“Catch,” Erabset said.

  I turned just in time to catch a stone brick right before it could hit me in the face. “What the hell, Bet? You could have killed me.”

  “It would not have killed you. You exaggerate too much. Now fight.” A twisted wooden staff appeared, leaning on the wall nearest Ersabet. She casually reached over and picked it up before giving it a twirl.

  “I hope you know how to use that thing,” I said, brick in hand.

  “This staff grants me the ability to cast Fireblast. It’s a minor, close-range fire spell, but I think it could work on these things.”

  The three mycelium monsters were fully mobile now, and their attention was set on us.

  “Let’s find out if they're flammable. Go!”

  Ersabet darted forward and lunged out with the staff. When the tip contacted the first mushroom man, it erupted in a spray of fire, engulfing the monster in flames. The monster shrieked and flailed, and the others backed away in fear of it.

  Ersabet darted back to my side, leaving the mushroom in flames.

  “What are you doing here?” I asked. “Go kill the others!”

  “Fireblast has a ten-minute cooldown.”

  “What? I thought you channeled magic and could cast spells whenever you want? You can do it until your mana or channel energy or whatever runs out.”

  “Yes, that is how magic works; however, this staff does not use my magic. It has been enchanted, and it is its own source of magic. It reabsorbs magical energy, but it takes time.”

  “Have you had it this whole time? It could have been useful, you know!”

  “A lady never reveals her secrets.”

  “This is a stupid game. Plan B.”

  I turned my attention back to the mycelium monsters. The burning one had stopped twitching, and I was sure it was dead or nearly so. The remaining two, on the other hand, were very much alive and were finally getting over their fear of the flames. They began to lumber our way.

  “Tabby, Delen, Kitz: watch our back. We should be able to handle this, but if things look like they're going south, come help.”

  Ersabet and I ran forward to meet the fungus fiends, and we operated with precision. Almost in unison, we moved toward our targets. I swung my brick as hard as I could at the thing's gnarled, cankerous face. My arm shook from the impact and the unexpected push back from the blow. It was like I had tried to punch a tree with a brick. It knocked the monster back a step, and I shouted. “The face is too hard. We have to find a soft spot to hit. Try the back of the head.”

  I threw out a Simple Distraction, but it didn’t work at all. That didn’t surprise me. I’m pretty sure this thing couldn’t see or hear me. It was part of the colony, and the colony knew my every step.

  Just to be safe, I activated Speed Check, doubling my movement speed, and before that nasty shroom zombie could turn around, I was behind it. I slammed my brick down hard onto a part of the upper left side of his head that didn’t seem to have any of that barklike growth protecting it. The back of his skull caved in from the force of it, and I let go of the brick. It remained lodged in the back of its head even after it fell face-first to the ground.

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  To no one’s surprise, Ersabet’s target fell shortly after, her staff dripping a purple ichor.

  We had done it. Just like that. I fist-bumped Ersabet and checked my XP bar. It was halfway full! That shared experience and dungeon-XP multiplier really made a difference. It would be a good idea to grind a few levels out while I was in here. There’s a ton of risk to it, but we made it through our first encounter without a scratch.

  “We keep moving forward,” I said. “The moment you see any of these mushroom dudes moving around, bash their head in before they get mobile.”

  I stalked through the mushroom-covered street, eyes darting around, looking for any sign of movement. There was none.

  All was calm for the next twenty yards. We came upon an intersection, but the path to the left was blocked by rubble. Both forward and right looked the same – a fungal road leading between old sandstone buildings. I kept walking forward, toward one of the tall spires with my brick at the ready.

  I caught a glimpse of shuffling mushrooms ahead and darted forward. The creature seemed to sense me, and it jerked its upper half from the ground, but I was behind it before it could get its legs out. I smacked the most exposed part of its head I could find but had to hammer the same spot three times before I broke through the rock-hard mushroom that had nearly covered its entire skull.

  Ersabet darted past me, and so did Tabby. I turned to see them taking on two other risers. To my surprise, Tabby took her target down in one bash, but it took Ersabet two swings of her staff.

  “Like shooting fish in a barrel,” I said.

  There was a raspy groan followed by a high-pitched scream behind me. I turned to see Delen and Kitz backpeddling from one of the mushroom zombies that had crawled through a crumbling doorway. Delen used his arm to hold Kitz behind him.

  “Split up,” I shouted.

  Kitz understood immediately and darted away from Delen. The zombie groaned as it twisted toward Kitz and lumbered after him. Realizing what was going on, Delen repositioned himself behind the creature and ran toward it, a large rock raised in his hand. He brought it down right on the top of the zombie’s head. There was a loud crack as the stone and parts of the hard mushroom armor shattered. The zombie fell forward and faceplanted, but it was still moving. Kitz rushed toward it and lifted his stone with both hands, then slammed it hard onto the back of the monster’s head. There was a satisfying crunch, but Kitz bashed it again one more time for good measure.

  Panting, Delen helped Kitz up and patted him on the back. I listened closely for any other fungal groans but heard nothing.

  “I think we’re clear here,” I said. “Great work, everyone.”

  “Don’t get too cocky,” Val said. “This is only the beginning of the first floor.”

  I know, I know. I won’t let my guard down.

  At the end of the street, we found a courtyard, centered around a small but very tall church. It had a high steeple that reached halfway up the forty or fifty-yard-high cave ceiling. The fungal growth was at its maximum in this courtyard. The mushrooms were as tall as my hip, and I had to use my sword to chop them down, so I could make a trail.

  I knew I was leading everyone into danger, but we had to keep pushing forward, and the player in me was eager for action and that sweet XP. I only hoped the danger would be minimal, like those fumbling mushroom things we made quick work of.

  “Wait a moment,” Tabby said. “If was designing a dungeon, I would make the creatures bigger where the mushrooms are bigger.” She broadly gestured at the sea of giant shrooms. “There’s definitely going to be some big bad guys here.”

  “You’re not wrong,” I said. “Everyone ready?”

  “Is progressing down this path a wise decision?” Delen asked.

  “Come on, don’t be scared,” Kitz said and punched him in the side. “Toughen up, old man.”

  “I am not an old man!”

  “It is not wrong to consider alternatives, Kitz,” Ersabet said. “Especially when your life is on the line. People like John here like to bull ahead and deal with whatever happens. They’ll do anything to achieve their objective, no matter how stupid it is or what gets in their way. That makes them reckless.”

  “That’s rude,” I mumbled.

  “Then, there are men like Delen,” Ersabet continued. “They are the sort of men who question everything. They are careful and cautious. They want to understand the details of every situation so that they can make the optimum decision. This makes them useful when one’s adventuring party is led by a madman.”

  “Now that really was rude,” I said. “And I’m probably the most sane person in this lot. No, not probably. I know it.”

  “It’s not me that’s crazy,” Tabby said with a heavy dose of sarcasm. “It’s everyone else in the world.” She blew a raspberry. “Sounds like something a crazy person would say.”

  “Shut up,” I said. “Are we doing this or not?

  “Sure,” Tabby said, shrugging her shoulders.

  Delen sighed. “Why not?”

  “I’m ready,” Kitz said, with a huge smile on his face.

  I looked at Ersabet, and she gave me a nod.

  I grinned, and caught her own lips perking up, too. It wasn’t a grin, but it was clear she was having fun.

  So was I.