Zariah Graves

Curving around the right side of the rim turned out to be the easier route from what she heard from Rodrick. The volcanic activity was minimal, no large streams, and only a few scattered pockets of surface breaches. Their journey was more marked by thick old-growth trees and its denizens. Hulking bears, misty moose, and other forest creatures of a mystical nature barred their path on several occasions. Despite those fights, the solid ground definitely made their route an easier journey.

Not that they hadn’t had their own run-in with those damnable crabs.

At a sapphire pool, Zariah’s party had taken a rest and stared into the blue-tinted waters. Isolated bubbles rose from the darkness, but otherwise, the surface was rarely disturbed. It was a random well connecting the upper world with the underworld. There was something magical about it. To her, there was something intrinsically wondrous about these places. A sacredness in the air.

In the end, that was why they triggered the ambush themselves.

Wanting somehow to replicate an imagined ritual, Zarah had picked out a pretty stone. Spackled with a spectrum of color from some previous overflow of mineral-rich water. She sent it flying with a silent prayer, modest without expectation. Right into the center of the pool and the ripples were crisp across the still water. The stone, highlighted by the blue surfaces, sunk into the depths. A burst of bubbles rose a few seconds later.

As the party began to pack up to head out again, the first crab broke the surface. Water splashed everywhere, steam rose from the chitin. Beady black eyes twitched across her stunned people. Each side stared at the other in rising tension. The crab scuttled hesitantly at the water line while they edged closer together. A warbly whine came from the monster and more appeared from the darkness of the pool.

When they numbered six, the crabs rolled forward with pincers ready. Zariah reached out and everyone became united. Thoughts became plans in an instant. Weapons were freed a second later as the party acted to meet their new foes.

It was a battle of clashing teamwork.

Zariah gave her people the edge needed for a gradual but certain victory. Their precision was simply insurmountable. They were faster and acted in perfect concert. When Adrian Cooper thrust his sword, Nickolas Vargas already had his shield up to protect against any opening. Stanley Blake lashed out with holy might and Leilani Smalls gouged her spear into any crab attempting to counter. Reuben, who had joined their scouting mission, his dagger and mace were a nice punctuation to their storm.

A whirlwind that bore down with inevitability.

Then she added her own direct might. Connection no longer consumed so much of her concentration. It was almost a passive thing now. A murmur in the back of the head, participating, but separate. With the newfound freedom, Zariah could offer support like never before. Pushing and pulling were only the beginning. Crushing and grabbing were fantastic tools to leverage the battle in her party’s favor.

She found that the crabs were especially vulnerable to counter-communication. Their minds were louder to her senses than any monster before, except maybe the metal monkeys. Reaching out to those alien minds allowed the mystic to inject various forms of static. Slowing down reactions and adding confusion worsened the monsters’ organization. The fight was absolutely going their way.

The crabs began to crack under the pressure and collapsed. First one, then two more in quick succession as panic spread amongst the monsters. A high-pitched scream erupted from the monsters and her whole party flinched back. Before they could recover a dozen new crabs breached land. The hive mind immediately agreed on retreat. Fighting continued only long enough to disengage safely, then Zariah threw her whole strength into a great wave of power. The front row of crabs were tossed off their feet and the rest shoved back into the water.

The whole party safely fled into the nearby woods.

They turned there and carefully began to observe the monsters. There was frantic activity down by the sapphire pool. It was like watching a kicked-over ant nest. Most were milling about the hole, but some crabs traced their path. They didn’t go far though. Barely passing where vegetation returned in strength.

The greater part of the monsters' attention seemed to be focused on their dead. At first dragging them towards the water, before giving that up when the bodies became too disintegrated. A little time passed and the crabs disappeared back into the water.

Zariah’s party snuck back for the cores, but made sure not to disturb the stillness of the pool.

Malachi Armstrong

Testing a foe was dangerous work, but there was a certain pleasure in revealing every secret they had to give. Killing a monster wasn’t enough sometimes. The next of its kind might surprise you with something new. These crabs worried him, so the battlemage would push them to the edge. Push until he was an expert on everything that made them unique. Every threat cataloged.

His sword slashed across the face of the crab and a burst of arcane power blew away the counterattack. Malachi was gone and out before the other pincer could move in. Translucent spears shot up from the ground to cover his retreat.

Fighting the crabs had posed some issues to his regular methods. His old reliable Fire Blast was useless on a fundamental level. Fire and heat were simply nothing to these monsters. They were crabs that refused to boil and instead lived in the pot. If the volcanic water couldn’t kill them, then his flames were a wasted effort.

So, the battlemage reduced the spell to pure kinetic force and transformed the spell into a new one. Sprinkling in a little of Damien’s power for extra oomph. He had watched his friend’s magic long enough to grasp the basics. The destructive purity.

Mist swirled around his sword as another new addition came to life with a word. Malachi dodged a spray of superheated water and ducked a pincer to close in on a new target. A thrust and ice erupted in a spray of blue blood. The monsters went berserk as one of their own fell speared through with ice.

A dozen streams of water cut toward him in a reckless assault. Malachi stuck out a hand and summoned a shield-shaped barrier in their way. Green wind engulfed his body, lending him the speed necessary to escape. He ducked and weaved. Steaming water and claws chasing his every move. Julia appeared, nothing could get past her. Violet stars screamed over ahead and plummeted upon the mass of crabs.

“Nice timing,” grinned Malachi. He slipped to the shieldmaiden’s side as a great barrier erupted from her shield. She stopped the hunt in its tracks.

Julia smiled at him. “Of course, I’m your shield. You’re not allowed to get hurt. Now, I’ll drop the barrier on three. Ready?”

“Three.”

They shot forward together through the dissipating field. Their charge caught the crab in disruption, caused by trying to change direction. The shieldmaiden leaped and a wave of blue rushed from her shield. Shaky lines became broken lines. Julia went left and Malachi went right. Blue power flashed in his peripherals as the woman he loved carved her way through the battlefield. His only regret was being too busy to watch it fully himself.

There was still a charge of ice on his sword, Malachi used it bluntly. Frost and spikes of ice raged across the ground to further fumble the already displaced crabs. A few lucky spikes pierce joints and he ducked into their ranks during the chaos.

The cold temperature created by the spell was almost the most devastating to the crabs. Whatever made them immune to the heat and the acidic water made it extremely hard to operate in low temperatures. His empowered sword slashed about unhindered.

Hurt and slowed, the crabs couldn’t keep up.

He slashed into the vulnerable spots and broke joints. When the crabs began to collect themselves from the melting ice, Malachi summoned lightning to his sword. He called a shield barrier to land on and leaped to bring down a full charge onto the closest crab. The world flashed to white. Electricity exploded outwards, following the melting ice and condensation-covered monsters. They fried in Malachi’s prepared field.

A smile of pride crossed his face. The leader of the Sixty looked over the field of battle. Julia was almost down hacking through her part of the horde. Harken and Damien were still going strong with locking down a smaller pool. To push further towards the center they might need to retreat and sneak through. Their fight had gone on for over an hour now. There was no end to the howling crabs. He could already see another wave swarming up out of the geyser pool that held their advance.

In the distance, he could hear battles further afield. Warner’s and Molly’s teams were doing the same as his. Actively drawing the attention of the crabs and lazily pushing toward the center. No doubt the center lake was important to this floor’s trial.

Clarissa was suddenly at his side. A curl to her lips, “There’s a big one coming. Found a geyser cave up on those hills to our right. Seems like they're trying to flank us.”

“How big?”

She was thoughtful for a moment, “If these small fry are like smart cars, then this guy is a Ford F150. Or a pitch bigger. Spiky too. Ten minutes; twenty or thirty if you want me to slow them down.”

“Hmm, go ahead, but leave the big one fresh. I’d like to test that one’s strength. Kill or maim the rest as you see fit.”

“Alright, that’ll be a fun challenge! Toodles!”

The redhead disappeared, making full use of the stealth Form she had stolen off Reuben. If Malachi hadn’t been certain of her original position, it would have been impossible to notice her footsteps over the wet and rocky terrain.

Malachi shot a fireball into the air to draw his party’s attention. It was time to prepare the field for the next test.

Lola Moss

For a team of scraps, she didn’t think they were doing all that too bad. Being relatively untested got them placed on rearguard. The three big parties were pushing the fight forward and they were watching their backs. Perfect duty for them really. There was some fighting, but expected only to delay. One speaking stone conversation brought in the big hitters.

Glorified alarm system.

“Fucking perfect for a bunch of loners trying to learn how to play together,” muttered Lola with no ill intent.

That was simply what the five of them were. She didn’t place herself any higher.

When the parties had become solidified instead of ever-shifting, they had been left out. Loners that were no less competent than their peers, but hadn’t been anyone’s first picks. Which was completely on them, social connections were always going to play a part in everything. It left them scattered and Lola collected them together. They weren’t alone anymore.

Being late to the party (dada dum tish) meant that working together was a learning experience. No one had been particularly familiar with another. Getting to know each other was the easy part though. Between celebrations and downtime, Lola felt she had inspired some real comradeship. Boardgames had been the main fuel for their unity. Silent games slowly became rambunctious events.

Those games became direly important to each of them. There was even overall scorekeeping for game-winners. To protect her authority, she obviously had to maintain the number one rank. Even working together to unseat her was doing little to slow her rising number of wins.

A gathering of scraps were being forged into something useful. Lola had successfully melted them all together, but now it was time to hammer themselves into competence. Floor four was their opportunity. Before, their every effort had been overshadowed by the more powerful. There was nothing since they were formed to truly test their mettle or bring them together. Teamwork was a questionable variable due to simply being inexperienced at working together.

On this floor, Malachi had given the party a true part to play. No longer would everything get blown away before her people could get involved. They weren’t just support here. She could just kiss those crabs. If they didn’t want to eat her face and weren’t hot as a boiler on full blast.

“Not that kissing monsters is anything I want to do in general…” complained Lola as she aimed her bow. A streak of pink as her arrow flew and exploded on impact. Her Mana splattered like paint across the targeted crab and began to eat away at the chitin. She had worried her technique wouldn’t be effective, but magic acid might be distinctly different from natural. Or the immunity was limited.

The monster howled in distraction and left itself open to Jade Patel. Their tank crashed into the crab shield first. Chitin crumbled under the blow due to the pink acid in a flood of blue blood. The internals were exposed, free game for the ax that came digging. A few whacks felled the target. There was always more with these creatures.

Lola picked out a few crabs in the back with her pink paint, spreading the acid around. Either the monsters would charge forward knowing their armor was weakening for a kamikaze run or flee. Either worked for her party's efforts. They only had to hold the line for a few minutes. Spreading a little chaos just made that easier.

Her eyes darted around looking at the flow of the battle, seeing how everyone was doing. Jade was back to defending as Dasiey Solomon danced across the battle line. Her sword was a blur that left sprays of blue in her wake. Nothing could touch the lithe creature. Across the battlefield to the other side in almost an instant. Enemies always left marked in her wake.

Their mage Megan Dawson scoured the enemy with beams and bolts of power. Harassing and stinging those that tried to attack the party. Her offense was only supporting, the mage’s true might was in the buffs that lay on their shoulders. Silver sparkles surrounded each of them as proof of the stacked bonuses. Their healer Malcolm Bowser stood close by and followed suit. Blessing and smiting. His healing spells were decent, but the man had learned offense like no other Faith Mana user. Spears of light rained down to impale the crabs before unraveling into restaurants. Each chained the monsters to the spot.

When the battle was getting close to faltering against them, the world grew dark. Shadows lengthened and deepened as if the sunstones above were being blocked. Analia walked out from nowhere. From the darkness of her hood, the mage surveyed them and the battlefield. Nodding before her voice quivered in the air as if from far away. Crisply audible to each of them, but somehow only a whisper.

Darkness silently gushed from the shadow mage’s hands, a thick wave that shoved the crabs back. Flowing over them, leaving the chitin freeze-dried and brittle. A twist of the hands and the darkness roiled. Beating against the monsters in a quiet storm. Panic howls were killed by smoothing waves or crumbling bodies collapsing. More would come, but in a few seconds, the grounds were cleared all the way to the pool.

It was equally aweing and sickening to see the powerhouses of the Sixty work. Neither emotion caused Lola’s dedication to catch up to waver. She planned either herself alone, or better yet see her entire party rub elbows with the top brass. Lagging behind didn’t settle well. Not when effort was the only thing needed. Mana was infinite in all aspects, power and potential most of all.

Analia glided over to her side. “Vincent’s party will be here soon to seal this opening. We’ll keep the enemy suppressed until then.”

“Then collect the cores when they do, I imagine,” replied Lola. “Any orders after that?”

Pointing, the answer was, “About a mile that way is a geyser cave that needs our attention. I’ll join you in preparing it for sealing. A big crab was seen rising out of it, so there’s no point in my departing your company.”

“Happy to have you. Maybe, you could talk with Megan during the walkover? She’s got some questions on how you all manipulate Mana so easily. Too shy to ask herself, you see.”

The other woman frowned in confusion for a moment. “I’m not sure… if I am the best to ask. It just came, comes naturally to me. All I could say is to be authentic to yourself.”

Lola laughed. “Then say that. Might help, she’s convinced there is some secret she’s missing. I keep telling Megan that her buffs are the real deal, but I think in her mind the flashy stuff is better. Maybe she’ll listen to you.”

“You think such a simple thing would help?”

“Uh, maybe spice it up a little. The message is good though.”

Still not confident, Analia said, “As you say, I’ll try.”

“No one can ask more… o’ hey, look some crabs are poking their heads out. Time to get to work!”

With the shadow mage’s support, Lola led her party to hold the crabs at the water line.

Russel Poole

Around him were the sounds of battle, but it was dim to his awareness. His thoughts and awareness were below his feet. Spreading outwards into the ground. There were those that thought shifting the earth was an easy thing. Simple as shifting sand with your hand. Even with Mana, it was never that easy.

You needed to know, intimately, what was there. What it was made of, from rocks to sediment. Each layer made up everything that was around you. The more you wanted to do, the more you needed to be aware of. Closing a pool or geyser was especially difficult. Using topsoil was a waste and messing with the structure was dangerous. Reckless. Russel knew he was more likely to start a sinkhole that way than seal it reasonably. He needed deeper knowledge.

Each site that the earth mage visited enlarged his understanding of the floor. On one side it made what he needed to know come faster. The composition didn’t change much between each. What kept him down there longer than necessary was how complex the underground was. There was another world under all the water. Great tangles of tunnels and caverns.

Not all of them were made by volcanic activity either.

Some parts of the underground were distinctly carved or manually adjusted. The closer to the center he got, the more precise such markings were. Only at the deepest points, and they were ancient. He could tell by the ages of minerals that had crusted over the grooves. Hiding them from eyes no doubt, but not his senses. Those deepest, at the very limits of his senses, might even have been pictures. Or writing.