The map vibrated in Zeek's hands as the walls on every side seemed to shift and crawl across its surface. He followed four red droplets as they moved from one position to the next.
"Are we close to that other bunch?" Verris said impatiently.
"Yes," Zeek paused, motioning for Verris to do the same. "But they won't be here much longer."
"Their vanguard looked strong enough," he countered," and two mages pair well with the scout leading them."
"You don't understand," Zeek whispered, "They won't survive here."
Precious moments passed as Verris let impatience take him. "This just sounds like easy money, and I'll charge a rescue fee on top!"
"No, you oaf!"
It was too late; Verris was charging headlong into the abyss with Zeek now a distance behind him. If I let him die, he thought, that's one less debt to pay. Another moment passed before his feet were guiding him toward the ignorant behemoth. If he ends up a revenant in these walls, that may present a bigger problem next time.
A wandering corpse melted out of a newly formed opening in the corridor, a curved sword in its rotting hands.
"Is that...a shotel?" Zeek leapt backward, the ancient sword barely missing him as it swept in a wide arc. He drew his dagger and fished a blazing crystal from a pouch at his waist. Best to end this quickly.
The corpse lunged. Every move was wild, almost feral. Zeek weaved under one blow and parried another; the wild ones were the least predictable, but the weakest by far. Untrained adventurers make for weaker ones, sure, but their numbers… He let his thoughts trailed off, his dagger now firmly planted in the undead skull before him. He pulled the dagger out and looked down the newly opened hallway. More undead shambled toward him, weak in power but stronger in number. He reach his arm behind him before firmly throwing the fiery crystal into the midst.
It exploded on impact.
Shrill screams escaped the undead as they ignited; a torrent of flame rushed through the narrow walls as Zeek dove to escape the rushing flames. He stopped to examine the devastation before closing his eye in shame.
"I'm sorry I couldn't reach her sooner," he whispered, "My failures trapped you here… I'm sorry, but this is the best I could do for you."
He took off sprinting toward Verris, the map showed four red dots, one of the previous ones fading from the parchment. Let me guess—
Zeek rounded the corner from another shifting segment of the maze and gagged as the scene unraveled before him. A mage in white robes, the healer, had been silenced by one of the labyrinth's death blossoms. Her arms and legs had already been removed before the rest of the party could respond.
Her head was the last thing to go.
The death blossom reached out with several limbs amongst its petals and wrenched her head clean from the stump of a torso; the attached spine dangled from the base of the neck. The petals peeled back—revealing not stamen, but a cluster of human faces. The mage's head was shoved into the center; her crunched violently as her eyes moved erratically before settling in opposite directions.
"Run…" the healer's decapitated head whispered.
The other mage froze; an incantation stuck in his throat. The Vanguard lifted his long sword in shaking hands, his legs quaking beneath him. "What is that thing," the scout gasped.
"My first kill," Verris shouted as he barreled toward the homunculus.
More death blossoms entered the intersection where the adventurers found themselves. Undead flanked them on nearly all sides. The vanguard slashed wildly at the incoming monsters as the scout broke into a sprint, dragging the remaining mage at her side.
Verris slammed Regalia squarely on the first death blossom's core, splattering it into a red mist. In seconds, the enchanted mace hummed to life. The runes covering its center shot out as the weapon absorbed the mist and formed a solid crimson shell around its core. The runes glowed and crackled as Verris spun around with a roar, "I've got so much more to give! This is too easy!"
Zeek unsheathed his dagger and pulled a frozen crystal from his pack. He crushed the crystal into powder and threw it forward, forming an icy path ahead of him and freezing his enemies feet in place. He was a blur amongst a sea of creatures, the rogue skated gracefully. His red scarf trailed behind him as he opened both necks and arteries. Blood sprayed into the air as he moved gracefully across the open space.
"My men couldn't have died to—" Verris stopped midsentence.
A peculiar undead approached him. His clothes were torn green leathers, black boots, simple enough. He was too lightly armored for any average adventurer, but his weapons…they were three-headed daggers. Each bladed head branched out wickedly, poison dripping from the tip of each blade.
"Cerberus," Verris breathed.
The corpse didn't regard him, instead, its empty gaze lingered on Zeek for a moment, then it turned to face him. What remained of Cerberus twitched, then again, before falling still. Time froze between the two; moments lingering for what seemed like an eternity amongst the pandemonium.
The corpse struck first.
The blade nearly grazed Verris's brow as he barely managed to evade. Even in death, his movements were unnaturally fast. His attacks were a flurry of viper strikes, venomous fangs at the tips of each blade. The rogue was relentless, never tiring, never faltering in his stance or approach.
Verris swung Regalia, more blood swirling around her ruby eye as her tip began to expand. The next Cerberus strike met Regalia's massive shell.
Though each attack was fierce, the rogue had been deceased. His body was battered, broken in several places; what would've surely drawn blood before was now glancing off Verris's armor or being parried with Regalia's ever growing eye.
Verris roared as he pressed the undead, swiping Regalia up and across, batting away the venomous sting of Cerberus's daggers. He left his ribs exposed, and the undead bit at the feint, lunging with blades outstretched.
With a thunderous blow, Verris brought the full brunt of Regalia's power down on the corpse of his fallen associate. The mace pulsed as it absorbed whatever scant amount of blood was left in his veins.
Zeek kept slicing his way through the undead and death blossoms, making his way to the roaring behemoth.
"We need to—"
"You took three of my men in here…" Verris seethed as Regalia pulsed over the body of his fallen associate.
"Yes," Zeek said, confused.
"And they're wandering these halls like this one?"
Zeek surveyed the floor round them, spotting a three-headed dagger. The recognition clicked as his gaze rose to meet Verris's.
"I'm sorry, he was a great—"
"Don't bother," Verris spat, "He's dead now. Can you find the other two?"
"No, even with my map, I can't find people on such a…" Zeek took a moment to gather his thoughts. "To such a…granular level."
"When we come across them, I will be the one to put them down." Verris finally lifted Regalia, scanning the room for remaining threats. The vanguard from the party had been gutted by the horde of death blossoms before the surviving mage could set them ablaze. "My fee still remains. You get off the hook for my men, but I will have my due. In exchange, I will help you smear these walls and get whatever it is you're seeking here. I will be taking a cut from whatever we find."
"I've got no qualms with that. Take what you want, I'm not here for the treasure."
"Then what is the point here?"
"I'm here for something no treasure can replace, and I'll kill anyone or anything that gets in my way." Zeek glared down one of the corridors. His lip twitched at the corner, eyes sweeping the shadows around them.
"So, this dog has a bone?" Verris chuckled to himself. "We have a deal then. Speaking of my fees, where did the other two go?"
Zeek pulled out the map, still pulsing with the blood he's placed on it earlier. Two red pearls moved erratically through actively shifting walls.
"They're headed that way. If we hurry, we can still reach them."
"Then let's grab them and leave," Verris sniffed at the still air, "We don't make it through this place with any less than a five member party."
"Even then…"
"Shut it," Verris growled, "Four beats two any day."
"That's if they're breathing when we find them."
Verris brought Regalia down on the other vanguard's chest, caving it in. "Then you'd best get us there in time."