Forge master a litrpg ad.., p.21
Forge Master: A LitRPG Adventure (Tower Book 1), page 21
“How far is it from the entrance of the mine to the nest?”
“Roughly a thousand feet. The nest is actually in an old offshoot. There are four or five offshoots that missed the main load, and from what we could tell, the nest was in one of them.”
Moving carefully, the team began the climb down into the gorge, using the remnants of an old path that had once led to the mine. They had been traveling all day, but despite their fatigue, each of them was on high alert, watching for any potential threats. The journey through the jungle had been more intense than Thorn had anticipated, and even with Aloxal’s excellent pathfinding skills, they had still been forced into a dozen fights. The worst had been trying to travel through the areas infested with verka.
The first time one had dropped on Thorn, he had almost missed it because it dropped from nearly two hundred feet in the air, plunging down to try and land on top of him. While the verka may have been a cat-like creature, they had large bone plates on their arms and legs that they used to try and crush Thorn as they fell all around him. Once on the ground, they weren’t particularly hard to kill, but the initial attack was heart-pounding.
Like a gash drawn into the earth with a knife, the gorge dropped down with sheer walls, barely wide enough for Thorn to fit. The walls were littered with rocks that appeared to have been split in half, clueing Thorn into how the gorge had gotten its name. After climbing down the gravel-covered slope for around a hundred feet, it started to widen until it spanned around thirty feet. Calling for everyone to stop, Aloxal pointed to a silver line crawling along the wall in the distance. Looking closely, Thorn realized it was a line of centipedes winding their way through the rocks and disappearing into a cave mouth on the wall of the gorge.
“Those are the monsters we’re here for. They’re resistant to slashing damage and their steel-skin is tough, so if you’re going to try and stab them, make sure you put enough force into it. Fire and ice are good options as well.”
“What about lightning?” Thorn asked.
“Lightning is great,” Aloxal replied, glancing at Thorn’s sword. “But you’ll have to be careful because they’re conductive. If you zap them while they’re near one of us, there’s a good chance the lightning will jump.”
“Noted.”
“I’ll use ice for this,” Zelix said, pulling out the crimson gem in his bracer and replacing it with a frosted blue gem. “I’ve got some good area attacks that should help keep us from getting swarmed. Oh, speaking of, here.”
Taking out a handful of badges from his bag, he distributed them to the group and then sent a thread of mana into them from his bracer. Feeling the pulse of cold, Thorn spent a moment analyzing the badge before pinning it on his shirt.
“This is a target lock, right? So you’re reversing the spell so that it’ll hit anyone it hasn’t locked as a target?”
Impressed that Thorn had been able to figure it out so quickly, Zelix nodded, his face lighting up.
“Yes! I’m using Effervenwhogle’s Counterintuitive Targeting rune and an Elemental Blast rune, along with a Universal Conduit rune to create the effect.”
“And those attributed mana stones allow you to set the type of mana you’re going to use, right? How are you adjusting the attack radius of the Elemental Blast rune?”
“Hah! Exactly. My wand has a mana restriction tube I can adjust with this ring. Opening it up like this will release the effect all around me, then I have a cone, and beam setting as well.”
“That’s really interesting,” Thorn said, turning the ring on the wand Zelix handed him.
“If you two are done, we need to get going,” Aloxal interrupted. “We’re running out of daylight, and the monsters are more active at night.”
Handing the wand back to Zelix, Thorn nodded.
“Give me one second.”
Focusing his mind, Thorn spun up a spell construct that created a thin layer of earth-attributed mana armor, surrounding his body with it. Layered like plates, it provided the same effect as wearing plate mail, just without the weight of actual armor.
“Okay, I’m ready.”
As they walked toward the cave, Gorrell took the lead, his shield held up in front of him. They tried to move as quietly as they could, but there would be no way to take the centipedes by surprise, so the plan they’d come up with was to rush straight for the nest. So long as they could kill the centipede queen, they would be able to throw the monsters into disarray and eliminate them a bit at a time. The alternative was facing a coordinated assault and killing their way through every single steel-skin centipede in the mine one right after the other.
Understandably, they had settled on the first plan.
The closer they got to the mine, the stronger the stench became until Thorn’s nose was filled with an unpleasant, cloying scent. Noticing Akira’s wrinkled nose, Thorn was happy his nose wasn’t as sharp as hers. The click click click of the centipedes’ iron-hard legs on the stone walls of the cave echoed out toward them, covering the soft taps of their footsteps. When Thorn’s group was only a dozen feet from the cave, a steel-skin centipede finally spotted them and let out a warning hiss.
Before any of the other steel-skin centipedes could look around, there was a hiss and a thud and an arrow punched a hole straight through the centipede’s head, nailing it to the wall. Nocking another arrow, Aloxal mentioned for Gorrell to speed up, and a moment later, they were running into the cave. As they had agreed, Zelix activated a small plate he held and three wisps that gave off a bright white glow appeared, flying around the party’s head. With a command, he sent two of them to hover over Gorrell, lighting up the shield warrior with bright light.
Around them, hisses started to echo off the walls and ceiling, but the team paid the monsters no mind, continuing to sprint forward through the winding tunnel. Coming to a sharp bend, Gorrell was moving so fast he nearly slammed into the wall, but he didn’t let that stop him. Steel-skin centipedes launched themselves at him, but he batted them away with his shield and sword and continued to push his way forward.
Behind him, Thorn and Hati ran together, keeping their heads down to avoid smashing them on the jagged rocks that made up the roof of the mine’s passage. The Moon Wolf, despite his size, appeared to meld with the darkness, his body taking on an almost ghostly quality. Thorn, on the other hand, just stomped along, his footsteps causing the ground to shake. Thanks to his mental sense, Thorn had an exceptionally clear view of everything happening around them, and as he ran, he saw more and more of the steel-skin centipedes.
“We’re about to come into the central entrance! Take the second path from the left!”
Hearing Aloxal’s shout, Gorrell shifted his weight and changed direction as he rushed into a wide cavern that served as the mine’s central hub. Abandoned mining equipment was littered everywhere around the room, rust-covered and decaying. Counting the entrances out loud, Gorrell led the way toward the shaft they wanted, even as a silver tide of centipedes rose up all around them. The wisps of light Zelix had summoned still floated around the group, revealing the massed steel-skin centipedes that were rushing toward them from every direction.
Noticing they hadn’t yet attacked, Thorn quickly realized that the steel-skin centipedes were massed to their sides and back, leaving the area in front of the party mostly empty. While that suited their desires just fine, the thought sent a shiver down his spine. Thorn wasn’t the only one who noticed the anomaly as Aloxal spoke up, her voice echoing in the cavern.
“They’re trying to drive us into their nest! We need to block the entrance once we’re through!”
“I can freeze them, but it won’t hold for long,” Zelix said, turning the ring on his wand.
“If you can stop them for a moment, I can block the passage,” Thorn said, falling back to join the artificer in the back of the group. “They’ll be able to burrow through before too long, but it will at least slow them down.”
“That will have to do,” Aloxal said, her dusky scales seeming paler than normal as her gaze swept over the sea of monsters.
With Gorrell still leading the way, the party rushed into the small passage, plunging deeper into the earth. Once everyone had made it in, Zelix spun around, using his tail to maintain his balance as he thrust out his wand and spoke a guttural command. Mana surged through his body, pouring into the bracer on his left hand. The frosted-blue gem he’d socketed into the bracer glowed with an icy light as it filled with mana. A moment later, the mana overflowed, rushing through the air in a twisting line as it jumped to the wand he held outstretched.
As the mana passed through the wand, Thorn could feel it splitting and spreading, forming a cone as it blasted the cave’s entrance. Frost began to form on the stones the mana passed over and the skittering centipedes quickly froze solid. Feeling the temperature dropping, Thorn saw more and more centipedes piling up as the monsters in the back ran into the wave of ice-attributed mana. Without thought, the centipedes in the back scrambled up and over their brethren, their sharp legs allowing them to climb without trouble. Yet when they reached the top of the pile, they also ran into the spell Zelix was releasing, quickly freezing in place and adding to the wall of silver starting to block the passage.
Continuing to release his spell, Zelix slowly backed up, angling his wand to make sure he was covering the ceiling as well. Frozen centipedes began to drop to the floor as their legs lost their grip on the rocks. Feeling his mana slowing, Zelix bared his teeth and glanced over his shoulder at Thorn, who was standing behind him, his eyes closed and his hand outstretched. The entire time Zelix was casting his spell, Thorn hadn’t moved at all, and Zelix was unsure what was going on.
“My spell is about to end. If you’re going to do something, now would be a good time.”
Instead of responding, Thorn opened his eyes, a spell construct appearing in front of him. Made from a combination of his ancient runes and a spell from Angoril called “Constricting Earth,” the spell construct shot out tendrils of mana, sinking them deep into the walls, ceiling, and floor of the passage. A second later, as the spell construct took hold, Thorn clenched his fist and the earth rumbled. Stone and dirt erupted from the walls and poured from the ceiling, smashing together as it joined the earth rising from the floor of the passage.
Focusing his Earth Control, Thorn thrust his other hand out, his fingers rapidly weaving another spell construct that gleamed with a blinding earthen-yellow light. The sudden light in the darkness was too much, causing everyone to look away quickly as Thorn sent the spell construct into the wall of earth across the entrance to the passage. With a crackling sound, the mana in the spell construct exploded outward, transforming the dirt into stone as it passed and creating a full stone wall that separated the party from the thousands of steel-skin centipedes in the main entrance outside.
“That’s… impressive,” Zelix said, staring at the stone wall that had suddenly manifested. “Wait, aren’t you an artificer? How’d you cast that spell without an artifact?”
“Thanks. I’m actually more of a mage,” Thorn said. “My main training was in earth magic.”
“As interesting as this conversation is, gentlemen, maybe we could save it for later? I think our attention would be better spent elsewhere,” Aloxal interrupted, pointing down the passage toward the nest.
“Hah, fair enough,” Zelix said, adjusting the ring on his wand again.
With Gorrell leading the way, the party pushed deeper into the earth. Behind them, Thorn could hear the scratch of small claws on the stone wall he’d summoned as the steel-skin centipedes tried to tunnel their way through. But that was soon forgotten as they stepped into a small cavern and Thorn saw the monster’s nest. A twisting, bulbous formation of dirt and discarded centipede skins, the nest looked like something out of a nightmare, and gave off a stench to match it. However, what caught Thorn’s attention was the silver river surrounding it.
Blinking, he quickly realized his eyes had been playing a trick on him as the silver river rose up into the air, its large, razor-sharp legs waving in the air. Close to sixty feet long, the massive silver centipede hissed angrily at the party, causing the entire cavern to shake. Next to Thorn, Hati bristled, his fur standing up as his lips drew back to reveal his teeth. On Thorn’s shoulder, Akira bared her teeth as well, sharp little fangs gleaming in the light.
“Uh, I think we found the centipede queen,” Gorrell said, pointing with his sword. “Unfortunately, I think she has a friend.”
Looking over the shield warrior’s shoulder, Thorn traced the path Gorrell’s sword pointed and saw another silver river sliding down from a hole in the wall. Swallowing, Thorn shifted his grip on his sword as another gigantic centipede reared its head, joining the first in staring at the party.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN
“Eve, can you see what sort of stats those things are running?”
Name: Giant Steel-Skin Centipede
Speed: ??
Physique: ??
Presence: ??
Intellect: ??
Physical Wounds
Minor: 11
Major: ?
Severe: ?
Mental Wounds
Minor: 4
Major: ?
Severe: ?
Abilities
Natural Armor: Steel-skin centipedes possess thick chitin plates that cover their bodies, providing them with natural damage reduction. Armor +??.
Call the Swarm: With an earth-shaking hiss, the giant steel-skin centipede can call its brethren to swarm its target, drowning them in bodies.
[I am sorry, their mana is too dense, preventing me from getting a good read on them. I believe it is because they are a higher tier than you. I would assume they are at least tier five from the density of their mana, but that is simply an educated guess, so proceed with caution.]
“Got it, thanks.”
Standing in front of the group, Gorrell lifted his shield, his eyes never wavering from the two giant steel-skin centipedes. Thorn could sense the shield warrior’s nervousness, which didn’t bode well for their party. Gorrell was a dusk-silver ranked adventurer, which put him on the same level as the centipedes if they were fifth-tier beasts. Zelix and Aloxal were both in the fourth tier, and Thorn was at the top end of the third tier, a poor matchup against two fifth-tier beasts and thousands of first-tier monsters. Their only saving grace was Akira and Hati.
“New plan,” Thorn said, taking control of the group with a firm voice. “Akira, Hati, can you tie up our giant friends?”
[Yes.]
[Of course, master! That bug won’t know what hit her!]
“Great. We’ll deal with the small ones and break apart the nest. Aloxal, what are we looking for again?”
“There should be a nest crystal somewhere in that pile of excrement,” she replied, pointing at the steel-skin centipede’s nest. “If we can find it, we can break it apart, which will not only stop the monsters from spawning, but will weaken them considerably. However, if we can’t kill those two queens, it won’t matter because they can just create another one.”
“Okay, we’ll hunt for the nest crystal while Hati and Akira handle the queens. Ready?”
Seeing Zelix’s skeptical look, Thorn just smiled and stretched his arm out, providing Akira a platform to launch herself from. Running down Thorn’s arm, Akira jumped into the air, taking on her battle form as she landed. Watching the fluffy little Ailuridae rapidly grow until she matched Hati for size, the artificer’s mouth dropped open, causing Thorn to chuckle. Letting out a squeak that pierced the ears of everyone who heard it, Akira’s tails exploded with flame and she dashed forward, transforming into a crimson blur. Next to her, Hati crouched and launched himself forward, vanishing into the shadows of the cavern.
“It’s not time to stand around, folks,” Thorn said, patting Gorrell on the shoulder.
The shield warrior nodded and began to advance, but his eyes continued to stray toward Akira.
“Will your companions be okay?”
“Yeah, they’ll be fine. Honestly, they could probably clear this place without us,” Thorn said, smiling wryly.
As if to prove his point, Akira’s flaming tails suddenly manifested large flame claws as she spun around, raking the giant steel-skin centipede’s body. Like paper meeting a blade, the centipede queen’s armor split open, blood dripping from the gashes as she let out a pained hiss. Furious, the other centipede queen shot over, trying to stab Akira with her sharp mandibles, but before the attack could connect, Akira jumped back, and a huge shadowy mouth snapped down on the centipede queen’s body, punching a dozen holes in her tough skin.
“Ah. Yeah, I think they’ll be fine,” Gorrell mumbled, wondering to himself if his sword could even pierce the giant centipede’s armor.
Together, Gorrell, Thorn, Zelix, and Aloxal advanced on the nest, determined to take it apart. As if they could sense the party’s intent, the steel-skin centipedes in the area grew agitated and rushed forward, launching an attack against the party. Blocking the first few with his shield, Gorrell slammed the pommel of his sword against his shield, injecting mana into the attack to create a piercing, ringing sound that attracted the attention of the surrounding monsters.
At the same time, Zelix twisted the ring on his wand and poured mana into the bracer, transforming it into a stream of freezing mana that gushed out of his wand like a hose, blanketing the centipedes rushing toward them. No sooner had the monsters started to freeze than a soft twang sounded and a blast of mana shaped like an arrow skipped off the back of a frozen steel-skin centipede, causing a crack to form in its back that widened until the monster split in half.
