Chương 16: Reunion

[Nullify] still wasn't available to be turned back on. His instincts said it was close to being available, perhaps just another three hours or less. Bruno's warnings about the skill were still present in his head, but if he could activate it right now, he would. This was a pretty massive step up from what he'd been fighting after all. It wasn't as if Oscar had any illusions about what he might accomplish here.

He had to take the fight to the chimera now, because if they were still in that crowded corridor when it charged… them there'd be no surviving that. The name of the play right now was simple: survive.

"Human! Kill!" a goblin shouted as it saw Oscar approach.

"Don't attack me, you fool! Get the damn chimera!" Oscar shouted back at the goblin. His words did nothing as the goblin jabbed at him with his broken spear. Oscar side-stepped the attack and cleaved his sword down into his neck. The goblin dropped dead, but there was no time to think about what was next. The chimera leaped through the air and landed right in front of Oscar. A meaty claw swung right for him, equally fast and deadly.

There was simply not enough time to dodge, so he was forced to try and block it with his shadow. Oscar brought the shadowy sword up to block, but as it came up, he was filled with relief as the shadow began to mold itself into a new form. Truth be told, he hadn't expected that to work without having to repeat the skill. Now in the form of a shield, it met the claw and fulfilled its role to perfection. Well, almost to perfection.

The force behind the blow wasn't enough to break the shadow's form, but it was enough to send Oscar flying across the room.

"Oscar!" Dan shouted. The wind was knocked out of him, and as Oscar was struggling to pick himself up, he saw the chimera begin to run towards him. Some goblins that were nearby began to panic with the choice of him or the chimera, but thankfully they decided the rampaging chimera was the greater threat.

"Dan," Oscar rasped out.

"Do something…" With visibly shaky hands, Oscar watched as Dan knocked back an arrow.

"[P-Pinning Shot!]" he shouted. The arrow soared through the air, striking the chimera in its back leg. Instantly the chimera came to an abrupt halt. Sheets of ice encrusted the stricken leg. Oscar heard himself let out a cheer and ran to rejoin Dan by his side.

"Nice shot! Holy shit, what else can you do?"

"Apologies for freezing up again… If I had done that sooner, you wouldn't have gotten hit." Reaching behind, Oscar clapped Dan gently on the back.

"It's all good, brother. I saw you take out some of those goblins; you aren't worthless. Now, let's tame this kitty, shall we?"

"[Triple Shot!]" was Dan's response. One arrow split into three and struck the chimera's side. The goblins had some [Archers] of their own, and they were also pelting the chimera. However, it seemed that their arrows were a good bit less effective. It was only Dan's arrows that evoked any reaction from the beast. Smoke began to billow out of the goat's mouth, which turned into a stream of flames as it aimed at the ice on its leg.

"My skills are only a hindrance to it, I think," Dan said.

"Is there anything else you can do? Will [Erasure] work on it?"

"No. Well, I don't think so…" Oscar replied.

"I do have a new skill that I haven't tried yet, but I must admit I'm a little hesitant to try it in this situation…"

"What is it?"

"[Black Out], but I can't tell how it's meant to be used." Dan let out an arrow towards a goblin that had started to change its mind and attack them instead of the chimera.

"What in the name of Praxios is your class?" Oscar just sighed.

"It'd just confuse you more. You really don't want to know right now."

"Hmm, well, [Pinning Shot] requires specialty arrows, and I only have two of them left. I can use them to cover you if need be, but you should think about trying that skill out. We need a miracle right now…" He knew Dan was right. It was just that there was genuinely no information being provided to him on how to use this skill. There was some instinct hiding inside, but it was such a jumbled mess that it was impossible to decipher.

The only bit of information he could gleam was that he needed to be close to the target.

"Okay, save those specialty arrows for an emergency. I'll see if I can't chop off the snake tail, and maybe try out that skill." Dan nodded in response and knocked another arrow.

"I'll use my normal arrows, but be warned that those will run out eventually as well." Pocketing that information, Oscar once more sprinted towards the chimera. It was occupying itself with the goblins still. They were a dwindling force, but thankfully, the chimera was playing with them before it killed them. Forming a shadow sword, Oscar jumped up and swiped down on the snake tail. Due to the chimera being distracted, the hit connected… but it didn't even come close to cutting through the snake's skin.

Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings. In fact, his sword actually bounced off the tail.

"Huh?" Oscar said in genuine confusion. As if he were a fly that had just landed on a horse's tail, the chimera flicked its tail, knocking him away.

"Oh! I forgot to tell you that you need to go for the goat head if you're using magic or skill created weapon! The goat can't protect itself!" Dan called out." What?" Oscar yelled back in pure disbelief.

"What does a goat's head have to do with my damn weapon not doing any damage!"

"It's a magical goat!" he called back as if it were the most obvious thing in the whole world.

"Shouldn't your [Pinning Shot] count as magic as well?" Oscar called back.

"No, those are alchemical! Focus, Oscar!" Oh, how badly Oscar yearned to hurt this man.

"What can I possibly do then if it's warded against my weapon?" The snake swept its body around and locked its gaze on Oscar. It snapped its maw at him, but due to the chimera's positioning, he was easily able to dodge. But how if it kept its ire on him, then how much longer could he possibly dodge for? He needed an answer and he needed it now.

"I'm trying to hit the goat's eyes, but its movement is too erratic!" Rather than ask for the reason on why Dan was aiming for its eyes, Oscar instead began to think about what he could do with that information. Maybe if the goat suffered enough damage, then it might momentarily drop the magical ward? An idea sparked within Oscar's brain.

"Dan, get ready to use your strongest skill on the goat. I have an idea." After dodging another snake bite, Oscar ran towards the front of the chimera. It had just snapped its mouth, biting a goblin in half. Jumping up, he used his fist to punch the damn beast right across the side of its head. Roaring in rage, the chimera snapped towards his direction. Oscar was already moving, so the bite missed him. With the chimera faced towards him and Dan now, all that he needed to do was pray this would work.

"[Black Out]," Oscar said, and in his head, he focused the skill on the goat's eyes. What sort of goat was a chimera composed of? Oscar hoped it was the type that became paralyzed from fear. If not, then being blinded would do… something to it. A black haze blotted out the goat's eyes, which confirmed that he'd used the skill correctly at least. He'd been worried that the goat's wards might've stopped the skill, but he'd been hoping that it'd been more of a physical application rather than a mental thing.

And to his surprise… the goat mentally shut down. Its movements came to a full stop, and upon seeing this, Oscar yelled for Dan to take his shot.

"[Triple Shot!]" Three arrows struck right in the goat's left eye. A brief scream of pain erupted out of the goat, but Oscar wasn't going to wait and see if the goat was dead or not. This time, as his sword cut into the snake, it didn't bounce off. Blood sprayed out of the severed snake torso. The head fell to the ground; it still continued to snap around, but so long as he didn't get close to it, he wasn't in danger. At least, he wasn't in danger of that part of the chimera any longer.

A goblin let out a little whoop and began to charge the chimera. The chimera was still reeling in pain from the back-to-back attacks it had suffered. This goblin was armed with a chipped sword, and when it swiped down on the chimera's large foot… it just squished him. Oscar returned to Dan's side, the faint feeling of exhaustion beginning to make itself known.

"Has the goat moved since you hit it?"

"I'm not sure. I put a few more normal arrows into it, but the goat's head is pretty resilient," Dan said.

"I've only got a couple of arrows left as well…if you've got another idea, then let's hear it."

"Fuck me, Dan. I don't think I have it in me to jump up and kill the goat," Oscar said.

"And that lion? Yeah, fat chance I can match that monster's ferocity in my state. All of that prior dreadful walking is catching up to me, I'm afraid."

"Then what do we do? There has to be something …" Oscar sighed and realized that there just might in fact be something he could do.

"Dan, I need a moment. If the chimera charges us, use a [Pinning Shot]. Use two if you have to. Just… keep it off of me, okay?" Dan reluctantly nodded his head in confirmation.

"What exactly are you going to do, Oscar?"

"Bring another monster to us and have him kill this fucking thing."

"Oafish man, carry me. I tire from all this walking," Emily demanded. Bruno felt his eye twitch and his fingers ball up into a fist.

"We've known each other for hardly two hours… and yet, it feels like an eternity."

"I need to be well rested for whatever may come our way next. It's only logical that you, the oldest and least important, be the one to alleviate any stress that I, the youngest and most promising, may accrue."

"Shut up, you two. I'm trying to focus," Gita said from the rear.

"Focus on what? You're only a level 1 [Martial Artist], just tell me what skill you got already. I promise you it can't be that difficult to understand," Bruno said. Gita chucked a small stone at his back.

"Fine, it's a skill called [Tempo Strike]. It's hard for me to… understand. I can feel the answer inside me, but I just can't comprehend it."

"I can't believe you've never had a class before… Explains why you're so lacking in manners," Emily muttered.

"You have a class, and yet…" Gita said, but trailed off as she looked Emily up and down.

"And yet, what?" Emily repeated. Throughout his life, Bruno had been a part of many unfavorable groups in his life. Well, if he were to be honest with himself, it was him that was usually the unfavorable one. But still, there was no possible way that he was worse than these two. Ignoring the two girl's little quarrel, Bruno told Gita what he knew of her skill.

"It's an uncommon skill for that class, and a pretty decent one, assuming you have the required grace to properly fulfill its conditions. Basically what it does is continuously empower you so long as you maintain a proper rhythm to your attacks. Drop the rhythm and you get hit with whatever fatigue you might've accrued during the channeling."

"Ah, cool. I hope we come across more of those spiders. I wanna test this new skill out, maybe get another level along the way," Gita said, cracking her fingers.

"Or perhaps I could get some payback on a haughty little [Mage] instead…"" Haughty? Me? Oh, sorry for knowing my worth!" Emily shot back. Bruno sighed, and internally, he wept. This was just cruel. No one should have to suffer through a dungeon with these two in tow.

"Oscar… please save me. I promise you that Calus could never make you as evil as these two girls are," Bruno said.

"Please, please, please, where are you?" As if the dungeon had heard his pleas, the entire dungeon began to quake. The path ahead suddenly slammed shut, blocking any further passage. From behind the wall, Bruno could hear the walls begin to shift and scrape…and then, the lights flickered out.

"Girls, stand near me. Something's happening, and despite how much you two annoy me, it's best if we don't get separated." The lights flashed back on, and Bruno saw the path ahead was back, but now there was a right turn to take. The trio sprinted forwards and took the turn and felt their hearts stop upon seeing where the dungeon had directed them. Bodies of goblins littered the spacious room, with only a handful still standing. That wasn't the alarming part.

Goblins were among the most common types of dungeon monster fodder. No, it was what had killed the goblins that evoked the overwhelming feeling of awe. In the middle of the room stood a hulking chimera. It's tail had been severed, the head of the snake still snapping wildly on the ground, and the goat's head hung limp. It wasn't dead as Bruno could see it blink on occasion. The lion, however, looked to be in pristine condition. It was also completely, and understandably, enraged.

Standing in front of the beast was the boy he had just been desperately yearning to see. Another boy was behind him with a bow drawn up and an arrow knocked, ready to fire.

"If I had known this was what you were up to, I'd never have wished to see you again," Bruno called out as he stepped into the room.

"Although, I've been dealing with my own chimera of sorts. So, I suppose not all too much has changed." With the goat weakened, Bruno reached one hand up.

"[Armory Roulette]," he said and felt the wheel above spin. He rarely liked to spoil the surprise, so he didn't watch to see what the result was. His hand became encapsulated in that familiar misty sensation, and upon feeling something solid form, he gripped the weapon and yanked it down.

"Bad roll dodged yet again," he said with a sigh of relief.

"Quarterstaff, my beloved, it's been far too long. Oscar, you can fall back now. Allow me to discipline this overgrown inbred kitty." This poor thing was about to be his outlet for what he'd gone through during those miserable few hours. And with any hope, Emily would stop viewing him as a worthless old man. Because he wasn't old… Being 29 wasn't old. Behind his back, Bruno heard Emily whisper to Gita.

"When the old-timer gets eaten, just stand back and watch what a real [Mage] can do." Bruno's eyes twitched, and with his hands balled tightly around the quarterstaff, he began to unleash his frustrations out on the undeserving chimera.