Chapter 392: Remnant (1/2)

Guess they’re like nukes here. Ilea thought as another roar rolled through, closer now.

The paralyzing effect only lasted four seconds now.

‘ding’ ‘Veteran reaches lvl 13’

“I have never truly understood the fear of dragons myself,” Lucas started. “However their tales have survived over the millennia, mhm. Unlike other beasts that too destroyed whole cities.”

“It is bad luck. We should not engage a Wyvern, its presence an omen of death,” Ilas murmured from behind Catelyn.

“It’s just a monster. Died and was corrupted even,” Ilea said, touching its partially exposed skull. “You can leave anytime.”

The Dark One was silent for a moment but shook his head. “I shall remain in the shadows. My power… is not sufficient anymore. If you wish me to leave, I shall do so.”

“I don’t care,” Ilea said and tried removing the skull, finding it a challenging endeavor. “Oh hey… Maro, can you raise it?”

The necromancer sighed as he approached. “An omen of death… oh well,” he lifted his hand, a pulse of magic rushing into the creature.

Maro seemed to struggle, more and more mana flowing into it.

Ilea was about to speak when she saw purple wisps come to life within the mangled skull.

Muscles rippled as the beast stood up once more. Two meters tall, it’s wings each easily three meters wide.

Ilea took a step back. She had to lift her head up to stare at its skull. “Hmm,” she mused with a grin. “Any idea what they can do? I asked before but has anyone fought one?”

“I have,” Lucas said, his hesitation apparent. “A long time ago. They… teleport, quickly. Mhm… several times in a row. Their talons easily cut through my armor. Fire was however the most dangerous part. More powerful I think… than even you,” he glanced towards Catelyn with the last mention.

“Sounds pretty straight forward,” Ilea said and cracked her knuckles. “Maybe I can get my Heat Resistance up to level twenty.”

“I will wait with Ilas. Perhaps we can build a small camp here,” Lucas said as he looked around. “Mhm, yes. It is much friendlier than the previous layers. The vegetation too… speaks to me.”

Ilea leaned over, her eyes widening. “Do the plants literally speak?”

Lucas just winked at her with a smile.

“They can fly… and if they’re really as quick and powerful as Lucas suggests… maybe I should wait this one out too… if those we find remain free of corruption,” Maro suggested. “Are you sure you want to face them? Even if they can fight off their own corrupted?” his gaze was on Ilea, the man scratching the back of his helmet.

“You faced Soul Rippers… why stop at this?” Ilea was genuinely confused at that. These were just overgrown Drakes.

He offered no justification.

“My fire will be of little help,” Catelyn mused. “We should move farther down, explore more of the islands. Perhaps we can find out if they remain without corruption.”

What a fucking bummer. Ilea rolled her eyes, glancing at her last hope.

“I shall support you,” Elfie said. “Should you be able to fight them alone, I shall leave you to it.”

Bloody legend. Ilea thought and smiled brightly, blinking over and hugging the elf.

A powerful curse immediately spread within her as barriers snapped to existence between them.

“Please, respect my… personal space,” the elf said.

Ilea nodded. “Apologies,” she did feel a little bad, not getting the expected reaction out of him this time. “I meant well.”

“Noted,” he simply replied.

“Should we check the top of these islands first or move farther down this one? I can see some cracks leading down,” Ilea asked, looking over the group.

“It should be safer… to move above the mists,” Ilas said.

“Agreed,” Catelyn confirmed, waiting a moment for any objections. “Let’s hope they’re not all corrupted.”

Might be easier to fight if they’re frenzied, Ilea thought but she had a feeling the corrupted corpse suggested it wouldn’t exactly be that simple.

The closest islands were smaller than the one they had landed on before. Little to no inner workings compared to the cave with the dead creature.

Ilas and Catelyn checked the space between them and their next target and signaled the group.

All teleporting through the gap quickly, they reached a rather large island. This one even had small palm tree like fauna growing on it. Ferns and grass covered large sections of the nearly hundred meter wide plateau.

“Hide,” Maro whispered, vanishing farther into the ferns.

The rest followed, Ilea lying prone twenty meters further back right after she appeared.

A whooshing sound reached her ears. Familiar red wings were barely visible as they moved past nearly on the same height as the plateau.

[Cliff Wyvern - ???]

A roar resounded, the paralyzing effect passing once more. No sign of the creature remained.

Ilea waited a minute before she blinked closer to the edge, seeing only mist below.

She found the others in her sphere and blinked to Catelyn. “It left. Not corrupted,” she whispered.

“Good,” Catelyn said and sighed. “Do you see a way down?”

Ilea shook her head, her sphere not offering anything. “Let me check the whole area.”

One blink followed the next as she moved over the plateau, remaining prone. The least she would do was make sure the others were somewhat safe before she engaged one of those creatures. Should level Veteran until I can ignore their damn roars as well.

She took a sip of poison and returned to Catelyn. “Found it. This way,” she pointed and subsequently informed the others.

Maro and Ilas were already waiting near the crude stairs leading down into the stone.

“Probably not natural,” Ilea said with a smile. “Oh, Lucas. Before we get into a fight, did you manage to win against the Wyvern you fought?”

The wood creator shook his head. “I have escaped with my life. Barely and not without help. Its level too remained hidden,” he paused and gave her another look. “Even with all I have seen of you. I would suggest you wait… until you get stronger.”

Ilea nodded and turned back towards the descending stairs. Not the way to get stronger, a near manic grin was on her face, hidden below her armor. The fights so far had been challenging but she always had a team behind her.

Even with the Shredders, she could trust Elfie and the others to intervene in case it became too dangerous. Perhaps they were reaching depths now, where them trying to help would only inconvenience her. What they lacked wasn’t spell power or mobility, merely her durability and regeneration.

And if I can’t beat one, I can use Elfie to get his curse. Sounds like an ok compromise. Ilea was brought back from her thoughts with the stench of blood and corruption in the air.

“Another corpse down here,” she said.

“Several dozen,” Maro supplied from behind.

The stairs opened up into a cavern similar in shape to the one they had found within the smaller island.

“There are runes here,” Elfie said. “Deterrents, fear and pain,”

“I don’t feel any of that,” Ilea said as she turned to look at him.

The smell of blood and rot only got stronger as she moved through.

Elfie pointed to one of the cavern walls. “I do not believe these enchantments are meant for creatures of higher intellect. Something is hidden.”

“Wyverns are rather Intelligent,” Lucas said. “Yet I suppose they did not talk.”

“Starting to believe you’re on their side,” Ilea said jokingly, walking to the indicated wall and brushing her ash over it.

“Mighty creatures, born of mana. Shaped to be perfect predators, their movements precise and deadly. They hunt and fight all they find. Mhm…,” Lucas said, smiling ever so slightly as he winked her way.

Ilea rolled her eyes. Even odds then from him. “I should at least get a species sympathy bonus,” she said, tapping the wall. “Anyone able to break the spell? I’d smash it otherwise.”

“If I had taken species into account, they would come out on top,” Lucas said.

“I’ll give it a shot,” Maro replied and stepped up to the wall. “The smell is different by the way, to the Wyvern that is.”

Ilea gave the creature a nod when it stepped up a little. How did he manage to keep that thing hidden from the one flying past?

A pulse of mana came from the wall before the illusion vanished.

Instantly, the smell intensified ten fold. Catelyn gagged and Ilas took several steps back. The rest remained untouched.

Says a lot about you mad fuckers, calling me a murder machine, she specifically glanced at Lucas.

She walked onward, another stairwell leading down. Her sphere had expanded as soon as Maro had broken the illusion.

Metal cages holding dead beasts, some simply sprawled on the ground while others had literally been ripped apart, from within or externally. It was hard to tell at this point.