Chapter Twelve

Bob wracked his mind as he watched the slime solidify itself on the stone beside him. He couldn’t move. He had no idea how flimsy whatever he’d lodged his eye on was and felt terrified he’d fall to the nameless depths below if he so much as tried to shift in place.

The slime, unfortunately, was not so encumbered.

As he watched the outline of a tentacle rise in his periphery, Bob’s thoughts ran in circles, desperately searching for some way out. Unfortunately, as the limb reached its peak, what half-baked plans he’d constructed fell apart; all options seemingly depleted.

In the end, with the tension of the coming strike filling the air, Bob unconsciously grasped on to the last things available to him. The closest things he had to the magic needed to get out of this situation alive.

His skills.

Ding!

Taunt(E) has leveled up!

2 – 3

Ding!

Dodge(E) has leveled up!

3 – 4

What happened next occurred in only a split second. Bob’s own mind barely able to grasp the events even as he was going through them.

First, the Slime’s blow suddenly increased phenomenally in speed and power. A far greater portion of itself being sent along for the ride than in previous attacks. The effectiveness of ‘Taunt’ also evident in the slightly louder screams of ‘Food!’ and ‘Hungry!’ filling his mind during the process.

At the same time, his bracer kicked mightily through the water; managing to just barely rise above the now slightly-less-accurate attack. The immense force of the strike only adding to his momentum.

After that came the least clearly remembered portion of the event. As, when the thin cord serving as his bag’s cinch somehow managed to judo-throw both him and his weighty bracer to the other side of the stalagmite, no one was more surprised than Bob.

A close second, however, would go to the slime whose wild swing had completely missed the target it had been aiming for. A large portion of itself slamming into and molding around the other stalagmite; leaving it momentarily immobile.

As Bob landed – directly in the spot he’d previously been so desperate to leave – he didn’t waste any time; immediately charging back down the path before it could pull itself together.

Peeking behind himself, he could see that the slime was moving slower than usual. Seeming at least slightly cautious of the yawning abyss beneath it as it re-balanced itself. He was already at the end of the trash-strewn corridor by the time it started to transfer to another stalagmite; by which point, it had no way of making up lost ground.

It seemed almost simple to lose the creature on his way back, even with the massive amount of adrenaline, or whatever the ‘living sack’ equivalent was, running through his veins. His previous route was easy to find given that he’d chosen a path through the most notably destroyed stones there. And before he knew it, he’d made it back to the spot of the original attack.

As he spotted the necklace, the more conservative parts of his mind screamed for him to continue on. To not endanger himself when he had an unbeatable and unquestionably furious enemy an unknown distance behind him.

The rest of him refused to listen. Increasing his speed as much as possible in the run up, before again slapping the two pieces of his gauntlet together to leap through the water. His form sailing just a few inches shy of the dangling treasure.

Which left it easily within reach of his eye and tassel.

As he wrapped himself around the item, Bob felt momentarily terrified that it wouldn’t give. That he’d be left hanging there like some freshly-caught fish, waiting for the slime’s eventual return.

These fears were quickly erased when the pendant’s long-beleaguered chain snapped almost instantly. Bob’s instincts nearly forcing him to gobble it up before he hit the ground, canceling out the message window before it could even form. Focused on getting out of the reef of stalagmites as quickly as possible.

He didn’t see any other signs of the slime throughout the rest of his panicked journey. Though whether this was due to it giving up or him simply outpacing it was unknown. And also uncared about. Bob simply being ecstatic to no longer hear its slow, toneless voice echoing in his head.

As he reached the edge of the reef, Bob immediately charged another twenty or so feet up the crater’s slope; now feeling much leerier of standing within striking range of any of the stalagmites.

Once there however, he turned around. Struggling to organize his thoughts while he stared out over the place which had nearly ended his life at least three times in the last ten minutes.

He was shocked to realize he’d actually made it out of that situation completely unharmed. Though, as he looked down at the pock-marked, acid-burned sides of his bracer, Bob was forced to admit that this very nearly wasn’t the case.

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The slime had absolutely every advantage while in the tight, trash-filled reef’s corridors. It was silent, nearly invisible and – at least when compared to him – decently mobile even when refusing to touch the floor. A mannerism Bob still found confusing, but one he certainly wouldn’t be complaining about. Especially given how many times it could have killed him had it been less concerned with staying in its perch.

Heck, it even seemed to have a sophisticated form of communication. Being able to telepathically put words into someone else’s head was an impressive ability; even if that particular slime’s vocabulary left something to be desired. It even served double-duty as something of an offensive attack; at least if Bob’s attempts to scrub those moments from his memory were any evidence.

Really, Bob should be counting his blessings that he made it out of that situation alive.

Especially considering he actually had something to show for it.

Bob couldn’t help the poorly-executed grin his ‘mouth’ attempted to form into. Nor the prideful feeling that was beginning to swell up within him. While he may have been forced to flee under threat of superior arms, Bob refused to list this encounter in anyplace other than the ‘victory’ column. Which might well have been its first entry. At least in this world.

He savored the moment. Basking in joyful anticipation of multiple levels as, with a thought, he reopened his previously dismissed messages.

Which, of course, is when reality reasserted itself.

Ding!

Congratulations! You have acquired your first ‘Treasure’!