JackTheMaverickThe three saw the entrance was surrounded by creatures largely consisting of bugbears and a few orcs. A strange collection of monsters for sure, but nothing they haven't dealt with prior. Ais and Ryuu readied their stance, Lefiya let out a quick heal to give them one more burst of energy to take out this group and make their return. And yet...Ais sensed something was off. Just like that minotaur who found that white-haired boy that fateful day, there was something not meant to be on this level. The mob let out a huge roar, blowing the trio a tad off balance but making their hair whip in the vortex. Ais still felt uneasy, noticing the roaring creatures changed stance, creating one large gap in their formation.
"A new tactic?" Ais thought, thinking the roaring was a distraction as the opening would allow for a monster to charge forth or shoot out a projectile. But as the dust kicked up in the roar, she could only spot a pair of bright yellow snake-like eyes. The wind was still kicking up, Ryuu blocked out enough dust blowing into her eyes to catch another such set of eyes on a body crawling on the wall. Lefiya was nervous but held her own ground, being ready for their next action of action and not wanting to desert the team. But the horde was about to put a full stop to that concern.
Ryuu called out "It's here! Retreat back around the-" but in mid-sentence, the two entities readied their gaze and, within a flash cast from their lustrous eyes, blinded the area around the trio. As the light faded, three statues were left in the wake. The petrification was so swift to the point that the trio couldn't even react quickly enough to everything from skin to fabric being converted into stone. Consciousness immediately left their body along with shards of armor not being able to hold the conversion and weight of its new stone form.
Several days pass, Ais's party hasn't checked in. A few members of Loki Familia formed a party in search of them and made their way down the spiraling passages. On entry to the 19th floor, they saw her motionless likeness in the dust. Closer inspection quickly made the elation shift into shock, as what was thought to be a strangely-placed sculpture of Ais turned out to BE her, with Ryuu and Lefiya nearby succumbing to the same effect. These floors being desolate and damp as they are, the limited time that passed was enough for moss to grow on the statues and deterioration to worsen with stone hair plummeting to the ground. This party had questions as to why these creatures, capable of freezing Level 6+ adventurers with no issue, would leave them as they were and not shatter them completely.
A teasing show of mercy to try and restore them back for a second try?
A twisted statue garden for their own pleasure?
A declaration that they could emerge to the surface if Ais's party wasn't an obstacle to them?
Many answers they desired, with a way to reverse the petrification at the top. The Dungeon was indeed a dangerous place.
2023-09-25 00:23:03 +0000