"So… we found someone to help us with the dungeon." Frank began.

"'Bout fuckin' time!" Winston exclaimed. "How much are they asking for?"

"Quarter mil, plus five percent." Frank replied.

Val frowned. "That's- disturbingly cheap. Why would they agree to come for so little?"

"Well…" Frank trailed off awkwardly.

"Because they're weird as fuck!" Kara replied.

"Basically." Frank nodded. "I offered a quarter mil and they just agreed, no questions asked. I- don't think money is very important to them."

Marcus let out a low whistle. "Wow. They must be pretty powerful then, huh?"

"Not-" Frank began.

"Oh, yeah." Kara nodded vigorously, eyes wide. "Super powerful! Scary powerful! You definitely don't want to piss them off!"

Frank shot her a look before turning back to the others. "She's not wrong, but they aren't exactly powerful in a… conventional sense. Basically, they're going to handle the traps but we'll have to deal with everything else."

"But we don't have to worry about keeping them safe, right?" Marcus asked, frowning slightly.

Frank hesitated. "Probably- not? They're not going to die on us, if that's what you're asking, but we shouldn't leave them to get swarmed by mobs either."

Val gave Frank a skeptical look. "This is starting to sound a bit sketchy, Frank. Are you sure we can trust them?"

Frank paused. "I wouldn't say we can trust them, but I can't see how betraying us would help them in any way. The entire arrangement is mutually beneficial, so they have as much interest in taking care of this dungeon as we do."

"But if they're so powerful, why do they need us?" Val asked, cocking her head.

Frank shook his head. "It isn't that kind of power. It isn't that they can crush you with a thought. In fact, you could probably crush them with a thought. But it wouldn't mean a damn thing to them, and if you pissed them off, they'd turn the entire world against you, because what they can offer is so much better than anything you can offer. Going against them would be like going against a force of nature. It wouldn't be about whether or not you can win, but how long you can last."

"You know, Val, He is looking for a girlfriend, if you're interested." Kara commented, wiggling her eyebrows at her.

Val rolled her eyes at her. "It's a he, now? And if he's looking, why not take him for yourself? I know Frank doesn't mind sharing."

"I offered but he's only looking for a long-term commitment." Kara sighed. "No sex before marriage and all that. You know I couldn't let myself get tied down like that."

Val blinked. "Is that so? That isn't a common sentiment, particularly among the powerful… interesting."

Kara smirked. "I knew you'd be interested~"

Val rolled her eyes again. "Just because a man had standards doesn't mean he's up to mine. But… I wouldn't be opposed to getting to know him better. We will be spending a lot of time together during this dungeon."

"What is this, a delve or a blind date?" Marcus grumbled.

"Oh, don't be like that." Kara smirked. "You know how much downtime there can be in a dungeon. What's wrong with a little talking? Or maybe a little something more if things go well~"

"It's unprofessional." Marcus retorted. "We're doing a job, not going to one of your parties!"

"Hey, parties are my job!" Kara retorted.

"Guys, chill!" Frank interjected. "This job is going to be stressful enough without the two of you at each other's throats!" He glared at the two of them until they backed down.

"Sorry." Marcus apologized. "Just getting a little jittery. I'll be better in the dungeon."

"Yeah, me too." Kara echoed.

Frank nodded in understanding, knowing how it got between dungeon delves. They enjoyed their lives outside, but dungeons were where they truly lived! Everything in between felt like a haze of drudgery, a world with no real place for them, no real use for the skills they'd spent their entire lives perfecting. What was the point of all their power if there was nothing to use it on? So they were left with nothing to do but sit around and waste the money they earned until their next dungeon delve, where they could truly be themselves again. "Alright, everyone get your shit ready. We're leaving as soon as possible." He grinned. "It's time to get back to it."

*

"Where's your guy? I thought you said he was meeting us here?" Val asked as they reached the dungeon, looking around and feeling… strangely disappointed. Kara had been talking up this 'Chris' the entire trip, and she was almost excited to meet him.

"He will, don't worry." Frank assured her, pulling out a small card and ripping it.

A moment later a portal appeared and Chris stepped out. "Oh, it's you. Dungeon time?"

"Dungeon time." Frank nodded with a grin.

"Got it. Let me get the others." Chris replied, heading back into the portal.

"Frank, you found a space mage for traps?" Marcus asked incredulously.

"Not a space mage." Frank chuckled.

Val cocked her head. "Pathfinder?" A rare Class nowadays, but one that was still useful when it came to dungeons.

"Nope." Frank shook his head. "He's nothing you've seen before."

"Is that so?" Val muttered, her intrigue piqued.

A few moments later, Chris returned, followed by Andrew, Greg, and Thomas, as well as Allison and a few of the soldiers. The others' builds weren't combat focused, so they didn't see much point in going to the dungeon. They all came in their main bodies for the achievements, except for Greg who was in his Cheetah Folk form, since his main body was crafting focused. "Alright, we're ready." Chris announced as they all arrived.

"The fuck is this?!?" Marcus exclaimed. "Frank, why is this dude bringing a whole freaking tour group with him!?! We can't protect this many people!"

Greg chuckled. "Oh don't worry, we'll be fine. No need to protect us, just do your thing and we'll do ours."

"Marcus, seriously, don't worry about it." Frank assured him.

Marcus frowned, looking between Greg and Frank. "Fine. But I want it on the record that I'm not comfortable with this! If these people die, it's on you!"

A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

Greg laughed. "Yeah, I'm not worried." He clapped his hands. "Okay, let's go!"

After a bit of hesitation, everyone began to file into the dungeon, and as they did, notifications began to appear in front of them.

[Dungeon Quest: Reach the dungeon core without killing a single Naga.]

Andrew frowned at the quest in front of him. "Okay, what the fuck?"

"It wants us to reach the core without eating, drinking, or sleeping?" Thomas asked incredulously, before pausing. "Actually, considering who we are…"

Frank coughed. "Everyone gets different quests." He explained. "In a good dungeon, these quests are challenging, but doable. However, this one seems bent on making things as difficult as possible…" He grimaced as he stared at his own quest to let twenty naga bite him.

Chris tapped Frank on the shoulder. "I need you to break every bone in my body. Please. Just don't hurt my brain. It's for a quest." Frank paused, before shrugging and reaching out with his Domain, sending a light tremor through Chris, cracking every bone in his body, which he immediately healed. A moment later a bow made of bone appeared in his hand. "Neat." Chris commented as he inspected the bow.

[Bone Breaker Bow:

-Generates bone arrows using Energy. Damage based on Will and Energy spent. Piercing determined by Intellect.

-Quadruple damage to bones.]

Chris drew the bow, pumping Energy into it as he lined up a shot at a nearby tree and released, the arrow driving through the tree and into the next. "Good bow." He nodded, before pausing as he received a second notification.

[Dungeon Achievement: Complete a Dungeon Quest within a minute of receiving it. Doubles the speed of all actions.]

Chris blinked. "Huh… I guess I'm twice as fast now."

"Okay, I call bullshit." Greg grumbled. "Why do you get a quest you can complete just like that, while I have to get caught in a hundred traps!"

"How the hell is he just fine after breaking every bone in his body?!?" Marcus exclaimed.

"We can all do that." Greg waved dismissively. "Well, except Thomas. Kinda. Watch." Greg walked around through the brush until a few darts flew out and hit him. "See? Nothing. Also, one down, ninety-nine to go."

Marcus blinked, turning to Frank. "Where did you find these people?!?"

"Chris there came to the club, shit happened, and here we are." Frank sighed, shaking his head. He then clapped his hands to get everyone's attention. "Alright, enough messing around! We've got a job to do! Chris, you and your people deal with the traps, we'll keep a lookout for the naga. We've got a lot of ground to cover, so let's move!"

"Right, let's do this!" Greg agreed excitedly as dozens of fairies flew out of him and into the underbrush to look for traps, which they either disabled or Greg would rush over to trigger for his quest. Andrew shifted into a mix between his leaping terror and ape forms, jumping into the trees, using his aura sight to search for naga, while Thomas followed below, keeping watch with his point vision, ready to Slip Step or Void Evasion at the first sign of danger. Meanwhile, Chris, Allison, and the soldiers spread out in an arc in front of the team, walking before them to trigger any traps Greg missed. Every now and then, one of them would get hit and Chris's world would descend to heal them.

"What the fuck is happening." Marcus muttered as they followed, not quite sure what to make of all this. "They're just- triggering everything!"

Frank coughed awkwardly. "Well, it's effective, isn't it?"

Marcus hesitated. "I guess, but… fuck it, if it works, it works." He shook his head.

The group continued to make their way through the dense, swampy jungle that made up the dungeon, until about half an hour in, Greg finally managed to complete his quest. "Yes!" He cackled as a pair of clawed gloves appeared on his hands.

[Touch of the Naga: Spend Energy to coat the Touch of the Naga in poison. Potency determined by Intellect and Will. Potency increases if the victim is unaware of the poison.]

Greg channeled a bit of Energy into the gloves and a sticky substance began to form along the claws of the gloves as he grinned. He also received an achievement.

[Dungeon Achievement: Complete a Dungeon Quest in under an hour. Increase the speed of all actions by twenty-five percent.]

"Eh, not bad." Greg shrugged.

"Naga!" Andrew suddenly cried out, interrupting Greg's thoughts. A moment later a portal appeared and he stepped through it, arriving next to Frank and his team as Andrew and Thomas stepped out of their own portals. Chris had already sent his subordinates into his world, so it was just them at the moment.

"How many did you see?" Frank asked Andrew as his team formed up, Marcus stepping forward with a large shield, with Winston and Kara on either side, Winston wielding a large, two handed sword while Kara brandished two wicked looking daggers. Meanwhile Val stood in center, raising her hands as they began to glow, holding her spells ready, and Frank took the back, pulling out… a machine gun.

"Dude, you are totally breaking my immersion here." Greg sighed, shaking his head.

"About a dozen, in that direction." Andrew pointed towards where he'd noticed the Naga, the team shifting as they activated their Domains.

"Alright, we'll handle it. You guys should get out of here." Frank warned, preparing for the fight.

Andrew and Thomas nodded, heading into Chris's world as they had no interest in risking starting over from level one, but Chris and Greg remained. "I'll stay back, but I kinda want to test out my new bow, if you don't mind." Chris replied.

Greg nodded in agreement. "I just got these fancy new gloves that make poison, so-"

"I- do whatever you want, they're here!" Frank roared, turning to fire into the underbrush as a cry rang out from one of the naga. "Just don't hit one of us!"

Chris and Greg fell back as naga swarmed out of the jungle, using the dense foliage to avoid Frank's fire. Frank's bullets still pierced through the trees, but they didn't do as much damage, wounding the naga instead of truly hurting them. A barrier sprung up from Marcus's shield, covering the entire front half of the formation, funneling the coming naga into Winston and Kara's blades. Energy condensed in Val's hands until a beam of it shot out, freezing a swath of the jungle, preventing the naga from pushing their way through it and slowing them down.

Chris pulled back, forming an arrow to take a shot, aiming at one of the naga and letting loose, only for the arrow to veer off at the last moment. "Huh… that's not gonna work." The naga turned to glare at him. "That's probably not good either." He muttered as he opened a portal, stepping back into it, but leaving it open so he could still watch.

"Yeah, I'm gonna join you." Greg coughed awkwardly, stepping through the portal. This fight was a bit above their level. Just the pressure of all the Domains being thrown around was making him uncomfortable.

As the naga got closer, the Domains took over the fight. Marcus's Domain was like mud, slowing the naga down, while Kara's Domain was like oil, letting her slip around and through the naga, her daggers leaving jagged wounds as she passed. Winston's Domain was more interesting, simultaneously pulling the naga into his sword while he pushed them away from himself, keeping them at just the right distance to take advantage of his large blade. Val's Domain was more subtle, her spells gaining more flexibility as they swerved to hit the naga from odd angles. As for Frank, his Domain simply crushed any naga that got close, stunning them for a moment, until a bullet whizzed through their head.

"Could you move? We're trying to watch." Chris peaked around the naga that was blocking their view of the fight. It, or she he supposed, was hesitating at the edge of the portal, seemingly unwilling to cross inside, which… was smart, he had to give her that.

[What is this that it blocks my Domain?] The naga growled.

"Huh, guess Domains don't cross your portal." Greg commented.

"Makes sense. The two worlds are separate, so they can't affect each other. Like so." Chris commented as he tossed a rock at the naga, only for it to stop as soon as it passed the portal and fall.

"Huh. Neat." Greg nodded appreciatively. "I was wondering why you never just set up a portal and shot arrows out of it."

"Yeah, wouldn't work." Chris shrugged. "Is she gonna come in here, or no? I mean, the headache from forcing her to connect would be insane, but it'd be worth it to have a subordinate with a Domain."

The naga eyed them strangely, wondering how they were talking, yet she only understood one of them… suddenly she cried out as a pressure crushed down on her, Frank placing a boot on her back as he pressed his gun to the back of her head. "Sorry about this." He sighed, about to pull the trigger.

"Wait, could you just toss her in here?" Chris asked. "I could use her."

Frank blinked, looking between the struggling naga and Chris. "You're into that?"

Chris cocked his head. "Into what?"

"He means literally use her. As in, the whole subordinate thing." Greg interjected.

"Oh, that makes a whole lot more sense." Frank laughed, shaking his head. "Sure, yeah, we can do that. Marcus! Winston! I need your help real quick!" The other two came over and after a brief explanation that got Chris a lot of weird looks, particularly from Val who'd wandered over as well out of curiosity, the three of them subdued the naga with their combined Domains and forced her into Chris's world. Chris immediately warped her away to another section of his world.

"Thank you." Chris thanked them as he stepped out of the portal along with Greg. "All done?"

"Yeah." Frank nodded. "Thankfully it was just a small patrol, so we could finish it quickly."

"A dozen is small?" Greg raised an eyebrow skeptically.

"Higher level dungeons can have populations in the thousands." Frank explained. "More likely than not there's an entire city of these things somewhere in here, protecting the Dungeon Core. If we aren't careful, we could find ourselves facing down an army at some point. But don't worry, this isn't our first time, so the odds of that happening are low. And even if an army does come, we can always escape. This jungle makes things difficult for us, but it also makes it dangerous for them."

"Also, you know, we can always jump into my world for a bit." Chris offered.

Frank paused. "I- huh. That does make things easier." He shook his head. "Anyway, let's get back to it. We still have a long way to go."