Dungeons and Blue Eyes White Dragons
Chapter Three: Questing
"Well, Kaiba, did you enjoy the combat?" Solomon asked.
Kaiba shrugged, seemingly indifferent, "It was decent."
"Hey, Grandpa," Yugi said happily, "Are we at the Goblin Caves yet?"
"Yes, Yugi," Solomon began, "As you near the Goblin Caves, you realize that the mob of Goblins standing guard outside will be difficult to combat…"
~
"There's got to be a better way in," Kaiba pointed out.
"Come on, we can take 'em!" Tristan retaliates, "We were barely hurt in our last fight!"
"I don't know, Tristan…" Yugi sighs, "There were only seven last time…now there are at least thirty…that's about four to one…"
"We could try to sneak in," Duke suggested, "Does anyone have the Stealth skill?"
The others stared at him, Tea speaking, "Since when have you known that much about this game?"
"Well, I've played my share of MUDs, I know my way around the basics," Duke explained.
~
"Stealth…Stealth…" the group murmured, studying their character sheets.
"Would that be under Abilities or Attributes?" Joey asked.
"Skills," Duke answered.
"I have it!" Bakura chirped.
~
"So, Bakura's the leader for this task," Duke explained, "He'll roll a percentile skill check based on his skill and ours. Since we have no Stealth skill, that's a -20 for each one of us…"
"…-120…" Kaiba stated.
"How can he succeed, Duke?" Yugi asked.
"Well…" Duke thought for a moment, "…we can always hope for a critical success, a roll from one to ten…Apart from that, we're screwed…"
"It's our only hope!" Yugi said hopefully.
"Follow me," Bakura called out, guiding the six up the mountainside, "We will try and come in from above…"
The mountainous terrain was difficult to cross, let alone crossing stealthily. Joey and Tristan frequently tripped, shouting loudly, which, in turn, caused Kaiba to spew ridicule towards one of them, usually Joey. Duke was completely absorbed in the game, following Bakura closely. Yugi helped Joey and Tristan, urging them to keep going when they fell. Tea was kind of left out, in between the 'leading group' (Bakura and Duke) and the 'following group' (Everyone else).
"Augh, I fell again," Joey called out, "Yugi, gimme' a hand, 'k?"
"Okay, Joey," Yugi sighed, "I'm coming."
Joey grabbed hold of Yugi's hand, using it to pull him up. Or at least, that's what he tried to do. Instead, he got about half-way before falling back down again.
"Oh…there's a big furry rock on my leg…" Joey sighed, "Tristan, can you get this thing off'a me?"
"Sure," Tristan replied, "Ugh, what is this? It's wet!"
As he said this, the 'big furry rock' lifted, letting loose a massive roar. The group stared blankly as a form of mammoth faced them. It was roughly twice the height of an average person (Anyone other than Yugi). Tusks were visible beneath twisted strands of knotted brown fur. It immediately dashes for Tristan, the one who had disturbed it.
"Aw, crap…" Tristan sighed.
"Get outta' there!" Duke shouted, lunging at Tristan, thus knocking him out of the way.
Having lost its target, the beast turned to face Bakura. Fear was visible in Bakura's eyes as the mammoth dashed forward, heaving its body at the white-haired youth. Bakura dove to the right, barely escaping unscathed.
"Bakura!" Yugi cried.
Their friend was now on the other side of the creature, separated from the others. Yugi lifted his staff, preparing to strike. Kaiba placed his arm before him, a stern look on his face.
"Kaiba, we have to do something!" Yugi pleaded.
"That's suicide," Kaiba spat, "That thing's huge."
"What about Bakura?" Yugi asked.
"…He'll find a way…" Kaiba murmured, his eyes glimmering.
~
"What's that supposed to mean, Kaiba?" Joey shouted, "Bakura's screwed, and you're just trying to make your character seem all cool and melodramatic!"
"Shut up, Joey."
~
Bakura stared at the mammoth-like creature. Though he was fearful, he drew his sword. As he did, the white light returned to his eyes and blade. His breathing sped up, becoming fast. His back hunched over and his feet spreading apart, grinding against the gravel and rocks beneath him. His lips curled into a malevolent grin.
"What's happening?" Tea asked.
"I don't know," Duke murmured, "but it's the same light as before…"
"…when he claimed the Soul of the goblin…" Yugi added.
Suddenly, Bakura let out a furious scream, dashing at the beast. His blade entered and exited the mammoth's back several times, blood spilling to the ground. The creature let out a low moan, pulling away.
"…that's not like Bakura…" Tea winced.
The mammoth struck back, swiping at Bakura. He was cast against a rock face, slumping to the ground. The white light faded, and Bakura seemed normal once more. He was, however, a little disoriented. After a moment of staring at the mammoth, he grabbed his sword once more and staggered to his feet.
The mammoth breath was heaving, losing more blood each moment. Bakura shuffled forward, holding his sword with both hands. As quickly as it left, the white light returned. Bakura did not, though, attack in the frenzy as he had before. Instead, he struck with a single, well-aimed blow, aimed for the beast's head. As the blade of the sword passed through the air, the white light streamed behind it, illuminating the air.
A scream of anguish filled the air, the creature collapsing. The blade of the sword exited the mammoth's skull, returning to its scabbard. Then, the white light came from the creature, passing to Bakura before fading from existence.
Everyone stood, staring silently at Bakura for a few moments. He didn't offer any explanation. He limped onward, his leg hurt from battle with the creature, and the goblins before it.
"What was that thing?" Tea asked.
"A Mogu," Bakura answered.
"A Mowha--?" Joey echoed in response.
"A Mogu," Bakura repeated, "It's a type of mammoth-like beast."
"What did you do to it?" Tristan asked, glancing at the corpse.
"…I claimed its Soul…"
"What did you do to…go crazy?" Joey swallowed dryly, anxious.
"…I don't know…" Bakura sighed, "I think I used the Soul of a goblin…I felt this surge of anger and want for war…I couldn't control it…"
The group glanced back and forth from one another, all eyes eventually resting on Bakura. He sighed, turning back to their route.
"So…are we going to go?" he suggested.
They began moving once more. Bakura' limp lowered his Stealth rating further, but it wasn't noticeable (as it was technically already at its lowest possible score). Bakura and Duke made it to the edge of the route, ending up above the entrance to the goblin caves.
Slowly, Duke began climbing down the left side. Bakura took the right, meticulously placing each step and hold. Though, he moved slower than Duke, he still felt immense pain in his leg. Neither of them had been noticed, and the rest of their group began their descent.
"Augh!" Bakura shouted, his leg coursing with agony. He fell from his place, landing on his side before the cave. Duke, who had looked over to see Bakura's progress, leapt from his spot, landing a few meters away from Bakura.
The group of goblins turned to face Bakura and Duke. One by one, Yugi and the gang joined them. After the last member, Kaiba, had taken his place, nobody moved. The goblins glared at their opponents. The party stared back, intimidated by the massive amount of goblins.
Bakura grunted softly, attempting to rise to his feet. Yugi dashed to his side, Duke already at the other.
"You're in no condition to fight!" Duke scolded.
"…I have to…" Bakura murmured, "…it's my fault they noticed us…"
"But without you," Yugi added, "We wouldn't have had Stealth in the first place!"
Bakura was silent, ignoring Yugi and Duke as he searched his brain for anything that might be able to defeat thirty goblins.
"Come on, Bakura," Duke sighed, taking Bakura by the arm, "They can deal about seven damage each round per goblin, and that's including your armor.. You have about 50 hit points when you're at your maximum, which you're not. We can try and take on the goblins!"
"No."
The sword emerged from its scabbard. Bakura held it weakly, and its blade touched the ground once. Suddenly, without warning, white light entered Bakura's eyes. He cast Duke to the side, and the youth fell into Tristan. Bakura ran forward, holding the sword with both hands.
"…that's not what the Goblin Soul did…" Duke muttered, staggering to his feet, "This seems more orderly, albeit not much…"
"…then…" Tea murmured, "…the Mogu?"
The blade of Bakura's sword passed through goblin after goblin, slicing them in half. Bakura charged at each one, instead of using any form of dexterity that seemed more like his style. The goblins were stunned, unsure of what to do.
"What Soul is this that can strike thirty goblins in one round?" Kaiba gasped.
Bakura dropped to his knees, clutching his hurt leg tightly. The white light had vanished. He seemed to have more control.
"…augh…" he muttered under his breath, "…my…my leg…"
The group approached him, gathering around. They stared at him, unsure of what to do.
"…we don't have a White Mage…" Kaiba pointed out.
"…none of us have the ability to heal Bakura…" Yugi sighed.
"Great…" Duke shouted sarcastically, tossing his dice to the side in anger.
The three black ten-sided dice landed on the ground. They rolled a few feet, eventually stopping. All three dice displayed the same number, a two. The group stared, confused, as the dice emitted a bright white light.
Three white bears stood before the party. They were barely one meter tall. Pink bat-like wings adorn the creatures' backs. They smiled; they're thin, slanted eyes glimmering.
"These are…" Duke murmured, more to himself than anyone else, "…Moogles?"
The creatures moved, hopping back and forth, waving. They appeared to be performing a form of dance. The group was dumbstruck, having no idea whatsoever as to what was going on.
Then they were gone. The Moogles left just as suddenly as they had arrived, again in a flash of light. Bakura rose to his feet, looking down at his leg.
"What's going on?" Tea asked.
~
"Moogle Dance," Duke stated calmly.
"You've got to be joking…" Tristan sighed.
"No, Tristan," Duke replied, "Moogle Dance is a Gambler ability that recovers hit points equal to my level divided by five multiplied by my Magic Attribute, plus the roll of four six-sided dice to all party members."
"…whatever…" Seto mumbled.
"While we're at it," Solomon cut in, "You've all earned an additional level, thanks to Bakura! You gain one Attribute point, ten Skill points, and your Hit Points and Magic Points rise!"
"Yay!" Yugi, Tristan, Joey, Tea, and Duke cheered. Bakura smiled, Seto sighed, bored.
~
Author's Note: Well, there's chapter three. They haven't actually entered the Goblin Caves, yet Chapter Two was named after it…hmm…Puff of Logic!
~
Character Sheets (Incomplete)
Yugi Moto
Black Mage
Human
XP: 1252
GP: 783
Equipment:
Oak Staff
Red Hat: +10 Magic%
Cotton Robe
Spells:
Fire
Sleep
Blind
Joey Wheeler
Magic Knight
Human
XP: 1252
GP: TBA + 570
Equipment: TBA
Enchantments:
Fire Strike
SOS-Shell
Tristan Taylor
Monk
Human
XP: 1252
GP: TBA + 570
Equipment: TBA
Punch Art:
Martial Arts
Punch Rush
Tea Gardner
Dancer
Human
XP: 1252
GP: TBA + 570
Equipment: TBA
Dances:
Flirt
Taunt
Distraction Duet
Runic Shimmy
Temptation Tango
Stumbling Steps
Mystery Waltz
Ryou Bakura
Rei Senshi
Human
XP: 1252
GP: TBA + 570
Equipment: TBA
Souls:
Goblin
Duke Devlin
Gambler
Human
XP: 1252
GP: TBA + 570
Equipment: TBA
Slots:
Moogle Reels
Seto Kaiba
Dragoon
Human
XP: 1252
GP: TBA + 570
Equipment: TBA
Dragon:
Jump