Sunday Free Write [Link to post.]
Jake the wizard dressed in black and red robes, Elle the rogue dressed in a black leather coat, and Oren the paladin wielding two shields stared at the cave entrance.
"That's the cave where we'll find the goblin prince that stole the little girl's lucky bead," Jake said. "Getting in is easy, but if we're holding the bead it'll trigger ambushes waiting for us on the way out. C'mon." Jake walked forward, Elle and Oren followed him.
The cave was deep and winding, but they stuck to the path and reached the end of the cave. An open treasure chest sat on a table surrounded by spilled gold and gems. On top of the golden mound a small clear glass jar held a tiny brilliant bead that glowed brighter than it had any right to in the dark, torch lit cave. Elle grabbed the jar, then her hand disappeared into her coat and came back empty.
"Got it. Let's go get ambushed," Elle said. She unsheathed her daggers.
"There's going to be a total of five. Oren and I will let you solo the first few so that you can get used to combat. The last ambush is a champion, so we'll have to work together," Jake said.
"Pfft. Champion Shmampion, I can beat him solo," Oren complained to no one in particular.
"It's more fun as a team. We'll *have to work together*," Jake repeated sternly.
"Fine." Oren said. Elle walked toward the cave's exit.
"Stealth up at that rocky outcropping," Jake said. He held his arm out to keep Oren from going forward. "We'll wait here while you deal with the first ambush." Elle nodded and kept walking. She reached the pile of rocks and concentrated on her stealth skill. She looked down at her hands and saw them fade from reality. Only a thin black line represented the edges of her form. She took two more steps and felt the jar vibrate in her coat pocket. Two screaming goblins appeared around her.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAahh." They stopped screaming and stood in place staring at each other.
"Bead close." One of them said while looking around the area. Elle moved silently behind the one that spoke. She focused on her backstab skill and activated it. Without knowing how she got there, Elle found herself standing behind the goblin with both her daggers in him from behind. It slumped over dead, then dispersed into red dust. The vanished corpse left behind a single copper coin.
"Attack!" The other goblin yelled. He swung his mace in Elle's direction but she used a rogue skill to dash backward. The goblin's mace hit empty ground. Elle reached into her coat and brought out a handful of throwing daggers. She pelted the goblin with blades while running circles around him, staying at a distance.
"Good job," Jake said. He applauded and Oren joined in too, adding the clang of his metal gauntlets. The next ambush has four goblins. Think you can take them?" Elle nodded.
"Yeah, I've still got a ton of skills I haven't tried out yet," Elle said. She waved at them and ran ahead to the next ambush. Jake did not tell her where the next ambush would be, but she stealthed anyway to be ready for it. Her mind picked out the next set of skills she wanted to try out.
"AAAAAAAaaahh." The four goblins gave each other dumb looks while Elle picked out her target. She found herself behind the chosen goblin, and thought about her next move. Shocking Caltrops. She reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a handful of caltrops. She dropped them in the immediate area then dashed backward. The metal asterisks began to hum with energy, and electricity arced between the individual caltrops despite the ground. The goblins moved to follow her, and they all stepped on the trap. The electricity dazed them while the spikes pierced them to cause bleeding damage. They continued to move toward her, but at a slower pace. She finished them off from a distance using her throwing daggers. Elle noticed Jake and Oren walking toward her once the last of the goblin corpses dissipated. She waved at them and ran to greet them.
"THIS IS SO FUN!" She yelled, bouncing up and down. "Jake, your AlterNet is going to make me rich." Elle left them there and ran to the third ambush.
"Alright, she's in. Can I go play now?" Oren asked. Jake placed a hand on Oren's shoulder, and nodded.
"Yeah, but now that we're going to be opening the AlterNet up to other people," Jake looked into Oren's pale grey eyes. "No more changes unless you run them by me first, okay?"
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