by Sean Oswald
Mira watched closely and could see the frustration her father was displaying but felt that he was not giving these guys a chance as he said, “Then this is all just a guess.”
“No one living has ever seen a multi-form dungeon. They were the rarest even in the old world, but it’s the dream of every adventurer. Think of it? A dungeon that could be triggered at different difficulty levels. Wouldn’t that be ideal for the training you promised your villagers?”
Dave turned away from everyone and started to walk towards the dungeon entrance. Mira heard him mumbling something about white whales before she rushed over to him. “Dad, isn’t it worth a try?”
He smiled at her and then turned towards the other leaders, “Fine, but is there some special skill required to form a raiding party?”
Tode said, “Yes, but all gold ranked members of the Adventurer’s Guild are required to have purchased this skill. So, any of the three of us can form the party, and we can show you how to unlock the skill tab for dungeon specific skills.”
“Okay, and what do you want in exchange for that?” Baron Eikhorn asked and all eyes turned towards Tode.
“It’s simple. We will escort your group in exchange for free access to the dungeon for all guild members.”
Standing next to her father, Mira could feel an almost tangible expansion of his mana. That would definitely bear looking at later, but she assumed it was her class skill picking up his intensity. Thankfully, he didn’t take more than a step from her side before Baron Eikhorn started laughing. “Well the dungeon isn’t on my land, but I can assure you that no noble of the kingdom would ever agree to a deal like that.”
“Well Baron Murkwood, what is your price then?” Tode asked.
“50 % of all your loot,” Dave said flatly. Mira didn’t see her dad like this very often, and it was a bit intimidating, in a way scarier than when he was fighting monsters.
All three of the adventurers started laughing. “Nae even yer human king charges anywhere near that,” Ro’Billo said between belly laughs.
“Fine–Steffen, Gunidar, Emily, Jackson, Daichi, you are all with me. Eisuke you are in charge out here. Please ensure that the area is cleared and my daughters are guarded while we are inside the dungeon.” Mira wanted to scream in frustration as her dad spoke in that dead tone before turning and walking right up to the dungeon entrance.
“Wait, wait. Let’s not be hasty. 10% of loot and you provide us with a plot of land to build a chapter house here,” Tode said,
Again, Mira watched as her dad seemed to ignore the blue robed mage. “Jackson, do you remember how I showed you to form a party? I want you to practice forming one now before we go in.”
“I simply can’t agree to 50% but how about 15% and we will buy a plot from you? That is as good of a deal as we would give to your own king.”
Mira held her breath as her father looked from one adventurer to the next, his face inscrutable. “The king doesn’t have a potential multi-form dungeon.” Then looking at Jackson, he said, “Good, now see how I accepted your party invite, and you can see my health and mana levels.”
“By all that is holy, what do you want Baron Murkwood? You have to negotiate with me.” Tode had lost his cool and seemed to be vacillating between irate and desperate.
The two men stared at one another for what felt like five minutes. Finally, Dave said, “We will provide the guild with a plot of land within the township of Eris’ Rise as well as an office at the guard tower I intend to build outside this dungeon. You will pay for the materials and labor to build your guild hall from local merchants and builders at fair market value. The guild will pay taxes on its operations in Murkwood just like any other business. The guild will participate as all able-bodied people do in the defense of Eris’ Rise, if necessary, but will likewise be entitled to my protection.”
“That’s easy enough,” Tode said when Dave paused.
Dave replied, “I’m not done yet.”
“Uh, okay.”
“50% of all minerals, gems, crystals, or precious metals which come out of the dungeon will be paid as an entrance fee for the dungeon. The 50% will be determined by weight. Any items that you earn in the dungeon, you can keep or sell in Eris’ Rise if you find a buyer.” Dave didn’t end with a question but stated it as if his terms would simply be agreed to.
“I can agree to that contract for one year. That will give time for the guild leader to decide if it’s worth making a trip up here,” Tode finally said, and they clasped forearms to signal their agreement.
“We can have contracts drawn up tomorrow, but for now, I think you were going to demonstrate your worth,” Dave said.
“Okay sae if we ur able tae form a raid pairtie then th' difficulty o' th' dungeon wull likely increase based upon th' power o' th' pairtie, sae it'’s important that th' best folk go in. Ah think we shuid aim fur a twelve-body raid,” Ro’Billo said.
Mira jumped on that, “Then I get to come.”
“Noo, ye sure ur a bonnie lassie fur a tall’un bit, noble’s daughter or nae, we kin ainlie take th' best o' us,” the dwarf said with a smile to soften his words.
“You have many Tier 3 mages here?” Mira asked with a smirk before adding, “Or people who have already been inside this dungeon twice?”
“Oh, a fellow mage? Mind if I ask what type of mage?” Tode asked.
“My class is metamage, but I have spells in most of the common schools of magic,” Mira replied.
“And what level?” the blue robed mage asked.
“Are you going to ask everyone all of these questions? I thought this sort of thing was personal.”
“Fine, I’m a level 24 Mind Chainer, your dwarven admirer is a level 25 Treasure Hunter, and the big silent lug over there is a level 23 Essence Knight. Now, if I am going into a strange dungeon, I expect to know the level and class of everyone going in with me.”
“If there are only twelve spots, I can tell you who will be filling the spots besides you three and my daughter, Mira. My son Jackson will also be coming, and he is level 9 unclassed. Baron Eikhorn, his son Tabor, and the royal mage Gunidar will be coming. They can tell you their own levels and classes. My wife is a level 18, Daughter of Redemption. Her guards, Daichi and Rak’kar will also be coming. You will have to ask them for their class information,” Dave rattled off.
Tode looked at Baron Eikhorn first with a raised eyebrow. Steffen answered the unspoken question, “I am a level 29 knight. My son is level 9 and unclassed, and the royal mage is Tier 4, so that is all you need to know about him.”
“I am also Tier 4, and just call me a monk,” Daichi quickly said.
When everyone looked at the minotaur, he only grunted, “Level 29 Bloodied Berserker.”
“So we have War Monster and Rak’kar as the party’s tanks. Lady Emiri and her daughter as the primary healers for each group. I will be the crowd control. Master Gunidar will be the primary magical damage. Baron Eikhorn can fill in as a tank or deal damage while Daichi will be our primary melee damage and back up scout. Ro’Billo will be the primary scout and trap disarmer. The boys will stand guard over the healers and be back up damage. That leaves only you, Baron Murkwood. Don’t think that I forgot you didn’t give us your class or level. You are some kind of fighter based upon your scale mail and sword?”
Dave adopted a smug grin as he said, “I’m a level 29 Arcane Dreadnought.”
“An arcane what?”
“It’s an epic class. Consider me to be a magic based tank,” Dave replied like it was the most obvious thing in the world. Mira noticed her mother nudging him again like she did if she thought he was being rude.
“So you got your class. That’s great Baron, and congratulations on reaching max level. It’s all downhill from here,” Steffen said with a clap on Dave’s back.
“Except it isn’t max level.”
Those few simple words got everyone’s attention. Despite the fact that there were two Tier 4 people here, it was still such a rare thing
as to be noteworthy. “You mean you still have an XP total to reach your next level on your character sheet?”
“Yes, obtaining my class took me most of the way there. I need 281 more XP to hit Tier 4,” Dave said. This time he looked like he was trying to hold back a Cheshire cat grin without very much luck.
Ro’Billo burst forth saying, “Weel, I’ll be a spiderkin’s uncle. Mair Tier 4’s ‘ere than i’ve ever seen in mah life time.”
Tode started giving instructions. Then, as everyone seemed to be unsure what to say next, he said, “Okay, well I guess we should form up parties and then see if we can trigger the dungeon as a raid. Please drop any group that you are in, and be ready for an invite from me.”
Emily spoke up, “There is one last thing. I will have to try and teach Mira another healing spell if she is going to be a primary healer as she only has one healing spell.”
“Nah, it’s not necessary M’lady. Most groups don’t have that much in the way of healers anyway. They are pretty rare. So we have plenty of potions and will make sure that everyone has a few healing spells.”
After that, everyone broke up their groups with Dave, Warmonster, Mira, Steffen, Tabor, and Ro’Billo in one group and Emily, Tode, Daichi, Gunidar, Rak’kar, and Jackson in the other group. Tode suddenly said, “I think it worked, but we will have to try entering the dungeon to be sure.”
At a signal from the guild mage, War Monster walked forward to enter the dungeon but stopped at the entrance and then turned around. “It says that there is a four hour delay while the dungeon is being re-configured.”
Emily said, “Well I guess that I will have time to teach Mira the other healing spells.”
Deep inside the dungeon, the choices made by those outside influenced Eloria even as Eloria shaped those choices. The mana stored within the magicyte veins running through the dungeon walls flared brightly and washed out over the entire dungeon. The pattern of the dungeon remained the same, but every room expanded, and each tunnel that led to a side room instead led to a cluster of three or four rooms. Wherever the surging mana touched any of the dungeon creatures, they fell into a stupor as they were forcibly duplicated.
Altracia’s head lifted and her nostrils flared as she felt the wave of mana surging through the dungeon which had become an extension of her. It wasn’t harming anything, only expanding and duplicating what she had already put into place. When the wave of mana finally reached her, she immediately fell into a deep slumber as a crystal shell formed over her, and her mind and body were split.
All of the dungeons denizens slept as the stored potential of more than fifty years’ worth of man worked its changes. Change was one of the most common forms of conflict in Eloria, and now the dungeon changed to fit what was needed. The blood feud theme was pushed down to secondary status and a new identity took center stage. All was still except the very walls which reformed and moved with the sound of thunder through the newly renamed dungeon: Bastion of Thralls.
Emily was nervous to go back into the dungeon. She felt so much guilt after the death of Sir Tradon. She had to continually remind herself that this was necessary. After she had taught Mira Minor and Lesser Heal, she felt better that there were two proper healers going in. She had no idea about the adventurer but didn’t trust someone named War Monster to be a great healer.
Dave had found her once she and Mira were done. He was gentle but firm in his insistence that this had to be done. Emily trusted Dave deeply but was also aware of the way that he seemed so sure of his power since he returned from the elven lands. Still, it scared her that the entire purpose of this dungeon was to kill her husband. So now she was waiting to follow into the dungeon after the tanks went in. Tanks? Gah. When did I start calling people things like that?
“Tode, Ro’Billo,” War Monster called out right as he was about to enter the dungeon after the four hours had expired.
“Yes?” The mage called back, and every eye was turned towards the large man in his jet black armor.
“The name of the dungeon is changed. Before, it was the Tomb of David Nelson. Now, it reads as Bastion of Thralls.” The nervous tone in the man’s voice couldn’t be ignored.
“Ain’t a thing, we’re here sae we might as well tak a peek,” Ro’Billo said.
At the same time, both Dave and Emily called out, “Stop!” They looked at one another.
“We should–” Dave began. Simultaneously, Emily said, “Let me look–”
Stopping so as not to speak over her, Dave paused. When she stopped, too, he said, “What were you saying?”
Emily simply deferred to him and said, “No, you go first.”
Nodding, Dave said, “We should check the land ruler interface to see if there has been a change in the dungeon.”
Multi-Form Dungeon: Bastion of Thralls
Tier: Unknown Explored: 0%
Scavenger Mode
Survival Mode
Raid Mode
Dave read the interface results to everyone, and Steffen was the first to react. “You, my friend, are going to be so rich. Just remember me when you can buy the moon out of the sky.”
Looking over at Emily, he said, “I already stole the moon.”
Emily felt a flush of warmth wash over her–that was until she heard her eldest daughter say, “Geeze, we get it. Moon elf wife. Can we go now?”
“Okay, everyone in. Two at a time and tanks hold the middle. Everyone else move to the side and keep your eyes open,” Dave ordered. And after a quick nod from Tode, War Monster stepped across the zone line.
Once everyone was inside, they found that the room was nothing like what they had been expecting. It was like a large lobby with stone benches carved into the wall. The stone was all polished marble, and the lighting was much brighter than expected, fueled by floating balls of fire fifty feet in the air. The room was 100 feet on one side without any indication of creatures beyond the raid group.
It was magnificent and far from what had been here before. Emily almost thought that there was an attempt at beautifying this room, although it wasn’t developed very far. Still, she had a headache after zoning in when she lost the 25% land ruler bonus. The sudden feeling of dizziness made it hard to appreciate much of anything. Once the mental and physical fugue started to clear, she looked around a little more.
The far wall from where they had entered had three archways in it, each tunnel a different size. The central tunnel had runes carved into the stone above it, which Emily somehow recognized to mean the word raid. A smaller doorway to the right had the word Survival inscribed in the strange runes above it. To the left was the smallest of the archways at no more than five feet high and three feet wide with the word Scavenger above it. A varying amount of light was spilling in from each of the tunnels, and the brightness and size of the archways was decreasing as they lead to each tunnel.
“So what now, Tode?” Dave asked. Emily heard a new sharp tone in his voice.
“We came for a raid. You have already pointed out how strong this group is, so I don’t see any reason to change things.” Even as he spoke, the mage walked up to the largest archway while running a hand through his thinning red hair.
As soon as he broke the plane of the runed arch, a deep and sibilant voice spoke echoing through the entire room. “Do you wish to enter Raid Mode: Simple Version? None present possess the necessary key to enter the Grand Raid. As this is your first time here, please note that this raid may only be entered by an individual once per seven days if successful or once per 30 days if they failed to complete the full raid on their last attempt.”
Emily and the rest were still as statutes while listening to the voice as it continued, “Available quests: none. See Survival or Scavenger mode for available quests. Raid is only considered completed if the final beast is slain. Additionally, 60% of more of the thralls must be slain. If you die in this quest, you will join the halls of Bastion as a new thrall.”
After the cryptic warning, the voice died off, and everyone beg
an trying to speak at the same time till finally, Ro’Billo was able to whistle loudly enough to get everyone’s attention.
Tode then cast some spell which allowed him to float in the air five feet off the ground. “So my Lady and Lords, are we doing this? I would point that it appears the raid can be failed, which implies that we don’t have to push to the finish. If the going gets too tough, we should be able to leave. Ro’Billo already tested it, and yes we are able to zone back out to the Murkwood.”
Emily looked at Dave. He nodded at her and then said, “It’s okay to proceed,” but as soon as Tode instructed everyone to proceed into the tunnel, Dave yelled out, “Stop! Hold up everyone, for a second.”
It was so abrupt that Emily thought maybe something was wrong with him. “Are you okay, honey?” She asked as she put her hand on his arm.
“Oh nothing. I just realized I kept getting interrupted and forgot to assign my 16 stat points from obtaining my class,” Dave said as his eyes took on a glazed-over look, which she associated with anyone looking at their character sheet.
Behind her, she heard chatter, and one voice that stuck out in the middle of it was Tode’s. “Who forgets to assign four levels worth of stat points?”
A minute later, the voices died down as Dave shuddered and said, “That’s better.”
Emily just looked on as Tode said, “All done, your lordship?”
Dave replied, “Yep, 8 points in Strength and 8 in Intelligence. Might have done it differently if I had more time, but I think that is a good split given how my class affects stats.”
“Um okay, maybe you can tell me more about that later, but now we have a dungeon to defeat,” Tode said with a blend of curiosity and impatience.
After another brief conversation, it was decided that since it would be safe to leave, they would go ahead with this plan. Tode accepted the raid and everyone started moving forward in the agreed upon formation. The tunnel behind the raid archway was twenty feet high and fifteen feet wide. Even more, different from before, it was well lit and made of polished slate rather than the rough stone of the earlier dungeon form. Ro’Billo ranged out in front by only fifty feet, checking for traps. They all paid special attention to looking for pressure plates after having heard Emily’s description of their last foray into the dungeon. Behind him came War Monster and then a few feet behind him came Tode and Rak’kar. Then the healers side by side, each with one of the boys behind them. Next was their monk and wizard side by side. Finally, in the rear were the two back up tanks, Dave and Steffen. Emily had seen how reluctant Dave had been to take this role but had ultimately agreed since he didn’t want any of those less able to take a hit as the rear guard.