Endless Dungeon

by Richard J Thorn

  "Let's go find something, shall we?" Cass looked around at all the different places. The Goblins weren't kidding, this place was massive. There were shops of all kinds. Jewelry, clothing, armor, banks, restaurants of all types. It was an absolute hodge-podge of people and stores. Pretty much anything she could think of, she could find here. She was very eager to explore.

  They passed more races and creatures than they could count. Humans, Dwarves, Goblins, Centaurs, Elves, Minotaurs, weird tree people, lion-headed humanoids and so many more Cass lost track. They all somehow got along and other than a few shouting matches here and there - usually over prices - it was peaceful.

  They found a nice, out-of-the-way Asian restaurant that served delicious-looking vegetables combined with copious amounts of meat. They were the only people in the place and Cass figured it would be a good time to go through their loot.

  As she dumped the contents of the bag onto the table, Trexxa slurped up a long strand of noodle, then licked her lips and dove back in. She'd never seen such a hungry beast in all her life. Didn't she eat just a few hours ago?

  The sound of the clinking gems and coins against the table in the empty restaurant was satisfying.

  "Big haul?" The waitress filled their flasks and indicated to the mountain of coins on the table. Trexxa hissed and nodded.

  "Looks like it. I'll make sure no one disturbs you."

  Cass popped an egg roll in her mouth as she began slowly, methodically counting out the coins. Trexxa practically devoured an entire Pekin Duck and probably would have eaten a live one had one waddled past.

  The red-haired human had never seen this much money in one place before. Then again, she had no memories of anything outside this underground world. By the time she'd finished counting, there were 156 silver, 93 copper and 5 shiny gold pieces, of which she handed Trexxa her half and pocketed the rest. Since Trexxa was getting her fair share, she made sure she paid her own way.

  After tipping the nice lady and paying for her own meal, she was down 1 gold. Leaving her with 3 gold, 93 silver and 124 copper. That sounded like an awful lot, but she doubted that it was. The next place she wanted to find was a tailor. Maybe she could get out of these rags and look a bit more fashionable when obliterating hapless rodents.

  The city was so big that she had to ask around and get directions to the tailor.

  Millie's Linens had everything she could desire. Robes, hats, soft leather boots, magical items of all kinds. It didn't matter if you were a priest, a mage, a necromancer or something in between, Millie had everything you could possibly want.

  For the princely sum of 2 gold 37 silver, Cass walked out with a new robe, hat and soft-leather boots. Nothing magical or fancy, but they made a massive difference in how she felt. For the first time since she'd awoken on the cold, hard dirt floor, she felt...real. Like she belonged.

  Everywhere she went, she got complimented on her wand. At first she had thoughts of replacing it for a better one, but the more she thought about it, the more she disliked that idea. As odd as it sounded, the wand had become a part of her. She hadn't yet tried it, but Cass felt that she was so connected to the wand that she could operate it from a distance. That would be a trip.

  Next up, they went shopping for Trexxa. For the scaly lizard-dino, Cass wanted something less fashionable and more protective.

  Trexxa hissed excitedly when she spotted a cool-looking spiked collar. Cass laughed.

  "What do you need a spiked collar for? Are your fangs and talons not scary enough?"

  Trexxa chose a blood red one and Cass fitted it over her neck.

  "You look splendid!" Cass laughed at the silly raptor as she danced and spun around. She was becoming such a diva.

  What she was most interested in, however, was a matching spiked back and breast plate. It cost a pretty penny, but Cass took it from Trexxa's funds.

  "Hey, I have to pay for my own stuff." Cass explained as the raptor pouted. "It's only fair that you pay for yours."

  Trexxa sulked for a bit, but she could tell the lizard felt much better now that she was more protected. Raptor hide only got you so far.

  Next up they searched around until they found a jeweler who could identify the gems. As they suspected, most were shiny, but ultimately worthless, baubles. A couple, however, held some value. They sold them off to the proprietor as neither of them had any use for shiny gems. Maybe they could've shopped around and found a better price for them, but neither could be bothered. They had better things to do with their time.

  Finally, they ended up at an old-tyme western-style saloon complete with a couple horses tied up out front. The place really stood out and Cass was parched. Downing a stiff drink, she filled her flask to the brim and set about looking for easy quests she could complete. Now that she knew where to upgrade her armor and weapons, money meant something to her.

  "Here's something..." She brought Trexxa over to the bulletin-board in the back of the saloon. There must've been a dozen quests. Some of them written on faded paper and she wondered how long they'd been there.

  Trexxa hissed and pointed at one.

  Cass leaned forward, reading. "Missing pet. Very valuable. Covfefe Von Pigget. Answers to the name Pigget. Please return. Big reward. Much appreciation." There was a piece of cloth attached with - presumably - the scent of the pet pig.

  "Can you make anything of this?" Cass carefully handed Trexxa the scent.

  The raptor's eyes lit up and she started jumping up and down.

  "I take it you want the quest?"

  She nodded fiercely.

  "Okay." She took down the poster. "Anything else?"

  *** New Quest: Track down Cofveve Von Pigget and bring him back to his pet ***

  Her eyes quickly scanned all the different quests. Some were fairly interesting. Fetch this, do that, kill this, find that. Cass grabbed a couple. Maybe she could knock them out while looking for the stupid pig.

  *** New Quest: Kill 10 wolves and bring back the pelts ***

  *** New Quest: Pick 6 pristine, glowing mushrooms ***

  *** New Quest: Timed Quest: Purchase 10 bottles of whiskey and bring it to Fargus ***

  That last one intrigued her. Plunking down exactly 1 gold, she grabbed a crate of the whiskey bottles and set off. They were a bit tired, but maybe they could catch some shut-eye at Fargus' inn. She wasn't too worried about the wolf pelts and glowing mushrooms, those could be done anytime. But this one had a timer. A 10 hour timer that started the moment she purchased the whiskey.

  "Never thought I see anyone fill that order." The bushy-bearded human bartender admitted as he handed over the crate. "Be very careful with that. You might need to make frequent rest stops. And for heaven sake, don't get into any fights."

  Trexxa hissed at the bartender and a moment later they were out the door. The barkeep was right. The crate wasn't heavy, maybe 10-15 pounds, but they had a lot of ground to cover. Her arms were already tired by the time they retraced their steps back to the entrance of the city.

  Cass took one final look at the grand, underground city and promised she'd be back.

  She rather liked the city. It was big, open, spacious and had everything she could possibly want. There were so many more shops that she wanted to visit. But the next time she came back, she wanted to bring more money and be at a higher level.

  The journey back was fairly uneventful. As they were under a strict timer, she wasn't able to take in the beauty of the open land as much as she wanted. Cass had absolutely no idea how this massive area was carved out of the cave or mountain or whatever it was they were in.

  There had to be some kind of magic involved. Then again, this was a gameworld, she was certain of it, so maybe none of this was even real.

  Trexxa walked happily beside her, stopping every now and again to sniff the flowers. Out here it was such a different atmosphere that she couldn't believe it was the same place.

  Fresh air, wide open spaces and even trees growing off in the distance. It was truly a
magical realm and one she longed to explore.

  Several hours later, they turned down the familiar tunnel that led to Fargus's inn. Or tavern. Or whatever it was. Cass's feet felt like lead. She'd been carrying the crate of heavy whiskey non-stop and she wasn't sure she could go much further. Her eyes drooped and she felt like falling asleep right on the stone floor.

  But she had to stay awake. She had to make it to the inn.

  Trexxa hissed suddenly and that's when Cass realized that she'd nodded off and the crate of whiskey slipped from her grasp.

  "No!" She cried out and lunged for it. With a heroic dive, she caught the fragile crate just before it could hit the ground. The contents rattled and nearly spilled out, but didn't.

  Cass just laid there on the ground, bleeding from several scrapes and sweat pouring down her face. That was close. Too close.

  They weren't far from the tavern, but her arms were worn out and she needed a break. Extracting herself from the ground, she dusted off her new clothes - thank goodness she didn't tear them - and used her wand to heal herself.

  "How about we take a little rest?" She patted the plucky raptor on the scaly, blue-flecked head. Trexxa hissed and fished out her canteen. Taking a big gulp, she let out a very loud, uncouth, unfeminine burp.

  That caused Cass to laugh and certainly lightened the situation.

  Cass followed suit - sans burp - and greedily drank of her ale. When she was finished, she leaned her head back against the stone wall and closed her eyes.

  "This is the life, isn't it, girl?"

  For once, Trexxa remained silent.

  Cass fervently wished that she could recall her memories. It was the one thing missing from her life. But absent that, she was starting have a really good time. She rather liked being a mage and learning new spells and helping people.

  Freeing those Goblins from the evil clutches of the warlock slavemaster was something that warmed her heart. Yeah, they were probably all digital AI and maybe it didn't mean a thing in the end. But to her, it meant a lot.

  She felt that she'd just barely scratched the surface of what this world had to offer. There was so much more to explore. How many cities were out there? How many Goblins and others who needed her help were just waiting for her to come along?

  Yes, permadeath was a scary proposition, but as it was, there was nothing she could do about it.

  The ale calmed her down and soon she felt strong enough to carry the whiskey the final leg of their destination.

  "Come on, Trexxa! Let's get this show on the road."

  Trexxa hissed and took one last swig of her ale. Cass suddenly wondered if raptors could get drunk. She was sure she'd find out at some point.

  A half an hour later, they arrived back at the tavern. Everything was exactly as she remembered it. Although there were a few new faces.

  "Ah! Back for more punishment, are ye?" Fargus beamed and scratched his chin. "What's that ye got there?"

  Cass set the whiskey crate on the bar. The Dwarf stepped on tippy-toes and peered in. It was like watching a child open a Christmas present. His eyes lit up and wonder flashed across his face.

  "What's this?" He gingerly reached in and pulled out a bottle.

  "By Arden's Beard! I ordered this ages ago!" He looked at Cass with a slight tear in the corner of his eye. "You did this for me?" He sniffled.

  "Of course. It was Trexxa's idea." She lied and Trexxa looked up at her and hissed.

  "I can't believe it! Let me get you your payment..." Cass and Trexxa waited patiently for the stout Dwarf to run in the back and grab a bag of coins. Before setting it down, he reached under the bar and pulled out a shiny dagger.

  "I confiscated this from a drunk a while back and he never retrieved it. As far as I'm concerned, it's yours now." He plopped the coin bag on the bar and slid the dagger across, then wiped the tear from his eye.

  "Thanks, but you don't have to --"

  "Nonsense! I won't be taking no guff from you. Far as I'm concerned, you've earned twice that. Nice robes, by the way. You no longer look like a hobo."

  Before Cass could even touch the pouch, a certain raptor's claws pulled it from under her nose. It was stealthy, like a cat. When she looked at her, the raptor hissed.

  "Greedy dino!" Cass laughed and let Trexxa put the pouch in her pack. They could divvy it up later.

  The Dwarf barked out a laugh and put the crate in the backroom.

  Cass pulled the dagger out of its sheathe and marveled and the intricate design. The handle was pure black and the serrated blade looked to be of a shiny steel. She ran her finger across the edge and felt how sharp it was.

  *** Quest Complete: Timed Quest: Purchase 10 bottles of whiskey and bring it to Fargus: XP Gained 125 ***

  "Is our room still available? How much would you charge?" Cass inquired. She was so sleepy that she felt as if she could fall down on the ground right then and there.

  "For you? Stay as long as you want. You two have earned it." He leaned across the bar and lowered his voice. "When you wake up, would you be willing to help me expand the tavern? I'll make it worth your while."

  Cass nodded and yawned. More experience, more gold and maybe more items. Sounded good to her.

  *** New Quest: Help Fargus Expand Tavern ***

  "Good on ye!" The Dwarf barked and went back to his work. Cass led Trexxa upstairs and the moment her head hit the pillow, she was out like a light.

  When they woke up nearly 12 hours later, Cass yawned and stretched herself awake. Glancing around the room, she saw that Trexxa was missing. Adrenaline coursed through her blood, wiping any remaining sleep from her system.

  Where had the wily dino run off to? Had she found a male raptor and took her money to start a new life? Of course not, but that didn't explain her absence.

  Cass quickly gathered her stuff, strapped her new dagger on under her robes and yanked open the door. She was about to race down the stairs when saw Trexxa sitting at the bar, chugging ale and regaling several NPC's of her adventures. They laughed and slapped their knees and Cass wondered what she was telling them. There were only so many ways you could speak by hissing.

  However, when she got closer, she realized that she wasn't just telling them of her adventures, she was actually playing poker with them. How in the hell was a raptor playing poker?

  Cass shook her head, sat down next to her and ordered a drink.

  "I'm afraid to ask what's going on here." She rubbed her head and downed the stiff drink. A card-playing raptor.

  Yeah.

  While Trexxa smoked the pants off the two gentleman she was playing against, Cass ordered a light breakfast. She wanted to get started on the expansion quest as soon as possible. She was starting to look forward to hunting down the pet pig and the wolf quest.

  Fargus waited until she had finished her breakfast before going over the plans for his expansion.

  "Listen, I can take care of tidying up and moving all the blocks around. I've even gone ahead and marked out exactly where I want you to cut through." He pointed to a marked section. "I don't understand why you're the only one who is able to cut through the rock. That makes no sense to me. But, whatever. You start cutting and I'll direct."

  Trexxa kept playing her game. Cass couldn't tell if she was winning or losing, but her raptor was having fun, so in the end it didn't really matter. She was starting to think that she had underestimated the dino. There was more to the scaly lizard than met the eye.

  Trexxa worked hard supervising the whole operation. Cass used her wand and her 17 mana to great effect mining out the hard stone. Even when she had to let her mana regen, it still significantly sped up the entire operation.

  They took a break for lunch as Cass found Trexxa sprawled out on a booth seat, dead to the world, snoring like an old man. What a character. But she wouldn't trade her for anything in the world. She was very grateful that she hadn't picked the bear or croc for her companion. Maybe they would've been good, but somehow she didn't think they'd be as gre
at as Trexxa.

  The moment Cass's food arrived at the table, Trexxa sniffed the air even in her sleep and was - within moments - suddenly awake and starving.

  "Well, good morning, princess!" Cass chuckled as the raptor yawned and sat up. She stared hungrily at the delicious food.

  Hiss!

  "No, I'm not going to give you mine. But you can buy your own."

  Trexxa grabbed a menu off the table and studied it for a long time, then flagged down the Dwarf and ordered one of everything.

  The food covered the entire table and Trexxa licked her lips and wrapped a bib around her neck. Her greedy emerald eyes surveyed the literal mountain of food before her.

  Cass laughed. "That'll last you about...what? A couple hours?"

  Instead of answering, the gluttonous raptor dove into the piping hot meats, stew and bread.

  "That could feed a small army!" Cass shook her head and got back to work with the Dwarf.

  Time slowed to a crawl as she helped the Dwarf with his expansion. By the time they were finished, the tavern was nearly doubled in size. Trexxa had finished her meal and the two of them laid down for a long, dreamless sleep.

  *** Quest Complete: Help Fargus Expand Tavern: XP gained 75 ***

  That brought her up to 875/1000 toward 6th level. This was going exceptionally well. She was starting to level at a scary pace. Before she knew it, she was going to hit 10th level.

  He'd given her another pouch of treasure, but she was far too tired to look through it at the moment. She'd have to do it later.

  When Cass's head hit the pillow, every bone in her body ached, when she awoke, however, she felt as fresh as a daisy. Watching Trexxa sleep, she laid back against the wall and wondered more about her predicament.

  This was a very strange place she found herself in. It was straight out of a fantasy story. Goblins, Dwarves, Centaurs, magic and all sorts of things she would not have expected, dotted the world.

  The burning question on her mind, though, was why? Why was she here? Though she could not recall a "before" she instinctively knew this was not right. This wasn't home.