{...Very well}. An invisible hand had written on the wall. {All participating guests are required to prepare... Loading..}.
Without turning his back, Novem announced. "You guys, get ready! Something is coming our way". The ugly smile on his face grew wider. "And it most definitely isn't pleasant".
Screech!!
A tumultuous ear-piercing shriek resounded throughout the dungeon and everyone had to cover their ears as if rebuking the chances of a tympanic membrane perforation.
"My eardrums are gonna burst!". Nathan said through gritted teeth.
"Judas priest, I should be resistant to this shit since I use wind!". Kelvin swore
As soon as it came, the disturbing cacophony subsided.
"That's weird...".
"That was weird"
One couldn't point out the strange causes of their confusion. It was all too bizarre
Unprecedented silence fell upon the group as they listened for any form of attack that may come by surprise.
"This is all too strange". Grace was a bit tired, and a little frustrated. "This is unlike any Instance I've ever been to".
This 'dungeon' is one of many sorts of Instance.
"Quite the trauma". Novem said, "It's all just a space of illusion. Damn what mankind fears".
"And it's about time the illuminations by the wall had returned. This purple torch is a bit dull". Kelvin felt chills
Scribble, scribble
Something is wrong. Novem thought to himself. It's not like the 'master' of this dungeon is setting up a grand enemy for us. So what's taking so long? Not to mention that weird noise earlier... Wait!
He snapped his head back at the wall and read what continued after.
{When you notice your enemies, do they notice you, all you need to know is they're all around you}.
All the cups ignited fire from nothing, each having their previously dull rainbow-like colors.
The knights were gone.
Novem was the only one to realize the meaning behind those words, and so he called the others attention. "All of you, look at me and only me!". He said furiously "If you're not ready to fight, don't look at the ceiling, and neither should you look at the walls, nor the floors. They bring out your enemy".
They all understood their situation and nodded in apprehension.
Slowly, they inspired and expired as they pondered on which of the mysteries to take on. Obviously looking at the ceiling would trigger an enemy that flies, the grounds are.. well, as one would know, but the walls... It's better to take on what you know.
"Eh?". Kelvin gasped in surprise
This distracted the others but they really couldn't look, only slightly showing apprehension on their faces.
"L-lord Novem?". Kelvin called out in a hint of panic
"Is something the matter! Kelvin!?". Novem asked in alarm.
"S-something is under my feet! It's like a puddle, and it's pulling me in".
She was quite the distance away from him.
"Don't look down yet!". Novem nearly clicked his tongue. "It might trigger a muddy, or an underwater creature".
Although I did ask for them to be fleshy so they will be easy to take down. You just can't be too careful
"November! I-it's pulling me in!". Kelvin shuts her eyes closed.
I have no choice! "Everyone, now! Look at wheresoever you wish, and remember what you got was your choice".
The rest of the group looked up or down at wherever they had silently chosen while Novem dashed towards Kelvin who already had her right leg inside a muddy black puddle.
As if having a change of heart, the force that had been slowly holding on to Kevin's leg pulled harder, and in fear, she looked up at the ceiling while Novem looked down at the ugly puddle pulling her in.
"Argh!". Novem rushed in and delicately pulled her outside.
"Ugh" Kelvin fell down flat and groaned.
"Stand up, Kelvin". Novem, who had an ugly viscous black liquid splattered on his dark cloak squinted his eyes in disgust as he rubbed off the smudge on his obsidian black hair.
"You looked up at the ceiling didn't you?". He still had his sword in hand. He nods, and glanced down at what began to emerge from the puddle.
"Yes". Kelvin nodded and held back a few sniffles.
"Then face it". Novem stabbed at whatever was poking its enormous head outside. "What's coming for you, I mean". He flinged his sword, splattering the green liquid on the ground.
Kelvin nodded aggressively and stood up, her eyes showing unyielding resolution. She looked up at the creatures hovering in the air and just knew... They were coming for her.
Zoom!!
With unimaginable speed, the first insect darted at her and just manageably, avoided it with all of her might. With clenched teeth, she took up her short brown staff and at its acme, shot a powerful wind at the next one.
The ugly insects came in consecutive twos and threes, Kelvin mostly shot at them with her gale but inorder to avoid using up her stamina, she supported her ability by getting physical. Shooting at the first, kicking at the second, and with her staff, stabbing at the third.
The gale Kelvin uses is one of a much powerful force. Its attack power is the difference between a gentle breeze and a mighty wind. With her enhanced strength and noticeable speed, something of this level should be of no effort. Except… probably when you've got up to twenty of these fuckers who are times six faster than you.
Novem once again clicked his tongue as he watched Kelvin fight. His opponent was taking its time in the world for its Villainary Manifestation so why not? He furrowed his brows and walked back to the wall where he had read those shitty messages.
"You ordered a request from your guest, and my request was for our enemy to have a fleshy integument. Why am I seeing half its opposite!? ".
After a few purple glows, an invisible force scribbled on the wall.
{All animals, insects and most often, creatures of unknown origins have the right to have at least one or two defensive mechanisms for self protection.} Like scales or claws.
Novem squinted his eyes. He couldn't argue with that.
And most of all, he could have sworn he heard something laugh at him. He looked about in perplexity before fixing his eyes on what Grace and his Vassals were fighting.
Sebas, as always had a smug look on his face as he landed loads upon loads of devastating blows on the pitiful beast. On the other hand, Felix was...
Novem had known Felix since their childhood back in HQ, but what this person does never ceases to amaze him.
Felix was fighting against a dozen of ferocious silver haired wolves. For some reason, they kept baring their six inch long fangs at him in rage. But one could understand,
He was playing with, or rather taunting them.
The question was, why would he do that?
The answer is, he's Felix
He made quick, decisive glides as he swept through the packs like water. Offering annoying wheel carts and somersaults in sequence.
"Watcha doing, Felix?". Novem asked raising his eyebrows
"Hm? Oh no way in hell these guys are gonna beat me! Might as well have fun while at it". Felix smirked
Novem folded his arms and smiled like a proud father. I've experimented on dogs like those, nothing new about their internal structures. I think. "Now, how is Mathias doing".
It took quite a bit of effort to find him.
"What the heck?". Even Novem was surprised
Mathias was fighting an ugly looking brown reptile. It was slimy and slithering and ugly...
"He must have looked at the walls". And then got a lizard of some sort. He sighed "Do you need help with that, Mathias".
"Oh, no need". Mathias assured. He had his strings wrapped around two of the lizards but the slime on their bodies were somewhat slippery. "If I could have a dagger or something though".
His eleventh hour decision.
"Uhh". Novem slipped his hand into his portal and pulled out a sword which he threw at Mathias
'A sword should be good enough'. Mathias caught the sword. "No thanks, face your problems". Mathias was someone you would get annoyed with all the time if you didn't know him well enough and the problems he caused.
Novem looked back at the bubbling black puddle in which an unknown creature was still slowly emerging from its surface. He turned back to Mathias and raised his middle finger.
Nathaniel had looked up at the ceiling and was currently fighting a strange bird with different odd features.
"I've also seen a somewhat similar bird on the outside?." Novem had his hand on his chin. 'I just don't know where'. Well, Nathan seemed to be gaining the upper hand so Novem didn't think too much about it.
"Doing good Nathan". Novem praised
Nathan, who was making good use of his hellish fire laughed at the flying 'eye displeasures' writhing in pain.
"Shit, I thought I just heard a hideous idiot calling out my name, I should be more careful".
Novem's eye twitched
"Ah, what about Kelvin?" He looked back at the sky blue haired girl and the interesting creature she was fighting.
It looked like a bee given its distinct modified ovipositor and its oval shaped wings. And what does it need with such sharp fangs and claws was what Novem doesn't have the time to think about. It made no sense!
Its sharp, blade-like microsetae was... One of a kind? And bloody hell, are those pincers? When it already has a whole set of teeth!? .
/Kelvin was the most closest to Novem, so he could observe the specimen well enough than he could to the others/
It was at times like these that the biophilic personality in Novem started to kick in.
"This great sample! It's presence of more than one organ which performs similar functions is not something you see everyday! Is it possibly an evolution?, Vestigial? Covalent evolution? Not to mention both analogous biological structures are located so close to each other, I'm surprised there's no organ dysfunction-". Novem paused.
"Look at my sample, it's nowhere close to a healthy, mentally sane organism. Who knows the habitat where it thrives to have been able to outgrow different organs with the same functions". He almost shed a tear.
What a pitiful specie. "I should probably take one back for experi- wait, wait, our Kelvin is totally destroying them all!".
"Is something the matter, Novem? ". A smiling Kelvin asked from the side.
"Ah. No, it's nothing". Novem hesitated and turned his head
"That's great!". She smiled even brighter to the point where her cheeze would have emitted an angelic radiance if she didn't have sticky ooze on her face, that and the fact that she was standing atop the enormous corpses of insects she had massacred with green fluid seeping out of them.
Even after she was done, she continued destroying the corpses of the insects chanting, "Master must not take these back home, master must not take these back home, we're going to be forced to listen to another three hour lecture on the gastrointestinal tract of an insect".
Author: The use of gastrointestinal tract for an insect is not entirely correct, nor is it entirely wrong, it just shows the fact that she doesn't have an extensive knowledge in Biology and her lack of interest in it.
"Hm? Kelvin did you just say something?". Novem asked
"Hm? Whatever do you think I said, Lord Novem?".
"Ah, don't worry". Why do I feel like she's intentionally doing this?
Reo seemed to have no problem with the enormous pink Nematode he was fighting (In an attempt to look at the ground, must have accidentally taken in the sight of a marsh).
Grace also was doing... Exceptionally... (An Arachnid was her mashup)
"Wait, that's overkill". At some point, Novem wanted to stop Grace. In that little battle, he wasn't too sure who the enemy was again.
Amidst the silence where the clashes of battle resounded, Novem heard the sounds of scribblings behind him and whipped his head in that direction only to see that same wall renew itself with new words.
{The serpent's gaze is upon you}
C-creak!
{A surprise for the only one who had looked upon a glitch}
Novem nearly broke a sweat. "You've got to be kidding me". A glitch...?, that freaking black puddle was a glitch! No chance in hell was that just a coincidence
Suddenly, the air grew thick with an unsettling presence and Novem could feel the weight of being watched.
Novem spun around, his gaze meeting the unblinking glare of an enormous emerald green serpent, its eyes blazing ember in the fairly lit space. The looming body seems to grow even larger and larger as if freed itself from the hole it came from. It curved a mirthless smile revealing razor sharp teeth stained with blood of its last victims.
The other groups made momentary pauses from what they were doing as they looked up at the looming creature above them that seemed to take up one third of the entire space in the large hall with mouth wide agape and widened eyes.
As if that wasn't enough, the serpent glided elegantly towards Novem and hissed out a song.
"One more human, one more food, all that's new, for the greater good". It sung in quiet excitement clearly shown in its eyes.
It's cold mechanical tone almost sent shivers down Novem's spine.
"W-what is this?". Novem couldn't hide the half fear and half excitement on his face. He took a step back
Nevertheless, the serpent continued to slither closer, its body gliding like a moving shadow. It's song grew louder and more enticing, as it repeated the haunting refrain,
"One more human, one more soul, all that's new, brings forth...". It fixed its dead ember eyes at Novem. "The ultimate goal".
"Oi oi". Novem smirked, taking off his long black cloak and throwing it in the air. His purple black portal opened mid air and absorbed the clothing. "I knew it would be one hell of a monster given the hell of a time you took to manifest.". He took off his cufflinks and rolled up his sleeves to avoid any ooze getting on it.
"Let me grace you with my presence, oh villain". Novem readied his sword, revealing his front white teeth and crazy eyes.
"For I shall be the end of you". He cracked a smile