Duelling Dungeons

Luther took off his hat, floated over to the door, and stuck his head through one of the holes. “I apologize for not knocking, but we were in a hurry,” he said, before quickly pulling his head back as something heavy smashed into the door right next to where his head had been.

“I guess he doesn’t like visitors,” he said, turning towards Sylvia. “Looks like he’s using Telekinesis to throw debris at us.”

“I don’t care what he likes. We need to get through here as soon as possible,” she growled back, hefting her massive shield and stepping through the door.

As soon as she cleared the hole in the door, a chunk of stone the size of a gremlin came whipping across the room. She had just enough time to plant her feet, brace herself, and angle her shield before the chunk of masonry slammed into her.

Even though she managed to redirect the block, causing it to bounce off her shield and slam into what was left of the door to her left, the force of the blow was still enough to crack her shield and send her a foot or so to the side.

“Why is it always a goliath breaking down my door?” Nor’Goth muttered from the corner of his dias, where several sizable stones floated around his head.

“She’s a Windigo, actually, not a Goliath,” Luther exclaimed, sticking his head around the door once again. Nor’goth’s eyebrow twitched, and he sent one of the smaller rocks flying across the room, but Luther just ducked back out of the way again. “An oversized meathead and a comedian. This is not the epic final confrontation I pictured.”

“Life rarely turns out the way you want,” Sylvia replied as she strode across the massive chamber towards the wizened ghoul.

The old, wizened ghoul turned and stared down at her. “I remember you… You’re the one who ruined my ambush earlier. Impressive, there aren’t that many people who can break through my illusions,” he said.

“I’d say I’m honoured, but honestly, I think you’re a real sicko playing with people’s emotions as you do,” Sylvia said.

“I do what I have to to win,” Nor’Goth replied, looking down his nose at her and unleashing another rock.

This one was smaller, but came in at a much higher angle, and Sylvia just barely got her shield up in time to intercept the stone. Instead of redirecting it away, she took the full force of the stone, causing the tower shield to shatter under the force of the strike.

Despite the strength of the blow, Sylvia still didn’t lose her footing. Instead, she just shucked what remained of her massive shield and continued her charge forward.

Nor’Goth just raised an eyebrow. “You’re a stubborn one, aren’t you? Can’t you take a hint?” he asked, firing another rock at her.

Sylvia didn’t even flinch; she simply raised her left arm and swatted the massive piece of masonry like she would a fly. The impact's force caused her heavy plate mail to crumple and her arm to shatter, but it was enough to deflect the stone slightly and prevent it from slamming directly into her.

She stumbled to the side, struggling to keep her feet, but after a second she regained her balance and continued her relentless march forward, her left arm dangling uselessly by her side.

“What is wrong with you? Do you honestly think you can make it all the way to me by sacrificing your limbs like that? You realize I’ve been taking it easy on you until now, right?” Nor’Goth asked as several other pieces of broken masonry rose off the floor and floated over to him. “What do you think you’re accomplishing?”

“I don’t know, why don’t you read my mind and find out,” Sylvia growled through clenched teeth. “Or are you a little gunshy after what happened with Talia earlier?”

Nor’Goth glared at her for several seconds before letting the rocks drop to the ground and sending a concentrated blast of psychic energy at the woman.

Unlike the previous physical attacks, the mental one effortlessly bypassed Sylvia’s physical defences and smashed through her mental defences, sending her sprawling to the floor.

“I’m not afraid of anything,” Nor’Goth snarled, as he reached out to root through her mind. “Not you, nor your Arachne friend.”

“Really? What about me then?” Luther asked quietly as he reached up from behind the Nor’Goth and placed a hand on the ghoul’s shoulder.

“Not even you,” Nor’Goth growled, releasing a telekinetic blast around himself before twirling around. Although one of Luther’s duplicates lay shattered against the wall, the others were already swooping down, ready to strike.

“Foolish! Do you really think you can stop me like this? Swarm me with a bunch of inanimate puppets? What do you take me for? This is my arena. My dungeon!” Nor’Goth roared as he held out a hand.

The closest mannequin lunged, trying to plunge its blade into the ghoul’s chest, but just as the blade got within a couple of inches of Nor’Goth’s chest, it froze. With a flick of his wrist, Nor’Goth sent the mannequin flying across the room with enough force that it exploded against the wall. Whether attacking one by one or making a coordinated attack, Luther’s bodies all attempted to strike at the Nor’Goth, only to meet the same fate.

When there was only one left, Nor’Goth casually gestured towards the wooden form, and drew it closer. “You know, you really shouldn’t play with your prey; if you do, they might end up biting you,” Nor’Goth hissed.

Luther, who had been held upside down, brought a hand up to his chin and put on a thoughtful mask. “That’s true, and something I should think about in the future, but more importantly than that… how did you know this body was my original one? I’ve practiced for a long time to manipulate my duplicates flawlessly.”

“It’s because even though you're dead, I can still read your mind. When you reach out and manipulate your dummies, your mind practically screams out; It’s nearly impossible for me to shut out your thoughts,” Nor’Goth growled.

“Oh? I thought it was just my wardrobe that was loud,” Luther laughed. “If my thoughts are so loud, what am I thinking right now?”

“You’re thinking this is all some sort of grand joke, that I’m some sort of fool,” Nor’Goth replied.

“You’re partially right,” Luther grinned. “I was thinking that if I make a big enough fool out of myself, you’d forget about my partner for a minute.”

Nor’Goth’s eyes grew wide, and he let out another telekinetic blast, sending Luther flying across the room. Still, unlike the previous blast, this one was accompanied by the sound of metal scraping against stone. He turned just enough to see Sylvia kneeling behind him, large gouges torn out of the stone floor by her armour scraping across the floor, before she lunged forward and plunged the end of her six-foot-long sword deep into his chest.

“And here’s a tip for you,” Sylvia hissed. “Make sure you finish your prey, or they might just get up and bite you.”

“It’s true, I let myself get distracted, and I paid the price for it,” Nor’Goth chuckled. “Victory is yours.”

He staggered away, hand clamped over his wound as blood poured out between his fingers, before finally collapsing upon his throne. “I’d like to stick around and banter, but I’m afraid I don’t have time for that,” the ghoul said between ragged breaths. “So instead I’ll just say: You really should have followed your own advice.”

Magic flooded into the area, converging on the ritual area, causing the lines to glow crimson.

Nor’Goth reached over and grasped the hourglass sitting at his side and let out a wet chuckle. “Time’s up.”