[382] 5.5 The Atlantean Trials II

As the sun is setting over the enormous mid-Atlantic Ocean, I notice a floating island out in the distance.  Far larger than the Temple of Greed over the skies just south of Red Clay City, the Atlantean dungeon is practically an entire city suspended three miles above sea level.  In fact, it’s so large that I’m now surprised it remained hidden for so long, rather than wondering why and how it had been discovered out in the middle of nowhere.

The aircraft slows down, eventually hovering using inverted [Gravity] glyphs rather than relying on lift in the classical sense, then touching down on a small patch of limestone that seems designed for exactly that purpose.  I disembark first, taking my now-fiancée’s hand— it’s going to feel surreal in the best way to call her that— as I guide her onto the ground beneath our feet.

The pilot calls out to us just before we head into the city.  “Miss Mortensen, Miss Jacobs.  I’d really not feel comfortable staying here if it’s all okay with you.  I’ve already got clearance to land in Reykjavik, where I plan to stay for the evening and until you’re ready for departure.”

“How far is it?”

“About five hundred and thirty miles just east of due north.  Do you ladies have a compass?”

“My phone has an app,” Chloe says.  “Unless there’s some really wonky magnetic signals, that should work.”

He pulls an old analog compass out from one of the pouches in the cockpit and tosses it to me.  “I don’t trust those apps half as far as I can throw ‘em.  These babies don’t get hacked or have computer glitches or run out of battery.  Keep it; I’ve got a couple more stored around here somewhere.  Anyway, best of luck with whatever it is you’ve come here for; I hope to see you again and hear news of your success.”

We smile, shake his hand, and within the minute, our ride is floating up and taking off without us.

The floating city carries with it the combination of classical architecture with the surreal verdancy of a lush oasis.  Vines climb up buildings made of beautiful white marble that glistens in the twilight sky, and a gentle greenish-white glow permeates the city as an eternal wellspring of water drains cascading waterfalls down onto the ocean far, far below.

But it’s the buildings further into the city that give me true pause.  A spacious coliseum, grand temples to deities whose names and faiths have long since been forgotten to time, wide-open markets with well-maintained grassy fields and lush trees of olive and palm.  There are even deep caves and stretches of untamed wilds all within the massive grounds of this spacious labyrinth.

With no clear place to head, we begin heading toward the city center.  It’s quiet, too quiet.  Save for the cool and slightly salty breeze passing through the starlit streets and our footsteps on the cobblestone streets, not a sound emanates through the archaic dungeon.  No monsters that I can see, nor any other signs of life.  And yet, something is wrong here.  I can taste the murderous intent in the air.

“We’re being watched,” I say.

“You sense it too, don’t you?”

“It’s more what I don’t sense,” I respond.  “And it’s too quiet.  Do you pick up anything with your [Life Sense]?”

“Nothing.”

“Well, if it’s not immediately hostile, I think we should continue on while trying to gather more information about what we’re facing.”

“Agreed,”  Chloe says, taking my hand in hers.

It doesn’t take long before we reach a tall black monolith that looks out of place among the architecture surrounding it.  Upon its obverse is a set of glowing inscriptions, and above them is a circle with twelve spheres arranged in a clocklike pattern.  Three of the spheres— the ones at three, four, and six o’clock— glow a gentle light the color of fireflies, while the other nine remain inert.

“The underworld will only open to the one who demonstrates the qualities necessary to be revered as a true hero.  Complete the labyrinth’s trials.  Only then will the door be revealed.”

“Well, I think that explains some things,” Chloe says.  “There’s definitely someone else here.”

I have to agree with her assessment.  Three of the twelve trials— the twelve labors, I suspect— have already been completed.  Nine more to go.  That would explain why it’s so quiet here, and why we’ve both had the sense of being watched.  The only question is whether the other party here is a friend or foe.  I hope, for all our sakes, that the first proves true.

Not counting the pathway leading from the entrance to the monolith, there are twelve paths which represent the twelve tasks left to complete.  Acting on the assumption that there’s a one-to-one correspondence between the completed trials and the pathways, and with nothing else to go off, we head down the pathway at nine o’clock toward the artificially-lit coliseum.

Part of me expects to hear the roar of the crowd echoing through the streets, as wild battles rage on from within.  The thrill of battle against a worthy foe quickens my beating heart and sends pleasant flame coursing through my veins.  I should be scared to enter such a battle again for the first time in nearly four months.  Instead, I’m excited, my previous battle junkie tendencies roaring back in full force.

As we pass through the lower level of the circular arena, lights on the sides of the wall glow in sequence, leading us further within.  Chloe and I follow.

The feeling of being watched subsides; whatever presence has been tracking us through the dungeon didn’t follow.  More likely, it couldn’t.  In either case, I pay it no mind, instead turning my attention to what lies ahead.

As we pass through the open-arch threshold and into the main arena, the portcullis slams shut behind us.  It’s held solid— I could force it open given my passive Skills, but there’s no need; if something emerges we cannot defeat, I can just take Chloe and teleport out of the ring.

The roar I’d been expecting echoes out.  There are no crowds sitting in the immaculate stands, but the bustle of thousands still reverberates, borne from an unknown source.  Their roar is soon joined by another growl, low and deep, loud and proud.

The gate on the other side of where we entered opens, and in true gladiatorial fashion, a massive lion emerges from the darkness.  It’s at least twice as large as any lion I’ve ever heard of, with a good eight feet of height and perhaps thirty-five of length.  Most notably, though, its entire coat, from mane to tail tip, is the color of gleaming gold, glittering in the strange phosphorescence that now illuminates the entire structure.

Chloe and I both draw our weapons, our enhancement spells empowering us and [Etheric Armor] providing both of us additional defense.  I take the lead in the initial confrontation, my trusty swordstaff in hand, and attack the beast in its side.  Chloe follows up with her twin blades, striking the creature’s left foreleg.

As if repelled by a powerful barrier, both of our attacks are rebuffed, our momentum redirected.  Undeterred, we try again. I scream and flare out my [Ether] to grab the lion’s attention.  It lunges toward me with mouth agape, but I’m more than fast enough to sidestep the champing maw that sought to remove my head from my shoulders.  Then I retaliate with another strike, this time to the underbelly of the monster as Chloe attempts to sever its head.

Again our attacks are shunted away.  I assume a defensive stance as Chloe charges up her magic.  The beast is wise enough to go after Chloe, but the lion isn’t going to get a chance.  I activate my [Impulse] glyph and, thanks to the [Agility] boost granted me by my [Fleetfoot Boots], tackle the creature in midair and knock it off its trajectory.  This time, I manage to do something, pinning it to the ground for a brief moment.

My advantage is short lived.  Thanks to the creature’s massive size and weight and superior [Strength] to my own, even with Chloe’s buffs, it’s able to spin around and regain its footing.  It attempts to pin me down, but thanks to one of the effects of [Defiant Spirit], I’m able to resist the grapple attempt, backflipping from my supine position and returning to a neutral position between Chloe and the monster.

“How much longer?” I ask.

“Thirty seconds,” Chloe says.  

I can give her that much.  I size up the oversized feline for a split second, then our battle is off.  My few attacks are only feints, but none of them distract the creature.  It must have learned by now that we lack enough physical power to pierce its overwhelming defenses.  So instead I switch to purely defensive tactics, relying on the fact that grapples, pins, and similar feats of mass and force can still affect what our attacks cannot.

I try magic, hoping that the creature is vulnerable to it where it has proven immune to our strongest physical attacks.  This too fails as it absorbs [Elemental Ether Strike] and even shrugs off the obsidian flames of my [Infernal Flame], sloughing the cinders onto the dirt floor beneath.  Undeterred, I leap back into action with my weapon stowed back away in my [Inventory].  If I cannot pummel it with weapons or blast it to bits with magic, then perhaps this is a test to simply strangle the creature with my bare hands.

I sidestep every claw swipe and attempt to trip me or knock me over.  It swings its whiplike tail in front of its body and attempts to ensnare me.  Thanks to [Defiant Spirit] once again, I’m able to raise my hands and slide right out of its grasp just before I would have been swallowed whole.

In the back of my head, I see Chloe’s sword [Lumen] drawn in a reverse stance, glowing wildly as Chloe buckles her knees, the trademark pose of her ultimate attack.  Her concentration of [Ether] has reached its zenith, but she hasn’t used it just yet.

“I need to wait for the right opening before I can attack!” Chloe shouts through our bond.  “My strike is strong, but so are all our other attacks and they were worse than useless; if this fails, we won’t have any further countermeasures and we’ll be slowly whittled down by the invincible creature.  I’ll strike the moment it lunges for the finishing blow.”

I realize exactly what Chloe plans to try; it’s so obvious that I’m not sure why I didn’t think of it myself.  Maybe my battle awareness really has grown rusty in these past three years.

Feigning weakness to mask my strength, I allow myself to suffer minor injuries.  The pain is like an old friend, greeting me after months apart, sharpening my focus and helping to distract me from all the other troubles outside this coliseum.  My shoulders wince and blood drips from a gash on my forehead, sliding off my brows and down my cheeks, pooling at the base of my chin.

Finally, the scent of fresh blood has awakened the predator’s instinct.  The golden lion charges once more, and as it opens its mouth to devour its meal, I wait until the last possible second.  Then, in a blink, with [Subspace Manipulation], I peel back reality and teleport a couple steps to the right, falling to the ground in a seamless maneuver and not using my flight until just inches above the ground.

Chloe, meanwhile, thrusts her blade through the creature’s mouth and stabs into its brain with [Lightspeed Slash].  Although the creature’s hide proved impervious to all attacks, the perfect defense it enjoys does not extend to its squishier internals, no more resistant to her blade's edge than any other unfortunate soul’s.  She suffers a minor impact wound as the thousands of pounds of now limp muscle and sinew fall upon her now crimson-soaked body, but it’s nothing that she cannot heal with a simple exercise of her magic.

One labor completed, one [Golden Lion’s Pelt] obtained, stowed away in my [Inventory] for whenever we can find someone capable of working it, two levels gained, and the coliseum doors reopen, allowing us to move on to whatever the next labor may be.

[You have slain The Golden Lion (Level 87).  You have gained a boosted 721,200 Experience.]

[You have gained enough Experience to reach Level 92 (From 90).  [Strength] +2, [Vitality] +2.  Please assign free stat points. (Remaining: 22)]

[Maximum Health increases by [Vitality] x 2 + Current Level + Rand[1,3] = (574, 576)]

[Maximum Ether increases by [Mind] + Current Level + Rand[0,2] = (361, 361)]

[Level: 92; Experience: 17,273,775;  To Next: 617,465]

[Current Stats: [Health]: 19,592 / 24,789; [Ether]: 14,931 / 17,578]

[Current Stats: [Strength]: 549 (Base: 199); [Speed]: 549 (Base: 199); [Vitality]: 665 (Base: 241); [Mind]: 740 (Base: 268)]