Alistair crouched inside the Summoning Circle for the better part of an hour before hiss spell construct came back. It was mind numbing the waste of time being a dungeon demon amounted to. In fact, he was beginning to think that spending a 1000 years as one would drive him insane. It was then that he realized that he hadn’t even started the count down, he needed to get his dungeon up to level 500 and then he could start waiting down the clock. Picking up pebbles of volcanic glass, Alistair wondered what he could be doing more to help build his dungeon. Maybe he did need to dismiss his current aspect and restart with the General Help.
“Hello, my Lord Alistair, I am back!” the fireball spell construct appeared in an explosion of flame. What seemed to be strange was that the fireball was smoking, when originally it just seemed to be a smokeless flame. “Wow! There are a lot of mana monsters waiting to be born around here! It took a real long time finding the right ones for you. I found five monsters with different difficulties for you to face. Let me just…” A small prompt came up in front of Alistair.
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Alistair took one look at the list and started to salivate at the thought of a Hellcat as his dungeon boss. Of course, he didn’t even have animal bone and already he was thinking about adventurers being mauled to death by a Hell Bobcat or even a Hell Snake. Shaking his head, he looked at the other choices, but they all seemed so dull compared to the Hell Animal. Fire wisp and Fire beetle were just… boring, so he skipped reading those two and focused on the Elemental Worker and Salamander. Both had some great potential to grow and become powerful Mana Monsters, but without meat the Salamander would never grow. For a moment, he began to wonder how he could even get meat besides wayward Adventurers. Shrugging, at least the Magma Elemental would continue to grow and become more powerful. So it seemed like an obvious choice, Alistair hit the yes on the prompt for an Insignificant Magma Elemental. The Summoning Circle began to come alive as little flecks of light began to float up. “Wow, My Lord! You must be really good in combat I can’t wait to see you beat this elemental!”
Alistair’s grin stopped for a moment, he had completely forgotten the requirement to battle the creature. Still the construct was right. He had tons of combat experience in his previous life, how much of a difference could this combat be?
The answer came to Alistair when some of his mana was stripped from his aura to complete the summoning. The Summoning Circle began to shrink Alistair and the Forming Elemental so that the circle would become a gladiator pit. A Magma Elemental twice his size appeared in front of him. Immediately the air began to shimmer from the creature’s fire aura, and even though Alistair could feel his own aura try to absorb the heat, it was quickly overcome and his skin began to itch and sting.
The Magic of the Summoning Circle had temporary decreased both himself and the Elemental to fit in its bounds. Still there was almost no room to maneuver as a fist of molten rock swung its way towards Alistair. The now inch tall demon, ducked quickly, feeling the intense heat of the elementals arm swung overhead. Alistair realized that the only advantage he had over the elemental was that he was faster then it. With a shout Alistair raked his claws out feeling the tips scratch at the rock skin of the elemental. His strike had done nothing, as the elemental left hand transformed into a blade like weapon.
Alistair moved as quickly as his body allowed him to, the elemental used both arms to attack in a frenzy. This wasn’t a fight of fine sword play or contest of fists. This was Alistair doing his best to not get hit by a wild blow. Blow and swing came on after another from the elemental. Both Alistair and the elemental began moving about the circle. Alistair was trying his best to keep the elemental at bay. While the elemental was trying to use its considerable size to crush Alistair. Alistair recognize the next attack pattern that the elemental was going to use.
So as the elemental began thrusting forward with its bladed hand, while the right hand began its slower journey backwards for a haymaker. Alistair saw his chance and slowly shifted his body to the left. With all the power and precision that Alistair could make, he swung with all his might lodging his needle like claws in a glowing crack between the Elementals rock skin. A shudder immediately was felt through the elementals arm as Alistair pulled at his hand to try and dislodge his claws. Alistair looked up to see that the elemental had finally reset its swing and began the forward motion again. Alistair’s hand was stuck and even though he applied all his frantic energy to dislodge the claws, they wouldn’t budge. The fist swung forward and Alistair did his best to ready himself to dodge. However, instead the punch was aimed at the only stationary part of his body, his hand.
The force of the blow sent pieces of rock from the elementals skin flying. Alistair felt several bones in his wrist and hand shatter. Pain wrapped around his mind as this claws acted like a crowbar and pulled out a huge rock from the elementals arm. Lava began to burst forth, large superheated droplets hit the floor and struck Alistair about the chest and legs. Screaming in pain, Alistair instinct was to back away from the monster that was causing him so much pain. He felt the circle’s magic barrier spring up at his back when he neared its edge. Cradling his right hand Alistair looked. The Elemental was shrinking, apparently with the breaking of its magical rock skin had cause the lava core to lose some of its precious essence. The Rock skin was moving and reforming to stop the gap in its body, but it was taking time as the elemental kept dripping lava on the floor. Seeing the only opportunity to end the fight Alistair ran forward screaming in pain as every step sent lighting pain from his right hand through his mind. The elemental noticed Alistair’s charge and with a strange sort of indifferent attitude moved its wounded bladed arm and speared him in the chest.
Alistair momentum carried him further and further down the blade. Pain exploded in his chest as organs were pierce and cut. His battle cry became some kind of liquid bubbling and then the blackness came as the Elementals fist came down on his head.
Alistair floated on a sea of blackness. It was calm in a way, no pain or thoughts could intrude on his solitude. Slowly, he drifted deeper and deeper. Thoughts started coming back to him: his fight with the elemental; his service as a dungeon demon; his arrogance at thinking with no training on fighting with his new body he could fight an Elemental. For the first time in a long time he was deeply ashamed. He had died because of so many reasons. Why hadn’t he tried to dismiss the Mana Monster Summoning Aspect and tried the General Help Aspect as well? Why hadn’t he truly looked at this skills or asked the Spell construct what would happen once he summoned the monster?
Why hadn’t he realized that Alistair was no longer Thorian?
Alistair finally settled down from his drifting. His eyes opened and he was in a stone worked room on a bed. Getting up, he realized that he was once again human with simple clothes placed on his body. Jumping up and shouting in joy at the thought of being human once again showed him a room with four doors and what looked like a well in the middle of it. The second door on the left opened and a boy of eight came out of it. The boy had a mess of red hair, freckles were patterned all over his face and when he smiled several teeth were missing from his grin. The clothes he wore were simple fare often found on farmer peasants around the world. The child was even missing shoes and his feet was covered it black dirt. Laughing innocently, the boy spoke, “My Lord Alistair! I see your soul has found its way to your dungeon pocket dimension. That sure was a good fight! When your body reforms, do you think you want to try the elemental again?”
