The tunnel began to collapse behind them as they sprinted toward the blinding light. Large rocks nearly struck them as they burst into a massive cavern, dominated by a glowing orb floating mid-air. Beneath it stood a female-like rock golem, arms outstretched.
"Behold my power!" the Golem boomed.
David and Scott exchanged a glance. "Boss battle?" they both echoed, a simultaneous thought.
"Don't mind if I do!" Scott grinned.
“Ha ha, this shall be fun.” David added.
Immediately, rock formations erupted in front of the Golem, creating a formidable barrier. The ground shook again as smaller rock golems clawed their way out of the earth around them, while the boss hurled multiple stones, scattering the team as they dodged.
Scott reactivated his Beastmode
Osia conjured a green Shield shadow walk
Close by, George following David, now in a Gorilla form, relentlessly pounded on the barrier, causing tiny cracks to spider web across its surface.
Scott, cutting a path through the remaining lesser golems, pressed onward toward the center of the cavern.
"Protect our backs while we continue beating in this shield!" David yelled.
"Got it." Scott confirmed.
Scott continued running around the battlefield, taking out more of the golems. Rick ran up next to them, joining them near the boss. "Hey guys."
"You watch George's back, and I'll watch David's," Scott replied.
"Okay," Rick said.
They continued protecting their teammates until the shield finally broke with a loud boom, blasting them back and making their ears ring.
"Phase two?" David asked, shaking his head.
"Seems like it!" Scott yelled back.
The golem shot up from the ground and floated in the air before it began to collect all the rock fragments from around the cavern, creating a mega mech suit of rock. Then, the golem descended with a superhero landing
Continuing the battle, they chipped away at the golem using their abilities until Osia delivered a final blow. She launched a large green fireball at the golem's head, destroying it and leaving only its core behind, along with the mysterious light.
"Yeah, not sure what it is. However, I don't recommend touching it until we figure it out," Tomas said.
They all scanned the core.
[Golem's Core (Rare)]
"Nice item. I believe Osia should take this loot since, for one, she had the final blow on the golem, and I believe it would better suit her," Tomas stated.
They all agreed, and Osia took the core. Then they focused on the light above them. Scott decided he didn't want to wait, so he did what he always did: ran into things without much thought and jumped up to touch it. A power rushed over him as he touched the floating orb. The orb flashed and disappeared as he fell blindly towards the ground. Barely managing to land on his feet, he stumbled and nearly fell.
"Dude, are you okay?" Rick asked.
"So what did it do?" David inquired.
"I'm not sure, but it didn't hurt me.” Scott Said. “I'll go check the system notifications and go from there."
Unauthorized usage: this tale is on Amazon without the author's consent. Report any sightings.
[Dungeon lord(10%)]
[Dual Blades (Common)]
You have a natural affinity for wielding two blades at once, a path that few dare to tread. Your movements are fluid and precise, your hands working in perfect unison to deliver a storm of strikes. Time will tell if this path leads you to become a true blade master. Abilities: Ambidextrous Proficiency (Passive): Your ability to fight with two blades at once is significantly enhanced, granting a small bonus to your attack speed and precision when dual-wielding. Flurry of Blows (Passive): Your fighting style allows you to strike with incredible speed, enabling you to land multiple strikes in a single attack, overwhelming your foes.
[Fangs of the Vital Beast (Legendary)]
Your fangs are long and sharp, a true testament to your beastly lineage, and more potent than ever before. They are unnaturally long and possess an extreme sharpness that allows them to pierce through the toughest of hides and armor. Abilities: Vampiric Bite: The sheer sharpness of these fangs creates a powerful bleed effect that is incredibly difficult to heal. Each bite will also drain a small amount of vitality from your foe, healing you in the process. Vitality Feast: The more you bite, the more vitality you regain. Your fangs can now be used to feast on the lifeblood of your enemies, restoring your health and vitality with each successful bite.
[Stealth (Common)]
You have a natural affinity for the shadows, and they have become your domain. Your movements are silent and swift, and you can disappear into the darkness to sneak up on your prey. Abilities: Shadow Walker (Passive): You gain a significant bonus to stealth when you are in the darkness, allowing you to move without making a sound. Blindside Attack (Passive): When you attack an enemy from the shadows, you gain a bonus to your damage, allowing you to strike their blind side with incredible force.
[Healing (Rare)]
As a Slayer, you are no stranger to combat, and you are all too familiar with the feeling of being on the brink of death. By tapping into your innate magic, you can mend your own wounds and gain a second wind. This magic is not a quick cure, but a focused exertion of will that closes gashes, knits torn muscles, and staunch the flow of blood. This ability can be the difference between a triumphant victory and a bitter end. Abilities: Healing Regeneration (Active): You can activate a small bit of healing regeneration, restoring 20 hit points every 30 seconds for a duration of 5 minutes a day.
[Ghost Skin (Rare)]
This skill allows you to channel the power of ghosts, giving you the ability to phase through objects and beings. Your movements are fluid and ethereal, allowing you to evade attacks and quickly reposition yourself on the battlefield. Abilities: Ethereal Dodge (Passive): You can use this skill to phase through objects and beings without being harmed. This ability allows you to effortlessly evade attacks and reposition yourself on the battlefield, but it costs a bit of mana each time you use it.
Scott mused.. Some of the other ones definitely have caught my eye as well. Healing is a good one to have and Stealth is also good. But to top it off doing both damage and healing with a single bite trumps them all."
"I choose [Ghost Skin (Rare)][Fangs of the Vital Beast (Legendary)]
"Even though I'd love to choose the healing, I think I'll wait on that until I get to level 20," Scott made a mental note. "Maybe it will get better skills the next time, or something else that's far better could come along."
“
"So I got two skills in that round of level-ups. Did you guys get two?" Scott asked cheerfully.
"Nope, must be nice," David said sarcastically.
"So that's what the orb does! Next time, we will vote on who gets it," Tomas stated.
"Sorry, not sorry," Scott said with an awkward smile.
"Sorry? You could have died. What if some magical bacteria got into your system, and we couldn't do anything about it? It's okay if you didn't know, and if it hurt you in the process, that would have been on you. Either way, let's make better choices next time so we don't lose a member of the crew based on rash decisions," Tomas said, his voice firm.
"Okay, next time I will try to control my urges." Scott replied.
"Let's get out of here and head home," Tomas continued.
"So where's the way out? Have any of you seen the exit?" Osia asked with a puzzled look.
All of a sudden, a chest appeared right next to a free-floating door. The chest was huge, large enough for one of them to sit in. Scott circled the door; it was invisible from the other side, a creepy yet cool feature, something straight out of a video game.
Tomas looked around. "I think Osia should be the one to open the chest. Would you do the honors?"
"Okay, it's not going to blow me up, is it?" Osia asked with a worried expression.
"No, that would be just rude since we just finished the dungeon," David replied.
They all walked up to the chest, and a low humming emanated from it. Osia reached for the chest, unlocked the latches, and as she lifted the lid, a bright yellow light grew in front of them.
