Chapter 49: Chapter 40- Something Strange

The approach of a task is dependent entirely on who is performing it. If a team of mages takes a task, it would be expected that whatever opposition stands in their way will be bombarded until nothing remains. Warriors will crush and slash everything in sight, while runeslingers and gunfighters will leave them shot up. It all depends on who takes the task.

-Excerpt from the ‘Hunter’s Handbook’

 

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Climbing down the mesa was as simple as climbing up it was, and the group soon reached the base of the mesa. The whole area was choked with short, almost matted down grass that tangled around itself and acted as a soft carpet to the otherwise dirt-filled area. Small rodents and bugs all the size of mice scurried away from them as they strode forward. The grass, already compressed, sunk just a bit as they walked. Underneath them, the newly raised, undead wyrms swam through the dirt and sand in circles, moving with them. Their peaceful walk was short lived, as Idle whipped her head to the ground in front of them. With naught but a word of warning, a wyrm twice the size of the fledglings burst from the ground and tried to flatten them with its girth.

They all dodged just in time, thanks to Idle’s warning, and stepped away from it as it tried to pull back into the ground. Before it could, however, two of the three earthshaker wyrms burst from the ground, wrapping around its body and pulling it forwards while the last knocked its tail out from the ground. A hail of gunfire, spells, and fire breath assaulted the airborne tail until a screech emanated from the wyrm’s throat, signifying its death.

[You and your allies have defeated a level 23  Stone Eater Large Wyrm. Experience has been awarded.]

As the beast died, they gathered around its body and defended Mori as she raised it. After a few moments of spasming and commanding, it dove into the ground as the first large wyrm earthshaker. With the zombie raised, they continued forward, “That was… a lot easier than I thought,” Mori said as they walked.

Fury sighed, “I agree. They aren’t very fun, either. They just ambush us, we catch them, then we kill them. If it’ll be like this, then I almost wish I stayed home,” he said sullenly. 

Pride rolled his eyes behind him, “An easy fight is a good thing; if these battles were difficult, then we would be underpaid for this job.”

Jel shrugged, “W-Wouldn’t it be worth it, t-then? If we s-struggle, then we get more e-experience.”

Pride shrugged while Ally groaned, “At least a little challenge’d make this a bit more interesting.”

Pride rolled his eyes while Fury beamed, ignoring the tired-looking Mae beside her, “At least someone gets it!” he shouted. Some chuckled while others sighed. No wyrms had attacked them since the first adult, and Mori was beginning to feel on edge. The feeling persisted even as they came within firing distance of the wyrm hive. They remained untouched, even as they stood in front of the tunnel that seemed to act as an ambush point.

Mori stopped them from going in, glaring into the darkness that did nothing to stop her sight. The tunnel was exactly what she expected: a rough circular tunnel without any visible entry points along the sides, “Idle. Do you hear anything in there?” Mori asked, preparing a sigil on her palm. 

Idle stepped forward, craning her neck, “I do hear… something. It’s like a bunch of rocks grating on each other and clattering in sand. Maybe they’re busy reinforcing their hive to hear us fighting out here?” Idle wondered aloud. 

Mori shook her head as she stood next to her, the rest of the undead peering into the darkness beside her, “They’re too… territorial. None of the trappers from Red Shale made it out alive, so I doubt they would just ignore us. Let’s just go in there and figure out what’s going on. Wyrms!” she shouted to the ground. A light rumbling responded to her words, “Get in there and look for lone wyrms and drive them towards us. If you get attacked by too many, bring them in front of us. Go!” she commanded, the ground rumbling to answer her. Waving them in, she led them through the tunnel in their normal formation. Not even a minute later, Idle pointed to a spot in the wall just before it burst outward, dirt and sand and loose stones showering the tunnel ahead of them as a large wyrm surged forth. Closely following it, two fledgling earthshaker wyrms harried it from above and below, wrapping around it and pulling its tail into the tunnel. The immobilized wyrm was no match for the onslaught the group wrought. After another raising and more orders, the group continued on. 

Walking down the tunnel for another few hundred feet, Idle pointed to the ceiling, prompting them all to dodge to the side just in time for a wyrm to burst through and plowed through the ground where they stood not a second before. The wyrm was, however, unwilling to let them see its tail, as it dove back into the ceiling when its attack failed. For a long moment, they stood still and let Idle listen to the walls around them. She stood still for over a minute, but soon shook her head, “Nothing,” she sighed, “It left.”

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Mori lifted an eyebrow, “That’s it? Just gone? Are you sure?” 

Idle took another moment to listen, “Yes, mistress. It’s gone.”

Mori glared at the hole the wyrm left in the ceiling as it escaped, “Not good. Not good at all…” she said. 

“Mistress?” Jel asked. 

“There’s someone or something else in here with us. At most, they’re stalling for time. There’s no way that this is the best they’re able to muster,” she mused, “But the question remains…”

“What is here besides the wyrms and ourselves,” Tisi finished. Mori nodded, “Perhaps… it is a Clockwork. You have made mention of Clockwork occupiers that hide within mesas and the like, so it may be possible that these beasts have stumbled upon one.”

Mori mulled it over for a moment, “That makes sense, but-”

“Shush!” Idle hissed. She stood as still as a statue for a long few moments before widening her eyes, “One of them just died,” she said, “It just… died. I heard it hissing and some sort of squelch… Mistress, what should we do?” 

Mori eyed the tunnel ahead, seeing that they were almost at the end of the trapped corridor and into the main nest, and nodded to herself, “We go forward. We were paid to do a job and, no matter what we find, we have to figure out what’s down here. For now-” The wall suddenly burst open and a wounded earthshaker wyrm circled around them protectively. Following closely behind it, a figure stood tall. As it strode forward, its limbs ground against its joints, sounding like rocks being scraped together. As it walked, the heavy thuds landed onto the soft ground. It strode out of the tunnel and loomed over them. It was a living statue of a muscular man wearing nothing other than a set of half-plate armor, being naked otherwise. In its left hand, it held a dagger while in its right it held a longsword. Its eyes and joints glowed with white mana, illuminating the tunnel with their bright glow. Without wasting words, Mori sent a lance of light against its helmeted head. The light struck, but it barely made the statue recoil. The stone, while glowing red from the blow, showed no damage. 

Idle’s eyes widened, “Get down!” she shouted. They followed her words just as a glowing white and green beam of mana cut over their heads, cleaving the earthshaker wyrm in twine. The statue’s longsword lost a bit of its glow, but the mana was certainly gathering once more. 

Seeing the statue stand still, Jel held up her hand and shot a spout of flames against its stony skin, doing little but charring the stones surface. At that moment, Pride wove behind the statue and shot a bolt of lightning at its joints. Similarly to Jel’s attempt, the blow did nothing but char the surface of the stone. The three zombies opened fire with their guns, predictably resulting in nothing but a few scratches. Fury dove into battle as well, stabbing into the leg joint of the creature while breathing flames into its arm. Fury’s arm-spikes shattered, splintering into fragments. The statue, glancing down, swung its dagger like a pendulum at Fury. Just as the blade was about to hit, he was pulled back by Idle, both falling back. The statue did not stop, stopping the blade when it was high above its head and stabbing down at the two pyraustas. 

The ground shifted underneath it and it lost its footing, sliding and causing it to kneel to keep its footing. Then, a blindingly bright light shone in the dark cavern. A lance of light burrowed into the statue’s plated chest, carving a deep groove. A wave of fire, as intense as the light lance, then crashed into it. Its stony body was charred and burnt, leaving it looking black. With a huff, Mori pulled Fury and Idle from the ground, “Dammit,” she ground out, “That thing is impossible to kill…” 

Idle shook her head, “It is not, mistress. Look,” she said, pointing at its eyes. The glowing orbs, once bathing the tunnel in light, only glowed in fading light, like the embers of a flame, “Whatever we did to it, it’s working. Should we continue, mistress?” 

Mori, staring at the emotionless statue as it stood once more, nodded, “Yeah. Let’s kill it.” They rushed it. A wave of mana shot out as the statue slashed the air with its blade, shooting right towards them. They ducked under the slash while Jel and Pride shot more fire from the sidelines. The three zombies had resorted to shooting it in its joints, but their attacks were doing little. Mori shot more fire and light while Fury breathed flames across the once-pristine body. Idle stood behind them all, pulling them from any wayward slashes. It was a long fight, but they soon came out on top. With a final blow from Pride, it fell backwards and landed with a thud, its eyes finally darkening. With its defeat, they all received a system message.

[You and your allies have defeated a Magnum Opus Guardian. A great amount of experience has been awarded.]

They all stared for a moment before Mori groaned, “Great… If this means what I think it does, this thing is from another god… just what I wanted from our first hunter’s guild task…”

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