Path of Dragons

The odious smell that permeated the dungeon had grown no less pervasive, but Elijah ignored it as he stalked forward. On either side of the hall were more cages not dissimilar from the one in which he’d left the troll. However, they were mostly empty, and the ones that were occupied contained only corpses of fearsome beasts. The only ones Elijah recognized were smaller trolls, but even those were so plague-stricken that he could barely make the connection between them and the sole living monster within the dungeon.

Certainly, he hadn’t intended to empathize with that creature, but after seeing what had happened to the other prisoners within the dungeon, he couldn’t help but feel sorry for the troll. Whatever it had done to earn its captivity certainly wasn’t enough to force it to endure the torturous existence with which it had been afflicted. Making it worse was that, according to the Ulthraks back in the Kelledge Tower, there was a good chance that a real consciousness was buried somewhere inside that monstrous form.

The thought sent a shiver up Elijah’s spine.

Gradually, he progressed through the dungeon, memorizing the twists and turns of its disgusting hallways along the way. He saw a few more ogre jailers, but there was nothing to indicate that any of them were the Warden he sought to complete his Task. Still, after exiting the troll’s cell and leaving its curiously attentive gaze behind, Elijah had no issues hiding from the ogre jailers.

But it only took the memory of his previous fight to tell him that attacking those bulky creatures was a mistake. Even with the benefit of Predator Strike on his side, getting through those thick layers of fat and muscle was a tall task. Perhaps he could kill them on his own, but there was enough doubt that he couldn’t commit to that path. After all, if he failed to quickly kill one, his would-be victim would almost assuredly raise the alarm. In that event, Elijah’s chances of survival would fall to almost nothing.

So, he chose caution instead.

As he continued to stalk through the dungeon, he flared One with Nature as often as possible. And he discovered something he’d already suspected: it was far less effective indoors than it was out in nature. Back in Ironshore – and then in Norcastle – he’d noticed as much, but being in the Reaver’s Citadel confirmed that the spell worked much better in the untamed wilderness.

Still, it wasn’t completely ineffective, and it still gave his attributes an invisible boost. Fortunately, his other enhancements worked the same as always, bolstering his Dexterity, Regeneration, and Constitution by a significant degree. That made his task much easier, and he managed to avoid detection until, at last, he’d mapped the entire dungeon.

And what he’d discovered wasn’t ideal.

First, there was only one exit, and that was guarded by four ogres wearing black iron armor like the ones he’d seen near the gatehouses outside. Otherwise, there were four jailers scattered throughout the dungeon as well. But their presence wasn’t what truly worried him.

No – that distinction belonged to his discovery of the Warden. He’d expected another ogre, but what he’d found was something altogether different. Elijah stood in the corner of what could only be called a torture room, where he stared at a black-skinned elf. The man was short and slender, with prominently tapered ears and a mane of thick, white hair.

Like many of the ogres Elijah had seen, he wore a suit of bulky, black armor, though his had been embellished with a series of silver whorls that sparkled with stored ethera. Elijah didn’t have to study it for long before he became convinced that it was magical in nature. So was the slender sword at his hip, which glimmered with the same silvery metal.

However, Elijah was less concerned with his attire – or race, for that matter – than the fact that he was gleefully torturing what looked like a taller, bulkier goblin. Even more disturbingly, the elf wasn’t asking any questions. He didn’t seek information. Instead, he was clearly tormenting the creature for no more reason than because he wanted to hear it scream.

Even if Elijah hadn’t been tasked with killing the elf, he would have committed himself to that endeavor right then and there. Killing was often necessary. That was the cost of survival. Even torture, for some misguided individuals, might hold some value as an interrogation method. He’d heard that it didn’t really work, but Elijah could at least follow the logic that would lead someone down that road. But torture for torture’s sake was absolutely abhorrent, and Elijah had no intention of letting it continue.

Still, he knew he couldn’t attack without a plan, so he retreated through those same halls and back to the jail cell where he’d killed the ogre jailer. After he’d slain the creature, Elijah had shifted into his scaled ape form and tossed the heavy corpse to the troll as a distraction. As one monster fed on the remains of another, Elijah had resumed his human form, rushed forward, and cast Healing Rain.

The troll had ignored him, and over the course of the spell’s duration, those painfully popping pustules of caustic ooze had slowly shrunk. They weren’t gone, but the troll looked as if it was in far less pain. Moreover, the formation of the cysts – and the oozes that came from them – had become less frequent, suggesting that Elijah’s efforts hadn’t been for naught.

It also looked a good deal less infuriated, which was key for Elijah’s plan.

After resuming his human form, he raised his hand in what he hoped was a placating gesture, then stepped forward. The troll shifted, obviously noticing Elijah’s progress. But it didn’t rush him, so he took another step. Then another when it showed no further reaction. Finally, Elijah was close enough that another cast of his spell would envelop the creature, so he used Healing Rain, then retreated.

Even as heavy drops of rejuvenating precipitation fell, Elijah crouched on the other side of the cell. He knew better than to expect to have tamed the troll. A single meal and a little healing could only do so much, after all. So, he never allowed his awareness to waver. At the same time, he studied the cell itself – a task only possible because of his faceted Quartz Mind. If he’d tried to pay attention to so many things – his Domain, One with Nature, the cell, and the troll – before he’d advanced his cultivation, he would’ve no doubt been lost in the weeds. But now, it was a simple task to compartmentalize the disparate thoughts.

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Still, he was pushing the limits of his Mind by fostering even those simple strains of thought. Perhaps once he advanced to the next stage, the facets would expand and allow for more complex thinking. For now, though, anything more than cataloguing sensory input required the full weight of his Mind.

The cell itself was a simple, rectangular room made of the same stone common across the rest of the dungeon. Most of the floor was covered in a thick layer of algae that even crept a few feet up the walls. However, it was densest near the drainage grate – and the shaft probably meant for waste disposal – that split the cell in two.

The troll was confined by manacles on its thick wrists and ankles, which were in turn attached to the wall via bulky, black iron chains. Elijah only had eyes for the thick locks holding those manacles together, largely because, after killing the jailer and looting the corpse, he had the means to free the creature.

Or so he expected.

He glanced down at the key in his hand and contemplated how he might accomplish that feat. At first, he’d hoped that healing and feeding the troll might engender some sense of cooperation, but that clearly wasn’t going to happen. It would tolerate his presence only so long as it couldn’t kill him. The moment it was freed, he would become its target.

Was the optional part of the Task a fool’s errand?

Was there no way to complete it?

Elijah knew that Towers could accommodate up to six people, and that they were usually meant to be challenged by those groups. Entering into such a situation alone was regarded as only a step above suicidal, largely because the challenges necessary for completion not only required incredible strength, but they usually necessitated a wide variety of skills as well. So, he had no doubts that there were probably classes that could easily combat and conquer his current dilemma.

But he just didn’t have the necessary skills to pacify the monster. If it had been an animal, perhaps it would have been possible. He could have treated it like the bear guarding the amanita he’d encountered. But the troll was clearly something else. It wasn’t sapient, but it wasn’t an animal, either. Or if it was, it was intelligent enough not to fall prey to the placating manipulation of One with Nature.

Elijah continued to ponder the problem as Healing Rain did its work. When the spell faded, he darted close and recast it. The troll tolerated him, and yet, Elijah knew that if he tarried for even a second too long, it would destroy him.

After the third cast, he started to wonder why he was even bothering with healing the creature. It wasn’t real. And as far as he knew, the moment he conquered the dungeon, the troll would reset just like everything else. Yet, he couldn’t just ignore its suffering. So, he continued along, reapplying Healing Rain four more times over the next few hours. And in that way, the troll was healed.

It was only when he saw the way the now-healthy troll strained the plates attaching the chains to the wall that a plan began to take shape. It wasn’t ideal. He knew that there were a host of ways it could go wrong. But he also suspected that, without the assistance the troll could provide, he stood little chance of bypassing the guards, much less killing the Warden.

Was it possible?

Certainly. But not probable.

So he latched onto another, arguably just as dangerous, plan. But given that it didn’t involve him attacking an entity of entirely unknown strength, he preferred it over squaring off against the Warden in straight fight.

As soon as Elijah saw that the troll had been completely healed, he settled down to renew his stores of Ethera. Flexing every facet of his Quartz Mind, he dragged nine streams of energy through his Soul and into his Core, enhancing his Regeneration by a good amount. It took no small degree of concentration, but it was effective, so long as he wasn’t too distracted.

Gradually, his Core refilled, and after he renewed his augmentations – Essence of the Monkey, Essence of the Boar, Aura of Renewal, One with Nature, and, finally, Essence of the Wolf – he embraced Shape of the Guardian and shifted into the scaled ape form. Without hesitation, he launched himself forward with every point of his enhanced Strength attribute.

And considering the augmentation provided by the guardian form, he could bring quite a bit of power to bear. He launched himself forward, accelerating like a sports car before slamming into the wall with incredible force. The troll, for all its wariness, never even had a chance to react before Elijah kicked off the wall and threw himself to the other side of the cell, where he skidded for a few feet before his momentum ended in a collision with the other wall.

Shifting back into his human form, he immediately cast Touch of Nature as he shook his mangled hand. His Constitution attribute was incredible in his Guardian form, but the anatomy of whatever creature upon which it had been based was not suited for punching. Instead, it was meant to rip and tear with its claws. As a result, he’d broken a couple of bones in his hand.

But that was what his healing spells were for, and after two casts, he managed to mend his bones. At that point, he took a look at his handiwork, and when he laid his eyes on the brickwork surrounding the anchor, he felt a mixture of disappointment and encouragement. The first was due to the fact that, for all the power he’d managed to harness, the results were decidedly minor. A few tiny cracks, and that was it.

However, he was also encouraged by that small effect, if only because it proved that his plan was a viable one.

Now, though, the troll was awake and aware, which made his job that much more difficult. He’d surprised it once, but that seemed like…wait…what was it doing?

The troll had shifted to the side. It could only move a few feet, but the meaning seemed clear. It was giving Elijah a free shot. Did it understand what he was doing? That seemed to be the case, but…

Well, Elijah wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth. So, after healing himself and regenerating the Ethera he’d spent in the process, he shifted back to his guardian form and once again launched himself at the anchor. This time, he used his palm to strike the wall, which seemed to bear the impact much better than his delicate knuckles. It was also a little less effective, but that initial punch had served to weaken the brickwork enough that it didn’t matter overmuch.

Over and over, Elijah threw himself at the wall until he jarred the first anchor loose. And with that proof of concept buoying his efforts, he wasted no time before assaulting the other three.

It took quite some time, and periodically, Elijah was forced to shift back into his human form in order to heal the damage he was doing to his own body. He also tried to use the key on the troll’s manacles, but predictably, it slapped him across the room the moment he started groping around its wrist. Still, he eventually managed to accomplish his goal.

It was just in time, too, because only a few moments after he’d regenerated his ethera, the door to the cell screeched as someone opened it. Elijah didn’t hesitate to enact the next part of his plan, which began and ended with him diving down the descending shaft just in time to avoid being seen. He dug his fingers into the algae-covered walls, arresting his momentum as the sound of footsteps thundered in his ears.

“Look not sick no more,” came a deep baritone.

“Look same to me.”

“You no see good.”

“Yeah? You ugly!”

“You ugly!”

A second later, Elijah heard something that sounded like someone had slapped a side of beef, which was followed by a noise not unlike a deflating bellows. Then, the second ogre said, “No call me ugly or you get more fist!”

The other ogre began to offer a wheezing response when it was cut off by the sound of crumbling mortar, clinking chains, and cantankerous troll. It was music to Elijah’s ears.

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