The trap was, indeed, a gas trap. Whether it was poisonous, damaging, sleep-inducing, or some other effect, we will never know. But a sickly green gas appeared all around Biff and then faded away after sixty seconds.

  “More copper.” He said, looking in the chest.

  We groaned.

  “But there is a lot of it.” He added.

  He was right, the chest had a lot of coins in it.

  Steven offered, “My adventurer’s backpack is pretty empty. I’ll just put the whole thing in there. Unless you want to count it all right now.”

  We agreed that his idea was best. Biff was able to pick the chest up and put it in Steven’s backpack while the pack was still on his shoulders. Biff bumped Steven twice in the head.

  “Careful, that thing hurts!”

  Biff grinned but didn’t say anything. He didn't apologize, either, which told me he may have bumped Steven on purpose. Like his back slaps, they may have hurt more than he intended.

  I hoped.

  “Line up!”

  Once again, we got behind Biff, and he led us down another hallway. Like the previous hallway, this room also appeared manmade, with smoothly cut and positioned blocks of stone.

  He walked slowly, checking the floor as we went.

  None of us was in a hurry, and none of us wanted to end up at the bottom of some pit, either.

  The passage wound around a couple of times. Biff was especially cautious at the passage corners when it turned left or right.

  But we made it to the next room unscathed. And it was huge.

  A bell tolled before we actually stepped a foot into this room. Its sound bounced back and forth across the walls in a crazy and distorted echo.

  We stared out into a snow and ice-covered glacial cave. More than a cave, it was a cavern.

  “This was a monster, trap, and riddle room, right?” Addie asked.

  Biff nodded, not taking his eyes off the cavern. “Yes.”

  After a pause, I say, “I think I saw something move up in the shadows at the ceiling.”

  Biff nodded again. “White bats, mostly against the stalagtites, but a couple began moving a few moments ago.”

  “Any idea how many?” Steven asked.

  “At least a dozen. Maybe a few more.” Biff replied slowly as if he were counting or anticipating their movements.

  “I can take out the bats,” Addie stated confidently.

  “What do you have in mind?” I asked.

  “An air elemental. It’ll fly around, nearly invisible to normal vision, and take them out. It’ll move way faster than a bat can fly.”

  “Don’t bats have echolocation or something?” I asked.

  “What’s the difference?” Steven asked.

  “I see,” Addie said. “They will all be able to see the elemental and rush it. If it were birds, it would be invisible the whole time.”

  “That’s what I was thinking.” I agreed.

  She turned to look at me and smiled. “Then, I’ll just have to make it bigger. I was going to do a minor in second element, but now I’ll do a lesser at the third. A third level elemental should handle most of them.”

  “And we don't even need to leave the hallway,” Steven added.

  We made space for her to cast her spell.

  Nobody had to wonder when the spell activated, because there was a huge woosh of wind around us, and we felt ourselves pulled slightly toward the interior of the room.

  Soon, we could hear the high-pitched sounds of white bats. I later learned they were called snow bats.

  We moved into the room, Biff watching the walls and floors for a trap or ambush.

  A few of the snow bats did rush at us, but my Mage Bolts and Addie’s Firebolts took them out before they got too close. The bats were not especially powerful, but their flight took them out of range of typical melee and they would have an advantage if they attacked together.

  “How are you two doing on casting points?” Steven asked.

  We both had more than half. “Me, too. So we should be good for the final room.”

  As soon as the elemental took out the last snow bat, it disappeared. I was able to see it with my magical detection spell, which lasted four hours, so I was good for a while.

  The moment the last snow bat dropped, an ethereal voice echoed around the cavern.

  “Wait, is that the riddle?” Steven asked.

  “I don’t know. It may have just been the directions.” Addie said, slowly.

  “The what?” Biff asked.

  I agreed with her. “Yes, it sort of just said that it would only ask the riddle once.”

  “Then why hasn’t it asked it?” Biff asked.

  “We need to tell it when we are ready.” She replied more confidently after hearing my support.

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  I looked around. “Does anyone need to do anything?”

  Everyone shook their head, no.

  “We are ready!” I announced into the cavern, my voice echoing slightly.

  The voice resumed.

  Addie said, “Sounds to me like wind.”

  “Yeah, I think so as well,” I said.

  “The wind!” Biff announced loudly, just as Steven said, “But what about-”

  The bell sounded again, its echo joined by the squeaking of bats.

  “-turning the roots to ground.” The cleric finished.

  “Great,” Biff mumbled as he slammed his fists together, activating his magical gauntlets.

  “No time for the elemental!” Addie cried. “Let them have it!”

  I used another ring from my hand. This was one given to me by one of Master Glimmerblade’s colleagues.

  A wall of flame formed above us, snuffing out a half dozen or more snow bats as they dived at us.

  “Nice.” Addie complimented.

  “Watch the sides,” Biff warned.

  And sure enough, the others had time to avoid the wall, circle it, and come at us from both sides.

  “Gwyd with me left, Addie, Steven, right!” Biff barked.

  I shot Mage Bolts at the lead bats. Three shots per bat was enough to take that one out, but that meant I got one and seriously wounded a second. There were still four more, and apparently, these were a little more powerful than the previous ones. It must have been a penalty for messing up the riddle.

  Biff moved quickly to intercept the wounded one. Two others latched onto me, and one onto him.

  My Wizard Armor took a beating as they clawed and bit at me. I tried to get them off of me, but their grip was like iron icicles against my robes.

  I couldn’t hit them with my staff without hitting myself. I used one arm to hold my staff with my elbow over my face to protect my eyes, and the other reached for my belt dagger.

  I managed to draw the blade with difficulty, but before I could take a stab, two shocking gauntleted fists grabbed the bats off of me and crushed them in Biff’s grip.

  I did take minor damage from the gauntlet's electrical effect, but just enough to cancel my protective armor.

  When I looked around, Steven and Addie were grinning at me, having already taken out their snow bat opponents.

  “You okay, Gwyd?” Biff asked as he tossed the bats down on the ground.

  “Yep, never batted an eye.”

  Addie and Steven moaned.

  “Speaking of eyes, they looked like they were going for yours with all that screeching,” Biff said.

  “You sure the screeching was the bats?” Addie commented drily, her face neutral but her eyes shining with humor.

  “Ha ha. You try to remain quiet when a flappy monster goes for your eyes.” I said defensively.

  “You were very brave.” She said, her lip twitching.

  Once again, the ethereal voice echoed around the cavern.

  “We get to do this again.” Addie sighed.

  I turned to Steven. “Now, what were you saying before Biff bellowed out a call for the bats to come after me?”

  “Hey, now!” Biff complained.

  Steb said, “Well, that line that said, ‘I turn the strongest roots to ground.’ I wasn’t thinking of wind.”

  “What did you think?” Addie asked.

  “It made me think of frost. You know, when the plants die or get ready for the winter?”

  “I’ve spent most of my life here along the ocean,” I admitted. “And when I travelled north with Dad, it was never winter. I’ve never seen snow except in pictures or paintings.” I said, thinking of the strange view in the magical hallway gallery.

  “Are we ready this time?” Biff asked, still annoyed at my wisecrack.

  “We are ready!” I called out again.

  “I see what you mean,” Addie said. “Sorry that we rushed to the other answer. Your answer is better, Steven.”

  “Yes,” Biff agreed. “Especially since we know that the other answer was wrong.”

  I called out, “The answer is frost!”

  A chime sounded, which was a new sound for us, and a chest materialized on the cavern floor before us.

  “Sweet!” Steven said, relieved that his answer was correct.

  “We still have a trap.” Biff reminded everyone.

  I examined the chest. Like the previous one, it was made of wood, but this one had bronze strips around it. If there were a lock, it might serve to reinforce the wood to make it harder to break into. As it was, there was no latch.

  “What do you see, Gwyd?” Biff asked.

  The chest glowed at two levels. The entire chest glowed a golden color, which suggested to me it was a summoner’s charm that brought it here. But it also had an intertwined gray and faded yellow color, both calling to mind elemental magic.

  I shared that with the group.

  “Sounds like elemental air magic. Probably cold-based.” Addie explained.

  “Ah, I see. Tourmalines are the gemstone for air elemental magic, and they are often a pale yellow. Although they can be quite a few colors.” I added as an afterthought.

  “Likely a cold elemental spell effect then?” Steven asked.

  “I could kneel down,” Biff suggested.

  We looked at his bulk and the smaller size of the wooden chest. “And take a blast in the face?” I warned.

  “What’s your idea?” He asked me.

  Addie smiled widely. “How about I open it?”

  “You can protect yourself against the cold?” Steven asked.

  “Well, yes. But that is a more powerful spell than I had in mind.”

  And so, we all backed away at her insistence and watched as she cast a first element Summon Elemental Pet spell.

  A little wispy cloud appeared and spun around her head, playfully.

  We watched for a minute before she said, “I command you to open the wooden chest twenty feet from me. You are free to depart thereafter.”

  The weak elemental flew toward the chest and, with little effort, threw open the lid.

  A burst of magical air magic crashed into the little elemental. We could feel the cold from where we stood.

  I was sure the spell would shatter the elemental, but instead it grew significantly in size. Tripling its diameter and thickening its wispy tendrils.

  It turned to Addie and bowed to her before fading from view.

  “What happened?” Steven wanted to know.

  Elementals do not take damage from their element. They actually feed off it. Cast a fireball at a fire elemental, and you heal it. Apparently, the spell added to its substance, and we just saw an evolution.”

  “An evolution?” I asked.

  “Yes, it evolved from an elemental pet to a minor elemental. Seemed pretty happy about it as well.”

  “Yeah, it bowed to you,” Steven said.

  “That can’t happen often,” I stated.

  “Very true.” She agreed. “Elementals and elementalist mages don’t usually have a good relationship since elementals are usually summoned to perform some task.”

  I had never thought about elemental magic that way before. And I admit it made me a little uncomfortable.

  Biff began walking over to the chest. “Let’s see what clearing the room… twice, got for us.”

  “Cool.” He said, getting to the chest before us.

  “What do you see?” Steven asked as he came up to Biff’s side.

  Inside the chest were three potions in small glass vials that we all knew well: yellow, blue, and red; a Skill Restoration potion, a Magical Rejuvination potion, and a Healing potion.

  They looked like the potions I got from Master Alexander. “I think they are minor potions,” I observed.

  “Three potions, four of us,” Steven said diplomatically.

  “I suggest the blue goes to our heavy hitter, yellow to our hitter who is heavy, and red to our healer,” I said.

  “Is that a wisecrack about my weight?” Biff asked, standing up tall and flexing his muscles.

  “You are bigger than Addie,” I said innocently.

  He narrowed his eyes at me, but didn’t comment.

  “You sure, Gwydion?” Addie asked.

  “Yeah, if we need a big punch with the boss, it's likely going to come from you.”

  “And not your rings?” She asked, recalling the meeting with her master and me.

  “If we need one of those spells, we are all in trouble.” I laughed.

  They each picked up their potion, and Biff called out, “Line up!”

  A note from cqTrooth:

  Did any of you get the riddle wrong, or did you catch on to the trick before the group did?