I have a hypothesis.
Which is, historically speaking, a bad thing.
Tragically, however, this specific hypothesis will not end in the destruction of the local ecosystem like my gravity testing did.
Rather, this one concerns the environment itself.
Namely:
This place is absolutely hand crafted.
The geode stretches before us, its crystalline walls rising hundreds of meters overhead before converging into a jagged cathedral of shimmering facets. Rivers of kaleidoscopic light course through the crystal in brilliant veins, branching and reconnecting with remarkable regularity until the entire chamber glows with a radiance that borders upon excessive.
Beautiful, but wrong.
Natural formations simply do not possess this degree of... artistic restraint.
Crystal grows wherever physics permits it.
It branches.
Splits.
Competes with itself.
It certainly does not politely arrange itself into sweeping arches that conveniently draw one's attention toward the exact center of the chamber, nor does it illuminate itself with the sort of carefully layered composition normally associated with architects who charge unreasonable amounts of money for the privilege of saying the word minimalism.
Every line guides the eye.
Every crystal seems positioned to complement those around it.
Even the rivers of light feel deliberate, flowing through the chamber less like naturally occurring currents and more like carefully designed brushstrokes across an absurdly expensive canvas.
Nature is many things.
Elegant. Efficient. Occasionally catastrophic.
It is almost never symmetrical on purpose.
This is.
Which is highly questionable at best. Deeply concerning at worst.
It is, however, exceptionally aesthetically pleasing.
I will allow it.
The party's footsteps echo softly through the cavernous geode as we make our way toward its center, where I assume the boss will eventually make a suitably dramatic entrance.
Well…
Only Marek's and Zeke's footsteps can actually be heard.
Sylrae continues flying overhead.
Rin somehow manages to walk almost silently despite lacking a stealth-oriented racial skill.
Avelyn and I, meanwhile, possess our mutated “Silent Fox” traits.
The geode receives no warning of our approach whatsoever.
Speaking of Avelyn…
Watching her navigate the uneven crystal floor is strangely relaxing.
Her own mutated racial skill—Sanctified Fox—includes the additional effect of “stabilizing the user's interaction with the surrounding environment, allowing movement with unnatural smoothness and minimal disturbance”.
Until now, I have been regrettably unable to appreciate that particular feature.
The caves possessed relatively even footing. The crystal forest was hardly any worse.
This place, however…
The floor resembles someone dumping an entire mountain of broken glass onto the ground before declaring it a perfectly acceptable walking surface.
Sharp ridges intersect at awkward angles. Crystal spikes jut upward without warning. Entire sections slope just enough to be deeply suspicious.
Avelyn simply…
Walks.
Each step flows effortlessly into the next, her feet finding purchase with an ease that almost seems unfair. She glides over the jagged terrain with such natural grace that even the crystals beneath her appear reluctant to inconvenience her.
Nine out of ten.
One point deducted because I would also like that effect.
I lightly hop over a crystal spike protruding from the floor.
...Seriously.
This terrain is terrible.
I shall have to exercise a reasonable amount of restraint while moving at high speed through the chamber during the fight.
Accidentally impaling myself upon decorative geology would be mildly embarrassing.
And, perhaps slightly more importantly…
Mildly inconvenient.
Once we finally reach within roughly a hundred meters of the center of the massive geode, my ears twitch at the unmistakable sound of shattering crystal.
The ground trembles.
Something erupts from beneath the cavern floor, crystal exploding skyward in every direction as its emergence echoes throughout the chamber with enough force that my ears instinctively flatten against my skull.
Zeke stumbles slightly beneath the tremor.
Everyone else remains firmly on their feet.
Dexterity continues demonstrating its remarkable tendency to solve problems before they become problems.
The boss tears free from the earth like some ancient subterranean calamity finally awakened after centuries of slumber. The earth itself given form. The wrath of crystal incarnate. A harbinger of the impending stampede.
The final obstacle standing between civilization and catastrophic geological inconvenience.
And it's…
…
Rin voices my thoughts almost perfectly.
"Well that's boring."
I nod solemnly.
I had been expecting something truly unreasonable.
An absurdly mutated final boss of legendary proportions. Perhaps several highly concerning evolutionary decisions. Some manner of cinematic aura that instinctively informs nearby observers that they are about to make several regrettable life choices.
Instead…
It is exactly what Marek described.
Plus two arms.
The creature resembles an enormous badger.
If badgers were actually dangerous instead of merely loud fluffballs fueled by misplaced confidence and an almost inspirational disregard for self-preservation.
Its body is formed entirely from crystal, somehow containing an even greater concentration of light than the surrounding geode. What initially appears to be thick fur proves, upon closer inspection, to be thousands upon thousands of tiny crystalline spikes blanketing every inch of its body.
Four powerful legs crack the crystal beneath its weight, each ending in claws large enough to reasonably bisect a modestly sized building.
Perhaps two, depending upon one's optimism.
Sprouting from its shoulder blades, and again at its midsection, are scythe-like appendages that look suspiciously like someone took a perfectly ordinary human arm, replaced the hand with a crystalline scythe, attached four of them to a badger, and signed off on the design without a second opinion.
I Inspect it.
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Crystal Reaper (Level 69 | Tier 2)
[Dungeon Boss]
Species: Crystal Beast
Aspect: Crystal
A massive crystal predator that dwells within the heart of a giant geode. Its four bladed forelimbs can effortlessly carve through stone and crystal alike, while its heavily armored body shrugs off all but the most powerful attacks. Highly territorial, it will relentlessly pursue any creature that intrudes upon its domain.
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Nothing particularly interesting.
Expected.
The boss locks eyes with us and lets out a deep growl.
Which is impressive, considering I am fairly certain that living crystal should lack both the necessary organs and the basic material properties required to produce such a sound.
Reality, once again, appears open to negotiation.
Kaleidoscopic light blooms across its body, forming what resembles a thin crystalline shell over the entirety of its form.
Mana Armor, presumably.
Annoying.
A powerful wingbeat carries Sylrae higher into the air, remaining just low enough to stay within Bulwark's protection.
A subtle shift in my Cosmic Perception tells me she is already charging the big one, electing to skip normal escalation in favor of immediate violence.
Which is, perhaps, a reasonable response.
Tragically…
I do not believe even the big one is about to solve all of my problems.
That mana armor appears particularly dense.
The boss growls again.
My eyes widen.
Oh shit.
Astral Reflex screams a warning.
I throw myself into the air.
A heartbeat later, the ground abruptly develops murderous ambitions, a crystalline spike erupting diagonally through the exact location I had occupied an instant before.
I land several meters away, a quick glance revealing everyone received much the same greeting.
Rin avoided his entirely, as I did.
Avelyn was slightly less fortunate. A fresh wound now runs along the side of her chest below her collarbone, crystal having torn through both fabric and flesh before she managed to evade completely.
She grimaces.
Holy magic immediately begins knitting the injury closed.
Marek appears to have simply tanked his.
Zeke, unfortunately, caught his cleanly through the leg.
Hallowed Ground blooms beneath them as Avelyn rushes to Zeke's side without hesitation.
Marek appears in front of them almost instantly, his movement skill carrying him into position before the next attack can arrive.
"Bulwark can't stop attacks that come from the ground! Stay mobile, everyone!" His eyes sweep across the battlefield. "Rin, start freezing it. Little Miss, your job is protecting Avelyn at all costs. Once Zeke's back up, we're going to thermal shock that mana armor and take out a leg."
Reasonable.
Rin immediately activates his momentum skill, Frostflame erupting around him as both sabers leave their sheaths.
Curiously…
Even with the blades drawn, the sheaths themselves continue growing brighter.
The increase is so gradual I likely would not have noticed without my completely reasonable Perception.
Interesting.
Questions for later.
Preferably after everyone is no longer under threat of death.
He charges forward to meet the equally enthusiastic badger monstrosity.
Meanwhile, I immediately dash backward, Astral Veilstep carrying me beside Avelyn so quickly that I practically materialize at her side.
Just in time.
The ground develops murderous ambitions once more.
Two crystal spikes burst upward.
One for me.
One for Avelyn.
Avelyn doesn't even look.
She trusts me.
As she should.
My sword is already moving.
One spike splits cleanly in two.
I flow straight into a spin, planting a foot against a nearby crystal outcropping before Astra Nocturne flashes once more, reducing the second spike to glittering fragments before it can so much as brush against her.
Marek intercepts the attacks aimed at both himself and Zeke as well.
Fortunately, both crystal spears possess the common courtesy to arrive from the same direction.
His Dexterity is, regrettably, not sufficient to react to attacks like these otherwise.
I settle into Guiding Star beside them and speak.
"Avelyn, how long?"
She answers without even looking up, golden tattoos illuminating her skin as Zeke's wound rapidly knits itself back together.
"Thirty—no, twenty-five seconds."
I nod before glancing toward Marek.
"I can handle this."
He hesitates only briefly.
Then he nods in appreciation before charging forward with a roar, immediately introducing himself to the Crystal Reaper once more, which is currently making an enthusiastic attempt to convert Rin into several considerably smaller Rins.
A regrettably common occupational hazard.
Crystal gives way to dark soil beneath my feet as I locally project my Garden.
A dozen vines erupt upward, coiling through the air in anticipation of the next volley.
When the crystal spikes eventually emerge, however, they do not erupt from my soil.
Instead, they spear toward us from outside its boundary, stretching across the chamber before striking.
I blink.
Several vines reduce two spikes to decorative gravel.
I bisect the third before it reaches us.
Interesting.
That specific spell does not appear to manifest crystal. It manipulates crystal that already exists.
So when the surrounding terrain becomes soil…
There is simply nothing nearby for it to control. Consequently, the attack is forced to originate from farther away.
Extremely convenient.
My opinion of this battlefield increases by approximately three points.
After introducing another volley of crystal spikes to the concept of structural unemployment, Cosmic Perception alerts me to the formation of a gravity rail.
I glance upward.
Sylrae's violet aura is approaching its peak.
"Avelyn, Bless Sylrae."
She doesn't hesitate.
Her attention leaves Zeke for only the briefest instant as golden light enshrouds the Wingkin’s form before immediately returning to her patient.
A sharp detonation echoes throughout the geode.
Sylrae's shot tears across the chamber, striking the shoulder joint of one of the Crystal Reaper's scythe limbs just as it begins its swing toward Marek.
The mana armor fractures with a sharp crack.
The crystal beneath splinters as well.
Not much, but barely enough.
The limb stalls for a fraction of a second.
Marek immediately capitalizes, driving his tower shield directly into the creature's face.
The impact forces the massive beast back several steps.
Rin requires no further encouragement.
He darts forward, Frostflame trailing behind both sabers as he lands several rapid strikes in succession, building momentum while steadily coating the creature's legs in layers of frost.
Then…
He chooses perhaps the single most dramatic method of avoiding the retaliatory scythe swipe imaginable.
Rather than retreating—
He slides beneath the Crystal Reaper's belly like the protagonist of an action film operating under the deeply questionable assumption that style grants temporary immunity to being bisected.
He emerges on the opposite side before the creature can apparently remember that weighing several tons presents alternative offensive options.
Such as sitting down.
Another saber flashes. Another free hit lands.
…
Show-off.
Sylrae begins charging another of her "big one" attacks overhead.
The badger does not, in fact, approve.
It growls.
Crystal surrounding the creature ripples to life, twisting, sharpening, and rapidly reorganizing itself into dozens of solid spears before launching them skyward in an enthusiastic attempt to remove the Wingkin from local airspace.
My vines react instantly.
Ten of them lash upward, swatting roughly half the incoming projectiles out of the air.
The remainder…
Sylrae will simply have to dodge herself.
I cannot devote my full attention to vine manipulation while simultaneously protecting two remarkably stationary party members.
Crystalline spikes erupt beyond the boundary of my Garden, all three surging toward us with the passionate determination of an ibis discovering an unattended picnic basket and immediately concluding that destiny has finally smiled upon it.
I redirect the first.
Flow straight into a spin, splitting the second cleanly in two.
Then allow my own momentum to carry me half a step backward before rising into an upward sweep that cleaves the third apart.
Efficient.
I settle back into position just in time to watch Marek halt a descending scythe with his tower shield, the impact echoing sharply throughout the geode.
Rin immediately capitalizes.
One clean strike lands against the damaged shoulder joint.
The same one Sylrae fractured earlier.
Reasonable.
Removing one of the creature's scythes before attempting to cripple a leg is a considerably more civilized approach than simply hoping it becomes less dangerous on its own.
The Crystal Reaper is not especially fast.
Unfortunately…
Its margin for error is approximately zero.
Marek can afford mistakes. The rest of us would become substantially less anatomically complete.
Golden light continues shining beside me.
Another volley of crystal spikes meets an untimely end at the merciless hands of Astra Nocturne.
Moments later, Zeke's leg finishes knitting itself back together.
He rises with a grunt.
"...Thanks."
Avelyn smiles warmly before lifting her staff once more.
Holy radiance washes over the battlefield.
Marek. Rin. Sylrae. Zeke. Then finally myself.
She immediately follows with a volley of Sanctified Spears.
They strike the Crystal Reaper squarely. The mana armor remains entirely unimpressed.
Avelyn pouts.
Zeke, meanwhile, begins preparing a Pyroclasm.
The temperature surrounding him rises with alarming speed, the crystal beneath his feet slowly beginning to soften, and melt.
Annoying.
Thank the stars for Vitality.
I am reasonably confident that an ordinary person would currently be undergoing the gradual and deeply unpleasant process of becoming medium rare.
Avelyn, possessing considerably less Vitality than the rest of us, quietly retreats several steps before continuing her support magic.
"Mind the count!" Zeke calls. "Ten seconds!"
Marek doesn't take his eyes off the boss.
"Aim for the scythe!"
"Got it! Five seconds!"
I remain beside Zeke and Avelyn, intercepting yet another wave of crystal spikes before they can inconvenience either of my considerably less mobile companions.
Not that I could meaningfully contribute elsewhere.
If even Sylrae's big one cannot shatter the mana armor outright, Horizon Slash and Starfall Sequence would accomplish little besides converting stamina into disappointment. Probably.
Rending Starfire Line would almost certainly work.
Unfortunately…
It would also raise several deeply uncomfortable questions regarding my Aspect.
Which would be…
Bad. Maybe.
...Probably not, actually.
It has only been a few days since we met, yet I find it remarkably difficult to imagine anyone here deliberately revealing my secret.
More importantly…
I am reasonably certain the combined malicious intent presently contained within the party would struggle to inconvenience a particularly forgiving squirrel.
Even so…
Better safe than sorry.
Note to self: acquire a stronger offensive skill after the boss fight.
Preferably one that does not immediately invite awkward questions about why my "Prismatic" Aspect has suddenly become aggressively stellar.
"Three seconds!"
Rin lands one final strike against the damaged scythe, coating it in one last layer of frost before immediately retreating.
"Two seconds!"
Marek vanishes in a flash of pale blue light, reappearing beside Rin as his ally-covering skill is used for retreat rather than protection.
Smart.
“Pyroclasm!”
Another volley of crystal spikes chooses that exact moment to attempt our collective murder.
Two are intercepted immediately by my vines. The third happens to intersect the path of Zeke's Pyroclasm.
It promptly ceases to exist.
The torrent of flame spears across the geode, carving a molten trench through crystal and soil alike before slamming into the base of the damaged scythe limb.
Mostly.
Pyroclasm is sufficiently large to qualify as a "to whom it may concern" sort of phenomenon. Precision is therefore best treated as an encouraging suggestion rather than a strict requirement.
Crystal groans.
The violent thermal shock races through the limb, hairline fractures exploding across the badger's mana armor as its kaleidoscopic sheen rapidly dulls around the impact site.
The Crystal Reaper staggers.
Just in time.
Avelyn's Blessing flares once more.
Sylrae fires.
The rifle cracks like thunder.
The bullet tears through the weakened joint, crystal erupting outward as the entire scythe limb explodes into a shower of glittering fragments that cascade across the battlefield.
The badger screams.
Actually screams.
The sound hits me like a physical blow.
My fox ears slam flat against my head so violently they hurt.
The world instantly dissolves into piercing, unbearable ringing.
Pain detonates inside my skull.
Every instinct I possess abruptly begins screaming that something has gone catastrophically wrong.
My balance disappears, the crystalline floor lurching beneath me as though someone has reached down and violently tilted the entire cavern.
My knees buckle.
I barely catch myself before collapsing outright.
It hurts.
Stars above…
It hurts.
It feels as though every nerve connected to my ears has been ripped free, set ablaze, and then enthusiastically shoved straight through the center of my brain.
Thought becomes... difficult.
Not slow.
Fragmented.
Like trying to assemble a puzzle while someone repeatedly strikes the table with a hammer.
My vision blurs.
The world swims nauseatingly.
Even Cosmic Perception becomes strangely difficult to separate from the screaming overload pouring through my senses.
…
Fuck.
That.
I grit my teeth hard enough that my jaw aches.
Focus.
I force myself to look around through the pain.
Avelyn has dropped her staff. She kneels on the crystal floor, both hands clamped tightly over her fox ears, her face twisted in agony.
Rin fares little better, although he at least manages to keep hold of his sabers.
Sylrae remains airborne, though the tightness around her expression makes it abundantly clear she did not escape entirely unscathed.
Zeke is mostly fine, save for the tension visible throughout his posture.
Marek, meanwhile…
Appears completely unaffected.
He immediately positions himself between Rin and the Crystal Reaper, shield raised as the Catkin recovers.
My head continues pounding.
Every heartbeat sends another pulse of pain through my ears.
Astral Reflex screams a warning.
I grimace and move anyway.
"Jump!"
Three vines erupt from my thighs.
One wraps gently around Avelyn. One snatches up her discarded staff. The third coils around Zeke's waist.
All three are violently yanked skyward as I leap.
A heartbeat later, the fading soil of my localized Garden explodes.
An entire forest of crystalline spikes erupts from the ground, impaling the exact space we had occupied only moments before.
…
Different spell.
That one manifested crystal outright instead of manipulating existing material.
Inconvenient.
I take a slow breath as the pounding in my skull finally begins to subside.
Note to self: High-pitched sound attacks are considerably more dangerous than explosions.
The difference is... alarmingly significant.
A genuine weakness.
Deeply annoying.
Sylrae, being safely airborne, has already begun charging another major attack.
Marek and Rin both reacted quickly enough to avoid the crystal forest entirely.
Judging by the way Rin winces as he drops, however, the scream is still very much making itself known.
His reflex skill probably saved his life.
…
As did mine.
The floor has become an aggressively impractical place to stand.
My vines continue holding both Avelyn and Zeke aloft as I settle onto the top of a nearby crystal outcropping.
I lower Zeke first, making certain he has stable footing before releasing him.
Avelyn…
Is not ready.
She remains curled in on herself, one hand gripping my vine while the other still presses tightly against her ears.
Without really thinking about it, I simply bring both her and her staff beside me instead.
A far safer position.
The sharp crack of shattering crystal draws my attention elsewhere.
Marek has apparently elected to solve the terrain problem by dropping directly onto the spikes like an armored meteor, his tower shield leading the descent.
Effective, if somewhat lacking in elegance.
Nearby, Rin lands atop another crystal formation much as I did.
He shakes his head once.
Twice.
The last traces of pain disappear behind an expression of profound irritation as he fixes his gaze upon the Crystal Reaper.
…
I find myself doing exactly the same.
Because now…
This fight has become personal.
My lips curl upward just enough for the tips of my fangs to show.
This badger has earned my full attention.
I mark it with Predator's Claim.