Chapter 284: Legion of Centurions (1/2)
It had been barely an hour when Ilea and Terok came out of the dungeon again. Goldie was awake now, the veins on his head already trying to rip out as he paced, his glare landing on Ilea as soon as she appeared. Of course he even has golden eyes. She smiled. “Sleep well?”
He screamed and rushed at her but a barrier cut him off, the elf sinking to his knees before he started puking, blood seeping out of his nose and mouth. The hate in his eyes was palpable. “Impressive. You didn’t even level up?” Ilea asked Elfie who was looking at the scene with a glint of annoyance.
“I did not expect you so early.” He said, the two other elves standing a little away from him, weapons in hand but relaxed.
Ilea nodded to Terok, “We found something. I assume you’re evaluating them?” She asked, the elf giving her a short nod. “Add him to your training, maybe find some critters to advance their levels. In two weeks they will face a Centurion together, the four of them. We’ll see how it goes and go from there.”
“Oh boy.” Terok commented but surprisingly didn’t complain.
Elfie considered before he shrugged, “What’s in there and why would I care to train the dwarf?”
Rolling her eyes, Ilea put a hand on Terok’s shoulder, “He’ll tell you all about it. If they can’t face at least one or two Centurions on their own, they’re useless in there.”
“Why… did… you… not… kill us?!” She heard the groaning voice coming from the fuming elf, his claws digging into the barrier. She wondered if he couldn’t teleport out or if he wasn’t willing to.
Ilea glanced at him, “Good energy. Maybe focus on being alive for now.”
She blinked into the entrance and this time chose the right side of the hallway, the way leading deeper in according to Terok’s ivy theory. Ten minutes of walking later, Ilea came into a small room with yet another elevator leading down. This one had neither Centurions nor anything else protecting it. Choosing the same way to go down, she let herself fall before spreading her wings to slow down. The elevator shaft was considerably shorter.
Coming out below, Ilea smiled broadly and crossed her arms, “Well. That’s something.” She whispered and sighed. Not a sigh of another long workday in front of her but one full of anticipation. She was standing on a square, a square carved out from within the mountain or perhaps carved from a naturally formed cave. Around her were buildings that would have once been stores, guilds, inns, shops with machinery still inside. If there had been any color at some point, it was long faded, only the dark stone remained, the ivy so prevalent in Taleen dungeons growing through it all. Some of the buildings were covered by it near completely, the green lights coming from not the ceiling but lampposts placed around the square, more of them bathing the connected streets and alleys in a dim green light.
A once scary atmosphere to Ilea, now full of possibilities. She knew there were Praetorians here, perhaps in this city or the factory but she knew they were there. After so many weird and powerful monsters she had met, it was interesting to think of challenging something that had previously filled her with dread. Something she could not overcome. Not a nest of mind magic animals or knights devoid of consciousness but machines hellbent on ripping her apart. If she grew strong enough here, if there were enough Centurions to get her to the levels needed, she knew she could fight them, knew she could win.
A shiver went down her back, the thought somehow freeing. Had the loss back then really been so important? Did they represent something in her subconscious? Ilea didn’t know. What she knew was that she wanted to face that fear, face that monster from her past. She would prepare, would raise her levels and use every advantage she could work out for herself. The ceiling wasn’t visible. It seemed like the whole mountain had been carved out and the city placed within. The streets all ended in more squares or near massive buildings, except one. Ilea couldn’t see the end of it, green lights like fireflies forming a path for her to follow.
You could literally land a plane in here. The thought made her chuckle. Thinking of the flying machines she had seen in the Iz dungeon made her scan the skies. Well not exactly the skies but the darkness hanging over the ancient city. There was nothing there, no blinking lights or any floodlights looking for her. There would be enemies here, machines ready to defend what was long forgotten. Activating Hunter’s Sight, she checked the area. Stepping through the square, she found several signs pointing towards recent movement. Earth was scattered in places, some of the ivy damaged and loose.
Looking up, she saw what looked like a Taleen Guardian walking towards the square, its head moving around as the green eyes scanned the overgrown houses and street. A single one of them only, its bladed six arms at the ready. Ilea wasn’t exactly concerned, continuing to look through the square. Something definitely moved through here and it wasn’t a Taleen machine I’ve seen before. When the Guardian entered the square, it spotted her immediately, fanning out its blades in challenge. “Really now?”
The answer was of course the machine rushing her, ready to strike. Ilea’s ashen limbs fanned out, the six blades stopping mid attack, each crashing into an ashen arm waiting for them. Ilea braced herself against the impact but found herself steady, the force coming from the machine light, trivial to handle even. It tried wrenching its arms free but Ilea’s ash extended, twirling around its metal blades and holding them in place. She stepped towards the helpless machine and looked at it, its glowing green eyes staring at her. Maybe Terok can take a look at one while I hold it like this.
[Taleen Guardian – lvl 205]
To think she could handle a level two hundred creature so easily. With all her buffs deactivated and her ashen Veil down, it was likely still capable of injuring her but against a fully powered Ilea, this one guardian was like a mere ant trying to stand against a human. Her fist lashed out, the sound of the impact reverberating in a dull clang, the machine trying to recoil but held in place by her limbs. Another hit smashed into it, Destruction and Wave of Ember flaring through it before the light in its eyes went out, its legs giving out and the whole thing clattering down as if its strings had been cut.
An idea was growing in her mind as she stepped over the machine, her wings spreading before she ascended. Flying over the nearby streets, she tried to spot the Taleen, finding a bunch of guardians patrolling as well as ranged variants sitting on roofs. Either they weren’t looking up or she was simply not visible enough in the darkness above but the machines didn’t spot her. Coming down behind one of the ranged guardians, she extended her limbs.
[Taleen Guardian – lvl 150]