"What do we do now?" Daisy asked. "Just plop the plants next to it?"
Seemingly in response to her question, a hole appeared directly in front of the chest. Auto retrieved Alice's final selection of plant species from his Items panel and placed each in the hole. When all thirty had been retrieved and placed, Garath half-expected the hole to fill itself in. When it didn't, he told Auto to put the rest of the plants in as well. He may not have ever been an extra credit kind of student, but he'd always been an extra credit kind of gamer. It isn't like they'd need the extra weeds, flowers, and mushrooms for anything else, he figured. Maybe they'd even get a bonus reward. Who knows? It could happen.
When the Chimerist finally stepped away from the hole in front of the chest, it began to fill with soil. After a few seconds, there was no hint that the ground had ever been broken. A new prompt appeared to the Raid Group.
You have completed the request of the Thunderbird.
The Thunderbird thanks you for bringing life back to the mountain and would like to present you with the opportunity to move forward.
As a group, you must choose between the following options:
Face the Thunderbird’s Spirit Guardian to receive the rewards within this chest
Leave the chest where it is and continue your adventure, forgoing the rewards
Hold your hand atop the chest to reveal the potential reward.
Once again, each of them approached to place a hand on the chest to take a look at what they might gain for facing the Guardian Spirit of the Thunderbird. Garath needed to get his hands on the belt he was offered.
Waist Wreath of Lightning
Raiment Slot: Waist
Armor: +11
Magic Resistance: +10%
Durability: 250/250
Item Score: 178
Defense Rating: 110
Type: Cloth Armor
Quality: Excellent
Rarity: Legendary
4 Potion Holsters
+100 Wisdom
+45 Regeneration
+20% Resistance to Lightning Damage
Item Requirements:
Level: 30
*We face it, right?* Auto asked.
The group voiced their general agreement, and got into formation for yet another boss fight. Auto, once again in his Unibear form, gave the chest an affirmative. Garath felt a rumble beneath his feet, growing in intensity with each passing second. Everyone bent their knees slightly and raised their arms to keep their balance, each looking like someone on a skateboard for the first time. The earthquake went on for a full minute before it subsided. That was when the Spirit Guardian of the Thunderbird made itself known.
To the east, just off the shore of the white sandy beach, an orca larger than nature would possibly allow came forth from the water, beaching the front half of its body. Auto quickly positioned himself between the huge black and white monstrosity and the rest of his Party, glancing back over his shoulder to make sure everyone was ready before engaging.
*Ready?* the Chimerist asked.
The group’s tank was asking Garath for the go ahead, the Necrologist knew that. The butterflies in his stomach and the excitement of a coming fight swirled within him as he readied himself, tightening his grip around the bone staff in his hands, but then a thought occurred to him. A thought so obvious he didn’t know how he hadn’t considered it before. There was no way for him to be certain that he wouldn’t die a horrible death if he acted on it, but it just made sense. There had been hints throughout the Dungeon, and his mind connected the dots at that moment.
“Wait!” he called. “Everyone back up.”
Confused, the group of adventurers stopped what they were doing to look at their Raid Group leader. Auto took a few steps backward, keeping his eyes locked on the massive orca. What Garath did next, none of them could explain.
The Necrologist unequipped his staff and walked calmly toward the water, where the boss was waiting on the shore. Auto called to him on the Raid communication channel, asking what the hell he was doing, but Garath wasn’t listening.
When he made it to within ten feet of the giant orca without being attacked, everyone was astonished. Made even more so when the Necrologist kept walking, stopping only when he was nearly close enough to the boss monster that he could reach out and touch it. There, Garath sat cross-legged in front of it.
Garath felt the creature’s sense of anxiety at his approach. A sensation that increased in potency with each forward step he’d taken. It was not angry, he noticed. Not some brainless creature waiting to attack when something got close enough to get its attention. One look into the big orca’s eyes told Garath that the creature was scared. It relaxed slightly when he sat down, making himself appear to be less of a threat. Less hostile.
For a few seconds, the Necrologist and the boss monster just looked at each other, and then a new form shimmered into existence next to Garath.
A human form, wearing a long, feathered headdress. Apart from that, the man wore only a loincloth, fashioned from the skin of an animal. The man placed one hand on Garath’s shoulder and, together, they vanished.
***
Baffled, the group just stood in silence as the giant orca wiggled its way backward off the beach and back into the ocean. Several seconds passed, a few mouths hanging open as the boss monster swam away, but not a word was spoken.
"Sooo," Daisy said, finally breaking the silence. "Does that mean that we won, or that we didn't?"
"I don't know," Athios told her quietly.
*What about G?* Auto asked. *Is he going to be okay?*
"Okay has variable definitions, but Garath is in good health. I believe that man was the physical manifestation of the Dungeon itself," Alice said.
"You can still see his Healthbar if you have the Raid display up," Maimon said. "Wherever he is, he seems to be fine."
"What do we do now, then?" Daisy asked.
As if in response to her question, a white mist appeared and rose slowly from the sand until it encompassed them entirely. Moments later, they found
