by Drew Jager
In the world of Bermin, members of all the many races gather together where none normally would for the chance to be a part of a Dungeon.
Most of the people who travel to one have no interest in ever setting foot in those places, but they go anyway for the promise of a better life for them and their families in the Mana rich land the Dungeon produces. Those that do brave the depths of the Dungeons do so for many reasons, a chance for some quick coin, a chance for renown should they conquer the dungeon. Or, if they are foolish enough, a chance to become a 'Hero'.
There have been many Heroes over the years, with just as many Dungeons to help keep them in check. During the time of our fledgling Crawl's awakening, there are approximately 603 Heroes spread across Bermin. It's no easy task to become a 'Hero' however, in order to become one a person has to complete their 'Life-long Quest'. The problem with these so-called Quests is that they almost always involve hassling a dungeon that was just minding its business.
Just between you, me, and the birds though...all the Cores agree that Heroes are, for the most part, a bunch of arrogant jerks.
The story begins where most great things happen, in between a rock and a hard place. Literally. Our Crawl at the moment is not much more than a large chunk of Mana trapped between, you guessed it, a rock and an even larger rock. If left unchecked the Mana would devour its surrounding prison until it eventually found its way to the surface where it would dissipate back into the air. Luckily, or unluckily depending on who you asked in the future, fate decided that it was time to even the scales of the world again. Having only 602 dungeons in the world just seems like too few now. Better add one more just to be sure.
* * *
Somewhere in the Endless Desert of Bermin.
"Finally! It's finally my turn! I've waited so long and now it's finally my turn!" A small feminine voice calls out from between two large rocks in the middle of a barren wasteland.
"22 years of waiting and I finally get a Dungeon all to myself! The first thing I'm going to do once it's set up and established is tell that stuck up brat Tay how much better my dungeon is than his!" The small voice yelling at nobody, in particular, is attached to a body 4" in height. If you could even call it a body. Maybe a floating ball of grey light doesn't count as one, but she should have one of those soon enough anyway.
"Now where is it, Mom said I'd find the Crawl hiding in the rocks somewhere?" As the ball of light continued to talk to herself, the ground below her... feet? started to shake, and she knew that this was her partner trying to free themselves from the dirt. Which any self-respecting Dungeon Herald knows that if you let your future Crawl reach the surface before they accept you, they will promptly disappear into nothingness.
"Oh, no you don't! I've waited way too long to have to look for another Crawl to bond with." She yelled out as she dove into the cracks of the dusty earth to reach the Crawl before it could dig its way up to certain death.
Both she and the Crawl severely underestimated how far it was to the surface, though. After about four minutes straight of frantic searching, the Herald finally reached the Crawl's little mining expedition and could begin the bonding process before it attempted any more escape maneuvers.
The newborn looked about what the Herald had expected. As condensed Mana, the future Crawl looked like liquid silver, constantly shifting patterns with the consistency of molten magma. The very air shimmered around it, and the power condensed into such a small amalgamation made her non-existant skin crawl.
"Now you just stay right there while I work on catching you up to speed with the rest of those dungeons. Oh gosh I can't wait, I just know me and you are going to be perfect together!" The Herald felt a little silly talking to what, at the moment, equated to a high functioning rock. It was common Herald knowledge that you could imprint ideas onto the fledgling core to help develop their personality and further their education during the formative hours. How else was a Crawl supposed to understand the menu options and decide on starting locations if nobody ever taught them how to read?
"Mom gave me a special Memory Crystal that all the best Guides use to give their Cores a nice edge over the competition." While the Memory Crystal the Herald had was indeed a very powerful item, it wasn't exactly as miraculous as she was making it out to be. The Crawl didn't need to know that though.
What the Memory Crystal did was impart hundreds of memories from hundreds of different Sentients directly into the raw Mana that was the future Crawl, essentially transforming it into a functioning being with its own unique personality.
Next to the Herald, a large crystal the size of a golf ball appeared from thin air.
"Poof!" The Herald said as a way of bragging about her little magic trick.
She had the Crystal float over to where the raw Mana was. It seemed to be sulking, potentially contemplating why its prison breakout failed. She gently tapped the Memory Crystal to what she considered the Mana's head.
"Now this may not be a very nice experience, Mom said it's like if you went from being a newborn to an adult in seconds. I bet you'll be fine though! I just know me and you will become the best of friends during our time together." the Herald was spinning on the spot in excitement.
* * *
Our new Dungeon Crawl, now aware and confused.
Being able to suddenly understand everything around you is a bit jarring. Especially when until a moment ago your biggest concern was which way was up and which was down. Now the Crawl was going through information overload and was taking its time to process everything around itself.
Itself. It's an it now, neat.
While contemplating its newfound existence and the crushing amount of new concepts and ideas floating through its mind, it noticed something spinning really fast in the center of its room. So fast, that to the Crawl it looked like a whirling ball of energy capable of ripping a grown man's fingers clean off if one of those two-legs was ever dumb enough to stick their finger in it. Which the Crawl was sure they would if given the opportunity.
It looked beautiful.
How the Crawl knew of concepts like death, dismemberment and beauty confused it. That seemed like a problem for Tomorrow Crawl though, for now, it was just going to focus on the rapidly slowing ball of light in the center of its small hole in the world.
"Hello, can you hear me in there? You've made me wait long enough you better not go back to sleep!" The ball of light shouted towards the Crawl.
The Crawl winced at the ball of lights words, but then it realized it could understand what it was saying.
Double neat!
Now for the hard part, trying to respond.
Well, no time like the present. It thought.
"I can hear you stop yelling, please...Who are you? Who am I? Where am I? What am I? What are yo-" once the Crawl managed to get a few words out all the pent up questions in the back of its mind came to the forefront and came out in a mad rush. The ball of light shone brighter for a brief moment, it would have blinded the new Crawl if not for the fact that it could now see in all levels of light with perfect clarity.
"Yeesh, stop asking so many questions and just listen, okay?" The ball of light scolded. A little rude for a ball of light. The Crawl thought. The ball seemed like they were waiting for an answer so the Crawl took a page from their book and tried to shine brightly as an affirmative. Turns out it worked. Take that ball of light! I've already mastered your secret technique and used it for myself. The Crawl thought smugly.
"My name, for now, is Herald. I am...your Herald." The ball of light giggled at what amounted to, at best, a mediocre joke. The Herald had a distinctly feminine voice so the Crawl decided it was a girl. Even if it wasn't quite sure what a girl was just yet.
"You are a Crawl, more specifically, a Dungeon
Crawl. We can go over what that means later, but let's just say that your job is to take in the excess Mana throughout the world and disperse it back into it. Kind of like how a tree makes breathable air, you make useable Mana. Now if you asked any two-legs they would just say a Dungeon is a way to earn; fame, glory, wealth and everything in between. All they want is to find you and fight whatever Monsters you make." At that last statement, the Herald took on a distinctly darker shade of grey.
Monsters? I get Monsters?! The Crawl thought to itself. How cool is that?!
The Crawl understood what she was saying too, who would want to just be minding their own business when out of nowhere some jerk comes around and starts demanding money and powerful Monsters to fight. However, "I don't mind the idea of fighting...Two-legs? It doesn't sound that bad." The Crawl replied a little sheepishly.
It was true, something inside the Crawl screamed that this was how things ought to be, sending out hordes of powerful beasts to kill the weak and strong alike. Should it have been worried that these thoughts seemed to be a part of who it was as a person...rock...Crawl? It wasn't a person, even though some of the memories it received may have been from people, that much was obvious. It decided to dump the introspective thoughts onto trusty Tomorrow Crawl and move on for now.
At this small outburst, the Herald took on a soothing tone and softly said, "I thought you would, it's in your nature to seek out the strong and challenge them. It wasn't always like that though, but we can save the sad history lessons for after we get ourselves into a safe and defensible position. That Memory Crystal I gave you should have given you the mental capacity of a fully grown Sentient being. We Guides give them to developing Cores to help speed along the process of Dungeon creating as well as to make you fluent in the Common Language so we don't have to charades our way through the Torial."
Torial?
The Crawl took all of this information in, and while it felt conflicted that its entire existence seems to have just been random chance, it was taking it in stride. "I understand, I think. Before the memories, I don't think I would have ever gotten to enjoy things like I do now. I feel so many different emotions, and sometimes more than one at a time!" The Crawl began to take on a feverish pitch as it sorted through its new thoughts.
"I'm not too sure what to do as a Dungeon, but I'm guessing it's why you're here, and now I just feel ready to do my best at whatever this Dungeon stuff is. I'm going to be the best one there is, just you wait and see! Also, what's a Torial?" By the end of its impromptu speech, the Crawl was glowing as brightly as the ball of light had when it first interrupted him.
"Ahhh!! I just knew we would get along together, you have no idea how much I've wanted to hear those words coming from my very own Dungeon." The fledgling Crawl took an unusual amount of satisfaction from being called her dungeon specifically.
"To answer your question though, what you do as a Dungeon is process raw Mana and convert it into useable Mana for the Sentient Races. You also provide challenges in the form of Traps and Monsters, and give rewards based on the level of difficulty of either that you have in your Dungeon. The Torial is where we choose what kind of dungeon you are going to be! I'll do my best to help you pick the right choices that compliment both of our personalities. So make sure you ask any questions you have okay?"
The Herald, which the Crawl figured was the proper title for her now, instead of 'ball of light', had taken on a tone of a strict instructor by the time she was done talking. The Crawl couldn't be more thankful though, who knew what weird choices it may have picked if it didn't have a guiding hand. What if it accidentally chose an underwater Dungeon?! Who would want that kind of hassle?
While the Crawl had a few ideas on what to do with a Dungeon, they were basic impulses at best. Mainly to just devour and create fearsome beasts, as well as digging as far down into the ground as it physically can. The rest was all just a little overwhelming. Also, did the Herald say it had a personality? Did it need to get one or did it already have one? No time like the present to find out.
"Alright, first things first, it's time we bonded! All you need to do is say, "I accept you as my Herald."" At this the Herald looked expectantly over at the Crawl. Considering they just met this seemed to be going a little fast for the Crawl's liking. Also considering until five minutes ago it was just a bunch of raw Mana destined for nothing, this seemed like a good deal anyways.
She was also the reason it was now able to understand things, and it really liked doing that. After a few moments of thinking. What a novel thing! The Crawl made up its mind.
"I accept you as my Herald."
"I accept you as my Crawl."
Then all went blank and both Herald and Crawl were transported high above the clouds, the Herald had heard about the Torial from her Mother but she never knew how incredible it felt to stare down at Bermin from high up. Until a giant screen blocked her vision anyways
Chapter 1 - Decisions in the Sky
Welcome to Bermin, new Dungeon Crawl, and Dungeon Herald!
This will be the Tutorial for your beginning Dungeon experience. Once finished, all menu powers will be delegated to the designated Dungeon Herald. Before we begin, please choose the name you will be referred to for the rest of your existence. (No pressure!)
"Finally!" the Crawl's Herald screeched. "I've waited 22 years to get my own name and Dungeon powers, it's about damn time!"
"I'm guessing this means you already have your own name picked out?" The Crawl asked, a little more jealously than it intended. Why don't I get as much time to think about this kind of thing! It seems pretty damn important, and PERMANENT.
The Herald cleared her non-existent throat and very clearly spoke, "Annabelle."
The Crawl wasn't happy to admit it since it was still stuck figuring out its own name, but it liked the sound of Annabelle. Swallowing the meager beginnings of its pride, "I like your new name, Annabelle. It sounds really pretty." Flattery seemed like a good way to go when in doubt, at least that's what one of its memories seemed to insist on quite heavily. Apparently, that one was married and had lots of experience in flattery.
Annabelle turned a shade lighter and seemed to withdraw into herself, "Thank you...I've had that in my head for years now but us Guides can't go by any other name until we find a Crawl to bond with. It means so much that I found you, and you're such a sweetheart too! A big ol' softie!" The Crawl did not like being called a softie when it was pretty sure its primary purpose was manslaughter, but it would let that one slide.
"Okay, Bel-" It paused and looked to see if the nickname would be here to stay, as she turned an even brighter shade of grey it seemed to be a resounding yes. "Will you help me pick my own name? I have a few ideas but i'm pretty sure the name Death Laser was already taken by one of the other Cores. How did I know there were other cores? I wonder if I'll have neighbors!? I hope not. Unless Death Laser is my neighbor, that guy is probably super popular.
Bel just looked down at the Crawl with a gaze that was equal parts pity and unrestrained laughter, many of his memories had seen that same look. It makes me feel like she knows something I don't, which I guess is probably true... but still!
"It's okay, I've had time to think of names for both of us! Now all you need to do is tell me if you feel more like a boy or a girl." This was a curveball for the Crawl, as far as it could tell it had memories of both sexes. So it just came down to personal preference.
Personally, the Crawl would have preferred an option in the middle, but the weak-minded two-legs only had one or the other. Since Bel was already a female, it seemed only fair to give the other sex a fair shake. "I choose to be a boy, what are the benefits to this choice?" The Crawl asked with more confidence than it felt.
Bel laughed, in the now male Crawl's face, for five minutes straight. "For you, the- Hahaha! For you, the only benefit is a boys name. You don't have any of the corresponding parts-" By the time she got the rest of her sentence out she was wheezing in mid-air. The Crawl, now a bo
y, if only out of spite, shone as bright as he could to try and blind his bully of a Herald. Sadly, she was just as resistant to bright lights as he was.
After a few more minutes of half-laughter half-sobbing, she finally said, "If you want to be a boy, what about the name Willem? It's perfect! We can shorten it and call you Will, and it is definitely a boys name." She was nodding vigorously at the last statement as if to reassure him.
"Also, it can serve as a reminder of the missing parts.." She whispered this last part to herself, but she forgot that it was just her and Will in the sky. So he heard and sulked for another few minutes about the joke he didn't understand.
Have you decided on your names for the conceivable future?
When you have picked out your names, clearly state them with confidence and intent to solidify them into your being.
"A bit impatient, aren't we, Mr.Blue?" Bel said with a smirk.
"Maybe it's because you laughed in my face for five minutes instead of moving us forward..." Will quietly grumbled to himself, but Bel heard him anyways. Mainly because it was still just the two of them hovering over the entirety of the world with nobody else in earshot.