Book Two Chapter Seventeen: AirTemple Bats LoadIn

Book Two Chapter Seventeen: AirTemple Bats LoadIn

Ah, stop throwing my own words back at me! the Chosen One exclaimed, retreating behind his shield.

[Lesser Shield], Qube cast, her mana protecting him even as she stepped behind her more combat capable compatriots. The bats, though made of lightning, were small. If the Chosen One stayed behind his shield, he should be able to make short work of them.

Qube kept her comforting illusion of an easy fight right up until the first wave hit. Her [Lesser Shield] absorbed the first part of the onslaught, but the sheer number of bats in the barrage meant that it was gone within seconds. In the moment between the spell going down and Qube casting it again, a handful of bats made it through. Which would have been fine if it hadnt been for the fact that the Chosen Ones shield was made of metal. As the bats touched the Chosen Ones shield he would jolt in place, his whole body spasming. And, more importantly, forcing him to drop said metal shield.

Chosen One! Qube cried, only to watch the others spring into action. Sexy Screamy Spider Ladys bolts started flying, each one piercing through the centre of a bat and causing it to explode into a ball of light. Definitely Bad Guy swept a hand in front of him.

[Fire Wall]! he cried, as a wall of flame sprang up before them, incinerating all the lower-flying bats. Sewer Bard was singing; a strange song, one that caused green mana to infuse them all. Some form of [Haste], no doubt. Even Squiggles was getting in on the action, her tentacles whipping out, grabbing several bats, bunching them together as her tentacles curled back to her body, and then she chomped into them, bursts of lightning crackling with each chew.

Qube was preoccupied with protecting the Chosen One, trying to give him a moment to recover. He managed to stagger back, Definitely Bad Guys [Fire Wall] giving him enough time to pull out one of his freshly-acquired cloud chest tubes.

The Hero pointed the tube at the bats and pressed a small button on the side. With a meaty splat sound, a giant gob of green goo spat out of the tube and caught several bats, gumming them up and plastering them to the cloud surfaces. Sweeping his arm, he blasted a full row of bats before the tube abruptly stopped producing. The Chosen One looked down at the tube, and Qube noticed the small glass cylinder inlaid in the side of it was flashing red. The Chosen One scowled at it.

Who puts a cooldown on a goo gun? he asked no one in particular. With a disappointed sigh he pulled out his weapon from the Forest Temple and started flinging the returning bent stick, skipping backwards to avoid being swarmed again.

Qube held off on using the last of her spells, waiting to see if anyone would get injured. She wasnt sure what kind of damage, if any, the Chosen One would have gotten from being struck like that, and whether or not he would have any burns.

It frustrated her that she hadnt yet learned how to develop her [Lesser Shield] spell into at least a [Shield]. The thought that her growth may have been stunted because of the Evil Emperors curse left a bitter taste in her mouth, and made it hard to remember that he might be just as much a victim of circumstance as a willing villain.

She looked at Definitely Bad Guy, who was continuously casting his [Fire Wall] to keep the bats back. He was already stronger than when he had left his Tower he must be growing as well. Why wasnt she, then?

So preoccupied with her thoughts was she, that her only warning was a crackle before she was hit by a stray bat.

It hadnt been aiming for her. It wouldnt have even known she was there. But it hurt. Her whole body spasmed, and formulas flashed before her eyes. The others heard her cry out, and a second after she was attacked a fireball, crossbow bolt, and bent stick all hit the lone bat, disintegrating it instantly.

The Chosen One was at her side, pushing her behind him as he pulled out the goo tube. The cylinder in it was bright green, and he once again started spraying the room. Qube shook her head, trying to get the world to refocus. She could still see faint mathematical equations, like the ones from her dream. Numbers appeared before her, ticking up or counting down, constantly shifting as her friends moved through the environment. After a few seconds, though, the numbers started to fade, and reality reasserted itself.

Qube swayed in place, trying to think straight.

[Lesser Shield]! she cast on the Chosen One, even though there were only a few bats left. She watched as her mana poured forth, the ghosts of tiny numbers dancing within it. She stared at it, fascinated, as the others destroyed the remaining bats.

You okay? the Chosen One asked her, as he started collecting all the inner loot of the bats. Strange yellow wings and eyeballs seemed to be the main thing dropped, although there was, of course, the inevitable bags of coins.

Some of the bags were bigger than the bats themselves. Truly, pocket magic was a mysterious thing that Qube was starting to suspect would have to wait until her curse was lifted before she would be able to study it properly.

Yes, Qube replied, somewhat uncertainly. She felt fine. There were no burns or injuries that she could sense. But that had been a very strange sensation, like shed been halfway between the dream world and reality. Was her mana filled with numbers? An interesting thought.

She watched as the numbers slowly faded completely out of sight.

A Healer should not debase themselves with injuring others, Sewer Bard protested. Especially one so fair as our Healer. It would be unconscionable to have her learn how to harm. Totally against her nature.

Didnt she repeatedly kick you in the face once? the Chosen One asked.

Yes, Sewer Bard replied. But still

And kick you into a pit?

Yes.

And Im pretty sure she broke into the Royal Library.

I had permission! Qube protested. In a way.

And shes definitely tried to curse me before.

You stuck me in the sky! Qube cried. I didnt like it!

And all the other times, the Chosen One pointed out. Qube flushed.

The point is, you dont know her nature, if you think thats who she is. Even then, people can change and grow. The Chosen One turned his back on Sewer Bard. The Bard took a hasty step forward, then stopped, fists clenched. The Chosen One didnt even notice, instead putting his hands on Qubes shoulders.

But I dont think you should do this. You could. But it would be a bad idea.

Qube swallowed, hard. A hundred protests bubbled up in her. She ruthlessly suppressed them.

Why? she asked.

The Chosen One let go of her, and rubbed the side of his face.

Its kinda hard to explain, he said. But I feel like you taking an interest in something that could be seen as bad would end poorly.

Why? Qube asked again.

The Chosen One gave her a look, closed his eyes, and sighed.

The devs are watching you, he said at last. Not directly, as such, but if you start slinging curses around, theyre going to find out. And then ... he trailed off. He didnt seem to want to finish his sentence. Qube felt her stomach churn, although whether that was over seeing him so distressed on her behalf, or some other, unknown emotion, she could not tell. A part of her wanted to protest, to declare that she wouldnt ever use the curses; Definitely Bad Guy could just teach her them. But maybe they would be able to find out if he did so. She didnt know the true extent of their powers. All she knew was that she didnt want to find out what would happen if the devs decided she was Evil.

Dont worry, Chosen One, Qube said, and gave him a gentle Understanding Smile. Ill be Good. I always am.