Cutest pauses in her ministrations as she reviews the placements of her various broods. At first, it seems mere coincidence that each has a distinct tree nearby, but as she looks at each species of mouse, all with their own branding of foliage to nest amongst, it becomes less deniable, “”

I give her a calming pet and scritch, “Don’t get too caught up, upon review the changes happened over a long period of time. Dreams has been instrumental in making everyone’s home more personalized. But it does lead back to my proposal. They can’t join our alliance, I’ll agree with that, they aren’t our equal, not yet at least. But I kind of want to give them the opportunity to get there.”

Suddenly, the scene of a great slab of metal comes into focus, a prevalent heat and a background roaring of flame and the echoing rings of striking metal in a stone cavern, “[The term you’re searching for is {Vassal}. A way to bring someone into the fold under you, with the choice to fully absorb them or for their later development into an independent state of their own. As for my personal opinion on the matter, I think it’s a marvelous idea. A dedicated mercenary can be a supreme boon, especially one with such a concentration of individual, offense-oriented strength.]”

The connection with the forge cavern fades as we sit back and digest the information for a bit before my decision is settled by a stirring message from Thing, “You can only make the offer, not force it on them. Meaning no offense to my sister, but this isn’t the same as Cutest’s initial evolution. The cat knows itself better than even I do, having merely observed it for a time.”

So, with that resolution in mind, I wait until he’s returned to his tree. Before he gets fully settled, I bring my presence closer and heavier into place, “I’ve been told you’re one of the most devoted of our delvers. When I first heard of what you had become, a thought filled me, as to what your species’ name means to me. So, I’m here with an offer: Become a {Vassal} to me; work and fight for my home as though the whole of it were you own, and I shall grant you what you represent to my mind: Unlimited Growth, tempered by knowledge and care such that you will always be welcome in your den.”

He startles a bit as I begin to speak, but quickly settles back into the routine of getting comfortable for a nap. Once I’m done speaking, he looks around, yawns, and rests his head on paws. If not for the twitching of his tail and the pulsing ripples of light reverberating up and down his coat, I’d imagine he was ignoring my offer.

Even as I sit and wait for his response, I’m not wholly there with him. Gnat has taken flight again, enjoying the skies while I watch the thrums of magic from the nebulouse she’s picked up as training. Happy to see at least a partially correct hypothesis proven as each bug resists the rapid change in position, and with the net of them present, she has to put forth real effort to even soar. Strengthening her body and putting her inquisitive mind and will towards learning something new.

The cat gives a groaning rumble and gets up from his comfortable branches, leaping down to the ground and landing with a heavy, yet quiet thump. He does another huge yawn before huffing and looking around again. I push my connection with Dreams to more distinctly be in front of him. He notices my attempt, sniffing at the air before sitting his hindquarters down and giving a gentle (for him) inquisitive roar.

As he continues searching for me, I’m able to sink a little deeper into the moment, and when he repeats that gentle call, I understand it, “^Who am I?^” The depth of that question, formatted into mere words, loses so much of the yearning, the confusion, the hope.

There’s a spark that flashes in his eyes when I hear him. He tenses and jumps to his feet, his muscles all corded as he stares straight ahead at the impression of me that I’ve fixed in the air. I take too long for his liking, as a surge of Mana first is drawn deep within him before bursting out as a blinding flash of light as he unleashes deafening roar, “^WHO AM I?^”

The wave of light and sound are absorbed by the strange woods and the twin watchers of my wilds. What should have propagated for miles was devoured far too quickly.

Despite the threat, the demand, I can hear the deeper message clearly enough for a grin to shift into a full, welcoming smile, “If you were mine…” A stillness settles over the area and the great cat stares at me, unmoving, “Your {Name} would be Leo.”

The white fur of his coat, so reactive to his light, undergoes a swift metamorphosis. Shifting from being a physical vessel, to a prism, to an embodiment of light itself. Those long moments as the contract takes hold of him as he grunts and growls through the pain. He drives his massive claws into the earth, ripping them out alongside grasses and shallow roots before striking again.

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He starts shaking and shuddering under the wave of Mana now able to flow freely into him through his new connection with my domain, and with me. I didn’t expect to feel much beyond a drain of power and a sense of pride as he faced off the challenge of becoming mine… But, as he glanced up and truly met my eyes for the first time, there was a tingle up my spine, an instinct of something coming, something dangerous.

With his eyes locked on mine, I suddenly felt Gnat’s stare as well, and Cutest, the throbbing of Thing’s heart, Life’s too. All of that alongside giggling laughter echoing everywhere, and a strange sightless sloshing swimming sensation accompanying a greeting from a not-stranger I’ve never really met from so far away.

Congratulations on advancing your {Mob Type}! Having a more advanced {Mob} allows for a higher efficiency of Mana and Mako transmission between you and them, allowing them to roam beyond your territory more easily. They will also have a smoother conversion through the Challenges you offer with them, allowing you to complete your purpose more effectively.

Your new {Type} is –.

*Scanning Entity to reevaluate classification.

*Scan complete. Similar issue already logged; Most compatible classification is {Dungeon Core}.

*Escalating to higher Authority.

Despite my generally faster thoughts and my better perception of time since I awoke with a functioning brain, the deluge of notices seems to happen as an uninterruptable cascade. I sit there dazed for a bit, as seven separate focal points vie for the entirety of my attention, while enough of ‘me’ is still concerned about Gnat landing safely.

It’s only after I see her land in Life’s branches and some sprouts reach out from his limbs to steady and hold her that the scene most physically in front of me changes. The bright fur dims, even as Leo’s body begins to unclench and sag. I watch as his coat changes to an eerie blackness, darker than even the night in the depth of thick woods.

#You are a true anomaly, &$%?@. Either you represent a principle of mathematical uncertainty, or there are vaster powers at work in the background, tinkering.

Reading Authority’s voice again, so soon and no longer sheltered behind notes or contracts, feels like a looming mountain suddenly shifted and focused its attention on each of my tiny organs.

#Ahh, about that. I’ve shifted the burden of my voice and all of the new changes I’m making onto you; hope you don’t mind.

Whatever self was trying to be present near my newest recruit shrinks back as that same mountain is now settling its entire weight on me, using my pieces as a balancing beam. I still feel the connection to my children, even the newest and now also aware of another one, they are the farthest away where there is still enough of me to be able to ache with my lack of knowing them.

My will and drive focused on that faraway point even as crushing weight adds new dimensions to its torment.

#Yeah, this part is going to suck. You remember what it was like when you first became a Dungeon Core? No? Well, it was about the same as your advancement. Imagine that times seven. All that aside, I mean seriously though. What are the chances that a not quite out of bounds core just happens to have exactly seven of the upgraded scions, that each are reflections of the seven base mobs. If you weren’t under this kind of pressure, you could appreciate the magnitude of what you’ve achieved.

Echoes of knowledge, past conversations, sift through my memory into the now. I consolidate what power isn’t being ripped from me to fuel the transitions and speak a single word, “Helix.”

---

When I wake, it isn’t to a pleasant voice wishing me well, but rather a throbbing ache and a parched mouth from the stale, dry air I’m breathing in, “Water?”

I feel movement and noise and light all shuffling around me, while there is a familiar ringing in my head. After a few moments, the sensation of a cooling cascade of wonderful liquid spills over me, soon doubled and now tripled. All of me is working to draw the soothing moisture throughout my four organs and processing the glut of toxic buildup from the massive quantities of Mana and changes made in recent days.

The outside world is still too blurry to comprehend, so I pull up my logs to silence the pestering notifications.

Your new {Type} is Kingdom. As the newly minted Kingdom Dungeon, you will lose access to much of the minutia of spawning mobs or reshaping your lands and domain. Instead, you will appoint Scions to serve as sub-dungeons to facilitate the management of your mob spawning and orchestrating Challenges. Despite the lessening of the burden of multitasking, the additional strain of enduring the cost for running all your facilities is amplified by also having to bear the weight of any hardship or suffering of your Scions. #Heavy is the brow upon which rests the crown.

Name accepted by Scions “Leo” and “Helix”. Souls imprinted onto “DNA” |Disease Kingdom, Forest of Dreams|.

Scion “Helix” has modified the Phoenix pattern to create the {Phoenix Down} pathogen and earned you the Perk: Divine Protection.

Racial designation changes to Divine: Cooperative is now underway. Note that a Divine dungeon is no longer protected from scrying. #Kingdom Dungeons provide a partial ward for their Scions.

I try to push my way through to wakefulness but it’s like I’m buried under thick blankets or encased in breathable tar. Even movement, every sensation is so muffled and far away. I keep at it until I feel a resonance of soothing from a choir of voices beyond. I still can’t make out their words, but their feelings reach me.

So, I rest.

Now that I’m not struggling so much, I can feel movement of a different kind, and a new voice manages to reach me, “-We’re going home, Father-“