“Uh…yes?”
“Very good. My name is Jesper Whittle, and I’ll be the Raider Delving Clan’s representative here to help with the administration and regulation of the various members visiting your little…village here. Of course, everything depends on the verification that there is a dungeon nearby, which I still have my doubts about, but when Trevelyan gives an order there are very few who can tell her ‘No,’” Jesper said knowingly, as if Sterge should understand. He didn’t have any clue what he was talking about, but he nodded anyway.
“Uh…who is…?”
“Oh, my pardon. These few are the Raiders who are going up to verify that the dungeon is indeed there and not some sort of error or fiction. They’ll be leaving in the morning—” the Human said, before looking around and hesitating. “Is there anywhere we can stay?”
Sterge was at a loss, but fortunately Gwenda arrived before he could think of an answer. “Not quite yet, as we weren’t expecting visitors; you all can sleep in one of our storage shacks for the moment until we get something built for you.”
“Oh, that’ll be fine for the moment. I’ve certainly roughed it in worse locations.” Sterge somehow doubted that from his appearance. He didn’t look unfit or anything; actually, his upper body seemed to strain at his suit from muscle, not fat. As he had seen before, though, his outfit somehow didn’t have more than a few specks of dirt or dust on it. It also looked positively sweltering, as it fully covered the man from neck to toe in thick folds. Granted, those behind him looked equally hot in the sun in their armor, but they appeared used to it.
Jesper directed the group of 5 Raiders to the storage shack that stood empty after Gwenda pointed it out, and then bent down a little to speak to Sterge and Gwenda privately. “Our esteemed outpost leader noticed that you were already gathering supplies to build some accommodations here; she wants to thank you for doing that, because otherwise her budget wouldn’t allow for such expansion currently. It would be better to have business headquarters here, anyway, since it will allow access to the dungeon faster this way. Am I to assume that you’ve decided to oversee development here? And that you’ll be in charge?” At Gwenda and Sterge’s slow nods, Jesper smiled. “Good; from what I understand, you’re leasing this land from the Crown, am I right?” Another nod. “Excellent.” He dropped his voice even lower. “Keep it that way; as tempting as it might be to transfer your lease to some generous offers, the best thing for everyone is to keep it for yourselves. That way, this will stay as a bit of…neutral territory…if you know what I mean.”
Before Sterge or Gwenda could admit that they had absolutely no idea what he meant, one of the Raiders who had gone into the shack popped his head out and called for Jesper. “I’ll see you around,” the red-clothed Human said to them both, before heading off for the storage building.
“Do you have any idea what he meant?” Gwenda asked Sterge, as soon as their visitor was out of hearing range.
Sterge laughed softly. “Ha! I was going to ask you the same thing,” he confessed. “Regardless, it seems like we’re doing the right thing here; very smart plan, by the way.”
The other Hill Dwarf blushed at his words. “Oh, well…you know, it just made the most sense. Of course, I have no idea how to manage everything, but some of the others have backgrounds in various professions other than farming – so I’m sure we’ll figure it out.”
“I sure hope so.” The imminent arrival of additional Raiders in the near future was nearly as daunting to Sterge as walking into a dungeon for the first time. The prospect of building some sort of town specifically to cater to the Raiders was nearly mentally overwhelming. Nevertheless, Sterge could only trust that everything would work out…eventually.
It was too late that evening to start on any type of construction, but the next morning, everyone was up early and eager to get to work building their future. After the Raider team left to check out the dungeon just as the sun peeked over the horizon, every member of The Village was busy either constructing what was going to be their brand-new Inn or deconstructing the two storage shacks for materials. One of the shacks was already empty, and the supplies that were being held in the other were transferred to a few of their houses, where there was room. Another group of villagers left for Heftington again, where they would pick up some more purchased materials that they weren’t able to fit on the wagon the day before.
With over 40 people working towards a single goal, the project to build the inn went surprisingly fast. By midday, the entire bottom floor of what was going to be a rather large, two-storied building was nearly complete, though it wasn’t furnished in the least; more materials would be needed to fully finish the common room, kitchen, and 8 bedrooms on the first floor, but what was coming that night would help complete a few of those.
Sterge took a break just after midday, sweat pouring down his face from the intense heat of working out in the sun. Just as he was pouring a ladleful of blessedly cool water over his head from their communal rain barrel, he looked up and saw the group of Raiders in the distance, coming back from their exploration of the dungeon he and Gwenda had found.
They appeared to be a little worse for wear than how they had looked that morning, with tears in their armor and clothing in a few spots, as well as obvious – though dried – blood stains marring their previous clean exteriors. However, instead of being mad at what had happened to them, they were all smiles as they walked into the center of The Village.
I hope that’s a good sign…
Chapter 2
Contrary to how long it took those two Hill Dwarves, her first Raiders, to visit her dungeon, the wait before another group arrived was relatively short. Naturally, the 40 hours, 17 minutes, and 36 seconds it took before another person stepped into her dungeon entrance felt more like 40 years – but it wasn’t like she was keeping track of the passing of time in nervous anticipation or anything silly like that. That would be crazy…right?
“See, I told you they would be coming! Even if those two you allowed to live didn’t tell anyone, your dungeon would’ve been found…eventually,” Shale IronSchist, Tacca’s Dungeon Assistant Fairy, told her. “We’re so far south and out of the normal placement for a dungeon that it might’ve taken years, but that wouldn’t have been so bad. Granted, you don’t have to worry about that now – because the Raiders are here!”
Her Assistant was hovering over the entrance to her dungeon on the inside, using his Invisibility to stay hidden. This allowed him to see them at the same time that Tacca did, which was useful for a different perspective on their new visitors.
It appears as though these Raiders are much more powerful than what would be necessary to make their way through my dungeon. Do you think…they’re here to kill me?
Tacca had seen plenty of Raiders over the months, as the Assistant to her failed Cores, so she had a fairly good measure of how powerful a Raider was from a few different clues. The first clue, and the most obvious one, was their armor and clothing; it was made of higher-quality metal, leather, and cloth – such as a smooth dark-green silk robe the spellcaster was wearing. Now, that could always mean that some rich Raider had bought all of the gear and they were completely inexperienced, but there were some other things that indicated otherwise. As her observations pertained to their armor, it appeared well-worn with mended dents and scratches here and there, and they also wore it with an ease and comfortableness that was hard to fake. In contrast, the male Hill Dwarf who had been there previously looked extremely unused to wearing the leather armor in which he was outfitted.
The second biggest clue to their experience and strength was the way they held themselves with confidence – and caution. Even though they were likely told that this was a brand-new, weaker dungeon, they still walked in carefully, and the one in the lead peered intently around as much of the room as he could before even stepping foot inside. It was only when the Raider who walked in first – who was wearing a full outfit of dark-colored leathers and wielding two lo
ng steel daggers held point-down – searched the area intently and nodded in their direction that the rest walked in to join him. Even then, they were still cautious enough that they practically tiptoed inside, staring intently around themselves with an abundance of vigilance. She couldn’t help but mark that contrast again compared to her previous visitors, who seemed to bumble into everything.
“No, I don’t believe so. I wasn’t there when my Mentor’s dungeon was first open, of course, but the process was described to me, so I can’t imagine this will be any different,” Shale spoke mentally to Tacca’s Core from his location. “These Raiders are here to evaluate the dungeon and give it some sort of convoluted rating based on difficulty, as well as to map it out for future groups coming through.”
That’s right; I can’t believe I forgot that from my schooling. To be fair, every time that Tacca had been there when a Core first opened their dungeon to the outside world, something seemed to go wrong – which resulted in their destruction. She didn’t necessarily have the most typical of experiences, after all; so her personal experiences were a bit distorted from what was considered “normal”.
Shale didn’t say anything about that because he was more than aware that she hadn’t had the most pleasant of experiences when she first became a Dungeon Assistant. He also didn’t respond due to the fact that the group that had just entered her dungeon started to talk to each other. Luckily for her, she could easily understand them because of her schooling and Fairy heritage, unlike a normal Core.
“Are you sure this is supposed to be a brand-new dungeon? You usually don’t see anything but bare stone and walls in these things,” pondered the one who appeared to be the Raider group’s main Melee-type member, who Tacca thought might be a Warrior or even a Bulwark Class, due to the Hill Dwarf’s full plate armor, smaller-sized kite shield, and warhammer resting by his side.
The leather-clad Human – who had led the group inside when it was safe – nodded his head, while still keeping his eyes roving constantly around the room looking for threats. “It’s quite possible this place was open for a long time before it was actually found; I would never have suspected that this dungeon was here. After all, there shouldn’t be any this far south – at least none that have ever been found.”
“So, you all agree that this is indeed a dungeon?” The female Elf spellcaster-type asked, pulling something out of a pouch at her side. It didn’t take long for Tacca to figure out that it was a large piece of parchment along with some writing tools. That particular Raider was obviously the one who was going to map her dungeon, which strangely helped to alleviate some of her fears concerning their potential for destroying her Core. At the moment, there was nothing in her defenses that would prevent them from reaching her vulnerable form – unless they were completely inept and literally walked into danger. That didn’t seem likely, though, based on their radiating confidence.
“Uh…yes? I think the fact that there are plants and trees growing inside of a cave that appears uniformly cut from the side of the mountain is evidence enough.” The Archer or Ranger of the group scoffed at the question, his bow held out with an arrow nocked as he pointed his weapon around the room. At that moment, the 2 Root Foxes at the base of the trees near the entrance made an appearance, crawling out from the roots before they raced for the group – only to be shot in mid-leap by an arrow each, which streaked through the air with a faint glow around their shafts. As they each died instantly from the impact of a perfectly shot arrow through one of their eyes, they barely had a chance to hit the ground before they dissolved and left behind the single copper coin each as a reward. “Oh, and I’d say that is a fairly concrete indication that this is a dungeon.”
I’m going to assume that is an Elemental Archer of some kind.
Shale seemed surprised at her knowledge. “Do you know all of the different kinds of Raiders?” he asked, sounding intrigued. “I have to admit that I really only paid enough attention at DAPS to learn about their basic Classes, so that I could better advise my Dungeon Core on generalities. I never thought it was very important—”
Yes, I know quite a lot about them; I’ll see if I can tell you later—if there is a later. Let me listen to them talking.
She didn’t mean to be short with him, but she sensed that he wasn’t offended; in fact, he was listening to them as well.
While the Elven spell-caster nodded at the Elemental Archer’s sarcastic observation, she started to expertly sketch the first room of Tacca’s dungeon, using a flat board that seemed to emerge from nowhere. “Alright then, you all know the drill. We need an accurate accounting of the layout, monsters, traps, and loot drops. Let’s get this done; if we hurry, we can be back by lunch. This shouldn’t be too difficult, given that it’s a brand-new dungeon. Lead on, Ferryl,” she continued, waving towards the leather-clad Human who had entered first.
Ferryl nodded and turned towards the end of the room, taking his time to search every square foot of the area for any types of traps or anything out of the ordinary. One of the other members of the group, a larger-than-typical Gnome if she wasn’t mistaken, picked up the two copper coins left behind by the Root Foxes that were killed by the Elemental Archer and put them in her belt pouch. The Gnome appeared to be some sort of fighter, as evidenced by the simple (but well-made) leather jerkin she was wearing, as well as the thin rapier-like sword held lightly in her hands; Tacca wasn’t quite sure what type of Raider she was, exactly, at least until she saw the Gnome in action.
There were no traps in the first room, and Ferryl the Scout-type Raider managed to spot her four Root Foxes at the base of the trees flanking the exit to the next room. Instead of the Archer firing off more arrows, the full-plated Hill Dwarf stepped forward and banged his warhammer against his shield. “Bring it!” he shouted – and Tacca’s creatures darted out of their hiding places and shot towards the confident Raider.
He had a right to be confident, too, because he deftly slammed his shield into two Root Foxes with a left-handed backhand, while his right hand smashed one of the creatures into the dirt floor of the dungeon with a warhammer. The flattened Fox was obviously dead before the Raider even lifted his weapon afterwards. Unsurprisingly, the two creatures that were slammed by his kite shield were broken hunks of flesh and bone as well, which disappeared soon after and left behind their rewards.
The fourth Root Fox was much luckier, as it managed to penetrate the Raider’s defenses by the simple act of being part of a pack that was too numerous to fully block. It jumped up and bit the nose of the Hill Dwarf, before it was ripped off by the handle of the Raider’s warhammer as he brought it up from his attack. Even using the non-impactful side of his weapon was enough to do some serious damage to Tacca’s creature, and it was flung across the room already hurt, only to slam against the wall with bone-crunching force. Wow, that Hill Dwarf is strong. He must be a Bulwark Class; I think I recognize the shield and weapon skills of the Class from my learning.
“Hold up, Palter; you’re bleeding.” The Gnome stepped up next to him with a smirk on her face and placed her hand on his arm – before a soft glow seemed to light up her hand. In less than a second, the tiny scratch and bite marks on the Bulwark-Classed Raider’s nose were sealed up, though a small amount of blood remained.
“H-how did you already get hurt, Palter?” the Archer asked, obviously trying his best not to laugh. “You almost got your butt handed to you by a—” he snorted briefly— “fox.”
“Yeah, yeah – laugh it up. That thing was faster and did more damage than I was expecting,” Palter said gruffly. “We might have to be slightly more cautious in here than I originally thought was needed.”
“Whatever you say—”
“Hey! You heard him; now’s not the time to be stupid. No more taking unnecessary risks – that’s how people wind up not coming back from these new dungeon investigations.” The spell-casting Elf didn’t even look up from her sketching as she announced this with authority. Tacca could see that she wa
s also recording the damage done to Palter, as well as the 3 copper coins and the single Basic Cloth Robe that dropped from the just-killed Root Foxes.
“Yeah, it’s not like there’s been a lot of these lately—”
“Shut it. You know the drill, even if we haven’t done a new dungeon in quite a while. Treat it like you would a new addition to an existing dungeon and we shouldn’t have any problems.”
The Elemental Archer appeared as if he wanted to argue, but he held whatever he was going to say as he visibly prepared himself. To Tacca, it was obvious that they respected their leader – as well as the danger that any dungeon could represent, not just the more powerful ones. The Fairy-turned-Dungeon Core felt a bit of pride that her dungeon had managed to make even these experienced Raiders take her efforts seriously. Not that they wouldn’t likely breeze through it without too much difficulty, of course.
The second room was full of large fronds, which – as she had hoped – worked to obscure the vision of the taller Raiders. The Hill Dwarf and Gnome could see beneath many of the fern fronds, but the leather-clad Scout-type Raider had difficulty seeing most dangers…until he started to crawl deftly along the ground, underneath much of the concealing foliage.
“What’s with all of these plants? I figured there would be more trees with those foxes,” the Bulwark-Classed Raider asked.
“No idea, but be ready for anything.” The Elf continued to furiously sketch the room while the Scout investigated.
“I feel some sort of magical trap here,” the leather-clad Human said as he paused in his investigations, just inches away from activating the Rage-inducing Enchantment trap Tacca had set up in the room.
The Dungeon Fairy: Two Choices: A Dungeon Core Escapade (The Hapless Dungeon Fairy Book 2) Page 2
