They all just stare at me with no sign that they understood a word I said. I try saying a few words in elven but I can't even be sure I am saying them correctly. One of the wolves turns to the back of the wall and lets out a couple of barks and a short howl.

Not sure what that means, but I am willing to wait for a bit and see what happens. As I sit there I watch my armor and tabard repair themselves from the damage the spiders did. Having self repairing equipment has saved me so much time and effort.

The beasts continue to stare at me, but as time passes they look a lot less nervous. After a while an old beast arrives, he has the features of a badger, but the colors are off. Instead of black and white, he is gray and white, which could just be due to age.

He is wearing robes and walking with the aid of a cane as he approaches me. The other beasts, even though they are different types, all move aside and bow to the old man. Interestingly as he comes closer I can detect the scent of magic about him.

"Do you understand me?"

Alger says "Yes, I cast a spell to allow us to communicate."

"Oh, great! It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Ash."

Alger says "I am called Alger, the great elder of the clans."

"What can you tell me about the clans? How long have you been down here?"

Alger says "We have been here, at war with the spiders, since the creators sent us down here."

"By creators, I think you are referring to the race I call the elves. I found a book that told of them creating several races from beasts."

Alger says "That would match with our legends."

"So, you have been down here for thousands of years! How have you survived for so long?"

Alger says "Beyond these defensive walls are numerous caverns full of life. They have sustained us since we settled down here."

"And you have been at war with the spider the whole time?"

Alger says "Yes, we will fight them until either they are wiped out or we are. After all, they killed our creators!"

"Oh, I didn't think you were aware of that. How did you find out?"

Alger says "Our creators sent us down here to fight, but they didn't abandon us. In fact they helped us to build our city and the defensive walls. After their city fell, some survivors stayed with us."

"That makes me happy. If they had created you and just abandoned you, then I would have thought less of them."

Alger says "They certainly had their faults, but they treated us well. They even taught us their magic, which is one of the reasons we have survived so long."

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"Are you aware of the barrier? Can you pass through it?"

Alger says "We are aware, but no, we cannot."

"What would you do if the spiders all died and the barrier disappeared?"

Alger says "I'm sure some would stay living as we are, but some would want to see the surface. The sun is a legend to us, but one our souls cry out for."

"That's understandable. Are you the leader? Do you have authority to set up an alliance?"

Alger says "I am one of five elders, together we rule the clans. To form an alliance would take a vote amongst the five of us."

"In that case, I would like to talk to all five of you. If I am going to explain things I would prefer to do it just once."

Alger says "Of course! Come with me."

"Oh, first you should do something about the bodies. If you just leave them the spiders will take them. They will feed them to the mother to give her the energy to lay more eggs."

Alger says "Is that why they always take the bodies of our fallen as well?"

"Yes, the lack of resources is the only thing keeping them in check."

Alger says "So, if we prevent them from getting bodies we can lower their numbers?"

"Yes. It is our best bet for wearing them down."

Alger turns and barks a few times, which sends a large group of the defenders scurrying to clean up the bodies. Then Alger leads me behind the wall and out of the cavern through a series of tunnels. As soon as we exit the tunnels I can see the city, which is a smaller copy of the elven city.

Just from that I would say that at least some of the elves cared about their creations. This city has a completely different feel to it, it is alive and the noise sounds like a heartbeat. As I follow Alger into the city everything stops, all the beasts stop and stare at me as we pass.

Where the central pillar is in the elven city, here there is a massive building. It is designed to look like Core's pillar from the outside, but the inside is far different. The inside contains many rooms on many floors, but it is to a grand hall that Alger leads me.

A round table with six chairs waits within, four of the chairs are already occupied. The four waiting elders consist of a bear, a wolf, a jaguar, and an elephant. They are all extremely old and showing signs of it, but they also all show signs of magic.

While I am not an expert, not since I lost my magic, all five of them feel stronger than Zamart. I am really curious to find out if they have cores and what kind of level they are at. However, scanning them without permission would be rude and might ruin the chances of us working together.

Alger says "Let me introduce you. For the bear clan Ekeerr, for the wolf clan Vyken, for the jaguar clan Lerab, and for the elephant clan Trynt."

"It's a pleasure to meet all of you!"

As the four of them return my greeting Alger takes his seat and motions me to the last one. Then I start telling them my story and some information about the surface world. I also explain the beastmen and how they were created by the humans.

Alger says "They sound similar to us, except we are closer to our beast side."

Vyken says "From what you have said, it sounds like we could get along with them fairly easily. If they would be willing to try."

"Well, I can't speak for all of them. I am not their king yet, but I know some would be willing."

Trynt says "It would be wise if we start small."

"Do you have a secure route up to the elven city?"

Alger says "Yes, it is currently blocked but we could reopen it. Why?"

"I have a group of elite guards who are currently training as mage knights. There are eleven of them in total, and they could use some combat practice."

Trynt says "That's smart. Not only is it a small group, but fighting together will help build trust."

"They are currently the only beastmen, outside my companions, that know of the elven city's existence. I would also like to use them to bring you some things. For starters some better weapons."

Lerab says "Better weapons would be most welcome!"

"Good, that is settled. Now I have a kind of strange request."

Alger says "What is it?"

"I would like permission to scan you."

Ekeerr says "To what purpose?"

"One, to see how the elves made you. It might give me clues for helping my beastmen. I also want to see if you have cores and what kind of progress you have with them."

Alger says "You may scan me."