Normal except for how they had four red eyes instead of just two.
All four Demonic Centipedes reared up seven feet in the air, then paced back and forth in front of the Demon. Their hundred legs were each as long as her forearm and scraped against the stone floor like thousands of tiny nails on a chalkboard. The black and red colors on their shells swathed in a chaotic pattern.
Penelope sat in the middle of the barrier as she chewed on one of the steaks. She glanced at her menu to check the time.
She was down to just under eighty-six hours for seventy-eight squares. If she slept eight hours each of the nights, she was going to lose thirty-two of those hours. Penelope shook her head. It was still doable; there just wasn’t as much wiggle room as she would have liked.
“Anything you can tell me about this square?” Penelope kept her voice low just in case the other group was listening. They were moving the meat from the front quarter of the square, so there was over three hundred feet between them. Penelope could hear them talking, even if she couldn’t make out their words.
“I’ve already told you more than I should have.” The blue Elf appeared in front of her. “I haven’t given this many hints about the first floor to anyone since Kenny, and he was the twelfth looper.”
“That long ago, huh?” Penelope closed her eyes. “You decided to start helping me?”
“I’m not an easy button.” Jeru snapped.
“Do you think having to kill these monsters is easy?”
There was a long pause.
“I did it.”
Penelope opened her eyes. “What?!”
“I was the first returner. I fought my way down to the Archdemon on the tenth floor and fought him.”
“Within the system?”
“There were too many of them not to limit their power. Tying the incursion to a system created a choke point that made it easier to deplete the army.” His voice got somber. “But I failed. Before I died, I linked my power between the Archdemon and Joe, then created the anchor point.”
“So you’re telling me that you’ve already done all of this?”
“I started at level one hundred, but yes. I walked through the floors with a small team and decimated the minions on my way to the end.”
“That’s not the same thing.” Penelope swept her arm out. “You could kill everything on this floor with a wave of your hand. That’s not the same thing.”
“True, but I’ve ridden through this floor more times than I can remember. I’ve watched people who were full of fire and dedication wane as they pushed against the stronger and larger waves.”
“What you’re saying is that you still haven’t decided if I’m going to give up or not.” Penelope shook her head. “You know that’s a good way to get someone to throw in the towel.”
“True, but the backlash of that is prohibitive.” Jeru clicked his tongue. “No, I’m not getting into that. Not now. You need to focus on the fight in front of you.”
There was a sigh. “The crows are Speed-type. Not much different from the bats. The bugs are Defense, despite how they appear. Both are weak to spells, which makes the Shadow your only concern.” There was a pause, highlighted by a soft humming as the Elf thought. ”Since you’re thinking about it, here are their stats.”
Penelope glanced at the stats for a moment before dismissing them. “Any tips on how to beat the Demon?”
“It has four spells; since all you have is offensive Magic, you may have trouble with this fight.”
“You’re not going to tell me what four spells it has, are you?” Penelope stood up. She already knew the answer to that question. His silence confirmed it. But he’d given her more help than he had so far, which was progress.
“Okay, let’s try this.” Penelope stepped through the barrier.
The four bugs ran straight at her as the Shadow Caster followed behind them.
Penelope kept one eye on the main Demon as she gauged the distance between her and the Demonic Centipedes. Once they reached thirty feet away she released the spell.
“Light Blast!”
The air in front of the monsters cracked like she had just thrown a table face first into a window. The cracks in the barrier in front of the bugs spiderwebbed through the air, leaving no doubt that the barrier protecting them held.
Penelope started backing up. “Light Blast! Light Blast!”
CRACK
The sides of the barrier broke off, but the middle held.
Ding!
Experience +12
Experience +12
You are now Level Eight
Stats increased: Aura +1, Magic +1
You have learned: Light Burst
The other two centipedes were on her, their jaws each pinching around a wrist as their long bodies wrapped around her body. Hundreds of tiny knives needled their way through the robe, digging into her flesh.
“Light Burst!”
Light erupted from her body bathing an area fifteen feet around her in magic.
Ding!
Experience +6
Experience +6
Penelope sagged to her knees as the weight of the demons pulled on her. The bugs were dead, but their feet were still latched in her.
Penelope struggled to move as the bug suit that she was wearing was immobilizing her just like the winter when she had been five and there had been a freak snow. Her mother had gone overboard since she didn’t have a heavy coat to play in, so instead, Penelope got to wear four layers of clothes. The result had been walking around like there were poles on her joints.
Claws scratched at her face as the crow joined the fight.
“Light-”
The bird bit her lower lip.
“-BURST!”
Ding!
Experience +6
Penelope tried to ignore the blood in her mouth as she focused on the laughing Demon that was approaching her.
“LIGHT BURST!”
The Shadow Caster was outside the range of the spell and threw a blast of magic that was invisible, almost like the air attack, except this one felt like she was getting hit by a brick.
Penelope stumbled back. Her retreat, combined with the attack from the centipedes, had moved her almost to the barrier. The next
“LIGHT BURST!”
The chitin on the monsters had cracked, but she was still immobilized. The third one knocked her into the barrier. The magical forcefield crackled and sputtered, with her unable to stand.
“LIGHT BURST!”
Pieces of the monsters began falling off of her, but not everything. A fourth spell smashed into the left side of her face, swelling her eye on that side shut.
Penelope pointed her right index finger at the Shadow Caster, but before she could speak, a fifth
Penelope fell to her left, the movement sparing her from the next spell. Her voice had to be squeezed out to cast the next spell.
“Light Beam.”
A stream of light magic shot out of her palm. The air crackled as the light beat on the barrier in front of Shadow Caster. The cracks were healing as fast as they were forming, but the attack had stopped the other Caster from being able to attack as they focused on keeping their barrier up.
The Demon reached into their robe. Its glowing eyes gleamed as it pulled out a mana potion and took the top off. A Cheshire grin split its face as the Shadow Caster downed the restorative fluid.
Penelope reached into her pocket with her thumb and pinky and pulled out a mana potion of her own. She pried the top off with her teeth and poured most of the metallic-tasting potion into her mouth.
Penelope reached into her left pocket with the same hand and pulled out a healing potion as she maintained the onslaught.
ROAR!
The Demon stopped repairing the barrier and fired a
Penelope hugged the potion against her chest and took the hit. She didn’t try to sit up as she shoved the top of the vial in her mouth and pried off the top. She gripped the potion tight as the next
Before the Demon could hit her again, Penelope shoved the bottle into her mouth. She choked as she breathed the healing fluid, but her cuts started healing, and the remaining monster parts attached to her started falling off as her body pushed the invasive claws out of her skin.
“LIGHT BEAM!”
A second beam shot out of the palm of her hand. She didn’t try to sit up; even with the healing, it hurt too much.
Penelope took another
CRASH
The barrier shattered, allowing the two beams to punch a hole through the Demon’s chest.
ROAR!
Ding!
Experience +24
The barrier behind her vanished.
Penelope sagged as she lay down on the cold stone.
“I think…” Penelope closed her eyes. “I’m done.”
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