Earthdom: A Post-Apocalyptic LitRPG (Ether Collapse Book 3)

by Ryan DeBruyn

  That would make sense. I should have thought of that.

  Still, that was only their first failure, and the mobs might have killed them, if it wasn’t for Adam. How had the survivors beaten these things? Did the dungeon scale its challenges based on opponent strength?

  Adam pointed to his leashed mob. “I think the door hasn’t appeared because this thing is still alive.”

  Dang, I would have liked to have that along for the rest of the Dungeon.

  He turned to Adam and asked, “Can you make it put down that hammer?” The creature placed the weapon on the floor, standing on its square top. Rocky walked over and attempted to lift the substantial stone. He strained and barely managed to get it off the floor tiles.

  He wasn’t sure he’d be able to pick up the weapon if he set it down. He spun and the momentum raised the head of the hammer until it was parallel to his shoulders. His hands strained to hold the weight. He had to do something quickly, before the hammer got out of control. He shifted his feet and maneuvered the weapon, crashing directly into Adam’s pet.

  As soon as the hammer made contact, Rocky released it and the creature crumbled. Their reward appeared—a basket and a door to the next room. A small statue laid in the basket instead of food. The figurine replicated the five Gargoyles.

  Rocky relegated the basket to the safety of his bag and flipped over the statue to find an ominous number one sunken into the base of the piece.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Rocky paused in the stairwell to the Dungeon’s third level. His squad had taken a beating. His armor—cracked and torn—had seen better days. Sela looked confident, even though she sported a nearly destroyed chest piece. Zippo looked drained and pale, and Adam was breathing hard while sweating buckets.

  They had failed two more times on the second level. Each failure increased the difficulty by upping the number of gargoyles by one. Bringing Adam along on this run had saved them numerous times.

  They had figured out a few other tactics that worked. They couldn’t rely on Adam forever. Rocky used his Dark Blade’s charged edge on his Soul Blade to hold back one or two of the gargoyles. Sela's Dark Vine skill had also proved useful—at least for holding two of the creatures at bay. Each of the gargoyles moved at a glacial pace and relied on close range. He didn’t like to admit it, but that was probably the main reason they were able to dispatch them.

  A sense of foreboding slithered down the stairs. Whether the boss resided above, or stronger mobs, it didn't matter. The group had barely survived the second level. He sat down and joined the others as each waited for their Ether and Health to regenerate. His gear had a low Ether pool. “Sela, if the pool runs out on the armor, does it fall apart?”

  “It won't fall apart as long as the material isn't in such bad shape that it structurally has to. The Enchantments will stop working, and the armor's inherent Ether will be gone. Even if you were wearing a piece of Eternium, at that point, you would only be counting on the inherent material strength versus an Ether-charged blow.”

  “Do you think there will be more puzzles above or a boss fight?”

  Sela shrugged. “It could be either. There used to be a similar practice Dungeon at the Atlantean Academy. We were always told the instructors set it up, but now I think it was a Territorial Dungeon. That Dungeon had a difficult puzzle for its finale. If you got it wrong, though, no mobs attacked you—so, maybe it was set up by instructors.”

  “When in the Apep Dungeon, you thought it might be a puzzle Dungeon because of the traps. How come this one hasn't had any traps?”

  “Each Dungeon is as different as each person you have ever met. Just look at Maximus and LFD.”

  Each of the Dungeons had vastly different personalities. The next floor could be more puzzles, a boss room or one big mystery. At least they hadn't taken too long to clear the twenty puzzles so far. He stood up and brushed himself off. “Shall we?”

  They ascended the stairs and entered a chamber as vast as a football field. The floor was open, with a few concrete pillars interspersed for structural support. Sunlight streamed from the windows, no matter the direction he looked in. He took a deep, relaxing breath. He needed his mind to be clear. Focused.

  A golden Sphinx statue loomed over them from ten meters away. He glanced at his group to find everyone transfixed. He wondered if they felt the waves of the statue's ominous vibe the way he did.

  He used Analyze.

  Golden Sphinx

  Journeyman-Riddler

  Level 43

  Health Points 1400 / 1400

  He gulped nervously and whispered, “Do we have to fight it?”

  “A Sphinx usually asks a question that you must answer correctly. If you answer incorrectly, it will attack. Maybe send your clone in first?” said Sela.

  Rocky mentally commanded his second self to exit Stealth and approach the Sphinx. His clone appeared beside him a moment later and rolled its dark eyes. Giving the entire group the finger, it approached the Sphinx.

  His clone was crushed under one of the front paws of the creature. It happened so quickly that he almost missed it. A crash of stone on stone sounded as his clone turned to smoke, and the golden foot hit the concrete floor. It opened its mouth and spoke, “No constructs will be allowed to answer the riddle. Approach, or stay distant and provoke my ire.”

  Swallowing hard, Rocky edged forward. The others fell in behind him, mirroring his unease. Once they were a few feet away, the Sphinx smiled, rivaling the Cheshire cat’s sly grin.

  “Good. Now answer me this: What eight-letter word can have a letter taken away, and it still makes a word. Take another letter away, and it still makes a word. Keep on doing that until you have one letter left. What is each word?”

  Rocky had never heard this one before. He looked to the group and saw each face looking back at him. Okay—they didn't have the answer either. He groaned and kicked his brain into gear. The one-letter word had to be a vowel. So, either A or I, as they were the only single letter words in the English language. He hoped the Sphinx wasn’t using trickery, since it didn’t specify the language.

  He moved to two letters, and again both A and I could work. ‘As’ and ‘an’, or ‘Is’ and ‘in’. He was sure more combinations existed, but when he considered ‘in,’ something tickled his mind. ‘In’ was in plenty of words ending in -ing.

  He decided he would keep going with ‘in.’

  The Sphinx interrupted his train of thought. “I will give you ten minutes to correctly answer the riddle.”

  His pulse throbbed as his heart beat faster. He swore inwardly. He couldn't do this alone and so he explained his logic to the group. The others began tossing out three-letter words.

  “Bin … Gin … Vin … Fin … Sin—”

  “Of those words we have been saying, ‘sin’ can become ‘sing,’ which fits with the 'ing' theory.” He babbled and glanced at the Sphinx, hoping for a hint or clue in its expression. Instead, it cleaned its forepaw, sharp golden teeth glinting in the sunlight. The cat’s stone tongue scraped over its paw, the grating sound worming its way into his ears and driving him to rush.

  Damnit, calm down. Keep going.

  “We need a five-letter word now. I think adding more consonants is better than adding vowels. So the next word can be ‘swing’ or ‘sting.’ ‘Swing,’ I can't add another letter; can I add something to ‘sting’?”

  “Five minutes left. I may have to invite my first visitors to be my dinner.”

  Rocky was sweating like he had just played a full forty-eight minutes on the basketball court.

  “’String’, and then ‘stringy’, maybe?” Sela offered, successfully reminding him to stay on track.

  He nodded, seeing ‘string’ but backtracked because ‘stringy’ had no way of adding letters. It also contained seven letters and they needed eight. Sweat dripped down his face. He wracked his brain but couldn't think of another word that included ‘string’. Maybe he had to go back to ‘sting’ or even ‘sing�
�.

  “We might have to go back.” Rocky said and the group backtracked all the way to ‘sing.’

  “Two minutes remaining. I wonder what humans taste like.”

  Rocky took a stuttering breath and pulled his sword. He needed to be ready if this turned into a fight.

  He was out of ideas. He looked around to see if anyone else had any ideas. Silence. Everyone stared at him.

  “’Staring,’ that's the next word from ‘string!’” The group, who had begun settling into combat stances, jumped at his shout.

  Adam whispered something, and Rocky didn't hear it. He stared at the kid. “What?”

  Adam gulped, shrinking under Rocky’s tone. Zippo threw Rocky a look that told him his tone was unnecessary. “He said, 'starting.' Not sure why we don't just kill—”

  That was it!

  Rocky shouted at the Sphinx, “Starting, Staring, String, Sting, Sing, Sin, In, and I!”

  The golden creature smiled and displayed its sharp teeth. Its claws unsheathed from its padded feline feet, and its wings opened wide on its back, scraping the ceiling.

  Rocky tensed his muscles and placed a second shaking hand onto his sword. But the Sphinx was only stretching. A full set of golden-colored plate armor glistened within a basket that materialized next to the Golden Cat-Creature.

  Congratulations! You have completed the “Philosopher’s Conundrum.”

  Bonus:

  For the first completion of the Dungeon, your group has been awarded 430,000 personal Etherience per party member.

  The Dungeon has been classified as a Level 43 zone.

  2,001,133 Etherience remaining until level 9.

  He smiled at the prompt, and the relief of completing the Dungeon washed over him. Adam had been their saving grace. Without him, the high-level Dungeon would have been impossible. A single failure probably would have cost the group their lives.

  “Is a level forty-three Dungeon ranked for total levels or current rank?” Rocky asked.

  “Dungeon level classifications are slightly unusual. People argued for years over whether it is a combination of levels from all ranks, or just your current level. Honestly, my opinion is that the system just ranks the mobs and boss levels on strength. Since I have never seen a level forty-three Apprentice, this Dungeon is for Journeyman Ranks.”

  Rocky nodded and Analyzed the prized gear. His eyes bugged out; nestled within the basket was a set of five items—a chest guard, leggings, boots, gauntlets, and a helm. They were all titled The Golden Defender and locked. A set would be a lot better than one strong piece of armor, like the Bone Breastplate he had given to Victoria.

  Rocky stored it away and addressed the Sphinx. “Are you the Dungeon?”

  The Sphinx shook its head.

  Rocky tried again. “Could we speak to the Dungeon?”

  The Sphinx stood up and moved to the far side of the building, like a cat that lost interest and went to sun itself.

  A computerized voice asked “Do you have a complaint about the loot?”

  Rocky jumped, landed and spun, finding only an empty floor where the Sphinx had stood moments ago. Selecting a random location on the ground to focus on, he cleared his throat. “No, the loot is amazing. I am hoping to recruit you.”

  “Of course, the loot is amazing. For the first clear, Dungeons are forced to increase the rarity. What do you mean, ‘recruit me’?”

  “We require Territorial Dungeons, and you could be our third, if you agree to our terms.”

  “Do you have a copy of your terms with you?”

  The conversation became extremely one-sided after that. Rocky talked, and the Dungeon remained silent. He wasn’t even sure if it was listening.

  “Leave now. I will give you my answer in a day. I wish to discuss this with my Sphinx.”

  Does that count as talking to yourself?

  The Dungeon opened a stairwell that led to a hidden door and a path out of the science building. Rocky was breathing fresh air again. It was time to see what the military had discovered in the Territory. His screen lit up with notifications.

  Congratulations, you have completed a Chain Quest!

  Preservation of Champion Life Quest

  Chain Party Quest – Atlantean Net Generated

  Save the McDougall Survivors II

  ● Escort 50% of the survivors successfully back to your Territory. This quest difficulty has been adjusted due to distance to Territory. Approximately 100 miles (160 km)

  Rewards:

  299,000 (+39,000 Knight’s Quest) Etherience

  260 new Territorial Citizens.

  Atlantean Statutes, Preservation of Life, Section XII

  Invite new citizens to join Meliora?

  | No

  He clicked the ‘yes’ button in excitement. Nothing happened, and he shrugged at Sela, assuming something had occurred with the new citizens. All his notices were for escort quests, and he clicked the summarize button.

  Congratulations, you have completed 25 Chain Quests!

  Rewards:

  3,118,000 (+467,700 Knight’s Quest) Etherience

  3,118 New Territorial Citizens.

  --

  Congratulations! You have reached level 9. You have been awarded 1 stat point and 1 skill point.

  9,031,413 Etherience remaining till level 10.

  As they walked, Rocky sunk his Skill Point into Knight’s Quest. The amount of extra Etherience he received confirmed his earlier choice and made him feel slightly better about his offensive skill stagnation.

  His party was in good spirits when they rounded the corner and caught a glimpse of the command center.

  The calm planning center they had left was now a beehive of activity, and Rocky didn’t know if that was normal. Sela jogged toward the Operations Area, and Rocky followed her lead. Adam and Zippo continued to babble as they ran, and the normalcy of their actions calmed his nerves slightly. What was going on?

  Victoria motioned for them to stand off to the side. The crackle of the radio was all he heard, but no communications. The hum of white noise clashed with the utter stillness of the command area, making it all the louder. The beehive they had jogged toward had frozen.

  “Scout fourteen. False alarm—the creature in question Analyzes as a Master Class, but not a territorial leader. Resuming scouting mission. Over.”

  The collective sigh of held breaths hung in the air as the radio hummed to life. Each scout sounded off, reporting in their situations. Rocky heard twenty scouts in total. The Operations Tent exploded in excited murmurs about levels and where to place skill points or stats.

  Victoria walked over, grinning, and asked, “How did the Dungeon run go? Any luck recruiting it?” She pointed around at the group. “As you can see, Meliora members are pretty excited about the free Etherience!”

  Rocky looked around and smiled. They had needed this win, and with the new Guild Dome and accompanying Tower, he was sure they would be able to find housing for everyone, especially if they used the Starship to get the Guild Tent down.

  “It went as well as could be expected. The mobs were powerful, and we luckily didn’t have to engage the final boss. We will find out tomorrow if the Dungeon wishes to agree to our terms. We got a nice set of gear for being the first to clear—might even be good for a tank.” He winked at Victoria and caught Sela glowering at him.

  What did I do?

  Victoria was excited at the prospect of new gear. Rocky was equally jubilant to have a tank with proper equipment in his Territory. In all the video games he had played, a durable tank helped protect lower-leveled players more than any other class—besides a good healer. He would have to figure out if there was an unselfish healer back in the Grotto. He hadn’t liked Gaston very much.

  “Scout two. This is the fifth burrow I have come across. Is anyone else finding numerous warrens or dug holes? Over.”

  Each scout reported in, confirming the report of the second scout. Rocky had a skill that was perfect for scouting hig
h-risk areas. He summoned his Shadow Clone, and it billowed into existence, waving its hands in front of its body, as if to say, ‘No, I will not do this.’

  “I thought I was braver than this.” Rocky said to no one in particular.

  Sela laughed, and he wasn’t sure if he had made a joke, or if she was making a statement. He pointed toward the Territory grounds, and his clone sneered at him before sprinting away. A few steps in, the shadowy form vanished from sight.

  He sat down and told the group, “I will go explore those caverns with my clone. Sit tight.” Once his explanation left his mouth, he entered Meditation and looked through the eyes of his second self.

  The clone charged in with remarkable speed, considering it only gained fifty percent of his stats. He assumed his breakthrough in Agility and Dexterity was affecting it. If nothing else, the power of his clone spoke to his growth.

  Sparsely spread trees flashed by, and he received the Territorial notification. He was surprised that his clone triggered an announcement, and that he saw the notice through its eyes. He closed it on the run, but the next notice made him freeze.

  Due to the proximity of your starship, mutations have occurred with the local leader of the Territory!

  Rocky conveyed this information to the group and focused on his clone.

  A hundred meters further, one of the warrens loomed up from the overgrown grass and tree roots. Its cavernous mouth with its dangling vegetation and freshly churned look, making Rocky’s clone shudder.

  His clone stepped over the threshold and he had a split-second of regret. Using the Skill in this way always felt a little masochistic, but he forced down the thought.

  Using many of his learned skills, Sneak, Stealth, and the clone’s inherent Dark Vision, he made his way deeper into the underground space. The tunnel wasn’t wide, and Rocky believed it might be a giant insect nest, even though he didn’t see the usual signs. Most insects would have active members outside the nest.