Atlas scurried backward and took a resting position near Shade and Stomper. They waited with nervous anticipation, remembering the last time they supposedly won this fight.
“It can’t be,” Shade breathed.
Everyone followed his line of sight and watched as the machine shambled from the fire, a charred Carhein still held in its hand.
“I’ve got nothing left,” Stomper told them softly.
The machine took three more steps before a loud snapping noise echoed through the room. Its right leg broke free, and it collapsed to the ground, dropping Carhein’s body. Determined to carry out its mission, it pulled itself along the floor with its hands. It didn’t take much longer for one of them to break at the shoulder, releasing more of the fluid in a quick flood and instantly igniting the area again.
The group watched in silence and held their breath. A string of notifications excited and relieved them.
You dealt 1,180 damage to OH SHIT with Internal Combustion.
OH SHIT died.
You earned 345 experience from killing a Mythic Boss.
You’ve earned the artifact Steel Hide. With this artifact equipped, your Dire Bear form will gain steel plated armor, reducing your damage taken by 50%.
You’ve gained 3 attribute points for killing a Mythic Boss.
All members of your party have gained 5 attribute points for being the first party to kill a Mythic Boss in the game.
You’ve completed a Mythic level Secret Dungeon and earned 6,000 experience, 4,000 skill experience, 100 gold, and 3 attribute points.
You’ve advanced to Level 21!
The group looked around and rose to their feet.
Holy crap! That is an amazing amount of stuff. A little disappointed there isn’t any cool gear but the money, artifact, and bonus attributes more than make up for it.
The party stood in stunned silence until they all looked at each other and smiled before their gaze wandered to Carhein’s smoking form.
“We did it, but it wasn’t without a loss. Hopefully, his experience penalty isn’t too bad.” Atlas said in a grim tone.
“The dude is usually pretty annoying, but I’m not gonna lie. That was a baller move to bail you out at the end,” Shade said as he looked to the charred remains of Carhein.
“Yeah. I was dead for sure otherwise. I owe him for that. The least I can do is keep him from waiting through that timer.”
His attention shifted toward the remains of Carhein, and he fished an item from his pouch. Focus Crystal in hand, he cast Resurgence.
His left hand held the Focus Crystal out while his right wove patterns around it. Magic slowly settled into the gem before a crack appeared and it crumbled to dust. Everything around him took on a deep purple haze and his mind shifted focus to Carhein.
The man sat in a chair, floating above the body on the ground, and tapped away at the classic controller in his hands. Atlas walked over and watched the guy shoot the crazy little pixelated bugs with his white spaceship as they dove toward him in patterns.
“Gotta love classics.”
The voice startled the warrior, and he jumped in his seat before turning to look at Atlas.
“How are you here? I’m waiting on respawn.”
“Resurrection spell. We still have a mission to complete. It’s the least I could do after you saved our butts there. You have some nice surprises waiting on you when you get back. The bonus rewards for that fight are pretty epic, but it didn’t drop any neat weapons or anything.”
Carhein chuckled, “I guess thou dost need the protection of Carhein the Mighty. Lead the way good druid and we shall return.”
Atlas shook his head and grabbed Carhein by the hand. With what amounted to a flick of the wrist, he tossed his spirit back at the dead body. It sunk in and Atlas watched as the body healed itself. With a jolt, he was out of the spirit world and all the colors returned.
Carhein was slowly climbing back to his feet and Atlas took the time to cast Harmony and Nurture on him. Resurgence only brought them back at 10% health.
You healed Carhein for 42 HP with Harmony.
You healed Carhein for 21 HP with Nurture.
Atlas took stock of the situation and noticed he had an astounding 10 attribute points at his disposal from the bonuses for the dungeon. Since his cat and bear form redistributed points for him when he shifted, there was no reason to worry about Strength and Agility. Speed might become important later, but for now he’d forgo Agility. That left him with Constitution, Intellect, and Spirit. He put 4 into Intellect bringing it to 24, 4 into Constitution bringing it to 20, and 2 into Spirit bringing it to 12.
For getting 20 attribute points in Constitution, you have unlocked a bonus. You now regenerate health at 3 HP every 20 seconds when out of combat and get a permanent boost of 30 HP.
“Damn man, didn’t know you could resurrect people as well. Looks like we definitely picked the right man for the job.” Stomper said with a clap on Atlas’ shoulder.
“It’s actually the first time I’ve used that spell. Learned it from a class quest at level ten.”
“Your magic is mighty indeed. It prevented the damnable gods of this world from leeching as much of Carhein’s battle knowledge as expected. Ten percent is a small price to pay for the death of that abomination,” Carhein said as he glared at the husk of the machine.
“I didn’t know it reduced the experience penalty. That could prove useful indeed.” Atlas said with a smile.
After everyone finished reviewing their notifications and assignments, they all turned to look at the hallway opposite where they’d entered.
“Ready to go find out what this place is hiding?” Stomper asked.
The group nodded in agreement and walked into the passageway. It curved twice, but after one-hundred yards they entered a room that made them shiver. It looked like a modern day jail. Cages lined the walls. Metal bars stretched floor to ceiling.
Atlas stayed
