Chapter 82

Both him and the juggernaut burst out into the corridor. Animal Sense was useless for these floors. There was either nothing threatening or if there was, it could evade the skill. Given what he had seen of the world, he was backing it would be the latter. “If in doubt, imagine the worst case” was rapidly becoming his motto.

The big man next to him was dressed in jeans and a shield that was the better part of a door by itself. He turned left, so Daniel went right two steps and then stopped, watching the corridor. The others spilled out after him, and he noticed the juggernaut had grounded his shield and was hiding behind its size and doing a good job.

Without his own interface, he did not get to experience the learning process, but apparently every level, besides granting specific attributes like strength and spells, they also taught real life techniques and knowledge. Small things like battle tactics, or the right way to hold a sword or how to use a shield when faced with an unknown enemy. The weird half-club, half-spear design the juggernaut had asked for was held out ready to employ against anything that tried to attack.

Luke shifted into position next to Daniel.

This was another reason him hogging the experience gains was negative for the group. The benefits that he got per level were fewer than everyone. While he got an attribute point, and his spells might be improved slightly, he was not receiving all the hidden extras that others gained. Nuggets of knowledge that resulted in a fat plumber wielding a sword like a pro and knowing how to shift between difference stances seamlessly.

Arrows were on bows. Magic crackled on fingers, and they stood there, examining what they faced. The hallway was different to the ones even two levels down. Everything was more worn; the carpet was torn up and frayed, and there were large gaps in the walls. Several doors that he could see were open; others looked like they had holes bitten out the lower corners. The gap was only enough for a normal cat to get through, so it did not scream threat, but it showed that something had happened on the floor, and that unknown chilled Daniel to his stomach.

Because of all that structural damage, debris spread across the floor.

Looking up, many tiles were displaced, with the crawl space revealed.

A tiny pulse of Animal Sense, which spread out to check the roof space above and the nearby rooms.

They were not alone.

The moment he realised it alarm spiked from Priscilla. His body felt like it was made of stone, the air cloying and restricting, his clothes holding him in. Time itself was the enemy. His mouth went dry and with awful clarity he knew they had stuffed up. Priscilla’s slowed time started to release and Daniel reacted. He enhanced his speed, twisting and stepping to swing the club above Ingrid’s head. By the time he had turned around, the monster was already falling.

Overcooking speed.

The club sang in excitement. It shaped itself into a gaping maw.

He hit the critter that was dive bombing, seeing only the slimy, purple body before the club snapped shut and the shape vanished. A second one was falling, this one on top of Gabby. The two monsters had coordinated the attack, and it was just that Gabby was shorter, giving him more time to respond.

The weapon demanded extra speed from him. He was going to regret this, but he summoned all the speed overload that he could and tensed his body. The club swung blindingly fast and struck the creature, with the wind of its passing ruffling Gabby’s hair. There was more twisting, and the club did not swallow the whole body of the monster this time. Instead, a chain of teeth dug into the tiny monster and closed into its centre, grabbing the core. Then his swing continued, and two purple blobs were launched away to slam into the wall.

“What?” Ingrid said as everyone flinched and looked up at the ceiling.

“No more,” he told them his focus once more focused outwards. He did not know what those creatures were, but they had felt both powerful and evil. They should have gone slower, but they were committed, and all he could do was to fight what was out there.

“Oh god,” Ingrid said. “They were parasitic mind worms. Able to borrow into a host in seconds. Almost untreatable and sends the target mad within days. Hosts can be recognised by purple shadows around the eyes.”

“Focus,” he snapped, realising that he was puffing. Using so much speed had stretched his reserves.

Another pulse of Animal Sense.

“Are there any more worms?” Ingrid asked tentatively.

“Nothing within ten meters.”

“We need to warn the others,” Ingrid pressed.

“I am not sure there are any below us, and if there are, it is probably too late. We will worry about them once we are out of here. I don’t like this,” Daniel said unnecessarily. His instincts were screaming at him, and from the tightness in everyone’s eyes, so were theirs.

They stood in silence. There was a noise, then scurrying in the walls. Lots of movement.

“I wish I had insisted that we go slow,” he muttered to himself. “I wish the monsters would show themselves.”

“HELP!” Gabby yelled suddenly.

“No,” the juggernaut snapped, but it was too late. There was an abrupt rush of movement. A swarm of insects charged towards him.

The club demanded electricity, and he had learnt to trust its needs and channelled accordingly. Lightning exploded from him into the club, and then controlled sparks of it shot out at the approaching horde. The smell of burnt bug filled the air. There must have been fifty charging from his side. All as large as guinea pigs and as ugly could be imagined. The sparks kept flying, and the energy he had imparted was expended. The zaps of electricity had hurt them. They all moved slower, wisps of smoke curling up from most of them, but only a few were dead.

That was thirty percent of his mana.

He gave the club more, imploring it to focus on the attacks better. Kill rather than hurt. The club started probing, faster than he could have. One, two, three strikes just milliseconds apart. The target stopped moving. Repeating on a different victim. This time, two near-simultaneous flashes finished it off. The weapon had increased the energy in each strike to just kill the bugs.

Apparently calibrated, fifteen thick strands arced from the club. Fifteen bugs died instantly. Over a third was dead, but it felt like nowhere near enough, and Daniel lacked the mana reserves to devote more to the attack. He would keep it for emergencies.

He wished he had a massive shield like the juggernaut as the creatures charging him appeared to have a nasty bite on them. Using his weapon alternatively, like a golf club on the way out and hammer on the way back in. Knock them flying away and then squish the ones getting close on the backswing. Crush them between the club and the floor. Fire blazed past the Black man’s shield, and splinters of ice were arcing over Daniel and helping thin the numbers swarming him.

Daniel tried to ignore those outside noises and focus on getting his club to dance as a weapon of insect killing. His foot touched Ingrid’s behind him and he realised he no longer had room to retreat.

He initiated speed. Same motion but three times as fast. He could step forward, and then he released the energy when the flood slowed. He killed the last couple, then spinning to see how the other side had survived.

His chest was heaving.

While he fought, he had heard the occasional exclamation of pain, but nothing that made him think people were dying or their defensive line had failed. Everyone was still standing. The numbers were slowing. His knees almost collapsed at the relief that washed through him. Blackened dead insects covered the other side of the corridor. The fire wizard had done his job and absolutely destroyed the swarm.

There were a few still twitching, but the archers were finishing them up.

“Bloody termites,” Ingrid said. “I preferred when they were smaller, and I hated them then.”

Animal Sense.

Using it just in case some more of the mind worms were sneaking up on them, that was another five percent of his mana gone. The spell, while vital to their survival, was a massive mana hog.

There were no immediate threats, but something pinged his awareness down below. That was? It was not just Ivey’s group that he had sensed. A more targeted pulse. No, he thought in alarm. They were in trouble.

“Downstairs,” he screamed as the full extent of what he was sensing became apparent. Ivey’s group was being overwhelmed.

‎