Chapter 172

Carnegie Science Center, The Pitt - 7:54 PM

After placing the doorframe where Sara thought I should, we headed towards the dungeon. It was one of many that my Patron couldn’t see into. Whether it was because of Pustibule’s Angel Blinds, the administrator keeping it hidden, or whatever else, it was suspicious. That made it worth checking out.

We neared the cavern holding it and I retrieved my Vague Stick. The Writhing Belt Whip was still in my pocket, but that was for the Willpower boost. Jeff had Killer Queen on his belt already, and he unsheathed the rapier during our approach.

“If there’s Demons in there, I’ll go first. If not, I’ll let you take point,” I said.

He gave me a sideways glance, and the feeling of confusion came through our Mental Link. “You sure, boss?”

“Positive, but let’s see what’s in there first before we choose a plan of action,” I said as I stepped inside.

[[Second Scenario Quest: Liberate Carnegie Science Center!]]

Science is a marvelous thing. It can improve the lives of many while destroying so many more. When it comes to the magical art of Necromancy, there isn’t much room for overlap.

Or is there?

This is a Dark Dungeon. Sight will be hindered, even to those who can see perfectly in such conditions.

Objective: Destroy the undead inhabiting the building.

Reward: +1,200 points, +20 Guild Points, Carnegie Science Center will be liberated.

“Well, doesn’t that give away the whole plot?” I asked with a chuckle. “Not likely to be Pustibule’s, though, on account of the category. So it looks like you’re up.”

“Are we going to be blind? Or just restricted?” Jeff asked after joining me inside the cavern and reading the short scenario screen.

“Restricted. I’ll juggle some torches for you so you can see better. You just worry about the enemies.”

The large man scratched the back of his head with his gauntleted hand. “I really don’t want to steal your thunder, Ant.”

I elbowed him in the side. “Look, you’ve been stuck doing good husband stuff for a while now. Toning things down so Kayla can keep up, letting your dog get kills because he needs to unlock book slots, and probably other stuff I don’t know,” I told him before grinning. “Think of this as a chance to really let loose. Go hog wild. You don’t have to worry about anyone here, so really test the limits of your stats and abilities.”

Jeff looked down at me fully, his expression neutral even though I could feel his excitement. He gave me a small nod and put his hand down. “Alright. No take backs, though.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it,” I said, holding my hand up. Snapping open my inventory, I pulled out three already lit torches. The bottoms had been tapered to a deadly point just in case I needed to use them as weapons. “I’ll play support and keep your line of sight as wide as I can.”

“I appreciate it, Anthony. Any tips in there?” he asked as he started walking.

“Don’t get hit and don’t die,” I answered. “I’d hate to have to talk to your wife if that happens.”

“I meant about this dungeon in particular, man,” he laughed.

“I know what’s in there, but I’ll let you figure it out,” I said. “Life’s no fun without some mystery.”

With a grim smile, Jeff nodded as we reached the front doors. The glass all around the entrance was pitch black. No light escaped from inside, nor could we see the enemies inside. The term Dark Dungeon was a more than accurate description.

I Pushed the three torches towards him and had them float above his head with a mix of Push, Pull, and Orbit. It was almost literally as if I were juggling them for all the effort I needed to put in to make them circle someone else. It was good practice.

Jeff raised Killer Queen in front of him and took a deep breath. I felt his excitement start to diminish as he got his emotions under control. It was still there along with some anxiety, but both were below the surface. A focused calm radiated from him before he threw the door open. On cue, I sent the torches into the building and fanned them out to maximize my friend’s vision.

It was hard to see with the oppressive darkness, but it was clear that the Carnegie Science Center was destroyed. Walls were demolished, exhibits were trashed, and there were huge holes in the ceiling. Still, I could see better than Jeff thanks to my Dungeon Sight skill.

The moment he stepped inside, the quiet facade of the building was immediately disrupted. Screams of frenzied hunger came from every direction. Not only that, but the sounds of heavier than usual footsteps and metal scraping against metal.

I followed him in, leaning on my Vague Stick once I was inside. “You’ve got this, Jeff.”

He gave me a thumbs up before looking around. The enemies were starting to pour out of the other rooms in a light trickle, and Jeff visibly recoiled. “Viking zombies?” he asked.

“You’re almost right,” I told him, smirking. The museum did have a Viking exhibit, and many of the zombies were wielding period-appropriate weapons and round shields. Axes and spears were the most prevalent, but there were a few swords mixed in. I moved the torches so my companion could get a better look, and it distracted a few of the undead.

Jeff’s reaction to seeing them more clearly was priceless. “They’re fuckin’ cyborg Viking zombies?” he half screeched, causing me to laugh. Before I had a chance to answer, they were on him.

Their flesh was still mottled and rotting, but that part wasn’t new to us. The metal grafted onto their skin and replaced body parts, however, was. None of the incoming horde looked the same, either. Arms and shoulders, entire legs, even thick scraps covering the skull on some made their position as undead robots easy to ascertain.

It was a hodgepodge of parts, but these particular zombies had clearly become mechanically enhanced. Some pieces looked sleek and advanced, as if they had come off of a spaceship, while others looked antiquated, as if they had come from a Cold War era submarine. There were exhibits for both of these things and both had been shamelessly stolen from.

What that meant for Jeff was that he really was fighting cyborg Viking zombies.

I watched as the man attempted to pierce through the metal arm of an enemy, testing its durability. The rapier slid across it, but Jeff didn’t stop just at that. As if expecting this outcome, he reached out with his gauntleted hand and grabbed the cyborg zombie by the head. In the next moment, it was flipped and knocked over another of its kind as he activated his Handwraps of Powerful Throws. Two quick thrusts dispatched both of them before he was on to the next.

The undead were faster than what he was used to, but that only pushed the knight. Now that he realized how tough their metal additions were, he avoided striking those areas. His sword flashed as he carefully stepped through the room, avoiding the debris as he continued his offensive. Those Sure-Step Sandals were doing wonders.

While he was fighting, I wasn’t just sitting back and watching. It was true that I kept an eye on him, but that wasn’t my main goal. Every time he downed an enemy and I could stay safely behind him, I went for them. The zombie parts were absolutely terrible, and I would never ask Ashley to use such things as ingredients.

Their mechanical parts were free game.

Robotic enemies were rare except for certain places in the world, and they weren’t places we would be going anytime soon. I didn’t have anything specific in mind for her to make, but I was sure she could use them in one way or another.

Sturdy as they were, they could still be cut through. While I could turn the Vague Stick into a saw like I had against the Pharaoh’s twice dead body, that would take way too much time and effort. I had a much easier solution now. Reaching into my inventory, I pulled out Chainsawface.

The shark-shaped chainsaw roared to life in my hands and I started slicing. No matter how strong it was, the metal wasn’t anything compared to dragon bone and it cut through with very little issue. I only had it running for a second as I cut through the parts I needed.

“Anthony, what the fu-” Jeff’s voice was cut off as he had been momentarily distracted by the loud noise and subsequently blindsided by a cyborg zombie. I checked his condition and saw that he had already taken some damage; the surprising noise had allowed an enemy to leave a large gash on his chest through his clothes.

“Sorry, Jeff!” I yelled back, raising a hand in apology even though he couldn’t see it. I grabbed an arm and pair of legs to throw into my inventory before I noticed movement in one of the holes in the ceiling.

Despite the slip up caused by my chainsaw, the Queen’s Knight was back into his groove in no time. Every thrust of his rapier easily slid through skulls to pierce every zombie’s weak point, and every slash took off something important before the killing blow. He was slowly getting worn down, but I still felt like he would come out on top.

A pair of cyborg zombies with bows came into view in a hole in the ceiling, nocking arrows. While it would have been easy to Bend the ammunition, making them unusable, this was Jeff’s fight. I Lifted a torch to illuminate the hole. When I moved one of his light sources, his eyes flicked up to see what was going on.

Jeff’s body lurched to the side unnaturally as he activated one of his movement skills. One of the arrows landed harmlessly in the ground, but the second clipped his leg. At the end of his slide, he lashed out, slicing a cyborg zombie’s skull in half before repeating the maneuver twice more. The fact that he could do it without looking at the floor anymore was impressive; not only was there rubble to contend with, but he had a whole swarm of dispatched undead strewn across the room.

Once he was safe, he raised his gauntleted hand and pointed it up at the zombies. Jeff took a second to aim, still less skilled in this than swordplay, and fired twice. Twin bolts of condensed fire erupted from the hole in the palm. The first hit, though the second went wide. He grimaced and fired the third of five saved shots just as the cyborg zombies caught up to him.

As I sliced through another set of mechanical limbs, I remembered what he told me after his and Kayla’s fight with Talspra. About controlling the battlefield and using it to your advantage. He had been absolutely right, and it was still nice to see his philosophy in action.

Even though they had the numbers advantage, Jeff was dealing more damage than he was receiving. He had taken some good hits. I could see the damage taking its toll, but he was handling it admirably. The cyborg zombies spilled from the other rooms and ceiling one after another, threatening to overrun him. True to my word, I stayed back enough to ensure that the enemies would go after him first.

The calm I felt over our Mental Link was gradually replaced with urgency and excitement, and I couldn’t help but smile. This was exactly the kind of thing Jeff had been looking for. A no strings attached slugfest where he wouldn’t have to worry about protecting anyone except himself.

A cascade of blue lights fell upon Jeff from the ceiling above him. He grunted in pain as the lasers hit his shoulders, leaving large welts on his skin after burning through his clothing. Looking up, the Queen’s Knight saw a cyborg that was more machine than metal. Its arm from the elbow down was completely encased in a large, cylindrical gun.

I watched as Jeff took a running start and used a pile of corpses to jump higher. He grabbed the edge of the hole with his free hand and pulled himself up. The sound of lasers blasting could clearly be heard along with the sound of metal on metal. Pulling two of the torches into my inventory, I sent the last one up so that Jeff could still see as he fought the dungeon’s boss.

The sounds of their fighting lasted a lot longer than the other cyborg zombies. This dungeon wasn’t on my list of ones I had to defeat while in Pittsburgh, but I had been here a few times. The boss only had small weak points thanks to the sturdy metal. Even still, I knew it wouldn’t take long for someone like the knight.

The sound of battle eventually ceased, leaving Jeff’s labored breathing the only sound aside from my work. As big as the building was, it could hide a lot of enemies, but that didn’t matter so much when they all came to you.

“Can you grab the laser gun from that cyborg, please?” I called up the hole, Lifting Chainsawface so he could use it. “From just above the elbow.”

“You got it… boss,” Jeff panted. He grabbed the chainsaw from the air and got to work just as the quest complete screen appeared in front of me.

[[Second Scenario Quest Complete!]]

Carnegie Science Center has been saved from the scourge of mechanically enhanced zombies. This beloved staple of Pittsburgh will soon return to the surface along with the USS Requin. The submarine will be parked in the river, and may hide a few extra trinkets worthy of the players who finished the dungeon.

Reward: +1,200 points, +20 Guild Points, Carnegie Science Center will be liberated.

“Oh, a submarine, that’s neat,” Jeff said as he jumped down through the hole. He gently handed me the chainsaw before holding up the laser cannon. Thankfully, there wasn’t any undead pieces on it. “Can I keep this?”

I shrugged. “I mean, if you want,” I answered. “There’s nothing I need it for, I just don’t want to give up monster parts. Especially from a boss.”

“Awesome,” he said as he grinned, throwing it into his inventory. From his pocket, he pulled out a few pieces of bacon to munch on. Every time he finished one, his wounds healed thanks to his skill. “I Ash to make me something and I want to get real good with it. Explosive, some might say.”

Stopping what I was doing, I turned to look at him. “You’ve already got Killer Queen,” I said slowly. “Now you want to be dynamite with a laser beam?”

Jeff’s grin somehow grew. “You got it, Ant.”

“I should flick your nose for Kayla,” I sighed before I laughed at the reference.

“Don’t you worry about that, she’ll hear that joke herself,” he freely admitted. There was nothing left in the Mental Link except for satisfaction. “I’m kind of surprised how easy it was, actually. Like, I’m worn out, but that seems right considering the system said I killed 51 enemies.”

“Not sure what you were expecting,” I replied, shrugging. “Sure, it had a large amount of baddies, but this is only a 20 point dungeon. Kayla was advocating for sending you both into 30 pointers, if not 40. Compared to those, this is a cakewalk.”

“Yeah, that makes sense,” Jeff agreed, stroking his chin. “Anything in this dungeon we need before it gets liberated?”

I finished cutting off one more cyborg arm before looking around. “Nah, but once we’re back on the surface there’s a moon rock in the Mars exhibit upstairs I’d like to grab since we’re here. War crimes be damned, it’ll go great in the Endless Smoker.”

Jeff gestured towards the staircase. “Let’s get going then,” he said as he started walking. “For the record, I picked up a computer chip Viking sword and a skill book for a passive called Armor Piercer. Figured you’d want to know.”

“They’re all yours, Jeff,” I said. They were his spoils, after all.

With one last look at the carnage he left behind, I followed after him. If he could agree to adventuring separately from his wife, I was definitely going to send him on more solo missions into the Pitt.