Chapter 175 Grumpy old man

Lone and Dave headed up the slope, the yetis chasing after them.

"There!," Lone pointed at a crack in one of the walls of the glaciers, barely large enough for a person to enter.

They squeezed through the entrance and headed deeper in.

"This is an ice-cave system, the person I need to meet is on the other side!" Lone was gleeful.

Dave stopped and turned, he was looking back at the entrance.

"Why are you stopping Davey?"

"I want to see if the yetis can get through the opening."

"The entrance is too small for them," Lone said.

A yeti appeared in the opening, blocking the light and howling at them.It started smashing at the ice to enlarge the entrance. With every hit from the yetis it made the path wider.

The cave continued in a straight line.

"They will get through in no time. Let's move. I hope this place has an exit." Dave turned and they ran deeper into the cave system.

A loud crashing sound reverberated through the cave.

"They made it past the entrance," Dave said in a low voice.

The two of them continued until they came to what appeared to be a dead end.

"Now what?!" Dave looked around, hoping to find something.

"The marker is beyond this path, I don't see a way to it though," Lone said in a worried tone.

The voices of the yetis were getting closer by the second. Dave pressed a hand on the icy wall.

"I think I can break through the ice here. Move back a little," he told Lone.

Dave pulled his fist back and smashed it into the ice. A cone of fire erupted and washed over the ice like a wave. He punched again and the ice cracked. But it was still tough and he will need more hits to break it. He activated [Aura], the torrent of fire washed over the ice and it started melting. Hot steam burst out from the ice cave and blew out toward the exit.

Dave continuously punched the wall, every attack booming through the cavern.

"Shit! The yetis are here!" Lone said

Three yetis were stuck in a curve fighting against each other to get through first.

"I need few more seconds!" Dave shouted.

Lone used [Ice-shard Arrow Barrage], her hands moving flickering as she shot the ice arrows at the yetis, Slowing them.

With a swipe of its paw one of the yetis broke the thick crust of ice that had accumulated on them from the arrow attack.

"Damn!" Lone cursed and fired an [Ice Dome] at the furry snow-men, delaying them for a few more precious seconds.

Dave used [Infernal Tornado] and spun, his fists eating through the ice wall like a buzzsaw. As Dave's spinning attack Skill ended, the ice wall broke, steam and heat bursting through to the other side. The new opening revealed an ice field with a small shack in the center, a plume of smoke rising from the chimney.

"Lone! Let's go!" Dave said.

With the opening made, the tunnel weakened and started shaking, no longer was able to support its own weight. It threatened to bury them if they didn't leave fast enough.

"Coming!"

She raced past Dave and out of the cave.

Dave followed her then turned and waved a hand. Four spectral skulls appeared, hovering within the collapsing cave. The yetis finally broke through Lone's ice dome and charged through, howling when they caught sight of their prey.

Dave smiled and snapped his fingers, detonating the spectral skulls. He watched as huge chunks of ice fell burying the yetis in an icy grave.

They both received level up notifications.

Lone giggled, "Nice one, Davey. But you should get rid of your [Aura], you're melting everything around you."

Dave did as she suggested.

"That was close. By the way, you should have had one of your friends sacrifice themselves to cause the avalanche then the rest of you could have taken down the yetis and you wouldn't have been stuck here, dying over and over again."

"You're right. I never thought of it like that."

"Pawn sacrifice, Lone.

When they got to the shack's door, Lone knocked.

"Who's there?" a gruff voice came from the inside.

"I am a hunter, sir. I was told that you could help me with something." Lone said

"I don't have time for you, piss off!" he replied.

"Sir, I have a fragment of True Ice," Lone said.

They heard the sound of furniture moving and the door opened.

An old man opened the door, dressed in padded leather with a white furred hood, like an Eskimo. A trident was strapped to his his back.

"True Ice! show me!" the man.

Lone showed the man a piece of diamond shaped clear crystal. The old man removed a glove and took the piece of ice in his hand.

"It is True Ice!".

"Come in, come in!" The man invited Lone into the shack, but when he saw Dave he stumbled back and fell on his behind.

"U-undead! What is an undead doing here!"

The man scrambled to his feet and pulled the trident around grasping it in a defensive stance.

"He's a friend!" Lone said standing between the old man and Dave.

The old man lowered his trident a little, but kept a wary eye on Dave.

"The Ice Queen loathes the undead, why do you keep such company?" he asked.

"What does having an undead friend have to do with the Ice Queen?" Lone said.

"It has everything to do with the ice queen! She needs true ice to awaken from her eternal slumber and it was the undead who caused her fall!" said the man.

"Is that so?" said Dave "Didn't your ice queen capture the Lich Du'Rhaza, imprison him and slowly drain his power…who says this queen was in the right!" Dave defended the undead. He had enough with players hating him because of his character's race, and now a quest giving NPC.

"Cut the nonsense! Our queen never harmed or dealt with the undead! it was your Black Order that imprisoned her!"

"Wait! Do you mean the Black Skull Order?" Dave asked the old man.

"Yes, the Black Skull Order, those filthy dead men. They tricked our queen and imprisoned her, now she is under a spell only True Ice can liberate her from."

"Where is she?" asked Lone

"She is trapped in a nearby dungeon, it is dangerous, full of monsters. The Black Skull Order used the dungeon as a base of operation after they captured our queen. I've tried to rescue her many times but always failed and almost lost my life several times," said the old man sadly.

"I got a quest Davey. It's A ranked"

"I'll help, don't worry."

"No!" the old man interjected, "No undead shall go near my queen! She has suffered enough!"

"Relax dude. I am hunting the Black Skull Order. They are traitors to the undead king and I have been ordered to exterminate them."

"Then I will accompany you. If you wish to save the queen you will need my knowledge of the area and my power…and I don't trust you undead."

"Whatever you say old man,"

"Are you ready?" the old man asked Lone.

Lone turned to Dave, "I need a rest, we've been in game for a long time."

"Yeah, you're right."

"Sir, we are not ready. We will return and accompany you later." Lone politely told the old man.

"Alright, I will wait for you here."