Please read the author's notes. (Examples and explanation of moves and appearance+ Monster Sources)
Discord: https://discord.gg/K7f8qGpvuk
pat.treon:/Keanu_Eugene
CHAPTER START---
"So what's the plan for...falling training?" Welf asks as he and Yang walk to the edge of the plateau campsite.
Loki's familia was currently just getting settled into the safe zone, they'd only arrived yesterday.
"Remember that small lake we were swimming in yesterday?"
"Uh...yeah, why?" Welf had no idea what he was planning.
"Aim for it..."
"Hu---AHHHH" Welf's confusion becomes panic as Yang suddenly throws him with all his might, arcing toward the lake's surface as he shoots almost a hundred meters into the air.
"Hahahaha....alright that was funny, but why'd you toss him across the floor?" Tsubaki asks as she saunters up to Yang, Gareth's greataxe across her shoulder to be sharpened.
"That's his training, he already pulled it off once, slowing his fall so he didn't splat when we jumped from the great waterfall down to floor 27, this should be light work for him."
"You're insane, you know that right," she gives him a bewildered look at his casual disregard for safety.
"That's why I get results, but relax, Hephaestus's lover boy will be fine, he's tougher than he realizes."
"Just making sure, I gotta get to work," she sees Thalie approaching him holding the adamantite greatsword in one hand and her spear in the other, "and it looks like your training is starting, good luck."
---Two hours later...
Standing on the surface of the lake, Yang and Thalie are locked in an exhilarating duel...at least that's how Yang would describe it. He had cuts all across his body and the water beneath him was being dyed red slowly as blood drips down his body into the water. Wearing just his shorts anyone who cared could see all the cuts across his torso and even his legs.
Thalie had a casual smile on her face, spear across her shoulders as she could almost see his brain trying to find an opening as he takes a moment to catch his breath. Wearing just a sports bra and shorts with some salamander wool around her waist, her muscled body in plain view.
In the middle of the water, a pillar reaches 200 feet up toward the ceiling of the safe zone, small red flames flicker about at the top.
"You're getting a tan?" Yang's words catch Thalie off guard for a moment, looking at her arm, her pale skin was becoming slightly darker.
"Makeup only lasts so long, well, more like dyed skin," She gives him a casual shrug, as if it were the most normal thing in the world.
"So you just walk around in whiteface?" he quirked a brow, not sure why she changed her skin color.
"Pale skin and purple hair, you see anyone like me before?" she asked matter of factly.
"Uh, no, do people not like how you normally look?" there was a tinge of hesitation in his voice, "look I won't really judge, I've been through s---"
"It's not that deep," she immediately cuts him off," I'm brown with brown hair, nothing wrong with that, but I would stick out like a sore thumb where my mission was a few months ago, dyed skin and hair, cutting myself during long travel so scars form, pulling teeth then growing them back with magic after a mission, it's just another way of keeping my identity hidden in certain places," she ends with a bored look, his eyes were wide as he couldn't wrap his head around exactly what kind of things she does to warrant this.
"That's insane, you know that right..." his voice filled with disbelief.
"Says the guy who sets himself on fire then punches monsters," she gives him a small smile before rushing forward with her spear," enough rest!"
(Pic here and in the comments for how Thalie naturally looks)
Standing atop the pillar rising out of the water, Welf holds his sword forward, a small wave of fire floods out before it compresses smaller and smaller, as it becomes like that of a blowtorch, he steps off the pillar.
"C'MON!" he yells out as he aims his weapon down.
*FOOM*
A 10ft flame fires out, smaller and more concentrated than his usual attacks, not meant for offense but for mobility.
His falling speed reduces rapidly, but doesn't stop.
"SHIT!" is all he cries out before a large splash is heard, crashing feet first into the surface of the lake a few dozen meters from Yang and Thalie's training.
As he swims up to the surface, he looks over to see Yang and Thalie standing on the surface snickering at him.
"You know the drill, get back up there!" Yang says as they resume combat training.
With a small grunt, Welf puts his sword on his back and swims over to the pillar, digging his fingers into the rocky structure he begins to climb to the top once more.
"Almost regretting asking him for fire training..." the redhead mutters as he begins the long climb back to the top.
As Thalie kept Yang on his toes with stabs and slashes, she noticed something at the edge of her vision, being more experienced and calmer, naturally, she noticed before Yang.
"So," she starts talking as their training continues," what's up with blondie?"
"What?" Yang asks while missing a large swing with his greatsword.
"The princess is...checking you out?" she nods toward the shore.
Directing his eyes towards Ais standing on the shore of the lake, Yang releases a deep sigh as he resumes their training.
"Ignore her."
"So you know why she's here?"
"As soon as she had a chance she asked me for a fight... she's, persistent," he almost groans out.
"What, scared of the princess?" Thalie teases as she ducks one of his sword strikes.
"You remember what happened last time I fought a person?"
"Yeah...but if the fight goes too far you think we'd let that happen to either of you, nothing wrong with a duel between adventurers, doesn't have to be a bloodbath," she informs him.
"Uh-huh, you sound like you want me to accept..."
"I do, you need experience in a real fight against people, I can't do that because if you snap I die, but if you snap against her---"
"Finn will have his team stop me and nobody dies...that, actually makes sense..."
"Exactly, so think it over at least."
"I'd rather not fight our 'Allies' at all so I think I'm good with just our training..."
---Later That Evening, Ouranos Prayer Chamber...
"Ouranos, I assume you have a good reason for me to be here, is the dragon coming back maybe?" Freya asks as she enters the dimly lit room, the four torches at the corners of Ouranos's raised platform which holds his throne being the only light.
"Nothing so grand Freya, not yet at least..." the old god says, inviting questions from his guest.
"Not yet, so what's this 'Growing problem'?"
"A monster has...grown, no, I believe the proper term is, evolved."
"Handling irregulars is Ganesha's problem, even if Loki's children are away there's no need to call on me for this Ouranos," Freya quickly says as she turns to leave the room.
Seeing that she's losing interest, Ouranos cuts to the point," it's resisting my prayers..." she stops walking immediately.
Giving him a doubtful glare, Freya walks to the bottom of the stairs leading up to his throne, "if it's resisting you does that mean your armistice with the dungeon is done, can we expect the dungeon to open up again and attack with its full might?"
"No, my agreement holds true, but my will is not AS effective against certain monsters, according to the new information we have these monsters are supposedly the pinnacle of their environments."
"That shouldn't matter, the dungeon pulled from lore of the old world to create monsters, but they are just that...monsters, nature doesn't matter," Freya points out.
"It seems something entirely new has come with these monsters, a new variable that makes them stand above others. I had been waiting for some of them to spawn on the explored floors, and it seems one finally has, but I shall leave that one to the Loki familia as it appeared on floor 51, there are others deeper, in the frontier region of the dungeon."
"A group of monsters...the same species?"
"No, the information we had was obviously fragmented, it was almost impossible to tell but after careful study, some was withheld, all of these monsters were compiled in one section. They were obviously in a class of their own, I've sent word to request more information."
"Request, so the announcement was a lie then, the guild wasn't the origin of the information on the new monsters after all."
After a tense pause, "no, we were fortunate to have someone who studied myths and legends of these creatures, the monster that has appeared had a hint of the energy the stronger creatures had, but I believe it's been devouring other monsters and has become saturated with the strange energy, it is moving toward the surface from floor 40 as we speak, devouring everything it can, I'm tasking your familia with putting a stop to it."
"A creature saturated in strange energy...evolving into something else, and you want my children to deal with it, and what information can you give me about this...animal..."
"All that we have gathered so far is that the monsters with this strange 'Dragon Energy' are referred to as 'Elder Dragons' in their stories."
"Elder Dragons? Like the great quest?" Freya was a bit hesitant to send her children against such a challenge.
"No, it's simply a wide name for the monsters that stand at the top, filled with power and can change the environment around them, unfortunately, we'll have to wait until later to get more information, as soon as we have it you'll be dispatched, I do believe this monster is not a natural elder dragon at least. However, that raises the issue of HOW it gathered this energy."
"I see..." Freya raised a hand to her face as she thought over exactly what was happening, "and what's the name of this creature?"
"By the description Ganesha reported, the documentation states it to be 'The Violent Wyvern' or 'Eater Of The World', but the name is simply Deviljho, at least that's how it began..."
"I'll need the full file if I'm to send my precious children into battle with this...animal," Freya says in a sharp tone, not budging on this, a sensible demand.
"Of course, I'll have more information sent to you as we receive it..."
"Of course, leave this matter to me, I'm sure Ottar was growing bored on the surface anyway, thank you for not bothering me with the small things Ouranos..." Freya says as she begins walking out of the room.
'Someone who studied monsters...no...studied life, you really do lack subtlety,' Freya thinks to herself as she walks through the guild with Ottar at her back.
"Have everyone ready for a mission tomorrow Ottar, it seems Ouranos needs your muscle, while you're dealing with that I'll pay Hephaestus a small visit..."
"My lady, I'd prefer if you don't enter other familia's territory while our forces are away," the man pleads.
"Oh please Ottar, Hephaestus won't hurt me, we're family..."
END CHAPTER---
---Yeah we aren't only seeing the main characters fighting, they aren't the only awesome team in the dungeon after all.
Have some idea about my story? Comment it and let me know.
---A fan-favorite monster hunter creature coming in :p
---Yeah we aren't only seeing the main characters fighting, they aren't the only awsome team in the dungeon after all.