Chapter 62: The Mutants
The air suddenly felt heavy.
The five mutants roared in unison, creating a deafening chorus that reverberated through the tunnels like an underground thunder.
The walls trembled and dust fell from the ceiling.
They advanced recklessly, their gigantic and deformed bodies crashing against the walls that resisted their weight.
Gabriel took a long stride and channeled his strength into a powerful blow. Using his daggers to clash against a mutant’s claws, drawing the attention of the others.
The impact echoed with metallic force.
Bella recovered, breathing deeply, and advanced roughly like an experienced warrior. Her sword was held high.
Gabriel could not concentrate on his companion’s survival.
His attention was quickly divided among the five mutants. Like a dancing storm, he exchanged multiple blows with the claws of the furious monsters.
He guided himself purely by instinct and planned strategy. Each attack was measured, managing to inflict deep wounds on the joints of their arms.
Bella took advantage of the gaps to be a destabilizing factor. With her sword, she pierced the mutants in bloody thrusts, opening wounds and deepening their debacle.
But the monsters imposed themselves with untamed strength and savagery. Growling in pain, they tried to catch the dancing Gabriel and pushed Bella back.
They were beasts of little intelligence, but very powerful. Their claws cut the air with lethal whistles and their thick skin absorbed most of the fruitless wounds.
Bella received a direct blow to the shoulder that sent her crashing against the wall. She screamed in pain and fell to her knees, her sword trembling weakly in her hands.
She trembled in pain, with her right arm partially incapacitated, bleeding deeply.
"Bella!" shouted Gabriel.
He had no possibility of helping her. The remaining three mutants threw themselves at him at the same time.
His body blended into the darkness of the tunnel, activating Shadow Illusions to its maximum capacity. His movements became ghostly. He dodged by millimeters a claw that shattered the ground where he had been.
He counterattacked with ferocity. His new daggers cut the weak tendons of the beasts and opened their flesh in large cuts.
One of the mutants fell to its knees when he severed the tendon in its heel. He instantly finished it with a clean cut that opened its throat.
But the other two cornered him. A claw tore his left side, opening a deep wound. He felt the hot blood run down his skin.
Another claw grazed his thigh, tearing fabric and flesh.
The pain was intense, but he never retreated.
He used Blood Trail to predict the movements of the largest mutant. He spun at the last instant and sank both daggers into its eye.
The monster roared and shook violently, trying to tear off his arms.
Gabriel freed himself with a quick and brutal twist, stabbing the dagger into the base of its skull.
The mutant fell heavily.
Bella, despite her wounded arm, remained standing with determination. She charged against the fourth mutant, stabbing her sword into its chest with a cry of effort.
Her sword seemed to shine with a slight silver glow. Illuminating the horrible face of the remaining mutant.
But the creature managed to hit her back, sending her several meters. She fell rolling, ending up spitting blood.
Gabriel had to finish the last mutant quickly. He used his speed and agility, jumping onto its back and dodging its desperate claws.
Sinking both daggers repeatedly into its nape and spine.
The monster collapsed giving its last breath.
Silence returned to the tunnel, only interrupted by their agitated breathing and the constant dripping of blood.
Both were wounded after the intense battle.
Blood ran down his body, staining his clothes. He was trying to recover his calm breathing.
They had finally risen with victory, despite their difficulties. He cleaned the greenish blood from his sleeves.
It was viscous and warm, with a terrible smell.
He turned and saw that Bella had received serious wounds. She had deep scratch marks on her right forearm, on her collarbone and on her left thigh. His senses alerted him to the fresh blood.
He immediately tried to calm down, despite the smell being appetizing.
His pulse was erratic, absorbing the essence from the mutants’ corpses. A slight pain in his temples rested, after having exploded with all his abilities.
He searched in his inventory and took out a medicinal paste.
"These monsters were ferocious, like in the forums. This paste will help."
Bella accepted his kindness, applying the paste carefully.
"These monsters? They are even more ferocious than people believe."
At that moment he checked his notifications.
[You have executed an Advanced Mutant x5]
The mutants were sickly creatures condemned to the dungeons. Being one of the enemies in special cases.
Gabriel smoothed his hair while observing the deep darkness of the tunnels. Dungeons commonly did not include such easily destructive monsters.
They often hid valuable secrets or their rewards were absurd.
His gaze on Bella deepened.
*What kind of dungeon had he ended up in? Who had she bought the information from? And who was Bella really?*
For the first time, he took it seriously.
"We should continue. This is just the beginning," said Gabriel.
His wounds were painful. But he decided to face it with a stoic expression.
Only the medicinal aroma managed to calm him.
"Ladies first," replied Bella with a tired smile.
Gabriel took the lead for both their safety. His eyes concentrated, trying to penetrate through the shadows.
His pulse calmed and his ears captured every noise, every drop of water falling and every distant creak.
Bella understood the message. She walked slowly behind him, on guard and with her sword unsheathed.
In the distance they observed a division of paths, where the tunnels became narrower and more twisted.
But in the center rested a chest, with details of ancient iron and blurred runes.
Gabriel stopped and looked at Bella.
"There is a chest. Have you heard about it?"
"It’s safe," she replied.
"How do you know?"
"It was included in the information," she said, avoiding looking directly at Gabriel.
He finally decided to advance. He did not allow curiosity to dominate him, opening the chest slowly with caution.
Inside he only found a wrinkled and ancient parchment.
"This chest... It’s important. It always includes an important clue," said Bella behind him.
"What kind of clue? This is a parchment."
"Really... I don’t know. They didn’t give me more details."
Gabriel doubted for an instant, but slowly opened the parchment.
Inside it contained writing in a language he did not know. But the system helped them, like a seducing demon, translating the text for his knowledge.
The eras are changing. And we, so haughty, are only a construct of our own destruction.
Destiny is so malevolent to men. Like a demon that spreads its evil, have we really done well?
The light in the sky was never an omen. It was the beginning of the end.
Gabriel read the words several times. His expression became more complex.
The message was ominous, loaded with a historical weight that seemed to transcend a common background.
Bella approached and read over his shoulder. Her expression changed.
"This... is not just common lore," she murmured.
Gabriel carefully rolled up the parchment and stored it in his inventory.
He offered no apologies or explanations.
The dungeon had just become much more interesting.
And dangerous.