On the far side of the large, skull-shaped chamber, a trio of adventurers were locked in combat with the Carcilisk. Its claws swung with a slow and deadly weight. In its mouth, energy was building for beam attack.

  It was hard to imagine that the adventurers had missed the painted message in the previous room.

  Why would they fight it? It can’t be worth the risk, Thesa thought.

  Thesa’s view of the battle was partly obscured by the three pillars (two round and one triangular) near the room’s center. Still, it was obvious that the creature's body was tense and poised to retaliate against the attackers. It flicked its many tongues and locked its focus on the lead adventurer, a human [Ranger].

  The [Ranger]’s hair was blonde on one side and electric blue on the other. Her eyes were the same blue. She fired a crossbow at the looming creature and in her off-hand she brandished a small, jagged knife. A second knife with a distinctive handle was strapped to her leg.

  Just behind her, plucking out chords on a kithara, was a halfling [Bard] with wavy purple hair tied back into a ponytail. She was tall for a halfling, but her nose was tiny and her chin was even tinier.

  Finally, an elf [Cleric] circled the battlefield with an oversized shield. Her hair was short and gray and she had two different colored eyes: one blue and one green.

  Thesa’s eyes narrowed on a knife strapped to the [Ranger]’s leg. It had the same handle as the knife which had been lodged in the pressure plate on the first [Floor].

  Dammit, I should have remembered, Thesa thought.

  "What's going on?" Witmie wondered aloud.

  "This is bad," Thesa explained. "That [Cleric] is going to banish the Carcilisk to Beautuk's realm. Those knives are produced by a group of devotees. They can deliver a limited number of corpses to Beautuk’s realm without the help of a Knight."

  Before anyone else could reply, Thesa disappeared from Merijest’s back. She used [Dive] to jump ahead, relying on forward momentum to stay upright as she hopped a few times then used [Dive] again. The taste of metal had taken over her mouth and her head was gripped with pain, but before she knew it, she was beside the [Cleric].

  Thesa swung her halberd but the momentum of her arm was slowed by a cushion of [Bard] magic. The [Cleric] took the delay as an opportunity to spin around and catch the halberd with her over-sized shield. As the blade caught, he shoved back hard and Thesa fell.

  Then the [Cleric] raised his oversized shield aloft and cast [Judgement]. Without making physical contact, Thesa felt a wrenching pain in her chest and her body was thrown backward to the ground. The spell, which only worked on undead, had struck her with great force.

  Thesa regretted charging so quickly into combat. It would have been a bad enough idea before, but she was still recovering from the loss of her leg. Most of her party members were still crossing the room. Only Merijest had closed in but judging from the way the demoness clutched at her ribcage, the [Cleric]’s spell had struck her as well.

  Beneath her shoulder armor, Frostbite shivered with fear.

  “Who the hell are you guys?” the [Ranger] called out. She fired another crossbow bolt at the Carcilisk. The creature’s chitin stomach made a loud crack as it split just below the head.

  The [Cleric] answered in a somber voice. “The [High Devil] Merijest and her growing army of sinners. The ones I warned you about.”

  The [Bard] chimed into the conversation, speaking somewhat rhythmically so as not to lose track of playing her kithara. “Even as our enemies draw near,” she said, “I know He is with me.”

  “Beautuk is lying to you,” Thesa said. “He’s not saving anyone.” She found the words difficult to gather. “Please don’t deliver anyone else to his realm!”

  “Even when the demons lie,” the [Bard] continued, now working the words into a melody, “I know He is with me.”

  The [Cleric] moved toward Thesa, preparing to cast another spell.

  Merijest put herself between the [Cleric] and Thesa. “My [Witch] has more patience than I do,” she said. She spread her wings and flicked her wrist. Then, she reached a claw into her own mouth and pulled out a canine tooth. As she did, the [Cleric]’s body heaved forward and a tooth fell out of her mouth in turn. Merijest pulled another of her own teeth and the [Cleric]’s mouth obliged with another of its own.

  The kithara music stopped and Thesa turned to see Witmie and Durn on either side of the [Bard]. Witmie punched the girl square in the chest while Durn summoned a gust of wind to knock her prone.

  As Thesa turned her attention back to the [Cleric], Yabba came running up and more-or-less body slammed her all the way to the ground. When the blood-splattered Nest Walker picked itself back up, the [Cleric]’s body had been nearly flattened, armor and all. She stopped moving.

  Merijest turned to examine Thesa.

  ***

  Witmie was standing over the [Bard] with a foot hovering above the prone halfling’s chest. The [Bard] belabored her breath. Her now-untied hair was a mess of purple. The wind had been knocked out of her, but in between breaks, she shouted, “Kronzue, I think Zamantha is dead.

  The [Ranger] didn’t reply but another crossbow bolt struck the Carcilisk.

  “I don’t think she’s listening,” Witmie replied. “That’s not very good intra-party support.”

  “Shut up, you–you vile–uh spawn!” The [Bard] sputtered back.

  “I don’t think you’re in the position to be so uppity,” Witmie observed. “Merijest and Yabba took out your [Cleric] for attacking Thesa, but you still have time to rethink your role here. What’s your name?”

  The [Bard] stayed silent.

  “I think she’s ‘Rilriss’,” Durn said, pointing to the kithara case which had fallen open at the [Bard]’s side. The words ‘Property of Rilriss’ were written inside.

  Rilriss looked away anxiously but then she started lightly blushing and closed her eyes.

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  “What were you looking at?” Witmie asked. “Oh, did you see Merijest?”

  The [Bard] mumbled something about temptation under her breath.

  ***

  Merijest loomed over Thesa. “Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine,” Thesa replied. “Shouldn’t you be focused on combat right now?”

  Merijest smiled weakly. She gave Thesa another once-over. “What can I say? I worry about you.”

  Yip yip! The Foxtapus let out a cry. It was the only member of Merijest’s party focused on the [Ranger].

  Merijest darted over to the Foxtapus’s side and summoned a flurry of icicles.

  “You’re not going to keep me from this kill,” the [Ranger] shouted at Merijest. “If I die, I’m going down with one more trophy.” Kronzue, the [Ranger], aimed her crossbow directly at the Carcilisk’s head. Blue light surrounded her outstretched arm. As the bolt left the crossbow, it split into eight copies, all of which flew through the air in a chaotic motion toward the creature.

  Merijest managed to catch four bolts with her icicles. The Foxtapus caught three with its psychic shields. One struck the Carcilisk at the base of an eye stalk, severing the stalk with a snap.

  Merijest flew toward the [Ranger], claws bared.

  “Dammit,” Kronzue yelled. She put her finger and thumb into her mouth and whistled loudly. As she backed away, two illusory copies of herself emerged from the same spot. Each ran in a different direction. One ran toward the exit. Another ran toward Merijest. The last ran in a wide arc toward the Carcilisk.

  Merijest impaled all three with bloody icicles, but as the bodies fell, they dissipated. None had been the true Kronzue.

  Kronzue became visible once more as she drove her jagged blade between one of the cracks she’d made in the Carcilisk’s body. As she pushed her arm further in, the soft flesh squished. The serpent shrieked and collapsed on the dusty ground. Kronzue leapt off of the creature and landed on her feet.

  “I’ve got you now,” the [Ranger] shouted.

  Dropping the jagged knife in her hand, she took the one strapped to her leg. She twirled it by its distinctive handle.

  She approached the prone monster, but a psychic shield blocked her path. Just then, Thesa used [Dive] to appear behind Kronzue and drive her halberd right through the [Ranger]’s head.

  As Kronzue’s body dropped, Thesa followed it in a controlled fall to sit on the ground.

  ***

  “Holy shit, they’re both dead,” Rilriss whispered.

  Witmie, who was still holding the [Bard] on the ground gave a sympathetic look.

  “Were you three close?” Durn asked.

  “I’m not talking to any of you,” Rilriss said as she closed her eyes.

  “What should we do with her?” Witmie asked.

  Merijest and Thesa looked over. Thesa asked, “Oh I thought you already killed her.”

  “Honestly, I think she’s harmless at this point,” Witmie shrugged. “I would feel bad. And besides, she could be our hostage.”

  Thesa didn’t really hear Witmie’s response because she was momentarily caught up wondering when she had gotten so comfortable with killing.

  “We might as well get some information out of her,” Merijest said.

  Before the conversation could proceed, the room began to shake and the entrance to Room Q swung open. Thesa couldn’t see what was coming with the pillars in the way.

  ***

  Witmie lifted Rilriss by the collar of her armor and carried the [Bard] between the three pillars to decrease their vulnerabilities. Durn followed close behind and summoned a swirling barrier of wind around them. Yabba chose that moment to plop down on the ground in a sitting position.

  Merijest drew back toward Thesa while the Foxtapus joined with psychic shields ready to go. They moved carefully, backing up and getting a better view of what was coming.

  Five hooded figures had entered the room. Three of them stood back and spread out along the perimeter. Their attention was focused on Witmie and Durn’s safe spot between the pillars.

  At the same time, the shortest among them charged toward Merijest, stealing glances toward the fresh Carcilisk corpse as they ran. They carried with them a small, tactical paint brush and a thin slab of bone-lead.

  The last hooded figure followed close behind wielding a pair of gleaming knives.

  Merijest jumped to the ready. She took to a low hover and summoned a swarm of ice shards around her.

  The short hooded figure with the tactical paint brush began to move in zigzags while the one trailing behind quickly sheathed one of their knives and drew a loaded, triple-barrel flintlock pistol which they aimed directly at Merijest.

  BAM! The pistol exploded and a small, bone-lead ball snapped through the air into Merijest’s torso.

  “Fuck!” Merijest shouted. She fired back with shards of ice. The gun-toting combatant was quick to dodge most of them, but several shards lodged in their ankle.

  Another hooded figure charged toward Merijest with a heavy mallet. With a surprisingly springy step, they leapt into the air. Their cloak took the rigid shape of a glider as they zoomed toward Merijest and swung their mallet. Merijest caught the swing with her claws but the impact still forced her to the ground.

  Meanwhile, the one with the tactical brush painted something onto the thin slab of bone-lead and tossed it. It slid along the ground, stopping right against one of the Foxtapus’s barriers.

  Thesa struggled to make out the symbol at an angle while she pulled herself into a more raised position. Before it could take her by surprise, Thesa used [Dive] to appear behind the brush-wielding combatant. She swung her halberd, catching the hooded figure in the hip.

  The hooded figure stumbled and pulled a knife from their cloak. Their attempt at a retaliatory stab was blocked when the Foxtapus placed all of its shields around Thesa. As the knife bounced against psychic energy, however, the hooded figure snapped their fingers and the sheet of bone-lead exploded into shrapnel. Pieces flew around the room chaotically. Bits of bone-lead hit Merijest as well as the gun-wielding figure with whom she had been locked in the swing of battle. Splinters even cut into the short hooded figure who had activated it in the first place.

  Several slivers floated before Thesa, embedded in the psychic shields. She was untouched, but the Foxtapus itself had been closest to the explosion with no defenses saved for itself.

  The small creature was riddled with bits of soft metal. It collapsed into the dust.

  “No!” Thesa shouted.

  “See how it feels when something you care about dies?” The short hooded figure said, catching their knife on Thesa’s halberd and sending her toppling backwards onto the ground.

  Thesa wasn’t listening. She was furious.

  Merijest replied to the taunt from across the chamber. “You idiots! We weren’t the ones who killed the Carcilisk. We were defending it.”

  The whole battlefield stopped.

  “...what?” The hooded figure pulled down their hood to reveal a frogkin with black and yellow skin.

  “Look at the dead adventurers on the ground.” Merijest replied.

  The frogkin and the other hooded figures all looked awkwardly at the bodies of Kronzue and Zamantha.

  “I was going to heal the Carcilisk. I can still do that if you wish,” Merijest continued. “It hasn’t fully dissipated.”

  The figures turned their attention to the Carcilisk corpse which had been split partly down the middle.

  “Not to sound like a pessimist,” the gun-wielding figure said, “but Carcie looks pretty dead to me.”

  Thesa couldn’t believe Merijest could be so calm about the Foxtapus.

  Yip!

  Thesa looked to see that the Foxtapus was now standing on its paws. Despite having become undead, the Foxtapus was energetic. The shrapnel had been expelled from its injuries, although some of the creature's bone was visible on a small section of one of its front legs.

  Way back in [Blinny Dungeon], Merijest had explained the sigils she could give to living [Familiars]. In fact, Thesa had heard the explanation again when Witmie and Durn joined the party.

  Upon death, these sigils automatically granted a [Half-Life Revival] to any of Merijest’s living [Familiars]. They were single use but drastically cut down on the recovery time a [Half-Life Revival] would usually require.

  “I guess that won’t be a problem, will it?” The frogkin asked, sheepishly.

  I wrote this part soon after getting into NinKoro and I was so awed of how much work the series puts into characters who die immediately. I wanted to try making these enemies a bit more memorable but it was so difficult to kill them all and as you all will see I got too attached to one of them...

  Anyways, tell me what other book series you like? I'm always looking for recommendations!

  ***

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  Dungeon Maps by Ailish Maura using

  Region maps by Ailish Maura using IbisPaint and FireAlpaca