by TJ Reynolds
The dungeon snorted. I assure you, no. But for rats? Yes. When you can kill more powerful minions, the loot will become more valuable. Not only will more coin fall, but items may drop as well.
Still speaking aloud, his own greed piqued, Kai asked, So you don’t control what loot falls? It’s completely random?
Yes, and no, actually. Dungeons, like all creatures really, are bound by rules. I can’t modify my dungeon while an outsider is within, for instance. Even Yorick didn’t know when the rules were written or by whom, but there are more than a few.
As the dungeon continued, his voice took on a lecturing tone. One of them concerns loot. Rather than assign specific valuables to each minion, it is done so randomly, within certain constraints by minion type and level. That is why you get one to three copper per rat. Whether you get a single copper or three for killing a rat is, as the saying dictates, a toss of the drinking horn, really.
Toss of the what? Kai asked.
The drinking horn. Come now, dragon, you must know the saying.
The young man laughed, and Ban had to suppress the desire to lecture him further. Nobody says that, Ban. You’ve been away too long, and I’m afraid your master was more a Hintari than anyone I’ve met. A Brintoshi would say toss of the dice or spin of the nickle. Those are more proper figures of speech.
Savages! Did you know the Brintoshi were wearing animal hides and living each day huddled around a fire less than two centuries ago? Ban snapped back, both offended and amused.
Kai settled back down, folding his arms behind his neck and letting the last of his fit of laughter pass. Finally, he spoke again in his mind, changing the subject in a rare display of couth behavior. As much as I like the way this pile of coin looks, I think you should just reabsorb the copper. There’s more to come, and besides, the sword you so casually made me is worth a bucket of them, Kai replied, showing a good deal more wisdom than Ban had given him credit for.
Ban did as the young dragon suggested, consuming the pile of metal. Copper had a tangy, almost sour, flavor. But it increased Ban’s IM, which was a resource the dungeon still had too little of.
Kai’s next question went a long way to bolster the dungeon’s faith in his young master. Were you frightened? When the men came, I mean. Were you scared?
Ban thought back on the splintered memories he had of that day and tried to explain what he remembered. Yes. I recall Yorick telling me he was going to warn the dragons nearby, to tell their dungeons how they might escape the storm to come. He had friends who were spies within the armies of Brintosh and Kaltan. They had told him that this was little more than an invasion of the many dungeons across the Zargan Mountains. Yorick left, telling me that should anyone enter but him, I should treat them as enemies.
I summoned every creature I could. As an Amber 2 dungeon, my control is limited but not insignificant. I created more than simple rats to defend myself. The men who came, however, were powerful. They slaughtered my minions and stole everything of value. All I could do was watch, depleted of ether as I was from summoning so many minions.
Even then, I hoped in vain that Yorick would return… or maybe that the soldiers would leave me be. But their leader came down into my core room and placed his hand over my core. Somehow, the man could speak with me. He asked if I would serve Brintosh loyally.
After a long pause, Ban finished his recollection, his tone solemn. I don’t remember my response, but it was something I thought fairly witty. Before I had finished cursing the man, however, he swung his war hammer down into my core. It took only one swing to splinter my mind and body into oblivion.
Ban finished his story and looked at Kai to gauge his reaction. Kai’s eyes brimmed with tears; his cheeks flushed with anger. Well, Ban thought to himself, at least I have a loyal friend.
Kai stood, his shoddy clothing and bruised body entirely forgotten. He picked up his short sword and proclaimed boldly, “It is time, Ban. I will finish the rest of the shivving rats, so I can ascend. We must get stronger if we’re ever to avenge the fallen dragons and their Earth Cores.”
The dungeon watched Kai as he strode back into the killing room and waited for the next rat to form. His demeanor had changed more than a little. “Please summon another rat, Ban. I’m ready.”
Ban did so then returned to digging about in the tunnels below. Distantly, he could hear Kai grunt and cry out as he fought the latest minion. He would have taken some pleasure in watching his dragon earn his first ascension, but a few novelties had turned up in his excavation, including a few new types of rock.
Limestone was delightful. Light and crisp, it was so refreshing that Ban felt he might be able to live on the stuff. Already, he had filled his limited reserve of BM several times. He did not need to convert much of his BM reserve to ether; Kai was not exactly quick to dispatch each rat. But he knew he would need as much Intermediate Material, and Advanced Material, or AM, as he could transform.
He compressed the BM into IM at the same rate as he could convert his reserves to ether. Every 10 units of BM made 1 unit of IM. It was not until Ban ran into a larger vein of copper with pockets of tin, that he finally managed to fill his IM reserve. Converting that into AM took even longer—the conversion rate was 20 to 1. Instead, he used his IM reserve to make as many of the old items and nicknacks that once had filled his humble chambers as he could; those that he could remember, at least.
Ban summoned another rat for Kai, who had started asking him to do so in a less than patient tone. Then he shifted his attention back to crafting. Books were made mostly of Base Material. But the magic they were infused with and the metal that bound some of them used considerable amounts of both ether and IM. It was also time consuming.
Some of the books he created detailed the various theories of world construction, one even claiming that differing land masses floated about like rafts driven over roiling currents of molten earth below. Absurd! How some of the scholars got their ideas, Ban had no idea, but they were as fun to read as they were to craft.
Ban not only needed to focus on the physical aspects of the books, which could be quite complicated, he also had to remember and then reprint what the books had contained. At one point, nearly every wall within his dungeon had been lined with shelves, holding hundreds of precious and irreplaceable volumes.
There was no way Ban could remember them all. Before the shivving of his core, the task would have been simple. Now, however, the contents of only a dozen or so tomes came easily to mind.
He was pleased to set another book down on the tidy little shelf he had constructed in secret. Each new addition to the shelf swelled the glittering gem with pride. Kai would surely love them all, but he had to wait to present them to the dragonling.
Ban wanted to reward the young man with them when he ascended.
The next book he finished was one on cooking. Dozens of various preparations of rabbit. A whole book on rabbits! What a wild concept. Well, Kai loved roasted rabbit, so he is sure to love all of these recipes, as well.
Then Ban remembered a different kind of book, one that had escaped his mind previously. While he was summoning the knowledge it contained, his heart soared. It was precisely what Kai needed to build some skill with the sword.
He set it down on the shelf and read its spine to himself, careful to screen his thoughts from Kai: The Essence of the Sword: A Beginner’s Primer.
Skill was what Kai required most right now, more than gold or a thousand preparations of hare stew. Finally, Ban felt he had stumbled upon something his young master sorely needed. Recalling several more tomes like the primer, Ban set to making as many skill books as he could remember.
11
The Wisdom of Water
Kai
The tip of the dungeon-forged sword swept through the rat’s throat, a streak of blood spurting across the kill room floor. Kai didn’t cheer, not this time. He’d learned how Ban felt about such undeserved celebrations, and begrudgingly, admitted the dungeon had a point. Kai
was far from the armored hero he wanted so badly to become. No, Kai was little more than a boy, and a bumpkin to boot. He was a boy from the country who could spot differences between seven varieties of potato at a distance of ten feet but didn’t know the difference between a dagger and a dirk.
Instead of cheering, he wiped his blade off on the rat’s hide, wanting to at least respect the fine weapon. Then he called out to his friend as the rat’s ether filled his chest. Ban, I’m done! I killed fifty of the cren-chuckers. I did it!
Kai heard no response, which was odd. He noticed the dungeon had seemed distracted lately, though. What Ban was up to, Kai had no idea, but whatever it was, he was sure it was important. Rather than raise his voice, Kai left the rat in the killing room and walked back to the core chamber. As he did, Kai noticed his chest ached, a slight pressure building behind his sternum. Writing the feeling off as exhaustion, he loaded the fire with a few more table legs and walked upstairs to grab a few apples.
The monotony of roasted meat and apples for two days straight was beginning to drive Kai nuts, but he was also eating more than he had since leaving his uncle’s. He wouldn’t complain any time soon.
After eating, Kai washed up in the fountain and took off his shirt and boots, setting them near the hearth. His clothes were becoming downright filthy, and he considered washing them in the basin. But though it drained away to be replaced by fresh water, the idea of the blood and viscera that crusted his clothes touching the pure stone seemed abhorrent. Maybe Ban could eat my clothes and spit them out new again? Kai thought. He wondered where the core’s attention had wandered off to.
Just thinking about how the dungeon could shift its attention around made Kai dizzy. What would it be like not to have a body, but flit around like an invisible mote of light? Kai would never know, but he hoped it wasn’t as disorienting for Ban as it was for him to think about it.
Wanting to keep himself busy, Kai stood up again and retrieved his sword. He’d seen Roarke practicing with his blade, hacking away at bales of straw. He crouched, pretending he faced a man instead of the huddled form of a mole or rat. He imagined Karsen, his sword flashing out toward him, and he swung his blade in a slow motion, blocking the phantom attack and then stabbing forward.
Kai’s arms ached, though, so did his legs … and feet … and face.
He needed to rest before he tried anything more.
Nothing was less appealing, however, than the thought of stretching out on the cold stone again. A memory tickled his thoughts for a moment before he spotted the pile of hay in the corner that Ban had made for his bed; Kai piled up the fresh-smelling fodder in front of the fire. The pieces of sweet-smelling marsh grass were pristine, long and thick enough to align easily. When he was finished, rather than a pile of poking and scratchy weeds, Kai’s makeshift bed resembled something that was closer to a real mattress than he would have thought possible.
He inspected his work, smiled, and sat down in its middle facing the fire. He was determined to wait for Ban to announce his return. The dungeon did so much for him, a little patience wasn’t much to ask in return.
He thought he might read the dragon book while he waited, and he even flicked through a few pages. He skimmed a passage about the Kolshar Moon dragon—a smaller beast, but incredibly intelligent. Kai found the idea of a nocturnal dragon that could see in moonlight, as easily as he could during the day, fascinating. The odd sensation in his chest distracted him from concentrating on the text and the stuffy tone of the book threatened to put him to sleep.
Kai set down the book on dragons, staring instead at the roiling flames in the hearth. The heat and rhythm of the fire lulled his mind again, but he fought with all his might to keep his eyes open. After a time, he developed a trick to keep himself awake until Ban returned. He let his eyes roam with the fire. His gaze wove among the flickering tongues of light and the sound of the fountain nearby seemed to fold into his mind as well, the sensations wrapping his consciousness in their embrace. Distantly, Kai wondered if he’d fallen asleep, but what followed was far more interesting.
A voice called to Kai, echoing within the center of his concentration. It was not Ban, nor was it any voice he’d heard before. The velvet tones of a woman called to him. Kai, I’m pleased you found me. You worked so hard on your first ascension. You deserve to call yourself a Stone-ranked warrior.
Kai nearly lost his tenuous hold on the strange place, this mental plane he’d somehow reached, but he focused once again, the heat of the flames and the babbling water beside him pulling him back.
Who is this? he answered. Are you telling me I have ascended?
The woman laughed, her voice like falling water. Not at all. But your Progression has reached 100. Have you not felt the ether pressing within you?
I have. It doesn’t feel very good, Kai admitted.
You need to focus and compress the ether. Your Earth Core companion already knows how, she continued, but you must master this ascension tonight or you may damage your own core.
Anxiety peaked in Kai’s body, and he pushed aside the many questions that fought for dominance in his mind. Who are you? And how can I ascend on my own? he wondered. I thought Jakodi or some other high wizard would need to guide me.
Again, her laughter fell like rain. You know me as Briga, and I’m pleased you called my name first among the eight. The fire is strong in you also, and I do not think Yugos would have been as fair a guide for one with your heart. It’s lucky the fountain drew your focus. The woman paused a moment before continuing, And you can and will ascend on your own. You must return to this place each time you ascend to a higher rank. Few besides dragon kind and their Earth Core companions can ascend without a master.
Dragon kind? So, it’s true, then? But if I’m a dragon, why don’t I have wings?
Kai felt the woman’s mirth envelop him like a warm embrace on a cold night. You’re a half-dragon, Kai. And what you’ll become and be able to do as you grow in strength, will only be known in time. Even wise Sheerda keeps such secrets to herself.
That made sense to Kai, though knowing what was possible would have been a great deal more satisfying. Instead, he asked the only other question that seemed appropriate: Just how, Briga? How am I to ascend?
Envision the ether within you and make order out of chaos. This first ascension is not as difficult as those that follow. All you must do, is attempt to guide the ether to circulate within you. Once you can see its brilliance in your mind, beg it, coax it, then convince it to move, to turn in upon itself in a circle between your heart and belly. If you can accomplish that much, it will condense on its own. When it turns red as blood, you will have become Crimson ascended.
The concept seemed simple, almost too easy somehow. That’s all? There must be something else I have to do.
If you bring order to your chaotic ether, your mind and body will undergo the pain of transition. Her tone promised it would not be as easy as it sounded. All you must do is endure that experience and you will be well. When you next wake, ask your good friend Bancroft how to access your Etheric Interface. He could hear her smile. I’m sure you’ll enjoy that part immensely.
Etheric Interface? Kai asked, quite aware that he’d done nothing but ask the Goddess question after question. He hoped she wouldn’t become annoyed with him.
Ask Bancroft, Briga answered with endless patience. I must go now. It’s good to speak with you. The world has long waited for the return of a Fundamental Dragon. I am glad it’s you.
Wait, please! What of my father? Who was he? And what did you mean by Fundamental Dragon?
Then, before Kai could ask any more of the hundred questions that plagued his mind, he felt the all-encompassing presence retreat. In its stead, he felt only the raging tempest within his chest. He realized his eyes were closed, and yet he could see his body, sitting rigidly before the hearth, as if he were a bird perched a few feet away.
He could see a bright mass of energy within his body and noticed the pricks
of pain that sparked around his ribs and sternum. Though he was not sure how he knew, he was certain that the accumulated ether was slowly breaking his body from the inside out.
Kai wished he could speak with Jakodi, the old man that had never balked at freely dispensing his hard-earned wisdom. He wished he could call on Ban. No doubt the Earth Core would happily guide him. But Kai realized that he was all alone in this place, and that if he did not act soon, his own core would pay the price of his cowardice.
The young dragon looked inside at the skittering mass of ether that raged there. It glowed the same bright blue as the ether he’d seen escape the bodies of the animals he’d slain. The threads of magic raced about and seemed crowded. He tried to discern some direction or purpose in their constant movement, but there was none.
It was a beautiful but chaotic storm he held within.
Kai concentrated on making the ether turn in one direction, pushing at it to coalesce into a movement he could guide. But the flow was too strong. He couldn’t make it budge, no matter how hard he tried to press it with his mind.
What did Briga say? Beg it? Coax it? Convince it? Her choice of words seemed too odd and specific to be an accident. Kai held on to that thought, trying his best to ignore the increasing pain he felt in his expanding chest and ribs. He focused on a single mote of ether, following its haphazard course through his body, and when he had isolated it in his mind, he begged it to spin in a circle. Nothing happened at first. Kai asked it politely, Please, turn in a circle. I beg you.
Then as if it was easy, the mote of ether hooked back through his core and began spinning in a wide circle that rose to the bottom of his heart before diving back down into his bowels.
The difference was minute, but Kai swore he felt the slightest bit of relief, the pressure in his chest subsiding.
