A/N: Just have fun with it.
***
Eight out of the twelve that started the dive remained. They journeyed deeper into the Hollows over the next three days, and in that time, Kurt died five more times.
The first death came in a narrow passage where the walls wept molten rock.
And from this passage, a creature with four blinking eyes and a hide containing warts that leaked lava had lunged from the shadows and took them by surprise.
"Demon Toad!" A guild member sighted it and yelled out, sending everyone into a state of frenzy.
Before Kurt could say something appropriately sarcastic, its claws raked across his throat, dropping his body to the ground gurgling.
Blood pooled beneath him, and the last thing he saw was Emma scream profanity creative enough to scorch stone as she carved the thing apart.
Thirty minutes later, Kurt gasped awake.
[RESURRECTION COMPLETE]
[Deaths: 5]
New Ability Unlocked: [Prehensile Tongue - F Rank]
- Extend and control tongue up to 15 feet with enhanced strength
- Increase range and power: +5 points to E rank
+7 points awarded [Rare Death]
Available Points: 22
[Reaper Detection: DORMANT (17 days)]
He stared at the screen, then experimentally opened his mouth and his tongue extended like a whip, wrapping around a chunk of rubble before he yanked it back.
"Oh, for fuck's sake. What am I, a bloody frog now?"
Kurt sat up afterwards and lit a cigarette to aid his nerves, but it was yanked out of his lips and smoked by Emma instead. "Quit dying like a goddamn idiot," she kicked him in the leg.
"I'll take it under advisement," he ran his hand through his messy hair.
The second death came two days later when they reached a section of the dungeon that looked structurally sound but felt wrong.
The air was too still, and Cassandra stopped dead in her tracks so abruptly the whole team nearly collided with her.
"Wait," she said, scanning the chamber. "This place looks familiar."
Rook frowned. "Familiar how?"
"Silver Tail marked locations like this," she said, pointing to faint scratches on the wall that looked random but were not. "Load-bearing supports were weakened here. One wrong step..."
Upon hearing this, Rook's gaze shifted to Kurt. "We need to check it."
"Yeah, yeah." Kurt was already walking forward. "What's the worst that could—"
The floor gave way, and Kurt barely had time to swear before plummeting through the sudden void. He hit the ground fifty feet below, his spine cracking on impact, just as the ceiling gave in, burying him beneath an avalanche of rock and dust.
[RESURRECTION COMPLETE]
[Deaths: 6]
- New Ability Unlocked: [Teleportation - F Rank]
- Teleportation across short distances, up to 15 feet via blink
- Increase range: +5 points to E rank
+5 points awarded [Uncommon Death]
Available Points: 27
[Reaper Detection: DORMANT (15 days)]
When he clawed his way out thirty minutes later, coughing dust, Emma's voice echoed from above. "Kurt! You alive?"
"Unfortunately!" He could teleport now. Brilliant. "Zero stars that one. Would not recommend," Kurt yelled back.
By the third death; crushed in a collapsing tunnel after Rook sent him to scout ahead, Kurt had gained the ability to manipulate his bones and the team had developed a system.
Kurt would die, Rook would mark the dangerous path, and everyone would wait thirty minutes for the resurrection. It became routine. Clinical, almost.
[RESURRECTION COMPLETE]
[Deaths: 7]
New Ability Unlocked: [Osteokinesis - F Rank]
- Manipulate and reinforce bone structure
- Increase control and range: +5 points to E rank
+7 points awarded [Rare Death]
Available Points: 34
[Reaper Detection: DORMANT (13 days)]
Kurt respawned outside the collapsed tunnel, sat up slowly, and glared at Rook. "You're a real piece of work, you know that?"
Rook simply grinned and pointed at the second tunnel. "Now go check that one."
Kurt groaned but went anyway...
The fourth death was faster. A crystal chamber housing monsters that looked like velociraptors, if velociraptors had gym memberships.
One caught him square in the chest and sent him flying into a crystal that stored essence which exploded from shattering against his back.
It vaporized him instantly, but when he woke, he could charge objects with kinetic energy and detonate them on impact.
[RESURRECTION COMPLETE]
[Deaths: 8]
New Ability Unlocked: [Kinetic Charge - F Rank]
- Charge objects with kinetic energy and detonate on impact
+5 points awarded [Uncommon Death]
Available Points: 38
[Reaper Detection: DORMANT (11 days)]
He picked up a pebble, charged it, and tossed it at a nearby crystal and the explosion showered sparks everywhere.
"Now that's more like it," Kurt said, grinning at his growing arsenal.
Lizzie cheered and grabbed his arm. "Do it again!"
Meanwhile, Cassandra stared, unimpressed.
The fifth death came on the third day, in a tunnel so narrow they had to move single-file. The walls were lined with veins of molten lava, and the heat was brutal even with Kurt's resistance.
A tremor shook the passage, and one of the veins burst, spraying molten energy across the tunnel.
Kurt shoved Lizzie out of the way in the nick of time, and the spray hit him instead. His skin melted, his bones turned to ash, and he was gone before he could scream.
[RESURRECTION COMPLETE]
[Deaths: 9]
New Ability Unlocked: [Essence Drain - F Rank]
- Absorb small amounts of Essence from living targets on contact
+7 points awarded [Rare Death]
Available Points: 43
[Reaper Detection: DORMANT (9 days)]
[Next System Level: 1 death remaining]
Kurt sat up, his body whole again, and looked at the countdown. Nine days. It had been nineteen when this started.
Ten days was shaved away in just five deaths. He did the maths in his head; two days lost per death, like clockwork.
'The hell is a Reaper anyway?' he thought to himself. 'And what happens when that countdown hits zero?'
Lizzie plopped down next to him, poking Kurt's side with one finger. "Hey. You alive in there?" she asked, tilting her head. "Or do I get to keep your coat as a trophy?"
"Still kicking," Kurt groaned, rubbing his ribs. He sat up slowly, trench coat rumpled, and grabbed her poking hand, pressing a quick, lazy kiss to her knuckles.
She scooted closer until their shoulders bumped and smiled, but it wasn't her usual upbeat one. "You're scaring me, you know. Every time ya go down, I think... what if you don't come back?"
"I always bounce back." Kurt pulled her closer, wrapping his arm around her, and she felt small against him. "So I guess you're stuck with me."
She rested her head on his chest, listening to his heartbeat as she drummed her fingers against his chest. "Promise?" she whispered.
Kurt looked down at her and smiled. "Cross my heart," he said, drawing an X over his chest with one finger.
***
Hours later, the tunnels grew darker and hotter as they descended.
The cores they'd harvested from dozens of monsters glowed faintly in cloth bags that were carried by the surviving guild members. Each one worth a small fortune, enough to keep Raven's Crow funded for months.
That is, if they made it out alive.
The tunnel finally opened into a massive chamber, and the team stopped as one.
At the far end, carved into the rock itself, was a door. It was enormous, easily fifty feet tall, its surface covered in ancient writing and heat radiated from it in waves that distorted the air.
Rook stepped forward, his gauntlets creaking as he clenched his fists. "We're here."
Emma moved beside him, her hand resting on the hilt of her blade. "The boss level."
Cassandra studied the massive door, heat radiating from the ancient writing. "Whatever killed the last three teams sent here is behind that door."
"Yeah," Emma said. "You scared?"
"No." Cassandra's smile was sharp. "Curious."
Emma raised an eyebrow. "Curious enough to stay?"
"Curious enough to see if your friend can die permanently." She glanced at Kurt. "Or if there's a limit to how many times he can come back."
"Charming," Kurt muttered.
Cassandra's smile widened. "Besides, if you all die, someone should survive to tell the story. Might as well be me."
Kurt took a drag of his cigarette and stared up at the massive door and he could feel the weight of whatever waited beyond it pressing against his chest. "We're about to step into a world of hurt aren't we..."
"Ya think?" Lizzie's nervous laughter was a stark contrast to the tension building in the air.
Rook turned to the team, his expression grim. "This is it. Whatever's behind that door is what killed the last three teams that tried this dungeon. We go in, we don't come out until it's dead. Everyone understand?"
The team nodded, their faces pale but determined.
Rook placed his hand on the door, and the writings flared. The stone groaned, grinding against itself, and slowly, the massive door began to open.
Heat poured out, so intense it felt like standing in front of a furnace. The light beyond was blinding, and from somewhere deep inside, something roared.
Kurt flicked his cigarette onto the ground and stepped toward the door. "Well, I've died five times in three days. What's one more?"
And they walked into the fire.
***
A/N: I hope you're enjoying this so far. Add to Library and send a power stone or two if you are.
And a review or two would mean something to me! Thank you and peace!