The skeleton’s bony arms closed around her face, slamming her head against the tiles.

Asa cried out. Pain shot down her spine, and a pang on her wrist alerted her of the heart she’d lost. Pinning her against the floor, the skeleton drove its knee into her belly, its other hand grabbing a breast and squeezing till she thought she’d burst like the slimes.

CURSED BONES - 10 HP

Blue light emanated around her as she equipped her worn shirt. That made the creature pause, loosening its grip and giving Asa the chance to summon a short bone and strike.

Her weapon slid between its bones and shattered, leaving Asa petrified. Its jaws clacked angrily over her face, and she couldn’t help but whimper as its boney fingers dug into her flesh. Then it clamped down on her shoulder with its teeth, making Asa scream so loudly that her voice cracked, and lights burst behind her eyes. Another heart gone.

Pain made her vision red. Her head and the top of her spine throbbed. Tears ran down her the sides of her face and into her ears, but she couldn’t look away. She wriggled in its grasp, whimpering, as it raised its crimson-stained skull. Her blood dripped from its teeth and onto her, but she couldn’t look away. This was it then. One more attack. This thing would finish her off, and this nightmare would end.

It released her and raised its arms to strike, but that was the opening she needed.

“Get the hell off me.” Asa punched the skeleton as hard as she could with her good arm. Her fingers broke against its skull, but it was enough to send the creature’s head flying in a spray of blood.

Its body shuddered and went still, falling apart into loose bones and dust. Asa crawled away from the pile, coughing and sputtering and clutching her shoulder with her injured hand. Blood was everywhere, hot and thick.

The skull rolled towards her clacking furiously, and she screamed as she kicked with all her might. This time the skull struck the wall and shattered. As if on cue, the ground rumbled, and a stone slab opened on one side of the room, revealing the way forward.

“Fuck you,” she said, sinking to her knees as the pile of bones erupted in blue sparks. Hot tears spilled down her cheeks as she summoned the slime jelly. Asa crushed it against her shoulder with her broken hand, wincing and biting her lip as the goo seeped into the teeth marks and ran red down her arm. Then she rubbed another one over her breast, pressing gently on the dark bruises the skeleton had left on her pale skin, and clenching her jaws to keep from crying again.

She wiped away the tears, wondering when her breasts had grown to be such handfuls. Were they swollen? There were drifting memories of being teased for her flatness, padding her bra for prom, but those thoughts only made her head hurt more.

She applied one more slime onto her scalp, massaging it in like conditioner even though her hearts were back to three. But her arms still quivered, and her breaths were still shaky. She needed to calm down, and the jelly felt soothing.

When the slime evaporated off her hair, Asa inspected her worn shirt. The blood was gone, and there was no trace of teeth marks or bruises on her skin. The cloth was still loose and baggy, but she was glad it materialized with such ease, and she tried not to imagine what might have happened if she hadn’t put the armor on.

A few items glistened where the cursed bones had been. Three short bones and a long one. She slipped them into her inventory, and she felt better. She knew how to defeat the skeletons now. They did a lot of damage, but if she managed to separate the head, they were defenseless.

With that in mind, Asa stepped through the exit to find herself on a small ledge. The stone slab shut behind her, the loud bang making her flinch. “God, damn it.”

The way ahead looked simple at least. Torches revealed platforms she’d have to jump to. This time the void didn’t bother her so much. After facing the skeleton creature, this was easier and almost fun.

She stopped when she saw one of the platforms was crumpled. A crater sat in its center, with black rocks jutting out. It looked as if a meteor had crashed into it. Landing on it would be impossible without breaking herself, and she tried not to picture herself a bloodied helpless mess.

The way behind was cast in darkness, but how could she go forward? She couldn’t see any vines or ladders. Then she saw the wall to her right where the torches were. It had a ledge on it.

Could she tiptoe across? She knelt and touched it. It was part of the wall, part of the design. But if she was trying this, it wouldn’t just be one gap. She’d have to move past the first gap, the ruined platform, and then the next gap before she could rest. Could her legs even handle that?

She retied her hair, anxiety making her stomach hurt. There wasn’t any other option, and Asa braced herself as she stepped off the platform and onto the ledge.

“I can do this,” she whispered to herself, pressing her forehead against the black wall. It was cool and steady and helped settle the unease she felt. The ledge had just enough space for the front of her feet.

She moved, feeling like a crab. One leg beside the other, her palms flat against the tiled wall. The green stamina bar appeared again, slowly running out. All her weight was on her toes, and halfway over the void, her legs began quivering. She clenched her teeth, kept her eyes on the wall, and tried not to think about the endless darkness underneath her feet.

When she paused, her stamina bar replenished, so she took several breaks. She struggled to keep her breathing steady. Asa felt as though the darkness grabbed her legs and thighs, trying to reel her into its depth. Before she knew it, she was tiptoeing over the crumpled platform, and she couldn’t help glancing over her shoulder.

It looked as though some large creature landed on it, but she stopped that thought before she could even picture what sort of monster could manage that.

The last stretch felt like forever. Her body was so tense, her calves and legs burned. Asa hummed. She wasn’t sure where the melody was from, or what the words might be, but the melody kept her going. And finally, when she reached the next platform, she collapsed off the wall.

On her back, her knees to her chest so she could massage her calves, breathing hard, she stared up at the ceiling where a vine swung gently. That was where the draft came from, she realized. The exit had to be near.

With her stamina replenished and the aching gone in her thighs and ass, Asa squatted down then leaped to grab the vine with both hands. She smiled as she hung from it and look down, surprised at how high she was able to go. The stamina bar hovered again, but she gripped tight and climbed, one hand on top of the other. Beads of sweat raced down her face and her back. She licked the sweat running down her face, enjoying the burst of saltiness.

Just as the green bar would run out and she thought she’d plummet, she saw the flicker of a torch and the edge of another platform. Asa jumped off the vine and pulled herself over the top and sat on the cool tiles, breathing hard and rubbing her arms.

Ahead, she saw several more platforms. But these were detached and floating, moving side to side, and were much smaller than the stationary ones she’d landed on before. She estimated they were about five feet long and wide. Beyond them sat another chest.

She shuddered remembering the skeleton, but what if this chest had pants? She sat cross-legged and watched the platforms moving All she’d have to do was go from one to the other like before, except this time, she’d have to time her jumps.

It was the same risk as before. One misstep would spell death. She crawled to the edge, thinking about how she’d climbed up here. But there was no bottom, only the void, and she concluded that this place didn’t conform to any laws of physics. Falling simply meant death.

Before she could talk herself out of it, she leaped. But she’d mistimed, and the platform moved past where she aimed to land. Her hand managed to grab one side, and she found herself dangling from the moving platform.

Her toes curling, spittle dribbling down her chin, and her heart racing, she pulled herself up, clutching it for dear life.

“Idiot,” she whispered as she crouched on the platform. She’d aimed for where the platform was, not where it would be. She had to aim ahead, adjusting for the time it took to jump to it. She had to aim for the void so that the platform would be beneath her when she landed.

The world spun around her, and she eyed the next one as it moved in the opposite direction. When she went right, it went left. She tensed, ready to leap when something screeched overhead.

Chills ran down her spine. Brown shapes swirled around the dark ceiling. From the torchlight, she could see enormous wings, and their shadows danced throughout the dungeon.

Asa clutched her platform tightly, wondering if the creatures were small or just far away. They didn’t seem to be interested in her, not yet at least. She set her sights on the chest instead, trying not to think about them. All she had to do was get to that chest and find an exit beyond it.

She held her breath, waiting for the next platform to come closer. This time, she timed it perfectly and landed on her feet. The rest of the platforms were easy, she focused on timing, checking on the flying things occasionally until she found herself waiting in front of the chest. Clutching her chest, she waited till her breathing steadied out before kneeling.

The creatures screeched again. The wingbeats sounded too close, and she glanced up to see them circling directly over her now. One swooped down to perch on the chest, its beady dark eyes glistening in the light as its talons dug into the wooden top.

Common Brown Bat - 20 HP

“What do you want?” she asked, summoning a short bone in her hand. She held it firmly but kept it concealed in a fist. Asa didn’t want to hurt a bat. It was soft and brown, about half her size and adorable.

It tilted its head and sniffed. It licked its nose several times. Asa got the sense it was studying her, trying to determine whether or not she was a threat.

Was that how wild animals behaved? She let her bone vanish and she showed it her empty palms. “I don’t mean you any harm,” she whispered, wondering how she smelled, without pants and sweaty.

The bat crawled forward, its large wings moving this way and that. Then it hopped off and flew back to the others, its wingbeats strong and loud. The breeze from its flight felt good against her hot skin.

She released the breath she’d held and watched them fly off into the darkness. Not everything was a threat in this world. Asa returned to the chest, stroking its scratched wooden top. If this was another skeleton, she’d grab its head and throw it into the void she decided.

It opened with a creak, and she took a few steps back, bracing herself for the worst. When nothing appeared, she peered inside. Something was shining at the bottom.

“Still no pants,” she said with a groan, picking up the dagger and holding it to the light. It was a short blade with a black handle that had crimson swirls etched into it. About seven inches of silver, she thought, hypnotized by its shining allure. It was heavy in a way that made it feel powerful and priceless. A little screen popped up.

Sacrificial Dagger - ?? DMG

“What?” she whispered. How could the system not know? The dagger felt hot in her hands as if it were coming alive, and then the screen vanished.

A rumbling sensation filled the entire dungeon. Was that an earthquake? The bats screeched overhead, and Asa dropped the dagger with a horrified cry, smoke rising from her burnt fingers.