Chapter One: BedRock
The flame flickered and died, casting shadows against the far wall before a series of sharp pops from beside his head sounded the fires revival the darkness fading as the fire sprung back to life revealing the world about him.
His head felt... fuzzy.
It was his memories; all of their colour, their sensations, thoughts, feeling, it was like they had all just been drained away, everything painted over in a great swathe of grey. The fire continued to burn flickering in and out of existence moment by moment, the light growing dimmer with each repetition until at last the flame gave out.
It was dark.
It was really dark.
He didn’t like it.
He swallowed slowly rising up onto his rear hands fumbling about at his side tracing their way across jagged stone, searching for something, until they ran over something hard and warm. He hunched over in the dark grabbing hold of the smooth thing that had been lying beside him, a few scant moments passing before a piercing scream ripped through the shadows lancing out against the stones.
Correction whatever it was was hard and hot, very hot. He let out a low hiss the object falling from his hand as he swung his hand in the air about his head in an attempt to cool it slowly the pain beginning to die. What was it? He frowned his hand tracing through the dark, a sudden wave of irritation rising up from the pit of his stomach, as he searched for the fallen object.
There it was.
His hand grazed something hot before pulling back a moment later. He frowned turned himself in the direction of the fallen object and reaching forwards poking at it slowly in a vague attempt to feel out what it was. It felt like a glass ball... well not a proper ball, its edges were rough and flat coming together to form a sphere connecting to what felt like some kind of platform below a wooden handle jutting out from the metal plate. A small grin curled the corners of his lips as he raised the object up a short sharp Ping! echoing through the cave.
Crystal Lamp Lv48
An enchanted device able to provide a near endless supply of light; a single minor mana crystal will last two day and the protected flame is perfect for travelling in hazardous conditions. But that’s not all simply turn the knob on the right hand side to adjust the light level and press button on the handle to turn it on.
Item Type: Tool
Damage: 3
Durability: 72/150
Charge: 4/50
Trait: Magnify Light
He paused staring at the bright green screen floating before his face. The light the little floating notice gave off was strange, it didn’t seem to touch anything, not the walls or the ceiling or the lamp, even as he reached out to touch it his hand was just a dark silhouette against the pale glow. He frowned tapping the screen a small pop marking the windows disappearance.
He supposed the thing he was holding was a lamp then. He smiled running his hand along the handle feeling for the button the window had described a moment before. He found it position firmly on the butt of the little wooden handle a small click sounding as he pressed it down, a small flame spluttering to life within the little glass ball.
He sighed lowering the lamp back down to the floor the glossy brass base clattering as it met the stone a sudden realisation popping into his head. He was in a cave, reddish brown walls of rock rising in a wide arch supported by thick wooden beams. Well thinking of it, it was more of a tunnel actually though he supposed that didn’t really matter; the real question was why he was in a tunnel. He frowned forehead scrunching as he tried to recall something about his reasons for waking up alone inside a dark, damp tunnel... He sighed, nothing he had nothing, nothing about who he was, or where he was, or why he was there, he couldn’t even remember his name. He froze where he sat the flame continuing to splutter within the glass case, eyes wide and mouth agape he stared out beyond the little circle of light into the darkness beyond.
Who was he?
What was he?
Was he real?
What was he supposed to do now?
He clenched his teeth pulling his knees up to his chest huddled over staring down at the earth between his fear an existential dread slowly creeping its’ way up through the darkness. He... he just, he needed help.
Ping!
He jumped at the sound another floating window popping into existence this one coloured a deep blue with white writing.
MENU [Status] [Map] [Inventory] [Contacts] [Options] [Help] [Log Out]
He paused his fear pushed down by a certain level of curiosity his hand trailing down the floating screen each button lighting up as he touched it until at last his finger stopped resting on [Help]. He swallowed had and pressed down another blue screen popping up just to the right of the first one.
Warning! This option is currently unavailable at this time - apologies
The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.
Okay then maybe one of the other options would help him? He pressed map next, knowing where he was certainly would be a big...
Warning! This option is currently unavailable in this location - please exit the dungeon and try again
Hmm, He frowned glaring down at the new notice. Well at least he had learned something he was apparently inside a dungeon... There was no way that was a good thing. He sighed moving on to options which brought up an identical copy of the first warning followed by contacts.
CONTACTS Your contact list is empty [Add a new contact?]
Okay now he was starting to get frustrated. Okay one final time, he nodded to himself pressing [Menu].
STATUS
Name: Alter
Race: Human
Health: 2440/2440
Mana: 6540/6540
Stamina: 4880/4880
Strength: 86
Endurance: 244
Speed: 165
Agility: 86
Intelligence: 327
Blessing: 258
SKILLS
Thaumaturgist Lv80: Calcify Lv10, Desiccation Lv7, Detonation Lv6 (Geomancer); Stonewall Lv2
Miner Lv80: Carve Lv10, Crumble Lv10, Identify Lv10, Mole Lv10, Refine Lv10.
So his name was Alter?
A small shiver ran its way up along his spine as he looked over himself in the lantern light. He was dressed in thick leather overalls with a dusty grey shirt underneath, a pickaxe with a long slightly ominous curved head was hung at his belt alongside a number of pouches, a second lantern and what looked like a sceptre cast from brass topped with a series of golden crescents of varying size intersecting each other one after the next.
Well it seemed that had answered some of his questions now he knew his name and he supposed the reason why he had woken up inside a tunnel. He was a miner and a... Thaumaturgist? He wasn’t really sure what that was supposed to mean, so he was just going to ignore it for now. Yeah that was a good idea.
Okay, next on his long list of problems; find out what happened to his memories, get out of the tunnel and take a nap. Well thinking about it he would probably be better of getting out of the tunnel first, oh and finding a hot meal – he was starting to get kind of hungry. He laughed pulling himself up from the floor arms pressed firmly against his hips. Now he just needed to decide on a direction... Well he supposed going uphill would lead him out eventually. Alter nodded to himself confirming his decision before picking the lantern up from where he placed it a moment before and hefting up his pickaxe in turn marching up through bowels of the earth.
...
It was somewhat odd. After his brief moment of panic was over he felt perfectly fine; he wasn’t scared or worried or angry at all – he felt somewhat numb like a bystander to the whole event. Maybe that was due to the shock of it all, or perhaps some form of concussion?
Maybe that would explain his amnesia?
Alter reached up feeling his forehead short cropped Iron grey hair blowing in front of his face his fingers coming into contact with what felt like some kind of helmet. Well maybe it wasn’t a concussion; besides people only got amnesia after hitting their heads in cartoons. He sighed continuing his journey, the lantern flame beginning to flicker low.
He’d been walking for maybe an hour marching through the solitary dark and during that time the flame had gotten progressively lower. Alter frowned reaching back and pressing the button on the handle of the lantern the flame suddenly leaping back up his little circle of light expanding once again. He let out a soft sigh of relief before pushing a faint breeze coming from up ahead. Finally.
The young man let a wide grin cross his face before launching himself forwards scattering dust in his wake his feet clattering as small pinpoint of light bursting into existence in the darkness beyond the lanterns reach, a hot wind blowing down through the tunnel entrance. Within mere moments however the single point had expanded into a narrow doorway Alter rushing forwards and bursting through it with a roaring laugh before stopping dead in his tracks.
Above his head was not a blue sky. To his right a stone wall rose a deep bloody red, seeming to gleam within the light of the torches scattered at its’ foot. The same thing could be found to his left and in front, the roof forming a deep red dome from which lanterns had been hung on thick iron chains. It seemed like he wasn’t going to escape the dungeon quite yet. He sighed switching off his lantern and slipping it into a loop on his belt; it seemed that the tunnel on the other side of the room was fairly well lit. He supposed that meant he didn’t have to worry about the lantern running out of whatever it was that kept it working.
Alter shook his head stepping forwards before freezing in place his foot half in the air as his gaze turned towards the black mass lying on the floor.
It was smooth and shinny taking up a majority of the floor long winding coils stretching from wall to wall leaving only the smallest gap through which he could squeeze through. Stocky legs jutted from the pile in their hundreds three thick claws curving down from each, a pair of thick bat like wings covered in narrow pointed scales spread over the centre of the pile, a large spiny head, twice the size of a man and ten times its’ weight resting atop the heap. Alter Blinked stepping back ever so slowly until his back was pressed against the wall the pile rising and falling slowly a gust of hot air billowing out with each breath. A Dragon there was no doubt about it; he was looking at a dragon – big and scaly and ugly and mean. Exactly how long it’s’ body was it was hard to tell seeing as most of it was coiled up in a big pile like a snake but it was big; a gigantic dragon just sitting in a room under ground for no reason at all.
So it was that kind of Dungeon after all huh? The kind where monsters attack unwary adventurers, where people go in search of treasure and where running into a dragon in a big fancy room is never, ever, a good sign. Alter took a deep breath and inched his way forward.
It looked like the monster was asleep for now which meant this was his only chance. Going back down through the hole he’d come through probably wouldn’t lead him out; that was basic logic in dungeons. To get what you wanted in places like this you had to do everything the hard way. Alter shook his head a cold sweat breaking out across his forehead.
If he was quiet and patient and took things very, very slowly, he might escape alive.
Time ticked by the young man stepping forwards inch by inch skirting around the roiling mass of coils spreading and retreating across the hard stone floor as Alter pressed himself into the wall scooting forwards. It was to tell exactly how much time passed, though it was certainly nearing the ten minute range as he finally crossed the middle of the floor stepping back into open space the exit not too far away.
He pressed his lips tight together taking in a long breath tiptoeing towards the door with the longest stride possible several seconds winking by as he practically threw himself forwards into the tunnel entrance. Ha! He’d done it! He let out a wide grin throwing a punch up and turning back in the direction of his conquered foe a giant green eye staring back.
Alter paused the dragon tilting its’ head to look at him, the young man frozen in a single moment of dread, his heart practically still within his chest, waiting for time to resume and the next beat to come. The beasts’ eye fixed him in place; a deep verdant green streaked with lines of midnight black its gaze almost sickening. A plume of smoke rose from the dragons nostrils as its head dipped low and its eyes closed.
Alter moved backing away slowly, each footstep seeming to boom inside his skull as the young man turned, mouth wide open in a silent scream as he disappeared down the tunnel.