As far as Malachite could tell, in his light-headed state, he and the other Fairies weren’t there to be tortured, or held as prisoners for fun. No, it was plainly because they were being sucked dry of the Fairy Mana that automatically regenerated into their bodies…somehow. He didn’t think that was even possible, but it obviously was because nearly every point of Fairy Mana that flowed into him left just as quickly. He estimated that he always had somewhere between half and three-quarters of a Mana in his body, which was why he didn’t pass out completely, but it was close; everything else, though, was gone before he could make use of it.
He quickly realized this was not the same thing that had happened in the dungeon where he and his helpers had been captured. There, he couldn’t even access his Fairy Mana, and it had stopped regenerating altogether. Here, though, he realized that if he just had enough Mana stay in his body, he could use it – but there was never enough. Just the right amount to keep him and the others alive indefinitely, as they could technically live, well, forever if they had at least a tiny bit of Fairy Mana flowing through their bodies.
The prospect of being held there for eternity made the “please kill me or let me die” expressions on the faces of the Fairies around him make a whole lot more sense once he figured out what was going on. He had to admit that the same thought had gone through his own mind, but he refused to give up. Maybe if I knew what they were doing with our Fairy Mana, I could figure out how to stop it.
Unfortunately, whatever they were doing with it was a mystery. As was the rest of the room past the grid-like setup holding all of the Fairies.
It was an all-metal room as far as Malachite could tell, though he couldn’t quite figure out what kind of metal it was – though it looked most like steel. It was rather small, all things considered, especially when there were a half-dozen of the monstrous people that had captured so many Fairies inside, standing around what appeared to be some sort of long desk with multi-colored lights and images seemingly projected into the air. As much as he hated the six-armed invaders, he had to admit that it was impressive watching them use all six hands to manipulate the projections, accomplishing…again, he didn’t know what.
Suddenly, a much larger projection appeared in front and above the heads of the invaders, and Malachite recognized it immediately. It was their world, Gairth, though it was seen at a further distance than the map in their Council chambers. That didn’t last long, however, as the viewpoint of the projection suddenly shot towards the northern part of the continent of Abenlure. Various red marks were quite visible in scattered areas around the northern part of the floating map, and it only took a little jab at his memory to know they indicated the dungeons that had been destroyed. Halfway between the “girdle” of the continent and the bottom edge of the invaders’ progress southward, there was a larger symbol that appeared to be a pair of crossed swords.
There wasn’t a dungeon there; I wonder what that means. Some sort of battle, maybe?
With no way of knowing or deciphering the other glowing symbols that Malachite could only guess was some sort of writing, it was impossible for him to fully grasp what he was seeing. Over the next hour or so – it was hard to tell, as time seemed to drag in his current state – there were some more symbols added to the map in the north, along with some more sections turning colors; from what he could understand, from his knowledge of the Council’s map, the blue markers represented Cores that were still in existence, while the red were ones that were already destroyed. Over and over, the spread of the red color to the south was repeated in different ways, but always it was taking over and converting the blue.
Even in his exhaustion-addled mind, he was able to piece together that he was looking at some likely scenarios for the future, not that it was happening right now. They were scenarios for something that meshed well with the name Tacca had applied to them, which Malachite unconsciously used as well: Invaders. They were planning their invasion of his world, with much of their concentration on the “girdle” of the continent, where dozens or hundreds of different scenarios were obviously considered.
One thing quickly became abundantly clear, as he watched the six-armed group watching the map: They weren’t there to kill everybody. At least, not everyone; the scenarios he watched, while they didn’t make a whole lot of sense, seemed to concentrate on sparing many of the larger cities where the mortal races lived together. Where the majority of their residents weren’t Raiders, but “normal” people who would have no chance against these invaders. Not that Raiders were having much luck, either, from what he’d witnessed and heard about.
Suddenly, something caught his eye on the map. Down to the far south, a glowing blue light appeared where there hadn’t been one before. He immediately recognized its location, and it could only be one Core that was located there: Tacca’s. Why it hadn’t shown up before, nor why there weren’t 6 other lights near it – where Malachite had Translocated the few Dungeon Cores that agreed to leave the north – he didn’t know, but they weren’t there.
Luckily, none of the blue-skinned people seemed to see it, as their focus was concentrated to the north. Another few hours went by as Malachite watched, while the glowing light that indicated Tacca’s Core grew brighter and brighter. When he compared it to many of the other Cores he saw represented, it was somehow almost as bright or brighter than even some of the oldest, highest CI Level Cores in existence. Impossible. How?
Inevitably, one of the invaders finally saw the glow, and all discussion seemed to cease, before there were some raised voices as they pointed at the Wentrylock Mountain Range. Malachite wasn’t sure why they cared about it so much, as they were intent on driving their invasion from the north, but a lot of what they were doing – and why they were doing it – didn’t make a lot of sense to him. After a few minutes of obviously heated discussion, along with a few powerful-looking punches for emphasis, one of the blue-skinned people left the room through a doorway that didn’t exist until it had walked up to it. It was almost as if a portion of the metal wall split into 4 separate sections, which were then sucked into the wall itself.
From his position, he couldn’t see through the doorway, but he got the impression that the invader had entered another room that was much larger than Malachite’s current one. It just left him with more questions, even as the portal through the wall closed once the person was through it, disappearing as if it never existed in the first place.
A minute or so later, the map changed again, with symbols now appearing around the southernmost dungeon on the continent. If he had learned one thing while watching the invaders plan, it was that they were now targeting a particular Core over the others. Why, he still didn’t know, but he thought he might find out if he kept watching.
Oh, Tacca – what did you do? You better be ready, because they’re coming for you.
Chapter 29
The snow didn’t even stick to the outside of the glowing shield that surrounded the blue-skinned invader that barreled through the winter blanket like it was nothing. A few seconds after it appeared, another burst out of the wall of snow, followed by another and another. Tacca didn’t stop to watch them arrive, though, because she was starting to freak out a little.
They’re here! How did they find us?
“I think the better question is what are you going to do about them?” Regina asked, in her clipped tone.
She didn’t know, honestly. Yes, she had some defensive traps that she was hoping would stop them, but there was a lot in between that trap-filled room and the six-armed invaders now entering the Hall. Instead of just a few dozen Raiders, as well as her creatures and traps in between the monstrous people and her Core like last time, there were literally thousands of Raiders and hundreds of non-Raiders in potential danger. From a quick check, she could see that there were still a few hundred in the Hall, most in their rooms, but a few of them were wandering around the hall leisurely, talking and laughing at some joke or another. There were even a few that were i
n somewhat compromising positions in their rooms, which she quickly looked away from, as it wasn’t important right now.
As for the rest of the inhabitants that were staying inside of the mountain, they were in the arena. Currently, there were three very low-Level groups tackling a veritable horde of Canines, which were the weakest three packs that Tacca had set up. She was planning on altering a lot of them with some additions by the other Cores’ creatures, but whether or not she would have a chance to actually do that was looking quite slim at the moment.
Apart from those fighting, everyone else was in the stands, including her Bonded Hill Dwarves. Tacca had found it strange before that they hadn’t participated in any of the fights, but for now she was quite glad because it would’ve likely resulted in them being a target if they were on the arena floor right now.
“What is happening? I just felt all of my Dungeon Force regeneration abruptly stop.”
Tacca didn’t answer Kenzie right away, because her focus was ripped back to the entrance, where she discovered the answer. Behind the 16 blue-skinned forms that had arrived out of the winter blizzard, was not just 1, but 4 of the slightly larger, more intelligent purple invaders. All of them had the same odd metal object strapped to their chests, held in place by straps that looped around their right shoulders. Whereas last time she felt as if her connection to her dungeon suddenly dimmed, behind where the purple figures ran, she didn’t feel the same here.
They, in fact, did absolutely nothing to her. She checked her Dungeon Force regeneration and saw that it was operating normally, with no reduction in what she was receiving.
“I’m losing connection to your dungeon! You really need to work on these things, you know,” Karen commented, letting Tacca know that while she was unaffected, the others certainly were having the same kinds of problems as the first time she had seen these invaders.
Before the assembled group of monstrous people could run further than the first turn in the entrance tunnel, something else emerged from the snow, something that had to duck a little as it strode in, flinging snow everywhere as it seemed to melt off of its glowing shield, or Personal Force Field as David had called them. Dark-red skin accented the bulging muscles of the 8-armed monstrosity that entered, and the gigantic weapons it held gleamed prophetically with a tinge of red on their edges. The 20-foot-tall invader barely fit inside the passageway, but it was able to move swiftly enough as it followed the others into the Hall, where it was able to stand fully erect.
“Tacca, we’ve lost our Invisibility. I take it that means we’ve got company?” Shale abruptly asked, and the Dungeon Core looked inside the arena to see her Dungeon Assistant surrounded by 6 other frightened Fairies, all visible near the ceiling. There wasn’t any reason to worry, though, because it was doubtful any of those down below could see them, even if they looked up. Besides, now wasn’t really the time to worry about revealing their presence—
Shale! I need you to fly down and talk to Sterge and Gwenda! Tell them that the invaders are here, and they’re all in danger.
“But that would violate the most important rule we have—”
Screw the rules, Shale! We don’t have time to play around; not only are there blue and purple-skinned invaders, but there’s one of those gigantic red-skinned ones, as well!
What little color that was in Shale’s face immediately drained at her words, and his Mood Clothes turned yellow in fear, along with black for despair. Go!
A half-second hesitation later, Shale was zooming down toward the stands, where Tacca’s two Bonded Hill Dwarves were located, along with the rest of their group. Tacca turned her attention away and addressed both the other Dungeon Assistants and their respective Cores.
Those invaders we were just talking about are here, and we’re all in danger. I don’t have nearly enough traps in my defensive room to stop all of them, even if that horrendously large one can’t fit through my nearby tunnels. You aren’t safe, either, because I’ve seen them float out of a pit before, so the tunnel in the ceiling of the arena won’t stop them because of its location. Not only that, but for you Fairies, you’ll find that you cannot use any of your abilities, as well as having your Fairy Mana regeneration stopped.
She spoke to them quickly, because she was also focused on the progress of the group of 21 invaders now in the Hall. Screams from those few dozen Raiders also inside of the Hall echoed through the space as they ran away from the sight, especially the 20-foot-tall demon-esque visage of the red-skinned invader. It didn’t take long for their escape to prove futile, unfortunately, as the residents inside the Hall were quickly caught and killed, slaughtered without difficulty. A few Raiders attempted to defend themselves, only for the weapons of their adversaries to cut through any type of armor, weapon, or ability they used, severing limbs and literally cutting people in half.
Thankfully, they didn’t even inspect any of the rooms, even the ones where curious heads popped out to see what was going on. Instead, after every victim that was fully out in the Hall was dead, they headed unerringly for the tunnel leading to the arena. For the first time, she regretted making it so large, because the red-skinned invader fit inside, though it had to nearly crouch-walk in order to move through. She had made it that way because she wanted there to be plenty of room for the thousands of Raiders to walk down the passageway, instead of a narrow tunnel that would’ve likely caused unnecessary bottlenecks. Still, she needn’t have made it so tall, she supposed.
“What do we do, then? Just wait for them to destroy us?”
I’m…not sure. We have some time before they arrive at the arena, but it won’t be long. Start sending all of your creatures down the connecting tunnel, and if you have any Control Limit left, create some more. We’re going to need all the help we can get.
“Why? Who cares if all of these Raiders die, when it’s likely that we’re going to be shattered not too soon after.” Even though it was callous of Patrick to say that about the Raiders, he did have a point, and Tacca could tell that he wasn’t the only Core that felt that way. What they didn’t understand was that this wasn’t just about their own well-being, but for something that she had marginally planned for, in the event it took place.
Don’t think of them as Raiders right now, can you do that? They are people, people that us Cores are supposed to challenge so that they can get stronger, while at the same time helping us get stronger. We’re all in this together, even if it doesn’t look like it most of the time. That alone was reason enough to build all of this: the Hall, the farms, and the arena. But it wasn’t the only reason.
“What do you mean?” Kenzie asked.
I desperately hoped that these invaders would stay up north and not attack my dungeon again, but I didn’t count on it. That’s why I built my heavily trapped defensive room, which you’ve all seen – though it would be rather insignificant to a threat like this. Which was why, when I heard from my 2 Bonded Hill Dwarves that they needed a place to stay, I jumped at the opportunity.
Because now, albeit it was only supposed to be temporary through the winter, I have some additional help against these monsters. Like I said, don’t think of these Raiders here as Raiders; think of them as thousands of dangerous creatures that are here to help defend us. We need to do whatever we can to support them, otherwise there is nothing preventing these things from reaching us.
There was silence as the other Cores considered what she said, while the invaders raced down the tunnel toward the arena. They had a few minutes until they arrived at the massive room, which didn’t give them a ton of time.
“I see. Did you happen to acquire information pertaining to an attack on your dungeon beforehand?” Regina asked.
No, but when you have the kind of luck that I have, I wanted to plan for the worst and hope for the best. And since we’re all part of my “Shared Risk”, it wouldn’t surprise me that you all share my well-proven bad luck.
“And I told you that it isn’t necessarily bad luck, Tacca, no matter wh
at you say,” Shale interjected, already back from his conversation with Sterge and Gwenda, which she had missed entirely. “They’re spreading the word and will be ready. Do you have a plan?”
Sure enough, the excitement of the crowd died down as screams of fear echoed through the arena, but they were drowned out by the sound of thousands of Raiders arming themselves and getting ready for battle. Not that Tacca had much hope for them, being relatively low-Level and weak in comparison, but there was a strength in numbers; that had been proven by Tacca herself when her creatures had been able to overwhelm the first paired group of Raiders in the arena and managed to kill one, even if they were far below in Level.
Once they arrive, I’m going to release all of my creatures at once, giving them instructions to kill the invaders first. After that, I will have no control over them – which, my new friends, is another little handicap that you may or may not have noticed and you’ll probably be affected by, as well.
“Great; you sold us a lemon here in this deal. I need a refund. I want to speak to your—"
Enough. We need to work together in order to succeed. Send your creatures as fast as you can, because that is the only way this will work.
Tacca just hoped that was true, because she still wasn’t sure what they could do to kill all of those arriving at the arena within a few minutes. True, they had numbers on their side, but so did that enormous army of Raiders that had attacked to the north, and they had sadly failed to kill more than a few of the blue-skinned invaders. When she added in the purple and red-skinned monsters, it seemed hopeless.
The other Cores grudgingly agreed, and a wide variety of creatures started to stream down the tunnel at full speed; whether or not they would arrive in time was another question, but they were moving as fast as they could. Even if they made it in time, Tacca was more than worried that it wouldn’t be enough.
The Dungeon Fairy: Three Lives: A Dungeon Core Escapade (The Hapless Dungeon Fairy Book 3) Page 27