I.T. 26 (Magic Mushroom 3)

The elemental bullet smashed into the mushroom; it was unable to rotate in time as it had most of its concentration split into controlling Hunter. The bullet was not the ice element as last time, Bailey had used her perception to use the element best suited for the current situation. Because the mushroom was currently controlling Hunter through the electric mushroom the purple stripe was in the forefront.

She used the natural counter to this element; her bullet was of the earth element. The mushroom took the hit head on. The brilliant purple florescent light faded into complete blackness, leaving a dead spot on the mushroom. The mushroom let out a telepathic roar that shook my mind. It is pain and frustration were readily apparent.

A few feet from me Hunter rose to his feet. He looked at me calmly for a moment, his eyes a deep shade of purple, but they had a soft look. much like I remembered in the past. He let out a groan as his earthen arm began to lose its shape. A look of concentration appeared on his face as he held his earthen arm. Slowly it began to stabilize again.

Only then was I really able to look at him. His body had deflated into its normal size, and the arcs of lightning had decreased. They had decreased, but there was still one that flashed around him. He spoke to me softly.

"take your time to heal. I will protect you until you can stand on your own. But then you will need to take Leisha's place. I don't know how much longer she can hold on."

I nodded. Hearing the voice that was very clearly his I knew that the mushroom had lost its influence over him. The florescent purple stripe was gone, and along with that its ability to control the boy in front of me.

He stood in front of me, protecting me from whatever could happen. His actions seemed heroic, but they were ultimately useless as I was not the target of the beast to begin with. I could only laugh softly in my mind. This boy was barking up the wrong tree.

My legs were a mess, but surprisingly the rest of my body was fine, only a little sore. I knew him standing there was useless, but at the same time I did not know if his current lucid state was permanent. It was better to keep an eye on him.

I could feel Hylia's annoyance through our connection. She would much rather anyone else keep watch over me, but our current situation did not provide much room for anything else. She had her hands full shooting arrows at the mushroom. The damage she inflicted was healing at a slower pace than before. The wounds were healing, but it was taking much longer.

This delay in healing also meant that her attacks were doing more damage than before. And she was not the only one. Lucifer was still attacking with his bullets. The wounds he caused were much bigger than before, and each attack would chip away at the edges of the mushroom cap. The wounds were not healing, but the damage was still relatively small. The mushroom in front of us was simply too powerful to be brought down easily.

This did not mean we had no chance of victory. We had already caused significant damage to it by getting rid of one of its seven stripes. I could feel the energy that Bailey was gathering. This one was a fire element shot. I would have known even if I could not feel the energy building up.

Hylia had communicated with the team with her telepathy. The healing fire surrounding Leisha had become much sparser, the number of fireballs barely enough to keep her standing. Instead a barrage of fireballs was being sent to the monstrous mushroom. The red stripe of the mushroom was gradually dimming under the barrage but was rapidly replenish as the other lights slightly dimmed.

The strategy was to gently wear out the red stripe, allowing for us to damage it even more with Sierra's fireballs. Unfortunately, it was not something that would happen quickly. We had gotten lucky with the previous shot, and the mushroom had been unable to counter the direct counter element. We would not have that chance again. We could only hope to slowly drain its colors, and to do that we would have to focus on a single color.

There were no surprises, Leisha was barely able to hold on long enough for the shot to be fired. When the bullet connected the stripe plunged but was rapidly filled again by the other stripes. They had all dimmed considerably with red the blow, their brightness half of what it had been before.

Leisha fell to her knees panting. She was unable to continue guarding Bailey. She was not built for defense, and even with the healing she received from her ability and Sierra's fireballs she had no energy left. Her mana had been spent.

I grit my teeth as I forced myself to my feet. My legs screamed at me in pain. I was in no condition to be moving, but I had no choice in the matter. I still had roughly 13% of my mana remaining. I did not hesitate to activate my mana body, focusing it on my heart. My vitality surged and my legs began to heal faster. I stumbled forward, placing myself in front of Bailey.

I struggled to keep my body upright and did not even have the energy to block the attacks that were coming my way. Vine after vine struck me. I could feel wounds being ripped into my body, only to rapidly close as I was healed by the occasional fireball.

My mind began to drift. The pain was far too intense for me to focus on anything, and it was already taking everything I had to simply stand there and take the hits. All I could see was the giant empty skull of the Necromancer king laughing at me as I slowly began to sink to the ground.

When I hit my knees, I could feel a surge of fiery energy fly past me. I was unable to see the results, but I could feel the intensity of the explosion. I knew they had managed to destroy the red stripe.

I could hear screams of pain from the mushroom. I could feel an intense heat coming from its location. I knew from the mental commands of Hylia that I would no longer be receiving healing from Sierra, she was to focus solely on attacking the monster. They all were. But that did not mean I was alone.

I could feel someone picking me up. Without looking I knew who it was. The familiar scent of the forest filled the air as I was pulled closer to her body. Bailey was holding me close, shielding me from the battle that was happening ahead of us. We had both done our part.

Little did I know that a similar scene was happening not far from me. Leisha was likewise being princess carried by Her prince charming. But hunter did not stay long. As soon as he had moved her out of harm's way, he utilized the single crackling of lightning to move himself in front of the mushroom. He used his fists as hammers to assault the body of the Mushroom.

The wounds on the beast began to grow at an accelerated pace. The fight did not last much longer. Under the combined assault of Hunter, Hylia, Lucifer the beast soon disappeared into a rain of pixels. The mushrooms around the formation began to glow before they too pixilated.

These pixels did not disappear, instead they formed into an image in front of us.

The image was that of a wizened old man. He wore a large pointy wizards��� hat and had a long grey beard. His eyes radiated kindness as he softly laughed while looking down on our group.

"It had been a long time since Chthilou has been sealed here. Many adventurers have come, many have found a way past his traps. Far more have been slain or enslaved by his dark magic. But you 7 are the first to have defeated him. His dark magic had been erased from the inverted tower, and for that you deserve a reward."

The man looked over all of us before he spoke again.

"The fifth floor is a way point. It is a chance for adventurers to rest, and if they choose to, they can end their trial. I will directly send you there. Your actions have shown that the worms at the bottom are not your match. But this is not your reward."

"Each of you will receive the rewards a person who leaves at the fifth floor would receive. Unfortunately, you will not be allowed to leave. Your actions will have lasting effects on the tower, and the masters want to see just how high you can climb."

The old man laughed as he looked down at the group. "Rest well young adventurers. From the 6th floor on the challenges will be even more intense than what you have experienced to date."