With new questions on his mind, Killua continues their journey through the campaign.
When Killua got back, the room was silent. Iason must have said something before they came back. Considering the situation, it was safe to assume in the back of their lingering thoughts, a part of them may have unconsciously believed they, as in themselves, were dating Daniel behind everyone's back.
But it was far from the truth…
They are just sharing a very big secret… one that could get them both, into very disastrous trouble. They were an alien, acting, pretending to be human. So far, they've been passing. But they were certain that they were acting abnormal at times… at least from a human standpoint.
But what if, what Iason told him is valid…
If on the off-chance, Daniel has been developing feelings for them… maybe the idea of pursuing the relationship with a human male would be intriguing. At least the prospect of getting laid sounds plausible.
Sure, Daniel has argued he doesn't want a relationship, but that doesn't mean sex is completely off the table… you don't need to be in a relationship to have sex. They would know, given their previous encounters.
Given their status… a relationship wasn't destined for them. Killua's eyes shifted over the group, despising the awkward silence. What made Daniel so unique… so special, it garnered such a reaction from this group of friends.
Killua's expression remained neutral, eyes drawn to the most obvious of the group, Knuckle "You know… I can hear the questions coming from a mile away. It's written all over your faces…"
Iason frowned, "I told you to think about the question to yourself. It's already a messy situation…"
"I'm not talking about that part." Killua's gaze met Iason, "They're wondering how I factor in… and to be honest, I don't have an answer to that. But it'll be intriguing to get Daniel's input."
"I'd advise against that…"
"May I ask why…?" Killua frowned. They don't know how much they conversed, the secrets they now share. What else could they be missing from this conversation?
"If you or I'm incorrectly guessing the situation, he'll get angry at us. The only one who's immune to that is Gon… not because they have a close friendship, but rather, Gon knows how to drive answers out of him. They've been friends far longer than I've been dating Gon."
"I understand…" The alien gave a nod, hand now moving towards their dice, "I won't question him. So where exactly, were we?"
Before Iason could answer, Ikalgo quickly interrupted, "I just have one question… nothing to do with the two of you, mainly when you came into my workplace." Everyone's head snapped towards Ikalgo, the man immediately rolling his eyes "They didn't buy anything weird or out there. It was just about the bid he lost. He doesn't exactly lose bids…"
"So… you want to know how I won, or what the bid was?"
"Both… honestly."
"I don't remember him telling you… which means, I won't be either."
"A hint…?"
"Ikalgo, no pressing for details." Iason quietly warned the man, a finger now being pointed in their direction, "You know the rules."
"Alright, alright… but seriously. Losing a bid… I find it unplausible. This is gonna be eating at the back of my mind for a while."
Iason let out a sigh of relief, "Finally… Please, tell me you guys still know the way out of the maze?"
Killua listed off the path for everyone, unconsciously muttering every turn. Mainly for the group's sake. Although he supposes by just dumping all the turns on them, some of them are definitely, going to forget.
Iason looked down, then up… frowning. How on earth did he remember that? If the others remembered the route, they'll pass. However, if some of them remember it incorrectly, they'll fail once more, "Hopefully, some of you already forget… okay, let's go."
The group continued through the maze, going through a couple of minor fights. They suffered a few damages, but nothing considered to be worried about.
After having taken only minor damage, the group takes a total of:
Korarall suffers three damage.
Kairakas takes two damage.
Sarmenor takes four damage.
Irilrig also suffers only two damage.
Meiphanis takes five damage.
The group reaches a crossroads. You can either go forward… towards the obvious dead end, given that there's a wall ahead. Or… you can go Left, or right?
Everyone wrote their choices, three out of two going right. Killua's eyes widened at the reveal. Why right?! There are only two dead ends to go down… "We're going the wrong way…"
"Huh?!" Knuckles eyes widened "You said RIGHT, for here…"
"Another left then, RIGHT… there were two lefts before the right. This was supposed to be the second left."
"Ah… come on man… dude…" Knuckle leaned over to his partner, "What's the gender-neutral version?"
"I don't know… but I don't think Killua will get offended, given Meleoron's earlier comment."
"I'm not… unless you count the mistake. There are two paths now. The next choices are left again, or forward. Both are dead ends in six to eight moves."
"He's right, you know…" Iason frowned, "You remembered the dead ends too?"
"Yeah, just in case there were two paths to freedom. I remembered all the turns because it's something I was taught to do."
"Scary…" Meleoron hummed, "You must have a photographic memory or something."
"I guess…"
"Want to fail now, or loot the rest of the blocks? Remember, you can still run into the minotaur."
"Nope…"
"Nah…"
"Forget it…"
"Not with my luck!"
"Alright… I guess we're skipping…" Clearing his throat, Iason continued.
Having made a bad choice, the group finds themselves looking at a dead end. With nowhere to go, they turn back. A shadowy figure walking towards them, a Tiefling. Its cloak flutters against seemly nothing, abnormal shadows fluttered around the torches lining the walls.
The figure smelled of blood and sulphur.
The figure stops thirty feet away, a single finger pointed at them "You shouldn't have escaped…"
"God, damn it…" Ikalgo complains, "A boss fight with no way to escape."
"I charge it, ready to knock them down."
There was no escape, no chance of approaching the figure. The shadows obeyed its master, swatting Korarall down like a fly. He's knocked off his feet, then knocked back towards his allies.
He suffers no damage…
Raising their hand, they directed the shadows towards the floor, the creature in the darkness finally able to be made out. Dark red, corrupted skin, oozing constant blood slams their palm into the concrete floor.
Cracks form across the decrepit floor, giving way.
The party falls towards the lower levels.
"Everyone, roll for landing. Normal rules apply… fifteen and up, you're safe. ten to fourteen, you take half damage. Go!"
The group rolls, Meleoron groaning loudly at his low number. He couldn't believe he rolled a two. Thankfully it wasn't a one, knowing his luck, he'd probably take double damage.
"You know the rules… Korarall, Irilrig and Meiphanis, roll for damage."
Meleoron groans again on his roll "Oh, come on!"
Due to Korarall, landing on the table, the impact reduces the damage he takes by half, he suffers one damage. Irilrig takes full damage, suffering two damage as he hits the concrete floor. Meleoron hits the floor, back first, landing right on a shattered blade. He suffers six damage from the impact.
Sarmenor and Kairakas were the only ones to avoid damage. Sarmenor lands straight into a stack of hay, cushioning the impact against the floor. Kairakas quick wits allow him to roll gracefully onto the floor, avoiding any damage taken.
Meiphanis makes the first complaint, "I miss the roll… and land on a sword. Talk about bad luck…"
"We're lucky it didn't turn out to be an instant kill kind of situation…" Irilrig was quick to point out, "A run-in with the boss who only sent us on our merry way."
"Straight onto our ass…" Korarall added on at the end, "Or a table in my case… at least I didn't land ass first on a sword."
"Ha, ha… very funny. I touch my wound to see how deep it is."
The impact only pierced the skin; it'll heal into a fine scar within a few weeks, offering no serious problems.
"Let's get a view of our surroundings… just in case the Evil Tiefling shows up for the final round."
"You're right, Kairakas… I don't want to be in the same room if it decides to drop down onto us."
Iason held out his hand, ushering them to their surroundings.
The room looks to be that of what was once a storage place. While it was most likely ransacked before its dilapidated state. Due to the floor collapsing underneath them, several of the shelves were destroyed in the process, large chunks of rock from the maze floor crushing them under its weight.
The group was lucky enough to not land on one of these large chunks of mass. However, on further inspection, the shelves showed signs of use. Maybe they even once held, cured meats… vegetables… fruits… loaves of bread…
The knowledge makes your stomach growl. You have certainly been travelling for a long time, the constant fights and walking making your stomach growl.
"Everyone, consume a ration and a gallon of water or suffer a level of exhaustion for each."
Everyone strikes a single ration off their list, Killua going as far as to throw a block of chocolate in their mouth. Actually… they should be careful now. Too much chocolate might leave them smelling terrible… at least, after consuming chocolate, Daniel tends to avoid staying in the same room as them.
However, no one seems to be asking about a foul smell… Daniel is definitely, unique in this regard.
As he munched on the treat, Irilrig pointed out a problem, "I was thinking… the Tiefling has the power to control what looks like a demon from the shadows, right?
Korarall pointed a finger at the man, "It could also be that the Tiefling is its host… and we're dealing with an actual demon that's reaching out from the shadows."
"Can you purge it?" Sarmenor asked out of curiosity.
"If it's a boss… probably not. That, and I don't think I have any divine spells that can perform an exorcism. There might be something we find deeper in the castle alluding to how we can defeat the demon, but I highly doubt it's something we can do without killing the host in the process."
"Well, we could always set up a trap for them. I don't think they intended for us to live… whether it's the demon's desire… or the Tiefling's… we're bound to run into them again. Plus, they're a boss…" Meleoron then pointed at Iason, "And he's not a one-boss-show, kind of guy."
"Stop giving away secrets and plot points… you're ruining the emersion for poor Killua."
"Well, to be fair… Iason has been pretty on point with the information supplied." Killua's expression remained neutral, almost bored-looking, "When he's going into detail, it's kind of important to listen to…"
"I…" Iason looked at Killua's expressionless gaze, "Don't know whether to take that as a compliment or insult…"
"A compliment, I was… raised to be this expressionless."
"I would dread to play two truths and a lie with you…"
"That is…?" Killua got curious about the game. It sounded kind of interesting if it was, what they think it was.
"You tell two truths and a lie; the person has to guess which the lie is." Meleoron was quick to explain, "You'd be next level because most people give away social cues when they're lying… So far… I've been unable to pinpoint when you're expressing yourself emotionally. It's all… dry, and raw I would argue. You're a person of many mysteries… secrets I dare say."
"Sounds fun… an interesting game to play if you want to get to know someone better." Killua quickly changed back to the main topic. Meleoron was getting too close to the truth. He couldn't have anyone probing them… not while Daniel was out of the room.
Iason shifted the topic, "Not really… twenty questions would be better."
Killua hummed at the idea, thinking about what kinds of questions they'd ask Daniel. So far, they've had mundane questions, ones mainly to help them understand human terminology. What kind of questions could they ask that man, that would earn an honest answer? What should they ask to discover more about him?
Before they could think about it, Iason spoke calmly on the matter. It's as if he could see into Killua's mind right now. Even though they were expressionless, they knew Killua was thinking about something "I can see you thinking about it… but might I suggest you remain focused on the question I asked you earlier…"
"Alright… but I can't help myself by being a little curious."
"Curiosity killed the cat you know…" Meleoron remarked slyly.
Killua shook his head, slightly amused. He had no idea what that idiom meant. But if he were to guess, given the context… it would have to do with not infringing on someone's privacy for a few answers, "Alright… I understand. So where were we?"
"Besides a storage room, deep in the pits of a ruin… eating dried meats, fruits, and drinking a gallon of water…" Ikalgo shrugged, "no idea."
"Can we search the room?"
"Not really… There's nothing of value within the room. Besides the weapon, Meleoron landed on. But given the landing, I was implying it was a worn-down, broken sword."
"We're to assume there's only one door in and out…?"
The room is barren, with nothing to offer. While there were two doors into the room, the second was caved in, either destroyed due to the collapsing of the above floor, or the building's ruinous state.
Nobody was too sure.
The door led to a hallway, with two ways to go, and a sign which pointed towards those two choices.
The barracks were towards the left…
Another mess hall was towards the right…
Which way should they go?
"Discuss, amongst yourselves."
"Weapons will already be ransacked… go right." Korarall started the conversation. While it's true the ruined state of the building would mean there's nothing left to pilfer, the fact is this could be the furthest, anybody has gotten in the ruins.
Then again… given that the area boss was above this level, none might have ventured this far into the dilapidated building.
Kairakas seemed to think otherwise, "I say left… the mess hall would have absolutely nothing of value for us to use. Even if we do find food, it would have gone mouldy and off… inedible."
"I'd normally agree with you…" Sarmenor broached the topic timidly, "but I'm going with Killua on this one. The mess hall will be useless to visit."
"Multiple entrances, large room. I agree with Korarall… useless or not, I rather go to the mess hall. The barracks would sound pointless to visit." Meleoron was quick to shift the conversation, "As much as the barracks sounds enticing, given that we're in the lower levels, the kind of barracks it would be is a housing unit for soldiers. There may even be a way to the above levels, which means… running into the boss again."
"Two VS two…" Irilrig sighed, "I guess I'm the tiebreaker. Barracks, while your fear is legitimate, the Mess Hall means a large room… which means… a place for enemies to spawn. If I were deep in enemy territory, I'd clear the barracks first, just in case the Mess Hall is full of creatures. We wouldn't want to get stuck between two fronts."
"And if the Barracks is full of enemies?" Meleoron frowned at the idea of approaching that place.
"It means…" Irilrig was clear on the matter at hand "If the barracks were full of creatures, they'll be armed. Defeating those, meant, we'll clear the more dangerous situation… running into a group of armed mobs later. If we were to fight in the mess hall first, the sounds would draw any enemies from the barracks. If we clear out the area first, at least we reduce the chance, of them being able to be armed."
"Everyone agrees, or split the group?" Iason asked out of curiosity. He could effectively split the group without them knowing because the floor is designed to be a square, with four specific rooms. There was only one way down, and one way up… that way being, through the barracks.
The way down is between the other two rooms, one being a library, the other being a laboratory. If they split, they can cover the ground. He'd just have to make sure to reduce the enemies which spawn. He doesn't want any of the teams to get swarmed by a mass of mobs.
Especially, if they're splitting into two groups…
"If we do, we'll be able to cover more ground…" Meleoron ushered to the rest, "I think the teams would be perfectly balanced. A ranger and a beefcake barbarian. I'll shoot them for a distance while he cleaves them down. For the second group, we have a Rogue, gunning to be an Assassin, a Cleric and a monk who deals devastating blows."
"Alright…" Irilrig pointed a finger at Korarall, "But first… I'm gonna need to at least use one of my Cure Wounds on you. We might not get to have a long rest, which means I'll only have two more healing spells from here on out… but at least it'll put you over the half-point threshold. You are running quite low…"
"Roll…"
Irilrig holds his holy symbol, bathing the Half-Orc in brilliant light. The man is healed for twenty-four hit points, bumping him back up to sixty-three hit points.
"So, will the group be splitting?"
The five players' nod. There was a silent agreement between them. It's better the clear out the two rooms at the same time, given that if they were to encounter any creatures, at least the sounds being made, wouldn't leave the group fighting on both sides, backs against each other.
Korarall and Meiphanis heading towards the Mess Hall, weapons ready. The other three, Kairakas, Sarmenor and Irilrig, head towards the barracks.
With the unknown heading towards them, the two groups plan to at least meet up within an hour after exploring the other room.