Cat Core, Chapter 26.

Chapter 26.

“I believe that Vanderman has gotten a shield upgrade,” Doug said. Fran noticed he did have a nice metal one now instead of the old chipped-up wooden one he had been making do with.

“Looks like more than just the shield, they’ve been making good use of the loot they keep gathering up from our home,” Florence replied, noticing that Shara had a new weapon and Vanderman’s old shield. The others also sported new bits a pieces, mostly improvements to their armor, which struck Florence as a wise decision. She knew the group had improved in level and skill during this time, it would be entertaining to see how they performed in her newly updated dungeon.

“Do you think they’ll make it all the way to Chubbs and Zork today?” Florence asked Doug.

“Well, there’s a finely tuned process to determine how far a group will progress during each delve. Would you perhaps wish to place a wager on this delve?” Doug asked.

“Well, I’m not some gambling type of person, surely not like that old Hubert Cranston over on 14th street. That old fart had a huge gambling ring going on right in his basement. If you ask me, I think the sheriff was part of his weekly game which is why he weren’t arrested. That sheriff must have lost enough money that he finally broke up their game…” Florence started before being interrupted.

“Enough with the witticisms, do you wish to wager or not, they’re about to engage our first defenders,” Doug whined. He sure could get frustrated when she wanted to talk about normal things.

“Fine, what exactly are we wagering, Doug?” She asked.

“Nothing too valuable since I don’t have anything. How about, if I win, I get to name the next two defenders. If you win, I agree to listen to the next story of your past life in its entirety and I will even feign some modicum of interest in whatever you blather on about,” Doug offered.

“Sounds like we have a deal, Douggie. I’d shake your hand but none of us seem to have any, well, at least you got a paw,” Florence said.

“Now look, they’re already fighting Obi and Shadow. Shall we start the wager after they clear the living room? I think after that point we should have a good idea of how this run is progressing. Now a few ground rules. You cannot influence or communicate with them during their run. No goblin room, of course, and the optional rooms have their defenders released to roam after five minutes,” Doug offered.

“That seems fair, now hush up and let me watch,” Florence said. The party, to no surprise, cleared the lawn area with little trouble. Old Obi and Shadow gave it a good effort, but it seemed hard for them to close in when their targets knew they were coming. The crossbow trap was also not very effective, the bolt had been expected by Vanderman and deflected as soon as it fired. She would have to see if Doug could shake things up with the traps, the adventurers would all figure them out after their first run or two. Hardly slowing down, the group charged into the living room to battle her fur babies.

“Oh dear, it looks like Tater is on a roll today,” Doug said, watching as the huge cat pinned Vanderman to the ground. The group leader’s new shield proved its worth, keeping the freshly leveled cat at bay long enough for Ox to swing down with his axe, only to have his aim thrown off by Midnight’s leaping at him from the couch. Nala did a bit better, her twin daggers digging into Bhargath’s back as she appeared behind him, somehow spotting the big cat as it tried to creep around the sofa.

Her little baby Baxter was intercepted by a flurry of arrows from Roland. The irritating man must have leveled up and unlocked some new ability that allowed him to fire three arrows at once. That would have normally done in the big kitty, but her cuddly defender had also leveled up. Baxter shrugged off the attack and tried to chomp down on Shara, only to take a mace blow to the face. Ox didn’t’ even struggle as he pulled Midnight off of him, the big dope was strong as his namesake, and threw her across the room. Just like all kitties, Midnight landed on her feet and charged back at the oversized battle mage. Ox raised his hand, three bolts of light hammered into Midnight, throwing her charge off course.

Florence had seen the big guy use magic before, but he normally favored his axe, which he did once more, the huge weapon connecting to her poor kitty and ended her charge. The rest of the group was doing well, Nala and Shara had both come to the aid of Vanderman and Roland popped arrows into anything that moved, they cleared the room in record time.

“Well done everyone, that was smooth, but I do think that Florence must have gained a level or something. These cats were much tougher than normal,” Vanderman said as Shara healed up the few wounds he had taken from Tater.

“You’re just saying that because Tater got the drop on you today,” Roland taunted.

“Sure, he did this time, but we’ve never seen him attack from anywhere other than the couch or the ledge above the door,” Vanderman replied. It was true, this time Tater had taken the initiative to move further down the ledge, placing himself on the other wall, perpendicular to the door. When Vanderman charged in, expecting the usual assaults, he missed the big kitty leaping from the side. With the increased strength and size form his brawler class, Tater was more than able to the make the jump, something that wouldn’t have been possible before.

“I agree with Vanderman, the kitties are bigger in here. Shadow and Obi out on the lawn seemed the same size, but the ones in here are kind of burly,” Shara added.

“Didn’t take them long to figure it out, did it?” Florence asked.

“No, they’re sharp and I think this group has potential. They’ve meshed well as a party and will go places, I believe,” Doug said. “Now, Florence, how about our wager? I think they will make it to the Library before turning back,” Doug told her.

“Nah, I think they’ll check out the new bathroom, they’re too curious to pass it up. If they can take out the defenders there, they won’t have as many wandering kitties hitting them from behind while they’re in the Library. I think they go all the way to the end today,” Florence offered.

“I think you’re being overly optimistic, but we shall see. Drat, it looks like my fire blast trap didn’t trigger, I shall have to see about mixing things up a bit,” Doug complained. He sure liked his traps and weren’t none to happy when the defenders just disarmed them without no trouble. Roland would have likely triggered the durned thing, but Nala seemed to know her stuff, handily disarming the trap in record time.

The party entered the hallway, ready for the appearance of the trio of kitties from their hidey holes. What the party wasn’t expecting was the newly enhanced speed and accuracy of her commando kitties. When the first cat, Buddy, leaped out of his compartment, Vanderman missed his swing, the razor-sharp sword he wielded only cutting through empty air. Baxter slashed out as he passed, ignoring the heavily armored Vanderman and leaving a deep bloody stripe along Nala’s leg. It looked like the attack was a critical hit, the leather armor doing nothing to stop the slash, the wound pouring blood onto the tasteful lime-green carpet.

“Cover me,” Shara shouted as she concentrated on healing Nala, who Florence could tell was having trouble keeping on her feet. The others closed up, ready for her cats to emerge and attack the wounded member or the vulnerable one trying to heal her. Florence’s little babies weren’t that predictable, instead they all leaped out a once, taking different doors at different heights, all of them targeting the least likely one, Vanderman. Buddy’s claws raked uselessly against Vanderman’s shield and Princess tried to slash his chest, the cheap chainmail shirt he had purchased since their last delve barely stopping the attack, several links making a tinging noise as they parted under the cat’s claws. Mortimer’s attack hit low, slashing across Vanderman’s calf, the claws parting the reinforced leather leg armor the man wore.

Ox came to their rescue, using some magic shield ability, he was able to block off any panels close to the huddled party. Shara finished her heals and now Florence’s babies could only pop out far away, needing to run a gauntlet of spells, arrows, and weapons before hitting their targets. After three more passes, only Mortimer remained, and he was moving slow from an arrow that Roland had managed to land on his hip. Making a valiant final effort, Mortimer charged Vanderman, only to be cut down by his longsword.

“They adapted faster than I would have thought,” Doug said.

“Yep, that Ox fella is smarter than he looks or sounds,” Florence replied. They watched anxiously as the party finished up their healing and took stock of their resources.

“I’m good on mana, haven’t even gotten close to my recharge limit yet,” Shara added.

“I’m okay, mana’s full but I’ve almost hit my recharge limit,” Ox said. His dual class must have meant a smaller mana pool as well as a limited ability to recharge before hitting his limit. Of course, Florence knew he had more than made up for the mana deficiency with the way he swung that there axe of his.

“Is nobody going to comment on the fact we have a new room?” Roland asked, pointing at the new door leading off the hallway. The one for the sewing room was still in the same spot, with the bathroom door opposite it.

“Yeah, I think we should check it out before proceeding,” Vanderman said, making sure everyone was ready before pushing open the door. He walked into the large room; weapons ready. The tub against the far wall had the shower curtain pulled, blocking their sight of Scylla. Roland pushed past Vanderman; arrow nocked as he scanned for threats. The others entered behind them, but Florence lost sight of Nala once again. That girl was plumb slippery.

“So, where’s the cats, or is Florence just giving us a chance to tidy up before she tries to kill us again?” Roland said. In response Charybdis leaped out of the cabinet below the sink, rocketing toward the mouthy Roland. This here kitty was a brawler, and she knew it. Claws slashing and mouth hissing, Charybdis turned away at the last second, fleeing from several attacks by the other party members and tromping past the wet floor that covered Doug’s newest trap.

“Here we go,” Doug said, Florence could hear the anticipation in his voice. Vanderman pursued the dodging kitty and as he hit the wet spot on the floor, his boots slid out from under him. He landed hard and the doors to the pit opened, dropping the man down fifteen feet where his armor and gear made a loud crash as he slammed into the floor below.

“No, get it off me, it’s eating away my armor!” Vanderman shouted. Shara rushed to the edge of the pit, nearly falling in herself as her boots tried to find traction on the wet floor. Looking down, Florence could see Vanderman had gained his feet, a greasy looking slime covered his back where he had fallen in. The chainmail back there had started to sizzle as the slime there tried to get at the meaty bits of the adventurer.

“Doug, I think that slime is a bit much for the trap, we should get rid of it after these folks leave,” Florence advised.

“Very well, I’ll see about replacing it with a steam trap on the shower spigot, that should give Scylla an extra layer of protection before she has to engage in melee,” Doug replied.

“Yeah, as long as you don’t put no more of them slimy critters in my nice home,” Florence argued.

“It isn’t inyour home, it’s under it, see, I carefully placed it at the bottom of the pit,” Doug said, drawing her attention to the now frantic Vanderman, who had shucked off his armor only to find the slime had also started in on his boots. Ox had pulled a rope from his pack, dangling it down for Vanderman. It was at this point that Scylla struck. The magic kitty pawed back the lovely shower curtain with the dolphin’s and seashells on it.

“Look out, Roland shouted, he had been pelting Charybdis with arrows this whole time while Nala danced in and out with her knives, trying to keep the cat from attacking the rest of the party while they tried to rescue Vanderman.

The slime had started to eat through the warrior’s boots by now, and Vanderman was a hollerin’ like a stuck pig. At least he had the presence of mind to keep a hold of the rope that Ox had lowered, the big man was now steadily pulling him out of the pit. Just when he looked like he would make it, Scylla fired off her first spell. The wet floor they had been standing on turned into a sheet of ice as the cat mage poured out as much mana as she could.

“I see, she looks to have developed water-based magic, but it looks like it might be frost specific. That does happen at times, broad categories of magic can be broken down into more specific fields of study,” Doug advised her. The ice both seemed to help and hurt the party. It helped them by freezing the water solid, including the water that had spilled down into the pit when it had opened. The cold also seemed to have an effect the slime, freezing it solid. The icy floor caused Ox to lose his footing, sliding down into the pit and dragging Shara down with him as they fell. The pair landed with a meaty slap; the hard ice was less forgiving than a slime covered floor.

“Well, that was interesting, it appears the slime will be less than effective given Scylla’s affinity for ice magic. Oh, look, she’s trying a different spell now,” Doug said. Florence watched as Scylla cast once more, lifting her right paw in a very cute way to aim several sharp shards of ice that now swirled around her head. The shards launched forward at Roland who, to his credit, dodged all but two of them. He grunted in pain but continued to pepper Charybdis with arrows as the oversized cat and Nala both struggled to keep their balance on the icy floor. Nala was the first to make it past the frozen section of floor and instead of continuing to fight Charybdis, she ran toward Scylla who was even now creating another swirling mass of ice shards.

It didn’t look to Florence that Nala was going to reach Scylla in time, but the adventurer surprised her by suddenly disappearing and then reappearing behind the magic ice kitty. These here adventurers seemed to be learning new things as fast as Florence was. The girl’s two daggers bit deep into Scylla’s back, hitting something critical and finishing off her poor baby in that one powerful strike.

“I know our magic kitties are a bit weaker than the others, but I didn’t think one stab would kill them,” Florence complained.

“Well, not only was it two blades that Nala hit Scylla with, but she also has class abilities to increase her damage when taking an opponent by surprise,” Doug advised. Florence knew that, but she still felt perfectly justified in complaining about it if she wanted to.

Roland was able to finish off poor Charybdis with a final arrow to the face, but the party looked to be in pretty bad shape now that three of them stuck down inside the pit trap. Lucky for them, Roland had an extra length of rope, enough to pull them out one at a time, with Ox needing all four of the other party members to help haul his bulk out. Shara spent some time healing up everyone’s injuries, which must have cut deeply into her mana reserves.

“Do you think they’ll continue?” Doug asked.

“Shush, I’m trying to hear what they’re saying,” Florence replied.

“My mana is full, but that’s it, my reserves are depleted,” Shara told the party.

“Do we stop now? My gear has taken a beating, but I say we at least clear the sewing room, the mobs in there should give us a little more loot,” Vanderman said.

“Yes, let’s hit the sewing room, but take it easy, there have been changes in here since our last visit and the room may be a bit more difficult than we remember,” Roland advised. For as annoying as the man was, he did have a good idea now and again, Florence believed.

The party wasted no time in clearing out the sewing room. There hadn’t been any changes in there, save for her babies being stronger after she had hit level three. With the whole party expecting them, poor Stubbs and Bob didn’t have much of a chance. They looted the cats, each of which gave a few coins, and began to make their way out of her home.

“Do you think we should drop them a reward chest? I mean, this was their first run after all our changes,” Florence asked.

“It’s your decision on what to reward, but in my opinion, an extra reward would be completely justified,” Doug replied. Florence agreed and she created a reward chest with $15, the medium sized chest was left on the doorstep.

“Woah, hey check it out,” Roland said as Nala hauled him back from the suspicious chest. She checked it for traps before nodding to the rest of the party.

“Thank you, Florence, we appreciate the reward,” Vanderman said as he opened the chest. So far, Florence hadn’t created a reward chest of this size, most of the others being the five-dollar version.

“That Vanderman is such a polite young man,” Florence said. Doug didn’t say anything, but she could tell that he agreed with her. She had to move around her view a few times to get past the adventurers crowding over the open chest. A whoop of joy was heard from Roland as he stood up holding a doily in the air.

“Finally! I got Tater!” Roland shouted while doing a stupid looking dance. Florence watched as he dug the rest of the set out of his pack while the others watched. Once the entire stack of doily’s were brought together, they began to glow. When the light show ended, Florence could see a set of leather bracers were held by Roland. Before they could leave, she scanned the item, curious what her magic doily collection had created.

Level 1 Bracers of the Cat Core. These bracers confer upon the owner a bonus to agility and an improved chance to avoid ranged attacks. Collect more cat icons from the dungeon to improve this item’s power.

“Not bad, especially since we didn’t even know them doily rewards were magic,” Florence said.

“I agree, it shall be interesting to find what other powers the bracers add when more of the collection is added. Do you think the type of armor is determined by the preference of whomever completes the set?” Doug asked. Florence didn’t know and just shrugged shoulders she didn’t have. At least with their link, gestures like that were understood by her little kitty assistant.

“Not a bad haul of coin for the rest of us,” Vanderman said, pulling party’s attention away from Roland who had quickly equipped the new item.

“Who gets the next complete set?” Shara asked.

“I guess we can just draw names out of hat to determine the order,” Vanderman said, the group argued over the order as they left the dungeon and walked out of her area of control.

“Well, look at that, Florence, this latest delve has put you over the threshold to level four,” Doug advised. Sure enough, she had hit the next level thanks to the experience crystal and a single delve that only made it halfway through her home. It was time for some more upgrades, and she had plenty of ideas on how to expand her new home.