After forcing down the lunch we previously bought to take into the dungeon with us, I tell Kaelin that I feel ready to move down a level, as I am now level 2.
She must have assumed I already had some experience, as she says nothing about how fast I reach level 2.
The journey to level 3 will also be far faster than she is accustomed to, and I imagine when she starts receiving a portion of my experience from the [Sky Captain] class, she will have questions.
In that case, I still have not decided what to say to her. The magical contracts we signed at the skyfarer's guild should protect my privacy, but how will she react if she thinks I have hidden things from her? I guess I will need to come clean at some point.
We descend the stairs to the second level of the dungeon, and I ask her to clarify what enemy will be on this floor.
"This floor will have two possible enemies, both level 2. Bile rats, the same as the first floor, and scythe-skeletons. Scythe-skeletons look really scary, but they are also very slow. I think that killing them should be quite easy for you after dealing with the bile rats."
Scythe-skeletons sound very ominous, but I am also kind of excited.
Since the first fight with the bile rat, I have realized that fighting these vile dungeon creatures hasn't really scared me all too much; it has excited me.
Putting my life on the line in a face-to-face fight with some abomination of nature makes my adrenaline surge. Honestly, I wish I could take the heads of these creatures as trophies and display them in my ship, although that might scare future crewmates.
Maybe being of the sky sovereign race has instilled me with an innate desire for combat supremacy. For now, that isn't important, I need to level up!
The layout of the second floor is identical to the first, and we immediately line up, waiting to enter the first chamber. Once again, I notice a number of people staring at Kaelin with eyes full of disdain, but she just seems to ignore it.
We enter as soon as we can, and I stand waiting for the creature that will form from the mist. It is another bile rat, but before it can even move, Kaelin shoots it in the face, dropping it with one round.
I turn to face her, and for the first time, I can see her face filled with rage. The hair on her tail and ears is fluffed up like an angry cat, and she grits her teeth, furious.
"What happened?"
"I felt their eyes on my back when we were waiting in line. The way they look at me makes my skin crawl, like I am some kind of hated freak-show attraction. I honestly just want to shoot them, but that would just end up with me being executed! Bastards!"
She roars the last word with fury, with tears forming in her eyes. She was ignoring their disdainful gaze, but she knew they were staring at her like that, and needed to vent her anger once we got inside the chamber.
She turns her head towards the floor, embarrassed. I say nothing, I just stroll over to where she is standing, and I pull her into me for a hug. I place one hand on her back and the other on the top of her head. I stroke her hair and hold her close to me.
She soon reciprocates and buries herself further into me, wrapping her arms around my armour. I kiss the top of her head lightly, not to express affection, but because I feel as though some form of closeness is necessary for her mental wellbeing at this moment.
"I know it is hard, so I won't tell you to ignore them. I can only imagine how awful it must be to deal with bastards like that. Once we are strong enough, I promise you that nobody will dare look at you like that again without paying a heavy price."
It takes her around 5 minutes to compose herself, the door to the next chamber long having opened up.
Without needing to exchange words, she separates herself from my chest and looks into my eyes, touches my cheek, and smiles at me, showing her appreciation for how I treat her.
We move into the next chamber, and the mist again begins to swirl. Kaelin has already put away her revolvers, leaving me to clear the chamber.
Out of the mist lurches a grotesque abomination, its frame humanoid in shape, but wholly inhuman in reality. I expected a skeleton, but Its bones are not the pale white of old corpses, but a slick, obsidian black, gleaming like polished stone.
Where hands should be, its forearms curve into wicked scythe-blades, serrated and dripping with ichor, like the limbs of an ossified praying mantis.
Tattered rags cling to its hips, remnants of clothing long decayed, barely concealing the necrotic energies that stitch its form together. Hollow sockets burn with a dull, malevolent glow, and a wicked grin is carved into its jagged skull, as though it takes pleasure in its cursed existence. (picture)
Its claws raised in grim anticipation, death incarnate, reborn in bone and shadow.
It strikes first, a sweeping lunge that whistles past my shoulder as I duck low, boots skidding slightly on the smooth stone floor. My first counterstrike comes fast, a wide, arcing slash that bites deep into the monster's ribcage with a sickening crack. Bone splinters, but the creature doesn't seem to notice.
It retaliates with a shriek, swinging one of its scythes vertically, slamming into the floor where I stood but a moment before. I side-step away, rising into a slash that shears through the thing's shoulder joint, severing one grotesque limb with a grinding snap.
The third blow is measured, clean, and final. I launch a downward strike through the collarbone and spine that cleaves the monster in half. The skeleton crumples with a clatter, its remains twitching once before the necrotic glow in its eyes ceases.
[Slain - Scythe-skeleton lvl 2 - 14 EXP]