Dauntless Dungeon

by Devan Johnson

  Dauntless Dungeon

  Legends of Rhespira

  Dauntless Dungeon:

  A New Tale

  Devan and Jade Johnson

  Copyright © 2019 HaffoxTalesLLC, Devan and Jade Johnson

  All rights reserved.

  ISBN-13: 9781090631961

  Dedications

  We dedicate this book to our own little Foxlings, may you journey outside of our Den and follow the quest in your heart.

  Table Of Contents

  Dedications

  1 The Den

  2 A Journey Begins

  3 Quests and Caves

  4 The City of Gears

  5 Floating Islands

  6 The Tests Begin

  7 Temples and Gods

  8 Carnivorous Plants

  9 Perform or Die

  10 Beyond Realms

  11 Feasts & Friends

  12 A Daring Rescue

  13 The Dragon’s Maw

  14 Graduation

  Epilogue

  Glossary

  1 The Den

  Light from Rhespira’s twin moons shown down, illuminating the dark green waves that crashed with a thunderous roar against the bow of The Night Terror, slicing through the water towards its goal… the Imperial Bank’s transport ship. “Look alive lads!” Kheeta yelled to the gruff deckhands over the whipping wind and rain, nose twitching and tail swishing in excitement. Looking out over the deck she smiled, they were the toughest and most feared crew these seas had seen, with her as their first mate, and the most respected Pirate to command a ship, Captain Celia. Kheeta’s velvet red ears flicked back and forth filtering out the roar of the wind and waves to hear her next order.

  “Today lads, we all become filthy rich!” Captain Celia declared to the skies, her long green hair blowing behind her in the storm. Her nearly translucent blue skin glistened as moonlight shone against the rain that clung to her. Her eyes filled with a steely determination as she shouted words of encouragement before the coming battle. Kheeta watched her captain rally the crew together, a smile stretching across her face, I love watching her give speeches, she thought to herself as Celia caught her eye and winked, causing Kheeta’s stomach to twirl about and her heart to flutter. Now is not the time to go on a tangent brain, she thought as lightning split the dark sky, illuminating their ship momentarily. She shook her fur and gripped her cutlass tighter as they drew mere yards from the distracted imperial ship. “Surrender now and prepare to be board…” Celia was cut off as a cannon ball exploded through the side railing, missing her by mere inches. “Well then,” another flash of lightning allowed Kheeta to see the smile crack Celia’s face, “I was so hoping you would choose the hard way… Fire!” Almost instantly the air was filled with the explosion of cannons as the crew opened fire on the transport ship, twelve-pound balls of solid iron ripping through ship and crew alike.

  “Captain! Duck!” Kheeta scream as she tackled her superior to the ground, arrows thudding fiercely into the deck where Celia had just stood. They landed roughly, Kheeta shielding her captain with her body, “are you okay?”

  “I am thanks to you,” Celia responded helping her Kitsune friend back to her feet. “Those bastards are gonna to pay for that…” the Captain seethed as she gazed out over the sea to the opponent’s ship, “Kheeta?”

  “Yes ma’am?” The fox girl responded quickly standing to full attention, explosions and screams roaring in the background.

  “Let’s go have some fun.” With that suggestion voiced, Celia reached up and grabbed her necklace firmly, giving it one sharp tug. As the silver clasp broke and fell free, the transformation spell over her body dissipated as well, a swirling green mist surrounded her, completely clouding her from sight. Within moments she reemerged, her legs replaced with a long green fish-like tail. She winked at her red furred friend and jumped overboard, cutlass in her teeth, and began swimming to the enemy ship.

  One of the perks of being a mermaid pirate… Kheeta chuckled to herself as she looked around for another way to join Celia, who had already cleared half the distance, her tail giving her a clear advantage in the violently thrashing waves. Lightning and thunder sounded again causing Kheeta to look up and giving her an idea. Putting her Cutlass between her teeth as Celia had, Kheeta grabbed ahold of the mast rigging and began her arduous ascent. The ropes were rough and slippery from the rain making it not only difficult but painful to cling on as the wind tried desperately to yank her free and the fibers of the robe tore at her skin. None the less her determination to assist her Captain kept Kheeta climbing until she finally reached the crow’s peak, high above the pandemonium of the deck.

  Flickering lights on the deck below caused her to look over the edge of her basket at the crew, a fire had broken out on the port side and two lanky Elves ran around frantically trying to put it out. Stupid fire arrows! Kheeta thought to herself right before the ship was rocked hard to the side sending her over the edge of the crow’s nest…

  Kheeta clung for dear life, her claws digging deep into the wood as she prayed for the strength to pull herself back up. Captain Celia is counting on you! Kheeta yelled at herself as she swung her left arm up to grab the edge. She found her grip and began slowly pulling herself up, forming a plan on how to reach her captain. As she finally managed to get back inside the nest she felt a rush of accomplishment, only to have it ripped away as the mast split in two sending her hurdling through the salty air.

  The wind ripped at her face as the deck of the ship got closer and closer, I can’t believe it, I’m going to die! Panic and regret began to overrun her thoughts when something hit her in the face. She instinctively grabbed at it and to her elation it was a rope, still attached to the mast, and she was no longer falling… just swinging around in the wind. Alright if I time it just right I can swing over to the other ship. She strategized trying to regain some control of her facilities, bracing herself as the storm whipped her into the broken mast with a loud crack coming from her back. Probably just broke a few ribs, Kheeta thought to herself through gritted teeth as she inhaled painfully and tried to think.

  She peered across the treacherous chasm to see Celia had already boarded, and was twirling about, nothing but a dangerous bloody dance of blades, smiling and laughing as foe after foe fell to her. Movement in the water below caught Kheeta’s attention however… movement big enough that she could see it while whipping around on a rope fifty feet in the air… movement she could see in the middle of a storm… movement big enough to be a serious problem…

  Before Kheeta could react in any manner, a thirty-foot pink tentacle with suction cups the size of dinner plate burst through the dark waves, sending both ships rushing several yards away from each other… She stared on in horror as the Kraken’s arm crashed down on the imperial ship splintering the deck in half. “No! Celia!” Kheeta screamed as she let go of the rope, flying towards a hundred-foot squid monster, not a plan in her mind, only one thought…

  “Kheeta stop playing with your food! You’ve gotten milk all over the table!” Nadia, her mother, scolded as she walked into the kitchen. Kheeta looked up from her bowl of porridge and noticed that there was indeed quite a mess before her.

  “I’m sorry mom, I’ll clean it up.” She reassured her mother, quickly grabbing up her bowl and spoon. “I was just thinking about what it would be like to be a quester someday!” Her big green eyes shown with excitement over her quivering nose as she wiped up the mess on the table. “I want to go on marvelous adventures mother.”

  “Ha! You? A quester? That’ll be the day!” Kohda mocked as he took his seat at the breakfast table next to his sister, she hadn’t even heard him come in. Kohda was three years Kheeta’s senior and liked to think th
at he was better than anyone else in The Den.

  “Kohda be nice to your sister, what kind of peace officer mocks others?” Kohrlan, the Chief of Order and their father, scolded; smacking Kohda in the back of his head with his tail. “But your brother is right about one thing Kheeta.”

  She turned to look at her dad, tears beginning to form in her eyes, the knowledge of what he was going to say stinging preemptively. This wasn’t the first time they had this conversation… ever since she was little Kheeta had always dreamed of leaving the safety of The Den and seeing the rest of the world.

  “You need to get your head out of the clouds Kheeta you’re 16 years old,” Nadia finished for her dad. “Look at your brother Kohda, he’s going to be a peace keeper like your father and his father before him. If it wasn’t for them then, well this whole den would be as chaotic as a hen house.” Kheeta rolled her eyes at the thought of the prim and proper Kitsune’s ever doing anything chaotic or exciting. “Plus, today I really need you to be focused. It’s the first day of the Autumn Festival and Mrs. Vines prepaid a lot of gold for a dress that she’s picking up today, everything must be perfect.”

  “But I don’t want to run the stall today… I want to enjoy the festival.” She complained at her mother, trying to give her the most pitiful pleading expression she could manage.

  “Too bad Kheeta, life, or real life anyways, isn’t traveling around and saving maidens from dark wizards… it’s dull, repetitive, routine. And that dull, repetitive, routine has made our family the number one tailor in all of The Den…” Her mother was looking past all of them now lost in her own pride, it was almost as if she was talking for only herself and after a brief pause she continued. “You should take pride in what we do, it’ll all be yours when I retire after all.” A shiver went from Kheeta’s long ears all the way down her red velvet tail, Gah! The idea of working here for the rest of my life… She thought to herself as her mother’s tail smacked the back of her head, shadowing Kohda’s earlier treatment. “You could at least try not to look visibly disgusted. Now, go get the dress and come around front we’re running late.” With that said her mother stood up from the table and kissed Kohrlan on the cheek, “I’ll see you two at the festival.” The two Kitsunes waved her out the door as Kheeta went into the back to fetch the emerald green dress that her mother had poured dozens of hours into sewing and stitching together. She squinted as the light from the two suns in the sky shone brightly off the gems intricately inlaid in the fabric. She carefully put it in the back of the cart and closed the doors. It really is a marvelous dress… just not worth 450 gold pieces. Kheeta thought to herself as she climbed into the seat of the wagon next to her mother and they set out down the dirt road.

  The Den was a small village where everyone knew everything about everybody and Kheeta hated everything about it. She, like all Kitsune for the past two hundred years, had never left The Den to explore the outside world. Her people felt that the other races in Rhespira were barbaric and not to be trusted, so they cast strong illusion magic to hide their little haven and recluse from the rest of the world. There must be more to life than just sewing dresses and living in homes in the hills. Kheeta thought to herself with grim determination, and I’m going to prove it. They rounded the corner leading away from the residential district of the village to the main marketplace. Birds chirped in the ancient trees, whose leaves were a burnt auburn and yellow from the season’s change, and surrounded all sides of the circular courtyard. The air had the chilly bite of Autumn as the dual suns’ rays were duller in the square.

  The market softly hummed with the murmur of proper and hushed conversations, as everyone finished their festival preparations. Their wagon pulled up next to a large green stall and she hopped out, walking around the back to unload their wares, and the specialty dress, onto the various tables and display mannequins.

  “Make sure you’re careful with that dress.” Her mother yipped as she opened the window to their stall, marking the start of the day.

  “Make sure you’re careful with the dress, sit up straight, you can’t like boys and girls, you have to be a proper lady…” Kheeta muttered under her breath, disdain for her mother’s beliefs dripping from every word.

  “What was that dear?” Nadia called out looking over her shoulder at the rebellious fox girl.

  “Nothing mother,” she fired back in quick reply, rushing to get the rest of the merchandise unloaded.

  The day drug on for what seemed like forever, with Kheeta running the counter; selling various trousers and blouses to the festival patrons, sighing and wishing she could join in the festivities.

  As she was letting out her ninth exaggerated sigh in a row, to annoy her mother, she saw her classmate Froelan wave at her from the funnel cake stall. He was a smaller Kitsune, though her same age, and he had tan fur with long pointed ears. Please don’t come over here… please don’t try to talk to me… She thought to herself, her stomach a ball of anxiety and butterflies as she looked for a way to escape an encounter with the attractive boy.

  “Hey Kheeta,” the short Officer Recruit called out as he walked to her window, turning several heads with the abrupt noise.

  “Oh… hey Froelan,” she responded weakly. “What uh… do you need anything?”

  “Yea, your Dad said I should come by and see when I could be fitted for my Peace Officer tunic,”

  She pulled out the calendar from below the counter to consult, “well it looks like my mom is busy for the next two days but after…” Kheeta was interrupted as a shrill voice cut through the air.

  “Froelan? What are you doing over here with the weirdo?” Seqora, a white-furred Kitsune and local snob, asked as she clung to Froelan’s arm.

  “I’m not a weirdo.” Kheeta shot back defensively her nose and tail both twitching in offense.

  “Okay well let’s think about this… You spend all your time in those creepy woods by yourself, you have no friends, and you’ve always got your nose in a book… Yeah, I’d say you’re a weirdo.” Seqora was beaming ear to ear as she watched the tears begin to well up in Kheeta’s eyes. Why is she always so mean to me? This is why I hate this place… Kheeta thought to herself as she tried to muster a response and choked up instead.

  “Whoa, Seqora… maybe lay off a little.” Froelan said in a pitiful attempt of defending her.

  “I think she’s gonna cry… are you gonna cry?” Seqora taunted as she leaned forward so her face was inches from Kheeta’s.

  “No, I’m not gon…” Kheeta was once again cut off, only this time is was by her mother.

  “Kheeta, Mrs. Vines is here... Fetch the dress for me, will you?” Nadia called out from her side of the large stall, feigned kindness in her tone, as she welcomed the wealthy patron to their store. Kheeta grabbed the gown in front of her and began to walk away from her tormenter but something stopped her abruptly. She turned back to see that Seqora had grabbed one of the sleeves and was pulling hard.

  “I’m not done talking to you,” the white fox-girl sneered as Kheeta pulled back on the dress, trying to wrench it free; she could hear her mother still talking to Mrs. Vines.

  “I spent all weekend working on the stitching to make sure it was absolutely perfect for you.”

  “Well I’m glad, for the price I’m paying… it better be perfect.” Mrs. Vines barked back curtly, her eyes showing no kindness, feigned or real.

  “Kheeta what’s the hold up?” Nadia called out, more than a pinch of nerves apparent in her voice now.

  Kheeta gave the dress one final pull and the entire stall was filled with a terrible sound… RIP!

  “What have you done!” Nadia screamed, turning around to see Mrs. Vine’s new dress ripped in half in Kheeta’s stunned hands; Seqora and Froelan having sprinted out of view.

  “Why you, klutzy little wench! Do you have any idea how much money I paid your family for that dress?” Mrs. Vines screamed at her from the outside of the stall.

  “I’m really sorry, it was…” She bega
n, tears welling up in her eyes as Mrs. Vines cut her off.

  “Oh, I’m sorry doesn’t fix my dress does it? Can’t you do anything right? You’re a disappointment to your family and you’re a disappointment to The Den!” Mrs. Vines was screaming so loud that the whole Marketplace had stopped their polite hushed conversations and were staring at them.

  “Well I think that’s a little harsh.” Nadia responded meekly, trying, and failing, to defend her daughter against the angry woman.

  “My husband runs this town, he’s the mayor if you don’t remember! She’s lucky that I don’t just have her kicked out! She’s not a proper Kitsune anyways, always day dreaming, never contributing… She’s a bad seed and she spits on our way of life!” Kheeta was visibly upset as tears streamed down her face and her ears drooped down. Before anyone could say another word, she turned and ran out of the stall door, deep into the woods and far from The Den, to the outskirts of Verngoth Forest.

  I hate it here so much… Kheeta thought to herself as she kicked a clump of moss that was clinging to the forest floor. The woods surrounding The Den were not traveled by many, even amongst the Kitsune, due to its reputation of being haunted; but Kheeta didn’t mind, she enjoyed the solidarity. I don’t want to be a proper Kitsune. I want adventure and danger... She was so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn’t notice when a vine of a nearby tree began slowly snaking its way towards her as if it was stalking her on its own. I mean they seriously expect me to run a stall the rest of my life? The vine was closer now, only inches from her foot as she ventured deeper into the woods, alone.

  A cold breeze came rustling through the leaves of the trees and despite her fur Kheeta shivered. Why is it so col… her internal thoughts turned into an external scream as the vine wrapped itself around her foot and pulled sharply, within moments Kheeta was lifted into the air by one leg wildly kicking and thrashing about.