“Well, that’s some damn good news. How do we...”

Cyn stepped forward and quickly cut off Scott’s question to the hekaton, needing to urgently clarify something the multi-armed woman had said. “Wait, you know we are newly Awakened?”

The hekaton’s smile did not waver. “Technically, no. It was a very educated guess, but thank you for confirming it. I hope this data ends up being transmitted to my current self properly, regardless of the System hijacking and altering my dungeon. Being able to see this much information on Awakened who are only partly adapted...” She clapped a few pairs of hands, clearly delighted. “It’s unprecedented!”

Nerds still exist, I suppose that’s a good thing. Current self...? Before Cyn could question further about what the hekaton meant, Dana cut in. “What kind of data are you collecting?” After a brief pause, the Archer seemed to realize her question could be taken as hostile and continued in a more polite tone, “And what should we call you?”

“I do not have more chairs, but please, sit a moment. I am a soul impression of Araphassa, Knight of the Bulwark. I created this dungeon as a kind of training course for young Awakened, especially those who may be unsure of their role.” Araphassa paused, waiting for the party to cautiously settle themselves onto the ground in front of her. Over the course of the next hour, the hekaton attempted to explain as much as she could to the party.

She explained that the data being collected was primarily about their actions and comfort while acting within their class expectations. The dungeon was created to help young Awakened who had only recently chosen a class become comfortable - both with themselves and working as a team - before going out into the wider dimensions where they would likely get killed for what Araphassa saw as simple, childish mistakes. She had gone to great lengths with the labyrinth’s creation to try and reduce the widespread loss of life that happened in early levels that many in the Collective considered inevitable. The hekaton took her root class role as a Guardian quite seriously, and that dedication to protecting others extended beyond combat she was directly involved with. Knowing Araphassa had started out in the same class Scott made their banter make more sense, even if Cyn was not eager to be put on a leash.

The Hungering Labyrinth, at least the one Cyn’s party ended up in, had been made significantly more deadly by the System than it was originally created to be. Only ‘exceptionally stupid’ Awakened should be in danger within the dungeon in its creator’s opinion. Or those who had cheated. But with the System’s interference, every trial came with high risk of death and even the Hungering Hedges themselves had been altered to be more aggressive. This was compensated for by the inclusion of reward chests for each trial, rather than the singular, final reward that was designed by Araphassa. When Cyn asked what constituted cheating, since they had triggered a cheater warning, Araphassa explained there was a whole set of rules that ultimately did not matter in this case. For the Trial of Vitality, they had cheated both by entering a trial in progress and by destroying the Hungering Hedge to get in.

The hekaton went on to explain the three known types of dungeons. The first was Awakened-made, like the original Hungering Labyrinth. Depending on the size and complexity of the desired dungeon, they did not even take that much power to create. They were simply pocket dimensions that could be ‘reset’ once all Awakened left or a trigger was activated. Incorporating rewards was the most intensive part, due to System limitations, and the ability to create a soul impression was very rare.

The soul impression of Araphassa the party was speaking to was, functionally, a snapshot of the hekaton in the exact moment in time it was made. That limited copy of the true Araphassa was bound to the dungeon entirely, but allowed for much more complex interactions and active adaptation of the dungeon for the Awakened within. At least normally. While the hekaton they were speaking to was able to see the collected data, she was not able to dictate any events or take direct action in adapting the dungeon due to the System taking over all control. The Hungering Labyrinth the party found themselves in was actually the second type of dungeon, an Awakened creation that was copied by the System and altered. Instances of this kind of dungeon were quite rare, but not entirely unheard of.

The third, and most common dungeon was entirely System made. Some appeared as completely fabricated scenarios, but most of the time System-created dungeons were encapsulated moments in time. Events, places, and people who all had existed at one point. What the Awakened did within the dungeon often had little to nothing to do with what had actually happened, and since it was all within a pocket dimension it had no effect on the greater collective of dimensions. They were seen purely as sources of experience, and to a lesser extent, loot. Two of the most important resources to every Awakened.

Araphassa tried to explain more about dungeons, appearing to genuinely enjoy teaching, but started to stumble over her words before going silent. The hekaton’s silver eyes became unfocused for a few seconds before she shuddered violently. “Ah... too much. I am surprised I was allowed to ramble for as long as I did.”

No one in the party was surprised, since they had already heard about the System limiting interference and information given to them from Kreeble in Cogtopia. They stood and stretched one by one, letting Scott take the lead on speaking since the Guardian seemed the most inclined to politeness. “We appreciate the lesson, ma’am, and it was a delight meeting you. I think it’s best we move on, though, if this dungeon is over.”

The hekaton’s smile was a little more strained than before, and her face more tired, but Araphassa still sounded pleased as she stood up and moved for the computers that lined the room. “It was my pleasure. Allow me to open up the dungeon exit, so you can receive credit for finding the center.” Multiple sets of hands rapidly moved across the screens, but after a few moments they went still. “Unless, of course, you are interested in an optional trial? It will require all of you to activate.”

Looking around at her party, there was a clear hesitation in the faces Cyn expected. It was a little disappointing, because she was very interested in a final trial. When no one immediately spoke up to decline, she glimpsed Hex straighten beside her before he spoke. “We have an objective for it. It just appeared.” He looked around at them all with a raised eyebrow, the Rogue’s lips twitching into a small smirk when Cyn nodded and stepped closer to him. She turned her own pleading gaze to the trio, causing Scott to sigh and rub his face with one hand.

“How dangerous is it?”

Araphassa had already turned to watch their exchange, and gave the Guardian a small shrug in response to his question. “I presume as dangerous as the rest of this dungeon has been. I cannot tell you exactly what you would even face, because of your unique position as newly Awakened.” She paused a heartbeat before adding, “But I can tell you that if you never push your limits, you will never grow. And those who do not grow tend to live very short lives.”

The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

Dana moved to join Hex and Cyn before the hekaton had finished speaking, to Cyn’s surprise. When the Archer spoke, it was directed at the two who were still hesitating. “As long as there isn’t a direct reason we should refrain, I think we should do this trial too. The stronger we are, the better off we will be for whatever happens when this dungeon is complete.”

I wonder what made her change her mind about leaving quickly. It only took a few moments for the Guardian and Warrior to give in, agreeing with Dana’s logic on the matter. Seeming pleased, the hekaton clapped a few hands before returning to using the computers. To one side of the room, near where the portal was, a wall panel began to slide to the side to reveal a short hallway. “This trial had the potential to be lethal even within my own designs, and I do not know how the System may have tampered with it. But if you place your faith in one another, I think you will do just fine.” Araphassa waved multiple hands with a smile as the party waved goodbye and spoke their thanks as they made their way to the hallway.

The door back to the hekaton closed almost as soon as everyone was inside the short hallway, and with no other choices available they moved forward. It exited back outside into an arena similar to the previous trials, with the primary difference being two sets of clear sigils carved into the stone floor, and a lack of exit opposite them. The first set of sigils were evenly spaced apart near the party at the entrance, and resembled the class sigils they had lit up to activate the portal to the center of the labyrinth. Instead of being made out of off-colored pavers, this time the carved sigils looked to be lined with colored paint and Cyn guessed that they would probably light up when activated. The second set of sigils looked identical, but were closer to the other side of the trial arena.

After agreeing they were ready, the party stepped into the final trial. Predictably, the opening to the hallway and center of the labyrinth closed behind them. When there were no other changes however, they carefully made their way to the sigils. Just as Cyn expected, the moment she stepped onto the intricate sigil shaped like a staff, it began to glow sky blue. The sigil opposite her, in the second set, also began to glow. Scott chose to wait a few moments for everyone else, before the Guardian took the last step to once again become the final sigil to be activated. To his left was Sam, followed by Dana, and to his right stood Hex and Cyn on their respective sigils.

On activation of all five root class sigils, the second set across from the party began to glow brighter, becoming nearly blinding. Cyn shielded her eyes for a few seconds, before taking a peek at what awaited them once the glowing began to fade. Across from her, standing on the sigil opposite, Cyn saw an illusion. It was much easier to detect now that she knew what to look for, but that did not make seeing a mirror image of herself any less startling. Like with the Cadaverous Puppet Bloom, there was something else very real underneath the illusion she could make out, appearing like a featureless mannequin.

Human - Level 18

Fuzzy. False. The Inspect result was also easier for Cyn to separate than it had been the first time.

Doppel - Level 18 (?)

A golem capable of limited mimicry and illusion magic.

This creature has a [Golemancy Bond].

Tampering with, harming, or destroying the Doppel may alert the bound Awakened.

There were four other Doppel’s, one appearing to mimic each of Cyn’s party members. One of the creatures, illusioned as Hex, had the highest level at twenty-two. The others were between seventeen and nineteen. No Spam that I can see. The illusion of Cyn had the same gear she was wearing, but the chest pouch on the tabard was empty. Cyn did not get more time to ponder about that before the Doppel’s attacked in sync.

The party had been waiting for an indication that the trial had started, not entirely sure what they were supposed to do, so none of them were prepared for the ferocity of the attacking illusions. The mage Doppel across from Cyn raised one hand as a faintly glowing sheen passed over its illusionary skin, and she saw a half dozen small sparks of mana appear near the Doppel’s raised hand. Out of the corner of her eye, Cyn saw Scott intercept the warrior Doppel as it attempted to charge past the Guardian, either towards Hex or herself. Scott was pushed back a short distance, but was just barely able to remain on his feet as the Doppel hit his shield head on.

Cyn no longer saw the rogue Doppel or Hex, but she did not have time to be concerned about it as the mage sent the sparks of mana flying in her direction. The guardian Doppel was also charging towards her, but the creature’s speed was low enough that Cyn was forced to be more concerned about the magic. Just before the high-speed magic sparks made impact, Cyn used Soul Slip to take herself to Sam’s position. She would have preferred to target Dana with the skill, but the Archer was not in range on the opposite side of the arena.

One of the sparks just barely grazed Cyn’s cheek as Soul Slip activated, slicing open a thin line of flesh as if she had been struck by razor wire. The wound was minor and easily ignorable as she found herself near to where the Warrior’s sigil was, Sam’s charge towards the warrior Doppel forcing her to turn around to find out where he was. Spinning back towards her previous position allowed Cyn to see the sparks that she had tried to avoid with Soul Slip make a sharp turn back towards her. Must be Magic Missiles.

No one was badly hurt, at least not yet. Cyn could feel Dana somewhere behind her, and Hex was somewhere to one side just out of her vision. If it was not for the Doppel mage, grouping up would probably be the best option for the party. She had not seen the rogue or archer Doppel since they started attacking, but with the other three seemingly intent on targeting her out of the gate Cyn had a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach she would probably be the target of the missing creatures as well.

Before she could come up with a solution to the sparks intent on trailing her, Cyn’s vision went dark.