Tower of Souls

After creeping close enough to get a look at the area he assumed the Boss resided... Cam didn’t like what he saw.

Not far past the burnt ruins of treehouses, the trees that made up the forest rapidly dwindle, leaving a large clearing in the very center of the forest they had been exploring and fighting in; Standing dead center of the clearing, rather than another treehouse like he had expected, was a sturdy looking wood hut, a white furred piece of hide hanging in the doorway in place of an actual door...

But, stretched out in front of the hut, was the biggest bunnicorn he had seen so far- even bigger than the Big Bunni Hidden Boss they had fought; The thing looked just about big enough for him to ride!

Which, considering it had what looked like a primitive saddle on its back, was a far too accurate analogy for his liking.

After peaking out from behind a tree and getting a good look, Cam and his clone quickly backed away.

”It looks like a Boss plus pet setup.” Eron said once they were far enough back. ”I’m betting an archer that will ride around, using the Bunni’s mobility to keep its distance while it tries to pick us off.”

Cam nodded along, having had the same thought. ”It could be a caster, but mounted caster enemies are something I’ve only heard of on higher Floors- much higher Floors.”

”So... We rush the Bunni, try to drop it before the Boss can mount up? Maybe have our Big Bunnis run interference on the Boss?”

”That could work, but the Boss could potentially overpower our Big Bunnis before we finish it... And that would leave an Archer Boss standing at range, free to rain hell on us.”

”Archers usually suck in melee, though, so the Bunnis just need to get in its face and stay there!”

”Archers also usually have high Agility, so that might not work...”

Quickly running through their usual back and forth, Cam and Eron eventually settled on the plan- because, really, the only other plan they saw would be to lure the Boss and its Bunni into the forest, hoping to use the trees to make it harder on the mobs. Nodding to each other, there was only one more question they had to answer before they attacked...

”So... do we go for it now, or wait out our cooldown and try for another Ability? I think we’ve cleared everything else, so it should be safe to wait... preferably back at the Big Bunnis lair in the thorns again.”

In the end, it wasn’t really a question; One of his goals, especially on the earlier Floors, was to collect as many Abilities as possible... even with the added strain put on him with the isolation and the risk of unexpected problems, this was the best time to gather useful Abilities and develop his toolkit.

And, while this Floor had a relatively safe place to rest and wait out the cooldown, it was unlikely he would find a similar spot on other Floors- if one even existed. The Kobold Mine had shown that clearly!

If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it’s taken without permission from the author. Report it.

Not wanting to waste too much time- or, more importantly, too many rations and too much of his sanity, even if both of those were actually holding up well enough-, Cam and his clone reached the edge of the clearing just seconds before his Soul Harvest finished its cooldown and was ready to go.

After confirming that the Bunnicorn mount was once again napping in the same spot- Cam wasn’t sure if it was scripted to be there, or if it was simply the mob’s favorite spot-, the pair quickly circled to approach the hut from behind and out of sight of the monster.

Summoning their pair of Big Bunnis, Cam shared a nod with his clone before they crept forward, splitting off to circle the hut from opposite sides and hopefully catch the massive Bunnicorn between them... Only for the furious screech- more of a bellow, really, and much deeper than he would expect from an overgrown rabbit- to ring out when they were only a few steps into the clearing.

He didn’t know if the Bunni mount had heard them, or if it was a set event for when the party of Climbers entered the clearing- a scripted event, in Climber slang-, but the mob clearly knew they were there... And that meant their plan had instantly gone to shit.

”Go!” Cam barked, sharing a quick glance with his clone as they both took off at full speed, hoping to get there before the Boss could exit its hut.

While they managed exactly that, if barely, he knew the moment he saw the Boss that their plan, while good, likely wouldn’t work as they expected.

Instead of the bow, or possibly sling, that he had expected, the teddybear looking Boss- which was still the same size as the rest of the Kawe they had fought- carried an ornate looking spear, its haft carved with delicate patterns and the metal head glinting wickedly in the bright light streaming down over the clearing.

Cam almost didn’t have time to notice the rugged looking hide armor the Boss wore, as his attention was drawn to the tassels hanging just below the spearhead, a series of cords woven with carved bones- what he guessed were likely Bunnicorn bones, though he supposed they could be finger or toe bones of the small, bear like mobs... and the fact that, upon spotting him, those carved bones glowed as it activated an Ability...

And Cam nearly face planted into the grass as he found his feet suddenly bound in place.

Kawe Shaman’s(Boss) Lesser Root bound you in place for 20 seconds.

”Caster Boss!” He shouted, eyes widening at the sight of the grass under his feet stretched up to wind around his ankles, holding him in place. ”It has a Root spell!”

”Shit! Shit!” Was the response he got from his clone, as Eron found himself intercepted by the Bunni mount- violently intercepted, as its large, spiral horn caught him in the chest, launching him back nearly to the treeline with a chunk of his health missing, the mount being even faster than they had expected. ”I’ll try to keep them busy until you get free!”

Bunnicorn Alpha Mount’s Horn Charge struck Clone(Eron) for 40 damage.

Grunting in understanding- and alarmed at how much damage his clone had taken in a single attack-, Cam sent his Big Bunni charging at the Boss as he pulled a dagger from his Inventory and hacked at the grass holding him in place; The Root spell, while effective crowd control, had a number of weaknesses that he learned about: it could only be used in an area with some type of plant life- typically grasses, shrubs, or even tree roots would work, despite its slightly misleading name-, a high enough strength would allow a Classer to pull themselves free... and that the plants being used could still be damaged.

Of course, that took time, as there was plenty of grass winding around his feet, and because the Spell also worked to reinforce the plant with its magic.

Time he wasn’t sure he had, as the Boss’s spear punched through his Big Bunni like tissue paper.

Kawe Shaman(Boss) stabbed your summon(Big Bunni) for 60 damage(critical).

Sawing frantically at the grass holding him and ready to drop the dagger in favor of his greatsword to defend himself at any moment, Cam was surprised and relieved when the Boss didn’t take advantage of him being stuck... Though that relief disappeared in an instant when the Boss did something worse: he climbed onto his Bunnicorn Mount that had returned rather than continue to pursue his clone.

Their attempt to take down the mount early had failed. Now mounted up, the Boss was highly mobile. And it had an Ability that could limit their mobility, effectively multiplying its own advantage there... And Cam doubted that was the Boss’s only Ability.