Duke was confused. He had travelled tremendous distances with his own TELEPORTATION Ability as well as a trip or two through Exospace on a ship. Transportation with the Overmind was something different altogether. It was not instantaneous like his own Ability, nor did it have the feel of travelling through another dimension. Instead, it felt like travelling at an extreme speed through normal space but there were no visual cues to go by. It seemed that they were travelling in a lighted bubble through absolute blackness.
“You seem disturbed by this method of travel, Duke.”
“I can’t see anything outside of our bubble.”
“That happens when you exceed the speed of light. We may get an occasional flash if we hit a photon or some other stray particle just right, but other than that, it’s all darkness out there.”
“How long will it take us to get there?”
“Eager, are we?”
“More curious and concerned about what I left behind.”
“It will take us a few relative hours to get there. I could have taken us directly there but this gives us a bit more time to talk about things before I unleash you on the Contest World.”
“Can you finally tell me more about this Contest?”
“Indeed, yes. First of all, the Contest takes place on a world created solely for this purpose. It is what you would have referred to as a ‘Super Earth’ back in the day. It is roughly fifteen times the size of your original planet. Do you know what that means?”
“For one, I’m going to guess a greater gravitational pull.”
“Excellent start. Gravity scales in this case, which would make it about fifteen times stronger at the surface. You are far too strong for that to make a difference physically, but projectiles and the like will be affected. Objects falling will take more damage than usual. But the most interesting thing is that the structure and composition of the planet is about five times more dense than your Earth. That increases the gravitational pull to about seventy-five times more than you are used to feeling.”
“That’s going to take some getting used to.”
“Yet another reason for us to take some time getting there. I have been slowly increasing the gravity in our travelling core. It’s now up to five times your normal. I bet you didn’t even notice.”
“Nope. Not at all.”
“Good. Now on to matter back on Teldin. I know you are concerned with leaving your friends, your kingdom, and indeed, the whole planet in the care of others. But you know that you have some highly competent people running things in your kingdom for now. Your Aura of Prosperity now covers the entire planet with your massive Psyche boost. That will create some new problems but in the long-term it is going to make Teldin an amazing planet for trade in the Cosmos. The biggest problem will be when others wish to take advantage of the bonus and set up manufacturing on the planet. That is likely decades away but something they will have to be ready for.”
“And what if I’m not there?”
“I honestly don’t expect you will be. Once you get through the Contest, your priorities will likely have changed. Do you plan on winning the whole thing?”
“Isn’t that the point? You don’t enter shooting for last place, right?”
“No, but a finish in the top 100 would be a spectacular showing. Especially with you getting such a late start.”
“I’ve only missed a few weeks.”
“Not talking about the Contest itself. You are at least a decade behind the favorites in terms of growth and development. You have grown at an obscene rate but there is an inherent advantage in growing at a steady rate.”
“Yeah, I don’t know my own strength in a lot of areas at this point. I haven’t really even gotten a handle on my TELEPORTATION, and I use that all the time. I’m not sure what my limit is anymore.”
“That one’s easier to quantify. Your range is now roughly 100,000 light years. That’s about enough to take you from one side of your original galaxy to the other. There are some lesser Entities that can’t move that distance with their Abilities. You will have no difficulty moving about the Contest planet in that regard. The real problem lies in the quality of the enemies you have faced up to this point. How many times have you really had to push yourself to the limit?’
“A few.”
“Exactly. That is your only true weakness. It would have been far better to find your limits before coming to the Contest, but that was never really on the table for you. You also have two Tier awards to select before we get there. May I make a suggestion for at least one?”
“Of course. What would you suggest?”
“I suggest you upgrade DUNGEON MANIPULATION to DUNGEON ENGINEERING. You have not used your Dungeon Abilities anywhere near as well as you would have had you had time to practice with them. You will need to use them on this new world. This will give you the boost you need to rapidly change a dungeon to suit your needs.”
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“What about DUNGEON AURA? I thought that might be useful as well.”
“Combining the two could make you nearly unstoppable but will also make you a nearly uncontrollable threat to everyone around you until you get a true handle on the Ability. You will spontaneously spawn dungeon monsters, traps, and environmental effects if you don’t have enough control over it. It would make going home nearly impossible for some time. I’m not saying that it isn’t thoroughly useful and would greatly increase your odds of survival in the Contest, but there is a price to pay for it and I don’t think you are willing to pay that price.”
Duke considered the Overmind’s advice, contemplating on how he could use the Ability and about the warnings around the other Ability. I have more willpower than ever now. By a lot. Surely I could control the aura. Yeah, what’s the worst that could happen? Oh, right, spontaneous creation of a monster horde right in the middle of my friends. Might want to think about that one for a while.
Duke made a decision and accepted the upgrade in his Ability to DUNGEON ENGINEERING. The description had changed a bit since he last looked at it:
*** You have evolved your Ability DUNGEON MANIPULATION to DUNGEON ENGINEERING. This change allows you to rapidly make dramatic changes in a dungeon’s design and layout. A dungeon’s entire theme, cast, and layout can be changed in a matter of seconds. It also significantly increases the value of items that can be removed from dungeons. Because your Ability is at the Adept rank, its effects have been enhanced, allowing you to change Dungeon parameters rapidly and potentially even with other auras affecting the area. This means that if you are able to overcome an individual’s resistances, you can change a dungeon environment around them. The value of items you may remove from a dungeon has been increased to ten million gold per rank plus your Ability level. ***
Duke stared at the notification for a minute, taking in all the changes and thinking on how ridiculously powerful it would be in the right circumstances. He looked up to the Overmind but saw no reaction from the floating core.
“This Ability is hellishly powerful. You knew that, didn’t you?”
“Of course I knew that. I designed the Class and its Abilities myself. But keep in mind that most every other Entity participating has done the same for their Contestants. Your Abilities are great. Absolutely terrifying inside a dungeon. But outside, without a DUNGEON AURA? Not all that useful. That is why all your other Abilities and Skills have come into play so much. Still, it wouldn’t hurt to start making some Dungeon Cores while we are travelling.”
Duke grinned evilly and started to do just that. “It wouldn’t be a bad thing if I made a Dungeon Core filled with weaponsmiths and armor smiths. Would it?”
“No, that sounds like a grand idea but don’t limit yourself to basic weapons. Most opponents you will be facing will have top-of-the-line magitech gear. You don’t have to kill everyone you encounter but bet that most of them will try to kill you. If you can form an alliance or two, it might be helpful. But remember that they could betray you at any moment.”
“I’ll keep that in mind. Why is this so cutthroat?”
“One, the prizes are spectacular and no, I can’t tell you what any of them are, just get yourself into the top 100. And two, every Contestant is sponsored by an Entity. There are precious few Entities that have reached the Pinnacle and of those beneath the Pinnacle, few have any real chance of climbing this high. This leads to jealousy and the unrelenting feeling that they need to prove themselves.”
Duke interrupted, “And since they can’t get to you, taking me out is the next best thing they can do?”
“Got it in one. But don’t think that the other Contestants are the only threat. There are creatures, puzzles, traps, and dungeons designed to challenge even divine immortals. Virtually everything outside of Sanctuary can kill you. You need to be careful.”
“Words of encouragement. Thanks. Now what was that about some place called Sanctuary?”
“Sanctuary is the central city on the planet. It is the only place where anyone is safe. No combat or violence can be conducted there. Anywhere else is fair game. Yes, a meter outside the city walls is fair game. So be alert when entering and leaving the city. There are merchants of all kinds set up there with restaurants, pleasure houses, and everything else you would expect. The most important thing there, at least for you, is the leaderboards. That is where you can see where you are currently placed.”
“Got it. Sanctuary is a good place to take a break but I’m not going to move up any while I am there so don’t stay there long.”
“That’s a good takeaway. Do you have any other questions?”
“Does experience and leveling work the same there?”
“For the most part, yes. You will get experience for kills, but Contestant kills give an additional boost which puts a target on all your heads. Mind you, going in as a Tier Eight gives you more of an intimidation factor than I had expected when you were Tier Six. It will make many second-guess outright attacking you.”
“So, they’ll gang up on me then.”
“Likely. Any other questions? We are approaching.”
“Anything that is outlawed? Anything I can’t get away with?”
“Rules are for those who aren’t strong enough to impose their own will. That is the sentiment. Since Sanctuary is maintained by the Elder Entities, the rules there are inviolate. Outside the city, the rules are what you make them.”
“Good to know. I thin-“
“One more thing,” The Overmind interrupted. “Everything that happens outside of the city is recorded and viewable by anyone in the city. It’s a good way to get some information on your opposition but expect everyone to be holding their trump cards close. You would do well to do the same. I don’t know of anyone else there that can TELEPORT, but they could be holding it in reserve. Be alert and be ready.”
Duke watched as their Core slowed and objects began to resolve themselves in his vision. They approached the planet slowly and he got a good look at it. The planet was clearly not a natural space body. The grid-like demarcation of areas on the surface made it clear. Each grid square held an entirely different environment with some ridiculous borders where ice met desert and the like.
He had not been nervous on the trip but as they descended through the atmosphere towards Sanctuary, Duke’s stomach started to flutter. He angrily suppressed the feeling and took his most stoic pose as they landed on the landing pad.
With a gentle “pop,” the Core disappeared leaving Duke and the Overmind alone on the landing pad. The Overmind spun in his direction, imparting a few final words, “Duke, this is where we separate. Remember what you have learned and get yourself on the leaderboards. We will not speak again until the Contest is complete. I wish you the best of luck.”
With that sentiment, the Overmind zipped away at a speed Duke could not follow, leavening him alone on the pad with a small crowd of onlookers sizing him up.