Dungeon crawling in Project Terra sure was different. They’d been warned quite a few times, but Orion now saw why they were so insistent on putting them through a dungeon before they actually got any combat training. Just in the first encounter, he came to the sharp realization that this game was going to be unlike anything he’d ever played - not counting some older, more hardcore games - and it would require an entirely new way of thinking and strategy, not to mention skill.

  At first, the dungeon seemed to be a very typical layout. One long, broad corridor that let them walk four men abroad. There were a few traps that the cleverer among them spotted and disarmed, and then the tunnel split into three. Orion and his squad - with Riley casually taking up the rear - chose the leftmost split, and were accompanied by another squad. Then there was yet another split, and they went left again. They were alone after that, save for their experienced guide.

  Orion kept glancing back at Riley where he kept up a position a few feet behind, wondering what the monk would do when they encountered monsters. He knew that a scout had already been through the place, confirming the rankings and power levels of the monsters inside. It was an E-Rank dungeon, the lowest. It also had the lowest monster density out of the several dungeons seen nearby, so it had been chosen as an excellent training opportunity.

  “What kind of monsters can we expect today, Riley?”

  The monk only gave him a smile. “Like I’ll spoil the surprise.”

  That was to be expected, Orion thought. He would have asked more questions in an attempt to get more out of their guide, but Marxus’ call from the front caught his attention.

  “Bandits,” his friend said, his voice quiet but excited.

  “Human bandits?” Indra asked, dropping to a low crouch and creeping forward. “Not goblins or something?”

  Marxus shook his head. “They’re definitely human. Don’t go any further than this, or they’ll see you. I bet they’ve got a pretty good aggro range.”

  Aggro range, Orion thought. Could they depend on a normal game tactic like that here? Then he heard a shout of alarm from inside the large cave, and got his answer. Marxus cursed, then dashed forward. Orion knew what he was thinking. With them all grouped up at the entrance, they were sure to get hit by some AoE attack that could risk wiping them out or seriously injuring them. Even Indra jumped back, showing a reflex that impressed Orion. He tore past her, only just able to make out a chuckle from Riley’s position. He paid it no mind though, too intent on backing up his friend and getting out of the way of a potential blast.

  Sure enough, several arrows did rain down out of the darkness, scraping off the stone right where Marxus and Indra had just been. Orion only barely managed to avoid them himself, and then he was off, hoping that Doran would go left as he went right. He skirted the wall of the cave for a few feet, spotting several bandits unsheathing swords or drawing back on their bows. The closest of them was less than ten feet away, and totally unaware of his approach! He grinned in anticipation, then charged forward.

  Something - or more accurately someone - large slammed into him on the right, right in his blindside. He’d been so focused on attacking the bowman that he’d completely forgotten to check the corner coming up. It was his second major mistake, the first being that he didn’t think to check on Indra. As he hit the ground, his head faintly ringing and dashing back to give himself some space, he happened to glance toward the entrance of the tunnel, and saw Indra and Riley. The mage was facing two bandits alone, and the monk was making no move to help her out just yet. Where the hell had they come from?

  Making a split-second decision, he changed his target and rushed toward the two bandits confronting Indra. Marxus and Doran would have to handle themselves for now. They couldn’t fight without a mage to support them. One of the bandits heard him coming and turned to face him, a short sword held ready in his hand. He didn’t stop to think about tactics or the fact that he knew very little about fighting. He only did what he thought was natural in that circumstance. He attacked.

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  His staff whistled through the air as he lunged, and the bandit stepped out of its path entirely, letting out a laugh, then darted in and slashed across Orion’s chest, opening a small wound there. Thankfully it was a light cut, and he got out of the way of the second swipe just in time, waving his staff around like a bat to force his opponent to back off. Then he heard footsteps from behind, and had to dive aside to avoid yet another bandit. They were everywhere! He could just glimpse Doran and Marxus, their backs against a wall, fending off three bandits themselves. So there were six. No, he corrected himself, remembering the big bandit that had knocked him aside. Where was he?

  He was back up on his feet quickly, awkwardly parrying the sword strikes of the two bandits facing him. Indra was still fighting her bandit, jumping from side to side, avoiding attacks. She kept trying to use the incantation to fire off a mage bolt, but the bandit was pressing her, stopping her from finishing it each time. Orion had expected this to be challenging, but this was damn near impossible! He slammed the end of his staff into the gut of one of the bandits, landing his first blow and knocking the man’s air out of him. Then he rose it to block the sword of the other, and the blade sheared right through it, sending him staggering.

  A whirl of color, and several grunts of surprise and pain. Riley had closed the distance in an instant, kicking the legs of the bandits out with absolute ease. The monk shook his head in disappointment, though he was still grinning. “You really think a wood staff like that is going to make a difference against these swords?”

  “You made it seem like a damn good weapon,” Orion said through gritted teeth. The cut on his chest actually burned, like a bad paper cut doused in rubbing alcohol.

  “It can be,” the monk said casually. “But you can’t just sit there and block metal swords with it. They’ll cut through it in no time. You’d need a reinforced material to do that.”

  “I don’t suppose you have another one I can use,” Orion asked, watching as the two bandits began to regain their feet. They seemed more sluggish than before, he thought. Riley shook his head, still smiling.

  “Nope. I’m not here to help unless it’s to stop you from being killed. You gotta live with the consequences of that. If you lose your weapon, take one of theirs. Or use what you got. Or use your hands. Whatever works for you.”

  One of the bandits made a lunging motion for Riley, but he casually smacked the man’s sword aside with a quick swipe of his sword, then pointed at Orion. “Fight that one all you want.”

  The bandit ignored him, of course, and continued charging. Letting out a sigh, Riley swayed to the side, nearly moving as twice as fast as the bandit, and practically danced away. The bandit let out a growl of frustration and charged back toward Orion. He had to jump aside to avoid the first bandit’s sword, then continue backing off as the two of them advanced. How the hell was he going to fight with two halves of his broken staff? He supposed the parts where the sword had sheared through it were sharp enough to stab, but that was assuming he could get inside their reach. He’d lost the reach advantage now.

  Still, he wasn’t going to let his first dungeon beat him. After jumping away from another attack and ending up back near the entrance, he suddenly changed directions, rushing forward in a reckless, damn near suicidal attack. Somehow, it worked, and the bandit, still recovering from his last swing, had no time to react. The fractured ends of the staff couldn’t puncture through his armor when Orion thrust them forward into his chest, but he beat the bandit around the head with his next two strikes, and surprisingly, the man went down with a grunt. He’d actually gotten one!

  Indra appeared from behind - apparently her bandit hadn’t proven to be as much of a challenge - and grabbed the second man from behind. She swiped his feet out in a classic martial arts move as she pushed back on his forehead, and the man hit the stone floor of the cavern with a nasty crunch. Just to be sure, Indra stomped down savagely on the man’s neck. With another snap, the man lay still.

  Cheers from ahead made Orion look up just in time to see the last of the three bandits facing Doran and Marxus falling to the ground. Both of his friends seemed to have stabbed him at the same time, and he fell without a noise. They looked around, and all that remained was the large bandit. He’d remained where he was after trying to smash Orion’s head in with his heavy hammer. He took one look at his fallen comrades, then, cursing, disappeared into the dark tunnel.

  “Don’t you want to chase after him?” Riley asked, gesturing with the hand not holding his staff. “He might be off to warn his friends about you.”

  Doran started to hurry forward at once, but Orion stopped him with a word. “Wait! You might just get ambushed again like I did. Not a good idea.”

  He glanced at Riley as he said it, trying to gauge the man’s reaction. His smile widened, and he seemed pleased. “Good call. It seems you’re starting to get it.”

  Thank you for reading Project Terra: Alternate Earth!

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