The Dungeon Without a System

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Unnamed Cove, Medea Island, The Kalenic Sea

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Haythem stood and stared, stunned, when the group of guilders following The Voice came upon the gathering army in the jungle. There were a dozen different kinds of 'Children' milled about. Each of The Voice's guards proved to be representatives of their species, rather than one-off monsters. He didn't see any like The Voice, but he supposed she was one such one-off monster.

Apart from those he'd already seen, there were some normal-looking monsters mixed in with the armor-wearing and weapon-wielding 'Children.' Three different kinds of rabbits hopped about; The kind with antlers worked to widen clearings by causing the trees themselves to shift in place, the single-horned ones seemingly postured amongst each other, and the winged rabbits flew between branches. There were rats everywhere, like a living tide that moved and breathed. He worried about stepping on one at first, but they proved aware enough to move away from his path.

There were Tigers, of course, with their Kobold handlers. But there was another cat-like creature. These ones were golden, and practically glowed whenever a beam of sunlight struck one. They had tear-drop like markings across their fur. They were just as large as the tigers, but these creatures had no handlers, and Haythem was therefore far warier of them.

Then there were the manabeings.

Most of the basic elements were represented with the notable exception of Water. Earth, Wind and Fire had a sizeable contingent, with only Metal and Shadow representing the second tier elements. Each Court was represented by an Elemental. The Earth elemental was composed of black granite, a common rock found on the island. Its smooth, featureless face turned slowly. The Wind Elemental was huge. It stood thrice the size of the other elementals, and was composed of thick grey clouds that circled and cycled around its body, giving it shape and definition. A feminine shape, but he wouldn't be fooled. Manabeings had no genders.

Haythem realized the Air Elemental must have been one of the names The Voice had said were directing the storm. That this manabeing could control such a storm, even with two others aiding it... He felt a thrill of fear run down his spine. The Fire Elemental was familiar to him, but the female-shaped bonfire had seemingly changed its color palette. Where it'd once been composed of yellow and orange flame, now it was a deep blue, with a white core. He noticed that the leaf-covered jungle floor was uncharred beneath it.

The Metal Court was represented by five beings, each reminiscent of the Fifth's Guardian. Smooth, gleaming metal bodies that morphed and warped into a variety of limbs and weapons. There were two whose skin was akin to copper, and had a feminine shape. The other three were gleaming silver, though one had a slight glow to it. The Shadow Court, Haythem was well acquainted with. He could barely see them, but they lingered in the deep shadows of the trees around them.

The Guilders were assigned to squads of Children, rather than being left in a group on their own. Haythem and Bertram were grouped with a reddish-brown 'Drake-kin' named Rustclaw, a Capriccio called Baanarama and a 'Sunlion.' Those were the golden cat creatures, and he found the name appropriate.

They'd quickly been shuffled into a formation and positioned by the jungle's edge. From his position behind a tree, Haythem glimpsed Bahrain transport ships sailing directly at the beach. About thirty of them, with a similar number hanging back. When the Bahrain had fully committed, their soldiers dismounted from their transports, the signal was given; the Fire elemental launching itself into the air, chasing the flying enemy mage.

They charged, and the melee was... frantic. He couldn't remember much of those first few minutes.

Haythem cut down another Bahrain with a diagonal slash, then backed up as the dead man's vengeful fellow soldiers swung back at him. Their strikes were intercepted by the red-brown scaled Drake-kin beside him, quickly followed by a trio of bright orange beams which cut the remaining enraged invaders down. Haythem nodded to Bertram and the Drake-kin as the next group of Bahrain rushed forward.

Before the Bahrain could close the full distance, they sunk into the sand to their hips in less than a second. Haythem stepped forward, and with a cleave he beheaded the front three in one swing. The Capriccio in their group bounced on the head of a fourth, while Bertram crushed the head of another with his mace. The Sunlion burned a hole in the sixth, while the Drake-kin swung its claymore-sized sword to cut the seventh and final soldier vertically in half. Certainly unnecessary, and extremely gory, but Haythem found himself not particularly caring.

These people had killed Flasa. They'd robbed him of her. Of her smile. Of the life they could have spent together, If he'd just seen what she meant to him, earlier. Though he'd long relieved her killers of their lives, he found the void in him... unfulfilled.

The mixed group of monsters and guilders pulled back, and a fresher group of fighters moved into their place. Haythem took the moment's rest to observe the battle. By far, the majority of beings on the beach were monsters. Children, he thought he'd heard The Voice refer to them; The Children of the Creator. Given their new... political situation, it was probably best to stop thinking of them as 'monsters.'

Children, Court and Guilder fought together that day, and Haythem found it not as strange as he expected.

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The Creator, Medea Island, The Kalenic Sea

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I watched through the eyes of hundreds of Children and Monsters as they repelled the invasion force that'd made it to the beach. I was in a half-way point between my 'diffused' and 'focused' states, and I was realizing it was more of a slider than I'd thought. Taking advantage of that, I gave nudges and warnings when I saw something happening that the monsters normally wouldn't have.

This was the first large-scale battle my Children were fighting as the main participants, and they were proving their effectiveness. Minotaurs and Scorpans were tanks, drawing attention and delivering heavy blows. The few Capriccio in the fight mimicked Baastet; staying light on their feet and disrupting the soliders that attempted to group up. Drake-kin and Kobolds were the bulk of my forces, and they synergized splendidly. The Drake-kin were the big obvious targets, covering for the much shorter Kobolds who ran around at waist-height, causing chaos.

Shamans and mages worked with Unihares to disrupt and target enemy mages, their homebrewed spells unexpected and unprepared for, catching the Bahrain off-guard. From the ocean Snowbolds and Crabs came, performing a pincer formation and attacking the Bahrain's vulnerable back line. The Jackalopes and Winged Hares remained in the treeline, and picked off any Bahrain that managed to get through the battle. There were only three that managed it, and they were swiftly dealt with.

My Children were supported by the Courts and their monarchs. The Shadow Court worked with and empowered the shadow-rats, who cut ankles and tendons from the enemy's very shadows. The Earth court sank whole squads into the sand, leaving them vulnerable. The few Fire Manabeings worked around the edge of the fight.

The Guilders were there too. Though they were uncomfortable to begin with, surrounded by so many monsters; amongst unknown species even! But they knew the monsters were on their side, and filled in the gaps in my formations easily.

In the sky, Kata and Igna tag-teamed the Fire Archon. He was having a far harder time fighting them than his last battle. Igna was quick to cancel any magic that got far enough away from him, and being made of fire herself I'm sure he never expected to even touch her. He was left with attempting to melee Kata, but she was agile enough to play keep-away.

He tried disengaging at one point, skimming the ocean and producing a steaming cover as he went. He emerged from the steam flying the way he came, but this time uncontrolled. He skipped on the ocean a few times, but eventually got his feet under him and launched into the air again. He was quickly reengaged by Kata and Igna.

When the steam cleared, it revealed a masculine figure rising from the water, made of water itself. A water Spirit. I'd given a couple of the more powerful water sprites Potentium bodies before the battle, and this one had evolved during the storm. Given he was a water spirit, surrounded by his element... I've no doubt he slapped Izza hard. The spirit sank into the ocean, where it almost disappeared. It looked like it was part of the water around it, but the moment it moved the whorls and eddies its movement caused were obvious. They gave it a defined outline.

The remnants of the Bahrain fleet were being harried by a selection of my most deadly birds. Seagulls performed dive-bombing operations, while Stympalion Vultures targeted officers with pin-point accuracy and Phoenixes burned those putting up too much resistance. They were also attacked from below; large fish and sharks doing their best to break open a hole in the hulls. Those sailors who tried to jump overboard to escape the birds found a far worse fate beneath the waves.

All in all, the Bahrain never stood a chance.

Izza, the Fire Archon, soon realized fighting was futile. The fleet was lost. The invasion force slaughtered, and the faint hope they could win was extinguished. He surrendered, and the moment he stood upon the corpse-strewn beach a mana-draining collar was clamped around his neck. The same was done with the other ten mana-enhanced Bahrain who surrendered.

The battle had taken less than an hour. The few captured soldiers were gathered and led back to the port through the jungle under heavily armed escort. Said escort was comprised of mostly Guilders, along with Kata, her guards, and a selection of the more exceptional Children. Now away from the human's prying eyes, the glaciers created by Ice magic and Wave's breath were melted, letting a selection of Children board and sail them away.

This was my favorite new exploit.

A huge ring of water-sprites, led by the water Spirit, opened portals beneath and to the side of the sailing ships. To those Children still on the beach, it looked like the ships fell sideways, disappearing beneath the waves with nary a splash. On the Eleventh, those same ships spontaneously rose from portals which closed behind them. The only thing the maneuver was missing was a flash of green and to have happened at sunset.

I'd had the same done for the ships stolen by my crab pirates, and Wave was happy to dive into one made especially for him.

The corpses were gathered and carried off to a side-entrance hidden in the jungle, eventually making their way down to the experimental chambers on the Fifth. Children returned to their homes, and any humans who checked the beach would find no evidence a battle had even taken place. I couldn't do the same to Obsidian beach without raising questions I wasn't going to answer.

And that was that. The invasion, thwarted. All that was left was to declare the island under my protection, independent of any other polity.

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The Fortified Mansion, Medea Island, The Kalenic Sea

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Kata stood before the ex-lord's throne in his audience hall. It was well-decorated, more than she'd have expected of the throne of a mere baron. Carved of the same black granite everything else on the island used, this was far more worked. It gleamed, polished to a reflective shine. On its seat was a plush cushion, one which looked incredibly soft and well-crafted.

Kata turned, and sat.

It was incredibly comfortable.

Gathered in the hall were the most powerful Guilders on the island, the Platinums and the Guild's high-level staff, as well as the most powerful Children on the surface. Kata recognized most of those present, though the terrified-looking well-dressed woman was new. Kata took a breath, and felt The Creator's presence bloom in the back of her mind.

"With the invasion repelled, and no immediate threats to the island extant, agreements and statements were made this morning which need addressing," Kata began. Mumbled conversation quickly stopped, and the crowd turned to face her. The Creator felt pleased at the Guilders and Children standing amongst each other, rather than standing against the walls in separate groups.

"The Phenoc Kingdom is defunct. While heirs no doubt exist, they'll be the descendants of third sons and daughters, propped up as the legitimate heir by Dukes vying for power and control. As of today, Medea Island is independent. The Creator has claimed the surface for his own, and the former Lord Medean was unwilling to work with Him. The former lord has been removed from power, and will be returned to his father when a ship is available." She stopped as the unknown woman stepped forward. The Creator whispered in her ear that this was the Lady Medean, and that she'd been quite reclusive in the last month.

"What is to become of us?" The noble woman asked, hands cradling the small bump on her belly. Well, that was... something.

"You have a choice. You can follow your lord husband to the mainland; I am sure the Count Medean will be glad to receive you, carrying his son's child as you are. You could return home to your father, though I'm sure that'll cause friction with the Medean family. Your final option is to stay. As a new nation, we will be opening relations with the mainland duchies. You could act as an ambassador for your father. The Dungeon produces a bounty I'm sure he'd be pleased to have beneficial tariffs on."

Lady Medean seemed overwhelmed. "I must beg my leave, Voice of The Creator. I will have my answer within a day." Kata nodded, and the woman left, escorted by a few awkward-looking guards. As one of the few normal humans in the room, Kata had no doubt they were feeling powerless. She gathered herself, then made her declaration.

"As this island is no longer ruled by the Medeans, I hereby rename this island Atlantis, after an ancient island kingdom of the same name. As our nation will not be a kingdom, since our ruler is not a king, it will be known as The Creator's Dominion!"

The Children in the court burst into cheers, and there was more subdued clapping from the Guilders.

But they still clapped.

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