Fear, Hunger and Cosmic Horrors

Chapter 13 - A Mage and an Alchemist

Suddenly, the skeleton threw the pickaxe towards us, the Girl and I jumped in opposite directions, dodging the flying tool and allowing the pickaxe to pass between us, disappearing into the darkness of the tunnel right behind.

I charged towards the skeleton without wasting time, he tried to scratch me with his bony fingers, but my trench coat and armor were more than enough to block the weak attack.

I then struck the skeleton's neck, hitting his spine with an audible crack, but it was not enough to decapitate the undead, however, his skull almost fell off.

I stepped back, preparing for my next action, but a stone passed by my side and struck the skeleton's forehead, creating a hollow noise and finally separating the skull from the spine, making the bones to fall harmlessly to the ground.

Looking back, I saw the Girl with her arm outstretched and some rocks near her feet.

Hm... I had forgotten about that, the Girl may be weak in hand-to-hand combat in the game, but she is good at providing support with the use of items, especially throwing rocks.

I doubt rocks have the same high percentage of stunning the hit body part of an enemy, unless they are hit in the head, but it could be useful for distraction.

The Girl rushed to my side, carrying a handful of rocks in her arm, and stared at me with an expectant look as she jumped eagerly in her place.

"You did a gooood job!" I smiled at the Girl, patting her head. The Girl closed her eyes as she smiled in appreciation, but a bark interrupted our little moment.

"WOOF! WOOF!"

Looking towards the source of the noise, I saw Moonless sitting in front of me, sticking out her tongue and wagging her tail as she left the arms and legs of a skeleton in front of me.

"You did a goood job too, Moonlesss." I responded, stroking the wolf.

However, I soon changed my focus as the one enemy who still fought. The Yellow Mage alternated between Pyromancy Trick and Locust Swarm, keeping Iron Shakespeare away, but the fire was not that effective against the knight, and the locusts did not pass through the armor.

"Can you teaccch me about Gro-Goroth?!?" I asked the Mage, also ordering Iron Shakespeare to retreat before he suffered serious damage.

"I'm not at the level to impart knowledge on such a subject. Seek my master Nas'hrah of the East if you wish to learn more." The Yellow Mage spoke as he breathed heavily, his robes burned and bloody as sweat ran down his face.

Then he removed a yellow, decorated object from his robes, a talisman with the image of an eclipse.

"Here, if you survive my blood magic, show this talisman to my master and show great humility! He might listen to you!" The Mage exclaimed, putting away the talisman and preparing another spell.

The Mage raised his staff, closing his eyes and muttering magical words. Suddenly, an unearthly wind blew through the tunnel, ruffling the Mage's robes and blowing small objects away.

I had a bad feeling when I saw the sudden change in the environment. Moonless growled as the Girl grabbed my leg, hiding behind me, scared of what would come.

I ordered Iron Shakespeare to stand in front of us, serving as a shield, and commanded the rats, ordering them to attack the Mage's arms. I had to concentrate so that they did not devour the mage's arms; I did not want him to die before giving me the talisman.

The rats disabled the Mage's left arm first, reducing it to a bloody mess. Nevertheless, the Mage stood his ground, ignoring the rats' biting his right arm and finally casting his spell.