Morcster Chef 3 - Chapter 27 (Patreon)

The rest of them waited the rest of the minute before claiming some food for themselves. Everyone’s eyes lit up and the rest of the meal didn’t last more than a few minutes. If anything, Ming’s eagerness had actually bought the rest of the team time to eat their share before Ming recovered and polished off the rest of it.

“That was so much better than plain chips,” Ming said with a lazy grin, leaning against a log and patting her stomach. “Okay, I’m good to go kill more things.”

“Maybe we get some sleep first,” Malissa suggested. Arek flicked his hands over the campfire, drawing on his runes to create the small amount of water that he could gather. It splashed over the flame, smothering it.

Belmont raised the bubble of smoke into the air, moving it to the side over some trees before releasing it, allowing the dark gas to curl into the air away from their camp.

Arek yawned, rubbing his eyes. He took a few minutes to wash all his gear, despite the day starting to catch up with him. Tired as he was, he was not about to let any of his cooking supplies sit around dirty. They deserved better than that.

Malissa helped him while the others set their tents up. Belmont took first watch and the rest of them all retired to bed. Arek was asleep as soon as his head hit the ground.

Ming woke him up some time later for the last watch of the night. As soon as he was awake, she darted off to return to her bedroll. Arek rolled out of his tent, blinking as his eyes adjusted to the darkness.

He scanned their surroundings, then set off in a slow pace around the clearing. If he was going to be awake, he might as well get some movement into his stiff muscles.

The rest of the night passed without issue, and the fake sun rose over the treetops. Arek paused his trek to watch the horizon glimmer. Beautiful hues of orange and pink danced across the early morning clouds.

“It’s strange, isn’t it?” Malissa asked, walking to stand beside him. “Do you ever why dungeons do all this?”

“I didn’t used to, but I have in recent years,” Arek replied. “It does seem a little pointless from their perspective, doesn’t it? Mana naturally escaping the earth and gathering in dungeons to attract monsters seems like it would be much more… random, I guess. Makes you wonder if there’s some sort of intelligence guiding it.”

“You think there is?” Malissa asked.

“What, like gods?” Arek shrugged. “No clue. I don’t even know what a god really is, to be honest. At some point, if you’re strong enough, wouldn’t you become a god? I don’t know. But I do find it hard to believe the dungeons just… happen.”

“Likewise,” Malissa said. “But I do know one thing – this is how they should be. Not what the Howlers are doing to them.”

Arek’s brow furrowed and he nodded, turning away from the sunrise. “You’re right about that. They need to be stopped. Anything that causes so much suffering has to be.”

“Do you really think we can do anything about it? I mean, we’re just an E rank group. I know we’re probably stronger than that, so even if we round up to D rank… how can we take out a guild?”

“We’re hardly doing it alone,” Arek said. “Magus is working on it.”

Malissa snorted. “Sure. I know that, but the adventurer’s guild isn’t helping. They’re trying to play things by the book, and the Howlers are going to keep them caught up until its too late for us. Sure, they might save people later, but what about now?”

Arek sat down on a log and Malissa joined him.

“I don’t have a good answer for you,” Arek said, letting out a heavy sigh. “Right now, the Blessed One curse doesn’t feel very strong. It almost makes me think I could beat it – but I know that’s temporary. As soon as I see someone else affected, I’ll lose control. And, if Magus is right, I’m going to end up getting dragged to Dortusk. Ming too, if she’s not able to completely suppress it.”

“I know.” Malissa’s hands clenched and she looked at the ground. “I can’t just accept that, though. No matter what Magus said, if we enter that city without at least some sort of plan, we’re doomed.”

“Well, you and Belmont–”

“Don’t,” Malissa said, looking back up at him, her eyes flaming. “Don’t even suggest that. We’re a group, Arek. We aren’t going to abandon you or Ming, even if we have to walk into Dortusk together.”

“No point dying pointlessly. If there’s truly no chance and Magus hasn’t found anything by then, you shouldn’t march yourselves to death. Belmont would agree with me.”

“Don’t put words in his mouth,” Malissa said, crossing her arms. “But you’re right about one thing – we can’t go to Dortusk without a plan. We need to figure out the Blessed One curse and assume that Magus isn’t going to be helpful.”

“How are we going to do that? None of us know how to research magic,” Arek said.

“We’ll figure something out,” Malissa replied, setting her jaw. “We’ve still got a few weeks until the curse is supposed to activate. Something will change. I know it.”

Belmont stepped out of his tent and rubbed his eyes. Malissa stood up and walked away, leaving Arek alone with his thoughts. One of them stuck in the back of his brain. He went to brush it away but paused.

He’d told Malissa that none of them knew how to research magic. That was true. None of them knew how to research magic. But he knew someone that did. Vell.

“You doing okay there?” Belmont asked, walking over to join Arek.

“Just thinking,” Arek replied, pushing himself off the log with a yawn. “Right. Let’s finish this dungeon off, shall we? I’m feeling a bit antsy.”

Belmont grunted. “So eager to get back into the bugs, huh? I was getting used to not dealing with them for a little while. Not looking forward to going back. I need to invest in some form of anti-bug defense in the future. One that doesn’t use mana.”

“Bleh. Forgot about the bugs,” Arek said, gagging. “Whatever. The faster we finish this dungeon, the less I’ll have to see of the damn things. Is everyone ready?”

“Ming will be soon. She didn’t want to get up, but I reminded her that breakfast was a thing and that got her moving.”

“Are we stopping to make a real breakfast?”

“Better to just keep moving. But she’s got enough food stuffed into her bag that she can easily get away with a real meal instead of rations like the rest of us. She’s got no room to complain.”

“Fair enough,” Arek said with a snort. “Let’s get moving, then.”

He took his tent apart with some help from Malissa while Ming overlooked all of them, having already stowed her own lodgings away. She polished off several frozen meat pies in the time it took them to get everything put away.

“Did you even reheat those?” Arek asked as they set back off into the jungle.

“Nah. I like the crunch sometimes.”

Arek blinked. Every time he started to think he understood Ming completely and there wasn’t anything else she could do to confuse him, he was proved wrong.

“I see. Just how frozen are they?”

Ming took a meat pie out of her bag of colding, removing it from the smaller bag full of ice around it. She rapped it with a knuckle, making a deep thunk.

“Ah. Frozen solid.”

“Like a popsicle. Meat flavored.”

“No,” Belmont said flatly. “No, it is not.”

Ming harrumphed and put her pie away. She swatted at a bug that was getting a little to close, then narrowed her eyes. “They’re coming back.”

“Not surprising,” Belmont said. “We’ve left the safety of the tree’s grove. I’d imagine we’ll be beset again in an hour at most.”

“Lovely.” Malissa started walking a little faster, and the rest of them accelerated as well. “Let’s just blow through the rest of this dungeon then, shall we?”

The others all nodded in agreement. They all redoubled their focus and kept their senses open for any signs of enemies as they pressed deeper through the strange dungeon jungle. Over the next few hours, several other monsters attacked them.

A panther leapt from the trees – straight into a shield that Belmont erected. It only had a moment to whimper in pain before Arek’s guandao crashed down on its neck, silencing the beast forever.

They were beset on by a flock of particularly aggressive crows a little less than an hour later. That fight lasted even shorter than the first as Ming fried the entire murder with a single spell.

Belmont’s prediction did unfortunately prove to be accurate. The swarm of bugs returned just as strong as it had been the previous day, plaguing the entire group for the rest of their trip. If anything, that only served to motivate the Happy Sunflowers even further.

They didn’t dare start acting recklessly, but as they grew more used to the environment of the jungle, the speed at which they progressed through it accelerated as well. By midday, they had nearly doubled their pace.

Finally, as the sun started to begin its downward descent through the sky, Arek heard the sound of crashing water. They’d been walking uphill for several hours now, and he suspected they were either at the top of the island or near a cliff.

The Happy Sunflowers all slowed down and crept toward the source of the noise, peering through the trees for the source of the noise.

Arek pushed a bundle of vines out of the way, revealing a slope leading down to a large clearing below them. His eyes widened. A massive waterfall flowed on the other side of the clearing, starting far above them and ending just below the clearing, forming a pool around it.

A huge, red-maned cat prowled the clearing. It was a little difficult to tell from above, but the monster looked easily twice Arek’s size. The claws on its paws dug through the soil and dirt, carving it apart like wet sand as it paced.

“That’s gotta be the boss,” Ming whispered. “Should I blast it from here?”

“What if it can climb?” Belmont replied in the same, low tone. “It could charge us and we might end up having to fight the thing in the jungle. That would be bad. Open space is much better against an opponent like that. We want to be able to surround it.”

“Not to mention we might get attacked by other things if we fight in the jungle,” Arek added. His hands tightened around the hilt of his guandao. “That’s a big cat, though. Sure looks like a boss. Everyone ready?”

Malissa’s daggers flipped to her hands, and she grinned. “Let’s see what it tastes like.”

“Damn right,” Ming said, baring her teeth in what she probably hoped would be a savage grin. “Let’s get it!”

“Follow after me, then,” Arek said. “I’ll keep it distracted.”

His heart started to beat faster. The thumping in his chest was like the rhythmic thunder of a battle drum, pumping blood through his body. Arek’s eyes narrowed. His teeth bared as the thrill of battle started to course through him.

He took a step back. Then he jumped. His armor flashed in the bright sun reflecting off the water as Arek plummeted through the air. He spun his guandao, bracing it against his body as he shot down toward the massive lion.

The monster’s head snapped up and it leapt to the side, avoiding Arek as he crashed into the ground, sending a wave of dust up around him. His armor flashed, absorbing the strike, and he rose to his feet, spinning the weapon and lowering in to a fighting stance.

For an instant, the great beast locked eyes with Arek. They were large and dark, full of malice and hunger. It opened its mouth and roared, spraying Arek with spittle and making his ears ring.

Battle rage surged, and Arek let just a little slip out. Instead of lashing out, he took a step forward and roared himself, matching the monster. Then, respect given, he charged. He twisted out of the way of a deadly paw and slashed the lion’s shoulder with his guandao, drawing a thin line of blood.

He spun back, adjusting his stance and grinning at the blood on the hilt of his blade. “First blood goes to me.”

The lion roared. Malissa slammed to the ground beside Arek, Belmont’s shield shattering as it absorbed the blow. Ming and Belmont thudded down beside her, each encased in a shield. Arek’s grin split even wider. This was what he lived for.

He charged the beast, the thoughts clearing from his head as they entered the dance of life. Energy rang against claws. Blood spilt across the ground. Steel and magic flashed around him, but Arek was aware of none of it.

The world fell away. Everything other than the lion faded into black. Black, and the rhythmic thud of his heart.

Thud.

A claw scraped against his claw. Arek ignored it, driving his fist into the beast’s nose. It flinched back with a yowl.

Thud.

His weapon scored across the foe’s eye, blinding it. It roared, swatting him with a paw. Arek braced himself, taking the blow with one arm. His armor flared, but it didn’t matter. He didn’t move.

Teeth bared. The lion’s eyes flickered with some emotion – Arek didn’t care which. He was too busy fighting. He swung his guandao, thrusting it down into the monster’s left paw and pinning it into the ground.

Thud.

Explosions raced past Arek’s head, ripping into the dense fur of the lion and making it writhe in pain. Arek leapt at the advantage, leaving his guandao behind in the ground and grabbing onto the monster’s mane.

Thud.

The lion shook its head desperately, trying to dislodge him. Arek’s vice grip didn’t budge. His claws dug into the creature as he swung himself onto its back. It reared back, bleeding from dozens of wounds but its pride in tact – for now.

Thud.

Arek’s claws scored across the monster’s face. Blood sprayed.

Thud.

He tore more, ripping into the lion like a starved man.

Thud.

The lion crashed to the ground.

Thud.

He tore.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

“Arek!”

Thud.

Arek paused, his chest rising and falling in heaves. He was so hungry. The battle was over already. How could it be over? His opponent was pathetic. He wanted more. Needed more.

“Arek, snap out of it!”

He blinked. There were others. More targets? No. Family – pack. Not to be killed.

Thud.

“Arek, snap out of it!”

He blinked. It smelled like copper. Why was that?

Thud.

His claws were covered with blood. He couldn’t even see the runes under it. He blinked again.

“Arek, are you still with us?”

That was Belmont. Arek lowered his hands, shaking his head. The fog edged back slightly.

His friends were staring at him, worry in their eyes. Below him, the lion was lifeless. He’d torn its face to shreds. Had he kept going after it had died? Arek’s face twisted in disgust. He tried to wipe the blood off his claws, but it felt like it was ingrained into them. It did nothing but spread it around.