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A Soldier's Life - 316 - Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place (final edit 8-5-25, its better but prob needs another pass)
🕑 Added 2024-12-22 19:42:46 +0000 UTCChapter 316: Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place Rhuuk must have been fatigued from his relentless combat as he was carrying the pair. Hi
Chapter 316: Caught Between A Rock And A Hard Place
Rhuuk must have been fatigued from his relentless combat as he was carrying the pair. His swings lacked their usual ferocity, and I presumed he had depleted much of his aether reserves and wasn’t using his tattoos at the moment. Even though the dungeon enhanced the recovery of aether, he could not charge forward recklessly.
We paused in the short corridor to the ice demon chamber to watch the other two progress. Mynasha observed, “They both look to be conserving aether, probably for the fight with the ice demon.”
I was not as certain. “Will they try to steal the horns when we come out,” I speculated.
“No,” she said, then hedged. “Possibly. Maybe they are conserving aether to confront us after we fight the demon and are weakened.” At least she was admitting to herself that honor was secondary to the prize of being the Supreme.
My hand brushed the blue glowstone to my right. I took a modest block of it into my space. I needed to conserve my own aether as I had only recovered about two-thirds. While Rhuuk fought, I spared a glance into the ice demon chamber. Frost coated the blue glowstones within, and a thin layer of snow covered the icy floor. It was a treacherous environment to fight in, and we were warned that the longer you fought, the colder the chamber became. Since you would be sealed inside the freezer, it was a death sentence if you couldn’t slay the demon quickly. Of course, Maveith had a ring of warmth.
I tried to find the demon. We were told the ice demon blended into the floor, looking like a snow-covered stone, but from my vantage point, there were a dozen or more large stones. I was slightly concerned that the demon might resist my dimensional space and it would result in a desperate fight. From Glasha, I knew it was a highly magical creature, capable of creating a frozen aura around itself.
It was also covered in a white, bony plate exoskeleton, making it difficult—even with a runic weapon—to locate flesh. Maveith’s bludgeoning hammer would have been handy for this encounter.
“Are we going?” Mynasha asked, seeing my uncertainty and the competition getting closer.
“I say we let them fight the demon and take the horns when they exit.” Mynasha looked shocked at the suggestion. She had followed my lead so far and I had carried her.
“We cannot kill them,” she stated resolutely, but didn’t say we couldn’t rob them. I nodded, sheathed magebane, and the black spear appeared in my hand. Having watched Rhuuk practice, I thought the spear was a better weapon to keep him at a distance since his broadsword had longer reach than the magebane.
We watched the pair work slowly through the dretches and blood stirges to reach the corridor where we were waiting. They came up short, not expecting to see us there. Jhuarkasha barked mockingly at us. “Too afraid to fight the demon?” It was a weak taunt, clearly crafted to lure us into killing the ice demon. The cleric lacked cunning among other things. I could see him being a puppet of the warlords, but I didn’t know if Mynasha had the fortitude to stand up to the warlords. Not that I cared for the fate of the Caliphate.
My eyes slid to Rhuuk, and I tried to read his intentions. Rhuuk was covered in dretch and strige blood but showed no signs of fatigue. Even though Jhuarkasha was the candidate, Rhuuk was clearly the one in charge. Mynasha was waiting for me to answer the insult. Apparently, I was the one who spoke for our team. “How do you know we have not already defeated the ice demon?”
The cleric peered into the snow-blanketed, icy chamber beyond, his face betraying panic. If we had both horns we could complete the third trial. The snow lay undisturbed, making it evident that we had not yet crossed the threshold into the demon’s domain, but uncertainty was on the cleric’s face. “They have not,” Rhuuk voiced aloud, figuring it out, while not breaking eye contact with me. His eyes drifted to the spear for a split second and then back to my eyes.
“The demon is all yours,” I gestured slightly with the spearhead to let them pass, but they didn’t move. It was a standoff. I think they planned to take the horns from us when we exited—but that was also our plan. In my estimation, they must have intentionally slowed to let us enter first. They had been acting more fatigued than they actually were as well.
Jhuarkasha tried not to give away their intentions but turned to Rhuuk for orders. The tendons on Rhuuk’s hand flexed, and I watched the tip of his blade for movement. His eyes held an eagerness to test his skill against mine, but he was also intelligent. He had studied me on numerous occasions and seen what my dimensional space held.
“You can have the goliaths if you give us the hellhound skull.” The warlord’s statement threw me off. He laughed darkly at my surprise, “You thought we wouldn’t find out why a human would help a candidate in The Choosing?” Damn it Maveith! I assumed it was his actions that had revealed why we were here.
“We didn’t tell anyone,” Mynasha said from my side.
“I know,” I said while maintaining eye contact with the warlord.
I tried to regain my mental footing, thinking out the implications. There had to be spying and divination magic but Maveith’s attempt to contact his sister was likely the reason. I shook my head slowly, it didn’t matter. I was certain the bulky pack Jhuarkasha carried had the snake demon horns. If we left the dungeon, he now had leverage over me as Zorana and Myra were his slaves. Maybe he wanted something more—something he had seen in my dimensional items? A slight anxiety stirred in me, I couldn’t let him live.
I grinned, showing confidence. “How about a friendly wager? We will put up our hellhound skull for the snake demon horns? The winner walks out of here with both. Just me and you, no need to get the clerics involved.” If Mynasha was involved, she could probably end this quickly if we moved to the large chamber away from the walls. But I was worried that Jhuarkasha could shield Rhuuk and prevent my attacks.
I was going this route because I had doubts about fighting the ice demon, and Rhuuk was an unknown threat. Glasha had indicated the ice demon was not much weaker than the shadow demon, and we had hoped not to have to fight either. The warlord didn’t take long to answer. Rhuuk looked at the spear again and my sheathed blade, clear wanting on his face for both artifacts. That was why I was surprised when I answered. “No, human. You have no honor.”
Really? We were talking about honor now! I wanted to grind my teeth, but I had learned enough about warlord honor in our months in the Caliphate to twist it to my advantage. “I killed Warlord Trakor, it was I who brought down his roc, Chaostail, north of Varvao,” I said. “I claim his honor for mine.”
“You lie, human,” Cleric Jhuarkasha yelled at me, spittle flying from his mouth. Stealing a dead man’s honor was unhonorable and had to be met with an honor challenge, so I thought I would force a fight either way. Mynasha had taken a step back from me, also stunned at my claim.
Warlord Trakor led the expedition to conquer Western Telha; his unexpected death nearly doomed it, causing infighting among the remaining warlords and clerics. From Glasha and Tarnasha’s conversations, I knew Trakor had been an ally of Rhuuk, but I did not know how deep the alliance went.
War Cleric Mynasha was at the head of that fleet, the strongest cleric, and I had just stunned her by admitting I was the pain-in-the-ass Hound who had killed Pathfinders and warlords alike, nearly thwarting the annexation.
I could also claim Pathfinder Rakuh as my victim and his honor, but I thought I wouldn’t need to because of Rhuuk’s reaction. I had killed Rakuh in an honor duel when I freed the goliath slaves in Kraken Bay. That Pathfinder was the patriarch of the Sun Shadow Clan and respected throughout the Caliphate. Glasha had been warned me that several warlords and clans would seek to avenge his death.
My eyes had not broken with Rhuuk. Some people didn’t need a Truthseeker to read the truth in another. “No, I believe he tells it true.” Rhuuk’s breathing had slowed as he prepared mentally and physically. “Death or surrender?” He asked for terms.
“Death,” I didn’t hesitate to respond.
“No!” Jhuarkasha barked, getting his wits. “Surrender!”
“Not your decision, cleric. It is my honor,” Rhuuk said dismissively. I caught something in an exchange between them. Was this an act? I had only recently learned the orc language, so the nuances were still a little lost on me, but reading body language was something I had gotten good at from all my weapons practice. They were expecting this outcome—maybe even desired it. Don’t doubt yourself, Eryk, I told myself. I could beat Rhuuk.
“We should move out to the large cavern,” I gestured with my spear, not liking the ice demon at my back.
“I am comfortable here,” Rhuuk said, motioning Jhuarkasha away. At least Jhuarkasha didn’t cast any spells on him—none that I noticed, even with my aether-infused sight active.
Rhuuk was an imposing warrior, built like Maveith and more agile than Benito. With his tattoos, he was probably faster than me, stronger than me, and on top of that, he had more combat experience. But what he didn’t have was a dimensional space.
The blue-lit corridor we were standing in was twenty feet wide with a ceiling to match. Rhuuk’s stance changed as he gracefully circled my right. Mynasha backed away from me, and I think Rhuuk knew she couldn’t use her lightning in proximity to the glowstones.
His footwork was some of the best I had ever observed. It gave away nothing of his intentions, and he glided like a feather, barely disturbing the ground. I almost felt embarrassed watching him, knowing my own footwork paled. I would have liked to cross blades with him for no reason other than adding him to the dreamscape, but I was not risking my life.
I circled him and watched him closely while the two clerics looked on for a minute before he narrowed his eyes and moved in closer. When he came within ten feet, I attempted to move a portion of his chest to my dimensional space. No—I only tried to relocate a piece of him to my dimensional space. Instead, thunder rocked the area, and I was thrown backward, tumbling in a daze. I barely had enough awareness to realize I was heading in a very bad direction—toward the ice demon room. I laid out my body and skidded to a stop. I was conscious, but my head hurt, and my aether was depleted. I fumbled into my pouch for a lesser healing potion.
The healing potion worked too slowly as my vision crystallized. At least it looked like Rhuuk hadn’t been spared. He was picking himself off the floor of the main chamber, Jhuarkasha hovering over him but reluctant to help and interrupt the honor duel.
I realized what had happened slowly. This had happened to me once before when I had tried to place the belt with small dimensional pouches into my dimensional space. Another dimension could not exist inside another and was forcibly expelled. Did that mean Rhuuk had an artifact on him—or had his own dimensional space? My hearing returned as I stood, and Mynasha was hovering, uncertain if she should help. I probably should have gotten more clarity on the rules before we started.
Rhuuk looked angrily at Jhuarkasha from the ground. Jhuarkasha stepped back. “I didn’t know you would be affected too!” The cleric said apologetically with some fear in his voice. So, I had been set up. They had figured out the extent of my abilities and prepared a counter. I was stupid for not realizing it. Rhuuk struggled to his feet, clearly suffering from the concussive blast. He fumbled for his own healing potion, and I looked for my spear. Fuck, it had rolled into the demon’s chamber behind me. Shit—one of the snow-covered rocks was creeping closer to it.
I drew magebane and started to advance on Rhuuk, who still seemed disoriented, but it wouldn’t last. And it didn’t, as retrieved his blade before I closed. He parried my first attack and regained his footing as his mind cleared from the healing potion. I pressed as best I could, but he was clearly channeling aether to his tattoos as he was faster than me. I didn’t think that was fair, as my aether pool had been drained in the explosive feedback.
I was forced back as Rhuuk regained himself. My hope was he would expend his aether on his tattoos, and the fight would be even once again. I was tracking my own aether restoring painfully slow. Realizing he had the advantage, he pressed the attack. I grunted when I blocked a heavy swing, my shoulder aching from the force behind it. I told myself to just parry or dodge in the future. So much for consuming essences like candy for the last two years, I was outmatched physcially.
Rhuuk was deft with his broadsword and difficult to read. I was soon sporting a deep cut on my thigh and right bicep. The leg wound hadn’t reached the muscle, but the wound on the arm had. If my shield hadn’t been in my dimensional space, this might have been more of a fair fight, but as it was, I was at a disadvantage. The exchanges got more and more violent as I was on the defensive and retreating. I took another cut to my same injured arm; this time, he reached the bone, making that arm useless.
He paused, finally drawing in heavy breaths, and the emptiness in his eyes told me he had exhausted his aether. Only a few minutes had passed, and I began to retreat toward the ice demon room. In a prolonged fight, I realized I would lose. Maybe I could lure him into the demon chamber and turn the demon against him. Rhuuk wasn’t stupid and didn’t move, allowing me to step back. He was content to recover his aether so he could recharge his tattoos. After gaining some distance, I took the chance to drink a lesser healing potion from my belt. He frowned, clearly displeased. He might have thought the Titans had destroyed all my potions.
Most importantly, as the potion worked, my wounds closed and the potion mitigated my blood loss. I was feeling some weakness from the blood loss, just another sign that things were not going well for me. I was at the entrance to ice demon room, but Rhuuk did not enter, clearly understanding my intention to lock us inside. “You cower like a human,” he berated me. “You are not fit to be a First, or to be allowed in this dungeon.”
I wanted to laugh. He somehow thought his insults would make me come to him. Minutes passed as we continued to stare at each other, with thirty feet separating us. Rhuuk was forced to cut down a dretch that had wandered too close. I was content to let my aether restore. I could now cast a few air shields or recover things from my dimensional space. I used some aether to increase my blood. Maybe Rhuuk thought I had poor aether channeling, or the backlash had damaged my dimensional space.
I dissuaded him from that as the black blade appeared in my other hand. His eyes narrowed at the weapon, but he clearly did not realize it was an Orc’s Torment—at least not yet. The clerics watched from opposite sides of the entrance. Mynasha looked worried and frustrated at the same time. Rhuuk took a moment to reach under his armor and toss aside metal fragments. Was that what had repelled my dimensional space? Or was he trying to deceive me? I hated clever opponents.
I looked back at the black spear. The mound had crowded close to it, hovering near it. That irked me as I didn’t want to lose the powerful weapon. I checked on my aether and walked out corridor to confront Rhuuk. He changed his posture very slightly, maybe he was not ready to receive me.
With mage bane in one hand and Orc’s Torment in the other, I attacked. He started to backpedal, on the defensive, as I now had the advantage with two blades, and he could not use his tattoos. He still enhanced his speed and strength for quick exchanges, but it I was also only focused on wearing him down now and not dumb enough to be baited by openings.
He was very deft with the broad sword and it took time before Orc’s Torment finally cut through his gauntlet and back of his hand. His hissed but didn’t cry out as he retreated further into the open cavern. Jhuarkasha was confused and nervous at the turn of events.
Rhuuk’s eyes were locked on the black blade. “You have no honor to bring such a vile blade into the Caliphate.” I didn’t respond but a smile creeped on my face. I could tell he was desperate. A circled and made him kill a dretch while he sought an advantage.
Minutes passed as we played a game of cat and mouse. Konstantin would be mad that I was playing with food but I had a plan. An effect of Orc’s Torment was that magical healing would be ineffective, and Rhuuk learned that after I cut his hip with magebane. He swiftly drank another healing potion and growled in frustration as it failed to heal his wounds.
That poison now flowed through his body, but frustratingly, he was still able to command his aether enough to activate his tattoos. I almost lost my arm trying to take advantage of an opening. I could have used an air shield to pressure him, but I had another fate in mind for him.
I asked as haughtily as I could. “Violet or blue?”
His confusion was evident on his face, “Violet or blue?” he echoed.
“Yeah, what is your favorite color?” I asked, gaining confidence as I closed.
“It does not factor into the contest,” he retorted angrily.
I had stopped a dozen feet away. “Actually, it does,” I stated. “I wanted to know…” I paused dramatically as a cubic yard of violet glowstone appeared above his head. He had no chance of seeing it with his helm’s visor. As the stone fell, too slowly for my liking, “…what to make your tombstone.” I finished.
Panic appeared briefly on his face as the pressure settled on him. He made the mistake of trying to resist instead of getting out of the way. The stone crushed Rhuuk, and a squirt of his bodily fluids splattered on me. Some of his limbs still stuck out from under the glowing violet stone, but he was most certainly dead. Technically, I could say that I didn’t kill him if questioned by the elders.
“Guess I won, I believe that is ours.” I stated tiredly, looking over at the astonished Jhuarkasha, indicating his pack with the demon-snake horns.
Comments
Kingtie
Nice edits
Trevayne
Good chapter edit suggestion: That was why I was surprised when I answered. “No, human. You have no honor.” Pretty sure that second I is supposed t5o be hew so it reads: That was why I was surprised when he answered. “No, human. You have no honor.”
Brianna Stormcloud
Definitely an Indiana Jones moment 🤣🤣🤣
DLJD
restoring painfully slow -> restoring painfully slowly
Aspiring Sage
I think that was masterful storysmithing that gives readers lots to chew on. Surprises, challenges, and even some solid dialogue.
Erick Thiemke
there will be edits....about half way through book 5 atm
HappyNoms
He is in a life or death fight with an extremely skilled battle master orc, in the final battle for the cleric's ascension, and doesn't use his orcbane sword? Bit of a chekov's gun violation. I'm down for the anvil to the head under the general banner of using his abilities more cleverly, it's just not when I expected that cheese to make an appearance. I think perhaps it is his orcbane sword vs his spear that he should (presumably temporarily) lose into the ice cave when he is surprised by his opponent countering his dimensional attack. That is a minor change but would align with the chekov's gun rule and be acceptably in the realm of no battle plan surviving contact with the enemy. Imho. Going for cheese when his unfair advantage gets surprise countered is also semi-dishonorably on brand for Eryk. Honorable combat in the streets; depraved cheese in the sheets. (Bonus points if he lies when he tells his friends later what happened and says he nobly battled out a close fight, because he is coming to crave their admiration in ways that can coax out his shadow tendancies complexity.)
CurseOfNineTales
Brother hates characters that don't just swing their dick around
Ben
Wonder what Eryk the doormat will do next?
GucciG
Eryk, this is your warning to stop slacking on your training and becoming too reliant on your dimensional space.
Andrew Crews
No!” Jhuarkasha barked, [regaining] his wits. “Surrender!” “I realized what had happened slowly. This had happened to me once before when I had tried to place the belt of pouches into my dimensional space. Another dimension could not exist inside another and was forcibly expelled. Did that mean Rhuuk had an artifact on him—or [his] own dimensional space?” “Rhuuk was an imposing warrior, thick with muscles like Maveith and more agile than Benito. With his tattoos, he was probably faster than me, stronger than me, and on top of that, he had more combat experience. But what he didn’t have was a dimensional space.” “The blue-lit corridor we were standing in was twenty feet wide with a ceiling to match. Rhuuk’s stance changed as he gracefully circled to his right. Mynasha backed away from me, and I think he knew she couldn’t use her lightning in proximity to the glowstones.” “My hope was he would expend his aether on his tattoos, and the fight would be even once again. I was tracking my own aether [as it was] restoring painfully slow[ly].” “I took another [hit] to my same injured arm; this time, he reached the bone, making that arm useless.” “I was forced to cut down a dretch that had wandered too close. I was content to let my aether restore. I could now cast a few air shields or recover things from my dimensional space. But I only used a tiny [amount of] aether to increase my blood volume.” “He continued to hurl useless insults at me[, and] we both waited for an advantage. The clerics were observing from opposite sides of the entrance. Mynasha looked worried and frustrated at the same time. I had chosen this path, and this was my blunder.” “He made the mistake of trying to resist instead of getting out of the way. The stone crushed Rhuuk, and a squirt of his bodily fluids splattered [onto] me. Some of his limbs still stuck out from under the violet stone that still glowed, but he was most certainly dead.”
Andrew Crews
I say we let them fight the demon and take the horns when they exit.” Mynasha looked shocked. She had followed my lead so far and [ridden with] me to this point.” “My eyes slid to Rhuuk, and I tried to read his intentions. Rhuuk was covered in dretch and stirge blood but showed no signs of fatigue. Even though Jhuarkasha was the candidate, Rhuuk was clearly the one in charge. Mynasha was waiting for me to answer the insult. Apparently, I was the one in charge of our team. “How do you know we [have] not already defeated the ice demon?” “I tried to regain my mental footing, thinking out the implications. Maybe Benito or Mateo blurted it out while drunk in the Adventurer’s Guild. Then again, there were [three score] of clerics in this valley. There had to be spying and divination magic aplenty. I shook my head slowly[;] it didn’t matter. I was certain the bulky pack Jhuarkasha carried had the snake demon horns.” “I was going this route because I had doubts about fighting the ice demon, and Rhuuk was an unknown threat. The ice demon was not much weaker than the shadow demon, and we had hoped not to have to fight either. The warlord didn’t take long to answer. Rhuuk looked at the spear again and my sheathed blade, [clearly] wanting on his face. That was why I was surprised when [he] answered. “No, human. You have no honor.”
Karnnie
"Damn he hated smart opponents." Eryk is one of the smartest characters with some of the highest stats and yet he rushed into a fight and didnt even set rules? There is no pressure here, no time constraint, the Orcs have HONOR. Why the hell are you making Eryk to be such a dumb and stupid MC?
Michael Sareyani
Anti-climactic, I was finally happy for a real fight against a strong opponent, but once again, dimensional storage BS gets in the way.
Erick Thiemke
it wouldnt have mattered which body part or weapon he targeted, the 'counter' would have activated anyway.
Invalid Entry
Man so now he’s lost his most powerful weapon to this useless side quest too? Also kinda feels contrived that he went for the chest so he could be countered with a hidden dimensional object when he almost always goes for the head or neck.
Thomas Shaw
now he has to clear the ice trial to get the spear back
hrs
new plan "oh no... i dropped this anti-orc sword as i was walking out of the warlord dungeon. it would be a shame if the dungeon copied it and severely screwed up the balance of power in their society since their martial leaders keep getting killed by demons with fancy swords"
Zaffre
If only he had put some rope in his space 😀
Erick Thiemke
hope so - 700 words in ATM
Erick Thiemke
I can write out the fight more but the goal was for the MC to be outmatched. he needs to know although he has trained a lot and improved, he is still just very good...maybe it will force him to get more essences. For instance if he still had his aether, his air shield and healing might have made it an easier fight. in the rewrite, Rhuuk will be written as one of the best swordsman among the warlords
Erick Thiemke
it will depend how the narrator reads it. i imagine it sounding like cynical sarcasm and not whining. his attempt at being funny - to himself
Erick Thiemke
it would have been used in the explosion
Erick Thiemke
i had a plan in the fight for him to use and Rhuuk have a counter planned for it but I changed my mind. i figured he would only have seen the hilt and not the blade when it was expelled
hrs
If he factors in his normal shenanigans for dreamscape training it will turn into a Smash Bros match lol. Random terrain hazards, falling hazardous objects, weapon and item spawns.
hrs
Eryk starts hitting up blacksmiths for one very specific reason....
hrs
whatever happened to his orcbane sword? should he dual wield it with magebane since in earlier books a point was made to teach him to fight with 2 swords? very satisfying end to the fight though👍
Scientist Valci
Such a good fight. one of the better ones in the story. Amazing ending making it so good. This arc is still in my opinion the worst because of the MC motives not aligning with the plot direction and bad allies that don't act like allies, more like enemies. Fix those 2 things and sprinkle some rewards for pretty much being the Supreme contest winner and it could be the best arc IMP.
Jaishel
I have it on pc, but imo it's slow nature makes it more fit for a console couch game. (Yes I know that is also possible with a pc)
Michael Byrne
Thank you- another chapter tonight !... It's starting to feel a lot like Christmas ! 🎄😁🥃
Tetsu-nii
Personally, I always thought Erik was kinda whiney. Doesn't detract from the story or character, IMO. In fact, it makes him more realistic in my mind. He's got no military background, he's just a regular modern guy — so I'd expect him to seem a little "soft". But I'm a Marine, so kinda expect everyone who hasn't seen some of the shit I have to seem "soft" to me. And even in The Corps, there were plenty of whiners; even am I among the ones I'd consider "brothers" and "sisters" (and there were some women I served with who were more badass than a lot of guys I've known).
Gwalmeich
I was talking about the state of mister warlord at the end.
Tetsu-nii
Also available on Mac & Xbox S|X. ^_^
Tetsu-nii
"crushing victory" 🤭 Well played. 🤪
Tetsu-nii
Super Sales on Superheroes reference? Not seeing how Andi fits in here. But I'm still catching up on some serious sleep debt, so I'm not exactly firing on all cylinders right now. (;<_<)
Chachi
and now to kill the other cleric time for eryk to go postal
Salvo
Eryk aether shield didn’t work in the fight? Interesting calculation to the fight, the fact Ryuuk was too still and body blocking the narrow hallway, led to a crushing victory.
Gwalmeich
PANCAKES!
John Donovan
No it's just as good on console. I have it on PS5.
MavTech
I got nervous for Eryk when his dimensional space attack was intentionally countered. Will his enemies be able to stop him or just these orcs. Great job it made me start considering his future fights. I’m glad he wasn’t able to win on the first move. He is a Swiss Army knife attached to a sledgehammer. He can do so much but it is very satisfying to see him just smash his enemies with his biggest weapon/ability. You’ve balance it by having his Aether bottom out. If not he could just run through a battlefield and pop heads off and spit them out. Wow weird mental image. Wonder what war-nickname he’d get for that?! Thanks for the chapter
Silver Beard
Since he doesn't have to worry about the warlord stabbing him in the back- he can probably risk taking out the Ice Demon. Sounds like the other cleric specializes in defense so he's not a big threat. An extra pair of horns would make a good bargaining tool.
Tj
Dungeon is going to absorb the spear and gain . . . Hmmmm
Tj
The orc has lived in this world his whole life and is a warlord at the pinnacle of training, experience, and equipment for his entire nation. Otherworlders have inate talent and in Eryk's case a bunch of power stones and night time training for a few years. I can't believe any major warlord hasn't gotten his fair share of power stones too and years more time to adapt and train with them. I see Eryks Trump card is being underestimated. He is always "trying" to hide the extent of his abilities. Eryk just wants to win and get away with some loot to help him survive. Using his storage ability is just the best way to end any fight. Everything else in his bag of tricks is always just plan B. And come on the author was building up this fight and the antagonist this whole adventure. Showing that they knew about the Goliath and had a way to counter his direct power. For Eryk to just tombstone him and walk away like it was nothing. Worked. Anyway cheers!
Andrew
Thank you!
Erick Thiemke
Think of it as motivation to train harder. Dreamscape gets an upgrade
Erick Thiemke
I always wanted to play that. Is it PC only?
John Donovan
Ok this felt like something from Baldurs gate, good job.
Justin Garrett
Many thanks.
BLead Irish ambassador
I think it was great. He shouldn’t always be the best at everything. He went back to the basics. His first boss in his first dungeon fell to the same trick. If you cant beat someone one way. Go another.
Silfir
Lets go! tyfc!
Jordan A
I actually feel the opposite. It’s a little bit of a let down for me. I prefer a more martial ending instead of Eryk relying on his dimensional space so much (especially since he’s taken so many essences and trained so much). The orc has talent and it would have been more interesting.
Justin Barnett
I don’t think it makes him sound whiny. It’s just him expressing frustration at the sudden turnaround.
Jordan A
“I didn’t think that was fair, as my aether pool had been drained in the explosive feedback.” This fairness comment makes Eryk sound whiny especially since him choosing to use his dimensional space is what caused the situation he’s in. I recommend changing or removing the sentence to avoid that.
Nick Nicholson
He better not lose his damn spear
saber
Ah the old wizard ice trick love it!
Tj
Awesome way to end the fight.
PatronTurtle
He's still gonna have to go into the ice demon spot to get his spear. Hope that goes well
Justin Barnett
The old Sisyphus’s rock trick.
BubblyGhost
Aha! Vindication of the number 1 use of a dimensional space! Drop a fuckin boulder on em!
Erick Thiemke
1st of 4. I am going to delete the old post, so if you have a comment posted there that is relevant, repost it here. Another chapter is due tonight
