50th Floor, The BNY Mellon Center, The Pitt - 2:17 PM

I watched as the contents of the canopic items slowly turned to ash. The sarcophagus continued to rattle and shake despite the seal, a testament to the power and rage of its captive.

Since I had nothing to do but wait, I thought about the brutal efficiency of the administrator. Sure, this dungeon was near the bottom of the Pitt and came with several warnings, but it was still an exercise in severe sadism. Not only were the people encouraged to find the hidden objects, but the Patrons were involved as well.

Although most were wary of Patrons, as soon as one of the raiders were led to a hidden object and saw its power, they would have been more than happy to find the rest. With the praise that was no doubt heaped upon them, they wouldn’t think of destroying them even if they knew the origins of the Egyptian Gods they were named after.

It was the perfect storm of deception. Bonus points for finding overpowered items, the attention of Patrons to those who do, and the feeling that they were doing something right. Of course, the right thing they were doing was making the boss Awakened by completing it, but there was no way for them to know that and doing the opposite meant displeasing the “Gods,” which would make most people think twice.

With the Writhing Belt Whip in hand, I slowly started to back away from the sarcophagus. There were no windows on this floor, so I headed towards the corner by the staircase. The further along the organs burned, the more the sarcophagus shook. One side of the huge container bucked off of the ground, causing the stone floor to crack when it slammed back down.

The boss inside roared and screamed as it struggled. Its golden prison started to warp as it was pushed against from the inside. I crouched, waiting for it to finally break free. It could sense everything around it to a certain degree, but its crypt made it harder for it to pinpoint me when I was this far away.

Near the head of the sarcophagus, gold started to bubble upwards. I wrapped my whip around my arm gently as the protrusion started getting larger and larger before it suddenly burst.

A torrent of fire escaped and blew a hole in the ceiling. It continued to pour out of the hole with blinding intensity. Even though I was used to the outrageous glow of Sara’s halo, I had to shield my eyes. In hindsight, I should have asked Kayla for her glasses.

Rubble fell from the ceiling before the fire started moving in a lazy spiral. The stone above us started melting when the energy lingered for too long, and I slowly flattened myself onto my stomach.

The tight spiral quickly started getting wider and faster as the boss inside the sarcophagus gained a wider range of motion. All at once the fire jerked downwards and pointed towards its gold prison. Clean cuts appeared wherever the beam touched, and the metal boiled. The fire stopped for a second before it reappeared, slicing through the sarcophagus and the room around us in a complete circle.

On the top of my head, a few of my hairs were singed. That was my cue.

Lifting the Writhing Belt Whip as the walls shifted from the damage, I started flying towards the first hole the fire made in the ceiling. The limestone was red-hot on the edges, and the stone cavern that was only feet away from the roof was melting as well. I used my Warmind abilities to get as high as I could before the boss freed himself from his prison.

I looked down to see the sarcophagus lid fly towards me, and I took evasive maneuvers. Dodging, I didn’t bother watching as it hit the ceiling, causing more rubble to fall to the ground; my eyes were on the boss.

A mummified Dragon emerged from the sarcophagus and stared up at me with glowing, black and purple lights for eyes. Thick linen bandages covered almost everything except for its large, deadly clawed feet. Even though I could barely make out its scales, I knew that they would be black along the outside and gold in the middle. If I had given up all of the hidden objects, then the Dragon would have fully come back to life, and then I certainly would have died.

“I am the Pharaoh,” the Dragon rumbled. “Although you have released me from my prison, you have still denied me my complete resurrection. That said, I am a gracious lord, and you have made it to me both alone and alive. Bow down to me, and you may serve.”

“Fuck the Pharaoh,” I replied, still dangling from the Writhing Belt Whip as I flipped him off. I was inching closer to the ceiling, and the Dragon’s eyes narrowed.

“A poor choice of words, Human,” he growled. “Very well. At least make this entertaining.”

The Pharaoh’s cloth-covered wings unfurled, and he flapped them once. Despite his large body, he gained speed quickly, and I was forced to Lift both my Writhing Belt Whip and Vambrace of Wires in order to move faster. The extra boost in speed got me just out of reach as large teeth chomped down inches away.

Taking damage from but ultimately ignoring the heat coming off of the stone from both the roof and the cavern, I slid into the small space between the two. The boss was already on me, and as I scrambled to fly through a space small enough that I was basically sliding on my stomach, his claws were tearing away the limestone. Under me, the roof crumbled until the Pharaoh suddenly stopped attacking.

I knew better than to take it as anything other than a change in strategy, and I altered my course. The Pharaoh slammed his tail through the roof nearby. Debris from the force of it struck me, and I started bleeding in areas that weren’t protected by the remnants of my clothes. I didn’t bother activating Shield as this was just a small amount of damage and there was still a long fight ahead of me.

Covering my face with my arms, I flew through the small area between the rock and the edge of the roof. The area around me opened up as I entered the most spacious part of the cavern over part of the building, and came to a halting stop. The BNY Mellon center had two sides to it, and I was currently over the smaller side.

Below me, the Pharaoh burst out of his boss room, unfurling his cloth-covered wings as wide as he could. He shifted so that he was moving sideways to land onto the side of the cavern. The Dragon had been moving too fast and couldn't turn properly despite the magic helping it fly.

As his claws dug into the stone and he clung there, I scoffed. Reaching into my inventory, I pulled out the Vague Stick and turned it into its broomstick form to sit down. I kept the Writhing Belt Whip in hand for the Willpower boost for now, though. The Pharaoh turned its massive head to look up at me.

Dragons were some of the most troublesome bosses in the entire system. They had hit points for days and the Strength to trounce most other bosses on their level. Each was an incredibly dangerous foe that were deceptively agile even when they were the size of cruise ships. Not that the Pharaoh was that large, but there would be some later on that were.

Even with tattered, cloth-covered wings, this boss was able to fly through the cavern with nary a worry about anything except for me. The Dragon flexed before he started dropping, and he flapped once to instantly change its trajectory towards me. This was an imminent threat, but my attention was divided.

Back on the roof, I could see an old, hunched man with red eyes and yellow pupils staring at me. This was the administrator, Klastrus, trying to figure out what was going on here. He shook his head before disappearing from sight.

This was something I expected; the Pharaoh fight had been activated and the administrator had no idea what was going on. He would have to physically be here to see me, and that’s exactly what he had done. Klastrus was much less hands-on than Frastina and Benedict Merder, but still showed up more than that scum sucker Seraphim did.

The moment he disappeared, the Pharaoh had my full attention again. I started Pushing and Dropping the Vague Broomstick to get moving, flying towards the building’s 49th floor. The boss’ huge mouth opened as it changed directions, and I was close enough that I could see down its throat.

I burst through the glass and onto the ground a second before the jaws clamped down behind me. My hood got caught in his teeth, but I powered forward. It ripped and tore even as I choked myself to escape, and I skidded to a stop on the floor, coughing while I rubbed my neck.

Glass continued to break behind me, and I turned to see the Pharaoh climbing into the building. His huge body scraped against both the floor and the ceiling, but he clawed his way forward. Glowing eyes seemed amused as they stared into mine, and I raised myself onto my Heelies and started rolling backwards.

The Pharaoh easily kept pace with me even as he had to climb onto the raised platform where I fought the Tomb Guardian. His back and wings pressed into the ceiling, which cracked and gave way to make room for him, barely slowing him down. Once I had enough of a head start, I spun and jumped, mounting the Vague Broomstick as I left the building through the glass I broke earlier and flew upwards.

I didn’t go far, instead waiting to see where the Pharaoh would emerge from. It was tough because I knew he could sense me. Now that he was no longer contained in the sarcophagus, he would know where I was no matter where I hid in this cavern.

Two could play that game. The building shook, and I activated Aura Sense for a quick pulse. He had broken back into his boss chamber and was coming right towards me. I waited for a second before jerking upwards.

Rubble flew away from the wall, and a particularly big chunk hit my foot. It immediately started hurting, not that I could afford to give it any attention. I jerked upwards, doubling down on Lift and doing a barrel roll as huge teeth attempted to sever my legs. The Pharaoh slammed face first into the cavern’s wall, and I stopped ascending.

Pulling the Vague Broomstick out from between my legs, I willed it to change into a spear and used my Warmind abilities to Drop both it and myself onto the Pharaoh. The spearhead met resistance when it hit the surprisingly sturdy cloth that was wrapped all around the Dragon, but it slipped through and slid against his scales.

The Pharaoh laughed as his body, desiccated as it was, prevented my attack from penetrating. His claws dug into the wall as I pulled the Vague Spear to try again. There was a proper angle to this, but with the Dragon constantly shifting it was hard to get it just right.

Before I had a chance to strike again, the Pharaoh jumped. I fell, flattening against the Dragon as he carefully maneuvered himself. We fell through the window on a lower floor and took out several mummified kobolds as the boss rampaged through to the other side. His back rose to push me against the ceiling, but I rolled to the side, hanging onto the sturdy linen strips for dear life.

“By the power of Enigma Hemingway!” I yelled, coughing as I got dust and rubble in my mouth. Still, it was enough to activate Ostwriter’s Plot Armor. Page after page of the worst manuscript on Earth flew out of my inventory to coat me in armor reminiscent of a medieval knight.

The imagery I was evoking of a knight fighting a Dragon was not lost on me, I just didn’t have time to give it much thought.

We barreled through the room with no regard for its architecture or inhabitants, and I attempted to stab the Pharaoh a few more times. My Writhing Belt Whip was wrapped around my arm, allowing me to hang on with one hand and attack with the Vague Spear, but I couldn’t get a good angle. I flattened myself against the Dragon again as it turned and skidded into the wall.

I was shoved into the stone between the windows. Not even that could stop our momentum and we broke free, falling again as we made it outside. My back was killing me despite the armor, but I didn’t let go. The Pharaoh laughed as he spread out his wings and slowed himself down. Futilely, I attempted to stab a few more times before throwing my Vague Stick into my inventory.

“Giving up so easily?” the Pharaoh asked, his voice oozing with self-satisfaction. “I told you to make this entertaining for me.”

“Shut up!” I growled.

I threw myself upwards onto the Dragon’s back and pulled out Vermon’s Smash Stick. I brought it down hard right between the wings. Once, twice, three times, but it didn’t do much damage at all. The linen bandages were absorbing most of the impact and the Smasher passive didn’t do much to them. Switching gears, I aimed for the Pharaoh’s wing.

My Smash Stick collided with the bone, but didn’t do much but destabilize us. The Pharaoh graciously held still, barely flapping and holding us aloft, as he allowed the attacks. His arrogance was truly something else, though that was a problem that the vast majority of Dragons had going for them. I tossed the club back into my inventory.

“As you can see, you cannot hope to harm me,” the Pharaoh said. His wings flapped lazily as he turned his long neck to look back at me. “A mere Human could never hope to match a Dragon. Save us both the time and give up now.”

“Never, you overgrown lizard,” I spat.

The amused look on the Pharaoh’s face disappeared, replaced with one of disdain. “You would be wise not to provoke me more than you already have, Human.”

“You’ll find that you’re the one that’s lacking wisdom,” I said. “Because I still have a few tricks up my sleeve.”

“They will do you no good. The difference between us is too vast.”

“It is, but not in the direction you think,” I claimed. “You best learn the name. I’m Anthony Franklin, Dragon Slayer.”

Reaching into my inventory, I pulled out the Endless Smoker. Flames continued to pour forth from it, and I swung it downwards in a fast arc. The linen fibers along the Pharaoh’s back lit on fire immediately, and the Dragon began to struggle. Not from pain, but from indignation. He cast a spell. Nothing seriously dangerous, but a large bubble of water appeared above us.

Reaching down, I tucked the makeshift flamethrower into the folds of the linen bandages where it couldn’t come free easily. The bubble fell, drenching us in water cold enough to cause me to instantly start shivering and putting out the flames that were already raging. The Endless Smoker didn’t let up; it would soon dry things out and reignite the fire again.

I wasn’t done yet. While the Pharaoh was angry and distracted, I reached into my inventory again and pulled out the pair of rusted loppers I had received from the Watermelon Walter fight. It wasn’t a particularly powerful item, giving me only a +3 to Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution, but it had one skill that made it incredibly handy.

Diving to the side, I had both hands on Walter’s Rusted Loppers and put the blades around the Pharaoh’s wing where the bone met his back.

“You fool!” the Dragon started.

“That’s Anthony Fucking Franklin to you, dumbass!” I yelled as I closed the blades as hard as I could, activating the Shear Through skill.

[[Skill]]

Shear Through

When using Walter’s Rusted Loppers, you can activate Shear Through to cut through almost anything you can put between the blades, both organic and inorganic. After using this skill, you cannot use it again for 1 hour.

The loppers sliced clean through the linen bandages, dull scales, and Dragon bone like a hot knife through butter. I jumped, grabbing the newly amputated wing and shoving both it and the weapon into my inventory as the Pharaoh began to fall towards the ground. He did not go quietly, screaming curses at me even as I descended slowly after him.

I grinned as he fell onto the edge of the roof below, causing it to cave in before he fell to the ground of the cavern proper. Even though there was reason to celebrate, the fight wasn’t over just yet. Phases one and two, instill a false sense of security and cripple the Pharaoh, were complete.

I let myself fall faster to the ground, where I was excited to start my favorite phase: tower demolition.