The Fool sat on a throne, looking straight ahead. “Who’s there?” he called out. He turned his head to the side. “Ah. Outside visitors. More of The Morrigan’s pets?” Standing up, he easily cleared eight feet in height. The bells on the end of his floppy cap jingled. He looked ridiculous in his jester motley outfit, but labelling him as a pushover would be unwise.

  [The Fool]

  [Boss 0 Level 8]

  Welcome. You’ve encountered the first boss on your new journey. Boss 0. Also known as The Fool. He was The Morrigan’s first creation. He was once young and naive. Full of wonder, but unaware of the dangers before him. The Morrigan was not happy with his optimism and freedom. She placed him in this castle to stop those who would thwart her in their tracks. He knows The Morrigan sees him as a waste, but he serves her still, blindly.

  I can not share knowledge of his strengths or weaknesses. You must have blind faith that you can defeat him. Don’t be so focused on the end that you fail to see the obstacles right in front of you.

  Good luck, Peregrine.

  Peregrine listened to what the System told him. He was pissed that Duncan and Theodore had underestimated The Fool’s level. Why couldn’t it give more info besides a backstory? The time for wondering was at an end, though.

  The Fool grabbed his stick and bindle, slinging it over his shoulder. He cackled, looking off in a different direction. “I know why you’re here. Did she tell you that you’re special? I was told the same thing when she brought me here. She lied to you. None of us are special. Do you think you’re the first group of heroes to confront me? You’re not. You’re just next in line. When you fail, she will create a new group of you. An endless cycle. None of her special creations have bested me. I will make it quick and send your souls to the other one.”

  What does he mean we’re not the first group of heroes? Peregrine wondered. Have there really been others before us?

  The Fool swung his stick across the air. All three dropped to the floor fast enough to avoid the strike. But he followed up with vertical bashes, singling out Alissa. She managed to roll, avoiding the hits until one finally caught her. The sound of the stick hitting her cracked in the air like her bones had broken. She screamed.

  Peregrine popped up directly in front of The Fool. He conjured a Holy UFO, blasting the giant right in the neck. It made him stumble, but barely made a blip on his health bar.

  The Fool stood motionless for a moment, his head on a swivel. He turned so his head was facing Alissa again, but he kicked at Peregrine. His giant boot caught the Creative class in the ribs, dropping him to the floor.

  Unable to breathe, Peregrine crawled. A heavy stick landed across his back. It felt like his vertebrae shattered. He couldn’t move his legs, but he managed to roll himself onto his back by using his arms.

  “Ha. Ha,” The Fool cackled. He inhaled big as he lifted the stick to bring down upon Peregrine one more time. But the blow never landed.

  Wendell stood beside Peregrine’s body. “Ahhhh!” He held his shield high, blocking the stick. The Fool pushed back. Wendell dropped to one knee. Then to both. His upper body began to bend backward toward the floor. The Fool was going to smash him. Wendell was taking reduced damage, but his health was already a quarter gone.

  The Fool suddenly backed off, then shoulder rammed Wendell, which was a mistake. Life and Times absorbed the damage and reflected it back at The Fool, knocking him off his feet. It came at a cost though as the shield’s health bar dropped, and a crack spread from end-to-end on the wood.

  “Test me, girl,” The Fool spat, jumping to his feet.

  Alissa came charging, sword ready to swing. It seemed The Fool had locked on to her, promising to crush her with a blow from his stick. But he seemed to lose track of his target when he turned to face her, and he didn’t swing at all. She caught him with Crimson Leaker, right across his chest.

  The sword strike did something extra special. The Fool’s wound began dripping blood at a steady rate. A quick glance at his health bar showed it trickling extremely slowly, but it was happening. It must’ve been the BLEED skill at work.

  Alissa slid next to Peregrine and handed him a bottle of Elixir of Life. He was in the red and needed it badly. He chugged it without waiting for a verbal invitation, and climbed to his feet. They stood huddled together.

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  “Where did you go, pets?” The Fool turned, clutching at his chest.

  “Something’s wrong with him,” Peregrine whispered. “He’s having trouble keeping us in sight. Wendell, stay here. Alissa, follow me.”

  Peregrine and Alissa bolted to the side just as The Fool swung at Wendell. The shield worked its charm again and the giant was off balance.

  “Where are your friends?” The Fool asked Wendell, but was looking toward the other two. He turned his attention to Wendell and then said, “Now I see you, sneaklings.”

  “Wendell, ram him,” Peregrine yelled.

  The Defend class ran at The Fool and drilled him with the shield, bracing his shoulder against the back of the wood. The force distracted the monster just enough for Alissa and Peregrine to attack at the same time. Peregrine hit him in his bleeding chest with a Holy saw blade, while Alissa caught his bicep with her sword, starting another BLEED. They regrouped behind Wendell.

  Huffing, Peregrine said, “He can’t see what’s in front of him. His eyes only see things on either side. “Attack him from the front and back.”

  The Fool laughed while on bended knee. “You think you know what it’s like not to see? You can’t see what’s in front of you, either. Otherwise you’d understand the ruse she pulled on you.” Blood continued to drip out of him, his health bar reflecting it, now a quarter gone.

  “What do you mean?” Peregrine asked. He noticed his quill was out of ink and he quickly refilled it.

  “Our lives are all a game to them,” the boss spat. “The two versus the one. They’ve been playing since they arrived. And if I’m still here, ask yourself how many people she has yanked out of their existence to come die again. I’m not the only one. There are twenty-two of us for the two to defeat the one. None of you have lived past boss zero. But you are the first in a long while that have chosen to fight me.”

  Peregrine’s head swam. The Morrigan had told him it was hard to find someone to be a Creative class, that she had searched for him specifically. Was it a lie? Some of the ways the Fiddler’s Green residents worded things would make more sense if it was. But why should he trust The Fool’s words?

  “I don’t like The Morrigan, either,” The Fool said, getting back on his feet. “However, I do have an oath to fulfill to her. And I’m a man of my word.” He reached into his bindle and pulled a handful of something out. Then he threw it at the heroes.

  It was rocks, pelting them all over their bodies. The pain felt like a swarm of bees stinging at once.

  Alissa’s health flashed red. She pulled another bottle of elixir out and downed it. “That was my last one.” The red welts on her arms and face disappeared.

  “Be very nimble,” Wendell said. “I’ll do my best to protect you.”

  Peregrine imagined a brick wall. A six-foot high yellow wall formed in front of him. He directed the other two to stand behind it, and together they marched forward. He used his quill to maneuver the wall toward The Fool.

  When the wall and The Fool connected, his skin sizzled. His big hands grabbed the top and tried pulling it over, but Peregrine focused harder and held the wall in place.

  The concentration was taking higher mental durability than Peregrine currently possessed, and he started feeling woozy.

  “Slide around,” Peregrine told Alissa. “Death by a thousand cuts. I can’t hold this much longer.”

  As Alissa popped around, The Fool pulled the wall down. Wendell stepped in front just in time to take the punch. The strike was too fast, though, and he didn’t get his shield up in time. Wendell collided into Peregrine, sending them both rolling.

  The exchange gave Alissa enough time to cut The Fool several times. She stayed behind him, following as he spun, searching for her. The blood letting was enough to form puddles.

  Wendell pulled out his can of Replenish Salve, rubbing some on himself and placing a slab in Peregrine’s hand. This got both of their health bars near full. It was just in time because The Fool was pulling something out of his bindle again, while looking at them with his head cocked to the side.

  A white glint appeared above The Fool. Alissa came crashing down on The Fool with her old sword, Exaltation of the Fallen. She had switched swords mid-fight. Doing this hadn’t crossed Peregrine’s mind. It could make for interesting strategies.

  Alissa’s sword sliced through The Fool’s fingers. They fell to the floor, along with the handful of knives he had pulled from his bindle. He yelled in pain, dropped his stick, and squeezed his injured hand. His health bar had dropped halfway, now showing yellow.

  “Formidable,” the boss said. “Here I thought I’d run you through with no resistance. Very well. I will give you the gift of sight that I possess.” He reached in his bindle once more. Holding his good fist out in front of him. He opened his fingers and blew a black dust that traveled quickly.

  The dust hit their eyes, burning horribly. Peregrine scratched at his face and tried blinking it away. This hurt worse than when The Morrigan instilled the system in him. The pain didn’t go away, but he was able to control it enough to open his eyes. Only, he could barely see. It was like a black dust storm swirling in his eyes. He could make out differences in light and dark, see shadows moving, but nothing more.

  “He blinded us,” Wendell said. “What do we do?”

  Splash! Splash!

  Peregrine’s other senses took over for his lack of sight. He felt water running down his face and arms. The sound of light rain roared like a faucet running wide open. Above that, he heard the thundering of heavy feet stepping in puddles. It had to be The Fool. His snickers followed his footsteps.

  “Stay together,” Peregrine yelled. “Wendell, get your shield up.”

  A breeze started, increasing in steady increments. Peregrine focused on an area, seeing a shadow moving like the blades of a ceiling fan. The wind became fast enough that he had to brace himself from blowing over.

  In the next instant, a shockwave smoked them.

  Peregrine’s feet lifted off the ground. He couldn’t see exactly what had happened, but he felt himself soaring … then falling. Falling too far. He should’ve hit the top of the turret floor almost immediately. Then he landed and his world went black.