Libriohexer ~ 11!

Chapter Eleven

“Everyone get to the stalls! Now!” Dizzy bellowed while barreling forward with her war maul raised high.

Sam didn’t think twice. He bolted right, running as fast as his legs would carry him and vaulting over the wooden gate that led to one of the holding pens. He dropped, breathing hard, then cautiously peaked over the top of the stone retaining wall. His eyebrows climbed in shock as he watched the Junction Guardian lunge forward, its claws slicing through Dizzy’s armor like the gear was made of tissue paper. Kai and Velkan charged in, flanking the creature on both sides, while Arrow took cover behind a stall on the opposite side of the room from Sam.

Despite being outnumbered, though, the full metal chicken was handily holding its own. Its wings flashed out, flapping madly at Kai and Velkan, keeping the two at bay with razor-tipped feathers.

“We could use some covering fire out here!” Dizzy narrowly turned a flashing foot with her maul, then side-stepping a beak thrust.

Arrow slipped from holding pen to holding pen until he had a clear shot at the chicken’s unprotected back. He launched a barrage of caustic arrows. The feathered shafts exploded against the fowl’s back, splattering green acid against steel and brass, but doing a pitiful amount of damage overall. Time for Sam to roll up his sleeves and get busy. With a thought he toggled his Ice Orb and Ink Lance Tomes to the active position, then stood and let loose, both hands outthrust. Faintly glowing Shurikens smashed into the chicken and spread icy tendrils along metal feathers.

Sam triggered Bookmark, spamming the spell with laser precision before launching a flurry of Ink Lance from his secondary Tome. Blots of ink splattered against the raging fowl, eating small holes across metal skin, clogging up gears, and gumming up its deadly talons. Unfortunately, that only seemed to make the fowl’s mood even fouler. The murder chicken threw its head back, raised it’s toward the crystalline ceiling, and let out an enraged caw that rippled through the air like a bomb blast. The sound of a thousand knives and forks screeching on a thousand plates all at once.

The noise rippled out in a force ring, blasting Dizzy back and hurling Velkan and Kai into adjacent stalls. Sam was safe from the blast itself, thanks to the stone retaining wall providing him with meager cover, but he still dropped to a knee, wincing and clutching his ears.

The chicken used the brief reprieve to change up its tactics.

It dropped its feathery head, hunched low, and began to spin like a top, its wings extended horizontally. It twirled, faster, faster, faster, until it was a blur of motion. A buzz saw of steel feathers whirling across the floor. Dizzy, Kai, and Velkan had regained their feet, but no one could get close enough to do anything; even the ranger’s acid arrows ricocheted harmlessly away. That only left Sam. He rained Ice Orb down, but as with the incoming arrows, Sam’s Shurikens bounced away, careening instead toward his teammates. One bowled into Dizzy’s chest like a sledgehammer, knocking her from her feet.

<That doesn’t seem to be doing the trick,> Bill sent inside his head.

<Well, we’re not exactly spoiled for options,> Sam sent back, as he cut off the flow of Shurkiens. <I’m open to suggestions, though.>

<We need to interrupt the spin,> Bill said after a beat. <There has to be some sort of mechanism in the legs that allows it to move like that. We disable that, we end this attack. We’ll still have to kill it, but at least the ground pounders will be able to get close enough to land a blow.>

Sam said the first through that crossed his mind, <Book Maker’s Book Bomb?>

<Absolutely,> Bill confirmed, <though this time I think we hit ’em with the Dictionary.>

The way he said it should’ve been accompanied by dramatic music; with good reason. The Dictionary in this case happened to be the dictionary of Royal Pedigrees, a bone-dry tome as thick as a phone book, which Finn had nicked from his family library. It was literally the largest book Sam had ever seen, and though it wasn’t magical in the least, it was perfect fodder for a Book Bomb. Even with that, instead of leaving well enough alone… Sam and Bill had done a little experimenting.

Sam had sewn a variety of spell scrolls into the book: nearly half a dozen Fireball spells, three Ice Orb scrolls, and a pair of Weak Acid Spray attacks. This particular Book Bomb was extremely costly to produce, and so incredibly unstable that jostling it the wrong way was liable to set the thing off and blow everyone up.

But there was never a better time to try it out than against a creature they absolutely needed dead.

Licking his lips, Sam reached into Bill’s Soul Space and pulled the fat volume free, feeling the thrum of potent, conflicting magics the second his fingers ran across the cover. Sam bellowed over the pen wall, “Everyone take cover, now!”

He waited for a handful of seconds while his friends scrambled for safety. Dizzy bodily hurled herself over a gate and the others quickly ducked out of sight. Muttering a silent prayer, Sam popped up and lobbed the book side-arm like a live grenade. He watched it arc and spin through the air, pages fluttering like mad, a nimbus of light building around it as the spell pages destabilized. It thudded into the whirling chicken a second later… and Sam couldn’t help but watch the chaos unfold.

The book hit with a dull *thump*… and then the Fourth of July light show began in earnest. A fireball of orange and gold ballooned up and out in a small mushroom cloud. Swirling within that fiery bubble were streaks of blue power and angry lines of green lightning. Terrible heat radiated outward, searing Sam’s eyebrows and leaving his skin red and raw, while his luscious locks billowed out behind him like a cape caught in a gust of magically charged wind. A second later the *boom* followed, rattling the floor and the crystalline ceiling overhead.

<Get down, kid!> Bill squawked as a wall of flame crashed toward him. Finally, Sam dropped low and pressed his back against the stone, hoping he hadn’t just killed everyone. Dust and debris rained down from above, sprinkling his shoulders. He held his breath until the rumbling from the explosion subsided. Tentatively, he turned and glanced over the lip of the wall. The room was still blessedly intact, and none of his teammates seemed to be dead, though there was an enormous scorch mark marring the stone floor. Most amazingly of all: the android chicken was still alive.

Bill whistled softly. “I retract my previous statement. Like your mother, that is one tough bird.”

Sam slapped at the book halfheartedly. Tough was the correct descriptor. The metal fowl was missing its legs, one wing had been ripped clean from its body, but its murderous red eyes were still open, and it looked like it was spoiling for a fight. Dizzy, Kai, and Velkan emerged from their stalls, all looking beaten and cut up, but alive and ready to finish the job. They pressed in on the chicken from all sides, closing tight like a noose.

But the chicken wasn’t done. Not yet. Maybe it couldn’t move, and perhaps its legs lay ten feet away—a smoldering pile of slag and steel—but this fowl still had some fight left. It opened its beak and Sam braced himself for another screech. Instead, the overgrown fried family meal started launching softball-sized eggs from its throat; peppering the room with shells and gooey yokes that dealt blunt damage upon impact, and acid damage from the yoke.

Arrow fired with practiced ease, this time targeting the eggs themselves and blasting them from the air like shooting skeet with a shotgun. Sam toggled Fire Shuriken to the active position and joined in, rupturing the incoming projectiles before they could land and do any real damage. Unfortunately, he wasn’t nearly as accurate as Arrow, so his Shurikens missed as often as they hit. When they landed, Sam was rewarded with an explosion of fluffy scrambled eggs.

Now in range, the three melee fighters laid into the chicken, Velkan’s claws slashing, Kai’s fists pummeling, Dizzy’s war maul bashing through metal armor. They hammered relentlessly at the downed creature until a cloud of acrid gray smoke wafted up and the angry red light dimmed and vanished from the chicken’s blood-thirsty eyes.

Exp gained: 651

Skill increased: Book Maker’s Book Bomb (Beginner I). What’s that you're reading? A question best not asked to someone with your uneven temperament, unruly disposition, and bizarre skillset. You are more than willing to throw the book at ’em with explosive and deadly results! Just make sure you know which books are which, or you’re liable to crack a novel for some relaxation and blast yourself into the next century!

Skill gained: Spell Alchemy (Novice I). Combining magics and spells in such a spectacularly crazy and reckless way is a good way to die early and painfully. But, the difference between crazy and genius is often a fine line, and honestly, this is also a great way to combine regular ol’ spells in new and interesting ways. Some of the best magics were discovered by accident, you know! When combining spells, you have a 2% chance to add an additional spell effect, and a 1% chance to generate an entirely new spell! Intelligence +1.

Kai let out a whoop, pumping a fist in the air while the others crowded around the fallen beast, presumably to raid the creature and see whatever goodies it might be hiding away. Sam ignored their celebration, and only sparing a quick glance at his updates as he headed over to an angular sigil carved into the wall on the frame of the entryway door. This had to be the Junction activation rune. He pressed his hand against the etching and let the gentle heat from the symbol flow into his outstretched palm.

Two for two! Color me impressed! I honestly didn’t think you’d capture another Junction—not this quickly. True, it was a giant chicken, so maybe stay humble moving forward? Congratulations are in order! You’ve defeated the Keeper the Husbandry Pen and found its corresponding Activation Rune. Once the Junction is claimed, you will be able to utilize the space with all its corresponding perks, although both Traps and Keepers will remain defunct until functionality is restored through the Control Room. More good news, the other residents of the Irondown Burrows will generally avoid this area, since it will become hostile territory.

Would you like to trigger the Activation Rune and claim this Junction on behalf of the Wolf Pack? Yes/No

Sam braced himself, remembering what had happened last time, and grit his teeth as he accepted. The familiar rush of mana leaving his body in a sudden exodus dropped him on his knees, the world reeling drunkenly around him.

His stomach clenched like a fist. Curiously, this Junction took less mana than the Barrack had—only a scant one-hundred and fifty instead of two-hundred and seventy—but losing that much mana that quickly was still an unpleasant experience. The discomfort was gone in a flash, and the crystalline lights inset into the stall walls flickered to life, filling the room with both an amber glow and an uncomfortable heat.

In seconds it felt as humid as the inside of a greenhouse.

Congratulations! You have claimed Junction 2 of 8. Reward, Exp: 500. Claim one more and I might actually have to sit up and start taking notes.

Note: The Husbandry Pen is unlike other structures within the Irondown Burrows. This area acts as its own self-regulating ecosystem, often called a Food Dungeon. Deep magics built within the structure cause food sources, both plant and animal, to grow and reproduce at exceptionally fast rates. Moreover, successive generations raised within the Pen will evolve at accelerated rates based on a variety of different factors. Food Dungeons are perfect sources of nourishment for an army on the go, especially one in hiding.

Sam paid far more attention to this notification. “This is it. It’s all coming together!”

While the others continued to celebrate, Sam turned his attention to the overly large nest of metal and wood, miraculously intact despite the carnage from the devastating Book Bomb Blast… almost as though the mechanical chicken had been sheltering the nest from the explosion. If Sam’s hunch was right, then what he needed would be tucked away inside that nest. His feet moved of their own accord, compelled forward by some gut instinct created through wisdom.

“Hey, uh?” Bill tried to break his trance. “You okay, or what?”

“Or what,” Sam dropped onto a knee beside the edge of the oversized nest. There in the center, peeking out from beneath a layer of dust and rocky debris, was the shell of a golden egg. Sam brushed the dirt free, and carefully, ever so gently, wiggled the egg loose. It was larger than any chicken egg he’d ever seen before, closer in size to an ostrich egg; the shell perfectly golden and warm to the touch. This wasn’t a relic, but a living thing locked away in this Husbandry Pen and watched over by an angry, giant mechanical nightmare until the right person showed up to claim the real reward.

“Often the road scorned conceals the greatest treasures of all,” Sam muttered under his breath, repeating the words that Auntie Owl had entrusted to him. “Embrace the eccentric, for there lay true power.”

“Dude, what’d you find?” Kai asked from the other side of the room.

“My calling,” Sam replied with a grin. “Now I’m sure. I know what I want my Specialization and my Secondary profession to be.”

There was a collective gasp, every going stock-still as they stared at the golden egg clutched in his hands. Bill broke the tension with a squawk. “About time! So, what’s it gonna be, huh? Wait, I know. Specialized as a Bravi with a Secondary Duelist Profession. That’s it, right? Bravi Duelist. Or wait. No. Bibliognost with a focus as an Inscriptionist. Nailed it!”

Sam shook his head. Bill raised a leathery eyebrow and weakly offered, “Libriohexer?”

“Libriohexer,” Sam stoically confirmed.

“That's the toughest of the three. You know that, right?” Bill argued with him. “I mean, powerful in the endgame, but resource management is a nightmare. The amount of work is crazy. Not a bad choice, just a hard road to walk… but you have the Legs for it, I suppose. If you’re set on Libriohexer, then I guess you’re gonna go with Contractualist?  Or maybe… Publisher? You’ll need a ton of content to fill a spatial summoning library, and Publisher seems like it could be a good fit for reasons that I can’t fully seem to explain. Publishers are just cool.”

“Not Publisher. The answer should be obvious.” Sam shook his head again, his smile growing wider by the second. He lifted the golden egg high for everyone to see. “I’m going to be a Chicken Keeper!”

There was a moment of stunned silence. Bill snorted, the sound turning into a deep belly laugh which spread like wildfire to the others. Kai, Arrow, and Dizzy all joined in. Velkan didn’t laugh. No, the Wolfman looked grave and thoughtful, his lupine eyes staring at the egg, his ears twitching in what Sam knew was an expression of mild confusion. But there was no chuffing, no mirth in his body posture. The Wolfman knew Sam was serious as a heart attack, even if no one else did, and he wasn’t ready to dismiss the radical notion.

“Good one,” Bill finally allowed once the chuckling guttered and died down. “Chicken Keeper. Can’t I just see that? You meticulously jotting out scrolls, covered in ink and feathers, while a bunch of dirty chickens cluck all around you. Classic Legs, amiright?”

“I’m not joking,” Sam cradled the egg fondly. “I’m picking Libriohexer with a secondary profession as a Chicken Keeper.”

The room went dead silent.