Puff! Pruff! Bomf!

  Skeletal hands erupted from the clearing ground. Five sets. Most had one handed weapons. I whacked a wrist holding a war club.

  "War clubs and bone tomahawks, take out one at a time, try to take out a war club— could be useful if your staff breaks."

  I thrust one end of my staff into the skeleton's eye socket, and planted the other end into the ground behind me. It was still halfway out. I leant back, tugging hard while kicking its ribcage. The skull separated, went flying. I jumped up, as it carried on moving before I smacked it to pieces.

  The staff was already suffering. I assessed. Four left. Tomahawks and war clubs are lv29, in the middle, a head dress wearing skeleton drew two bone knives from its pelvis, lv32.

  A tomahawk wielder's skull shatters at the third arrow strike. I whacked its arm off before jumping back to avoid attacks from the other two. I smacked aside their weapons then put my bow staff horizontal out in front of me, charging forward, I caught and pushed both back.

  Like a boxer I hopped back quickly as another skull met one of Isabelle's arrows. I saw it bounce off. Grabbing it midair before I quickly took back two handed hold of my staff, and attacked the headless one armed skelton.

  Crick!

  It was finished off, but so was my staff. I twirled it around then whacked the nearest skeleton, the end of staff exploded. I threw what remained at the head of the chief.

  At my feet another of Issabelle's arrows, I picked it up to throw both I had in her direction. I ducked and rolled, acquiring a tomahawk then a war club.

  Dual wielding I went to town on the nearest skeleton. Catching its weapon, striking at its skull. I'd lost track of Isabelle's arrows. A war club wielder advancing toward her lost its head to an arrow, she then burst from the bushes, striking with her staff.

  Pretending to be her level I had to avoid the chiefs slashes, which in reality would have done nothing to me. With a tomahawk wielder, and the chief tag teaming me, I jumped back.

  Isabelle claimed victory over the one she'd been dealing with then came to assist. Striking from behind she delivered a skull shattering downward blow to the last minion, her staff broke. I wove around its flailing arm and whacked its elbow with my tomahawk, still holding my own war club, I just about managed to catch and hold a second one.

  Isabelle jumped back from the chief, spotting what I was holding out to her.

  From my loose grip she took the war club, went straight to smacking aside a bone knife, before ducking under a slash and rolling aside.

  I ducked and wove to beside her as she stood up. She'd picked up a tomahawk too. We both now faced the chief dual wielding his own minions weapons against him.

  I glanced at its health bar. Isabelle had maybe already struck with an arrow or two, it was at two thirds health.

  The chief charged, knives in reverse grip. In sync we caught both forearms then smacked either side of its skull.

  The headdress fell off. Still half health. I immediately followed up by striking its arm.

  Isabelle bashed the back of its leg. It twisted toward me, slashing as it did, I avoided the slashes, smacking at its hands. Isabelle hacked at its neck while also hammering its skull.

  The chief's eyes glowed, at a quarter health it had a surprise for us. Small skeletal animals, rats, vultures, dogs, cats and boar rose from the ground behind the totem.

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  We had no choice but to back up as they charged.

  The rats reached us first. A wave of one hit monsters distracting from the next attack, the vultures swooped down, one for each of us. The dogs and cats were now upon us too.

  It was a flurry of shattering bones. We took small damage from bite and claw attacks. Having finally exploded the vulture attacking me into pieces, I blasted healing magic at Isabelle. She beheads a skeleton dog before pulverising its body.

  The chief was standing, headdress back on. The boar beside him. It pointed a bony finger to Isabelle while looking at me. The boar charged her as the chief attacked me.

  I saw Isabelle jump and roll over the boars back as it charged under her.

  Smacking aside slashes and trusts, my tomahawk delivered its final blow. The bone axehead shattered against the chief's clavicle. I jammed the handle up into its skull, let go then stepped back.

  Catching a flailing arm, I twisted its wrist to break its arm off with strike from the the war club. I took the knife for myself. It almost caught me with a slash, the slash went wide. I stepped toward it, its arm bumping off my armour. I stabbed the bone knife into an eye socket, leaving it there as I hopped back to avoid another wide slash.

  Crash!

  Clever Isabelle had got the boar to charge the totem pole, before wailing on its back. The boar crumpled before falling apart.

  I wove around the chief's wide slashes then spotted an opening.

  TACK!

  With the war club I landed a brutal (but for show— reserved) blow to the back of the knife in its eye socket.

  It stumbled back, very low health. Bone knife now sticking out the back of its skull. It swayed about as Isabelle approached from behind, both her weapons held high.

  CRACK!

  Crushing blows delivered simultaneously to either side of its skull. Headdress went flying, jaw bone bounces down into the ribcage. I walloped the remaining arm sending it crashing to the ground. A good kick to its knee. As it fell Isabelle broke her tomahawk smashing its spine.

  Five skill points, an odd number but well worth the hassle. I backed away from the totem pole, gesturing to Isabelle. She laid her hand on it too, thankfully it had enough juice, for her trouble, she got five as well.

  I looted the headdress and one of the bone knives. Both war clubs we used were too badly banged up, not worth repairing or selling.

  . . .

  Dual classing was really a pain in the arse. Any relief from field medic basic attack and defense skills already being acquired, duplicates from my assassin skill tree, was short lived. The demand for skill points was relentless. I pondered this as I stabbed my new short sword into a troll's eye.

  Darn it was a well made blade. Taking my requests to heart, Tuana had created a short sabre, almost a cutlass. It had a D shaped closed hand guard and a U shaped crossguard with front and rear hooks.

  Over the top of the gorgeous dark stained oak handle was a small disk, slightly larger than the mouth of the scabbard. Either side of the blade the disk bent up slightly, creating the possibility to catch there too. The slight hooks created, fell snuggly either side the scabbard opening.This meant it wasn't uncomfortable or getting caught when worn at my side or lower back.

  It felt lively in the hand, like an extension of my body, I could make the tip dance with delightful and deadly precision. The simple rounded pommel could no doubt smash temples and crush fingers... or crack open nuts.

  While the skeletons hadn't been quite enough for a level up, other monsters along the way and fending off highwaymen (non-lethally), meant I could pretend I'd entered the city at lv27. I didn't need to hide the switch to my new sword from Isabelle.

  I'd left Isabelle to make new friends and find out what she could, in a shady inn, in the scummiest part of the capitol. Hopefully she won't get into too much trouble. Asking the owner, I'd found and bribed a couple lesser basterds to watch over her just in case.

  The catacombs had already taken half a day to navigate. A couple trolls and giant rats, nothing to stress about. For speedy unslinging and so it wouldn't get in the way, I'd packed a couple days supplies onto a hobo stick. I laid my supplies down and approached a large locked door.

  I'd found the entrance to the dungeon. My lockpicking skills were tested by the high level lock.

  Clank! Clang, clang, clang, clang, clang... Kerchunk!

  Various gears finished turning then the door opened. Torches along the corridor behind magically illuminated. I could hear growls, clicks and snapping as beastly monsters within awoke.

  I pulled out and set up Gwendoline's final gift. She must've sensed I'd come here. I tied one end of the magic escape rope to a pillar by the entrance, and the other end to my waist. It was quite short, maybe only 4m of rope, but it had a trick. I activated the magic within by cutting it halfway. The rope glowed. I now couldn't take it off my waist or else risk breaking the spell.

  With a deep breath, I popped my supplies back on my shoulder, drew my sword then entered the dungeon.