Dungeon Wars

by Jeffrey Logue

  “Claire, what happened to those legendary slime?” Rowen pressed, his scholarly spirit reasserting itself.

  “Obviously they were defeated,” Claire snorted. “Ignoring the two of your situations, all slimes are, mostly, complete idiots lacking any brains. Even a doppelganger slime can only mimic being a human. Its lack of original ideas led to a civil war that ultimately resulted in its destruction. A lich slime can raise vast armies of undead, but its lack of intelligence resulted in complete defeat when its army didn’t have any orders besides move forward and attack. Really, a slime versus a dragon in any form is just asking for trouble. Not that a slime cannot gain intelligence, but normally that particular property is independent of strength.”

  “As pleasing as this story is, can you explain our powers as bosses?” Anadine prompted. “Neither Rowen nor I have any problems with our intelligence, beyond what landed us here in the first place, right?” She chuckled at her joke, but behind her, Rowen’s body darkened visibly.

  “Right.” Claire shook her head. “Anyway, as dungeon bosses, one of the abilities both of you possess is that you can summon your own minions into battle. Normally Doc would do that for you, but since he’s like a used candle right now, you must rely on your own reserves of mana to do so. You can summon any slime in your family weaker than you, but only if Doc has unlocked it first. For you, Anadine, that would be the lesser mimic slime family. For you. Rowen, the grey slimes. Keep in mind, though, that if you use too much mana, you’ll fall asleep until you regenerate it or you’ll die. One or the other.

  “To summon your minions,” Claire continued, “concentrate your mana into a part of your outer slime. With the image of what you desire in mind, break off the bit of slime where your mana lies, and it will transform into a slime. Your magic will become its core.”

  “So, in other words, making too many minions would result in us losing a lot of slime, rather than losing all our mana,” Rowen observed.

  “For slimes, that’s the same thing,” Claire shrugged. “You turn your mana into slime and store the excess in your core. If the two of you ever grow into queen slimes, then you’ll gain the power to bud off slimes naturally without using so much mana.”

  “Yeah, not planning on that,” Rowen said dryly. “Queen isn’t a title that suits me, but I am interested in my minions. Let me give it a try.”

  Rowen moved his body back and forth, up and down, and all around, but nothing happened. He rather resembled a living, jiggling pudding.

  “Here, little brother, like this,” Anadine demonstrated. Creating a tentacle, the former adventurer gathered a pinch of slime and pinched it off. The blue slime landed on the dungeon floor and vibrated softly. Inside, everyone watched as a black slime core came into being. The blue slime turned slightly purple and grew ant legs and mandibles.

  “Great, you made a bug-type, lesser mimic slime!” Claire declared in elation. “How do you feel?”

  “I think I can make four more without needing to rest,” Anadine reasoned as she examined her body. “You understand what I did little brother?”

  “Stop calling me that, already,” Rowen grunted as he spawned a bone slime in the same way as Anadine. “What, do you have a brother complex or something? “

  “I’ve only ever had older brothers, so this is a fun new experience for me,” Anadine admitted.

  “Whatever. Just don’t involve me in any of your weird fantasies,” Rowen growled.

  “Alright, children.” Claire clapped her hands. “If the two of you are done, it’s monster massacre time. Please be sure to leave as many pieces behind as possible so Doc can work on unlocking new slimes. Start on the third floor and work up. Good luck!”

  “Kill them all,” Doc ordered.

  “You’re rather aggressive today, aren’t you, Doc?” Claire observed, a tinge of concern dancing at her eyes. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

  “. . . I didn’t like how my bosses were killed,” Doc said as he watched Anadine and Rowen leave with their new minions. Privately, the echoes still rang in his mind.

  “I am sorry you had to see the results,” Claire comforted him, flying up to pat his crystal. “It’s different having them die to other monsters than adventurers. Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it.”

  Will I? And, do I want to?

  These words rang in Doc’s mind as he turned his attention to the scene of his remaining slime bosses, not realizing for a moment that his thoughts had been heard. A pair of eyes trembled and disappeared, with the sleeping worgs twitching in their sleep.

  Chapter 4

  A large forest lion with green and brown fur creeped through the undergrowth, keeping a sharp guard on its surroundings with each paw step. An old fighter, the large cat understood an unknown danger approached, silently like the shadows.

  The forest lion had been hunting in when an irresistible scent wafted up from the forest floor. It was the scent of spilled blood, from a source the lion had never encountered before. By itself, the scent would merely be attractive to the lion, perhaps inviting caution against a larger hunter’s kill.

  However, it had felt the change in the forest. It was instinctual, but every creature understood when the call came. A stronger, smarter monster released a scent into the air. It mixed into the scent of blood, a sweet honey scent that made the lion’s mouth water. It quickly joined the horde of monsters that surged toward the source of the smell. The hierarchy of the forest demanded it.

  The scent came from a cave in the forest, one that had not been there before. Neither the lion nor the other hunters cared for this and charged right in. Inside, there were odd colored slimes, weak monsters the lion could easily kill on its own. They stood no chance against the horde of creatures that poured into the cave.

  Deeper inside the cave, the lion found a vast cavern filled with plant life, faintly illuminated by various lights along the outer wall. It also found that there was nothing to eat. The scent had been a lie. With that realization, the many hunters set upon the weaker animals attracted by the scent, and chaos ensued. The lion had been forced away by a pack of forest wolves, slinking into the undergrowth in order to save its strength. The killing didn’t last long, and the winners devoured their prey. The lion stole a carnivorous deer from a smaller lion and ate well.

  Following the feast, most of the hunters had left the cavern, heading back to the forest. The old lion stayed, however. During its many years of life, it had never seen such a lush cavern. The air was fresh, and much prey had scattered throughout the cave once the predators had mostly left. Best of all, there were no stronger monsters here to force it into obedience. Feeling its age beginning to catch up to it, the lion stayed behind to enjoy an easier life.

  As the day passed, the lion’s instinct began to bristle. Something had changed in the cavern, and the lion moved to leave. It found that the exit had disappeared. Trapped, the lion slunk away toward the thicker underbrush, cautious and a bit nervous.

  It began some time later, the screams. The lion heard in the distance sounds of fighting. It didn’t last long, soon replaced by the sounds of pain and dying. More time later, and more hunters died. The lion listened and moved farther away from the cries of death.

  Now, there were no more sounds. The prey was silent, hiding. The other hunters were either dead or digging themselves in, not wanting to be found. There was no wind here, yet every leaf and vine seemed to move with purpose.

  It knew it was coming. The lion felt the eyes of a hunter on it. It was the same feeling in the forest, when the larger creatures became hungry. Every step it took, every flick of the ear, was seen by something unmoving and silent. The lion did not feel fear. It knew fear was the first step towards death.

  It was unwilling, defiant towards the idea of being prey. The lion was a hunter, a killer of creatures in the trees. Even when the larger creatures moved, the lion made its strength known. It was younger then, though—faster, stronger, and less observant.

  A small so
und, a snap of a stem to its right. The lion’s ear twitched towards that direction. Another sound, a stone hitting the ground to its left. The lion ignored it. A feint in the dark.

  The lion stretched its body, then bristled up and snarled. It moved in a circle, as if walled in by an invisible ring of flame. It could stand still, not be an easy target.

  More sounds now, the hunters knew they had been detected. They moved swiftly, closer and closer. The lion growled as slimes appeared around it, surrounding it. The slimes made no noise of intention, but the lion understood the tentacles they were creating were dangerous. Out of the corner of its eye, the lion watched as a slime accidentally cut itself on a leaf. The injury, insignificant and quickly repaired, caused the leaf to melt into the slime.

  The lion swished its tail back and forth, eyeing its opponents.

  The slimes charged together as a group, each throwing their own bodies into a deadly tackle. The lion leaped into the air, dodging as the slimes ran into each other. Its tail grabbed four vines dangling from the ceiling, preventing it from falling.

  It would be easy to escape now, but the old hunter knew that this foe would persist until it was taught respect. And respect could only be achieved through strength.

  With a soft ding, the forest lion unsheathed the claws hidden its paws. It spun its body on the vines, tightening the four plant stems into a coil. And when the slimes had gathered into a high enough pile to almost reach it, the hunter released the force.

  Spinning wildly, claws flashed out like ribbons of wind. Slime was sent flying as the spinning hunter tore into the mass as if with an egg spoon. This was the forest lion’s special technique, a spin attack it could use anytime it was truly threatened. Luck was on its side, for the technique would have been more physically draining without the vines.

  When it was done, the old hunter examined the wobbling mass of half destroyed slime. It hadn’t managed to kill any. It was too high, but it had damaged them enough to be unable to pursue. Letting out a low snort at the slimes, the forest lion whipped its body back and forth on the vines before swinging forward, letting its tail carry it away from the slimes and deeper into the cavern. It had gotten away for now.

  Perhaps it wouldn’t next time. Such was the nature of the hunt.

  *

  “Claire, look, the lion thing got away!” Doc exclaimed in amazement. “I didn’t think that its tail could be used like that. It’s almost like a tentacle!” As the massacre of the remaining horde was mopped up, Doc’s fury had faded, replaced by his normal curiosity and exuberance toward learning new things.

  “I’m a little surprised as well,” Claire admitted, watching the image of the lion as it landed in the herbs and used its color to blend in and vanish, “While I’m not too familiar with this breed of cat, I can’t recall any other species capable of using its tail to support its body weight. Perhaps it is one of the undiscovered breeds of the northern wilderness.”

  “Is it a monster?” Doc asked curiously. “It seemed smarter than a normal animal, even for a cat type. Those seemed to be the smartest creatures the adventurers kept.”

  Claire shook her head. “That last attack had no magic, and monsters are capable of wielding the mana supplied by their monster cores. Perhaps if it had offspring, they would be monsters. Normal animals rarely evolve into monsters during a single generation. The only exception is if they are exposed to enormous quantities of mana and somehow survive, like a regular wolf becoming a dire wolf. Doc, before you think of experimenting with mana like that, know that though you are immune to the condition, mana poisoning is one of the worst ways to go. Your hair falls out, your skin rots off, and your organs liquify. It’s one of the few methods of attack banned by all countries and races due to the horrible side effects, to say nothing of the damage it does to nature. Even corrupted dungeons avoid that manner of attack because it can result in dungeon instability.”

  “Sounds like problems I should never have,” Doc said with a sigh of relief. “Still, it appears that lion is the only survivor of today’s purge.”

  Across Doc’s other sides, images flew by, showing successful slime ambush after slime ambush. Anadine and Rowen, with their royal educations, made up for their slime minions’ lack of intelligence with clear and concise directions. Except for the lion that the two didn’t face, every other large and medium predator had been killed with their remains delivered to Doc’s astral bag for future experimentation. With the lion having escaped, however, it left the score in Anadine’s favor for most creatures killed, which would likely irk Rowen to no end. Doc was looking forward to the experiments.

  “That means today was, in the end, a success.” Claire flew down to rest on her pedestal, dangling her feet over the edge.

  “Definitely.” Doc nodded enthusiastically. “Even though they weren’t as good as the adventurers, the death of those large animals gave me a nice little boost to my mana reserves. I’ll be able to begin fixing up the dungeon soon at this rate. Still... not a single monster entered, huh?”

  It was an observation that confused both Doc and Claire. For while certainly the number of animals that entered were strong, fierce, and deadly, they had been just animals.

  “I’m a bit concerned,” Doc continued. “If animals at the strength of tier 1 and 2 slimes are the weakest inhabitants of the northern wilderness, then we might be in trouble.

  “As surprised as both you and I are, maybe that’s to be expected. After all, monsters are much more intelligent than their animal counterparts. If they live long enough and evolve, then they can become as intelligent as any adventurer,” Claire considered. “There’s a good chance that a strong monster was involved in this first intrusion. I can’t imagine so many meat-eating monsters running over just because of your human blood. Maybe they were only scouts?”

  “Who knows? But, on the subject of animals, can I leave the lion?” Doc asked Claire. “It’s proven to be a cunning adversary and it’s very careful to kill only what it can eat. It even buries anything it can’t finish. I kind of like it, since it’s a lot like me.”

  “My advice would be to keep a close eye on it, but if you want to keep it, it should be fine.” Claire shrugged. “We’ll have to attract some larger plant eaters to feed it, though. Maybe grow some of the good herbs near the entrance to attract those weird looking deer. Never thought I’d see omnivorous deer...”

  “Alright, I’ll do that then,” Doc said happily. The dungeon spirit hummed away as he summoned a few seeds to the first floor, watching them grow rapidly under the dungeon’s influence. The entrance of the dungeon was quickly covered in edible herbs. After a moment’s consideration, Doc removed the plants directly in the dungeon entrance’s path, leaving the plants on the peripheral edge.

  “Careful, Doc,” Claire warned. “Don’t use too much dungeon mana, or you’ll give us away. You still aren’t strong enough to rebel a serious threat.”

  “Understood, but I’m not doing that much,” Doc remarked. “Just a little mana to speed up plant growth.”

  “But even that might attract unwanted attention,” Claire flew up and argued. “If there really is a strong monster watching us, we can’t afford to give away too much information.

  Doc sent her the feeling of sighing, “Alright, Claire, I’ll stop. It was just a little stream, though.”

  “You’ve already caused one stampede today. Let’s just try to take it slow for a moment,” Claire urged. “We shouldn’t risk more for at least a day or two. Let me teach you a few more dungeon tricks first.”

  “Sounds fun.” Doc sounded eager as he turned his attention back to the second. “You know, Claire, without my dungeon mana present on the floors, I can’t determine how many creatures are wandering around. Can’t even find that lion. It blends in too well with the plants.”

  “If that worries you, use the mana you just acquired to make some slimes to patrol the floors,” the pixie advised. “Stick to your tier one slimes for now: lesser mimic, herb, and gr
ey. They can easily traverse the forested ground and will eat some any unwanted creatures they come across. On the chance they get killed by a strong opponent, you can send Anadine or Rowen to clear it out. A few days of this, and you’ll have enough mana for the next step in EDS.”

  A slight shudder, an unbecoming feeling for a crystal, ran through Doc’s spirit when Claire mentioned the death of slimes. He quickly ignored the feeling. “That sounds good. Alright, let’s go with that,” Doc agreed. “I can’t wait to see what the next step will be.”

  *

  Unbeknownst to the dungeon dwellers, Doc’s momentary use of mana at the entrance had indeed attracted the attention of an unknown third party. Under the cover of night, a small, green figure slipped into the dungeon entrance and made its way down to the second floor. Upon finding the covered cavern, the creature’s eyes brightened in excitement. It promptly exited the dungeon, meeting up with three similar creatures. The moon was hidden behind the clouds that night, hiding the figures from sight, but if it hadn’t, then scales and fur would have glistened under the moonlight.

  After a moment of silent communication, the three disappeared back into the forest. The first returned to the dungeon, travelling down to the second floor. It made a small nest in the undergrowth and fell asleep. It had found safety at last. The dreams from the surface would no longer invade and whisper. The smell would no longer take it.

  Chapter 5

  Blinking sleepy eyes, Claire slowly roused herself from her slumber. She leaned forward, yawning as she stretched her arms above her head. She then angled her arms forward and stretched, slowly moving her wings to remove any wrinkles that she may have made while sleeping. While dungeon pixies enjoyed sleeping in beds, it wasn’t a natural method of sleeping. Like their pixie ancestors, dungeon pixies slept best in certain elongated flowers, giving their wings room to flutter while they slept and preventing injury. Since it was hard to grow flowers in a dungeon, however, the best alternative was a bed or sleeping face down on the stone.