Jamie had almost panicked when Max tilted over. Thankfully she didn’t need to give first aid. It seemed like he was breathing just fine, and his heartbeat steadily. She wouldn’t have known what to do, if he had other symptoms.
On the other hand, Jamie was a bit relieved. The symptoms Max had described that overcame her when she overused her Ignite ability were much the same that could be seen in Max right now. Only stronger. And by his previous explanation it seemed like a sort of disconnect between the nervous system and the brain. Only on a high level, but it was the closest they could equate it too.
She’d then spent time just watching, and taking futilely fussing over Max. Eventually she decided that Max would appreciate it the most if she managed to better evaluate their situation. Which included finding an entrance. The hill they were on was safe enough for her to leave for a few minutes – with no roaming threats in sight.
Jamie left on a short excursion to the other hill one over. She jogged along the curvature of the spire and crossed the saddle after a few minutes, thanks her adventurous mood that increased her agility by two.
And while she had been prepared for a lot as she approached the hill once over, she hadn’t expected an illusion to dissolve or appear – she couldn’t tell which one it was – right in front of her. The hilltop had looked just like any other before. Now an entry structure, a wide hall of sandstone, appeared from nothingness.
With each step she took the view became clearer. As she approached a majestic sight greeted her eyes – a towering gateway. Looking as though it had been carved out of solid stone with intricate facets and details. Its towering pillars were adorned with fantastical symbols, leaving a faint shimmer in her sight even when her eyes glanced somewhere else. Even though Jamie shrunk the distance at a slower pace, a monumental weight of something majestic imposed on her. Pressuring her to submit.
Nope, that’s close enough for me. Guess I’ve found the stairway. But holy crap. You don’t need to make it that imposing.
Jamie hurried back, only slightly confused that there were no other dead monsters to be seen around the place that was quite obviously the landmark of the region and place to move on further. The tower had to be visible for dozens if not hundreds of miles.
This place can’t be that extensive. No way that of trillions of individuals each group has their own ascent. Maybe they should look for others nearby.
###
“I know I’m good looking sweety, but passing out whenever a beauty smiles at you isn’t anyone’s type,” Jamie smirked when she finally saw Max waking up.
“Ha ha,” Max deadpanned. “What happened?”
“I think much the same thing that happens when I use Ignite too often. At least that is what I can think of. Maybe the boots took a toll on you, and your trait finished you off. Could also be that it’s more difficult for you to use your trait on stronger cores. What did you get anyway?”
Equipment Mastery:
Standard Human Workman Attire (Common) – An attire common for the humans. Slightly more resistant to damage.
-> Over-alls of the Fleetfooted Hunter (Rare) – Level 0 – Formerly a part of the Standard Human Workman Attire the workman over-alls have now become their own piece of equipment.
Passive: What is position if but a fleeting moment in time? Movement is enhanced, out of combat movement is significantly enhanced. Movement abilities are passively boosted by a small margin and can be amplified further with additional energy expenditure.
Attributes: Agility + 1, Endurance + 1, Perception + 1
Equipment Mastery Bonus: Out-of-Combat Movement Abilities have their energy cost and mental strain halved, Effectiveness slightly increased, and durations slightly expanded. In-Combat effect halved. Similar effects are reduced in effectiveness.
“It’s almost the same as the Trousers of the Divide, just more powerful, I think. And I gain a total of three attributes from it.”
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“Damn. That sounds solid. You wanna switch?”
“Heck no, I don’t think I’d get the Equipment Mastery Bonus if I did, and it’s pretty good. And even if I would, I don’t think anyone wants to see my upper body with that much definition. I think even now the effects of using the zoomies aren’t as drastic as the last time.”
“Your trait is such a cheat. I get two attributes at max from mine. Anyway, I think I found the entrance…”
“Says the woman that can just ignite stuff… Did you leave me behind? I should have seen through your façade. Only using me for… My giant spear. For my body and not my character,” Max scratched his chin. “Ok, I’ve got nothing. Stupid headache.”
Jamie stared at Max incredulously. If he didn’t know better, she was considering hitting him over the head with the pitchfork she was still carrying. Then just sighed.
“You are an idiot you know that. And maybe you should try picking up a banter ability if we ever get a chance to do so.”
Max just grinned in response.
When Max felt up to the task, he asked Jamie to show him the entrance. He was able to see the illusion vanishing a bit earlier than Jamie was – who then began testing her perception by adjusting her mood. All in all, it seemed like Perception helped with seeing the entrance sooner. What exactly that meant for the reasons behind the optical illusion they didn’t know. Max and Jamie, both thought it couldn’t be an optical effect, but their conclusions differed in the end.
Max was worried about mental effects while Jamie had the opinion that it was just some magical phenomenon created by the CRAWL. But they were of the shared opinion that it didn’t matter as long as it got them to the next floor.
Before heading in, they prepared one last meal and searched for a pond – finding one in a valley over.
Having eaten their fill of bland food and drunk enough water for a day they walked up to the entryway. In the depths of the structure wasn’t a door or stairs, just a seemingly infinite expanse dark and lifeless.
“Looks a lot like the space before we were dropped here, don’t you think?”
“Yeah Max, but it doesn’t have a floor and I didn’t like that last time around either. Dude, I really don’t wanna go in there.”
“Have you found another way to get to the second floor?”
Jamie’s posture changed from one second to the next.
“Good point, I guess. Let’s go. I blame you if I end up falling to my death.”
They strode up to the large sandstone portal together. Jamie reached out to Max moments before he stepped into the portal and the empty world beyond. She followed on his heels confidence exuding from her face, but the strength of her grip around his hand told him that she was just as worried as he was.
Then the system responded.
> You have entered a Dungeon – Spire to the Stars.
>
> Spire to the Stars is an “Astral-Compound” Affinity Dungeon thus should be explored and conquered with care.
“Oh no. Fuck this shit,” Max sighed just about ready to cry. “We should have known that such a unique landmark wasn’t the way to go.”
“I told you. Anyway, looks like we won’t be able to go back,” Jamie said looking behind herself.
“What do you...” Max turned around to follow her que. “At least you aren’t falling to your death.”
The cheeriness and swagger disappeared from his voice as Max saw what she was seeing. His heart dropped miles… With each second the distance to the gateway doubled. Leaving them on a straight track into nothingness.
A few more quests appeared, but Max only had the heart to look at the first one.
> Hidden Floor-Quest activated.
>
> Dungeon Completion – Leave the Spire to the Stars.
>
> Progress – 0/1 Dungeons left.
>
> Reward – Gain a singular attribute point or a spell based on performance.
###
Somewhere else:
Loi’ia surveyed the information The CRAWL submitted to her, allowing her to scout for new talent to fill the ranks of the Varnarmadur when her eyes widened. A panel to the right of the screen that took note of slightly less common events flashed in a soft myriad of colors – running through a myriad of different spectrums that would be visible to all of the races of the consensus.
“Requesting supervisor…” she began when a new unusual unexpected marker lit up.
“Not this again, Loi’ia. You don’t have a supervisor. You are the supervisor.”
“Uhm right. I keep forgetting. Beg your pardon, Auoras.”
“How do you keep forgetting? You have the Knowledge Affinity.”
“That’s not how… nevermind. This is important.”
“What do you need?”
“Anormality detected. A new Tier seven affinity dungeon was found on the first floor.
“Tier seven holy hell. Are there contesters?”
“Yes. One of the participants is slightly injured. The other seems to be physically fine. I can’t see… In mother’s name. They are unleveled.”
“Ah, shit. They are dead. What’s the affinity? Maybe we can direct a group that’s in the surrounding area to explore the dungeon. Gaining a tier seven would certainly guarantee a climb into the tens if not twenties, even if they aren’t the strongest. That would make a good pillar for their galaxy.”
“Closest group, Isophs, is about two days out. Several other pairs in a week’s journey distance. Can you check the database really quick?”
“Sure thing. One moooooment. Okay, here we go. Isophs’ home world is close to the galactic core. The system advises rewarding corruption cleansing technology as a motivator,” Auoras informed her.
“The things I could have done with a tier seven,” Loi’ia mused.
“You have a tier four, don’t complain. Onwards to the other rewards…”