Continuing down the road, Duke could see that there were creatures flying far off in the distance. From where he was, they were merely specs moving somewhere beyond the town. There was nothing in his vision to grant any perspective so they could be birds of some sort or gigantic flying beasts, or even dragons although he doubted dragons were on the newborn dungeon’s menu just yet. He watched them for a few minutes before returning his attention to the road. He guessed he still had several kilometers before getting close to the town.
The meadowlands had transitioned to farm fields. On his left was a tall field of wheat and on his right, corn stalks grew taller than him making it difficult to see what was in either field. Some sort of ambush predator is most likely. I have to remember this is a newborn dungeon, creative thinking may not be its thing yet.
“Well, hello there, traveler!” The voice came from somewhere in the corn field but was still a bit out of Duke’s line of sight.
“Hello to you as well.” Duke responded cautiously. “Would you mind coming out of the field so I could see who I’m talking to?”
“Not at all. It would be my pleasure.” The voice rumbled. With the rustling of enormous rainbow-feathered wings, the creature landed ten meters in front of Duke. It had the body of a lion but a human head. The wings were beautifully feathered in a rainbow pattern which was very different from the “ordinary” coloration for the rest of the creature. Its face was distinctly female and rather attractive, framed with shoulder-length raven hair, but its most striking feature were the sharply intelligent brown eyes.
Duke smiled. “I am Duke. Who are you?” He followed his question with an IDENTIFY.
*** You have encountered a Sphinx. This is a chimeric creature.
Tier: 1
Level: 30
Health: 5,270
Mana: 5,580
***
“That is an interesting question, is it not? Answer my riddle and you may pass. Fail to answer correctly and I shall destroy you utterly.” The sphinx’s eyes began to glow with some sort of rainbow power that Duke could not interpret. What he could interpret, however, was that the sphinx was supremely confident in its ability to carry out its threat.
Duke chuckled. “I’ll play along for now. What is your riddle?”
The sphinx puffed up with pride and delivered its riddle in the most dramatic voice and intonation it could manage. “In the light, I have legs. In the dark, I have wings. In the shadow, I flow from the heavens. At night, I am unseen. In Summer, I am true. In Winter, I am seven. In Autumn, I am three. In Spring I see thee. What am I?”
Duke stared back at the sphinx trying to interpret that confusing word-salad. When he heard the first line, he was sure the riddle would be something similar to the classic four legs, two legs, three legs riddle, but after that meandering mess of conflicting statements, he could only think of one answer, and he considered it the most obvious and stupid one he could come up with.
Duke smiled back at the sphinx. “That is one mind-bending riddle you have there. It seems that there is but one answer that could fit the question.”
The sphinx responded, full of anticipation, leaning forward with its lips parted to show its decidedly inhuman fangs. “Yes, yes, yes. What is your answer?"
Duke stared the sphinx dead in the eyes and delivered his answer with forceful solemnity. “You are a sphinx.”
The sphinx’s pride and anticipation broke like it had been struck a physical blow. It stood before Duke for several moments, agonizing over its thoughts before shouting at the sky in frustration. “I told you it was a stupid riddle. Next time I’m making up my own!”
Duke struggled to contain his mirth at the reaction, locking down on his facial expression. “So, then I have passed your riddle. Have I not?”
The sphinx turned its attention back to Duke, its shoulders slumped and hanging it head. “Yes, you answered my riddle. You may pass.”
Duke responded. “Oh, don’t feel bad. I’ve been answering riddles in games for years. At least you didn’t go with the classic sphinx riddle.”
“And what, exactly, is this classic sphinx riddle of which you speak?” The sphinx asked, slightly annoyed but mostly intrigued.
Duke smiled and delivered the line. “What goes on four feet in the morning, two feet in midday, and three feet in the evening?”
The sphinx gaped back at Duke. “Oh, that is a good one. Let me ponder this. Four then two, then three. Is it wounded and healing? No, I don’t think that is it. A transformational creature? No, that doesn’t ring true either.” The sphinx continued to think on the riddle, occasionally muttering some thoughts and then dismissing them, walking even closer to Duke as it pondered.
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Duke smiled as he saw the sphinx struggle. He waited a full ten minutes before offering help. “Would you care for a hint?”
“A hint? The human offers up a riddle to the sphinx…and then offers a hint. Preposterous. Outlandish. Absurd. Ludicrous. A sphinx needing a hint on a riddle. Who ever heard of such a thing? It would be absolutely scandalous.” The sphinx leaned closer to Duke before asking quietly, just above a whisper. “Maybe just a small one, between you and me.”
Duke controlled his smirk as he leaned into the sphinx and whispered, “Don’t try to live your life in one day.” He stepped back smiling and humming a particular 80s song to himself.
The sphinx continued to mull the riddle over, now incorporating the hint Duke had provided. “Life in one day. What does that mean? Morning, midday, evening. That’s all one day. Is that day a life? Yes, must be it. What starts out its life on four feet then two, then three? I know of no such creature.” The sphinx seemed to be excitedly frustrated by the riddle getting more and more animated as it thought. It’s rainbow wings at times shuddered with excitement and unfurled to flap casually at others. Duke found it to be rather beautiful.
“You must tell me, human Duke. What is it that goes on four feet in the morning, two feet in midday, and three feet in the evening?” The sphinx seemed to rest its excitement on awaiting Duke’s response.
“Very well, I shall share the answer with you.” Duke responded. “But what is it that I get for giving such a grand riddle to you? Surely there must be payment.”
“Oh yes, yes. Payment. There must be payment. I will take you to my nest and you may take my treasure with you. Any piece of treasure you wish. Is that fair payment?”
The sphinx seemed a bit too excited for Duke to be completely comfortable with the arrangement, but he was more interested in exploring as much of the dungeon as was practical before he opened it up to others. “Very well. I agree. Are you prepared for the answer?”
The sphinx sat down on its haunches and stared at Duke with full concentration. “I am ready.”
Duke spoke conspirationally, “The answer is a man. In the dawn of his life, he crawls on all four limbs. In the middle of his life, he walks on his own two feet, and in the twilight of his life, he walks bent over with the assistance of a cane – the third leg.”
The sphinx snapped into a glorious smile, laughing as its joy was highlighted by its wings spread out and radiating rainbow light. “That is brilliant! I love it. Thank you, Duke. You may climb aboard, and I will take you to my nest.” It lowered its left wing, forming a ramp to allow Duke to climb onto its back.
Duke climbed up easily, noting that the lion part of the sphinx was quite a bit wider than he expected. Either I fly side-saddle, or I test out my groin stretch. Well, it’ll REGENERATE, right? Here goes. Duke sat astride the beast, feeling the uncomfortable stretch in his legs. He started to grab a handful of the sphinx’s long hair but thought better of it as the sphinx launched itself into the air with a tremendous flap of its wings. Duke felt the pulse of magic as the sphinx flapped itself into the sky. He figured that the wings, even at their tremendous size, were insufficient to lift the sphinx and the magic assist was needed.
They soared into the sky, out beyond the fields and towards a mountain range that surprisingly had not been previously visible. That struck Duke as odd as he figured that he would have been able to see the mountains from the meadows if not from the road in the field. He chalked it up to “dungeon magic”.
As they approached the mountains, the sphinx roared loudly. It was the roar of, unsurprisingly, a lion. Duke had read that a lion’s roar was loud. Now he knew it from personal experience. There were answering roars from a cliff face that they were rapidly approaching. Duke strained to see around the cloud of hair flailing his face in the wind but couldn’t really make out where the responding roars came from. Then, with a flare of wings, the sphinx landed.
Duke dismounted into the nest, finding it to be as large as a house. The sphinx had furled its wings and gestured for Duke to come alongside it. “Welcome to my nest, Duke. My mate is away so there should be no issues with you being here.”
The statement made Duke’s mind twist a bit. That had better not be a come-on line. He decided to give the sphinx the benefit of the doubt and came alongside the monstrous beast. As he did so, the sphinx’s tail brushed down his back. He suppressed a shudder and hurried up to see what the sphinx was offering as treasure.
In the center of the nest, were a few things. There were gold coins scattered throughout the area, offering glittering sparks of brightness as the light reflected off them. There were also gems scattered similarly with jewelry mixed in. The thing that caught Duke’s eyes first were three rainbow-colored eggs evenly spaced around the nest. The eggs were roughly the size of Duke’s head.
“This is my treasure. You may select any one item.” The sphinx instructed him.
“You would let me take one of your eggs?” Duke asked, astonished.
The sphinx looked seriously at Duke. “I know you are a Dungeon Master and I also know what I am as a denizen of this dungeon. If you wish to take an egg as your treasure, take it. It may not behave as you hope, however. The Mana density in this place is not strong enough to create a creature that will be able to sustain itself outside the dungeon itself.”
Duke nodded and then activated his SENSE MAGIC Ability. He noticed that there were four items that glowed with magic. The strongest glow came from a pair of golden bracelets which he IDENTIFIED as a matter of reflex.
*** You have found Bracelets of Healing. These bracelets will dramatically accelerate the healing process when touched to a wound. When worn, they will provide the wearer with an overall boost to their health and rate of healing. ***
Duke didn’t hesitate to take the bracelets. “Thank you for your generosity.” He placed the bracelets into his INVENTORY.
“Thank you for your riddle. Should you come up with some more of the same quality, please share them with me. I will find a way to reward you for them.” The sphinx smiled warmly at Duke. “Now, it is time for me to return you to the path so that you may complete the dungeon. Even if I would rather just keep you here so you can teach me some more of your wonderful riddles.” The look the sphinx gave Duke was just disturbing. He decided it was past time to leave.
Duke chuckled. “You will learn more riddles as time passes. The dungeon, and you, by extension, are newly created. Give yourself time and you will have better riddles. Farewell.” Duke TELEPORTED back to the road, eager to get things back on track.