Chapter 214: Loop 2 Day ? (2)

Chapter 214: Loop 2 Day ? (2)

Experi-

Experi-

Experi-

Experi-

Experi-

Experi-

The snake spasmed violently as the group of insectile monsters caught between its coils began to rise again, coatings of death-based mana already forming around the monsters chitin - and then disappearing entirely, as the serpents powerful coils pulverized its captured victims entirely. Without enough of their bodies left to raise, the mana faded away.

Experience Gained!

Experience Gained!

Experience Gained!

Experience Gained!

Experience Gained!

Level up!

1 Trait Point Gained.

Experience Ga-

Only a single member of the group, its body cushioned by those of its kin, stayed whole enough for reanimation to successfully take place. The snake felt a distant sense of annoyance in regard to that, mixed in with an equally-distant - but far more powerful - sense of triumph, each emotion peeking past the unthinking cold that described most of its otherwise-empty mind.

Its coils twitched again, but only barely - the chill of death reasserted itself again before the motion could complete, causing the undead serpent to release its hold on the horribly disfigured insect. It skittered away on broken limbs, fluids seeping from the cracks in its chitin.

Pointless, maybe. It was just dried blood, and dried blood on armor, at that. But Elara was happy to find any excuse to use the armors ability, as long as she didnt strain it too far. It could break, most likely, if she used it for too long without letting it recharge.

Still, it was too enjoyable to only use when absolutely necessary. Combined with the ability to precisely control her own body that Elara had gained after swallowing the Infernal Cyclops mana core not so long ago, her stolen armor was a constant confirmation of her new status as a Seeker.

It was a heady thought, even if the sight of the armor sometimes provoked far darker ones - dealing with those, however, would come later. The crimes of its former owner could wait. Virtun wasnt going anywhere; the Little Guardian, on the other hand, clearly was.

And they were clearly on the right track; after all, Elara hadnt been the only one to notice the blue-gold spore-roots mixed within the dead spiders flesh. They looked a little different with their hosts dead, but close enough to be a reasonable match.

Elara leaned down again, finding something else interesting hidden among the pile of devastated bodies.

Huh, she said, not bothering to tamp down on her surprise, nor anything that came with it. There wasnt any need to regulate her emotions here, even if there was a need to optimize her body itself, fighting a general malaise that had been slowly increasing ever since the group reached the edge of the Guardian Statues range. They had been traveling pretty far, and maybe the lack of real rest was getting to them - at least outside of the healing aura of the Guardian Statues. Elara was dealing with it in her own way, using her bodily control to fight back the encroaching weakness and exhaustion.

It was harder than normal, but she also hadnt spent all that much time outside of a Guardian Statues aura since gaining her ability. She might have been using it as a crutch without noticing before.

What do we have here? she finally drawled, peering at her find. Caught between her fingers was a broken scale - dark as obsidian, glossy, and fascinatingly smooth beyond its surprisingly sharp edges. A snakes scale. A bigger one than expected, even if most of the other characteristics matched.

She held it up higher, and the others shambled close, more affected by tiredness than Elara was.

Wow. Okay. Maybe the Little Guardian isnt so little anymore, Erik said, squinting at the scale. His tone was light, maybe trying to make up for Rowan missing. He was still in Orken, having taken a number of survivors who chose to leave the ruins of Verdant Grove, and Elara couldnt help but notice there was decidedly less levity in his absence.

Not that Elara really wanted that at the moment. She stifled a yawn, manually forcing adrenaline to flood her body - not too much, but enough to increase her alertness.

That alertness was likely the reason she was the first to notice the scratching, dragging sound that kept moving closer. It started light, a constant beat that she barely noticed with the others speaking beside her, but quickly became something more noticeable - especially when she raised her hand and beckoned the others to fall silent.

They did, even if her status as a Seeker was ridiculously new. The others were nothing if not professional when it came down to it; they never held her age or inexperience against her, though Elara liked to think her competence was a factor in that. Either way, the sudden silence gave her the opportunity to listen more closely.

And she found it again, this time joined by a few other sounds - a light click here, an almost inaudible squelch there. The others heard it too, reaching for the weapons at their sides and pulling them free. Erik quickly took the front, tower shield held before him, while Kala stepped backwards to string her bow in a hurry, Doran hefted his large battleaxe in both hands, and Valera began to somewhat-lethargically bounce on her toes as if ready to break into a - tired, but still blisteringly fast - sprint.

Elara, on the other hand, wasnt as sure what to do. Eventually she decided to stay near Erik; the man seemed just as tired as everyone else, and she might be able to draw some attention if needed at a crucial moment. His defenses were strong, but not perfect. Hopefully, Elaras reflexes - and, more importantly, her armors ability to phase through the occasional attack - could fill any gaps.

The light of their armor and weapons, partly sans Elara, whose weapons were dull in their lack of enchantment, and whose armor glowed a black light - which didnt provide all that much illumination, given its color - helped to brighten the tunnel. It was enough that, when the sources of the sounds made themselves known, there was more than enough light to see by. More than enough visibility to make out the group of bedraggled monsters that came to meet them.

They were a varied bunch, unified only by a few common elements; the way that wounds stretched across their sides, or the way many of their bones lay exposed to the air, or just the way that they simply looked at the group of humans standing across from them.

With dead eyes flecked by mindless hunger.