Whisper found the doorway to the room a short climb above the station, and found it was supported by a grand arch, pale light pouring through the doorway from some unknown source. Whisper found it a rather soothing familiar light, although she could not recall why it was.
As she strode through, she heard soft, shambling footsteps ahead. Three assorted bugs plodded around, all with that orange light in their eyes. Whisper realized with a shock that maybe these had once been talking bugs as well.
But not anymore. The short one turned towards her with a hiss, shambling forwards faster. Its two friends, a tall skinny bug and a bulky one with a massive horn, prepared to attack as well.
Whisper dispatched the first bug easily. It was slow and easy to hit, nothing like her other opponents. But the other two were on her in an instant, and these guys had new tricks.
The tall bug leaped into the air, diving down with a pointed leg aiming straight for her mask. Whisper narrowly dodged, but then the horn bug came trampling at her, its horn jutting forwards and running much faster than the first bug. Whisper attempted to block with her scepter, but the horn bug pushed hard against it and shoved her up to the wall. Whisper kicked it back and gave it a swat with her scepter, but then the tall bug came jumping down once more, shoving her into the ground painfully.
Whisper rose her scepter again and struck the tall bug back, trying to determine the best approach to win here. She eyed its legs, which were already preparing to jump again. She slashed at them, cutting the tall bug down before dealing a finishing blow to the head.
But just as quickly the horn bug was at her again, trying to impale her much like Willow had. But Whisper was anticipating that, rolling to the side and causing it to slam into the wall. While it staggered back, she lunged forth, taking it down as well.
Her scepter glowed as she sapped the life energy from them. She focused, healing her scrapes and wounds and closing over the hole Willow had made in her body. Dimly, her mind told her that a bug should not have so easily survived a skewering like that, but Whisper didn't care.
The tunnel narrowed ahead, she noticed, filled with barrels and old carts. She wondered what use those had in these old narrow tunnels. Not that it mattered anymore when nearly everything was dead.
The hall opened up again rather quickly, but Whisper immediately slid to a halt. For in the room ahead of her was another giant bug with a club.
Thankfully it wasn't looking her way, but she was not at all interested in fighting another one. She wondered if it was the strong enemy Cornifer had marked…but no, the face was different.
But this was where the worker's quarters were supposed to be. So, if that wasn't it, where were they?
Then Whisper looked up.
Some small slippery steps had been carved into the wall, leading up and over the guard. They wound up the tall cavern, seemingly leading to a series of chambers up above. Whisper supposed it was safe to think that her destination was up there.
Now to climb those narrow steps without falling or attracting the guard's attention.
Whisper carefully scurried over to the first step, gripping on cautiously. The wet slimy substance felt absolutely wrong, and Whisper had to resist the strange urge to let go and stop touching that stuff. Something weird seemed to scream it was nasty and wrong.
But she did not let go, and pulled herself onto the slimy steps. Carefully she started hopping up them, slowly rising higher and higher up the wall. The guard continued standing there motionlessly, completely unaware that she was climbing up above it.
She felt rather warm. She was doing it!
But about halfway up, she jumped just slightly wrong. She hit the step and slipped, the slime nearly causing her to slide off. She fell flat on her back, sending pebbles bouncing down. The guard rumbled, looking around to see where the noise was coming from.
Whisper felt tight and jittery, feeling the urge to run or hide. She sat there for a few moments trying to fight back the emotion, knowing it was very bad to be feeling it right now.
But the guard huffed and returned to his silent staring, and Whisper carefully stood back up. That had been way too close.
She creeped the rest of the way up, until she reached the doorway of another chamber. The steps, she noticed, led higher up, but something had damaged them and she couldn't get up to the higher ones. She hoped that this was the right room.
Then she looked forward into the room, and felt a rush of surprise.
It was the other one like her again. The silent ghost, standing amidst a circle of dead bugs. It stared at her with those sad empty eyes, eyes like hers but also not.
Whisper noticed movement behind it, and stepped forward, attempting to give it warning. But the ghost instantly whirled around, bringing its nail down upon the head of the horn beetle and severing it in one stroke. Then it started walking further into the massive room, which Whisper noticed had lots of alcoves in the corners for beds or something.
Whisper ran in after, trying to get its attention. She had to learn more about it, what it was, why it was here. But as soon as both were in the room, Whisper felt the harsh pressure behind her mask again. With another chime and a distant whisper, metal gates slammed down on either end of the room, sealing them in.
Ghost (for that was what Whisper decided to call this other her) whipped around, nail pointed at her. But then something massive slammed into the arena between them, having jumped down from some higher level.
It was a truly massive bug, one that made the guard below look downright tiny. It wore thick, bronze-colored armor, which wrapped around a very wide and round body. In its gauntlets it carried a massive rod with a heavy studded orb at the end - a mace, Whisper's mind helpfully supplied. Its head was large and spiked, two on the top and two more on the sides. The eyes of its mask were too tiny to look through, but Whisper could sense the malice of the orange light behind them.
Now this was the bug Cornifer had chronicled. This was gonna be quite the battle.
Then Whisper realized something else.
Her staff was humming along to music. Music that had started playing in the presence of this foe. It throbbed behind Whisper's mask, a pounding rhythm that sought to overwhelm and intimidate, with little to no grace. A trembling powerful tone, fitting for the brute facing her.
And Whisper knew immediately her scepter wanted to kill this thing more than it had cared for any other foe at this point.
Ghost leaped into action immediately, hacking against the giant's shell with its nail. But it hardly seemed to leave even a scratch in the exterior. The giant responded by slamming its mace into Ghost, sending the bug flying.
Whisper charged in immediately, leaping up to land a blow into the warrior's chest. But her scepter did about as much as the nail. She stumbled back as the brute tried to counter.
However, when her weapon had hit the beast, it had sent a name into her mind. This was a false knight. Something was wearing the skin of former greatness but had not earned it.
Whisper sensed within her that this meant it had to be killed.
Ghost had recovered from the blow, and was back at it again, darting around the False Knight's blows and trying to damage it to little avail. Whisper knew she had to help the little bug out, and dashed in to assist, striking at the False Knight from behind.
But when she charged in, the False Knight leaped back, landing across the arena from them with a heavy thud that brought dust cascading down from the ceiling. It pulled back its mace and stayed there, arms shaking slightly. Sensing weakness, Ghost and Whisper dashed in, hoping to land a better strike.
But right as they reached it, the False Knight slammed its mace down, sending a wave of white force rushing into them. Whisper and Ghost were thrown back, and Whisper felt a new crack form in her mask.
So that had been a feint. Whisper kept a note of that.
As she staggered back to her feet, the False Knight leaped towards her, mace raised. Whisper narrowly dodged around it, and the False Knight smashed its mace into the ground where she'd been mere seconds prior. As it prepared for another blow, Whisper struck, swiping her scepter into its legs to hopefully knock it down.
But it was a lot sturdier than most bugs, and managed to keep its footing. Ghost chose that moment to slash at it again, its nail digging into one of the grooves of the armor. The False Knight huffed furiously and swung a fist into Ghost, dislodging them effortlessly.
Whisper's eyes landed upon its head next. Perhaps if she could break the mask…she just needed an opening.
The False Knight glared at her, and then started charging, causing Whisper to immediately have to dodge. But as it barreled past, the mace landed a glancing blow on her body, causing her roll to turn into a sprawl. Wisps of smoke rolled off of her, a very bad sign.
And the False Knight was as invulnerable as ever.
Ghost ran past Whisper, completely oblivious to her current state. She sat back up, observing curiously how Ghost fought the False Knight. It was as if Ghost was running purely off instinct - there was no thought or grace behind its blows, just cold repetition of whatever it had been taught. It looked oddly familiar even though Whisper had never fought another nail user.
Whisper wondered if she'd be fighting the same way if she had a nail, and not whatever this scepter was.
The False Knight charged its mace again, but this time Ghost and Whisper were ready. They stood back, and when the mace came down they jumped over the force wave, completely avoiding damage.
It was simple enough really, come to think of it. But Whisper knew she was still gonna have to figure out a way to whittle down that absurd amount of health.
But then she noticed the False Knight seemed a bit slower after that charging attack. Perhaps by dodging the force wave and following up immediately with an attack, she could hit the head?
She leaped up to attempt it. The False Knight tried to jump away, but Whisper managed to dig her scepter into its shoulder and grip on. The False Knight tried to rip her off, but she nimbly leaped up again, yanking her scepter free and flipping onto the back of its neck. She then proceeded to slam her scepter down hard on the back of its head, making a very loud ching sound.
The False Knight staggered, and fell flat onto the ground. Whisper felt something slip under her, and a groove down the center of the mask popped open. Sliding out with a bleh sound was a large, white, slimy bug, with a very round and squishy face.
Whisper immediately started whacking it, her every blow making it make another pained sound. Ghost joined in the fun, but suddenly the face squished itself back in, the mask slamming back closed and the False Knight leaping back to its feet. With an angered bellow, the warrior jumped to the center of the room, where it started yelling angrily and slamming every nearby surface with its mace.
The chamber trembled and cracked, dust falling and stones cracking. It was then joined by large falling rocks, glowing with tiny blobs of that horrid light. Whisper started trying to dodge them, then realized something. They seemed just the right size to be hooked by her scepter.
She saw one coming towards her and tested her theory. She swung the curved end of her weapon around, the rock fitting perfectly in the hook. It was heavy, though, and Whisper nearly fell over. But she instead flung it forwards, where it soared and slammed into the False Knight's shell.
Now that did some damage.
The rock cracked the False Knight's shell upon impact, interrupting the tantrum. The False Knight turned towards Whisper, pure hate boiling off of it. Whisper could feel the music turn more frantic and fast-paced, as if suggesting she run.
Of course, she did not.
The False Knight barreled towards her angrily, and Whisper readied herself for its approach. As it came at her, she rolled between its legs, smacking the crack with her scepter and widening it slightly. At the same time, Ghost came flying in, nail swinging fiercely.
The False Knight spun around, using its mace to smack its two foes away. But Whisper knew they had found its weakness. Now to exploit it.
The warrior started charging another force attack, and Whisper sensed her move. She dashed in, dodging the wave, and prepared to leap onto it again. But this time, the False Knight was expecting it. It leaped over her, and she hit the ground hard, causing more smoke to pour from her weakening body. She looked behind her just to see the mace coming right for her mask.
But before the blow could hit, Ghost stabbed into the crack, knocking the False Knight's swing off course. As the brute tried to recover, Whisper was back on her feet, her scepter humming louder as it sensed weakness. Ghost dashed up the False Knight's back, leaping over onto its face and stabbing the nail into the groove on its mask.
There came the ringing ching again, and the False Knight fell over backwards, the earth cracking beneath it. The mask popped open, and even before it could go bleh Whisper and Ghost were on its face instantly. However, it was so fat and squishy they still weren't killing it. It still dared to live even after all that.
Once again, the False Knight pulled itself into its armor and leaped to the center of the room, throwing another tantrum. The floor began to break, pieces of it falling down into the tunnels below. Whisper dodged around the widening holes and cracks, doing her best to try and fling more rocks at the False Knight. However, most ended up missing.
She finally managed to fling one towards its head, but at that moment another Rock fell right behind her and hit her head-on. She fell to the ground, cracks forming in her mask. She felt her body burn in absolute agony, and as smoke rose thickly around her she realized it was struggling to maintain its form. It was now starting to try and twist into…something else.
Whisper desperately tried to focus on her scepter, pulling the soul into herself. But the pain overwhelmed all else, and it seemed as if it did nothing. She struggled to get up, to focus, but it was impossible.
The False Knight seemed to sense she was weak, and jumped towards her, ready to crush her into a black stain on the floor. Whisper tried to move, but couldn't. She could only watch as the mace moved in for the final strike.
But at that moment, her scepter began to glow, and a piercing note rang out. The False Knight froze and missed its blow, dazed by the sound.
The staff vibrated in Whisper's hand, playing the music she'd been hearing this whole time. But then she realized - no. It was just making it real, and it was absorbing it.
The False Knight staggered as the song drained away, filling Whisper with new strength and focus. She healed her wounds, stabilizing her mutating form, and strode forwards to face the failed champion.
With a piercing blow, she broke the mask open, and started swiping at the face within. Ghost dashed in to help, and now orange blood began to leak from the armor.
But the victory was short-lived. The mask clanged closed, albeit it seemed looser now, and the False Knight leaped into the center of the room. With a piercing wail it leaped into the middle of the room, smashing everything with the full force of its pain and rage.
Whisper desperately clung for life, avoiding the rocks as the floor fell apart, the chamber barely intact. She lost sight of Ghost, and there was so much dust that she could only hear the False Knight screaming.
But then, it happened. The mace hit one of the cracks - the floor shattered - the False Knight wailed - and the chamber collapsed, everything falling into the hallway below. Whisper leaped up to avoid the falling rocks, and somehow managed to survive unscathed.
As the rubble settled, she heard a faint, weak bleh. She turned to see the False Knight flat on the ground, its armor cracked and broken. The pathetic white face stared at her, its tiny eyes full of the despair of certain death.
Ghost appeared from the dust behind her, its tiny steps making no sound as it strode up to the broken False Knight. One wet stab later, and Ghost ripped the head free, revealing it was attached to a tiny, weak little body that was definitely not big enough to fit in the armor. Ghost studied the bleeding corpse, then tossed it aside once it was sure it was dead. It walked away without a second glance, leaving Whisper alone with the pathetic corpse.
Whisper heard a faint chime from her scepter. A faint golden light flowed into it from the armor, and she felt that unusual strength again. She felt it resonating through her with a soft ring, attuning to her essence in a way not too dissimilar from the soul, but very different at the same time.
Another power she could not understand.
She looked at the False Knight's corpse. It was hard to believe such a powerful foe, such indestructible armor, had all been controlled by this one tiny pathetic creature.
But it was dead now. There was no use thinking about it any longer.
She spotted something glittering among the carcass of the armor. She walked over, intrigued by the sparkle. Inside the armor was a small red disc, with a strange extension on one side and an emblem on the other. It seemed to be important, though, so Whisper picked it up.
She heard a soft squeak behind her, and whirled around. To her surprise, the head of the False Knight's mace detached itself, standing up on tiny little legs. It started trying to skitter away pathetically, but Whisper was on it in an instant. Her scepter whacked against it, and it balled up again, whimpering.
However its shell seemed just as thick as that nasty Elder Baldur. There was no killing this bug. So Whisper decided to let it go. She watched it scurry away whimpering, most likely to run into the guard later. Whisper wondered how that would go.
She then turned towards the direction where Ghost had disappeared. There was something beyond there, she sensed. Something she wanted to find.
Whisper crawled over the rubble, carefully navigating to the end of the room. There, she noticed an open door, with a small room above it. It had been locked off before, but the rubble had broke it open, revealing an unusual box. Whisper climbed up to investigate, noticing that it was labeled Wage Deposit.
Popping it open, she was greeted by the sight of hundreds of Geo, all glittering and ready for the taking. Whisper could care less for the sparkly shells, but she knew there were probably more bugs who would want them. So she carefully scooped it all up and tucked it into her cloak.
Then she climbed down to the door below, ready to continue her journey.*