Breaking Step (Dungeon Runner 3)

Tibs grumbles his congratulations reluctantly once everyone else, even Mez, congratulated Don on guiding them to victory. Don had, again, controlled the board, even if it looked for a while like Ganny was maneuvering them into a trap. Don had turned it against her, putting her on the defensive for the next five moves, which ended with Don defeating her Lord. Who else but him was good enough to beat the dungeon's most important piece, after all.

He ignored the sorcerer's looks and checked the chest for traps. He opened it and almost closed it on seeing the content. Was Ganny joking? She wasn't saying anything, but why else would there be a purple sorcerer's robe in there? It had the usual enchantments to let it absorb more damage, not break as easily, but the weave felt denser. A stronger version?

"Let me guess," Don said, standing over Tibs and looking in the chest. "I'm too good for this, too."

Tibs shoved the robe in the sorcerer's arms before walking away. "I'm going to check the way to the next crest," He told the others. "If you're going to leave this room, watch where you step. You lock me out and I can't help whatever trouble you get yourselves into."

Three paces out of the room and someone followed him. Tibs spun around, ready to tell Jackal he wasn't in the mood for company; he'd know why he wanted to be alone, but it was Don hurrying after him as he put the robe into his pack.

"I'm part of this team," Don said. "You aren't leaving me behind."

"I don't need your help," Tib's growled. "Leave me—"

"You think this is about helping you?" The disdain was thick. "This is about helping myself." The words glowed. "I need you to survive if we're going to get through all the rooms." Those didn't.

Tibs didn't bother wondering why or what-about Don was lying as he glared at him. He didn't care. The sorcerer was always lying.

"It may be best if we all remain together," Khumdar said, joining them. "To ensure nothing happens to one of us."

Tibs rolled his eyes at the look the cleric pointed at him. He wasn't going to stab Don. Unlike him, Tibs knew what it meant to be part of a team.

The Gnolls they encountered next had elements, making the fight harder, and, because of Don's presence, they had to use up more of the precious healing potions. He couldn't wait for Don to convince Tirania he deserved to lead his own team, so Tibs could find someone he'd trust to replace him with. Someone he could tell about Sto, and his multiple elements, so Tibs could go back to talking with the dungeon during the runs.

There was that new Upsilon sorcerer Tibs had noticed on the training grounds. Her eyes were a color Tibs had never seen before, gray, but with a sheen to them. He wanted to call the color silver, but as with a lot of words used around the elements, it didn't feel correct.

Whatever element she had, she had to be more trustworthy than Don.

Don didn't question Tibs's instructions as they navigated the shifting floor room, but Tibs felt the suspicious looks. The sorcerer also studied the room when Tibs was instructing someone else on the team, probably looking for a better path than Tibs had worked out.

The chest had a bandoleer Tibs could see attaching knives to. Mez pointed out it could instead hold potion bottles.

There were no attacks on the way to the dragon crest room, which worried Tibs. If Ganny hadn't set up attacks getting there, she was planning something else.

The dragon crest took longer than the others to solve, as usual, because of the complexity of the movements needed to reform it, and Don's eyes on him didn't help. He was tempted to let the sorcerer try it and see how easy it was for him, but that would be playing into Don's game, and it would cost them more time already spent relearning the trigger sequence leading here.