The surroundings gripped my attention. Normally, I wasn't one to really admire construction and all that, but it was clear that someone, somehow, had put a lot of work into making this place beautiful. It was simple, but in an ornate way that told of great purpose and reverence. I felt an urge to find a spot for quiet reflection and fought it back. Observing to the best of my ability, I spied just three places from which I could exit this chamber. No light from the outside made it in - this place was also lit up with that source-less shine. One of the doors that barred my passage was a great entrance sort of thing, with grandiose trim of what looked to be brass, or bronze, or some sort of metal of that color.
The other two were smaller things, one off to the side of the chamber and one in the very back, almost hidden behind a small cubby formed by a jutting-out wall. A quick moment of thought later, and I decided to go to the hidden one. Padding over to it, I opened the thankfully-unlocked door. Behind it, I went from slightly anxious to excited.
"Supplies!" Within, though the room was disheveled and disorganized, were a few well-made leather bags and simple cloaks made of a kind of cloth. I could gather some things to take with me. I rushed forward and pulled the three bags close to me. They seemed sturdy, and like they could take a little bit of a beating. Folding up three of the four cloaks and shoving them into one of the bags went quickly, and I donned the last cloak, a dark brown thing that was probably too thin for any actual dangerous weather but was another layer between me and the elements. I slung the bags over my left shoulder, making sure I could easily drop them if a fight started.
This was already vastly different than my last jaunt into the Labyrinth. In fact, it was downright pleasant, enough so that I was even more on guard. It couldn't be that convenient, not for long. Exiting that chamber, I stepped back into the big hall and moved towards the other door. I opened it, and was actually a little disappointed when I saw mostly ruined furniture about. "Guess it can't all great from the start." Taking a breath to build my resolve, I turned towards the big entrance doorway, ready for danger to jump out at any moment. My steps echoed throughout, sounding like hammers to my ears. I put my hand on the handle, and waited. I looked at my hand, shaking. "C'mon, Allison. I know you're scared."
The Berserker was still looming in my mind. What if I opened the door and there were a bunch more? What if I couldn't open the door and was stuck in this little room until I died of thirst?
A slap sounded out as I used my other hand to smack my cheek. "No. Don't spiral. Shove it aside." With a quick motion, I pulled at the door.
As if in mockery of my fears, the door moved ridiculously easily, despite its size. No matter what I had been expecting, however, I hadn't been expecting to be let out into a vast forest.
'Forest' wasn't really the full story. Clearly, the environment around me was some sort of basin or crater, like a huge caldera that had been filled in with life. Easily a couple kilometers in diameter, trees covered almost the entire area with a few exceptions. I and the building I'd just exited were on the western side, and it swooped downwards before hitting a large, spiky structure in the middle. It had to go up at least twenty stories, and had a look that could only be described as ominous. Dark and looming, it left a huge shadow across the basin, almost like a macabre sundial. Windowless, at least as far as I could tell at this distance, and sharp, gothic architecture made it look like the place to go to 'conquer' this place. Not much detail other than the basics could be told from here, so I packed away those thoughts.
More immediately, the treeline in front of me beckoned. Farther in, alongside the edges of the basin in other spots, there were other structures, but other than the fact that they existed, they couldn't really be seen over the trees that surrounded them. Possible destinations. "Who am I kidding," I muttered. "Of course they're destinations. What else am I supposed to do? Wander through the woods?" Though it seemed like your normal lively forest, none of the normal tells were there. It appeared to be late spring or summer, but there were no birds, no bugs at her feet, and no motion I could see from a breeze, even though I could feel one on my skin.
This place was clearly artificial, and though it tried to seem real, it could only manage the façade of the proper thing. That meant, though I assumed it already, that this place was probably dangerous. What sort of creatures awaited me within? Checking the position of the sun, it seemed to still be morning here. That was good - I wasn't sure what nighttime might bring in a place like this, so finding the way out before then was important.
Was there a way out? Too many questions. Too many unknowns. Too many possibilities. Only moving forward could provide answers. I adjusted the bags on my shoulder and began to move forward carefully, skirting the forest as long as I could. I decided to head generally northward. No true reasoning, mostly just to make the decision at all. My eyes swept back and forth to search for danger, hoping not to get caught off guard. The fact that there was a breeze without shuffling through the leaves of the trees was still unnerving, so I couldn't even relax at the nice feel of the day. Though, perhaps, that was to my benefit. It kept me sharp.
It was in this cautious, slow manner that I proceeded for what seemed like a few hours. My legs were pained, my feet throbbed, and I still felt unable to fully relax, but regardless, my senses had dulled to the point where I did not realize what was happening until it was atop me.
From my left side, a flurry of movement rapidly approached my position. "Shit!" I yelled out as I ducked down, barely avoiding a blur of brown that flung itself over my head. A screech came from the thing as it hit the ground and whirled towards me. I slipped from the bags I was holding and drew my blade, bearing down and staying low while I observed the creature.
A large rodent of some kind, not unlike a beaver with oversized fangs and a more squirrel-like tail, snarled at me. It was the size of a small dog, and had vicious-looking yellow eyes that stared at me intensely. It got to its feet quickly and wasted no time in sprinting at me again. I aimed towards it with my left hand but wasn't quite fast enough as it reached me within the moment. It leapt up and snapped at my hand, only missing me because it twisted at the last moment to avoid the Mana Bolt forming at it. The pinkish energy flew wildly past it and slammed into a tree, leaving an impact in the wood. I turned to keep tracking the beast and brought my sword up to bear, trying to put some distance between itself and me.
It was fast, ridiculously so, and its size was small enough that aiming was going to be difficult. I had four more Mana Bolts, and couldn't afford to waste any. It was slightly more cautious now, and we circled each other slightly. Those fangs looked dangerous and I had no illusions about what they might do to me if they found purchase. Its reaction time was really good, obvious after the mid-air dodge, so the amount of time I'd need to charge up a shot was going to make a longer shot impractical.
No, my sword arm was going to have to be tested properly this time. My grip tightened, making sure I wasn't going to lose it. The thing leapt at me again, this time going low, at my legs. I stepped back and brought my sword down towards the beaver but missed it, still hampered by inexperience. To my surprise, as the creature passed me, its tail moved and slapped against my left leg, resulting in a momentary shock of pain. That thing was strong! Its fangs weren't its only weapon. The whack against me caused me to temporarily fall to a knee, but it also threw the beast off its trail and it had to find its footing again.
Both combatants reset our stances and stared each other down. I glared at the creature, feeling my leg throb, and realized it was going to win this battle if I just kept flailing around at it. I needed to take advantage of my intelligence - smarts would win this battle. With a growl, it leapt once again and this time I remembered my skills. I Parried the fangs as they snapped at my leg, which left my sword hand momentarily tingly. I had to get used to using it. Gritting my teeth, I swept around and brought the sword in close so that I wouldn't have to swing very far. A creature this small didn't need a big swipe. Just one good stab will do it. But it wasn't my only tool.
The beaver was getting used to this battle and sensed that it had the upper hand, with I going on the defensive. That's exactly what I wanted. It reared up, getting ready to strike using its clearly winning strategy. As its rear legs left the ground, I struck. I used my Dash ability and sent myself a good two feet backwards and brought up my sword. The creature panicked and flailed some, twisting in the air, but it could not change its trajectory. I aimed at where the creature was going to land, and purposefully moved slightly left.
The creature clearly recognized the power growing at my fingertips and prepared to vault away from the Mana Bolt. It landed and within half a second was redirecting itself to the right.
Right... into my waiting blade. It wasn't a good stab, going a few inches into its flank, but it was enough. The thing tumbled and spun, and took long enough to begin moving again that the fight was over. I managed to bring my arm about, and a moment later a Mana Bolt slammed into the animal's head, cracking it back much further than would be naturally possible. It laid motionless in the dirt as I panted, catching my breath.
"I... I did it." I felt at the hit on my leg. It wasn't as bad as the one the day before had been. I could fight. One creature, but I could fight. It slowly began to bleed into the dirt, and I briefly considered grabbing the beast, but discarded the thought. I didn't know anything about hunting or field dressing my kills, and I wasn't going to ruin a bag this fast when I didn't know how long a bloody carcass would be inside one.
I took a moment to pace, not sit down, before setting off again. Making sure my resources were topped off was important, though I was starting to get thirsty again. "Hope this place has some sort of water," I said, looking off in the northern direction. How far could it still be? I'd been walking quite a while, and it hadn't seemed like the place was that big. It was possible that space didn't work correctly, and the forest was longer and larger when you were inside it.
"Heh. Like a... reverse dick? Maybe not." I shook her head, re-shouldered my bags and began to move, once again wary of anything that might come my way.
For a little bit, I was safe, but this period of safety lasted far shorter than the other ones. After about another half hour of travel, I spied a small pond. I approached it, wary of stagnant water, but willing to check it out to slake my thirst if I could. However, after I placed my bags down, two more of the furry creatures struck out at me before I could get to one knee. My reflexes allowed me to Parry one of them but the other's teeth caught my left arm as it swung by, leaving an unpleasant gouge in it. I growled just as they did, but they gave me no time to think. Each beaver attacked asynchronously, and I could do very little except dodge or Parry. Frustrated that I didn't have time to fight back, I tried a new tactic.
Rather than attacking outright, I let out a roar at the top of my voice, every single bit of air leaving my lungs, as I launched forward at one of them. I saw the thing hesitate, putting off the the attack just long enough for me to bring my bleeding arm up, and Dashed backwards. The other beaver was also momentarily stunned and I could see it shiver for a moment as my momentum brought me behind it. Without vision of me, a Mana Bolt violently ripped into it before it could respond. It flopped against the ground, but not quite dead, so I used another without a second thought.
I couldn't spare the time to make sure it was still down. The first creature was bounding towards me, and this time I recognized the trajectory. With a decisive motion, instead of predictably moving to Parry the attack, I simply lunged ahead and tried to strike it in midair before it was ready with its own motions. A deep stab went into its front shoulder, and with a cry, the beast was stopped in place by my momentum and slammed into the ground. I placed all my weight into the blade and sunk it deep, and in moments, it stopped moving under me.
It had been over in an instant. "I'm getting used to these little bastards already." Was I just a natural at fighting? I felt it was odd that I was already moving so quickly in combat. After all, the last time I'd been in a fight on Earth was back in high school, and that was against a classmate drunk off her rocker, more than a decade earlier. "Maybe some bonus for being a Champion?" I shook my head. Everything was still speculation. Head clearer but still breathing hard, I walked over to the water and immediately dismissed the idea of drinking from it.
The little pond was impossibly clear. I could see the undisturbed dirt under the surface, and it lacked even a semblance of insects, algae, or anything that might block my sight or usage of the thing. It was too perfect, too well done. It had to be a trap. Looking around, I reached over and grabbed a nearby beaver. Gingerly holding the thing by its bulbous tail, I dipped it partially into the pond, looking for a reaction.
Nothing happened.
I felt silly again, like with the mimic test the day before. Were there just no traps here? Just trash mobs and then overwhelming threats? The balance was very out of whack. Even so, with no reaction from the water to the introduction of a (used to be) living thing, I didn't feel comfortable trying to drink from it. If I were more desperate... maybe. I marked the location in her mind the best I could, gathered up my things, and took a step.
A cry arose from the woods to my south, shooting a shiver up my spine. I looked back, and saw with clarity that I had to go, now. At least a dozen of the creatures were barreling towards my location. Had I alerted them with my big yell? Did they smell blood?
Didn't matter. I took off running northward again, at full tilt. I barely took the time to change direction, and if a tree was too egregiously blocking my path, I used Dash to change my position. I knew my stamina was limited, especially after using several Parries and Dashes, but I couldn't afford to be frugal with it. I really wished I'd had some sort of spell I could leave behind, like a trap, to stop these things in their tracks.
The chase went on for a good five minutes, and my legs were burning with exhaustion. I was by no means a marathon runner, and it seems this body hadn't given me an athlete's physique to start with. I risked a look and saw that, while there were fewer of them following me, the beavers hadn't given up the chase. It was when I was deciding to turn around and fight or try to escape up a tree that I spotted a break in the tree line. Wanting to put some open ground around her, I ignored the searing pain in my limbs and burst through to the other side.
Not immediately visible from where I'd been, but now very plainly in view, was a building of some kind. It looked almost like a bunker, halfway set into the wall of the basin. What interested me, however, was the door. It looked sturdy, and if I could open it and get inside, it might protect me from the assault. Without wasting a moment, I changed direction and made it to the door in a matter of moments. I tried the handle and was overjoyed to find that it was unlocked. I swung the door open, stepped inside, then slammed it behind me. I looked for a lock and miraculously found a sturdy piece of wood clearly meant to be able to bar the door. That it hadn't been on already was a lifesaver.
I placed the bar over the door in the slots provided and whipped around, looking forward into this place for the first time. As the first of the beavers slammed into the thing, I realized a few things. First, the place was lit. Not in the same way as the strange other source less lights, instead this place had torches burning in braziers along the walls on either side. The wide tunnel ahead of her was mostly just rock, with supports every few meters, implying that I found myself in a mine of some sort.
The last thing I noticed was a chair off to the side, and it was occupied. A young man, hair nearly buzzed to his scalp, looked at me with raised eyebrows. He was wearing clothes very similar to mine and had a wicked-looking axe propped up against the wall next to him.
"Yo," he greeted me.