A Living Dungeon

by Allan Joyal

  For a third time that morning thunder shattered the afternoon’s peace. After that, the clearing and the whole valley was as quiet as a tomb. Even the birds were quiet as the sun continued its lonely journey across the sky.

  Deep Below Ground

  Just as the hammer struck the gemstone, deep within the earth a glow preceded five rabbits made out of stone as they exited a small tunnel and entered a cavern. The cavern had been formed as flowing water slowly dissolved a limestone formation buried within the otherwise solid rock. Now there was enough space to build a cottage next to a placid pool of water. A couple of stalagmites grew from the floor and over the pool two stalactites grew downward. There was a trickle of water dripping from one of the stalactites.

  The rabbits ignored this as they entered the room and headed towards a small area next to the pool. Somewhere the first two had picked up strange glowing stones that they carried in their mouths. The stones were shaped like elongated four-sided pyramids. One side was a perfect square, but the four triangles emerging from it were long and thin. The rabbits had their teeth holding onto the square end. As they approached the small clearing, the lead two split apart to allow the other three to move forward.

  The third rabbit still held the gemstone that Lystari had touched to her daughter. It immediately moved to set the stone on the ground. The stone was cut so that it was shaped like a disk. The rabbit placed the gemstone on its side so that the flat sections faced perfectly north and south. Once the stone was standing, the rabbit pushed the granite of the floor. The stone flowed to form a clamp holding the gemstone in place.

  The rabbit moved away from the gem. It appeared to be looking out over the pond. At that point whatever had animated it fled and it became a stone statue, silently looking out over the waters.

  The last two stone rabbits had stones similar to the first pair. One of these rabbits immediately moved to the north side of the gemstone. It thrust the pointed end of its gem into the ground so that the square face was pointed directly at the disk of the gemstone. The granite flowed around the stone, locking it in place. Once this was completed the rabbit hopped over to join the first.

  The other rabbits then moved in to place their stones on the east, west and south sides of the gem. Each time, the square side of the stone was facing the center of the strange gemstone, which was glowing with a strange white light.

  Once the last of the four stones was in place and the five rabbits were motionless as they stared at the underground pond with lifeless eyes, the stones began to release wisps of color. The gemstone at the center absorbed these and seemed to become darker. As it became darker, it absorbed more from each stone. The light they emitted dimmed with each pass as the gemstone itself faded as well. Finally, as the last stone gave up its faint trickle of light, the gemstone turned black. The glows all ceased and the cavern was once again black and lifeless.

  Chapter 4: Faestari Awakens

  In the darkness of the cave it is hard to judge the passage of time. The four stones did occasionally recover their glow. As they did the gemstone in the center would eagerly absorb all the light they provided. However, once the stones were again drained the darkness would fall over the cave.

  The five rabbits stood a silent vigil. They were facing away from the array they had created, but the absorbing of light always cast shadows on the still waters of the pond.

  Throughout the long period of darkness, the gemstone had been black. Even the few times it had glowed, the light had been strangely colorless. However, finally the black began to fade and a deep lively green emerged. The gemstone began to glow clear, if not exactly bright. As it did, a small beam of light shot towards the ceiling.

  At first that appeared to be the only change, but then the area of the ceiling struck by the beam began to glow. At first the glow would last only a short time and then fade away, but as the beam from the gemstone continued. the glow from the ceiling began to last longer. Finally, it would linger for hours, brightening and fading over a considerable period.

  The stone rabbits maintained their vigil. The stones were now recharging faster and the gemstone was the vibrant green of a spring meadow. However, the rabbits did not see when in a sudden outpouring of smoke, Faestari emerged from the gemstone and stumbled away from the array.

  “Momma? Pappa?” the young girl said. “Where am I?”

  The blond-haired girl with the pointed ears looked around. She just stared at the formations of rock and crystal. The gemstone’s glow got her attention, but she quickly backed away, as if frightened by the crystal that had imprisoned her. Then she noticed the stone rabbits holding their silent vigil.

  She crawled and stumbled around the gemstone and its attendant stones. She was smiling, but then sucked in a breath as if a cry of pleasure had been cut off.

  “What are you?” she asked as she reached out to touch the center rabbit.

  As her hand stroked the back of the stone rabbit, it returned to life. The silent creature gently pressed its lifelike head into her thigh as she knelt next to it. “Did mother make you?” she asked.

  A strange scraping sound came from the tunnel from where the five rabbits had emerged long before. Faestari turned and froze staring at the black hole in the wall of the cavern. “Who’s there?” she asked in a tremulous voice.

  Another stone rabbit limped into the cave. This one was not intact like the five who had stood their silent vigil. Its right front paw was missing. The stone rabbit’s left ear had been smashed and the right one had several chips that caused the top half of the ear to dangle down. Several deep gouges had been rent in the sides of the rabbit’s body. It held a scroll case in its mouth.

  Faestari stood up and stumbled over to the stone rabbit. It held its head up, keeping the scroll from the ground. “For me?” she asked.

  The rabbit said nothing, but kept trying to approach the young girl. She reached out and put her hands on the scroll.

  The rabbit opened its mouth to release the scroll and then collapsed to the ground, crumbling into pieces.

  “Oh!” Faestari cried in dismay. “I’m sorry.”

  She clutched the scroll to her chest. Somehow she knew that the stone rabbit had pushed past the original magic that had created it. It had been determined that she should take the scroll. With a fearful heart she moved near the gemstone where the light from the ceiling was brightest and carefully opened the scroll.

  To her surprise the writing on the scroll was in her mother’s handwriting. She could almost hear her mother read the letter to her as she puzzled out what it said.

  “My darling daughter.

  “If you are reading this, then those trying to capture me have killed me. Your father and I have always been afraid that this day might come, but I loved him and you too much.

  “I know you always asked about the pointed ears you and I shared. Your father would tell others that it was due to us being elves, but that was merely a way to distract people. The truth is far more complex.

  “I was what the races call a dungeon soul as are you. The gem I used to absorb you so you could escape is your real body. Protect it. As long as the gemstone is intact you can build a new body. The gem absorbs magic, life, even the energy of death can feed it. For now, yours can probably only reach out a short distance, but that range will grow as you mature.

  “The reason we are called dungeon souls is that many of our kind will take over a complex of caves. Once we have control we invite monsters or animals into the caves. Once they are there, we help them thrive, and feed a little on the magic and life energy they generate. Over time, adventurers will come, thinking to compete against the monsters we have encouraged. Most of the time the adventurers are seeking a challenge and reward. If the reward is right, they will happily challenge the dungeon and then move on.

  “Many dungeons can survive for a long time, as long as they remember to reward adventurers well and to avoid becoming openly deadly. You will find that you gain more energy if an adventurer
dies, but should too many die, wizards and others will come with great magics seeking to destroy you.

  “There is so much I wanted to teach you, but we did not have time. I’m so sorry.

  “Your mother, Lystari, dungeon soul of Eastfjord Dungeon.”

  Faestari finished the letter and sat there tears in her eyes. “I love you momma,” she said quietly as the glow from the ceiling above faded away.

  The darkness in the cavern seemed to comfort the girl. At first there was silence, but then a scraping sound could be heard as the child shifted her feet. A new glow began to emanate from the gemstone on the floor illuminating the chamber.

  “What do I do?” the girl asked the air around her.

  A wind seemed to blow through the chamber. Faestari looked around in surprise, trying to find the source of the breeze, but she could see no openings in the wall that appeared large enough to allow a breeze to form. “Who are you?” the wind seemed to say.

  Faestari slowly stood up and looked around again. Shadows lined the walls of the cavern, still and silent in the steady light thrown out by the gemstone. The wind seemed to swirl slowly, the same question being repeated again and again. “Who are you?”

  The young girl scurried over to the five stone rabbits. She hugged one of them as she looked around in fear. “My name is Faestari,” she said in a quivering voice.

  “That name is not known,” the wind whispered back. “Are you just born?”

  “No,” Faestari said. “But momma and papa are gone.” She was holding back tears as she clung to the stone rabbit.

  The rabbit shifted slightly, coming to life and using its stone head to rub against Faestari’s arms. The wind slowed for a moment. It seemed to swirl in one place. A cloud of smoke appeared on the wind, slowly coalescing into the form of a dwarven male with a long white beard.

  “You know your parents?” the dwarf asked in a booming voice. He looked over at the gemstone and its attendant crystals. “And how did you get four mana stones already. Who are you?”

  “Faestari,” the girl said again. “That’s what mamma and papa called me.”

  The dwarf tugged on his long beard. He was an ugly example of his race. His tiny eyes were almost invisible under bushy red eyebrows. His nose would not have looked small on a troll more than twice his size and both hands seemed twisted. “Did your parents have names?” the dwarf asked as he moved to take a closer look at the gemstone.

  “Lystari,” the girl said softly. “Daddy was Feldmar.”

  “Lystari,” the dwarf said. “Who the heck was Lystari? Did you know what dungeon she controlled?”

  Faestari looked confused. She turned over the scroll she was still holding in her hand and read the final sentence. “Dungeon…soul of…Eastfjord.”

  “You mean the trickster? Your mother was the trickster dungeon? But she vanished,” the dwarf said in disbelief.

  Faestari held up the scroll. The dwarf leaned forward and then grumbled. “It’s too dark here. What is that?”

  “Letter,” Faestari said in the tone a child uses when being asked an annoying question from an adult they don’t know or like.

  “What are those?” the dwarf asked. “Oh hell, nevermind. It’s clear you know nothing of what you are. But the stones there tell the truth. You are a dungeon soul. Of course, one without a dungeon or knowledge.”

  Faestari just sat there. She watched the dwarf as he started to pace back and forth in the small chamber. He was looking about the chamber and shaking his head.

  “Have you done any magic?” he asked.

  A couple of the stone rabbits came to life and hopped over to Faestari. They rubbed their heads against her as the dwarf stared. “Yours?” he asked.

  Faestari shook her head. “They were here when I emerged from the stone. Before that I was with mom. She touched the stone to me and then I was here in the darkness.”

  “So you know nothing about what to do?” the dwarf asked.

  “Letter said I feed on life and magic, and that I need to protect the stone,” Faestari said softly.

  “That is a good start,” the dwarf said. “I guess we first need to figure out how large your domain is currently. Reach out with your mind, how far from this chamber can you feel?”

  Faestari closed her eyes. Her body seemed to turn to stone, not moving or breathing. The gemstone she had been told to protect flickered and then the glow brightened slightly.

  The girl opened her eyes. “I can just reach the surface if I go upward. But other than that, it’s almost all granite around me. How do I know that?”

  “Dungeons can always feel the stone and ground surrounding them,” the dwarf said fondly. “If you can reach the surface you have a long reach for a dungeon just now awakening. But you said your mother was a dungeon, which I thought impossible.”

  “What happened to Mother?” Faestari asked.

  “I don’t know,” the dwarf said. “I rule the Wynterhold Dungeon. I’ve never met your mother, but all dungeons heard about her. She took over from an aging soul that wished to cease. For a few years her dungeon was very popular with adventurers due to the variety of tricks and puzzles that she populated the dungeon with. Then, almost as swiftly as she rose, she made a deal with a dungeon soul that had seen his dungeon destroyed by wizards. She gave him control and vanished.”

  “Why?” Faestari asked.

  “I don’t know,” the dwarf said sadly. “But I will try to find out. However, the soul she gave Eastfjord too has moved on. He wanted a better dungeon to control.”

  “What do I do?” she asked.

  “I hate to say this, but there are no dungeons you could take over. You are too new. Most dungeons exist for centuries before a soul forms in them. You are a soul without ever possessing a dungeon. But that might work. You have a heart here. A place to keep you safe. Use your power to generate a maze of chambers in the area you control. Allow creatures inside and use your power to make them big and strong. Then open a door to the outside and adventurers will come,” the dwarf said.

  “How long?” Faestari asked.

  “There is no hurry. A dungeon can live forever if they wish,” the dwarf said. “I’ll return as I can, but I have my own dungeon. Coming here takes mana and time. I can save a little mana, but my dungeon is extremely popular. I can only come this time of year when blizzards keep adventurers from trekking to the entrance of my home. Do you understand?”

  Faestari shook her head. The dwarf scowled. “Well, how about I promise to return in a year. It might not be on this day, but I’ll try to arrive around the same time. By then I want to see several additional chambers around this one. But don’t allow them to link directly to this one. You never want an adventurer to reach your heart.”

  The girl looked puzzled, but nodded. “I can do that. I think.”

  “Good,” the dwarf said. “I’d give you a way to contact me, but for now your best protection will be in silence. Be careful using your power near the surface as wizards might detect it. Work slowly and I’ll see you again.”

  The dwarven body disappeared as a whirlwind rose up from the floor of the chamber. It rose into the air and then broke apart as quickly as it had appeared, leaving a whispering silence. “Good luck,” it seemed to say as the last gust faded away.

  Faestari looked over at the stone rabbits. All five were now moving around and she could feel a connection with each of them. “I guess you are my only friends now,” she said. “What should I do first?”

  The rabbits ignored her, but she looked over at the glowing gem that was her soul. “Protect the heart,” she said.

  She instinctively raised her right hand, a dome of thick white mist seemed to form around the stone. It looked insubstantial, but as soon as the gemstone was completely surrounded Faestari’s body became transparent. She quickly waved her hand and the dome blew away like mist on a morning breeze.

  “I can’t block the magic,” she said angrily. “Be nice if someone told me.”

 
The rabbits ignored her as she carefully raised her hand again. This time the dome was made out of stone. She moved cautiously, watching as the new dome slowly engulfed the gem and its attendant stones. Once they were completely hidden from view she turned her hand over and with her palm facing the floor lowered her arm. The half-sphere sank out of sight.

  “It’s hidden,” she said with a sigh. She looked around the dark chamber, and cried. “I miss momma.”

  The quiet sobbing continued for a long time. Finally, the sounds stopped and only an occasional sniffle interrupted the silence of the cavern. A new light blinked into existence. This pale blue light illuminated Faestari as she lay on the floor of the chamber and stared at the floor.

  “Need a bed,” she complained.

  Faestari sat up and for the first time appeared to really look around the chamber. She got up and with the light hovering just over her head walked around the stalagmites. She seemed to pay extra attention to the floor of the cavern.

  “It’s wet,” she complained to one of the stone rabbits that had followed her as she walked around. “We need a house.”

  The girl walked back to the small open area near the pond. She took a number of measured steps and then sighed. “Not here.”

  She walked over to the wall of the cavern. As she did she reached out with both of her hands and closed her eyes. The stone ahead of her flowed away from her hands, forming a new alcove on the side of the cavern. The room was not large and Faestari’s head was almost brushing the ceiling, but she smiled as she looked at the dry floor. There was even space for the five rabbits to rest. She sat down in the room and closed her eyes to think.

  Chapter 5: Stumbles and Collapses

  The crystal in the ceiling started to glow again. Faestari looked up. She had been motionless for hours, but stretched and then stepped out of the alcove where she had carved out a new shelter. “We need to plan,” she said to one of the stone rabbits as it got up to follow her.

  The rabbit said nothing as it hopped along the broken path. Faestari tripped over a mineral deposit that snaked across the floor of the cavern. “Ouch,” she cried as she used her hands to stop her fall.