Chapter 87: 79. Team Noir: Bigger Rush

Kleo sang a Papa Roach song next to her master's ear, thrashing her little [Faerie] body around like she was in a mosh pit. Their mom must've pulled up her 2000s collection during her week with Kleo. Jay could see Derek encouraging it if he had a little bit of old rock edge to him. 

Good, good, Jay thought. The rock song empowering [Manasinger] fitted Jay's mood. It set the mood for the Noir Parade as they faced more than 500 Yoroachians rushing at their front.

"I'm going to regulate the pace," Jay informed the Noir Parade. "It'll be like a jog for you, Malcolm."

"Yes, sir," the Systemless human replied.

"If they start getting past me," Jay said, skipping forward lightly, "you all know what to do from there."

The tunnel widened further. Ironically, that was the last thing Jay wanted. He wanted to be a bug-mincing bottleneck. He couldn't achieve that so effectively as the ceiling rose up about twenty feet. And the walls spread out about thirty feet. The ground was still craggy, but there were fewer cracks and gaps for Yoroachians to jump out of, thankfully.

Lots of fleshy vines dangled down like Spanish moss. Rocky mounds along the ceiling and floors gave Jay plenty of footholds while rightside up or upside down if he needed to flip perspectives later. The water was rising, though. It got up to ankle height here. So, Jay had to keep that in mind as the Noir Parade followed behind him.

"Mind if I make use of some flares?" Malcolm said. "It's so damn dark and–"

"Hand them to Tim," Jay said, tensing up as the anticipated moment drew closer.

Malcolm pulled the caps off and passed them one by one for Tim to chuck forward. The flares sailed end over end in perfect arcs. They landed in mushy muck piles that kept the flare out of the water. The red light reflected off the slick rock mounds and fleshy vines strewn around their new patch of the tunnel. The Yoroachians looked more like shadows running across every surface. A few took to the air, flying silently around vines and stalactites as they descended upon Jay's forward position.

"Close enough," Jay said as Kleo used a little beatboxing to switch tracks like a proper emcee. Going from downbeat to upbeat with a Hollywood Undead song.

Right on time for the first three shots to scatter the eye of a Yoroachian, disembowel one trying to slip by Jay's left, and crack the knee of a Yoroachian jumping to a stalagmite nearby. Then another three shots flew out a split second later. A Yoroachian falling from the ceiling lost its neck, one leaping down from the left wall got struck on the shoulder and spun around, and one that boldly charged Jay directly got its chest burst open.

Three debris belts. Three spiraling concentric rings of death. Three magical machine guns to lay waste to the enemy's charge. Jay fired at the closest Yoroachians to surprise them. Then he aimed to his left. He sprayed and splattered Yoroachians in a methodical wave to his right.

He couldn't get all of them. Especially the Yoroachians that stuck to the floor and ducked behind stalagmites for cover. 

But the Yoroachians on the left wall got smacked so badly that their guts painted the wall a new color, slicking it with giblets of Yoroachian flesh. Jay swept across the floor in front of him quickly. He wanted to halt the advance by forcing them to use stalagmites as cover.

He took some time to pop Yoroachians on the right wall. Those managed to scatter and do a better job dodging his triple Gatling-style blast. They were keen to avoid the fate of the Yoroachians' on the left wall. That was okay. As long as Jay slowed their advance, that gave him plenty of time to sweep directly up.

Jay chopped Yoroachians that thought they could jump directly on top of the [Freak] from above. Dead and dying grunts rained everywhere around Jay. He kept bounding gradually from rocky mound to splashy floor to rocky mound as he went. He moved at a jogging pace a Systemless human could follow.

Jay's attention on the midair and ceiling Yoroachians lasted a little longer than on the other fronts. He wanted to crush their spirits as much as he aimed to crush their bodies. He accomplished the body-crushing part, but discouraging aerial attacks were more pivotal. That way he could swat Yoroachians on the walls more.

Unfortunately, Jay couldn't eviscerate everything in front of him. The Yoroachians wouldn't die to only one shot. They needed at least several, which ate up precious ammo. Even with Emily's kiddies tossing Jay random pebbles and chunks of rock, he wouldn't have enough to continuously spray the Yoroachians into full submission. And he had to switch to burst fire because this tactic took from his mana at a disgustingly fast rate. Jay's extreme abuse of his [Sling Assist] Skill was costly.

It couldn't be helped. He was a [Freak]. Getting weird, pushy, and insane with whatever given power dropped into his lap was in his Class's nature. And he just started to find means to lessen the costs: [Orbital Mastery] 's mana reduction for Jay's Gravity Skills, [Gravity Mastery's] constant improvements for gravity powers to make them more effective, and Kleo's [Manasinger] literally helping to recover against his mana-hungry nature. Plus Emily's [Spooky Friends] fed more mana into his head for each Yoroachian that died.

And still, that wasn't enough!

But it would have to do.

Kleo switched song tracks again, leaning back into something darker as her voice became more guttural. She cut through the screaming Yoroachians with a Seether song, filling Jay with a subtle but rising rage.

Frustratingly, Jay had to let Yoroachians get past him on the ground level. They didn't even try to attack him. They scurried from rocky mound to rocky mound to desperately avoid his triple gravity gun fire like they were charging a beach guarded by pillboxes in those World War II movies.

Just when the Yoroachians broke past the line Jay held, they faced at least 100 of Emily's Parading Kiddies. The moment dying Yoroachians got caught by parading kiddies, black tendrils whipped out of the kiddies and seeped through the gaps in the Yoroachians' carapaces. The horrid curse of Corpse Kiddie Parade spread out from there. Not all of the Yoroachians got this treatment since Emily needed a few for Feast of Flowing Life. So, in a strategy that was all levels of macabre, Emily had grievously injured but still living subjects captured, wrapped up in vines, and dragged along by her kiddies. She didn't need that many for Feast of Flowing Life, so all the others got added to the merry Corpse Kiddie Parade.

Emily always aimed for grievously injured but living Yoroachians first and foremost. That was more cost-effective for her than raising the dead straight up–something about acquiring a burst of power right when death was achieved. The incantation curse was more likely to fail with the dead. It could still fail with Yoroachians that matched her exact needs. Some spirits refused the call of her power and slipped away no matter what. Regardless of the [Medium] jargon, Noir Parade grew bigger as Jay dropped Yoroachians.

Hell, the Noir Parade started to provide for themselves, too. Their former [Mana Claws] had turned to [Death Claws]. Their [Unnoticed Concealing] became [Death Dressing]. The dancing, clapping, merry corpses switched into crazed fighters the moment an antagonistic Yoroachian neared Emily's army.

The kiddies' claws ignited with chilling death energy. A shadowy and scarlet dress swirled down from their shoulders to their feet, whipping out thick and reaching threads.

Yoroachians meeting their corpse-turned sisters met fierce resistance with little success. The Yoroachians lacked the conviction and the numeral advantage when they got past Jay. Getting close to Emily's kiddies tangled their feet with the threads of their deathly dresses, applying constant death damage, even if only a little.

Despite those challenges, the Yoroachians that had gotten past Jay still made a small dent against Noir Parade. By virtue of speed, liveliness, and intelligence, each Yoroachian could kill two to three parading kiddies if they worked hard enough.

Big if.

Five would die from the effort since they were outnumbered. About four out of five fallen Yoroachians would rise back up as fresh kiddies. Before long, Emily's kiddies neared 175 in numbers due to their own efforts and Jay's [Sling Assist] shooting spree. Their numbers swelled so rapidly that they had to move up to the edge of Jay's firing line. They helped him hold the defense on the floor and walls, letting Jay focus on more immediate threats.

Yoroachian fliers and ceiling crawlers got minced with more precision and patience. Jay's bothersome Mana depletion evened out. He started to fill back up. Singing Kleo and creepypasta ghosts helped Jay consistently. He even had a dedicated pack of parading kiddies feeding him more pebbles.

"Jay, we can go faster!" Emily shouted. She sat in a harness of knotted flesh vines held between a gaggle of happy kiddies. Malcolm had the same seat constructed for him with his own dead rugrats holding him up.

The Systemless man's pale expression of horror became a notable stamp of approval for Team Noir. It meant they had once again forsaken the good grace of an earth god with a new level of madness raised by the Champions of YoAnna.

Jay did a quick visual check with Tim to see if he was good.

The [Fighter] gave him a single thumbs up. He was just vibing at this point. In a way, he was kind of in Malcolm's shoes. The Rank 2's needed to see them through to the end more than a Rank 1 and Systemless man. But Jay was sure Tim would step in again when necessary. For now, he stayed close to Malcolm as Jay gradually upped the pace forward.

The Yoroachians had stopped rushing forward aggressively at this point. They tried a new strategy of creating a shifty, squirmy defensive line. They raised their claws threateningly in the face of Jay and the Noir Parade.

Sometime later, the Noir Parade raised its numbers to about 300 parading kiddies. Yoroachians fled from the crawling rush of playful death and gravity devastation.

Everything seemed to be going fine, and the Yoroachians completely escaped back to where they came from. For half an hour, the Noir Parade advanced at an exceedingly fast rate. They met no obstacles. No new Yorochians. It was a little worrying, so Jay kept his head on a swivel. Kiddies packed [Sling Assist] with as many rocks as he could spiral while staying even with his Mana cost and Mana recovery efforts. They had to sacrifice some of their Yoroachian captives to help Jay with his hungry, hungry Mana needs.

Then the tunnel transformed into a more cavernous space. The ground was moist and muddy with the occasional porous rock mound sticking out. Lots of mushrooms populated the floor, some the size of a human. The distant walls glistened with purplish, reddish flesh vines crawling all over. Going forward became a little more precarious for Jay.

The enemy hadn't shown themselves for a while.

The cavern was the first time Noir Parade entered a wide open space. And the way forward had lost its simplicity. They now had a fork in their path. A tunnel to the right. And a tunnel to the left. And while they could debate on which way to go, the time clock on the kid would wane further. Jay could feel it through his meta-g that they had to make a decisive decision and hope for the best.

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"Emily, do we have anything from the victims?" Jay asked, slowing down a tad as they started to cross the muddy cavern.

"No, Jay. A lot of the victims died back where we've come from. We're entering new territory."

Jay slowed down a little further. They couldn't hesitate for long. Right or left. A decision had to be made.

Tim bounded forward, splashing up mud as he stopped beside Jay. He sniffed the funky air like a dog. He reached into his bag.

"Tim, wait," Emily called. "If you go for your bow, you'll lose Gloves of the Last Breath. You can't drop being He Who'll Punch Monsters until you're sure you don't need it anymore."

Tim looked warily at the space around them. He sniffed at the stinky air. His hands shook as they struggled between taking the bow or keeping Gloves of the Last Breath.

"Keep the gloves, Tim," Jay said softly. "Wait for your opportunity when it comes."

Tim sighed. "Okay. But I smell a trap. Maybe even a bigger bug. I can't tell where, though. The smell is there and not at the same time."

Jay scanned the immediate area around them. He didn't find anything. He spread his search in sections around the cavern. He followed Frank's advice to think of directions like a clock.

Nothing 6 o'clock.

Nothing 3 o'clock or 9 o'clock.

When Jay searched in a cone at 12 o'clock, he didn't feel anything out of place. He tried searching up. He tried searching down. Nothing disturbed his spatial-g like a no-gravity hole. Nothing stood out beyond everything being rock, muck, fleshy vines, and water.

"Hm," Emily hummed as her kiddies carried her close to the boys. They've slowed to a trot now. She turned to one of her kiddies. "Can you tell me about your bigger sisters?"

The parading kiddies made hissy, sputtering sounds. It was hopeless for Jay or anyone other than Emily to understand. The Death [Medium] nodded sagely.

"Bigger. Stronger. Faster. And they have wicked blade arms." Emily paused. "They have better concealment. They usually watch and learn. These are known as the Yoroachian Warriors, the elite Yoroachian fighting force. Rarer are the Yoroachian Witches. And, of course, the Yoroachian Queen is rarely seen by simple grunts."

The queen wouldn't be here. It wasn't time for her entrance into the narrative yet. Jay could feel that. But the warriors or witches could be nearby. Jay guessed the warriors were hiding in wait.

"They're trying to sucker us into something," Jay hissed. He was not a fan of anyone trying to out-clever him. But how could he dig them up if they were so much better at hiding? 

"Ask about which way to go?" Malcolm piped up.

Emily did as he suggested. Her brow furrowed with annoyance, which bothered her kiddie until she offered the corpse a head-pat that lifted its undead spirit.

"The chambers change around. Something that connects them helps them navigate through the changes. But that's gone now that I've taken over and became their… death momma queen."

"Push harder on your Perception, Master," Kleo said, breaking out of her [Manasinging] duty for a moment. Since Jay was keeping [Sling Assist] going, Kleo stayed on top of his mana regen needs.

Jay came to a halt, following Kleo's advice. The Noir Parade stopped behind him. The kiddies broke out into dance as they waited. The [Freak] looked down at the moist ground slurping at his feet.

He knelt and dug down. He kept digging, reaching rock about three feet down. Plenty of space to get buried in. The [Freak] used spatial-g again. This time he screened around very slowly. Methodically. He moved bit by bit, checking for anything abnormal with the purple gravity lines etched in detail in his mind. Just like YoAnna's domain, the lair lacked the solid magical foundations of a true dungeon pocket space.

But the corruptive magic was spreading like an infection rather than struggling to hold itself together. It was eating up realty space on Earth. In doing so, the magic fluctuated and wavered with every new construction, acquisition, or crawling change. This was happening all around them.

These magic quakes affected the physical spaces ever so slightly. Something Jay wouldn't have noticed until he pushed his Perception and spatial-g to the brink. That little quiver passed through everything like normal.

Except for twenty spots dotted around the cavern. Those twenty stayed perfectly still compared to the slightly quivering environment. Just like how YoAnna's dungeon traps were too perfect in comparison to the shoddy domain of the Godling Dungeon.

Half of these perfect spots were buried in front of the fork's left entrance. That answered the question of which side they should go. Ever so carefully, Jay contracted [Sling Assist] to his left hand and beckoned Team Noir to get closer to his right side. He told them about his findings and which directions the hidden monsters lay in wait. Technically, even with their smaller numbers, the Yoroachians had Noir Parade surrounded on three sides.

They didn't talk about strategy. Emily pointed at herself and waved around the flanks and rear. Jay nodded as he focused on the front. They had lost time for the rescue mission to stop like this. It dawned on him that meta-g was acting like a quest-giving time clock. It ticked and tocked and warned him of the clock. Something about getting to the kid was pivotal, and Jay didn't want to lose the child's life or the game itself.

Emily signaled that she was ready.

Jay started forward toward the right entrance. Only a little. He didn't lead the Noir Parade directly to the right. But he made it seem like they weren't going to the left entrance until Emily used her [Mist of Death] Skill.

It had come off of cooldown just recently, ready for another go. This time, she hurled it out of her mouth toward the back of their formation. It fanned out away from Team Noir specifically. It rolled over the kiddies to the back of Noir Parade, swallowing them in the black mist filled with red lights and silently screaming faces.

At the same time, Jay and the Noir Parade changed directions at once and rushed to the left entrance. They became a rolling army of death and merriment. They splashed through the muck or flew across the air if they still had workable wings.

Jay didn't even give the new Yorochians the pleasure of rising on their own. He marked to memory each of the ten perfect spots trying to blend with their environment in front of the left cave entrance. He whirled [Sling Assist] to action and blasted at those spots. He raked the moist dirt from right to left to right again. Muck rosed in big splashes under his full-auto triple gravity machine gun. That would've killed two to three dozen gunts in the span of five seconds.

Jay managed to injure five of these bigger Yoroachians. All ten jumped to action, exploding out of the mud with the synchrony of a choreographed villainess group. Their upper arms raised scythe-like blades to meet the Noir Parade's advancing army and Jay's gravity machine gun spray.

One Yoroachian Warrior took Jay's ranged attacks head-on. The monster didn't get touched at all as it deflected accelerated pebbles consistently. Like an anime swordsman fending away bullets with perfect precision and ease.

The [Freak] narrowed his heterochromia eyes with displeasure.

He felt challenged. And not by the usual challenge where he was in over his head. Something more was at play here. Something that made his [Eye of Venerated Madness] Talent tremble.

[Madly Identifying:] Yoroachian Warrior, Level 20–This monster has a base of 500 Health, 800 Stamina, 700 Mana, and x4 Chance. Favors the Perception/Agility/Intellect Attributes. Most utilized powers are [Blending Cloaking] and [Surging Mana Blades]. They're magical elite fighters that'll act like a pestilence and demolish all that you've cultivated. And they have an unusually high Conviction with something extra, something a touch more strange than what monsters should have at this rank.

Jay huffed, his meta-g going ding, ding, ding with meaning. "We've finally found the other face-belly eaters. And they're mine."

Emily and Tim wouldn't challenge Jay on that. The weaker Champions stayed back as the [Freak] ran ahead for a ten versus two meet and greet. His left eye shone incredibly bright, painting most of his face with silver-gold light.

Kleo stopped singing. Her eyes shone with a darker, more twisted purple light compared to Jay's usual gravity light. She emitted an animalistic and hungry growl. Roach scythes and gravity magic clashed for the first time.

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