Wandering Dungeon

After the umpteenth time around his green lit prison, Garrett spotted something new. A small perfectly round stone lay at the very edge of his invisible cage.

When did that get there? He thought. When he floated over to the stone, he realized that his bubble, that is what he started calling the space he could move in, had grown. Not by a lot but by an inch or two maybe. He was ecstatic with the knowledge that he may eventually be able to roam out far enough to see where he was.

His attention returned to the stone and noticed that it gave off a slight, almost imperceptible, white glow. He stared at it trying to decide what to do with it for a few hours? Minutes? Garrett wasn’t sure how long in the never changing green light. The smooth, plain grey stone was slightly larger than the glowing green gem that acted as the center of his bubble. He finally decided to pick up the rock and see if it would do anything, but nothing. It just hovered there suspended by his will.

He thought it would be something to explore later when he got bored again and decided to put it in his inventory.

Acquired Lesser Sun stone

Quality: Poor

Produces light equivalent to a torch while mana is provided

A small blue square of text popped up in front of him when he had placed the small stone into his Inventory. He pulled the stone out letting it float in the air in front of him and suddenly he knew how to activate it. This instinctive knowledge explained that all living things absorb mana from their surroundings and store it in their bodies, albeit slowly. The mana can then be accessed to provide various effects. Garret was excited for the possibilities and couldn’t wait to try to play with the mana he now knew he could access. The only problem was that the blue screen was still there.

Is this thing going ever going to go away? He thought, but the square stayed. No matter where he looked the box followed and blocked his view. Gah, just go away he thought angrily at the box. The blue square of text disappeared with a bubble-like pop.

Well, that was a bit too easy. He chided himself for not thinking of that before. He refocused on the stone and imagined a string going from what he imagined was the pool of mana in his floating body to it. Slowly a small fuzzy line of green light a little darker than the surrounding light extended from him toward the stone. The string of mana connected to the rock and surrounded the rock in the same green glow, but nothing happened. He thought about the information that had flowed through his mind when he put the stone into his inventory.

He realized that he had to not just direct mana to the stone but to instruct it to infuse into the rock and activate the enchantment deep within the stone. He imagined the green light around the rock seeping in like rain into dry soil.

The light soaked into the stone, sinking into the center. The stone lit up with a bright light startling Garrett. He stared into the pure white light given off by the stone and marveled at the idea that this little stone produced so much light. He had a weird thought that he had seen something else produce light without flame. He had a brief vision of a small glowing orb suspended near the ceiling of a room he couldn’t remember.

Odd. He thought as he looked up from the stone. His eyes widened in surprise, or they would have if he had them. Thanks to the light from the stone, he could see past the green light he had gotten used to.

He saw that he was near the back of a small circular cave roughly twenty feet across. A few old and broken boxes and barrels lined the shadowy walls to his right while a dark tunnel led out of the room to his left. He saw a skeleton laying by the crates, a sword thrust through its ribcage. Garett turned around looking at the cave, excited to see something besides the all-pervasive green and bland stone he had been living with for who knows how long.

He saw a few more barrels and boxes behind him just outside of his bubble. Some of them were even unbroken. Garrett wondered what could be in them. He floated as close to one of the broken boxes as his bubble would allow, the stone forgotten in his excitement. He peered inside the box and saw only darkness.

Damn, he thought. If only there was a bit more light.

Garrett then realized he was an idiot and looked back at the sun stone where he had left it still floating in the air near the other end of the bubble of green light. He pulled the sun stone to him making the shadows from the boxes and crates in the cave dance wildly to his enjoyment. When the sun stone reached him, he looked back into the box and saw a few old, near petrified apples and what looked like hard biscuits.

Nothing Exciting. Garrett thought sadly.

He continued moving around the cave with the stone in tow admiring everything he could. He stared at the boxes and barrels wondering what mysteries could be inside. He imagined what could have happened to the poor skeleton that was stabbed, envisioning two sword fighting skeletons having a duel. He even marveled at a few small mushrooms he saw growing from a small crack in the wall, small silver streaks running through their blue caps.

Garrett heard something coming from the tunnel to the cave he was in.

“Where the hell is it?” Garrett heard someone huff in a high-pitched voice.

Garrett was intrigued, yet worried. Had someone finally found him and was going to steal his gold, or worse, the green gem he seemed to be bound to. He dropped the sun stone and floated to the edge of his range hoping to get a glimpse of this newcomer before they spotted him. The room outside his bubble dropped into darkness as the mana was suddenly cut off from the stone.

“Ah ha, here you are.” The voice said. “I’ve been looking for you for a while now.”

Garrett watched as a small woman flew into his bubble. She was about twice as tall as one of the gold coins he enjoyed spinning around. She had translucent wings fluttering behind her so fast they were a blur. She had bright green eyes and brown hair cut short with a faux hawk on top. She was dressed in what looked like leather armor.

She floated over to Garrett’s small green gem and stared at it. “Well? Anything to say?” she asked.

Garrett was confused. She flew right past him without a second glance and now she was talking to the glowing green stone.

“Great.” She huffed and crossed her arms. “I get stuck with a new one that can’t even talk yet.”

"Hello?" Garrett tried saying.

“So, you can talk. Perfect. That will make things go a lot faster.”

"Why wouldn’t I be able to talk?" Garret asked.

“New dungeon cores usually take a few decades after being born before they can talk and think rationally.”

Garret found it a little weird to be talking to someone’s back while they talked to a gem, so he floated over and hovered in front of the small flying lady. Now comfortably staring her in the face, Garret asked, "what does that have to do with me?"

She sighed in frustration. “You are a dungeon core.” She pointed to the green gem laying on the ground. “That is proof. That is your core. All dungeons have one that houses their soul.

“So as a newly awakened dungeon you probably have a lot of questions. Go ahead and ask. I will answer as best I can. Then we can start.”

"Are you a fairy?" Garrett wondered.

Indignation flashed across her face. “What?” She yelled. “Do I look like some docile, tree hugging, flower frolicker to you?” She crossed her arms and glared at the green gem that was Garret’s core. “I am a pixie.”

"Is there a difference between a fairy and a pixie?" Garrett asked innocently.

Blixie growled. “Of course, there’s a difference, you idiot.” She huffed as she ineffectively stomped her foot in the air. “Fairies live in the forest in harmony with nature. They don’t fight and are rather weak. That’s what they want people to think at least. They don’t attack people but love to pull pranks and lure people into traps and let monsters kill people for them. They are cowards that prey on the weak minded and soft hearted.” She spat.

“Pixies, on the other hand, don’t trick people with honey filled lies. We are an honorable race. We challenge ourselves and others to be better. Pixies travel the world and interact with other races through trade and cooperation.”

"Sorry for offending you." Garrett said. "I didn’t know."

“It’s fine.” She sighed. “You are newly awakened so I shouldn’t be mad that you don’t know the difference between races yet.”

"What is your name?" Garret asked trying to alleviate the uncomfortableness in the air.

“My name is Blixie.” She said proudly, head held high and hands on her hips.

Garrett Laughed. "Blixie the Pixie?"

Blixie huffed. “Well, what is your name mister mighty dungeon?”

Garret took a minute to calm his laughter. "My name is Garrett, I think. It’s nice to meet you."

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Blixie said with a bow. “But what do you mean you think your name is Garrett?”

"It was the only name I could think of when I woke up in this place." Garrett responded.

“Well, alright Garrett. That’s not the oddest name I’ve heard for a dungeon. Kind of plain though so we will have to spice it up when adventurers start coming through.”

"What are some of the other names you have heard of?" Garrett asked.

Blixie started naming off dungeons while counting on her fingers. “Well, there is the dungeon of Simpan, the dungeon of Abdulax, the dungeon of Axmltrzlnp, but no one goes there now since people can’t pronounce the name. My favorite though is the dungeon of flowers and rainbows Partasti.”

"Why is that last one your favorite? It sounds like one made for fairies."

“Because the rainbows appear after the rain of its victim’s blood and the flowers are nourished by their bodies. Plus, the flowers look like they have faces.” Blixie laughed.

"That sounds horrible. Why would anyone want to go there?" Garrett said with concern.

“It’s one of the oldest and toughest dungeons around and has unique items that can only be found there. So, there are always people trying to prove they are the strongest or just want to sell the items they find inside and live the life of a king.”

"If so many people are going through it, wouldn’t it be empty of stuff by now if it is so old?"

Blixie burst out laughing while holding her sides. Garret didn’t think he made a joke or said anything funny, so why was she laughing like he had.

"What’s so funny?" Garret asked.

“Empty dungeon.” Blixie got out between laughs. “Everyone knows dungeons replenish everything inside of themselves after adventurers dive through them. Even newborn dungeons instinctively replenish themselves to lure in adventures.”

"Why would dungeons just create things for people to take?"

Blixie stopped laughing and stared at Garret’s core then looked up and carefully examined the room she was in. She noticed the rough, uneven floor and walls, the random broken boxes, and even the skeleton with the sword stuck through it. Her jaw dropped. “How? How could this be? I was sent by the council. This should have been a relatively easy assignment.” Blixie mumbled to herself.

"Council? Assignment? What do you mean Blixie?" Garret asked.

“The council is a group of elder fey that assign other fey, like myself, to dungeons that have achieved a certain level and received awareness and the ability of self-actualization.” Blixie mumbled.

"I don’t quite understand what you mean. Could you please explain?"

“Well, I was sent here to teach you the things you didn’t know. I just didn’t think that I would have to teach you everything.” Blixie growled. She sighed in resignation. “I guess we will just have to start from the beginning then.” Blixie sighed. Exasperated she sat down, which Garrett found quite funny since she was still flying.

“A dungeon core is formed when mana concentrations reach a certain level in an area and condense into a stone or gem that is then infused with a soul. For the first few years or so the dungeon acts on instincts to slowly increase their zone of influence and build a few rooms. To gain experience and build up some levels for themselves the dungeons have various low-level monsters that roam these rooms killing off animals and the occasional unlucky people that wander in.”

"So where do the souls come from? Are they just ripped out of some poor person walking around?"

“Gods forbid no. That would just be cruel. The souls come from people that have recently died or that have been sacrificed nearby. I have heard of some dungeon souls being devout followers of the gods that have done something to further a god’s religion, they see it as a sort of reward. Although the gods usually only influence the world through small blessings, except for maybe Bracktha the Insane but he is usually playing around with creating monsters like a duck-beaver hybrid or weird things like that.

Once the dungeon reaches a certain level, usually level five, the mana has fused the soul fully with the gem and the dungeon awakens. At this point the council elders would send a guide to teach the newly awakened soul how to best utilize the new abilities it receives, act as an adviser, and to help the dungeon not go crazy with power or boredom.”

But it doesn’t really matter how you got here. What matters is what you do from here on out. So, let’s make you the best dungeon you can be.”

"What are these levels you keep talking about?"

“Every sentient creature is born with a magic that gives them a numerical representation of their physical attributes and power, including magic and special traits. This appears as a panel that only they, or those bound to them, can see. The color and exact look of the panel is different from creature to creature. You absorb a small amount of the accumulated power, called experience, whenever you kill something. When enough experience is accumulated you increase in level and the magic allows you to increase your physical attributes or learn new spells and ways to manipulate mana.”

"If it helps me do more than float around the small area I can right now then I guess I might as well try to level up as you call it, but do I really have to kill people to do that. It just feels wrong to kill someone for no reason."

“Is it wrong when a human kills a deer to cloth and feed their family?” Blixie asked.

"Well, no. They are just trying to survive." Garrett responded.

“Exactly, its survival. Deer eats grass, human eats deer, Dungeon eats human.” Blixie stated.

The image of a cave growing teeth and gobbling up some unfortunate person flashed through Garretts mind. "What do you mean dungeon eats human? How do they eat them?" Garrett asked.

“When something dies inside the dungeon it absorbs the body along with all the items it has, and a small portion of the creatures accumulated experience.” Blixie explained. “In other words, the higher the level of creature that dies inside the dungeon the more experience is gained by the dungeon, but it takes greater amounts of experience to increase in level the higher level you are.”

"But does it have to involve killing or is there another way to gain experience? I would rather not have to kill anyone." Garrett asked dejectedly.

“Well,” Blixie pondered “Dungeons can receive tiny amounts of experience from creatures that spend time in the dungeon, but most things don’t survive or stay inside the dungeon long enough for the dungeon to really benefit from the experience.”

Garrett sighed in resignation.

“But,” Blixie interjected trying to cheer Garrett up. “I did hear about a dungeon a long time ago that made large floors that were a spiral design to try and maximize the time people stayed inside it. It even had a massive labyrinth as one of the floors. Unfortunately, it took so long to get through and people got lost quite frequently, so they stopped going. Eventually the dungeon was lost to time, so dungeon guides only mention it as a warning. Besides, other dungeons don’t care if they kill people.”

"All right then." Garrett said a little disheartened. "Where should we start." He just wanted to distract himself and learning something new sounded like a great way to do it.

“Right, first thing is to make the heart of the dungeon.” Blixie said excitedly.

"Isn’t that done already?" Garrett asked. "I thought the core was the heart of the dungeon."

Blixie tsked and waggled her finger at Garretts core. “The core is the core. It could be thought of as the soul of the dungeon because if it is destroyed the dungeon dies. It doesn’t matter what happens to the rest of the dungeon. The heart of the dungeon is where the core resides. It lies at the very center of a dungeons sphere of influence and is the most protected room of the dungeon.”

"I guess that makes sense. So how do we make it?"