AN: Pardon the pun, I couldn’t bear to miss it. Now the chapter:
Stephan kept his back straight, drawing as much of the monster's attention as he could. The beast’s arms were massive, nearly as long as he was tall; against an unarmed man, or someone with a sword, they gave a lethal advantage. Luckily, spears offset it to an extent, giving him around ten feet of reach.
The bear took another lumbering step, leaving Stephan with enough time to cast Shield of Fate or to give one last piece of advice to his Knights and Sentries.
“When I strike, you encircle it.” That was all he said before seizing the initiative.
He lunged forth, spear gripped in both hands. Behind him, he heard the rustle as the Knights-in-training obeyed his order. The bear ignored the attack, swiping at Stephan just as the spearhead found its throat.
Stephan jumped back, avoiding the blow, but, in turn, barely drawing blood. The bear took a step forward and struck, but another Knight stabbed its flank. Then Alfred hit it from the other side.
The bear spun, swinging its arms and batting away spears. Despite the injured leg, the beast moved with frightening speed. Someone made a mistake, and a scream saw a youth flying through the air.
“Grace!” he shouted, and pierced the bear’s torso, cracking scales.
“Keep pressing!”
The spearmen did the best they could, but the swinging limbs forced them to step back, opening up even more space for the rampaging bear. The beast turned towards the only remaining threat, the only one still shouting and stabbing. It opened its maw, and the headless snake lashed out.
The blow was fast, but lacked the sheer mass the other strikes had. Still, it hit like a whip, slapping Stephan’s shoulder. He staggered, but snatched it with one hand and pulled before the monster could retract its unnatural tongue.
The bear pulled back, and Stephan was once more in the air, flying straight towards it. He barely had the time to align the spear, stabbing it into the scaled chest with the bear’s strength added to his own. The spearhead sank all the way to the cross guard, and the bear howled soundlessly, raising its head up. More steel stabbed into its body, but the fur, fat, and thick hide made them glancing blows at most.
Infuriated, it swiped at Stephan. Out of balance, he took the blow head-on, using the spear to shield himself as much as he could.
Wood and bone cracked as the bear struck a lever which opened its own torso. Blood sprayed Stephan’s face, and then he was away, flying into the leaves and shrubs and branches. He still clung to his spear, his arm bloody. Golden light coursed through him, handling the worst of it, but he kept a reserve of spirit in case anyone else got hurt and Grace or Tia failed to reach them in time.
After suffering the wound, the bear had gone berserk. It flailed wildly, spewing blood and viscera from the gaping hole in its chest as it struck and sent another man flying. Stephan stood and charged towards it, the spear held in both hands, its point trained on the bear.
The beast failed to spot him, the others holding against it the best they could as they alternated between stabbing and retreating. Stephan’s breath caught when Miles ducked under a blow aimed straight at his head that he was sure would end with the young man’s face becoming a bloody smear.
Stephan roared, and the bear turned towards the challenge. Its chest was cracked open, the ribs parted, revealing a glimpse of the melon-sized beating heart. Stephan wanted to throw the spear, but the odds of hitting the target were much lower, so he jumped towards the sweeping claw. The spear once more found its mark. It embedded itself into the heart, then the claws struck Stephan for the fourth time.
Once more, the spear bent, tearing flesh, but taking two such blows was too much, and the haft split in the middle. Stephan flew back with five feet of wood in his hands, his shoulder crushed. He hit someone with his boot, but didn’t get to see who before he smashed back-first into a thick bush.
Twigs and branches snapped under his weight, his head spinning, but he still stood to see what was happening. The bear swung at the humans surrounding it once more with full strength, then slowed, more spears finding its body as the savage retaliation lost speed. It stumbled, suffering a dozen stabs, then raised its paw again before tumbling down to the ground.
[Level 22 reached
Skill acquired: Mercy II
+1 Agility, +1 Charisma, +1 Composure, +1 Dexterity, +1 Endurance, +1 Intelligence, +1 Luck, +1 Perception, +1 Presence, +2 Strength, +1 Toughness, +1 Vitality, +1 Willpower, +1 Wisdom]
[Level 23 reached
Skill acquired: Chivalry II
+1 Agility, +1 Charisma, +1 Composure, +1 Dexterity, +1 Endurance, +1 Intelligence, +1 Luck, +0 Perception, +1 Presence, +1 Strength, +1 Toughness, +1 Vitality, +1 Willpower, +1 Wisdom]
“Stephan!” Grace screamed when she saw all the blood on him. “Let me heal you!”
She touched him before he could say anything, and warmth spread through his body, the torn flesh and broken bones slowly mending.
Beads of sweat gathered on her forehead as she channeled spirit into him, and Stephan realized just how comfortable and comforting magical healing really was when you had grievous wounds.
“Thank you,” he said when she looked to be straining. “You should see if others need help.”
“I’m not done with you, and Tia is healing them nicely.”
“Are you all right?” Miles and Alfred rushed over, followed by the rest, while some went to gather their friends tossed around by the bear.
“Is everyone alive?” Stephan shouted and heaved a sigh of relief when he got a chorus of yeses.
“I got a level!”
“Me too!”
“Me too!”
“It wasn’t worth it,” Stephan said. “How are you people alive if monsters like this live in the forest?”
“I think that was the forest god,” a young man said, and Stephan looked at him.
“The what now?”
“The forest god. This is its forest, and it rules all the creatures inside it.”
Stephan stared, processing the words. “You mean this isn’t a regular monster?”
Everyone shook their heads, even Miles and Alfred. Stephan barked a laugh, not sure whether to curse his good luck or his bad luck. He had gained two levels protecting the innocent from a monster, but now that he knew what he had done, he didn’t think he could repeat the feat. If he went searching for similar monsters, he was looking for trouble rather than protecting anyone.
Or am I? These monsters are dangerous, and might go on a rampage at any moment. Someone needs to handle them; the townsfolk are too weak to do it themselves.
He also had another idea.
“We’re going to follow the monster’s tracks. It was probably feeding on other nightmares to grow this strong.”
It was a strange thought, but perhaps the reason nightmares hadn’t flooded the south was because such dangerous monsters grew more powerful by devouring whatever nightmares the dungeons spawned.
Then he had another idea. “Grace, what level are you now?”
The young woman focused. “Eight.”
She got four levels from healing me?
“And Tia? Alfred?”
“Tia is level three, Alfred level seven.”
“Seven!” Alfred yelled in surprise.
“What about me?” Miles shouted, and then the others started chirping like starving chicks.
Miles was also level seven, while the rest were four or five. Even the Knight who went to protect Grace and Tia had gotten three levels, reaching the fourth.
“We’re going back home,” Stephan said, wondering what level the monster must have been for all of them to grow so explosively. “We’ll search for its den tomorrow after we’ve had some rest. And could you please tell me, are there any other terrifying monsters like this one in this forest?”
“There’s the Black Headsman at Coletown. I heard that anyone who stayed in the forest after dark was found beheaded in a field arranged like a scarecrow.”
“That’s not right!” One youth interrupted another. “He leaves them in front of the gate, and one of the watchmen once spotted him, his hair turning white…”
The youths argued, but legends existed. Each fortified town had a stalker of its own, the creatures feasting on human nightmares but keeping away from their settlements.
“What happened to you?” Muriel asked after the Trackers and the Ranger joined them.
“I think I figured out what is going on with the nightmare dungeons here.” Stephan then proceeded to tell her about the bear and how the fighters had gotten at least three levels in the battle, while some had gained five, which was the safe maximum Stephan knew of. In fact, he suspected, someone might have grown more had that limit not existed.
Then, with someone else to act as his eyes and ears, he checked what his new blessings did. Mercy’s upgrade granted him the ability to take an attack meant for another if they were close enough, while the new Chivalry meant he would never tire while he was riding.
He had made unexpected gains in the forest, but all things considered, it wasn’t worth it. For those two levels, the bear’s claws had gotten dangerously close to his head more than once. Each of those moments could have spelled the end of his life.
I need to be more careful. And I need to have a spear and a sword with me. Mace too. Just in case.
Stephan laughed suddenly, and everyone turned towards him.
“Sorry, I just had a ridiculous idea,” he said with a smile, remembering how he thought he would look absurd with a bow and two daggers while he now planned to go around even more heavily armed.
Maybe I should have a bow too? And some throwing axes, just in case…
[Stephan Cobblerson, Paladin level 23
Class skills: In Living Memory XV, Blessing of Healing II, Blessing of Arms II, Smite II, Blessing of Protection II, Inspiring Aura II, Blessing of Conviction II, Blessing of Intuition II, Blessing of Health II, Bane of Darkness II, Mercy II, Chivalry II, Holy Magic I
Attributes: Agility: 29, Charisma: 28, Composure: 33, Dexterity: 25, Endurance: 33, Intelligence: 25, Luck: 29, Perception: 28, Presence: 30, Strength: 34, Toughness: 32, Vitality: 34, Willpower: 32, Wisdom: 30]
[Mercy II - You may take an attack meant for another within arm’s reach.]
[Chivalry II - You no longer tire while riding and instead rest as if sitting.]