Dungeon Observation Outpost, Former Ulis Farmstead

"I was wondering when you were going to show up, Mr Nosster," Miss Leovoldt remarks when we leave the farmhouse, "Sorry if I sound annoyed, but I've been stood here twiddling my thumbs for near to an hour now. I was starting to think you wouldn't come."

I bow my head, "Sorry about that, it took a little time for everyone to log in and then we had a quick briefing. I trust you were able to get what I requested?"

"The Mentor NPC was fairly worse for wear, but still open for business," She nods, "As for the other thing you asked about, we're more than willing to assist you if it helps us achieve Wolf Hunt's primary goal. Matters concerning the Ancient Battlefield will be discussed according to the results, according to the higher-ups, if that's fine?"

"That sounds quite fair, thank you. I'm a bit light on currency at the moment, so if you don't have any objections, I'll be trading with an item of greater value," I offer, a little upset we didn't make time for me to stop by the bank, but hindsight is 20/20 and I can't keep spending it even if I plan on recouping the loss.

"I...will have to see what that is first, if you don't mind?" Miss Leovoldt requests, tail swishing anxiously.

Not seeing a reason to decline, I fish the Handaxe from Miner's Nightmare I've been looking for excuses to offload from my inventory out and hold it out to the rather surprised Panoplast.

"Is this..?"

"A drop from the last boss of Miner's Nightmare we currently have no use for. The level requirement is a bit higher than most of the combatants in your ranks can manage, I imagine, but whether you give it to an elite or sell it I believe this will be of sufficient value?" I ask innocently.

"A little too valuable, if I'm honest," Miss Leovoldt gulps, staring at the proffered weapon's stat window, "Are you sure? This is probably like, twice the cost of what I paid for these Spells."

"As I said, we have no real use for it, so I may as well sell it," I shrug, "I did also promise to pay a premium for the service and delivery. If you still feel uncomfortable accepting it, I am open to any proposals you have in order to settle accounts."

"N-no. Thank you, this is more than enough," she accepts the deal as-is, smiling nervously.

Completing the trade, Jupiter learns a few new spells: Minor Arcshot - A low-damage, low-cost non-elemental projectile that fires in a crescent arc for middling-distance, Minor Conflagration - Basically just Minor Ignite but with a blast radius around the initial target, and the most important spell for the moment, Minor Hoshum's Thunderclap - A line-shaped lightning-element shockwave that can occasionally paralyze opponents (Read: Never) and finally, Minor Mespem Sheen - An Ice-element bomb that leaves a patch of ice behind for a short while.

All of them require good aim, and the AoE Spells have relatively high costs along with longer verbal components, so Jupiter will be tested on his judgment, aim and chanting speed for this to go smoothly. Regardless of his efficiency, with him apparently dumping all of his attribute points directly into Imagination, his overall mana pool is going to be a little on the low side, even considering the racial bonus from picking Silva, so he'll be chugging through our supplies of MP restoratives at a fairly rapid clip - although, drinking more than one at a time in quick succession will be lethally toxic, same as any other potion.

I'll leave the management to Angelus, as the more experienced magic-user of the two.

During my contemplations, Jupiter rather predictably lets the acquisition of new Spells go to his head more or less instantly, laughing with maddened glee, "Yes, yeeesss! My power grows by leaps and bounds, the grand wizard's journey is beginning in earnest, aND THE REALM SHALL TREMBLE BEFORE MY MAGICKS! AHAHAHAHAAHA!"

Miss Leovoldt looks at me with concern, "Is he...alright?"

"Just ignore him," I deadpan, "If there's nothing else, I believe that concludes our business for now."

"Alright. Good luck in Farmer's Folly!" She waves, nods towards the team, then strolls off back toward Meteo City.

Windy walks up to me, "She another one of your poaching targets?"

I glance to the distant figure of Miss Leovoldt, "No, not specifically, though I have little idea of her competence from which to base a judgment. The organisation she's a part of, Wolf Hunt, is one of the largest in the region and, more importantly, a relatively trustworthy one that is highly familiar with Ujax Forest. To the point where they can be considered to be the people that control it - unofficially, at least."

"So, you're wooing them into becoming allies?" Angelus joins in the conversation while Jade and Jupiter get into a minor argument over his obnoxious rambling.

"Yes. When we're done here, we'll be heading to Ujax Forest to hunt Dire Wolves with them. They know the area better than we do, and we'll be cooperating to squeeze in the last bit of levelling up before we go deal with Geronil," I explain, "Better to let other people deal with the initial stages of the Event. We don't lose anything by taking a small detour."

Angelus grimaces, "Those Dire Wolves are no joke, Silver."

I hold my hand up, "We'll all have completed The First Step by then, save for Jupiter. Going in with the recommended levels and gear will make the whole experience manageable - we aren't hapless Level 1 players fresh out of the Cathedral going to pick 20 Grummus Toadstools for Geronil's money factory."

"If you say we can handle it, I'll take your word for it," Windy endorses the idea, "It'll be a good chance to get to grips with our new stuff before the big showdown with the boss."

I smile, appreciative of her growing trust, "Thanks for the vote of confidence, Windy. In any case, we've loitered out here enough - Jade, Jupiter! Table it for now, we're moving out."

---

 

"Ick. That looks fucking disgusting," Jade recoils when the Anguished Core comes into view. A pulsing web of ossified red and purple tendrils form a wall that blocks our path into the room ahead, radiating malice, despair and hunger. At its centre is a discoloured orb, protruding outward amidst the coiling structure.

"I was expecting another floating crystal of some description," Windy admits, putting her helmet on.

"Neat. Classic horror trope, there," Jupiter nods appreciatively, "Reminds me of Jealous Springs 3 and Shadows of Our Heart."

"I can see that," Jade agrees, "Your taste in movies sucks though."

"I find joy in the strange and overlooked," He shrugs, "Like a cryptozoologist, only for pop culture. Would that make me a cryptosociologist?"

"No," Windy denies flatly, "And I say that as someone who has a degree in Sociology."

"There are literally dozens of popular vidcrees who specialise in campy nostalgic trash," Angelus notes, "I used to follow one until he got drafted and retired from the scene."

"Oh, GeeWhilkes? Love that guy," Jupiter beams, "Heard he lost an eye to an IED, poor guy. Could have become a pirate reviewer, reviewing regionlocked films, missed opportunity there, you ask me."

I feel like this tangent has gone on long enough, "Focus please. Two last things to mention before we go in - we are most definitely not welcome in here. Combat will begin the moment we enter, not accounting for the boss's spawning animation, so get to your positions immediately and be ready to start attacking once it's manifested fully. Angelus, you're in charge of keeping an eye on Jupiter's MP usage and call-outs for Jade and Windy whenever I'm distracted. Last chance to ask any questions before we go in."

"Do we need any light in there?" Jade questions.

"No, but it is very pink in there, visibility is fine," I answer, "Anything else?"

I glance at each in turn, "Alright, do your best everyone, we've got one shot at this."

 

 

---

 

The Farmer's Secret (Easy)

Transferring into the instance, I can almost feel my insides lurch backwards away from the far side of the room. It's the same thing I experienced when I encountered The Pool of Desire in Miner's Nightmare, but more intense by half as much again. Whatever it is that's happening, it seems to be reacting to the presence of a demon's Authority.

The arena is as I remember it and no less sickening. All around the far wall from east to west is heaped piles and piles of antiques, oddities and preserved body parts. A hoard of the strange, rare and macabre, each item has a bloody history all it's own, but nothing quite as abhorrent as the shadowy mass undulating in the air above, from which the majority of my discomfort emanates.

Don't get distracted.

I raise my sword and run to my position a few seconds later than the rest, but well in time, as books, goblets, paintings, taxidermy and so on stream toward the shadowy mass, quickly forming into The Beak's Nightmare Form.

Once complete, it lets loose a primal roar, it's voice disjointed and unnatural, "M-INNNE. ALLLL MIINNNE. CAN'T H-HA-VVVE."

"Start counting down!" I call out to Angelus and Windy specifically, "Attack!"

Nightmare Form is extremely simple to deal with, of course, and also the phase during which we have to unload as much damage as we possibly can into the boss, so I swing with wild abandon into the bric-a-brac body, aiming to deal as many heavy-hitting blows as I can safe in the knowledge that Windy's Feardrinker Set Bonus will keep the aggro firmly placed on her.

Behind me, two pieces of The Collection, in a messy refuse pile vibrate and tremble, then float into the air, slowly levitating towards the boss as if to repair the damage it's taking by absorbing replacement antique flesh. Past the boss, I see a single piece of The Collection animate, only to be instantly blasted by a Minor Arcshot from the waiting Jupiter. Though not quite enough to destroy it in a single go even with his ridiculously high Imagination, owing to either the limitations of his non-existent gear or perhaps the base values of Minor Arcshot, the follow-up of an arrow from Jade pins the floating book to the wall behind it.

Feeling some optimism for our chances, I turn around to deal with my add spawns as well, slicing through a small portrait of some nobleman's baby in one go, then smash down a simplistic golden goblet. Neither of the adds awards any experience, but that's not relevant right now.

I return to attack the boss as quickly as I can, hacking away at it's leg while I await the next wave of adds, moving to intercept and keeping my distance even after destroying them to increase the odds that The Beak will use Desire on Windy instead of myself.

"Windy, grab incoming, I've got you!" Angelus calls out on cue, "Ready to focus the boss!"

With sudden alacrity, The Beak thrusts it's hobbled together arms and wraps around Windy's midsection, constricting and lifting her off the ground 5 feet in the air, doing it's best to crush her like a ketchup bottle. With her sword arm still free, she stabs repeatedly at her binding despite the pain and discomfort she's likely feeling. A Minor Conflagration erupts the same moment I turn to slice through the single add on my side, catching both of the east adds and The Beak in the same shot, incinerating The Collection.

Very MP and action efficient, I approve.

With two more swings of the Terrorsteel Horrorblade, The Beak shudders, briefly losing cohesion and dropping Windy back to the floor. Seeing it's left arm start to pull back in an exaggerated fashion, I immediately call it out, "Jealous Strikes incoming, that's the telegraph!"

While The Beak can't and won't use the tankbuster over and over again in succession, it's not on a timer like Desire, so you have to watch for it's telegraph. Having said that, a popular theory was that interrupting Desire increases the odds tremendously, given the similarity to The Nightmare.

"WAnT. GI. VE."

Windy deals with it by baiting the first swing to the west, then ducking the second, the screeching of metal and stone pierces the quiet as it scrapes along her raised shield, but gets battered by the recovered left fist's normal swing as a consequence, rolling with the punch before righting herself, "Sorry Angelus, didn't think it'd get another hit in so quickly after!"

"You dodged the big hits, don't worry about it and remember for next time!" Angelus brushes it off, concentrating on the whole battlefield at once.

I click my tongue, as the next wave is double threes, but Angelus beats me to the call-out, "Jade, west group, help Silver!"

"Already on it, birdboy," Jade calls back, loosing an arrow into a waxen, feminine hand.

Besides the brief moments of panic when Desire comes off cooldown, the first Nightmare Form phase passes without incident. Thus, the moment I count roughly five seconds before the phase change, I immediately back away directly to the west spawn point for The Collection, as Angelus announces the imminent change.

"It's still going to fire off attacks at you, Windy!" I call out when she starts moving over my way, "Stay on the north side! I'm letting the first add on my side through, kill the rest!"

The Beak insulated and scatters it's physical form around in a whirlwind of shrapnel, the shadowy humanoid melting back into a pulsing sphere constantly muttering about how much it wants for the sake of wanting. The ring of antiques forms a 12ft radius around the creature, denoting the danger zone.

"Stay put or I shoot you!" Jade reminds Jupiter, who isn't actually making any attempt to do so, attention fixed on the east spawn point.

"Trying to concentrate, fox lady, please and thank you~" He yells back, "I don't want to bite my tongue in the middle of a fireball and spontaneously combust!"

After the chosen sacrificial The Collection enters the barrier of furniture and relics, it vibrates a little more, before joining the rest and expanding the no-go zone. With that, the next Pulse of Oddity won't be set off, and we only need to worry about Curiosity's Pull.

"Please retreat to max distance now!" I call out, nodding at Angelus to take note.

"Time to roll the roulette wheel on the lucky soul to get royally yoinked," Jade jokes. And then immediately grabbed by a tendril of shadowy gloop and dragged closer in, but within a few steps of the edge, for a mercy.

"Ahhh this feels groooosss," She complains, slowly trudging out while being battered by cutlery.

"Talk shit get hit, sweetie!" Windy laughs at her friend's fate.

Jade flips her off while nocking an arrow, "See how you like it when it's your turn! Justice will be sweet!"

---

 

In the end, The Beak can't bear the damage to it's ramshackle corporeal form, and the animating mass of magic and malice dissipates, the heavily damaged collective of antiques crashing and clattering to the floor like an upended bucket of sand.

Congratulations, your party has defeated The Beak!

Awarding 6000 experience.

"Fuck yeah, that was way easier than you made it out to be!" Jade cheers, before taking a look at her ammo supply and cursing, "Holy shit I used a lot of arrows on that."

A bell tolls, music to my ears, and with a crisper tone and bassier reverb, as a grey-ish glowing glob coalesces amongst the wreckage of The Beak's body, and turning into a spear.

My good mood instantly sours.

"Oh sweet, a drop. Spear though. Hey, Silver, does being Iron-Tier make it any better than your sword, or you just gonna stick to it?" Windy asks as she picks it up.

"Since it's the crafted variant, they're about the same, I'd guess," I rest the Horrorblade on my shoulder, "I'm not changing over, regardless. Spears aren't my thing."

"Guess we're selling it off like the axe, then?" Angelus strolls over, chugging a potion for his MP and pursing his lips in disgust, "I truly hope that better potions don't taste like sucking on a bottle of washing up detergent."

"Amen to that," Jupiter concurs, also finishing off a bottle, "Ugh god-damn that is nasty. If it weren't clearly labelled by the system as a mana potion I'd swear I was throwing back shots of poisonous Jagermeister cocktails."

Jade expresses little sympathy, "Fuck you, jager is great shit."

"We both know it's an acquired taste," Windy argues, "Tastes better than Everclear though."

"Everclear barely tastes of anything," the archer snorts, "Whatever, let's get out of here already, place gives me the creeps."

"I would drink to that, if I actually drank," I agree with her sentiment, "We did well, regardless of what the evaluation says. So, good job everyone."

I smile, putting some effort into this whole leadership business. Trying to, at least. Jade, at least, doesn't look all that impressed but follows me over to the exit point all the same.