of the shield is completely see-through. The wearer could block an attack without losing any visibility of the attacker, or hide behind it as a battering ram. Not a bad item at all.
Item. Vial of Salt Gas. Covers an area with gas that reduces visibility and deals damage-per-second to anything that breathes it in.
The gas wiped out my horrors in short order. I wonder if this one has the same low-hanging density, or if it will work on larger foes?
Item. Greater Salt Crystal. A powerful mineral that can be used as a conduit to increase the range of spells.
I could attach the salt crystal to Destroyer, but that would mean giving up one of the stones I already have. I don’t think the trade-off would be worth it. It’d probably be better for Jon or Taryn.
Item. Lucky Tortoise Foot. Increased chance of rare items and quests.
The dried-out tortoise foot is kind of gnarly, but I can’t really argue with its effects. Better loot is always welcome.
I turn to Jon. “You saved our asses back in the first room. You should take the first pick.”
“Really?” His eyes are wide with surprise.
“Absolutely. Welcome to the team.”
He reaches in the chest and pulls out the tortoise foot. “I think this will be worth it down the road.”
“Taryn, which item do you want?”
He puts his hands up. “Nah, man. You’re next. We all would have been smashed to a pulp if it wasn’t for you.”
I take the Halite Shield because neither of them could use it. I’ll probably end up trading or selling it at the next town. Maybe I’ll donate it to the forest trolls. Taryn takes the Vial of Salt Gas and then gives the salt crystal to Jon. The enchanter is practically giddy with excitement.
All in all, Jon was a pretty valuable member to the team. Once we get Limery back, I think we’ll be a hell of a squad.
We all take a moment to look over our notifications.
You have defeated a unique monster: Halite Tortoise.
You have defeated Salt Caves. Claim dungeon prize.
Congratulations! You have reached level 21. +1 stat point to distribute. +1 Strength and Constitution racial bonus. +1 ability point to distribute.
I use the ability point to unlock Champion once again. I still have two stat points, but I’m not quite sure where I want to allocate them just yet.
Jon and Berry both gain two levels from the fight, while Taryn gains one.
“Well, do you want to go back and clear the rest of the dungeon?” I ask. There’s still the entire upper level we haven’t checked.
Jon shakes his head. “I don’t know about you guys, but I’d rather count my blessings and stop for lunch.”
Taryn laughs. “Alright, man, but you’re cooking.”
10. Chaos Rising
We’re all in good spirits after clearing our first dungeon as a team. Night creeps in, and we sit around a small fire beneath a copse of trees eating roasted rabbit. Taryn leans against Berry, eyes closed, and Stompy snores softly behind us.
“What are you spending your new ability point on?” I ask Jon as I take a swig of water from the Brimming Tankard I picked up in Seascape.
Jon rips into a rabbit leg. “I haven’t decided. I could upgrade one of the spells I already have, or I could learn to enchant something new.”
“Like what?” I ask. Enchantment and illusion abilities are fascinating to me. To think that, with enough practice, Jon could craft a warhammer like Destroyer is mind-blowing. It would take years for him to grow that powerful, but that doesn’t mean it can’t be done. With dwarves having such long lifespans, no wonder they have been able to craft such wondrous items.
“Well, I could make my illusions more powerful. Either making Conceal Area harder to detect for smaller areas or making it capable of concealing larger areas to the same degree it does now. Or I could make illusions of living creatures instead of just doppelgängers.” He tosses the leg bone to Berry. “If I had access to the right books, I could learn all kinds of enchantments for physical objects.”
“Maybe you should save it for now. By the time we get to a city, you might have enough loot to trade for one of those books.”
Jon scratches his chin. “That’s not a bad idea.” He reaches into his satchel and pulls out a salt crystal and a feather quill.
“What are you doing?” I ask.
“Figured I might make a few more flashlights before bed so that I can sell them at the next town we go to.” He holds the baseball-sized rock in his hand and presses the quill to it. “Clear crystals provide the best light.”
I move over and sit beside him. “How does it work?”
He displays the salt crystal in one hand and the quill in the other. “I etch the rune for light into the crystal with my pen, then I push some of my mana into it to seal the spell.” He presses the tip of the quill to the crystal and it cuts a mark into the stone.
“How is the quill able to carve into the crystal?”
He smiles. “The tip is enchanted. It makes the process faster, otherwise it would take me hours to do a single simple enchantment.”
I watch as he carves the rune into the translucent crystal. When the rune is complete, he presses his fingers to it and the rune glows bright white for a moment before fading away. Then the rock emits a gentle glow like a lantern.
Jon tosses the flashlight to me. “Tap the rune to turn it on and off.”
I play with it for a few minutes, watching the rock flick on and off. “Does it ever run out of light?”
“Eventually. It doesn’t drain a lot of mana to make them, but it should work for a few months before it needs recharging. There are enchantments for stronger lights, self-charging lights, or even ones that can cast a stream of light in a certain direction. I haven’t learned any of those yet.”
“Still, it’s pretty cool. I bet you’ll sell out.” I hand it back to him.
A droning rattle grabs my attention and I look over to see drool trickling down Taryn’s beard. So much for just resting his eyes.
Jon stares at me intently, opening his mouth a few times like a fish out of water. “Hey, man, can I ask you a question?”
“What’s up?”
He taps the rock repeatedly, the light flashing on and off. “You weren’t in the initial group with us. What did you do to end up here?”
I sit in silence for a moment, not sure what to say. No one but Taryn knows why I’m really here. The smart thing would be to keep my secrets to myself. There’s no telling how the other heroes will view me after learning I’m in here because I yelled at someone online. These are hardened criminals. Well, maybe not Jon. He accidentally ran into a cop.
“Come on, it can’t be that bad.”
“It’s not.”
“Well, then lay it on me. I told you about my stupid mistake. What’s yours?”
What harm could it do? Jon is a part of our party, so I decide to trust him.
“I got in trouble for cyberbullying.” I wait for laughter, but instead, he just looks confused. I can only imagine how someone who has spent time in prison would think of me being there for calling someone names.
“Cyberbullying? Never heard of it.”
“I told someone on my team to go kill themselves in a broadcast. Instead of giving me jail-time, I got sent here.”
His brow furrows. “Broadcast? You some kind of celebrity or something?”
“Nah, nothing like that. I played video games online, and people watched me.”
“Wait, you’re just a kid?”
“I’m in college. Well, was in college.”
He shakes his head in disbelief. “You’re kidding me? You’ve got to be kidding me. They were going to send you to jail for something you said on the internet?”
“Technically, this is my sentence.”
“Damn. The world ain’t what it used to be. We used to call each other names just for fun when I was growing up. Seems like they are policing everything these days. You can’t even fart without the government sniffing it.”
I laugh at his joke. He may be right, but here we are in a game, where literally every move we make is recorded and broadcast on a feed above our pods. The only privacy we have are the thoughts in our heads, and I’m not even one hundred percent sure about that.
