chapter 43- within a dungeon

(James)

How in the hell did we end up here? I watched as black slime eroded the barricade, we made just five minutes prior to all of this.

When we woke up, we realized we entered what seemed different than the mist realm we thought we were in - probably cause we weren't in the tavern anymore and instead appeared in some labyrinth or dungeon in an unknown area.

At least part of the group was together though. It wasn't much, but we had each other.

The strangest thing out of all the oddities was the blue radiant words that appeared before us:

[The party finds themselves in the labyrinth of the lost scaleless fade. Your quest seeks to improve not only yourself but each other. Trials of the damned - may your wisdom and wit be your strength.]

We haven't seen the words say so much before.

"Okay, from the looks of it this is for real. The Realm Master probably got pissed we haven't advanced far enough in the campaign yet, so I guess we get the great pleasure of resuming one without the whole group. How wonderful," I said.

"Yeah, wonderful my ass," Tommy responded.

"Guys, it said wisdom and wit. You do realize we're probably the dumbest three in the whole gang, right?" Maxwell said.

"Your words, not mine. If you don't believe in yourself, then that's on you," Tommy said, leaning against a wall.

With a click, the sound of what seemed like rusted gears at work echoed throughout the area.

"The wall's opening, move out of the way!" I yelled. We all backed up.

The smell of acid with a hint of mint and strong iron spread through the dungeon. What appeared was a black blob of writhing slime - disgusting. Drops of its body dripped onto the ground, the acid evaporating anything it touched.

"Oh shit, run! Oh my god, run!"

I darted out behind, leading to corridors lined with torches along the walls and weapon statues. But that blob started chasing us at inhuman speed, so that wasn't on our minds.

I was far faster than them. I know the saying about not needing to be faster than the predator, just faster than your allies. But I wasn't that selfish - I had my limits.

"Tommy, I want you to roll out," I messaged the gang.

Tommy created what looked like an oversized skateboard and quickly placed Maxwell at the front as he prayed.

Suddenly, I felt a surge of power rush through my body - one of Max's abilities, Spirit of the Fallen. The Bible immortalizes the spirits and deeds of legendary figures no longer living.

Jacob's strength of a god. My body was reaching its limit, muscles and veins straining from the immense power. I gritted my teeth, veins bulging on my arms and hands, as Tommy handed me a chain connected to the skateboard to pull them while keeping Maxwell in place for his prayer stance.

With my elf speed and the blessing's strength, I sprinted beyond what I was capable of. Yet that slime was still chasing us.

"We need an escape! Some way of blocking it or...!"

I saw a broken wall to the dungeon's side - a caved-in area. We needed cover, protection.

We entered, confirming it wasn't a dead end, as Tommy created a sledgehammer to forcibly hit the roof a couple times.

The makeshift rock pile wall shuddered from the creature slamming against it, trying to acid through the rocks.

We quickly escaped, only to find an iron door at the tunnel's end.

"I've played enough games to know this is definitely a boss room," Tommy said.

"Quick, get inside! We don't have time!"

We rushed in and closed the door behind us.

"Frickin' heck, what in the heavens was that?!" Max exclaimed.

Tommy and I just gave him a cringeworthy, uncomfortable look.

"What? I'm a priest, sorta - my vocation, my pride. Can't disrespect the lord since I'm follower of the Lord," he said, tapping his head with the peace sign.

"We don't have time for that. We're lost, and we either wait six hours or fight that slime thing. I don't like voting in general, so I'm not giving you a choice - we're staying put for six hours. No moving, touching, or talking, got it?"

"Uh..."

"Zip it, Tommy."

"Uh, there's a freakin' floating eyeball in the center of the room!"

I froze in shock and disbelief. "A what, now?"