Ultimate Level 1

Fowl cheered as Max had hefted the queen's head above his head for a second before it vanished into storage.

“That worked! It actually worked!”

Max smiled at Fowl, who was grinning just as much as he was.

“It did! The new storage item Tom got me holds a lot more and with you carrying everything new we pickup, I had enough room to grab it!” Max exclaimed. “The only problem is having to drop a ten foot round head into the room when we get back.”

Some applause came from Tanila and Cordellia as the pair moved closer. Batrire was shaking her head in disbelief.

“Seems you managed to pull that off just in time,” their healer said as she pointed at the boss’s body that was starting to disappear. “That poor elf, Alfreda, is going to pass out when you two plop that down in front of her.”

Max and Fowl both acquired a mischievous grin at their healer's words, and all three women groaned.

“Forget that for now,” Fowl said as he motioned to the chest that appeared. “It’s time to get some loot and then prepare for tomorrow!”

As one, they moved toward the large boss chest that was made from a black metal.

“There’s no drawing on the box.”

“A mimic?” Fowl asked, weapon and shield appearing as he spoke.

He could sense that it was a real chest, so Max shook his head.

“No… it’s just that… I can’t remember a chest never having some kind of image on it. This one is just a solid black metal chest.”

“That means a warrior should open it,” Batrire said as she and the other two women backed up. “Just in case something goes wrong.”

Max nodded and pulled out his shield, moving slowly towards the chest.

When he got close, he tapped it a few times with the tip of his halberd, hearing the sound of metal on metal. When nothing happened, he lifted the lid, using the tip again to pry it open.

Peering inside, he sighed.

“This sucks… it’s just a few crystals for the Faction. Nothing else.”

Everyone moved quickly and came to stand where Max was, finding he wasn’t pulling their leg.

Inside were nothing but three crystals.

“That’s really weird,” Cordellia stated. “I can’t ever remember hearing of just crystals after a boss like this.”

Tanila waited for Max to stand back up as she watched him inspect the outside of the chest with his fingers. He was running them over the smooth and blank surface that always had a relief or some kind of etching on it.

“What are you thinking?”

Shrugging, Max removed the crystals from the chest and frowned.

“I’m not sure, but at least we won and know the next floor is the boss,” Max replied. “For now we can go home, eat, shower and talk with Tom about what we faced.”

Max pointed at the portal he sensed had appeared behind them as the chest faded before them.

“And a bathroom!” Fowl called out as he turned and began moving toward the exit.

***

Tom, Everett and Alfreda stood there in shock as Max dropped the queen’s head onto the floor of the room.

“Oh my,” the older Elven woman said as the pair of empty eyes stared right at her. “I think my heart almost stopped.”

Fowl chuckled and received an elbow from Batrire.

“Blame it on those two,” Tanila said as she gave Max an eye roll. “Part of being men, I guess as they thought it would be funny.”

Everett and Tom chuckled and ignored the look the older Elven woman gave each of them.

“It was funny, that I will admit,” their Faction leader replied. “Still, the fact you managed to bring back the entire head is impressive. Combined with the sacks of materials Fowl has given us, we have had to start shipping things off to the other kingdoms. We can no longer handle the amount of materials you five have been bringing us. Our coffers have grown quite a bit.”

The smile on the older man’s face told Max that a time was coming when he would need to send Tanila in to haggle for a few other items. Gear wasn’t their biggest problem, as he only needed to make a few more weapons. Now it was coming down to finding small things like possible rings with skills that might help later or trinkets that both Tom and Everett had mentioned were needed at some point in the tower.

When Max saw Tom looking his way, he motioned with his head toward a corner of the room.

The older man frowned a moment and nodded, leaving Alfreda and Everett to continue their inspection of the queen’s head.

“What’s up?”

“You read my note I gave you. Tell me, how does the bidding look?”

Scoffing, their trainer shook his head before pulling out a piece of paper and handing it to Max.

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Scanning the numbers on the paper, Max frowned and glanced up at Tom, who gave him a shrug.

“Why are they so low? Surely the odds should be better for Dexic and I.”

“Not as good as you think,” Tom replied. “You have a bit of a history in the colosseum and there was some debate about if you would even be allowed back in after the last time you appeared. Many were surprised that you are being allowed to return.”

Tom stopped talking as Tanila moved to where the two of them stood.

“It’s ok,” Max said as he winked at their mage. “She already knows my plan.”

Seeing how Tanila rolled her eyes, the older man grinned and continued.

“You have a legend growing faster than most believe possible. Killing a noble's son, supposedly defeating twenty plus elves in the street and yet not listed as a murderer, sent you on a path many wanted to follow. Toss in a few other failed attempts on your life and you get a reputation for being difficult to kill.”

Holding up three fingers, their trainer continued.

“Then word comes that you volunteered to fight beside Dexic, who everyone knows is a solid warrior. Add in your mysterious and amazing growth in the tower as well as how you almost won that stupid ale drinking competition and every person in town seems to want to bid on you.”

“Wouldn’t that make a bookie happy? Knowing people are going to be betting on me?”

“He doesn’t understand,” Tanila said with a sigh. “Seth hasn’t figured out that those who are responsible for setting odds are scared because he is apparently hard to kill.”

“But I’m lower level and they can send two elves far stronger than us!” Max exclaimed louder than he meant to, ignoring the looks the others were now giving them.

“Yes, but the news of the Elven Queen being here is something the bookies know. So they are being cautious in case the two you will face are not as strong as they could be.”

Tanila held out her hand and took the paper Max gave her, snorting after reading the numbers.

“You’re complaining about two-to-one odds? You can easily double your money!”

Tom snorted at the mage's outburst and Max sighed as he nodded.

“Yes, but imagine if it was five to one or ten to one!”

Groaning, Tanila balled up the paper and tossed it back at Max before turning and moving to where the others were in the room.

Easily catching it, he gave it back to Tom.

“What’s the most I can wager?”

“Personally? You can wager up to one thousand gold,” his trainer replied. “The most each individual can do is fifty right now. They have put limits and only those who are fighting can risk more. Even the Factions have been banned from wagering on this fight for obvious reasons.

“Regardless, you four need to focus on the boss floor. You have a few days before the colosseum fight takes place and you need to make sure if you want to venture into the tower before it.”

Max nodded.

“What I really want to do right now is head to the crafting room. I am working on something and want to see if I’m moving on the right path.”

Tom nodded and motioned toward the door.

“You’re cleared for it. Go have some fun. I’ll let the others know anything I find out about possible bosses on the next floor. I’ve got teams scouring all of our old notes.”

***

You are close but go slower. I can sense the pattern.

Max gave a small grunt as he gazed at the metallic ball he was trying to power with the yellow crystal Everett had given him.

The lines he had carved on the outside at the guidance of his Power Core skill and the leading of his Consume skill had gone faster than Max expected.

Now came the difficulty of somehow getting the immense power contained within the crystal to stop pulling back from every attempt to draw it into the metal orb.

A thin thread of power kept slipping from the hollow tube he had procured when they looted the tower floor warehouse. It was supposed to funnel that power from the crystal into the orb and yet it kept failing. Halfway through the tube, the crystal seemed to call back what was escaping.

What am I missing? Everything feels like it should be working yet it doesn’t. Why does the power keep going back to the crystal?

Inside his mind, Max felt the skill considering different things and then a reply he wasn’t expected came.

Smash the crystal when the thread is almost to the halfway point of the tube. That should prevent it from going back. Hopefully, it doesn’t explode.

Hopefully it doesn’t explode?!

No reply came and Max felt that the answer given was the only thing he could attempt. The orb before him was the perfect size for a crystal like this. Had it been a red crystal, the materials used for the orb wouldn’t be enough.

Here goes nothing…

[ Regeneration ]

Unsure about what might happen, Max activated his healing and began allowing his skill to draw the thread from the yellow power source once more. In his left hand, he held a strange stone hammer he had looted and waited as the thread crept along the tube.

When it neared the point that always had it return, Max slammed the hammer down, shattering the crystal and causing a huge cloud of energy to fill the room.

Power like he hadn’t imagined escaped and suddenly the tube vibrated between his fingers, acting like a vacuum that started drawing all the energy filling the room into it.

The orb spun on the small stone pedestal he had it resting on, power from the tube flowing along the lines. Like a top, it glowed, spinning faster and faster as more and more power flowed into it.

Everything Max had sensed around him was quickly vanishing and after about twenty seconds, the room seemed dull and empty except for the glowing power core that was slowing down its spinning.

That worked as I hoped. Now you can use that for the next part of your plan.

Chuckling, Max nodded.

The orb was the first item he had to figure out how to make for what he had planned. From there, a lot more work was going to be required, but thankfully all the materials and metal they harvested would provide the pieces needed for what he hoped would be a first step toward a new weapon.

Thank you. Now tell me if you can. What does this next tower floor hold?

Time is short, as this took longer than we hoped. I don’t know, but you may find that whatever awaits is far more dangerous than anything else you have faced. Be cautious.

Sighing, Max felt the presence fade, knowing that hours had passed and whatever time his skill had been saving was used up.

Storing the orb and everything else, Max stretched and yawned.

“I better shower and turn in before Tanila makes me sleep on the floor,” he muttered to himself.

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