Tiny Dungeon

The last thing the Core expected to find upon awakening was a floating screen hovering within his gem-like body. A body that had grown larger he idly noticed as the screen took up his attention.

Welcome Back Valterra Unok’Davaas…

My name is Krat’Imos, one of the High Council and I created this system for the use of Divine Dungeons. My experiments showed that it helped them immensely with discovering the fundamentals of their power as they came into their sentience. You are now large enough and advanced enough to accept the majority of the system. This will allow us to give you your starting Schemas as well as allow you to choose the next one from among a list. Prepare yourself…

The Core mentally winced as lines of fire seared new sigils within the Spark Matrix that made up his inner workings. When it ended the screen began writing again.

There you go you’re all set. Well, except for one minor adjustment. Make a worthy dungeon young Valterra. The Council eagerly awaits your choices.

The Core didn’t have time to process Krat’Imos’ ending words because suddenly he was inundated with notifications.

You have been named by a superior magical entity. Divinity recognized.

Name: Valterra Unok’Davaas

Name’s Meaning: “Playground of the Gods”

Name Effects:

Due to the meaning of your name and its divine nature your ability to affect the world is increased. The size of your domain is no longer limited by your size and the quickness with which you can expand is also increased. You now have Authority over the basic elements and can use Aether to summon them. Schemas of Divine servants may now be offered and used as dungeon monsters. They may be freely modified with permission from the divinity in question.

The Core could sense the power of his new Name as it roiled around in his soul. He could not dwell on it much because further notifications appeared as soon as the Core dismissed the first.

Congratulations! You have evolved! The gods look favorably upon this and have offered the following Schemas as a reward.

Note: Due to your Boon “Favored by the Gods” and because you did not receive a Schema to begin with, the rarity of the offered Schemas is higher than normal. Choose Wisely.

Please choose one of the following:

BloodMane Wolf (Exotic):

A fierce animal bred for war by a fallen race, the BloodMane Wolf possesses potent blood-based abilities. The more wolves in the pack the greater these abilities grow. They will not stop hunting once they have scented their prey and are cunning when doing so. They are a fearsome addition to any dungeon so long as it provides them with sport.

Earthquake Worm (Exotic):

Great tunnelers of rock and earth, these mighty worms can reach lengths of a hundred feet long. Big enough to devour a humanoid whole without stopping, they continually move forward using their earth affinity to great effect. Despite their size, they move quickly but certainly not silently as their passage shakes the ground. Once summoned by a dungeon they can help carve pathways in the earth allowing for their master’s influence to spread far quicker than normal.

Juvenile Dire Grizzly (Exotic):

Even while young a Dire Grizzly is a fearsome foe, standing easily twice the size of its normal adult counterparts. It faces foes with huge claws made for tearing and ripping flesh and its jaws are powerful enough to crush bone. Fiercely territorial, this creature will not flee from challengers and will fight to the death, often taking the challenger with them. This facet of its nature proves to be true as a Dungeon Monster as well but perhaps to the extreme as it will guard its floor above others’ unless the Core is threatened.

Great Tidal Whale (Exotic):

A behemoth of the deep these mighty creatures can grow well over a hundred feet long and are equipped with massive jaws that unhinge slightly to gulp prey whole. Once the prey is trapped behind their nigh-impenetrable baleen the whales use their high water affinity to manifest an intense scything current within their mouths that mince the captured creatures into a manageable chum that it then swallows. Content to hunt within their pods these giants of the depths would be right at home within an underwater dungeon or as the feature of a large oceanic floor to the terror of any adventurer willing to brave the dungeon.

The Core, Valterra, he supposed he was called now, looked at the options in awe. He could feel the power behind each one but also a glimpse of their nature in action. He could sense the rumbling of the ground as the Earthquake worm dug and the Juvenile Dire Grizzly as it tore into a fresh kill.

He could sense the pack mentality of the BloodMane Wolf and the barest glimpses of how its blood magic would work to make them stronger, faster, and more terrifying. And finally the awe and majesty of the Great Tidal Whale that swam in gallons upon gallons of water that it displaced with ease. Valterra sat still and let them wash over his mind before he even tried to make a decision.

To play for time and to make sense of what might fit best in his dungeon, Valterra moved his presence outward and began to observe his dungeon once more. He was surprised to find his chief creatures arrayed around his pedestal column.

In the center was the mouse who now appeared quite militaristic even to Valterra’s untrained eye and… was that the needle from his nest that he was carrying? He was also huge! He was almost a foot long now. He probably wouldn’t be able to leave the first floor even if he wanted to and that just wouldn’t do.

With this in mind, the Core widened the tunnel leading out of his first floor and saw the Mouse nod his head in something like a bow. Yeah, he was definitely smarter than he was before too. ‘Where did he learn to bow, I wonder?’ Valterra thought as he shifted his attention to another of his creatures.

On the right was the green serpent, his length coiled in on itself as his tongue flickered in and out. He seemed much the same as when he had left, though perhaps he looked way healthier than the one he had absorbed for the Schema. ‘Lots of food and Aether perhaps?’ The snake seemed cognizant of his master’s attention and gave a sibilant hiss in response that was somehow pleasing rather than scary.

On the left stood the Danian Queen with her wings folded back primly but standing just how Valterra had imagined she would. With her torso raised and her two larger forward arms clasped in front of her, she looked much more impressive and regal than before.

As each guardian felt the Core’s presence expand they visibly relaxed and seemed happy to see him begin moving. Valterra let a low hum reverberate through his floors letting each creature know that he had indeed returned.

Leaving his creatures behind, who were even now beginning to move back to their respective floors, Valterra once more seeped himself into his dungeon casting around for details. It was different than before. He remembered his time of partial sentience as if it was a hazy dream constructed of fragments of memory.

Nothing in those dreams and images prepared him for the experience of becoming his dungeon. It was like waking up evolved all over again. He was just bigger, stronger, more vibrant. He felt everything! The whole dungeon was his in a way he would never be able to explain, like a limb that had fallen asleep, numb until needing to be moved. He felt the Aether that coursed through his dungeon-like blood and realized that he was saturated in it.

It all stemmed from his pedestal column and the raging Aether that coalesced there. From that point on his breath, for lack of a better term, was his, and anything he claimed with it became his as well. A better way to say it was that it became him.

He hadn’t noticed before but even his creatures had a portion of himself inside of them when he really focused on his dungeon. It was this sensation that drew him to the second floor. The domain of the Danians was thriving but silent with the larvae having become pupae. They were much larger than they had been before and Valterra felt excitement wash over him. These were unique, made by him before he even knew what imagination was and he was looking forward to what they might do.

Moving to the entrance of his dungeon, the Core looked out once more upon the shadowed world of the outside. He pondered the difference between the shaded section and the brightness beyond its edge. He thought about the nature of this outside world and how odd the shaded section seemed in contrast to the vibrant colors of the furthest reaches.

He was filled with a sudden desire to see more and began to expand.

Rapidly. Much too rapidly.

Faster than he could really comprehend and yet unable to escape the sudden information streaming in, Valterra shuddered and stopped. He sifted through the information as he struggled to be fully present in a body that had grown far quicker than before. Eventually, he recovered sufficiently to be fully aware of himself and found that he had expanded outward fully halfway across the shaded area.

His evolved mind boggled at the speed of his new growth when a new sense poked at it.

Emptiness, a yawning void.

He focused more on the sensation and found that he had claimed the entire stone block that his cavern was located in. Not only that but he had claimed a fair section of wall stretching north and east both up and down. The sensation though was down and further into the cabin.

That was a strange thing to know.

Knowledge fluttered at the edges of Valterra’s evolved mind, brief flashes of images and ideas. He pushed them aside. He would sit down and deal with them at a later date. Suffice it to say that he now knew his core sat in the middle of a foundation stone set at the corner of what was his creator’s cabin. Down and further in meant something called a “basement”. That didn’t mean much as no image accompanied the knowledge and so Valterra went to work.

He began by carving a path through the rock that he had claimed, beginning at his first-floor cavern and working his way down at a rough decline. It didn’t take long to move his claimed stone out of the way and soon he was confronted with the void.

He couldn’t see.

There was no light and his breath spread only a few inches out giving him a kind of hazy perception. This space was huge, he could feel it. Big enough to encompass the entirety of his current body and then some. Valterra gathered up some of his Aether reserves and breathed it out in a long gust. It shot out and dispersed allowing him to see…nothing.

Oh yes, this would take some time but he could already see how he could make this work. And one of the new Schemas he had been offered would fit perfectly once he had everything ready.

He chose.

End of Chapter Notifications:

New Schema Acquired!

Great Tidal Whale (Exotic):

A behemoth of the deep these mighty creatures can grow well over a hundred feet long and are equipped with massive jaws that unhinge slightly to gulp prey whole. Once the prey is trapped behind their nigh-impenetrable baleen the whales use their high water affinity to manifest an intense scything current within their mouths that mince the captured creatures into a manageable chum that it then swallows. Content to hunt within their pods these giants of the depths would be right at home within an underwater dungeon or as the feature of a large oceanic floor to the terror of any adventurer willing to brave the dungeon.

The title “Tiny Dungeon” has gone into effect. When summoned by Valterra Unok’Davaas, the Schema “Great Tidal Whale” will be affected in the following ways.

Effect: Each Great Tidal Whale costs 90% less Aether to summon but is reduced in maximum size by a factor of 1/24th. The maximum size, therefore, is now reduced to 6 feet 4 inches from 150 feet.

Personal Note: “Oh by the Maker this will be hilarious!” - Trik’Weri, High Spirit of Mischief

The Core has acquired its first Exotic Schema.

Progress to Core Evolution:

10%