"Two of them this time," Victor muttered, his voice low. "This place really doesn't want us to get comfortable."
"AJ, Lily—tie up the feet of one of them!" Sam called out the commands this time. "Ethan, Walter, Victor, we'll take down the other one!"
Sam had been thinking about their fight, about what went right, what went wrong, what issues needed to be addressed first. He had given them a debrief in the tunnel.
AJ slid forward as fast as he could, aiming for the creature on the left. His goal was simple: grab onto its legs and slow it down as much as possible whilst trying to throw off its rhythm.
As he focused on that, Lily would draw its attention and prevent it from throwing AJ off. It didn't move particularly quickly, but its attacks came thick and fast. At first, Lily struggled to keep up with the creature's pace and AJ was sent flying across the room.
"AJ!" Lily shouted. She was naturally worried about him, but at this moment she was more worried about how she would keep herself out of trouble.
Lily was now on the back foot. She was forced to retreat continuously to avoid being torn apart by the creature's sharp claws. AJ was slowly recovering—he struggled to recover his mana between fights, and he was starting to feel it.
This is problematic. Need to replenish mana. Those crystals would be nice but I can't absorb them... AJ pulled his body back together and as soon as he was able, he made his way back over to Lily and did his best to disrupt the creature's flow.
Sam didn't join in on the previous fights, as he was the strategist. As much as he wanted to continue that way he had no choice but to participate in this fight. There was no room to relax.
Right as the creature was preparing for an all-out attack on Ethan, "Now!" Sam called out, his spear stabbing at the creature's head. Victor's knife stabbed at its neck, and Walter's cane aimed at the back of its knees.
Walter's strike hit first, throwing off the creature's rhythm and balance, causing it to stop its attack on Ethan and turn its attention to Walter behind him. Victor now had a clear view of the back of its neck. His knife was slightly off its mark but still left a scratch on it causing the creature to turn its attention to him, just as Sam had planned.
Sam was standing right beside Victor, and his attack was launched first but came from further back, making it the last to hit. As he was aiming at the head and the creature's attention had turned to Victor, who was beside him, Sam now had the perfect opportunity to attack its eye.
The creature wasn't quick enough to dodge out of the way, but it did shift its head slightly, causing Sam's spear to be off. He missed the eye, hitting the creature's armour, not even leaving a mark.
Even though that attack had failed, all they had to do was reset and try again. It was the very next attempt that Sam managed to hit his mark, blinding the creature. He had relied purely on luck to land the blow—his attack was completely off and had no chance of hitting the creature's eye.
However, its balance was thrown off by Walter's attack, and it wobbled slightly as it attempted to take a step backward, making its head shift, putting its eye right in the path of Sam's attack.
"Lucky!" Ethan shouted out with a laugh.
Sam had a helpless smile on his face. "Yeah, very lucky."
The creature collapsed to the ground not long later. As it did they turned their attention to Lily and AJ, who were barely hanging on.
Lily had a few scratches, her clothes had a few new rips and tears. Seeing as she was still moving about, it seemed like her injuries weren't too serious. Ethan raised his shield and charged straight at the creature. He slammed into its side with full force, sending the creature rolling across the ground.
The others jumped at the chance. AJ grabbed onto one of its arms and its head, using all his strength to keep it on the ground. Walter, Sam, and Lily took advantage by repeatedly stabbing at it.
The creature became more and more desperate to escape AJ's binding, but every time it tried to remove AJ, Ethan and Victor did everything they could to prevent it.
It wasn't long before it finally gave up, its body going limp as the light in its eye faded.
The chamber fell silent as the second creature dissolved into dust. The fight hadn't been as bad as they initially expected, even so, the toll it had taken on them was evident as they sat down, preparing to rest again.
Lily was the first to speak, her voice strained but steady. "I need some help with these scratches," she said, gesturing to the wounds on her arms and stomach. While none of the injuries were too deep, they still needed attention.
Ethan, who was lying on his back with his shield resting beside him, groaned as he sat up. "Right, let's get you patched up." He reached for the healing salve and bandages.
Lily sat cross-legged in front of him, wincing slightly as Ethan applied the salve to her wounds. The sharp, medicinal smell filled the air, and Lily clenched her fists, trying to ignore the sting. "Thanks," her voice was barely above a whisper.
"Don't mention it," Ethan replied, his tone casual as he wrapped the bandages around her arm. "You held your own out there. That's more than I can say for some people." He shot a playful glance at AJ, who was lying nearby in a puddle-like form, his slimy body quivering faintly.
AJ let out a weak ripple, his voice echoing faintly. "Running on... empty here. Can't keep... this up... if we face... more of... those things."
Sam, who was leaning against the wall with his spear across his lap, frowned. "We need to find a way to replenish your mana," he said, his tone slightly concerned. "If we're going to keep pushing forward, we can't afford to have you out of commission."
Victor, who was sitting nearby with his injured arm bandaged, nodded in agreement. "We've got some materials with mana in them," he said, gesturing to their packs. "It's not much, but it should help."
The group quickly pulled out various items that contained traces of mana—extra minerals, small crystals, and bits of plants. They piled the items in front of AJ, who absorbed them one by one, his slimy body glowing faintly as he replenished his energy.
The group sat in silence for a while, the faint hum of the crystals lining the walls providing a strange sense of calm.
Ethan leaned back against the wall, his shield resting beside him, whilst Lily stretched her arms, testing the bandages Ethan had applied. Walter sat cross-legged, his cane across his lap, his eyes closed as he meditated. Victor kept a watchful eye on the tunnel ahead of them.
AJ, having absorbed the materials, quivered slightly, his slimy body glowed faintly. "Feeling... better," he said, his voice echoing softly. "But still... need to be... careful with... how much... I use. No more... reckless attacks."
Lily chuckled softly. "At least you won't be completely useless," she teased. "But seriously, AJ, you've been holding out on us. Full sentences? When were you planning to let us in on that little upgrade?"
AJ rippled slightly, his form shifting as if shrugging. "Not easy... you know. Each word... requires concentration... and effort. Needed to... keep you guys... out of... trouble."
Ethan snorted, a grin spreading across his face. "Oh, so now you're the hero? I guess that makes me the sidekick, huh?"
"Exactly... follow my... lead and... you might... become... Captain America." AJ replied, his tone managing to convey sarcasm.
The group chuckled lightly, the sound echoing softly in the chamber.
---
They spent some more time resting before getting up. The next passageway loomed ahead, its narrow entrance.
"I hope there aren't more of those things waiting for us on the other side." Ethan muttered.
Lily sighed heavily. "Great, you just jinxed it."
It wasn't long before the passageway opened up into their next chamber. This one was much larger. Something immediately caught their attention as they looked around: a creature standing in the centre of the room.
The group froze, their eyes widening in disbelief. The creature was similar to the ones they had fought before—humanoid, chitinous exoskeleton and a single glowing eye. This one however, was significantly larger, standing at five meters tall.
"Oh, come on."