Today's Earth date: November 21, 1991

I'm using all of our downtime to grind levels. The demons are stronger in the Earth Temple, and the Water Temple was scary enough for me. I want to go in there over-leveled as shit.

It's tiring to grind and also very boring.

There's probably snow on the ground at home, and I bet the Vickersons already have Christmas lights up. This adventure is great and all, but I miss everyone I left behind. I'd do anything to hug my mom or sleep in my own bed again.

-The Journal of Laszlo the Paladin

The Blackwell beach retreat was more of a fortified mansion than what would constitute a castle by Wayne's fantasy literature standards–not enough towers and a bit too compact–but it was still impressive.

Four guards were at the front door. One was asleep and the other three played dice.

"Who goes there?" one asked, halfheartedly committed to being intimidating.

"Lord Blackwell sent us to take care of the basilisks," Sammy said.

Fergus liked the idea of the cook being the "face" of the party because everyone got along with him. Wayne agreed because it was funny to see people try to puzzle out what kind of fighter Sammy had to be if he was leading a group of dungeon crawlers.

"What can you tell us about what to expect inside?" Wayne asked.

"Two basils, one young adult male, one young adult female."

"Oh, that's good news," Fergus said. When Wayne didn't know why that was good news, the old scholar told him he shouldn't skimp on his reading.

Young adult basilisks weren't adult basilisks, which could grow to be comparable to an adult dragon in size. Young adults, however, were about the size of a horse, which wasn't small but was definitely preferable. They were still fast, still venomous, and still had the death gaze ability.

"Any idea where they are inside?"

The same guard answered, "We've heard 'em all over. Doesn't seem like they've picked any one spot."

"Heard?" Wayne asked.

"Fucking," the guard said simply.

"Delightful."

Wayne asked the guards about layout and where the Zeroes should enter. They were informed that opening any of the barred doors was unwise, lest a "basil" use that opportunity to bolt. If possible, the Zeroes should enter through a window or a very small side entrance.

"What about the roof?" Wayne asked.

Fergus began cursing.

The guard watched the old scholar stomp off and said, "Yeah, that would work. Not sure how you're getting up there, though."

Wayne said that part was handled.

Wayne loved monster lore on Earth, but centuries of retellings, permutations, and creative license meant that any one monster had dozens of variations. The basilisk, for example, was akin to a cockatrice in medieval writings, but Dungeons & Dragons depicted a basilisk as a mega multi-leg lizard while Harry Potter depicted it as a giant snake.

In this world, a basilisk had the bone structure of a large lizard, but its neck was unusually long and feathered from its chest to its jaw, giving the front half of its body the look of scrunched up tube sock. To balance the weight, a basilisk moved with its neck pulled back and held upright, the poise of a cobra ready to attack. To Wayne, the drawings looked like an angry brontosaurus with an extra long turtleneck.

When a basilisk hunted, it pounced at its prey. When it landed, it used its long talons to root itself in the ground and whip its head forward to strike. Anchored to the ground, they could endure the thrashing of a much larger animal trying to escape. Prey not within biting distance fell to venomous spit or the monster's legendary death gaze. Fergus said the venom and death gaze ruined the meat, so those attacks were exclusively for self-defense.

Having come to terms with a coming Blitz or Rise journey, Fergus handed out eyewear akin to welder's goggles. They had cinch straps to hold them tight to the wearer's head, and the periphery of the lenses was blacked out with heavy leather, ensuring a stray sideways glance wasn't the death of a party member.

The lenses themselves were a pale blue. That seemed too simple to stop a death gaze, but Fergus insisted these were the standard for handling basilisks. To Wayne, a thin piece of colored glass didn't have the right weight for preventing instant death.

"What if these break?" Wayne asked.

"Close your eyes," Fergus answered simply.

"No, really. What if they break?"

"All you have to do is not look it in the eye," Fergus said. "Just look away."

Telling Wayne not to look was like telling him not to blink. As soon as he thought about not blinking, his eyes felt dry and itchy, to the point that blinking was the only thing his heart desired for a few torturously long moments. Wayne remembered teasing Barry by making the boy pay attention to his automatic breathing. Man, Taobh felt like a lifetime ago.

"Here's the plan," Wayne said as the party grouped around him. "We'll enter from the roof and work our way down to sweep every room. Probe should make this easier, but with several floors, the search won't exactly be trivial."

"Tactics?" Armond asked.

"What would you recommend?"

Armond answered without hesitation, "Prioritize distance and ranged attacks if we can. We're better off not taking any direct hits."

"Agreed. Hector is there for emergencies, but myself, Fergus, and Margo will be the primary damage-dealers at range. Anyone have questions or concerns?"

Hector raised his hand. "How careful do we have to be about damaging the castle?"

"No fire spells or lasers," Wayne said, holding eye contact with Fergus.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"I'm well-read enough to know that fire spells are not ideal for indoor use."

Wayne chuckled. "Beyond that, we do our best, but the party's health always comes first. If we trash a priceless treasure to not die, so be it."

"One more thing, if I may," Fergus said. Wayne gave him the floor. "I'd like to collect the venom for a gift. If we have a moment for the extraction process, I'd appreciate the opportunity."

"What do you need basilisk venom for?"

"It's a gift for a certain herbalist," Margo said.

Hector and Armond belly-laughed.

"We'll see what we can do," Wayne said. "The thing with Grinroot is still going, eh?"

Fergus lifted his chin. "She knows a catch when she sees one."

Getting to the roof of Castle Blackwell was simple with Rise and the right overhang. A home built for opulence had no shortage of balconies and viewing platforms to maximize the beauty of the ocean backdrop.

The roof was adorned with plants and hedges. One open area was carpeted by real grass and had pieces of yard games nearby: this world's take on bocce ball and lawn darts. Seating was plentiful, a variety of lounge chairs, couches, and foot rests scattered about. The stairs down were at the center and connected to the castle's primary stairwell.

Probe.

Two red dots were in the northeastern corner of the castle.

The castle had four floors and a basement, so the party descended from the roof and swept what appeared to be two penthouse-style suites, each occupying their own half of the floor. Fergus suggested these were likely for the Blackwells themselves, so it was only natural that they would have the best views and the most elaborate decorations.

The Zeroes went to the east suite first, but Wayne doubted the basilisks were there as soon as he opened the door. The receiving chamber of the suite appeared undisturbed. Towering candelabras were perched atop armoires and end tables. Blankets of fine silk were folded neatly and laid over the back of couches. The carpet beneath their feet was a brilliant red, pristinely clean with no snags or tears like one might expect if a death-gaze lizard had mated here.

Wayne thought it was red, at least. Wearing blue lenses made the world surprisingly challenging to parse. He wondered how his goth friends in high school could wear colored glasses all day.

In the interest of being thorough–and satisfying Wayne's completionist urges–they searched every room of the eastern suite. The bedroom, undisturbed by basilisks, had a variety of toys and accessories. Margo was in the midst of comparing the length and girth of a particular object to her arm when Wayne dragged the party back out.

The western suite was similarly undisturbed, and the lack of personal effects suggested this was reserved for guests.

"Our pad in Iomallach is going to be as nice as this?" Hector said.

Fergus shook his head. "Nicer. This is a cousin's castle. A mainline Blackwell residence will put this to shame."

Hector whistled.

On the third floor, Wayne observed the basilisk dots drifting more to the east, but they hadn't gone far from where they were before.

This floor had more guest rooms. Though they were akin to individual apartments, they were much smaller than the suites, four to the east and four to the west. Two of the apartments on the west side had their doors broken in. Claw marks were as visible in the stonework as they were in the wood. The gouges were plentiful and deep, giving Wayne even more respect for the danger a basilisk represented.

The interior of these two apartments were all splintered furniture, torn carpet, and ripped pillows. The ammonia stench of basilisk piss was strong, and the shit smell was more abrasive than a single portajohn for a one-hundred-man construction site. Wayne didn't appreciate having to relive that particular Earth memory.

"Don't step in that," Fergus said, pointing to a glob of gray mucus.

"Poison?"

Fergus shook his head. Mating basilisks, right.

"I pity the staff who have to clean all of this up," Margo said as they exited the second apartment.

Searching the other apartments on that side, they didn't find basilisks, but they did find a porter who locked themselves in a closet to avoid the monsters. Unfortunately, he appeared to have been suffering from the basilisk venom already. Every blood vessel in his eyes and face had burst, and his skin was a stiff purple. His death looked neither quick nor painless.

"I'll inform our employer of this man's location when we finish," Fergus said, glumly. "Poor soul."

The other Zeroes agreed. No one should have to die like that.

In the time it took the party to sweep the third floor, the basilisks had moved toward the western side of the castle.

The second level landing had obvious signs of basilisk traffic. The floor was marred with scratches. Blood smears went in every direction except up the stairs, likely from the bodies of servants who were set aside for future meals.

The party listened at the doorway to the western wing of the second floor, hearing no indications that basilisks were on the other side. Regardless, the party entered with their formation: Wayne in the lead, followed by Hector and then their three-person back row.

Fergus gasped and clutched his chest.

The entirety of this wing was a library. The layout was completely open, restricting the tall shelves of books to the outer walls. Couches and chairs occupied the floorspace, as well as several pedestals for displaying prized relics. What those relics used to be, Wayne couldn't say.

The basilisks had ripped most of the books from the shelves and tore away the fabric of the decorative rugs and posh furniture, chewing and piling the remains in a corner to build a nest. Built from heavy stone, the display pedestals were still mostly in place, but whatever was on them was gone. Wayne spotted a few shattered pieces of sculpture and stray pieces of platemail, but that was it.

The aroma of death filled the library. The party discovered its source in their investigation of the nest: servants who hadn't been eaten yet. They were very much dead, though. Five eggs the size and shape of cantalopes were in the nest, so the servants were likely food for when those eggs hatched baby basilisks.

"All these books," Fergus said with tears in his eyes. "I have seen few tragedies as heartbreaking as this."

"We fought a banshee trying to level Cuan," Armond said.

"So?"

"Surely that is more tragic."

Wayne caught Armond's eye and shook his head, warning the cleric he shouldn't bother.

"Have I never told you about the timelessness of written words?" Fergus asked.

"I don't believe so," Armond replied.

"Fergus we can do this–" Wayne began, but the old scholar cut him off as though he hadn't heard Wayne's words.

"Our bodies will eventually die and turn to dust, another grain of sand on the beach of the universe."

Wayne rubbed his eyes.

"When we record knowledge, however, our legacies persist. Our thoughts inspire others long after we've passed. We contribute to arguments and debates. We form the foundation for the next generation to build their own timeless bastions of knowledge. Destroying a book is like murdering a benevolent immortal being. It undoes all of that legacy."

Wayne heard Margo say "Psst." He looked around and found her watching the double doors where they entered. She held up a finger to her lips for quiet, raised two fingers in the air, and pointed down the stairs.

Grateful for the excuse to end the lecture, Wayne silenced the party and carefully tiptoed to Margo.

"Can you see them?" he whispered.

She shook her head.

"Scout ahead and report back?"

Margo nodded and slipped out the door.

She returned minutes later. The first floor had high vaulted ceilings, so the final descent was three times as long as the distance between the upper floors. Presently, the basilisks were fiddling about in the banquet hall, which was immediately to the side of the main entry. They didn't seem to be in any particular hurry and showed no indications of having detected the Zeroes.

Fergus guessed they were looking for food or for more nesting materials. With the exit doors sealed shut, a need for food seemed most likely.

Wayne considered their options.

They could venture downstairs and meet the basilisks head on in the banquet hall. The space was relatively open, but the chaos of scattered furniture concerned him. He wanted the party to have the option to quickly and safely retreat. That seemed hard to do with an obstacle course in the way.

Alternatively, the party could set an ambush in the library. Nesting creatures, especially egg-laying ones, didn't stray far from their nests for very long. The basilisks would eventually return to guard their eggs, but how long would that take? Forcing the party to wait quietly for hours would dull their senses with boredom.

Wayne smiled. "Here's how this is going to go down."

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