Amazon Apocalypse 2: Chapter 16

After returning to the castle, I had a few hours to spare before our dungeon dive began. This would be a perfect opportunity to practice my abilities, and thanks to Kyrina, I had a skill book I’d been hoping for ever since my session with the Theory Crafter the previous day.

“Arcane Blade…” I whispered aloud as I seated myself in the castle’s study.

Nobody else was in the room overlooking the garden, so I had the whole place to myself. Myrina and Cyra were running around the city, hoping to pick up another lead on the Mana Bomb’s maker.

I flipped open the first page of the Skill Book and was greeted by a prompt.

Would you like to learn Arcane Blade?

I selected yes with my mind, and my vision darkened. I realized then that this was the first time I’d actually used a skill book the proper way instead of relying on the System prompts I’d gotten from Blessed of the System to learn a new skill.

The proper way was more tedious than I expected.

The moment I accepted the prompt, the page I was on flipped to the next of its own accord. The image atop it depicted a sword made of bright blue light. It enveloped a humble stick, making the ordinary piece of wood a deadly magical weapon.

The symbol had a meaning, though I wasn't quite sure how I knew what it meant.

Learn.

I groaned. Apparently, without the Systems help, I would have to stuff knowledge into my head the old-fashioned way.

It was a good thing I’d set aside a few hours for this.

I beat my mind against the skill book before me with great determination. The text was as dense as a college textbook or whitepaper, and any ordinary human would have needed a break after the first dozen pages or so.

But the integration had been kind to me on this particular front. Staying focused for long hours came far easier to me than it ever had before, and as the minutes turned to hours, my concentration did not wane.

Slowly but surely, I imprinted the concepts shown on the page in my own mind. The flick of my fingers had to be just right. I had to speak the invocation of the spell as well, though with my neutral mana and caster proficiencies, I could likely bypass the requirement.

Reading the book turned out to be quite informative, though time-consuming. Before I’d even finished learning the spell, my head was full of ideas to try once I’d learned it. And variants to empower it further. Coupling it with the Power of Nature, for instance, would allow the ordinarily neutral blade to take on aspects of fire, water, ice, earth, or whatever else I might have on hand.

I could understand why the System had simply shoved the information directly into my mind during the early stages of the integration, though.

Blessed of the System had lasted only three days, but those three days had been packed with more happenings than the last decade before it. During an apocalypse, no one would have bothered reading something like a skill book. And that would have been a lethal mistake for most who otherwise might have survived.

But my days of living beneath the System’s blessing were over, and I had to make it on my own from here on out. Still, I was happy to puzzle my way through a skill book early and with more experienced hands to lean on should I run into trouble.

Your Focus proficiency has increased!

Your Study proficiency has Increased!

Your Caster proficiency has increased!

Arcane Blade went smoothly enough, and I entered the garden to practice it.

“Arcane Blade,” I called, and my sword came to hand. The actual words to summon the weapon were a combination of tongue-twisting words with far too many vowels, but already my proficiency bonuses were allowing me to reduce the spell to no more than a name and a gesture.

Dropping either the name or the gesture would require me to revert to drawing esoteric symbols in the air or speaking unintelligible words human mouths weren’t meant to speak. Still, I had no doubt that given more time to practice and more Proficiency levels to gain, I would soon be able to cast it without requirements.

Learning Arcane Blade took my total number of Class abilities up to 10, putting me closer to reaching my limit. But I would hold off on culling any excess abilities until I actually reached that limit. For now, I was still focused on seeing what I could gain based on my meeting the day prior.

Reaching down, I picked up a dead, discarded twig that had fallen from one of the fruit trees in Myrina’s garden. Focusing on it, I cast Arcane Blade again. Pale blue light in the outline of a tiny sword enveloped the twig. Due to the size of the twig, it was more of a knife than a blade, but that suited my purposes just fine.

I cocked back my arm and threw it. The blade tumbled end over end before its dull but knocked a ripe fruit down and sent it tumbling to the ground.

I scooped the fruit up off the ground to hear a round of applause behind me.

“Nice new trick, Carter!” Myrina said.

I chuckled sheepishly. “I’d meant to stab the fruit through the center. Apparently, learning the spell doesn’t do anything to improve my ability to throw knives.”

“It’s just a proficiency,” Cyra explained. “I’m sure you’ll pick it up soon enough if you try to practice it. Based on how fast you learn, it shouldn’t take too long.”

At Cyra’s prompting, I threw the knife again. Then, once more. When I finally landed a clean hit, the prompt appeared.

You have learned the Knife Throwing proficiency!

“I have a feeling that’s something I should practice...” I muttered, hefting another twig. Anything that could spread more Corrupting Marks was a welcome thing in my book.

“Enough stabbing fruits. Let’s stab the bodies of our enemies! In the dungeon!” Myrina waved her arms and gestured for me to follow. I’d finished learning Arcane Blade just in time. Now, I’d have the chance to put it to use.

***

The dungeon wasn’t far from the castle. While it wasn’t within the castle itself, we never had to actually leave the castle walls to get to it.

And, much to my surprise, the dungeon itself was fortified, both facing inside and out. The multilayered and double-sided walls provided even firmer defenses than those surrounding the castle. I asked Myrina and Cyra about it.

“The dungeon isn’t part of the castle because we don’t want a dungeon outbreak to happen near where we live. There are always monsters in a dungeon, though the ones in this one are particularly hard to fight against, given they look much like we do. If left unguarded, they’d storm half the city before we even realized we were under attack,” Cyra explained.

“But the dungeon is a valuable resource. It’s what this whole city was built around. Valkyrie’s Watch is a fortress on the top of a mountain. While great for defense, it isn’t exactly a great place to farm. Yes, there is gold and rare minerals in the mountains below us, but usually, you wouldn’t build your city at the top of the mountain you’re mining. Nope, we’re here because of the dungeon, so we protect it accordingly.”

“From invasions both inside and out,” I summarized. The bulk of the guards I’d seen while chasing the Shadefall Clan spy through the city must have come from their posts over here because, unlike the walls of the castle, these were fully manned.

Going through the walls to get to the dungeon involved a lengthy process where all three of us were examined to confirm we were who we said we were.

Two sets of huge iron doors were opened for us, one after another. Security on the outside was even tighter, so I could imagine people who weren’t members of the Samhain Clan had to go through even more tightly regulated clearance.

“You have four hours to complete the dungeon before the next group will enter,” a guard said. “As clan members, you will enter first, but three other D-Rank parties will follow until the dungeon reaches capacity.”

“Understood, commander,” Cyra replied.

The guards presented us with papers to sign, stipulating the rules of the dungeon and what the Samhain Clan would take from whatever we looted. Reading the normal contract over, a normal party of adventurers would have to yield ninety percent of their loot to the Samhain Clan. Ouch. At that point, they were less adventurers and more freelance resource collectors for the clan that owned the dungeon. Cyra had an explanation for this as well.

“The real reward to a dungeon dive is the levels you gain along the way. There aren’t many other ways to level in a stable and civilized world like ours. Not many legal ways, at any rate. So, plenty of wealthy people compete for the opportunity to use our dungeon. As for the high rate... well... it’s better than not letting them use the dungeon at all. That’s what most established factions like ours do.”

Those with a mark on their shoulder like mine would only have to give up fifty percent. A marketed improvement, though only by comparison. Still, if the potential loot items I saw listed for an average dungeon run were true, even just ten or twenty percent would have been more than enough to make a living dungeon diving for an average person. Not that they’d ever get the chance to do the dungeon.

“It says here we’re supposed to list someone as party leader...” I pointed to a blank box on the forum we were given.

“I vote Carter!” Myrina said. “He has a nice leadership bonus.”

“Your leadership proficiency is quite high,” Cyra remarked. “Fine. But make it clear this is a Samhain dungeon party. Otherwise, we’ll be giving up most of our loot.”

“Got it!” Myrina grabbed my sheet of paper and filled out my name on my behalf, using her own last name following mine. “Carter Samhain! It has a decent ring to it.”

“He hasn’t earned that right,” Cyra said sternly. My mind flashed back to the image of her crushing her former boyfriend’s head between her thighs, and I felt a shiver run up my spine. But then her expression softened. “But I suppose he can borrow it early for the sake of not losing loot. Just for today, though.”

“Just for today,” I promised, wiping a bit of sweat from my brow as I did so.

With agreements signed and paperwork done, we entered the dungeon. The guards parted for us, and the final set of gates opened to a stairway leading down.

You are entering the Siege of Shadefall dungeon.

Continue?

I accepted the prompt and entered the dungeon. The stone steps turned rough and ragged as we transitioned from smooth carved stone made by the Samhain Clan to whatever the dungeon itself made naturally.

The tunnel turned dark, but there was a bright light at the end. The exit to the cave didn’t look like a stone, though.

“Will there be a fight?” I asked, preparing to cast Arcane Blade. I was equipped with Myrina’s baby sword again, though now that I could cast a spell over it, I’d be a lot more confident in using it.

“Not at the entrance. The dungeon denizens will greet us as soon as we’re through. Remember to stay in character, though; the dungeon doesn’t like people breaking with its storyline,” Cyra explained.

The bright light at the end of the tunnel turned out to be sunlight pouring through an open tent flap. The stone around us abruptly turned into canvas, and suddenly, we were in a war tent. Myrina and Cyra paid the odd change in scenery no mind, so I didn’t either.

We walked straight through the tent and emerged into the light under a blue afternoon sky.

“Hope you got your beauty sleep, recruits, because we’ve got one hell of a battle for you coming up!” a gruff and commanding female voice shouted.

I turned to see a hulking, caramel-skinned woman of Amazonian proportions. She had a mace the size of my head hefted over one shoulder, though it looked normal-sized on her. She turned to the three of us and glowered.

“Well, soldier? Where’s your salute?” the large woman glowered at me.

I turned to find Myrina and Cyra both had their hands over their chests and were standing at attention. I mimicked their pose.

“Sorry, sir! Er... ma'am!” I said as I straightened my back and copied them. I’d never been in the military, and certainly never a medieval one. I was certain I was doing something wrong, but apparently, the dungeon would overlook small issues so long as you made an honest effort to play along.

Scanning the area out of the corners of my eyes, it was clear we were in a siege camp. Row after row of tents lay behind a wall of trenches and siege equipment. Even now, trebuchets bombarded the walls of a city in the distance.

The stones they threw exploded on impact as the magic and fire within them detonated. It didn’t do anything to the city, though. Whatever magic empowered the walls was even stronger than whatever the besieging force was using to destroy them, and rows of magical symbols sparked to life when needed before fading from view a moment later.

“Soldiers! We have several jobs that need doing around the camp. I expect you to complete at least one of them before noon!” the commander said.

Abruptly, a list of tasks appeared in my vision.

Siege of Shadefall Dungeon Quest Lines:

Choose your path in the Siege of Shadefall! The quest you undertake will test your mettle, and the rewards will reflect the risks.

But heed this warning: the dungeon’s embrace is cold and unforgiving. Fail, and you may lose more than just pride.

Your equipment, memories, levels, and skills could become the dungeon’s spoils. Your soul will journey on to whatever afterlife awaits you.

1. Rearm the Trebuchets (Easy)

• Our siege      engines hunger for ammunition to shatter the city’s defenses. Fulfill      their craving, and we’ll breach those shields!

2. Clear Out the Monsters Plaguing the Army’s Rear (Moderate)

• Creatures lurk      in the shadows, preying on our forces. Hunt them down and secure our rear!

3. Sabotage the Enemy’s Supply Line (Hard)

• Sneak into the      city’s belly, poison their food and water, and ensure a swift end to the      siege. The city must fall, and this could be the key!

4. Rescue Our Captured Scouts (Hard)

• Our eyes and      ears are behind enemy lines, captured and in chains. Find them, free them,      and bring our brothers and sisters home!

5. Open the Gates from the Inside (Very Hard)

• A daring      mission for the bravest of souls. Infiltrate the city, slay the      gatekeepers, and throw open the gates. Victory could be ours, but only if      you succeed!

Choose wisely, adventurer. The Siege of Shadefall awaits your courage, strength, and cunning. The battle horns are sounding. The time to act is now!

I scanned over the options. There were more to be had, but the rest were grayed out for lack of specific things like healing abilities in our group. The disclaimer the dungeon gave me was a bit scary. There were thousands of NPC’s around the three of us. How many of them had once been people?

I decided it would be better not to think about that.

“Well?” I turned to my companions. “You two have run this dungeon before, haven’t you? What do you think we should do?”

Myrina shrugged. “Anything but rearming the Trebuchets. My mother made me do that quest over and over when I was little. Teaches you good danger sense, but no real threats. And all you get at the end is a pouch of gold. If we want to get you a bag of holding, we’ll need to do one of the hard quests.”

“I could do the gates. But not the two of you. I’m over-leveled for this dungeon. Myrina is about right. You’re too low,” Cyra said, pointing to each of us.

“So we can do the hard quests so long as I watch my back?”

Cyra nodded.

“Alright then. How about we rescue those captured scouts? That seems my style,” I replied.

“Scouts it is. Not a bad choice. That’s a noble one,” Cyra nodded in approval. “There’s not as much fighting as trying to open the gates, but a bit more sneaking and talking. I don’t normally like it, but that’s because I don’t like the talking bits. That’ll be up to you as party leader.”

I made our selection, and the officer before us started talking again.

“Your mission, soldiers, is to rescue our captured scouts! We sent several into the city with the last band of refugees we let them bring through. But things haven’t gone so good for them, and now they’re prisoners. Your job is to pull them out of their sticky situation and bring them home safely with whatever information they’ve got.”

“Yes, ma'am!” Cyra saluted, and the rest of us did the same.

“Good! Grab the spare armor we have in the tent. It matches the enemy’s colors. You’ll sneak into the city next time we allow them to collect their dead.”