The Boom Shroom
'Bones hurt. Master sent me here to destroy the core and bring back more power so can't fail. That mushroom is to dangerous though, always walking forward with a new trick, always a new gas or poison. Have to end this.' Thinks Stein hurriedly as another mushroom sails through the air, this one pitch black with small beans embedded into it. Dodging out of the way and sighing in relief, Stein lets out a shocked gasp as a large feline slashes its claws against his wings, several bones finally snapping before the creature withers and fades to dust.
"That one is a panthercap. Usually they start as kittens and grow as they level but I can supercharge them to create a full grown one at the expense of a one hit life span. Kinda getting tired of all this, you've barely moved this entire time. Think I'll use my big one and be done with it." Fraz says as he yawns and stretches his arms behind his back before pulling out a large shroom the size of a small keg.
"This here is a mushroom I found while killing the squids. See I have a special ability. I eat a mushroom or fungus, even some types of moss and if I eat enough I can turn it into a type of spore weapon or a minion to summon and grow. This is the one I used to do all those things back in the day. You light the fuse and chuck it in an area, makes whatever it touches super weakened to certain stuff. Like myconids for example." Fraz says as his smile morphs from lazy and carefree to slightly malicious. Swinging his arms he heaves the mushroom into the air, its form going end over end before thunking down several feet from Stein as he tries to blast it with shadowy fire.
As the mushroom ignites a blast of air rushes from it, engulfing the room as a whirlwind of spores fill the air. Shaking his head groggily, the skeletal Stein looks up to see three Fraz's scattered around the room. Each is smiling as they each make different movements towards the morphed man.
"Foolish tricks! Die!" Screeches Stein as he hurls shadowy flames at one of the incoming Shroom Boomers, his face going from enraged to confused as the flame hits the creature and it looks down curiously before smiling and continuing forward. with a lazy gait.
"The boom shroom isn't an illusion bomb. It's a cloner. I add my buffed spores from myself to it and when activated it creates a random number of copies. They aren't smart but they can do everything I can do I just do it better." Fraz whispers from behind the skeletal avatar before an explosion of purple smoke sends Stein flying towards one of the clones, its arms opening as if to catch the flying bone creature while small red spores begin glowing dangerously across its chest.
Trying to stop his flight Stein attempts to spread his wings before turning and seeing the shredded tatters and shattered bones, before feeling a strange surface impact his body and heat begin to build up along his chest.
"The reason its called the boom shroom is because these clones last until they touch something, friend or foe, and then they just kinda.....boom." Fraz says as the clone glows red before an explosion rocks the room, several boulders falling from the ceiling as Fraz leans against the wall with his arms crossed. Waiting a couple minutes his eyes light in surprise as Stein stumbles from the smoke in human form, one arm hanging by threads of flesh as several bones stick from his body.
"I'll give ya this dude, you can take a beating. This can't be worth it what's making you keep this fight up. Its like, your trying to kill yourself when you could just relax and sleep. Rest bro that's all I'm saying." Fraz says calmly as Steins eyes flutter before the avatar falls forward, a squelch sounding from the body as a rib bursts through his back as he finally lets out a death rattle.
'Fraz it says he's actually dead. You can come back now. Everyones safe thanks to you, thank you for defending them. I mean it.' Kyle says as the myconid finally falls to the ground shaking, his body slowly shrinking to his normal lanky form as a small button mushroom with a hammer waddles over and nudges the boss creature gently.
"Its fine little guy, I just...I just forgot how bad the crash is. The guilt. The....memories....you go help Kyle and be my stand in kay dude, I'll be there once i get my head together." Fraz whispers in a haunting voice, his eyes staring through the wall and everything in sight as glowing green tears stream from his eyes and he rocks himself back and forth.
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{Dungeon Avatar of Insanity Slain! Secret quest completed- There Can Only Be One!- Kill an enemy dungeon avatar while keeping your own alive. Rewards- Blueprint:Purification Chamber, Blueprint:War Room, Blueprint:Prison}
'Do you think he's going to be ok? I'm worried, I never thought the dude bro mushroom would be so dangerous.' I say as Tilly and Emi look at each other before Tilly turns to me.
"Now I know why Fraz was swapped so many times. He's a fractured boss, a powerful dungeon boss who's skills and abilities are much stronger than his ranking but he has severe mental or physical trauma. From the looks of it Fraz suffers from PTSD like infantry that barely escape the frontlines. I remember trying to heal men like that and it was always a lesson in patience and understanding. He will be fine Kyle but make sure you keep checking in with him, maybe keep him out of combat unless absolutely needed like today. Give him time to come back to himself and adjust." Tilly explains as I watch the mushroom man cry and rock back and forth as Steins body is finally absorbed into my inventory and turned into loot.
"Ok so the blueprints you just earned are actually going to help. A purification chamber is a room that has cells in it that you can place equipment or creatures. If whatever is inside the cell is cursed, corrupted, or something similar the chamber will slowly purify it over time and eventually make it useable by our dungeon. Living creatures going through that go into stasis and once purified they can be added as mobs or traded away but you'll get a blueprint for them regardless of choice." Emi says as I follow along while watching the remainder of my dungeon begin cleaning up and looting the bodies before I absorb them.
"War room is a huge help for actual wars and battles outside the dungeon. Gives our mobs and bosses a bonus to their stats and a small inventory for looting. Allows the transfer of slaves and prisoners of war from an established camp and allows a boss to create a unique camp based on their dungeon. If the boss is defeated though the camp degrades and anything in it will have to be salvaged or physically brought to the dungeon." She continues as Tilly nods seriously then smiles as Spooky respawns in the corner of the room and walks towards us in his lycan form.
"Master, Mistress, Emi. It is good to see you and be seen. Thank you for this boon and I will endeavor to prove my worth. It seems though that I can no longer enter the first floor. It says I am to powerful to be the boss of that level." Spooky says calmly, his voice a husky growl warpped in shadows.
'That's fine actually. I just unlocked some new rooms that we could use help building and I think you'd be perfect to help us find the enemy that started this attack. Choose a small team to go with you and prepare for your first mission Spooks.' I say as the newly created werecastyr nods and heads towards the living area, his tail wagging happily behind him.
"Last room is a prison. Self explanatory but also not quite. You can only have six cells right now. Double your number of floors so when the fourth is opened you get eight and so on. Prisons can hold both sentients and not so much ones like undead or golems. They are inescapable unless someone actually breaks into them and releases the prisoner. Anything inside a cell is slowly converted to your dungeon mob without needing to kill or enslave the creature. Bosses can be prisoners as well but they have to concede and agree to terms and a contract if intelligent, if non intelligent they have to be tamed which we don't have a room for yet." Emi finishes as Spanks drops from the ceiling, his shell jiggling on his back as Shanks pops up from atop it.
'Good lets start recovering then finish this, I have a quest to do.' I say angrily as I watch the surviving bandits enter the core room slowly, and I prepare to deal with them.