Zeke plunged through the semi-permeable barrier and tumbled onto dry land. His titanic body was a shredded mess, resulting in a small pool of silver blood beneath him. He vomited a mixture of blood, water, and bile – along with some sort of black sludge – onto the ground.
“I hate this place,” he grunted not bothering to look around. He knew good and well that some sort of monster was probably waiting on him within the habitat, but in a childlike bout of stubbornness, he refused to look up. The rumbling ground told him that he wouldn’t be able to maintain that stance for very long.
“You know what they say,” Eveline remarked. “Whatever doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”
“I hate that saying. And I hate you. I hate everything.”
“Aren’t you grumpy today.”
Zeke didn’t respond because he didn’t really have a proper retort. The fact was that he was grumpy, but he felt that he had good reason. He was a creature of earth, corruption, and death. An avatar of destruction. A titan who could stand up to dragons. So, why then did he feel so clumsy and out of place in the latest dungeon?
He knew the answer.
But Eveline said it anyway, “Water doesn’t mix with earth. I thought we went over this in the beginning. I seem to recall you dismissing my warning and telling me it would be fine. You really need to look up, though. Unless you want that thing to knock you back out of the habitat and into the water.”
That was enough to get his attention, and he finally raised his head. Predictably, the monster charging him was enormous. Probably the size of a double-decker bus. With claws.
“Is that a lobster?” he muttered to himself. Indeed, the thing looked very lobster-like, though its claws were far larger in proportion to its long body than they probably should have been. It was also pale white, with blue streaks running along its back. But it definitely had a lobster shape to it. He used [Inspect]:
Mad Lobster God – Level 100
“So, is it an actual god? Or just god-like compared to the other lobsters?” he wondered. It didn’t actually matter, but it was an interesting question nonetheless.
The thing let out a screech. Via the Framework’s translation feature, he caught a few words in the cacophony, but most of it was absolutely indecipherable. Perhaps the word “mad” wasn’t just there for show. Maybe the thing really was insane.
“Shouldn’t you be hitting that thing with a hammer?” asked Eveline.
“Fine,” he muttered, summoning Voromir to hand as he used [Shifting Sands]. The skill was slow to activate, probably because it was dependent on earth-attuned mana to operate. However, the fact that they were within one of the dungeon’s many habitats meant that there was enough that the skill still activated. “Silver linings.”
Time slowed drastically, and he slipped into the ground. However, when he moved forward, he was only capable of doing so at around half the normal speed. Still pretty fast, but nothing compared to the nearly instantaneous effect – at least from an outside perspective – he was used to.
Whatever the case, it gave him time to simultaneously refocus his mindset and cover the distance between him and the lobster god, and on his terms. He erupted from the ground only a dozen feet in front of the creature, and he did so with a swing already in motion. Voromir hit the overgrown lobster in the mouth – which had way more teeth than he remembered lobsters having. The power behind the blow sent the monster flipping backward until it landed on its back.
Zeke didn’t waste any time before using [Hell Geyser], then following that up with [Eye of Reckoning]. [Storm of Hammers] followed just after that, and he ended it with [Titanic Smash]. The barrage of attacks took the lobster by surprise – or Zeke assumed so, considering that it never even tried to fight back before he was awarded a wave of kill energy that finally pushed him to the next level.
That gave him an opportunity to take a look around. The habitat looked much the same as all the others he’d visited. He had lost count of the number – it was well into the dozens, and he suspected that it had already surpassed a hundred. Each one played host to a different peak monster, all with an aquatic theme. He’d fought crabs, fish of every sort, an army of sea otters, and even some creatures called coral beasts that were just what their name implied.
And all the while, Zeke had been missing what he estimated was about thirty percent of his power. It was even worse in the open water outside the habitats. Out there, he could barely travel a foot without being attacked by swarms of monstrous sea life. None of his earth-themed abilities worked properly in the water, so he’d been forced to fight hand-to-hand.
Normally, he wouldn’t have minded that, but the combination of his unsuitability to the environment, his extremely heavy titanic form, and the pressure that came with being so far underwater put him at an extreme disadvantage. The result was a dungeon that, while not quite as life-threatening, was easily as frustrating as the Mirror King’s abode. To say he wanted it over with was a vast understatement.
The biggest problem was that he had no idea how to bring that eventuality to fruition. He’d been in the dungeon for what felt like a month – but was probably much shorter – and he’d visited so many habitats that he’d lost count. And yet, he’d found nothing to suggest the overall goal of the dungeon. He had no clue how to conquer it, and so, he’d been going about it aimlessly, hoping that he could find something to point him in the proper direction.
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He'd yet to discover such a clue.
“You need a break,” Eveline said. “You should have brought Adara along. She helps with stress relief.”
“She’s more than that.”
“Didn’t mean to imply that she wasn’t,” Eveline replied. “Just pointing out one of her many talents.”
“You know why she couldn’t come. There’s no way she could have survived this place,” Zeke stated. Indeed, he had it on good authority that it was one of the deadliest known dungeons. Few people had managed to conquer it, which was why there wasn’t much information on it. Just a location and vague notion that it was underwater. Apparently, those powerful enough to defeat it weren’t very keen on sharing what they’d found inside.
“You’re probably right,” Eveline acknowledged. “To be honest, I’m surprised you can hold your breath so long. Most earth-attuned creatures would have suffocated within an hour.”
Indeed, that had surprised Zeke as well. While the habitats had plenty of breathable air inside their bubbles, the water was still water. And it required more than an hour of travel to make his way from one to another. He’d still yet to find his limits in terms of how long he could hold his breath, but he’d sensed that he still had a long way to go before that was a problem.
“I guess it’s because I have multiple attunements.”
“Or the divinity within you.”
“Or that,” he agreed. That spark-turned-flame of divine energy had become a gift that just kept on giving. And Zeke felt certain that it would continue to do so going forward.
Finally, after pulsing [Hand of Divinity] for a few more minutes, Zeke looted the lobster – hopefully, it would prove as tasty as lobsters back on Earth – before looking around the habitat. Like all the others, it was around two miles across, and it featured a host of abandoned stone buildings. Eveline supposed that it was supposed to represent an underwater research facility, but Zeke hadn’t found any evidence to support that. Indeed, most of the buildings were clearly apartments, meaning that each habitat reminded him of the Residential District within his tower.
As he explored, Eveline said, “There’s something I need to tell you.”
“What is it?” he asked, poking his head inside one of the stone buildings. It was predictably empty, devoid of anything that might give him a hint as to the nature of the beings who’d once called it home.
“Well, two somethings,” she said. “The first is good news. The second is good news too, but it’s not going to make you happy.”
He sighed. “Just spit it out, Eveline. I’m exhausted.”
“You know how I’m running the tower, right? I’m effectively in two places at once. Or if we’re being technical about it, I’m in about seventy-six places at once, but seventy-five of them are in the tower.”
“You can split your mind in that many different directions?”
“I can.”
“That’s so cool,” he acknowledged. And it was. If he had the ability to do something like that, he’d be unstoppable in battle. No one would ever surprise him again.
“Well, thank you. However, there’s been a development that I think you need to be aware of,” she said. “I didn’t tell you before because you had other things on your mind. Besides, there’s nothing you can do about it right now, and –”
“Just tell me what’s going on, Eveline.”
“Eric Tucker has found the tower,” she said. “And he’s brought quite a few interesting treasures with him. A few new friends as well. I’ve already put him to work in his own laboratory in the Artisan’s Terrace, and from what he tells me, he has extensive experience with helping monsters cross the gap between their innate nature and become a truly sapient race.
“Of course, the people he’s been working with made up some nonsense about a hereditary curse, but I can recognize it for what it was. They aren’t so similar to the kobolds, all said,” she continued. “I think that’s what they were. A different version, perhaps, but kobolds all the same. Perhaps a breed that lived on the surface. I’m not certain, but what I do know is that he will prove an invaluable asset for your people.”
“Tucker’s back,” Zeke breathed.
“That’s what I just said.”
Zeke ignored her. Because of [Mark of Companionship], he’d long known Tucker’s general location, but he’d yet to go searching for the alchemist. Part of that was because he knew that Tucker could get along just fine on his own, but it was also because he’d deemed other things more important. Like finding Talia. Or waging war against the Imperium. Even his current journey to satisfy the terms of his quest by jumping from one known dungeon to another in search of natural treasures had taken precedence over a reunion.
“Does he resent me for not going to search for him?” Zeke asked.
“Doesn’t seem to,” Eveline answered. “In fact, he’s incredibly happy with the resources we’ve provided. He’s even talking about bringing his kobold friends to help in your war. He calls them kirrans, but we all know what they really are. So far, I’ve asked him not to do that because I believe there might be some tension between the two races, but –”
“Are you sure? That he’s not angry that I left him to fend for himself, I mean.”
“I’m positive. Like I said, this is good news. I just didn’t tell you yet because you can’t exactly leave the dungeon until you kill the leviathan.”
“What leviathan? Is this like the creatures we encountered in hell?” he asked, remembering the huge, fish-like demons he’d encountered while trekking through Mal’canis.
“Similar,” she acknowledged. “But without the demonic flavor. In addition, this is an adult, whereas those were only juveniles.”
“Didn’t you say that if I ever encountered an adult leviathan, I should run?”
“Well, yes. But you’re much stronger now, and I’m sure you’ll be okay,” she said with fake enthusiasm.
“And that brings me to a slightly more important question. You seem pretty certain that I’m going to have to kill a leviathan to defeat this dungeon,” he said evenly. “Why is that?”
“Um…like I said, this is good news.”
“Eveline.”
“Fine,” she said with a mental roll of her eyes. “I sensed it a few days ago. It’s so strong that it has to be the target of the dungeon.”
“And why didn’t you tell me about it?”
“This dungeon offers incredible kill energy,” she explained. “Fighting across the seafloor gives you volume, while each habitat gives you quality. It’s a perfect leveling opportunity.”
“Except that this is my own personal version of hell,” he muttered in annoyance. Eveline’s heart was in the right place. She wanted what was best for him, and he had to admit that the kill energy he’d earned within the dungeon had been a great boon. He was on the verge of tipping over into level ninety-nine, which was an incredible amount of progress.
“Are you angry? You feel angry.”
“I’m just annoyed,” he said with a sigh. Knowing that he could have been finished with the dungeon days ago was enough to send his frustration through the roof. “But it’s fine. Just tell me next time.”
“Are you really not –”
“I said it’s fine, Eveline. Don’t push it right now,” he advised, his voice practically a growl. He took a deep breath, then asked, “So, which way was this leviathan?”