Stepping across the threshold, a burst of cool, musty air enveloped Joe, carrying the smell of what he imagined old pirate ships would be like— a blend of salty sea spray, weathered wood, and ancient, damp rope. Flickering light from bioluminescent patches on the ceiling cast ghostly shadows around him, highlighting the pulsing veins on the walls.
Like the induction room, his boots squished with each step, as though he were walking on a wet sponge. Scattered around him were seats and tables that looked like they were gouged out of sea monster carcasses—chairs and tables carved from bones, scales, and teeth, looking like they were waiting to snap at him rather than offer a comfy seat. "Guess it's BYOB—bring your own bedroll." Joe joked to himself as he eyed a particularly spiny chair.
Breathing in the damp, earthy air, Joe couldn't help but feel a bit like he had been swallowed by some ancient creature.
Moving further into the common room, Joe’s attention shifted from the living, breathing walls to the high-tech setup nestled within the kaiju-crafted common room. The system tech was so seamlessly integrated that it almost felt like stepping into a scene from a Borg collective fever dream. Consoles and screens sprouted from the fibrous walls like electronic fungi, their sleek metal surfaces and blinking lights creating a stark contrast with the organic materials around them.
He walked towards the nearest console, which looked like it had grown right out of the ground. The screen flickered to life as he approached, sensing his presence. Poppy appeared and danced across the display with hyper enthusiasm. Buttons and touchpads embedded in the walls pulsed with a soft light, inviting Joe to press them.
"Hey Poppy, great to see you, want to give me and my pals the grand tour?" Joe ran his fingers over a touchpad, and the screen to his right lit up, displaying maps of the areas inside the tower that adjoined the orange zone. It was all there—topographical layouts, environmental conditions, creature sightings on each floor—all updated in real time.
Above one of the consoles, a larger screen played a loop of previous Battlebox challengers, showing ascenders flinging their MadOrbz at each other with varying degrees of success. The footage was crystal clear, making it feel as if the battles were unfolding just beyond the walls.
“Woohoo!” TJ’s voice snapped Joe’s gaze to a nearby screen. The kobold turned human grabbed Brian’s arm while pointing at the screen, showing clips from their Battlebox challenge. “We look badass!”
Joe smiled and glanced around, taking in how others interacted with the technology. Some ascenders were deeply engrossed in planning their routes, tapping away at the screens, while others gathered around a large table display, animatedly discussing their strategies.
TJ sniffed the air. “It smells worse than a dragon’s sweaty ball sac in here. I bet they’re living the life with fancy food and fine sleeping quarters in the green zone.”
“Food not yucky here. See-see over there.” Poppy showed them where they could get food and what their sleeping quarters were like, before TJ’s patience dwindled. “Rest is a must if mana too low. If no sleep, mana take longer to restore. Green zone special, there mana-enriched foods. Want to sleep now?”
“I’ve no time to rest. I want to bust some balls and level up.”
“Hey! Poppy likes Joe so much!” Her eyes grew bigger and almost sparkled. “Want to be the first to see the super fun-fun Hall of Fame?”
Joe’s smile turned into a grin. “You bet. Lead the way.”
***
Joe never thought of himself as the poster boy for tough guys, and while he wasn't exactly towering above his friends back home, he felt reasonably average—until he walked alongside TJ and Brian. Now, trudging through the vast corridors of the tower, he felt like a Fraggle lost in Manhattan.
This is fine. I’m fine. Everything is just…peachy…He sucked in a calming breath, trying not to picture himself as a cartoon meme.
Think of something else…anything else. He desperately wanted to keep the claustrophobia away. Yeah, I’m just like one of those characters in the stories I read, and at least I didn’t get isekai’d into the body of an ant. Not that the main character, Anthony, let that get him down. It was part of the reason Joe loved that story. He didn’t let size stop him. He grew, evolved, and wore a grin—or whatever passed for a grin on an ant's mandibled mug. Be like Anthony.
Joe laughed.
That’s more like it.
Humor was Joe's life raft. It had buoyed him through dark times, like those long nights with his sister when she was sick, laughing at horror comedies with granddad to keep the shadows at bay.
“This place is a maze.” Brian’s fingers skimmed along the rippling walls, eyes lighting up with childlike glee. “I like it; it reminds me of the mining caverns back home.”
Sandwiched between Big and Bigger, Joe couldn’t muster the same enthusiasm. Though he wasn’t the most outdoorsy guy—happy to spend days cooped up gaming with Tao and Kyle—he appreciated the freedom to stretch his legs without bumping into walls cobbled together from reanimated kaiju parts or his new pals.
“Reminds me of home too,” TJ grumbled, his voice flat as old soda. “How much further?”
Joe sighed. This must've been the twentieth time TJ had asked. Poppy's answer was always a chipper, “Coming around the next bend!”
Except that next bend stretched into oblivion. “Feels like we're on the scenic route.” Brian chuckled, holding his hand to his head as he scanned the area.
TJ huffed but bit back a reply.
Minutes dragged on, and Joe wondered if they were walking in circles. His thoughts drifted to the map in the common room, a sprawling network of tunnels like the circulatory system of a brain. Back in the orange zone common room Poppy had whisked them past the galley-like area, pointing out food stations and bunk beds set into the walls like something out of an old spaceship movie.
Brian eyed the sleeping arrangements with skepticism. “Maybe I should crash on the floor.”
“I’ll sleep when I’m dead,” TJ said, then paused, scratching his head. “Oh wait, been there, done that.”
“Better not on the floor,” said Poppy. “You wake up. Shoes gone.”
“Shoe thieves here?” Brian raised an eyebrow.
“Poppy not know, but they steal time, so always pay attention. Poppy talking about the tunnel dwellers. They take things when you not looking.”
Don’t fall asleep. Don’t. Fall. Asleep. The whisper was so faint, Joe almost missed it—until he caught Brian's suddenly pale face.
“You heard that too?”
Inhaling, Brian nodded slow and steady with widened eyes. TJ's eyes darted, searching shadows.
“Yip-Yip. Good advice.” Poppy’s bubbly voice cut through their growing dread.
“Who said that?” Joe glanced around.
“Look-look, pay no mind to the voice.”
The wall to their right began to glow, revealing what looked like a giant heart valve straight out of a steampunk nightmare. Joe half expected to tumble into a scene from Innerspace meets Journey to the Center of the Earth—the kaiju edition.
“Open-open, fun times ahead! You look, you see, you learn! Ready to meet my big brothers and sisters?” Poppy trilled, her excitement bubbling over.
Joe hesitated to place his hand on the entrance. “There’s titans inside, isn’t there?”
“That will be so cool.” TJ nudged him forward, excitement bleeding through his usual gruff.
“Yip-yip!” Poppy squeaked. “Super exciting! You meet the Avatar of Greensnare, Guardian of the first floor.””
Relieved it was only an avatar and not the Real McCoy, Joe pressed his hand against the entrance. A menu popped up:
[Welcome Ascender 79. Enter the Titan Hall of Fame? Yes/No]
As they crossed the threshold, Joe’s eyes widened, barely registering Brian and TJ’s gasps at the sheer vastness of the hall. It resembled a huge warehouse, but instead of wooden or cardboard crates, there were transparent boxes of varying shapes and sizes. Each box contained silhouetted forms with question marks floating above them, like a character waiting to be unlocked in a video game.
“Somebody care to explain what I’m looking at?” Brian’s voice echoed, small and dwarfed by the enormity of the nearest container.
Side by side, they approached the first box. Joe’s gaze trailed up the massive, shimmering green behemoth floating in suspended animation within. It looked like Godzilla had a lovechild with Audrey II from Little Shop of Horrors.
“Poppy?” Joe’s voice cracked, hundreds of questions tumbling in his mind, but only one word made it out.
“Meet Greensnare Guardian.” Poppy’s voice resounded with a metallic ring, the kaiju oblivious to Joe’s internal meltdown.
Brian glanced back at the rows of crates. “Why’s this one all by itself?”
“Here, check your stats. Identify at QRL 3. Newbies get a sneak peek—full glory of Greensnare Guardian without risk of first-floor boss battle.” Poppy’s tone suggested she thought this was a tremendous favor.
Brian’s eyes lit up with a mix of awe and calculation. “How thoughtful. We get a preview to boost our chances of not dying a horrific death on the first floor.”
TJ snorted. “Improves our odds by what, one percent?”
“That one percent might be the fine line between another death and staying alive.” Joe forced a confident smile. “I’ll take every advantage I can get to increase our chances of survival.”
Brian nodded. “Dying once was quite enough, thank you very much.”
Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.
“I hear you.” TJ crossed his arms, staring in defiance at Greensnare’s monstrous form. “On that, we’re on the same page.”
Greensnare’s a beast, easily the size of a Volkswagen Beetle.
Not only was it huge, but he had a sinking feeling it also had impressive stats for a floor one boss. That made Joe wonder what other dangerous creatures they’d face before they reached Greensnare. Joe swallowed back his rising fear before it emerged full-blown like a titan from the deep. "When we’re out on the floor, can we use the identify skill?"
"Depends on your QRL level," said Poppy with her usual chirpiness.
"Our Quantum Resonance Level, right?” Joe asked. “Makes sense—then our mana manipulation and control should improve as our level increases. Can those at higher levels than us hide their stats from us?"
"You only see your own stats, but monsters within your QRL range you can identify," said Poppy.
"How do we do that?" asked Brian.
"Look-look at the monster. Think 'identify.' That’s it. Try now on Greensnare."
TJ cracked his knuckles as if he were about to enter the ring with the titan. “Let’s go.”
Brian eyed him with an amused smile, clearly entertained by TJ's readiness for battle.
Joe’s dread eased thanks to their raised spirits.
Power of friendship.
He could almost hear his sister say in her sweet, singsong voice.
Joe turned his attention to the not-so-jolly green giant before him and thought, 'identify.'
[Name: Greensnare Guardian
Type: Elemental Titan - Earth/Water
Level: 95, High Bronze Mana Rank
Health Points (HP): 16,000
Mana Particles (MP): 6,000
Strength: 95
Agility: 40
Intelligence: 70
Constitution: 100
Charisma: 20]
"Is that all?" TJ stood back, chewing his lower lip, deep in thought. "I thought there’d be more."
Brian shook his head. "My head’s dizzy. That’s more than enough for me. Did you see how many health points that thing has? This is going to be carnage."
Joe nodded. "It will be for any bronze rank lone wolves. We are smarter than that. I’ve in-game experience of fighting dungeon bosses with this level difference. We’ll level up as much as we can before we face off against Greensnare alone—"
"Are you saying that the three of us together stand a chance against that titan?" TJ asked, sounding doubtful. With good reason. Even if they leveled fast, Joe knew it was likely they would all still be Bronze Rank Ascenders for the duration of the first few floors.
"No," Joe said, raising his chin. "At our level, three is not enough to face off against a monster with those stats. I bet there’s more to Greensnare than meets the eye. That’s why we're going to find at least two more members to join our adventure party before we even attempt the first floor."
"You have a look about you like you’ve already got people in mind." TJ shot him a knowing look. "As long as it isn’t that elf and his little magic flute."
"Tempting." Joe scratched his chin as if seriously considering, then laughed. "But no, we need to make sure we’re well-rounded with race and class. Right now we’re earth-heavy, which is great for defense, but we need some damage dealers and a healer."
"Dawn can definitely deal damage," Brian said, stroking his goatee. "Why don't we think about it while Poppy tells us more on what 'hybrid' exactly means."
"Poppy can’t say," came her fast reply.
Using Quick Wit, Joe examined the Greensnare’s avatar, his senses sharpening as he took in its gigantic form. The mana used for the skill was worth it as his thoughts sped up, connecting ideas that would take him longer without using the skill. He felt like Sherlock from the TV show where everything connected in technicolor glory.
"Hey Poppy, I notice this kaiju has physical traits from different species," he said, wondering if some gene splicing had gone on. "Kinda like Biollante, which was genetically engineered with human DNA. If that's the case and Greensnare has abilities from different races, then we’re facing a very dangerous boss on our very first floor. We could expect subterranean growth where it might extend roots or vines underground to attack from below, and no doubt it will have something like acid sap spray and whips to add to the fun."
"Poppy does not know. Gene splice? Level up and you might find out much more." Poppy’s answer seemed more cryptic than Joe would have liked.
"That’s all part of the plan," Joe said, even more convinced he was right. "If all the races went into this monster, it would have their weaknesses too, with an increased chance of mutation."
The blue flame flickered in his mind. "Don’t get too cocky, boy. You do not have all the pieces of the puzzle yet."
Not wanting to draw attention, he spoke to the flame in his mind, hoping it could hear him. "How about being useful and confirming what I’ve said to be true? This is a Frankenstein plant stitched together with the DNA of all the races here in the tower."
"I could tell you that, but I like being vague. Keeping you on your toes, guessing, amuses me. Boredom is a killer." The heat from the flame flickered in his chest.
Joe rolled his eyes. He was aware of Brian and TJ talking but it was like he was in another room.
"No need to be so moody.” A quick flicker from the flame made Joe wince. “You're no longer a teenager. When you've finished patting yourself on the back for a job well done, perhaps you should look around. There are several doors in this tower with a titan boss on each of the twenty-three floors. Aren’t you even the tiniest bit curious?"
Joe left the others, partly to give himself space so the others wouldn’t look at him funny, but he was having a conversation in his mind with a talking blue flame that singed him from the inside-out. Yet, each time it spoke, it teased Poppy and him. Maybe he was going stir crazy.
He came to a stop in front of an all-glass container even bigger than Greensnare, the gigantic form nothing more than a silhouette with three question marks above its head.
“That’s a big one,” he said, looking around, sizing up the other containers. “In fact, it looks like the biggest one here. I wonder if it’s the final boss—if biggest means baddest and it’s meant to last.”
“Poppy cannot say. Do not worry, Joe, you are strong. I know this titan; big-big but still not indestructible,” Poppy said, her tone tinged with a hint of sadness, a stark contrast to her usual cheery self.
The blue flame scoffed in his mind. “Such a child. I bet she’s going to cry.” The bitterness in its tone was like that of a big brother who found it a chore to mind his little sister. Joe knew a guy like that; they weren’t friends for that reason.
“What do you want from me?” he asked, clenching his fists, resisting the urge to fling the mounting frustration.
Before he realized it, Brian and TJ were at his side. “You alright?” they asked, TJ’s intense gaze bore into him, his eyes filled with genuine concern.
That worry was mirrored in the soft brown eyes of Brian. “You’re looking a little blue in the face.”
Joe’s cheeks flushed as he realized he’d spoken aloud. The blue flame chuckled in his mind.
Now who’s the child? Joe thought.
No answer came from the flame; he felt its presence sinking deeper, deeper down. A lump caught in his throat, a feeling of sadness overwhelmed him. As the tether between him and the blue flame diminished, he wondered if it was his own sadness or if it belonged to the flame; he wasn’t sure.
Then it hit him. It wasn’t only sadness, it was grief, like when he walked into a room and felt sad for no reason at all. It felt like the grief of losing his granddad all over again. Such a little thing could trigger such big emotions. Not now. He shook those feelings aside and boxed them away, putting them on the bottom shelf in his mind where he hoped they’d be forgotten, knowing they never would.
Brian placed a heavy hand on his shoulder, bringing him back. “Who are you talking to?”
Joe shrugged. “No one, just thinking aloud. Habit from my previous life when I lived alone.”
Brian nodded with a hint of sadness. “I know how that feels. That’s why I had a pet [MadLibs: insert pet type]. We'd chat for hours. Such great company, and what a great listener [Name] was every time I talked about my troubles.”
Joe’s spirits lifted at the mention of Brian’s pet. It reminded him of Terkle, a baby turtle he’d found in the Summer drought. He’d missed the little guy when he moved out. “[Brian’s Pet Name] is an awesome name for a [Brian’s type of pet]. I understand how you feel, man. The last apartment I rented had a no-pets policy."
TJ tilted his head. “The world you came from is a strange one.” He raised his hands and wiggled his fingers. “No claws for digging. No magic. It’s a wonder your race survived long enough to spawn you from an egg.”
Joe laughed. “I wasn’t spawned from an egg.” His jaws snapped closed as he saw TJ's eyes light up with interest.
“How were you born then?”
Brian’s eyes narrowed, and he stroked his goatee. “Do you want to tell him, or should I?”
Joe was not ready for a talk about the birds and the bees, especially with somebody who looked the same age as he was. “Wow, look at that,” he said with a rogue smile, and he stealthily skipped out of the conversation and walked on. Try as he might, he couldn’t drown out Brian’s voice. “I explained it how my dear mother explained it to me. When a mommy dwarf and the daddy dwarf love each other very much…”
Joe walked faster. “Hey, Poppy, when we kill monsters out here on the floor, do they leave loot behind?”
“Yes, yes, Joe. Lots of loot. And monster cores. Kill the titan, get a titan core.”
Joe scratched his jaw. “So plenty of loot, but there’s only so much we can carry given the limitations of our inventory. Choosing the backpack as my storage unit was a good idea. So, you’ve mentioned we can restore mana faster by resting in the bunk beds. I take it that the system allows automatic mana regeneration, and the rate is influenced by our attributes, gear, skills, and so on. What about mana regeneration during combat?”
“Slow down. If the level gap is big between you and the monster, no mana regeneration. Be clever; use monster cores.”
“That’s great to know, thanks, Poppy. So, consuming monster cores will increase our MP.”
Many of the games he’d played showed mana would restore over time; it seemed to be the case here, and as far as health points were concerned, they decreased when he took damage, but resting could restore them if—and it was a big if—he had the luxury of time. It would only do that if absolutely necessary, preferring to have someone who could cast healing spells in their group.
The blue flame flickered. His voice a whisper in Joe’s mind. "Who gets the monster core when you fight together? There is only one correct answer."
Joe growled “Whoever needs it the most.”
“Wrong. The answer is you, Joe. You will always need it the most. Level up fast and you can attract other powerful ascenders. They will be the bedrock of your faction. Not a dwarf and a kobold turned human.”
Huh, he’s mistaken if he thinks I’m faction commander material. I chose rogue class for a reason. The last thing I want to do is stand out in a crowd.
“Powerful doesn’t mean better.” Joe’s brows furrowed. “Trust is worth its weight in gold. I trust TJ and Brian.”
“How nice! Unless they level fast like you, they're dead weight. They’ll drag you down.”
“That won’t happen,” Joe snapped, setting a brisk pace, as if he could outrun the invader in his mind.
“I know it won’t because I won’t let it ever get that far.” The cold conviction in the entity's words chilled Joe to his core. The thoughts of the blue flame forcing him to leave his friends behind, stripping him of control, would be worse than torture.
He’d find a way to protect himself. To do that, he needed to find out as much about the blue flame as it knew about him.
Poppy interrupted his thoughts. “Hey Joe! You like talking to yourself? Me too.”
“Sorry, I didn't realize I was doing that.” Joe shrugged. He wanted to change the topic fast. “When we’re out on the tower floor, will there be other ascenders looking to kill monsters and level up? What happens when we want to claim a monster to fight for its core?”
“Floors are huge. HUGE.” She spread her arms wide to show what she meant. “When you enter, the system puts you far away from others; plenty of monsters for each ascender. The minimum ratio is three to one; once the fight is engaged, other ascenders, either alone or in another team, are locked out. You win or die. Only then can another ascender try to kill that monster.”
Joe knew from experience it was likely the system would notify ascenders when big feats were made, and that would draw ascenders to the area like a gold rush. Those that chose to sleep often to restore mana and health or explore without grinding would quickly fall behind. Even now, talking with Poppy was costing them valuable time. He hoped to hell the knowledge they gained here would be worth it all.
TJ jogged up beside Joe. “If we ever get out of here and I’m still stuck in this body, I want to go visit your world. Making human babies sounds like much more fun than what we kobolds do.”
Brian joined them with the look of a proud parent.
“Glad you have goals.” Joe winked. “Right now, mine is to learn as much as possible in as short a time as possible. If we don’t get out there onto the first floor level fast, we are going to fall behind. If we fall behind, we die.”
“That won’t happen.” TJ cracked his knuckles. “Stick with me, and we will annihilate anything in our path and be time-rich champions of the Battlebox before you know it.”
Joe liked his optimism, but they needed to put positive action behind those positive words.
“Want to visit the MadOrbz Hall of Fame?” Brian asked.
TJ looked around, puzzled. “Hell yeah, like that’s even a question. Where is it?”
“Me, me! I show you.” Poppy waved a hand, hopping from one foot to the other.
A surge of excitement filled Joe's chest. He couldn't wait to learn everything he could about MadOrbz. Who knew? He and his new friends might even get some new orbs before their next Battlebox training session.