Rivalry Augment:
Hard Worker:
-20% luck
+20% stats gained
"I can't believe he's here." Zach growled.
"Came down Papi. We're not on the diamond right now." Jorge replied.
"Did you fellas forget your bats? 'Cause mines pretty useful." Aaron said, placing his bat on his shoulders. "You remember what your Win Loss Ratio against me was? I think off the top of my head it was 5-0 to me, right? Well, I'm really feeling electric today so how about I make that six?" A shit-eating grin spread across his face. "See ya'." He winked and bolted to the northern tunnel. "Team, split up!" As he did, the six other people split half and half between the north and east corridors.
Zach and Jorge's legs worked faster than their brains and immediately took off. Each step pounded on the floor, but neither of them moved forward. They looked round simultaneously to see Eva holding them back, her biceps straining. "There is no point chasing them. We must fight them using the other entrances and hope we are more successful. I will take Thomas, Mia, and Zofia. You two go with Samuel." She barked her orders and before anyone could disagree, she headed down the south tunnel "Come on squad." To which they followed in suit. Thomas glanced back and gave a weak smile.
The rotund man hobbled over to the duo. "I cannot believe she just took off like that. I am flabbergasted." His voice was laced with disgust. Jorge placed his large hand on Samuel's padded shoulder.
"Let's do what she said, and when we get back you can take her to town, no?" He had a very convincing smile. A smile which seemed to quell some of the rage in Samuel's eyes.
"Very well, I shall lead us ahead." He said, stepping past them.
The tunnel they entered was a giant arched opening, the ornate stone structure opened wide and even though there was a dim yet visible light in the previous room, the passageway was as dark as the night; but even the night has stars to illuminate it, this did not.
The newly formed trio stared into the abyss. Just looking at it for too long began to make their leader feel a sense of dread. Sweat poured from the thinning hairs of the man, making its way down his aged face and into the grey moustache. The droplets clung on until they could no longer, and with a splash they hit the floor. With a gulp, Samuel spoke, "What is this?" He reached out with a shaking hand to find the absence of sensation.
Without knowing how they moved, the abyss was now behind them. They had teleported.
Whilst the previous room was a circular one, this was a square one. It was a lot tighter than the previous one. Four stone pillars with intricate linework covered floor to ceiling which made the small room even more claustrophobic. Torches strewn around the walls lit the place well but never enough to give a sense of comfortability. Harsh shadows projected off each brick and pillar.
Yet there was one sole threat in the center of this room. A lone human skeleton. A twisted pervasion of a man – average size, average build but it all came together so unnaturally. It clicked and clacked as it moved; bones rubbed against each other with the absence of muscles and joints, a discordant xylophone of a creature. The bones stained a light yellow giving it the color of eggnog in the orange of the torch's flames. Hollow eye sockets stared at the trio. And in its cracked fingers there was a large club. Somehow it produced a sickening growl, closer to a bird's chirp than a human noise.
A warning call. A threat. Intent. With those laid bare, it began to move. It was sluggish, and the bones dragged themselves along. Each movement sounded like chiming. Samuel stammered. Fear washed over him. Legs turned into jelly. Before he realized it, he was on the floor.
"Jorge, we need to get it from behind. His bat looks dangerous!" Zach shouted over the trembling Samuel between them.
"But how would we do that? There's no space on his sides, it would just hit us, no?"
"Remember our sophomore year playoffs? Three runs down, bases loaded?"
"I do not think it is the time right now to be talking about this." Jorge had begun shaking; it was ten meters away.
"I meant when you hit that last ball and Pierre threw it to home base, the slide you did. I want you to slide between its legs and get its attention." Zach said shakily. Eight meters.
"I know you are tripping right now, Monty; there is no way my big ass is sliding under that things legs." Jorge swung his arms into a cross pattern on his chest to signal there was no way he was going to budge. Causing Zach to breathe slowly and steel his nerves.
Five meters.
"Then back me up 'kay?" He asked before taking off. A standing start sprint will never have that much speed but with all the adrenaline in his veins from everything that had already happened, and the skeleton itself approaching, Zach felt like he was going faster than he ever had before. The creatures sickening hiss came out once more as it clumsily raised its club to swing at Zach's sides.
Woosh
Sliding on the diamond and sliding on damp bricks are very similar in terms of distance travelled but very different in friction. The couple of seconds that Zach spent on the bricks he managed to graze his ankles and sides. Whilst the pain did cause him to wince he did not let himself be stopped until he was safe on the other side of the skeleton.
Scrambling to his feet and turning around, he could see the enemy was confused where its victim had gone. That was the perfect chance to attack. But how would he attack the skeleton? It would have to be the same way his friends had pranked him, hitting the back of the knees.
Baseball is usually thought of being top heavy. Batting and pitching are usually seen as only intensive on the arms. And whilst a lot of muscle is built up there, most of the force comes from the core and legs. All that is to say that whilst Zach had never trained in martial arts or really been in a fight, the kick he delivered to the back of the skeleton's knees was powerful. Immediately severing whatever unnatural connection the femur and tibia had. Which caused the being to stumble a bit and cry out. But that just meant it was angered, and it turned around from its cornered pray to the attacker.
It raised its club up into the air, all the way. The weapon towered above Zach, who was desperately scanning for a way out, but those claustrophobic walls had crept up on him. Or had the room always been so tight? It was tight he made note of that. There was no way under again because the leg was now on the floor blocking the path. Closing his eyes he expected the inevitable and braced.
Yet it did not come. All he could hear was grunting. After working up the courage to open his eyes Zach saw, stood in the same position as when he closed his eyes was the skeleton but to keep it in place was Jorge. Wrapping his huge body around the bones like vines Jorge strained to keep it in place. "Come on Zach. I am not doing so good with this thing." It was at this point that Zach lamented dropping his bat to the ground in the desert before he passed out.
With a quick right hook, trying his best to avoid smacking his friend, Zach dislodged the skull from the rest of the body. A body that promptly turned from a moving being into a mere pile of bones. The skull disappeared before it even hit the ground, withering away into blue pixels that faded quite quickly from existence.
Both fighters stood still. Hot breaths came flowing out of them, visible even in such a dim room. Their ears pounded from their heartbeats. They needed a quick rest. A rest which was interrupted before it could begin.
Defeated Skeleton Warrior (Level 1)
Zach has gained 'Skeleton Club (Level 1)'
You have discovered the skill Slide (Level 1)
You have gained 1 Skill Point
You have discovered the badge: Undead Destroyer (1/10)
"Oh... my... god..." It was hard to talk between the harsh breaths for Zach. "We have had one room and I'm already sick of these dang notifications." Swiping the air to close those boxes. Even if thinking about it would have done the same.
"Th-th-thank you both..." Samuel stammered out. "I am truly sorry I could not help either of you... I was just... so... *huff* When I first came to wherever this place is the only reason I survived was dumb luck." His head was facing the floor, shielding his shame that had washed over him. Until two shadows filled the floor below Samuel.
Looking up, the lights illuminated the two young men holding their hands out to lift him off the ground. "Thank you so much." He said, taking both and getting pulled to his feet. He dusted his nice suit down and gestured his hand forward, "Please lead the way."
Zach looked around. From this room there were four exits, including the one they had just come from. "If we head forward, we'll continue south. If we go either of the other ways, we could end up meeting up with another group." He was pacing around the room, looking at each exit. Though all of them were the ornate arches with the sheer darkness, they had experienced coming in.
Random Event Triggered:
This Way!:
All participants will be pulled to the nearest unexplored room.
It took a moment for all of them to process the notification. For a second, they all managed to lock eyes. Like dust in a vacuum cleaner, Zach was pulled to continue south whereas Samuel and Jorge were pulled to the west.